excellently handled already by so many of our brave Worthies See Mr. Baxters Saints Rest and R. A. his Vindicia Pietatis XII DIRECTION If you would be acquainted with God resolvedly and freely given up your self to him and enter into a most solemn Covenant with him And here I shall make bold with that Reverend Author which R. A. doth mention in his Vindicia Pietatis and present you again with that excellent Form with the preparatories to it which I have lately met with in the forementioned Author After your most serious addresses to God and after a deliberate consideration of the terms of this Covenant and after a thorow search of your own heart whether you either have already or can now freely make such a closure with God in Christ as you have been exhorted to And when you have composed your spirits into the most serious frame possible suitable to a transaction of so high a nature Lay hold upon the Covenant and reply upon his promise of giving grace and strength whereby you may be enabled to perform your promise Resolve in the next place to be faithful having engaged your hearts and opened your mouths and subscribed with your hands to the Lord resolve in his strength never to go back And being thus prepared and some convenient time being set apart for the purpose set upon the work in the most solemn manner possible as if the Lord were visibly present before your eyes fall down on your knees and spreading forth your hands towards Heaven open your hearts to the Lord in these or the like words O most dreadful God for the Passion of thy Son I beseech thee accept of thy poor Prodigal now prostrating himself at thy door I have fallen from thee by mine Iniquity and am by Nature a Son of Death and a thousand fold more the Child of Hell by my Wicked Practise but of thine infinite Grace thou hast promised Mercy to me in Christ if I will but turn to thee with all my Heart Therefore upon the Call of the Gospel I am now come in and throwing down my Weapons submit my self to thy mercy And because thou requirest as the Condition of my Peace with thee that I should put away mine Idols and be at defiance with all thine Enemies which I acknowledge I have wickedly sided with against thee I here from the bottome of mine Heart renounce them all freely covenanting with thee not to allow my self in any known Sin but conscientiously to use all the means that I know thou hast prescribed for the Death and utter Destruction of all my Corruptions And whereas I have formerly inordinately and Idolatriously let out my Affections upon the World I do here resign my heart to thee that madest it Humbly protesting before thy glorious Majesty that it is the firm Resolution of my Heart and that I do unfeignedly desire grace from thee that when thou shalt call me hereunto I may practice this my Resolution through thy Assistance to forsake all that is dear unto me in this World rather than to turn from thee to the ways of sin And that I will watch against all its Temptations whether of Prosperity or Adversity lest they should withdraw my Heart from thee beseeching thee also to help me against the Temptations of Satan to whose suggestions I resolve by thy Grace never to yield my self a Servant And because mine own Righteousness is but menstruous Rags I renounce all Confidence therein and acknowledge that I am of my self a hopeless helpless undone Creature without righteousness or strength And for as much as thou hast of thy bottomless Mercy offered most graciously to me wretched sinner to be again my God through Christ if I would accept of thee I call Heaven and Earth to record this day that I do here solemnly avouch thee for the Lord my God and with all possible Veneration bowing the Neck of my Soul under the Feet of thy most Sacred Majesty I do here take thee the Lord Jehovah Father Son and Holy Ghost for my Portion and chief good and do give up my self Body and Soul for thy Servant promising and vowing to serve thee in holiness and righteousness all the dayes of my life And since thou hast appointed the Lord Jesus Christ the only means of coming unto thee I do here upon the bended Knees of my Soul accept of him as the only new and living way by which sinners may have access to thee and do here solemnly joyn my self in a Marriage Covenant to him O blessed Jesus I come to thee hungry and hardly bestead poor and wretched and miserable and blind and naked a most loathsome polluted wretch a guilty condemned Malefactor unworthy for ever to wash the feet of the Servants of my Lord much more to be solemnly Married to the King of Glory But since such is thine unparall'd Love I do here with all my power accept thee for my Head and Husband for better for worse for richer for poor for all times and conditions to Love and Honour and Obey thee before all others and this to the Death I embrace thee in all thy Offices I renounce mine own worthiness and do here avow thee to be the Lord my righteousness I renounce mine own wisdom and do here take thee for mine only Guide I renounce mine own will and take the will for my Law And since thou hast told me that I must suffer if I will reign I do here covenant with thee to take my Lot as it falls with thee and by thy Grace assisting to run all hazards with thee verily supposing that neither life nor death shall part between thee and me And because thou hast been pleased to give me thy Holy Law as the rule of my life and the way in which I should walk to thy Kingdom I do here willingly put my Neck under thy Yoke and set my shoulders to thy Burden and subscribing to all thy Laws as Holy Just and Good I solemnly take them as the rule of my Words Thoughts and Actions Promising that though my flesh contradict and rebel yet I will endeavour to order and govern my whole life according to thy direction and will not allow my self in the neglect of any thing that I know to be my duty Only because through the frailty of my flesh I am subject to many failings I am bold humbly to protest that unhallowed miscarriages contrary to the setled bent and resolution of my heart shall not make void this Covenant for so thou hast said Now Almighty God searcher of hearts thou knowest that I make this Covenant with thee this day without any known guile or reservation beseeching thee that if thou espiest any flaw or falshood herein thou wouldest discover it to me and help me to do it a right And now glory be to thee O God the Father whom I shall be bold from this day forward to look upon thee as my God and Father That ever thou shouldest
