a mans spirit bee never so cold yet if Christ be with it hee is in the ready way to burne with love to Christ as strong as death which many waters cannot quench They that have Christ with their spirits are in the ready way to the very heigth of joy consolation they are in the ready way to joy unspeakable and full of glory These things have I spoken unto you that your joy may be full said Christ to his Disciples Christ speaks such things to the spirits of those with whom hee is present as fils their spirits with joy to the very brim and this oft times in the very depth of all outward extremity The Church doth darkly hint this The Comforter which should relieve my soule is far from me Lam. 1.16 As if the Church had said though my outward misery bee exceeding great yet if the Comforter did but keepe close to my spirit I should have as much consolation as my heart could hold in the midst of all my misery but this is my misery of miseries that the Comforter which should relieve my soule is far from me out of the hearing of sighes and groanes nay out of the hearing of strong cryes he is angry against my prayers In a word a Christian which hath Christ with his spirit is in the ready way to excell in vertue as David sayes to excell in all vertue to be wiser then his teachers more excellent in all grace then his neighbours And therefore to have Christ present with our spirits must needs be counted and called A prime and principall blessing Lastly to have Christ with our spirits is the ready way unto eternall good and therefore a prime and principall blessing As a stone carries with it whatsoever light thing be fastned to it unto its own center so Christ whose proper place of residence is Heaven carries with him thither all such spirits as to whom he is united on earth If we have a speciall friend at Court wee count that wee are in a ready way to see all the pompe of the Prince Christ hath the Keyes of Heaven and Hell hee opens and no man shuts shuts and no man can open all with whose spirits he hath dwelt and beene kindly used upon earth hee knowes and when they shall knock at those everlasting gates hee will open and let them in to every roome in his royall dwelling and shew them all the glory which he had with his Father before the world was 'T is betweene Christ and that spirit with whom he lives as between Naomi and Ruth where the one lives the other will Whilest such spirits live in the body Christ will live with them there when they remove out of the body Christ will not leave them death cannot separate but commands his Angels to bring them to eternall mansions with himself Christ which is lifted up to glory himselfe will draw all such unto him as in whose spirits he dwels and no strength shall bee able to withstand him none shall pluck such out of his hand Vnio cum Christo est unio inunibilis If to have Christ with our spirits bee a grand favour not to have him with our spirits must needs be a grand evill A spirit without Christ is naked as a body without cloathes Many things may make cloathing and defence for the body but only Christ that best garment as the Father of the Prodigall cals him can make cloathing and munition for the soule A mans spirit without Christ is as a naked body amongst thorns every thorne pierceth and every bryer scratcheth and fetcheth blood from such a body so worldly cares and worldly fears when strong will pierce such a naked spirit thorow and thorow and make him runne mad if God unsought do not seasonably step in and bridle the Bedlam A mans spirit without Christ is as a naked body amongst Serpents every Serpent stings and venomes such a naked body to death so every seed of the Serpent stings and poysons to death such naked soules by their threatnings flatteries examples and the like A mans spirit without Christ is as a naked body in great blasts of lightning such bodies are suddenly scorcht and consumed so such naked soules are suddenly blasted by the fiery darts of the Devill and so suddenly oft times goe from burning to burning from burning in sin to burning in hell A mans spirit without Christ is not only naked but blind too A naked man having his sight may make some shift but a man naked and blind too is in a miserable helpelesse state indeed and just such is the state and condition of every mans spirit that hath not Christ with it for as the Sunne in the Heavens is the eye and light of the greater World so the Sunne of righteousnesse Christ is the eye light of the lesser world man Now doe but imagine what a darke dolorous condition wee should all bee in if the Sunne were darkned or had utterly forsaken our Horizon or doe but thinke of that darknesse which was upon the Aegyptians for a little time when no man could stirre out of his place and such and much worse is the darke dolorous condition of a spirit without Christ not able to see the least beame of saving light not able to stir a steppe out of his place in the way that leads to life A mans spirit without Christ is not onely blind but dumme too A man that is blind yet if he can speake can begge for that which hee cannot see to worke But when a man is blind and dumme too that hee can neither helpe himselfe nor beg others hee is in a dolefull condition indeed and just such is the condition of every mans spirit that hath not Christ with it For as Christ is Eyes to the soule so hee is a Mouth and Tongue enabling it to cry Abba Father Unlesse the spirit of Christ be with our spirits helping our infirmities who are godly we are dumme and not able to speake