you may see that in these words we are led to speake of foure most necessary points The destruction of hypocrites The corruptions of Gods true Saints in that they need pruning The helpe they haue against these corruptios by pruning And the good they get by this pruning viz. growth in godlinesse of which whilst I doe speake with as much plainenesse and euidence as I can let me craue you also to attend with all diligence and reuerence CHAP. II. Shewing the certaine destruction of hypocrites and the degrees and meanes thereof Doct. 1 All hypocrites must be destroyed COme hither therefore I pray you in the first place and behold the end of the hypocrite He is to be cut off All false-hearted guilefull and hollow professors of Christian Religion that are not in truth which they seeme in appearance shall by degrees be surely brought to nought and destroyed The Lord will no more suffer such persons to remaine in his Church vndiscouered and vnconfounded then a good husbandman will suffer dry and rotten branches to remaine vpon the trees of his Orchard vncut off So you haue it in the other Parables also Matth. 3.10 The tree that bringeth not foorth good fruit is hewne downe and cast into the fire saith Iohn the Baptist to the men that came to his Baptisme The house that was built vpon the sand when the winde raine and tempest did beate vpon it was quickly tumbled vnder foot Matth. 7.17 and the fall thereof was great saith our Sauiour in the conclusion of his Sermon on the mount The stony ground also withered away in the heate and the thorny was ouerrunne with thornes The earth that drinketh in the raine which commeth vpon it and bringeth forth no better fruit then thornes and bryers is neere vnto cursing whose end shall be burning saith the Author to the Hebrewes And from him that hath not meaning in truth that shall bee taken away which he seemed to haue as our Sauiour tells vs. Saint Iohn doth giue vs examples of this ruine of dissemblers saying of many in his time They went out from vs because they were not of vs. Thus hath the Lord beene abundant in discouering his intended vengeance against the counterfeit Christian That you may the better conceiue of Gods Wisedome and Iustice herein we will shew you in what degrees and by what instruments the Lord doth cut off these dry branches The degrees are likely these and thus they follow one vpon another First whereas they had some workes of common grace bestowed vpon them as the inlightening of their mindes in some measure to conceiue diuine truths the framing of their wils to a liking of exercises of piety a gladnesse to heare and speake of the Word a gladnesse of the company of good men and the like these workes are by Gods iust Iudgement because they refuse to make a good vse of them in turning all to the thorow changing of their hearts and reforming of their liues euen quite withdrawne from them and so there followes a sensible withering they care not for the Word they care not for the company of the Saints that once contented them and Religion seemeth nothing so goodly a thing vnto them as somtimes it did Secondly whereas they had once the spirit of restraint bestowed vpon them to hold downe their corruptions and to keepe the badnesse of their hearts from shewing it selfe in extremity the Lord doth now please to remooue these bars so to auenge himselfe vpon their ingratitude and stubbornnesse that did winke with their eyes and resist the offers of loue made to them and refuse to open the doore when hee stood there and knocked and to giue them ouer into the hands of their owne euill natures that they may breake foorth openly and discouer themselues how rotten they were at heart by running into some such vile practice as carries them quite away so that they neuer returne againe by repentance nor neuer shew themselues to be soundly humbled for the same Then doth he send the temptations of Satan together with the affrightments or allurements of the world whereby they are so cleane pule away from the shew of godlinesse that at last they grow professedly cold and carelesse in open shew bearing before them an allowance of themselues in such their luke-warmenesse yea perhaps also they turne very enemies of that goodnesse which they seemed to haue fall out with those persons that they seemed best to loue brooke least that company that seemed most to satisfie them and become bitter harsh sharpe violent in speaking euill of those persons and things that were once approoued by them and lastly some miserable and fearefull end wherein they are either swallowed vp of horrible despaire or sold ouer to the most stony hardnesse that may be doth rent them from the land of the liuing and send them downe to hell And so is fulfilled that of our Sauiour in the sixth verse The branches that abide not in him are cast foorth and wither and gathered and cast into the