joyfully into another world and this I say again a man acquainted with God may do he hath this to comfort him death doth more properly give him life then take it away from him and that as soon as he is dead his sin shall dye too and his grace live and act without controul then he shall live a life of joy a life of perfect holiness such a life as Saints and Angels live such a life as Christ lives the life of God a life without death an everlasting life and why then should he be afraid of dying As for his old Companion the body it is gon to rest and will ere long be awakened and rise from his bed more vigorous and fit for those Noble imployments which it must be engaged in for ever and Soul and Body shall meet with more comfort then now they part with pain when the body shall be in another kind of dress then now it wears and that also shall in some respects be like the Soul agil holy immortal This is such a man that I can call happy and so ere long will those that now scorn and persecute him call him too Blessed is he that in his life is holy and cheerful but most cheerful and perfect at his death This is the happy portion of Gods acquaintance this is the heritage of the Friends of the Bridegroom I have read of a wise man that would commend and be thankful for every thing because he was sure a friend of his had the management of every thing whose understanding was infinite and whose wisdom was unsearchable who could would work his own honour and his Friends comfort out of every thing yea though seemingly evil for the greater the evil seems to be the greater will be the real kindness which makes so much good out of it O but I have lately lost many of my most neer and precious relations If thou art one of Gods Friends let me tell thee for thy comfort you will meet them at your Friends house when you come thither It was no unsuitable advice that he gave to his Friend Lucilius to cheer him up after the loss of a dear Friend Let us consider my dear Lucilius that we our selves should be glad to be in that place and to enjoy that company which you are so sad that your Friend is gon to and he that you say is lost is not so but happy before you We do not judge rightly of things Well then would you know what a man is would you pass a true estimate of him and understand his worth and value Why then consider the man without his riches lay aside his honours take away all his externals from him nay further le ts see the man raked out of his body and how doth the Soul look is it now rich beautiful joyful can it stand confidently before God doth it appear cheerfully in the presence of it's maker Why this is something It matters not much whether his body were fed with Pulse or Dainties cloathed with Rags or Scarlet it matters not whether his Soul went out of his mouth or at a wound whether he dyed in bed of doun or in flames Methinks by this time you should be ready to think that Religion is an excellent thing that Gods acquaintance is desirable and that no life is like the life of a Christian all whose sorrows end in joys whose miseries make him more happy whose shame for Christ will make for his glory In a word whose death brings him into life This is the generation of them that seek thee that seek thy face O Jacob. 5. Another effect of acquaintance with God is That it will make us more highly to honour him Here familiarity is far from breeding contempt Those that are stangers to God see not his worth and excellency they honour him not but they have the most vile low contemptible thoughts of the infinitely glorious Majesty and they think any thing will serve his turn they make more bold with him then they would do with a man like themselves they put him off with the leavings of the world When they have been feeding their lusts and serving their pleasures and gratifying the Devil all the day long then they come between sleep and awake and pretend a great deal of love to him and anger with themselves for their sin whereas God knows they do but play the hyprocrites in all they do mean nothing that they say Lip-devotion knee-religion God shall have and but a little of that too and that pitiful stuff that they present him with they think God is very much beholding to them for As for the sanctifying the Lord God in their hearts as for inward hearty-love as for high prizings and admirings of God as for a real honouring of God and worshipping of him in Spirit and in Truth it is that which they understand not and as for them which do they laugh at them as if they were guilty of the greatest folly in the world But now he which converseth with God beholds such a beauty excellency majesty and glory in him that it is ready quite to swallow up his soul he speaks much of God but yet he thinks more he wonders that a God of such infinite goodness should be no more loved that a God of such infinite greatness justice and holiness should be no more feared that a God of such unspeakable power should be no more obeyed and while he remembers his own contempt of God in former times and the too mean thoughts that he hath at present of him he doth even stand astonished to think that he should be on this side the state of the damned He that before thought every thing too much for God now thinks nothing enough for him The man is strangely changed by his new acquaintance so that he may not improperly be called a New man all things are new with him In honor to this new guest he hath got on new cloaths he is clâ—â— with Righteousness as with a garment new food it is his meat and drink to do the will of his Father which is in Heaven new drink Wine on the Lees well refined he draws all out of those wells of Consolation the Promises he hath new thoughts words and actions God invisibles and all the things of faith are now Substances with him Now the threats or promises of a God are not counted small matters Heaven Hell and Eternity go for the greatest Realities because God saith they are such So he that sometimes lived without God in the world had no respect at all to his glory but valued himself and his most base lust and the Devil himself before God doth now respect Gods glory in all that he doth he ventures upon nothing deliberately but what may please him Religion runs through all he doth he eats he drinks and sleeps and cloaths himself he prayes he works he recreates himself with a design for God The grand project he