to our owne Father as adopted children for daily Bread much more unable to begge for life to the dreadfull Judge of all the World must all ungodly persons needes bee whose spirits are altogether without Christ as an helper I would have all men that live in their sinnes thinke seriously of this when Christ as the dreadfull Judge of all the World at the great day shall aske you what you have to say for your selves that you should not eternally die for your sinnes in which you have lived you will bee like that man which was without his wedding garment dumme and not able to say a word for your selves because Christ is not with your spirits 'T is impossible that a mans own guilty spirit should bee able to looke the terrible judge of men and divells in the face much lesse speake a word for mercy unlesse the Al-mighty spirit of Christ be with it to aid it Many ignorant wretches sooth themselves with this that they will
imparting divine mysteries if thou follow on to know as the Prophet speaks if thou humbly forget look over all thou hast presse hard after more the things thou knowest not Christ will teach thy spirit morning by morning as by the learned Christ hath taught thy spirit many truths why he will leade thy spirit into all truth if thou urge his promise and beleeve He will fill thee with the knowledge of his will in all wisdome and spirituall understanding If thou pray for it as Paul did for the Colossians Thou findest Christ with thy spirit as a Comforter why thou maist have yet much more consolation from him if thou study to be more pliable to him Thou hast Christ distilling drops of consolation into thy spirit now and then why thou maist have Christ powring in flagons of love into thy soule filling thee with joy unspeakable and full of glory if thou bring thy spirit to bee more lowly and meek for such find most rest to their soules if thou carefully keep comming to Christ still in every pressure of spirit for such finde most ease that is renewing faith still as thou renewest thy sins Thou findest Christ with thy spirit as a quickner strengthner to duty why thou maist find him yet more mighty with thy spirit this way if thou powre out thy spirit often with David for quickning grace and if thou more deny thine own strength and cast thy self more upon his Could we but attain Pauls height in selfe-denyall to bee nothing in our selvs though I am nothing saith he 2 Cor. 12.11 we should finde Christ gloriously present still with our spirits and be more constant in zeale strength to every good work then we are I conclude this thus bee so tractable to Christ that thou maist with Mary winne upon Christ still and think that thou canst never bee neere enough to him nor intimate enough with him and this is the ready way to have a heaven upon earth for the more we get Christ to be with our spirits the more truly may wee bee said to be in Heaven The last thing that I have to say to you that find Christ with your spirits is matter of consolation Here is comfort for you against famine When thy body wants food Christ that is with thy spirit will give that meat to eat which the world knowes not off so that when others repine and curse God and their King in their extremity as the Prophet speaks thou shalt bee patient in this tribulation and instant in prayer to him who can command Ravens to bring thee bread and flesh to feed on and will rather then thou shalt starve if thy life may bee more to his glory then thy death Here 's comfort for you against the sword In the midst of all troubles and fears Christ that is with thy spirit will beare thee up admirably What is the face of an enemy to terrifie if Christ be with thy spirit What is the spoiling of thy goods nay what is the spoiling of thy body if Christ bee with thy soule A Mountaine of misery is but as a Mole-hill if Christ support the spirit To think of the Sword is a naked reference to flesh and blood and so nothing is more terrible but let us that feare the Loro think of it in reference to Christ that is with our spirits then wee shall not be troubled though we heare of warres and rumours of warres no more then at the rumours of any other calamity Here is coÌ„fort for you against the Plague which is here and there scatterd in the Kingdome What is any disease to the body if Christ bee with thy soule As the outward man decayeth the inward man shall be renewed daily because Christ is with thy spirit When thy body is full of paine thy soule shall be full of comfort because Christ is with thy spirit When thy body is sealed with spots for death thy soule shall be sealed with the Holy Ghost unto eternall life because Christ is with thy spirit The plague of the body is nothing if this plague of plagues bee not upon the spirit to wit destitute of Christ Here is comfort for you against persecution When men frowne upon thee without Christ will smile upon thy spirit within when men lade thy outward man w th reproaches Christ will fill thy inward man with comforts when men shut up thy body from the communion of Saints Christ will give thy spirit a large freedome of communion with himself When men strike thy body Christ will stroke thy soule when men kill thy body Christ will save thy soule In a word as the afflictions of Christ abound in thy body so the consolations of Christ shall abound in thy soule because Christ is with thy spirit Name any misery that is incident to man and here 's comfort to be suckt out of this point to oppose unto it Finally in life in death eternally after death Christ that is with thy spirit will be gaine unto thee Thy life he will make comfortable thy death hopefull and thy being after death eternally joyfull Wherefore I will conclude my Sermon for the good of you as S. Paul doth his Epistle for the good of Timothy The Lord Iesus Christ bee with your spirits Trinuni Deo gloria Errata Pro 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 leg 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 pag. 7. For say read saw p. 39. l. 6. pro pereunte solep eâ—…nt omnia lege pereunte sole pereunt omnia p. 114. Marg. For I do conceive r. I do not conceive p. 169. l. 7. FINIS
