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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A10024	Sins overthrow: or, A godly and learned treatise of mortification Wherein is excellently handled; first, the generall doctrine of mortification: and then particularly, how to mortifie fornication. Vncleannes. Evill concupiscence. Inordinate affection. and, covetousnes. All being the substance of severall sermons upon Colos. III. V. Mortifie therefore your members, &c. Delivered by that late faithfull preacher, and worthy instrument of Gods glory Iohn Preston, Dr. in Divinity, chaplaine in ordinary to his Majestie, master of Emanuel Colledge in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher of Lincolnes-Inne.	Preston, John, 1587-1628.; Preston, John, 1587-1628. Three godly and learned treatises. Selections. aut	1633 (1633)	STC 20275; ESTC S115103	166,961	286

betweene a man that hath his sinne mortified and one that hath not The first is alway carefull that his sinne come not to action hee is carefull and watchfull over his wayes and heart as well when the Judgement is removed as when he feeles it but the other hinders not sinne longer than the hand of God is upon him remove that and then his care is removed Fifthly sinne may seeme to be removed and mortified when the sap and strength of sinne is dead that is when the strength of Nature is spent As the Lampe goes out when oyle is either not supplyed or taken away and yet the Lampe is still a Lampe for let oyle be supplied and fire put unto it and it will burne so there may be not the action and yet sinne is not mortified in the heart for he is as well affected to sinne as ever hee was onely the sap and strength of nature is gone but if oyle were supplied that is if strength of nature would but returne sinne would be as quick and vigorous as ever it was Sixthly good Education when a man is brought up under good parents or masters he may be so kept under that sinne may seeme to bee mortified but let those be once at their owne ruling then it will appeare that sinne is not mortified in them that is that they have not lost their swinish disposition onely they are kept from fouling of themselves As a Swine so long as she is kept in a faire meadow cannot foule her selfe but if you give her liberty to goe whither shee list shee will presently be wallowing in the mire even so these are ashamed to defile themselves whilest they are under good education but opportunity being offered it will soone appeare sinne is not mortified The Use of this briefly is for Examination unto every one to enter into his owne heart and exam●ne himselfe by these rules whether his sinne be mortified or no and accordingly to judge of him else The second Question is for the comforting of weake Christians Seeing there is corruption in the heart how shall I know that the lusts and stirrings of the heart proceed from a wounded Corruption or else is the Action of an unmortified lust To this I answer You shall know them by these rules First you shall know whether the lust in the heart be mortified and proceed from a wounded heart or no by the ground of it that is if it proceed from the right root or arise from a deepe humiliation wrought upon the soule either by the Law or by the Judgement of God whereby the Conscience is awakened to see sinne in its ownenature and then a raising up of the soule by the apprehension of the love of God in Christ and out of a love unto God to beginne to mortifie sinne if the heart in this case doe fight against the spirit that is the lust of the heart it is because it hath received the deadly wound but if it bee not our of love unto God that thou mortifiest sinne if thy heart in this case have much rebellion in it whatsoever thou thinkest of thy selfe sinne is not mortified in thee Every thing proceeds from some Cause if the Cause be good the Effect must needs bee good likewise as for instance if the tree be good the fruit must be good but if the tree be evill the fruit cannot be good Let every man therefore examine himselfe upon this ground Secondly you shall know it by the generality of it For Mortification is generall and as death is unto the members of the body so is Mortification unto the members of sinne now you know that the nature of death is tos ize upon all the members of the body it leaves life in none so where true Mortification is it leaves life in no sinne that is it takes away the commanding power of sinne For what is the life of sinne but the power of sinne take away this power and you take away this life Therefore it is not sufficient to mortifie one sin but you must mortifie all sins to which purpose the holy Apostle here bids them Mortifie when he had exhorted them unto the generall of mortification then he subjoynes divers particulars as Fornication Uncleannesse of which hereafter God assisting you shall heare Hence then you learne it will not be sufficient for you to leave your covetousnesse but you must leave your pide you vaine-glory So also when thou hast slaine sinne in thy understanding thou must mortifie it in thy will and affections slay sinne first in thy soule and then slay it in the parts of thy body and so examine your selves whether you finde this worke of Mortification to be generall Thirdly you shall know whether your lust be mortified by this Looke if there be an equality betweene the life of grace and the death of corruption that is if you find grace in measure answerable unto the measure of corruption which is mortified in thee it is a signe thy sinne is mortified for as thereis a dying unto sinne so there will be a quickening unto holinesse seeing the new man will beginne to revive when the old man begins to dye Grace will grow strong when Corruption growes weake and therefore the Apostle saith Grow in Grace and in the knowledge of our Lord Iesus Christ 2 Pet. 3. 