happy when poor scorned tormented and banished in a word happy in all conditions O that I could but talk with such a man O that I could see such a spectacle such a one as my eyes never yet beheld Why I will tell thee the reason of it O Epictetus It is because thou never sawest a Christian one that was acquainted with God for let me tell the world Through Grace I have seen such a sight and do believe it to be the most lovely sight on this side Heaven I have seen one smiling when his Jaws have been falling and eye-strings breaking rejoycing when most about him were weeping and accounting it a high act of patience to be willing to live and how do you like such a condition Is it better to lie quivering shaking and groaning or rejoycing and praysing and admiring of free grace and setting forth the riches of Gods love and goodnesse which of these would you chuse I can easily believe that few are so bad but that they could be contented as well as Balaam to dye the death of the righteous and to have their latter end like his But would you dye joyfully why then you must live holily get acquainted with God and then this may be your state I remember Seneca speaks of one Pacuvius who when he was drunk cry'd out 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I have been alive very merrily But had he well understood himself he would have thought be bad had much better reason to have cryed out I am dead I am dead But however what he said ungroundly and wickedly a child of God may easily and thankfully say when he is going to his last sleep he may with joy and cheerfulness say I have lived and through grace I have kept a fair correspondency with my God my Friend whom I am now going to dwell with for ever Do not think therefore that I come to take away your comforts and joys when I come to perswade you to get acquaintance with God no such matter I would have you learn to rejoyce but yet I would that that joy should be born from above that the foundation of it should be the knowledg of your interest in Gods love Other joys may make you have a smiling countenance but they do not raise and fill the Soul for I must tell you I am far from thinking that every one that laughs is joyful and without fears Give me a man that knows that God is his portion and Heaven his inheritance that knows with what Friend and in what a happy state he shall live in after death this this is the cheerful man such one as this is can overlook momentany sorrows he understands full well that the case will be quickly altered with him and the thoughts of Eternal happiness do swallow up his temporal miseries Tell one of Gods acquaintance of poverty he values is not as long as he knows he hath a brave estate that can't be confiscated riches that none can take from him a treasure that thieves can't break through to and steal As for all worldly things he knows that before a few years are over he must part with them however he is of that mans mind who having a considerable sum of money and precious Jewels hid in his saddle and a little odd mony in his pocket was set upon by thieves who readily went to his pocket and took what was there and look't no further Now the man scaping clear with his main treasure is so joyful that he takes no notice of what was stole from him Thus a child of God if he lose his estate his liberty and all his outward injoyments he counts all these but inconsiderable as long as his Soul is fafe his great treasure is out of their reach Tell him of torments racks flames or what the policy of Hell can invent he is not ignorant of this that the more he suffers for Christs sake the greater cause he hath to rejoyce to be exceeding glad for great shall be his reward in heaven and while they add to his sufferings they add to his glory and though against their will while they would injure him they do him the greatest kindness this light affliction works for him a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory As long as his torments want that dreadful Epithite Eternal he doth not much pass the thoughts of Gods love makes mans hatred inconsiderable O how sweet are the thoughts of his Friend when his enemies are most bitter Blessed be God as for those intolerable torments he knows it 's beyond mans power and far from Gods will to inflict them upon him and so long he cares not much All other tortures are but a Flea-bite to the pains of Hell and an enraged Conscience he can almost dare the world the devil to do their worst as being confident of this that as long as he is dear to God his Soul is out of their reach Threaten him with banishment he remembers that he hath a friend that will find him out and bear him company wheresoever he is Tell him of the barbarous unkindness and treachery of former Friends he reads that his betters have been worse handled by their pretended Friends above all this cheers him to think that all his Friends will not serve him so he hath one Friend that will never forsake him never be unfaithful to him Now bring a wicked man upon Earth that is without his sorrows I know there is none no not one there is none of them all but if he were within the sight of those devouring flames would tremble Those that have wickedness enough to dare God will not have courage enough to look him in the face when he shall appear in flaming fire to execute vengeance upon the ungodly he that will not now be troubled at the doing of wickedness will be troubled hereafter at the suffering for it Let sinners say what they will I am sure they can't be long without fears to behold Christ and his dear Servants coming together in the Clouds with Millions of mighty Angels to judge the world I am confident it will be such an amazing sight as can't choose but cool their courage and make the stoutest heart of them all to ake I am sure that as light as they make of Damnation and Gods displeasure that the day is coming when they will believe it was no such cowardise to be afraid of an angry God to flye from the wath to come and to run away from so formidable an enemy as sin So that it 's clear that a wicked man will first or last be a fearfull man a Magor missakib Fear on every side shall be his name But now he that doth exceedingly fear to offend God need not exceedingly to fear any thing else and he that fears no God hath cause enough to fear every thing O Sirs it 's a brave thing to be able to take death cheerfully by the hand and to walk with him