CHRISTS COMMVNION WITH HIS Church Militant First preached and now published for the good of Gods Church in generall By. Nicholas Lockyer Mr. of Arts. Cant. 1.13 A bundle of Myrrhe is my well-beloved unto me he shall lye all night betwixt my breasts LONDON Printed by E. G. for Iohn Rotâ—wâ—ll at the Sunne in S. Pauls Church-yard 1640. TO The vertuous Lady Aunt SUSAN CECILL Grace and peace be multiplyed by Iesus Christ MAdam The sweet taste I have had of your Ladyships love to the best things hath encouraged me humbly to present this little tract unto you What Solomon speakes from experience that you upon triall have found true That the most promising contents of this life are vanity and vexation of Spirit Our wise and mercifull Father doth usually thus imbitter the sweetest things of this world to us that we may the more cordially rellish and fervently seek after that full satisfying and everlasting sweetnesse and comfort which is in communion with Christ our heavenly Husband in whom all fulnesse of consolation dwels A drop of this transcendant fulnesse your Ladyship I hope shall finde distilled into your soule by reading this little worke now come to your hands which like Aqua Vitae shall cheere and revive your sad spirit when ready to faint Fainting persons carry little bottles of reviving liquids alwayes about them if your Ladyship shal think fit to make this little Tract your pocket-companion and peruse a little of it still when you feele soule-qualmes to seaze upon you you shall finde I trust through the blessing of Christ much ease and comfort and so spend and end your aged dayes in more true solace of heart then you have done your primest dayes of flourishing youth The accomplishing of this is the sincere and holy aime of your much obliged Nephew in this his first offering to publick view Which simple aime that the Lord may graciously answer to your Ladyships comfort here and eternall happinesse hereafter I shall still continue my prayer though here I end my Epistle that the Lord will still attend this my poore endeavour with his rich blessing to all the partakers thereof and in speciall to you Your much obliged Nephew Nicholas Lockyer Christian Reader COmmunion with Christ is our happines in this world and in the world to come that which makes every bitter thing sweet and every sweet thing sweeter With this sweet subject is this little tract now come to thy hand taken up Poore fallen man is still complaining of one want or other and when the thing is given which he longed for yet his soule is as far from content as before like to a childe that cries for this and that and yet when he hath what he cryed for continues crying still and cannot tell well what he would have All our want is this the want of Communion with Christ this is the cause of all complaints the infelicity of the soule the summe of mans misery here and hereafter but poore blind-man sees it not and therefore complaines of twenty things twenty miles a this side his disease and so spends his dayes in labour and sorrow and yet loses happinesse both here and hereafter too A full fruition of Christ is full felicity a full fruition of any thing below Christ without Christ is but vanity and vexation of spirit The more then O fallen man thou canst get into communion with thy God the more will thy great losse bee repaired thy complaining soule satisfied thy tranquillity setled upon thee againe Hunt not then after riches honours pleasures and suchlike low delights of the sonnes of men with this deluded mistaken world which lyes in wickednesse for felicity is not in these but study and strive after a nearer communion with Christ the next way to get most in with him is the speedy way unto all happinesse so much as thou canst get of his company so much art thou in Heaven How precious are thy thoughts unto mee O God saith David how great is the summe of them If I should count them they are more in number then the sand when I awake I am still with thee Psal 139.17,18 This is Heaven upon Earth and that true nobility and honour which wee should all bee ambitious after to lose our spirits in God What an unspeakable felicity is it to bee still with God in our thoughts This ennobles the spirit of man and makes it a companion to the King of Kings this gives evennesse and steadinesse to a mans course and makes him walke in all the wayes of God blamelesse this gives transcendant peace tranquility to a mans spirit and makes him unmoveable in the midst of feares this gives bread in famine drink in drought peace in warre health in sicknesse life in death Devote thy selfe therefore to Christ that he may devote himselfe to thee and as a poore medium of communion make use if you please of this ensuing Treatise If thou get any good give glory to God and make the poore Pen-man a constant sharer in thy prayers Thine in Christ Theophilus Philanthropus The Principall Heads handled in this Tract THat the