18. As if he should say you shall find by this whether the corruption of nature be slaine in you if you stand fast as in the former verse which you cannot doe unlesse grace grow except there be a proportion betwixt the life of grace and the death of corruption Therefore examine your selves by this whether you doe finde that you are quickned in grace to pray or heare which is an excellent signe that sinne is mortified Fourthly you shall know whether your lasts are mortified by the continuance of them For if sinne be mortified and have received her deadly wound it will bee but for the present it will not continue it may well rage and trouble thee for a time but it is onely now and then by fits whereas an unmortified lust ever rageth It is with sinne in this case as it is with a man that hath received his deadly wound from his enemy hee will not presently flye away but will rather runne more violently upon him that hath wounded him yet let him bee never so violent in the middle of the action hee sinkes downe when hee thinkes to doe the most harme then hee is the most unable because hee hath received his deadly wound whereby hee hath lost the strength and power of nature which otherwise might have prevailed so it will bee with sinne and with a mortified lust it may rage in the heart and seeme to beare sway and rule over thee as lord but the power and strength of sinne is mortified and sinkes downe wanting ability to prevaile and why because it hath received its deadly wound

Christ vers 15. The Temples of the holy Ghost vers 19. Are bought with a price vers 20. and then concludes Therefore glorifie God in your bodies and so in another place it is said We ought to possesse our vessels in honour Now there can be no greater meanes to dishonour the vessels of our bodies than to pollute them by this filthy sinne of Fornication Secondly the haynousnesse of this sinne will be the better seene if we consider the fearefull punishment of it which because men are more afraid of the evill of punishment than of the evill of sinne is therefore set downe to be the greater according to the greatnesse of the sinne it selfe as may appeare by these two reasons First God himselfe takes the punishment hereof into his owne hand for so saith the Apostle Heb. 13 4. Wh●remongers and Aulderers God will iudge that God himselfe will bee the judge of all men for the godly indeed it shall be best because he is righteous and will render to them a Crowne but for the wicked It is a fearefullthing to fall into the hands of the living God Againe God reserves such filthy persons for an heavy judgement according to that of Peter 2 Pet. 2 9 10. The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the uniust unto the day of iudgment to be punished but chiefly them that walke in the lust of uncleannesse And this is manifest in that fearefull and grievous iudgment hee brought upon the children of Israel in the wildernesse when as there fell in one day three and twenty thousand for the committing of this sinne 1 Cor. 10. 8 So God punished Ruben for his sinne in that hereby he lost his Excellency Ge. 49. 4. and by losing this he lost three things which belonged to his birth-right as hee was the eldest first the Kingdome which was given to Iudah Secondly the Priest-hood which Levi had Thirdly the double portion which his father bestowed on Ioseph Further Sichem and Ammon also for their filthinesse in this kinde were taken away suddenly And how was David punished though the deare childe of God the sword shall never depart from thy house c. See also what grievous iudgments the Lord threatens to them that shall commit this sin Prov. 5. 8 9 10 11. Remove thy way farre from her meaning the strange woman or harlot and come not nigh the doore of her house Lest thou give thine honor unto others and thy yeeres unto the cruell Left strangers be filled with thy wealth and thy labours be in the house of a stranger and thou mourne at the last when thy flesh and thy body is consumed c. So againe Prov. 6. 33. Who so committeth adultery destroyeth his owne soule and Pro. 5. 5. Her feet goe downe to death her steps take hold on hel as who should say there is no escaping death but by shunning her if not death temporal yet surely death eternall nay if this will not fright you there is no escaping betweene hell and her Besides as in that which is good the more a man delights the more comfort it will bring him according to that in Pro. 3. 4. Let not mercy and truth forsake thee so shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and Man so on the contrary those sinnes wherein ae man most delights bring greatest punishment unto him as you may see in the punishment of Babylon Revel 8. 7 where it is said How much she hath glorified her selfe and lived deliciously so much torment and sorrow give her Thus then yee see the grievousnesse of the punishment proves the sinne it selfe to be more haynous and fearfull Thirdly the ha●nousnesse of this sinne will appeare if we consider the danger therof and difficulty to get out when we are once fallen into it The Wise-man s●●h Prov. 23. 