Church of Christ Militant shall not bee left comfortlesse because Christ will come to her Pag. 9 That Christ doth come to his Church Milit. pag 10 11. How Christ doth come to his Church Militant to comfort her in all conditions p. 18 19 When Christ comes to his disconsolate Church as a Comforter pag. 41 42 c. Why Christ will come to his Church upon earth as Comforter pag. 51 52 c. Wicked men shall live and dye comfortless because Christ as a Comforter will never come to them p. 57 58 c. Laughter is one thing and spirituall consolation another p. 59 How Christ doth come to the wicked in this life p. 61 Christ will come to the wicked neither in prosperity nor in adversity as a Comforter p. 62 63 c. How wicked men may get Christ as a Comforter to come to them p. 66 67 c. Vsefull instructions to strong men and to babes in Christ p. 68 Strong men in Christ that say Christ as a Comforter is come to them should make it sure to themselves that they are not deluded p. 65. The great need of this p 69 How a man may know that it is Christ indeed and no spirit of delusion which is come to him with consolatioÌ„ p. 73 74 Strong men in Christ after they have made it sure to themselves that the true Comforter is come to them should so walk that they may ever injoy his sweet company p. 80 How Christians may so walk as to enjoy Christ as a Comforter continually p. 81 82 c. Babes in Christ which never found Christ as a Comforter to come to them should beleeve that Christ will come to them p. 93 Their objections against Christ comming to them as a Comforter answered p. 93 94 Babes in Christ that never found Christ as a Comforter
condition Christ by his Spirit comes to him and shews him the fountaine of his blood how deep it is how free it is 1 Ioh. 1.7 How deepe it is that it will drowne all sin 1 Iohn 1.7 Sins after conversion as well as before sinnes often repeated as well as sins once only committed And then he shewes the wounded soule how free this fountaine is for any that hunger and thirst for it for any that are weary and heavie laden and desire to be eased by it and so by degrees drawes the wounded soule to wash his wounds in it by faith and so Christ heales and comforts him As the brethren of Ephraim comforted him when he mourned because the men of Gath had slaine his sons I Chro. 7.22 So Christ comes to us and comforts us when the Devill by his temptations hath almost slaine our soules hee like the good Samaritan powres in oyle and wine into our wounds and cures us Though Satan passe by and his limmes passe by and leave us comfortlesse in the day of our wounds and bleeding yet Christ cannot so full of bowels is he nor will not I will not leave you comfortlesse c. If a Christian lye languishing because of often and frequent relapses after promises and purposes to do better If this Christian in the anguish of his spirit speak to every godly friend as the Prophet did to his Therefore said I look away from me I will weepe bitterly labour not to comfort me because of the spoiling of the Daughter of my people Isay 12.4 Looke away from me O ye my Christian friends yea and you my faithfull Minister for I will weepe bitterly labour not to comfort mee because of the spoiling of my soule by so often sinning against vowes and promises favours and blessings Christ comes to this soule and will not leave him comfortlesse in this condition though it be indeed a very desperate condition The Comforter usually takes this course with this comfortlesse soule to powre in some oyle into his deepe wounds he reasoneth with him from the mercy of man to the mercy of God from a drop to the Ocean and it may be fastens upon his own language once delivered to Peter Peter came to our Saviour and said Lord how oft shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him till seven times Iesus saith unto him I say not unto thee untill seven times but untill seventy times seven Matth. 18.21,22 From this speech the Comforter thus reasoneth with this said and sore wounded soule viz If Christ would have Peter a sinfull man shew so much mercy to one so often offending him surely Christ a holy God and infinite in love is ready to shew much more compassion himselfe to those that are penitent though they have sinned times without number against him Thus the Comforter leades this desperate Christian as a weak wounded man by the hand from the mercy of man to the mercy of God and enables him this way after some space of time to take in comfort for Christ is resolved he will not leave this Christian comfortlesse Christ will never leave comming to this comfort lesse soule with this speech of his to Peter and others of like nature as Christ is well furnisht for a Comforter untill he hath brought him to drink willingly for Christ forceth no Physick upon any Patient of the cup of consolation more or lesse and the longer sick soules turn away their heads from this cup the more many times he perswades them to drink at last If Christ tentandi gratiâ for trials sake hide himselfe from a Christian so set him a mourning I shall shew you by and by how he comes to him This is a condition though of all deserted conditions the best which will make a Christian heart comfortlesse indeed Thou didst hide thy face and I was troubled Psal 30.7 Gods hiding his face though but for trials sake will so trouble a Christian that hee will quickly be a burthen to himself and feare round about as 't is said of Pashur 'T will make him weary of the night and weary of the day weary of his owne house weary of Gods house