27. A w●o●e is a deepe ditch and a strange woman is a narrow pi● Now as it is almost impossible for a man in a deep d●tch or a narrow pit to get out without some helpe from another so is it altogether impossible for one that is fallen into this sinne of Fornication to free himselfe from it without the speciall assistance of Gods grace helping him thereto and therefore it is said Prov 2. 19. None that goe unto her returne againe neither take they hold of the paths of life therefore also is Eccels 7. 26. her heart said to he snares and nets in respect of the entanglements wherewith shee intrappeth her followers and her hands to bee as bands in respect of the difficulty to get loosed from This sinne beso●ted Salomon the wisest among men Neverthelesseeven him did outlandish women cause to sinne Nehe. 13. 26. So also did it bewitch Sampson the strongest amongst men one that was consecrated and set apart as holy unto God even hee was overcome hereby as wee may reade Iudg. 16. Wee know by experience as a man that is tumbling from the top of an hill there is no staying for him till hee come unto the bottome so hee that hath once ventured upon this deepe pit and beginnes to slide into it there is no staying of him till hee bee utterly lost in the bottome thereof or as a man in a quick-sand the more hee stirres the faster hee stickes in and sinkes deeper so it is with him that is once overtaken with this filthy sinne the more hee stirres in it the faster hee stickes and harder will it bee for him to get out Therefore wee conclude this sinne is a most fearefull sinne and hard to be overcome or left off if once accustomed to the delight thereof Fourthly the haynousnesse of this sinne will be discovered if wee consider the deceitfulnesse of it it doth so bewitch us that we will hardly be perswaded that it is a sinne now if wee will not beleeve itto bee a sinne much lesse will wee bee brought to leave the sweetnesse of it to forsake the pleasure wee finde in it Besides the Devill that old Serpent hee comes and tells it is either no sinne at all or else but a small sinne and may be easily left wee may turne from it when wee please and so he dandles us till we grow to such an height as wee become insensible and hardned in it Here therefore I will lay downe the deceits that Satan useth to beguile us in this sinne which being detected we may the easilier shunne and avoyd this detestable and bewitching uncleannesse The first deceit wherewith Satan useth to beguile us is Hope of repentance wee thinke wee can repent when wee list that that is in our owne power for God will upon any of our prayers bee heard of us heaven gate will bee open at first knocke and therefore I'lecommit this sinne to day and to morrow betake my selfe to my prayers and all shall be well But beware of this lest you

be deceived God will not be mocked if you will sinne to day perhaps you shall not live to repent till to morrow or suppose thou dost live yet he that is unfit to day will be more unfit to morrow God cannot endure a man that will fall into the same sinne againe and againe for he stiles it Deut. 29. 19. adding drunkennesse to thirst thatis never leave drinking till wee bee athirst againe that which should extinguish and abate our thirst is made the meanes to increase and enflame it Now what punishment followes such as doe so you read in the next verse and 't is a fearefull punishment The Lord will not spare him and then the anger of the Lord and his jealousie shall smoke against that man and all the curses that are written in this booke shall lye upon him and the Lord shall blot out his name from under heaven who is there among you that would not bee terrified at this sentence Surely his heart is of Adamant nothing can pierce it if this doth not 't is a fearefull thing to fall into the hands of the living God Beware then of doing thus goe not on in sinne upon hope to repent at your pleasure lest before you thinke it time for your pleasureto doe it in the hand of the Lord be stretched out upon thee and his jealousie smoke against thee or one of if not all his curses light upon thee A man would take it ill if his neighbour should wrong him to day and as soone as he had done aske pardon and yet wrong him againe the next day in the same kinde and then aske pardon againe and so the third and fourth and forward even so it is with God we fall into this sinne to day and perhaps at night begge pardon of him yet to morrow commit the same sinne over againe as if wee had asked leave to sinne the fr●er take heed of this doe not blesse thy selfe in thy heart saying I shall have peace or I shall repent when I list for feare lest God presently blot out thy name from under heaven Againe Hope of after-repentance doth lead many men on to the commission of this sinne they hope they may repent before death it is a great while till this come therefore time enough to doethis in But this God hath threatned you heard even now in the place above-mentioned I pray consider of it Balaam his desire was but to dye the death of the righteous therefore hee perished among Gods enemies he desired it and whilest hee remained onely desiring without any labour to live the life of the righteous God justly punished him with an utter overthrow as hee did with those Esay 28. 