weary of mirth and account it madnesse weary of riches honours yea life it selfe and wish for death O that I might have my request and that God would grant me the thing that I long for even that it would please God to destroy me that he would let his hand loose and cut mee off then should I â—et have comfort then should I see the face of God which I long like Moses to see then would he lift up the light of his loving countenance and cause his face to shine gloriously upon me whereas now I walke in the vally and shadow of death dark dayes are all that goe over my head the glorious Sunne of righteousnesse shines not upon my soul from morning to night To this sad soule thus bemoaning himselfe for want of his beloved Christ his well beloved thus comfortably comes There hath no temptation taken hold on thee yet O mourning soule but that which is common to man and be assured of this that God is faithfull by whom thou art tempted and will not try thee above that which thou art able but with the temptation also make a way to escape that ye may be able to beare it 1 Cor. 10.19 For a moment O fairest of Women I say just cause to hide my face from thee to try the truth of thy love to me but know that with everlasting kindnesse will I have mercy on thee Thy dulnesse also in my serice and thy low-prising my company did something trouble me but know that the mountaines shall depart and the hils bee removed but my kindnesse shall never depart from thee for this is as the waters of Noah unto me as I have sworne that the waters of Noah should no more go over the Earth so have I sworne that I will not be wroth with thee nor rebuke thee O thou afflicted and tossed with tempest and not comforted behold I will lay thy stones with faire colours and lay thy foundations with Saphirs and I will make thy windowes of Agats and thy gates of Carbuncles and all thy borders of pleasant Saphirs Isay 45.8,9 Out of this sweet language of the Prophet to the naturall branch the Comforter will fetch such precious water of life to revive this deserted soule with these kisses of his lips will he so comfort him that he shall be constrained to say with David Thou which hast shewed me great troubles hast quickned me againe and hast brought me up againe from the depths of the Earth thou hast increased my joy and comforted me on every side Psal 71.6 I could hitherto O my God see thy back-parts some sad attributes of power and justice which did terrifie my soul to look on but loe now I see thy glory thou hast caused it gloriously
a Comforter comes not to thee All outward comforts without the inward consolations of Christ they are as good broath unseasoned which rather cloys then contents the appetite they weary distract and vex and not revive the owner Be it that thou art as wise as Achitophel as eloquent as Herod as learned as Gamaliel as rich as Nabal as honourable as Haman as great in the Church as Iudas why yet shalt thou live comfortlesse that is utterly destitute of Celestiall consolation one droppe whereof hath more soule-reviving sweetnesse in it then all the things of this life can afford Alas what is learning what is wit wealth honour or any other worldly thing to comfort me if Christ do not come to me A man may have all that this world can afford and yet hang himselfe for want of comfort if Christ come not to him as Achitophel Iudas and others have done Ob. No men laugh lowder nor laugh oftner then wicked men in prosperity no man merrier in an Alehouse Playhouse Taverne Faire or Market then they and are not these then the only comfortable men in this world Sol. To this I answer first thus laughter is one thing and spirituall consolation another thing Every one that laughs hath not a cheerefull spirit within for in the midst of laughter a mans heart may be sad saith Solomon And so on the other hand every one who hath a comfortable spirit hath not a laughing face we do not reade that Christ ever and yet had more comfort in his Spirit then all the merry men of this world Secondly I answer thus some mens spirits are so left of God to levity and vanity that they will laugh at the wagging of a straw as wee say This is a great judgement of God upon the spirit and not to be accounted a comfortable and happy condition 'T is a pastime to fooles to do wickedly saith Solomon This is not properly called mirth saith he but madnesse You shall see mad men laugh sometimes exceedingly and hoope and hallow as if their spirits were as full of joy as they could hold what shall wee conclude now that these forlorne creatures are in a comfortable condition Alas say we if they were but sensible of their condition they would soon cease laughing and begin lamenting And so may I say to you of all that laugh and rejoyce and yet live in their sins and so consequently have no Comforter from Heaven come to them they are mad men were their eyes open to see their forlorne condition they would quickly change their note and turne their mirth into mourning as Iames saith Quest Why but doth not Christ come to the wicked in prosperity Answ Yes no doubt to be made of of it Christ came to Belshazzar whilst hee was quaffing in the golden vessels of the Temple and wrote downe his wickednesse in the wall And thus hee comes to all ungodly persons in prosperity to write downe all their ungodly deeds that so he may exactly judge them at the great day of account Quest Why but doth not Christ come as a Comforter to wicked men that are great and wealthy Answ Christ regards no man for his wealth or for any externall