15 who said Wee have made a covenant with death and with hell are wee at agreement when the overflowing scourge shall passe through it shall not come unto us These men thought all sure nothing could come to hurt them they are as well as any man for they had an agreement with hell and death neither should the scourge meddle with them but these were but their owne thoughts they reckoned without their host as we use to say for see what God saith to them vers 18. Your Covenant with death shall bee dis anulled and your agreement with hell shall not stand when the overflowing scourge shall passe through then yee shall be trodden downe by it They might contrive but hee would dispose though they did thinke all well and hope for peace and quietnesse yet hee would disanull their covenant and breakc off their agreement so that the overflowing scourge that is sudden destruction should take hold of them and utterly confound them Ammon going to his brother Absalom's feast little thought to have beene so soone cut off Sichem preparing himselfe for a wife never thought of a funerall neither is it likely that Korah and his company thought their tent-dores should be their graves I warrant you they hop'd for repentance yet this sudden destruction tookeaway all possibility of repenting from them Godthreatneth such Ezek. 24. 13. Because I have purged thee and thou wast not purged thou shalt not be purged from thy filthinesse any more till I have caused my fury to rest upon thee And indeed wee cannot repent unlesse God sends his Spirit into our hearts and hee will not send his Spirit into such an heart as hath filthinesse in it Will any man put liquor into a glasse where Toads and Spiders are much lesse will Gods Spirit come into an heart that is uncleane Besides such a man as is not purged from his uncleannesse of himselfe is most indisposed to repentance hee is without feeling as it is Ephes. 4. 19. Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousnesse to worke all uncleannesse with greedinesse Now such a man as hath no sense of his misery that cannot feele his wretc●ed condition but is insensible of his corruption hee can never repent for as the Apostle saith 2 Pet. 2. 14. Hee cannot cease from sinne and where there is not leaving off and forsaking to sin there can never be any true repentance Lastly God refuseth such a man hee will not endure to heare him if hee should begge repentance at his hands and the reason is because hee cannot beg it in sincerity for true repentance argues a turning from and loathing of all sinne and therefore such a purpose as men use to have in the time of extremity while the crosse is on them that they will forsake sinne that they will not doe such and such a thing this I say will not serve the turne it is not sufficient though they should mourne and seeme to repent yet God will not accept it for the very beasts may doe as much as it is said Therefore shall the land mourne and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish with the beasts of the field and with the fowles of heaven c. Hos. 4. 3. The second deceit wherewithall Satan useth to deceive men is Present impunitie he labours to perswade us because wee are not presently punished therefore God sees it not or will not punish it at all and therefore will goe on in our sinne and delight to wallow still in our pollutions according to that of the Preacher Eccles. 8. 11. Because sentence against an evill worke is not executed speedily therefore the hearts of the sonnes of men is fully set in them to doe evill Against this deceit of Satan to prevent it lest wee should bee overtaken thereby letus remember these following considerations Consider first that though execution bee not presently done yet punishments are every where threatned and Gods threatning is as good as payment his Word is sure and one tittle of it shall not fall to the ground unfulfilled and when God beginnes to punish he will make an end as it is said 1 Sam. 3. 12. In that day I will performe against Eli all things which I have spoken

what Saint Peter saith 2 Pet. 5. 8. where he exhorteth the brethren to be sober and v●gilant from no other reason but only this Because your adversary the devill as a a roaring Lion walketh about seeking whom hee may devoure the same shall be my argument of perswasion unto all of you to beware of the Divell to looke to your selves lest hee should deceive you and entice you into the same sinne againe Secondly for those that are guilty of this sinne still but would faine be rid of the sore burthen which lyes heavy upon their Consciences Let them use these helpes First labour to get assurance of the pardon and forgivenesse of it No man can be assured of the love of Christ till he be assured of his love and favour in the free pardoning and remission of his sinnes for how can a man have peace and quietnesse without this hee is still in feare of Gods wrath and vengeance to light upon him and where there is such a seare and dread it is not likely there should bee any love And therefore in rhe first place get thy sinnes pardoned Secondly labour to have a sense and feeling of thy sinne this is a chiefe thing to be obtained for where there is no sense there cannot be any remorse or sorrow for sinne without which there can be no turning from sinne much lesse any hatred and detestation of it Now this sense and feeling is wrought in us by Gods Spirit and therefore thou must goe to God by true and hearty prayer that hee would bee pleased to illuminate thee by his Spirit that so thou maist see the miserable and wretched condition thou art in by reason of this sinne Thirdly lay hold on the Promises and apply them to thy selfe make them thine owne for whatsoever a mans sinnes bee if hee can come to thirst after pardon to desire that before other things in a right way and to a right end then hee may be sure he hath the Promises belonging unto him If he will take them they are his owne Christ is his if he will take him onely he must take him aright as well to be his Lord as his Redeemer his Lord to governe and rule him by his Lawes and Commandements as well as his Redeemer to save him by the merit of his death and passion Christ offers himselfe to him Revel 22 17. saying Let him that is athirst come and whosoever will let him take the waters of life freely and what greater love can Christ shew than to set himselfe out for all to take him and that freely too In the dayes of his flesh who had more good by him than the Publicans and sinners them he called them he saved the poore diseased wretches how ready was hee to heale them even so he is still hee is every whit as ready to save thee to heale thee as he was them if thou wilt come unto him and endevour to lay hold on him To neglect Christ thus offered unto thee is to trample under foot the Sonne of God and to count the blond of the Covenant an unholy thing Heb. 10. 29. now what thinke ye shall be done unto such read that place and you shall finde that a much sorer punishment than death without mercy they are worthy of and are likely to undergoe You read what was done to those that despised the invitation of the King to his Marriage-feast Matth. 22. 7. When the King beard thereof hee was wroth and sent forth his armies and destroyed those murtherers and burnt up their City In like manner will hee deale with thee if thou despisest the offer of his gracious Promises now made to thee hee will account thee but as a murtherer and will destroy both the● and thy City that is all that belongs unto thee Take heed therefore that thou now layest hold on his Promises and makest them thine owne Fourthly Use abstinencie and fasting for thereby thou mayst get the mastery over thy sinne give it altogether peremptory denials suffer it not to delight thee in the least cogitation and tickling conceit It will be easie to abstaine feom it when the deniall is peremptory if we cannot put out a sparke how shall we put out a flame If wee get not the mastery over the first motion to sinne much lesse shall wee be able to overcome it when it is brought to maturity in action Sinne is like the water give it the least way and we cannot stay it runne it will in despight of us and as a streame riseth by little and little one showre encreasing it and another making it somewhat bigger so sinne riseth by degrees Iam. 1. 14 15. it is said But every man is tempted when he is drawne away of his owne lust and enticed Then when lust hath conceived it bringeth forth sinne and sinne when it is finished bringeth forth death Where observe three degrees in sinne first temptation secondly conception and thirdly perturbation or bringing forth So also Hebr. 3. it is said of the Israelites that lust in them brought forth hardnesse of heart Beware therefore of the beginnings and occasions of sinne and accustome thy selfe to use abstinence thereby to master thy lust Fifthly Another helpe may be to resolve against it to make Vowes and Covenants with out selves not to fall into any occasion that might bee an allurement unto it Let us binde our selves from things indifferent at first and then afterward from the unlawfull temptations And that wee may doe it the more easily let us make our vowes for a certaine time at first but for a little while afterward for a longer season and then at last when we have more strength for ever But some man will here be ready to object and say I finde my selfe exceeding weake and unable to keepe such Vowes and Covenants What shall I doe then who shall be in danger every day to breake them and so be guilty of a double sinne To this I answer If our frailty herein were a sufficient argument then would there bee no Vowes at all What though thou beest weake and fraile and so subject to breake thy promises in this kinde yet remember that they are Gods Ordinances and hee will put to his helping hand to enable thee hee will blesse and prosper what ever thou dost vow or promise this way as an Ordinance that hee hath commanded Againe as thou seest thy selfe more weake and subject to infringe those vowes so bee sure to use the greater care and diligence to keepe them be so much the more vigilant to avoyd all occasions that might tempt thee to breake them Sixthly Another helpe may be to proportion the remedie to the disease as thy lusts are greater so use greater abstinence make stronger vowes against them As in a place where the tide beats strongly there the banke must bee stronger so where the current and tide of thy lusts runne more

muddy and will not alwaies continue Wherefore pitch your affections upon the true substantiall good not on vanities If wee see a man come to an Orchard full of goodly fruits and hee should onely catch at the shadow of them netling his hands and spending his labour in vaine we would account him either a foole or a mad man yet we in the cleare Sunshine of the Gospell such is our madnesse catch and seeke after shadowes with trouble of minde and sorrow of heart neglecting the substance Secondly consider that you seeke your happinesse the wrong way that is you seeke it in wordly things they are not able to helpe you because they reach not to the inward man the body is but the sheath and case our happinesse lyes not in it So in the Creatures their happinesse consists not in themselves but in something else It lyes in observing the rule which God hath appointed for them The fire observing the rule which God hath given it is sure so of water and so of all