greatnesse If a man be never so rich or never so honourable yet if hee have not denyed his lusts and given up himselfe to Christ to be ruled by him Christ will never come to comfort him if hee would give him all hee hath for his paines he will not steppe a foot out a doores to a Prince if he be wicked Ob. Why but though hee will not come to ungodly men as a Comforter in prosperity when they can make some shift without him yet hee will come to them as a Comforter in adversity when all other comforters faile Sol. No hee will not Christ will not know thy soule in adversity which art a disobeyer of him As he would not let Dives have a droppe of water to coole his tongue though in unutterable torments where many oceans would not in the least measure have quenched the flames so neither will hee afford thee the least drop of consolation in thy greatest extremity though thou cry Lord Lord and cut thy flesh in the fervency of thy spirit like Baals Priests to prevaile yet shalt thou be sent empty away Nay Christ will be so far from being a Comforter to ungodly men when in misery that hee will adde to their outward misery inward misery When thy body is in distresse Christ will awaken thy soule that now lyes asleepe and set thy conscience a gnawing within thee which will bee greater torture then if thou wert rackt in every limbe Thou maist send for godly Ministers godly friends to comfort thee then and they possibly may deliver very comfortable things but they shall be of no more savour to thy soule then the white of an Egge because Christ as a Comforter will not speak those sweet things to thy soule which thy friends do to thy eares As the Lord bewailes the miserable condition of Ierusalem so may I bewaile the miserable condition of all ungodly men These two things are come unto thee who shall be sorry for thee desolation and destruction and the famine and the sword by whom shall I comfort thee Isay 51.19 So say I to all ungodly persons misery upon misery will first or last seize upon you and who then will be sorry for you Famine and sword and pestilence sicknesse and death and judgement and by whom will you bee comforted your honours cannot comfort you your riches friends cannot comfort you your father the Devill hee will not then comfort you your conscience which you have often sinned against shall not comfort you but torture you because Christ will not come to you to sprinkle it with his blood and pacifie it So that I conclude all thus you will live comfortlesse dye comfortlesse and abide in Hell after death everlastingly comfortlesse 'T is true all that you say Sir man is a comfortlesse Creature indeed unlesse Christ come to him I finde it by wofull experience I have much wealth in my purse and yet but little peace in my spirit I see the Devill mee thinkes now then sit a stride upon top of my money-bags waiting for me when I come to comfort my selfe in the beholding of them and to what this will come at the last I cannot tell Sinne I am sure I do and comfortlesse because of sinne I am and more comfortlesse every day I look to be unlesse Christ come to mee and yet how to get him to come to me I know not Would'st thou O comfortlesse creature have Christ to come to thee Do then to Christ as Lydia did to Paul lovingly invite him to come to thee Make knowne thy comfortlesse condition to Christ and then earnestly entreat him to visit thy poore soule The ground why I exhort thee O sinner thus to doe is because God hath
other scandalous vice hee shortens them in that which may foment these At this I thinke Iames may point where he saith Let the rich rejoyce in that he is made low Iames 1.10 God out of tender love to his children oft times makes them poore in purse that they may become poore in spirit and so capable of the Kingdome of Heaven Which rightly weighed is not matter of sorrow but matter of joy as Iames saith Thirdly those with whose spirits Christ is after a speciall manner present to guide them to walke in his wayes and to keepe themselves pure Christ doth prove them by poverty as by other things and hence it may come to passe that Christians very holy may yet notwithstanding be very destitute of the things of this life Thus you know the Lord dealt with Iob. Christ was after a speciall manner present with his Spirit to guide him to walke uprightly above many in his time now to make knowne this to the world to his own glory and Iobs eternall honour he stript Iob of all and set him upon a dunghill who before sat with the chiefest in seats of honour God will have the world know that those with whose spirits hee is after a special manner present to guide and order them are not as those with whose spirits the devill is in a speciall manner present to guide and order to wit such as will winde and turne every way when put to it Lastly those with whose spirits Christ is after a speciall manner present they desire but little of the things of this life and therefore 't is no marvell to see Christians very holy yet not very wealthy Christians with whose spirit Christ is after a speciall manner present they only desire daily bread Agurs portion food convenient and this the Lord gives them and with this they are contented which is the only wealthy estate Christians with whose spirit Christ is after a speciall manner present they hunger and thirst after righteousnesse not after riches in the world they covet the best gifts the unsearchable riches of Christ and not the fading riches of this life Now Christ applyes himselfe to be most liberall in the