creatures animate and inanimate their happinesse consisteth in observing the rules which God hath prescribed to them The law of God is a rule that we must walke by following it as a rule wee are happy that doing well and observing the Commaundements makes us happy He that keepeth the Commandements shall live in them He that departeth from them is dead Every motion of the fish out of the water is towards death but every motion of it in the water is to life So let mans motions be towards God and then they are motions to life but let him move after outward things and it is a motion towards death and misery and therefore if you seeke this comfort from outward things you goe the wrong way to get it Thirdly consider that you make a wrong choise you seeke not that which will doe it if you seeke for this comfort in God all is in one place but if you seeke for it in the creatures you must have a multitude of them to comfort you If that they could comfort you you must have health wealth honour friends and many other things but there is one thing only will doe it if you goe the right way to get it you shall finde it onely in God Martha shee was troubled about many things when as one thing onely was necessary If you looke for comfort in earthly things you must have a thousand things to help to it But godlines which hath the promises of this life and of the life to come doth yeeld this comfort of it selfe if you seeke it in it It is a great advantage for us to have all the comforts in one thing Godlinesse onely hath all these comforts therefore seeke them in it Fourthly consider that that comfort and happinesse which you have from the creature is but a dependant felicity and it is so much the worse because it depends on the creature which is mutable and uncertaine how much better is it to depend on God in whom is no shadow of variety or change Every creature is weaker by how much it hath dependance on another and so are you weaker by how much the more you depend on outward things If you depend on friends they may change their affections and become your enemies or death may take them away and then your happinesse is gone If you depend on riches Pro. 23. 5. Wilt thou set thine eye on that which is not for riches certainely make themselves wings and flye away as an Eagle towards heaven and then your happines is gone but if you seeke for and place your happinesse in God in whom is no change or alteration then it is perpetuall A dependencie on things that are mutable will yeeld no comfort because GOD will have all to depend on himselfe Therefore the 1. Cor. 1. 30. Christ of God is made unto us wisedome and righteousnesse and sanctification and redemption that no flesh might rejoyce in it selse but that he that glorieth might glory in the Lord for this end God hath convayed Christ unto us that hee might make us beleeve that wee fare not the better for any Creature and that so wee might rejoyce onely in the Lord Therefore he hath made Christ redemption from all evill that hee might furnish us with all good Christ hath redeemed us from hell and miserie and from want of good things seeke not then a dependencie on the Creature thinke not that it will better you and this will make you to depend on Christ Therefore for these regards correct your opinion of worldly and outward things and judge of them with righteous judgement depend onely on God if you will have him to be your portion as he was the Levites refuse him not as the Israelites did depend upon him in good earnest A little you say with Gods blessing will doe much Labour not therefore neither toyle you to leave great portions to your children the common pretence that men have for their covetousnesse for though you leave them never so much if Gods blessing be not on it it is nothing it can yeeld them no comfort yea many times it is an occasion of their hurt If then Gods blessing be all in all if that onely can administer comfort and make us happy I would aske you this question What if you did leave your children onely Gods blessing would it not be sufficient though you left them little or nothing else you thinke not so and yet whatsoever you can leave them without Gods blessing is nothing worth Preachers labour much in this to draw you from worldly things and all to little purpose It must be Gods teaching that perswades within which must effect it you must therefore take paines with your hearts the generality of the disease shewes that it is hard to be cured labour therefore to finde out the deceites which hinder your practise of these things which are these One deceit that deceives them is that they are ready to say that those things are the blessings of God Why should we not rejoyce in them so afflictions they are crosses and therefore grieve for them If these then did not adde to our blessednesse why count wee them blessings and account poverty as a crosse To this I answere that if you take them as blessings you may rejoyce in them as the instruments by which God doth you good blessings are relative words they have reference unto God if you consider them without reference to him they cease to bee blessings Therefore if you consider them meerely as blessings you may rejoyce in them Now yee receive them as blessings First if you depend upon God for the disposing continuing and want of them if you thinke you shall enjoy them no longer then God will If you thinke thus with your selves wee have wives children friends and riches 't is true we haue them but yet they shal not cōtinue with us an houre or minute longer then