distribution of that which the spirits of men most bend after in mercy or in justice Christians whose spirits most strongly bend after grace to these Christ in mercy doth most bountifully apply himselfe to give grace according to that of Christ Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousnesse for they shall bee filled Christians whose spirits most strongly bend after worldly riches to these oft times Christ in justice most liberally applies himselfe to give those according to that of the Psalmist Whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure Psal 17.14 According likewise to that of Solomon There is a sore evill which I have seene under the Sun namely riches kept for the owners thereof to their hurt Eccl. 5.13 The objection being thus answered the argument is still of force That to have Christ with our spirits is the way to all temporall good and so consequently a prime and principall blessing But that I may yet more fully speak in this argument note that temporall good is either positive or privative if I may for illustrations sake so distinguish Temporall good in a positive sense is that secular thing which is in it selfe good as bread and cloathing and the like of which we have already spoken Temporall good privatively so called is affliction ordered to a mans good which in it selfe is not so Now all those with whose spirits Christ is present are partakers of this temporall good All outward losses and crosses tend to their inward gaine because Christ is with their spirits For all outward troubles are heavier or lighter more hurtfull or more profitable still to a man as Christ is pleased to order his Spirit under them A little outward trouble if Christ let it seize upon a mans spirit he quickly sinks and dyes under his burthen according to that of the Apostle worldly sorrow causeth death The losse of a wife or husband nay the losse of a child or friend nay the losse of the least outward content if Christ stand aloofe from a mans spirit and let it fasten upon him hee will soone languish and bleed inwardly to death whereas all outward afflictions meeting together upon the outward man if Christ be with the spirit to support and beare up that a Christian sweetly submits and keeps on his way according to that of the Apostle Rejoycing in hope patient in tribulation continuing instant in prayer Rom. 12.12 Now Christ tenderly watches when outward troubles begin to take hold of that Spirit with whom he is specially present and then he quickly releeves and eases it and not only so but sanctifies it to the drawing of such a spirit nearer to God in love according to that of David I love the Lord because hee hath heard my voice and my supplications because he hath inclined his eare unto me therefore will I call upon him as long as I live Psal 116.1,2 Adde this to the former that to have Christ with our spirits is the ready way to all temporall good whether positive or privative and you must needs grant it to be a prime and principall blessing Secondly those with whose spirits Christ is specially present are in the ready way to all spirituall good and therefore thus to have Christ present with our spirits must needs be counted a prime and principall blessing Christ is the Author and worker of all grace and therefore such spirits must needs be very gracious with whom Christ is The places are holy whereunto the Ark of the Lord hath come saith Solomon 2 Chron. 8.11 I may truly say it of Christ which the Ark typified The Spirits are holy with whom Christ is and where holy Christ comes They are at the Well-head for holinesse which have holy Christ with their spirits They that have Christ with their spirits are in the ready way to the very heigth of heavenly wisdome for there is no such teacher of wisdome as Christ is With him are all the treasures of wisdome He that lyes in thy bosome teaching thee wisdome secretly came out of the very bosome of the Almighty knowes all things and he gives such an unction to that Spirit which he teaches that he makes it know and discerne all things too They that have Christ with their spirits are in the ready way to the very height of love which is the glory of all graces in the sight of God and man for there is no such worker and winner of love as Christ is If he doe but put in his finger by the hole of the dore hee will make a mans bowels melt after him If hee doe but reveale his love to our spirits a little our spirits grow sick of love unto him He will wound us with one of his eyes so full of beauty is he Let
at last cry Lord Lord and so prevaile quickly for pardon with him who is infinite in mercy Why but thinke on this O ignorant soule No man can call Iesus Lord but by the Holy-Ghost Thou wilt not in thy greatest need bee able to cry Lord Lord unlesse the Lord bee with thy spirit Death will sting thee conscience will gnaw thee Christ will condemne thee Divels will teare thee and yet wilt not thou bee able to cry Lord Lord have mercy on me unlesse the Lord bee with thy spirit but instead of crying Lord Lord for mercy thou wilt burne in malice against the Lord and curse and blaspheme as Divels and damned wretches doe Hast thou never seene condemned wretches not onely dumme but withall desperate too and leape off the ladder themselves without either asking God or man forgivenesse thus in a spirituall sense and much worse wilt thou doe in the great day of judgement for as much as Christ is not with thy spirit Fourthly a mans spirit without Christ is not onely blind and dumme but deafe too And if a man bee blind and dumme yet if hee can heare hee may make some shift to help himselfe wee follow a thing you know sometimes by the sound when wee cannot see it nor speake what it is but when a man is naked blind dumme and deafe too hee is in a helplesse condition indeed and just such is the state of a mans spirit without Christ For Christ as hee is Eyes and Tongue so hee is eares also to the soule of man Hence it is that Iohn speakes so frequently of spirituall hearing after a Hypotheticall manner Hee that hath an eare c. That is if any man have spirituall discerning let him heare what the spirit saith to the Churches Intimating that a spirituall eare is a very rare thing to bee found that which no man hath but hee which hath Christ with his Spirit that hath had his eares boared by the Spirit of Christ as the Scripture speakes all others are as deafe as Adders and cannot heare the voyce of the charmer charme hee never so wisely I would have all that live in their sinnes seriously consider this too as a further degree of unhappinesse You tell us that you will turne from your sinnes hereafter and obey the call of God in the Ministry of his Word but let mee aske you this have you not hither unto turned the deafe eare upon God yes I and so you will doe for the time to come and the reason of both the same because Christ is not with your spirits Let mercies call corrections call let friends call father call mother call husband call wife call let Ministers call conscience call nay let Christ himselfe call in what voyce hee will still voyce or lowd voyce in words never so pleasing or never so piercing yet wilt not thou heare because Christ is not with thy spirit but with Salomons foole wilt on in thy sins and bee eternally punished Fifthly a mans spirit without Christ is without feeling in a dead Palsie all over which how dolorous such a state is in a corporall sense you know much more dolorous in a spirituall sense I am sure As the spirit of man can neither see speake nor heare so neither can it feele without the spirit of Christ The spirit of man without the spirit of God is dead Christ is to our spirits as our spirits are unto our bodies their life and life is the principle of feeling for the dead feele nothing When Christ which is our life shall appeare c. Where there is no Christ there is no life and where there is no life there is no feeling You know the Apostle speakes of some that were past feeling having given themselves over to lasciviousnesse to worke all uncleannesse with greedinesse Ephes 4.9 There the Apostle speakes of such a senselessenesse as lyes upon the soule by a second act of divine justice All humane spirits by the first act of divine justice upon Adam are naturally past feeling and would give up themselves unto all wickednesse with greedinesse did not God restraine To bee past feeling in this latter sense notes principally a want of divine affection when sinne doth not kindly affect the soule with sorrow as in the former sense when sinne doth not at all affect the soule with sorrow when holy wayes and works do not kindly affect the soule with joy as in the other sense when they do not affect the soul with joy at all but rather disturbe and provoke to passion and malice I would have all that live in their sins seriously think on this also as a further degree of unhappinesse You have heard many powerfull Sermons which you have seene work admirably upon others yet they have made no impressions upō your spirits many hundred more may you heare and no divine impression at last be made and the reason of both one and the same because Christ is not with your spirits and by reason of this your hearts are as Adamants which every stroke hardens but not breaks it Let the master smite and the man smite let God smite and his Ministers smite and conscience smite nay let every member of the body bee smitten with punishment to affect the soule with sin yet will it not stir and complaine unlesse Christ be with it Finally a mans spirit without Christ is without tasting or smelling to these senses also you know the Scripture doth allude and therefore fitly here may I to set forth fully the unhappy condition of every spirit without Christ You know the Apostle speaks of some that savoured not the things of God which is a terme applyed in Scripture to the sense of smelling as well as to the sense of tasting and therefore for brevity sake do I here joyne both senses together in a spiritull way of allusion Why all that have not Christ with their spirits are such as cannot rightly savour spirituall things such put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter I would have all you that live in your sins seriously thinke on this too as a further degree of unhappinesse You come oft times to Wisdomes house and though shee prepare you all spirituall dainties yet you can relish nothing but some by things that lye about the dish rather for ornament thē for food And would you know the reason of this 't is because Christ is not with your spirits If Christ were with you you wold feed on every dish at wisdomes table on promises yea on threatnings too To the hungry soule every bitter thing is sweet saith Solomon All that is good and wholesome goes downe well where Christ is with the Spirit You come frequently to Wisdomes house who keeps a Table here and 't were for a King and yet you have leane shrivel'd soules like men in a Consumption every one tels you that you look as if you were starved speak and live as if you never heard a good Sermon from