fire and burnt Now the meanes of cutting them off are many euen all things that doe befall them for all workes together to the ruine of them that sell themselues ouer into the hands of sinne as well as for the good of them that worke righteousnesse but chiefly the Word of God it selfe a two-edged sword because they will not yeeld vnto it that it might cut off their corruptions from their soules becomes a sauour of death a weapon of vengeance to cut off their soules from God for by their often resisting it and much setting of their wits and consciences vpon the tenters to shift and dally with it they become blinder and blinder and harder and harder till at length they bee sold ouer vnto vtter blindnesse and giuen cleane into the power of sinne and Satan from which they seemed once to be redeemed And thus was Iudas cut off as the Scriptures shew vs. Hee was first a thiefe allowing himselfe in his couetousnesse and purloyning and not heeding the checkes of his owne heart which euery man must needs know would be apt to be moouing within him being a person of so great knowledge as he was and after he prooued a very deuill when he dipt his hands into the warme and innocent blood of his heauenly Master and well-knowne Sauiour The Lord to punish his guile in not opposing his couetousnesse and falshood put him cleane vp into the hands of the deuill and his owne both rage and lucre till Satan had possessed him with a full purpose of turning on the Pharises side where he saw more likelihood of rising and of making himselfe a faire way into their fauours by selling his Master vnto them for a little money And those reproofes and warnings of our Sauiour Christ which should haue withdrawne him from this reuolt and treason did nothing else through his desperate wilfulnesse but inrage imbitter and inuenome him prouoking him more and more against
euen so a man that hath long been taken for a good Christan is very backward to see and confesse that all his Christianitie was in formes and that he is not the man hee was taken for but an errand dissembler For why the heart of man is loath either to perceiue himselfe so wretched as he cannot but confesse himselfe to be in case he be but an hypocrite or else to take the paines which hee must needs take to make his estate better for doubtlesse it cannot but proue a painefull piece of worke to weede out a vice so deepely settled and so farre ouer-spreading But brethren vntill hypocrisie be plainely discerned it can neuer be reformed neyther this nor any other vice will cuer be conquered if it be not espied He shall for euer remaine an hypocrite that being so will not confesse himselfe so to be For when a man is ignorant of his vnhappinesse he will neuer set himselfe with all diligence to redresse it and certainely sinne will neuer be ouercome without striuing against it This and this alone is the true cause of our earnest plainnesse in this matter Wee would shew you your disease that you might in time seeke remedy and not perish by it Wee would lay open your sores that you might procure a playster and not be destroyed for want of healing And therefore returning againe to the matter we were about we doe now certifie euery person amongst you in whom that vniuersall care of knowing and accomplishing the whole will of God in each point of it and that out of the loue he beareth to him and for the honour and glory of his holy name that he I say in whom this care is not to be found though hee haue liued neuer so honestly to the world though he come to the Church neuer so duly though hee haue bin constant in frequenting Sermons though he haue beene very kinde to the Ministers of Gods Word though hee haue prayed many times with great feeling though he haue fits of great sorrow for diuers sinnes though he repeate Sermons and pray in his family though he haue obtained great credit amongst godly men and goe in the name of a most worthy Christian yet for all this and more than this if more may be without the fore-named generall endeauour is but a flat hypocrite a ranke dissembler a cousener of the world a beguiler of himselfe a whited sepulcher a picture of a Christian and not a Christian indeede This is thy case whatsoeuer thou hast heretofore deemed this and none other is thy condition if thou beest destitute of that fruitfulnesse which hath been plainely described vnto thee Open thine eyes now and see thy wretchednesse now suffer thy soule to bee wrought vpon and begin to seele thy misery that thou mayest be capable of helpe CHAP. XVIII Containing the third vse THirdly We must labour to be fruitfull let all men be now exhorted to get this fruitfulnesse by which they may approoue themselues to bee the true members of IESVS CHRIST Men do many times delight to norish in their Orchyards trees that beare no fruit onely for the comfort of their shade in hot seasons It is not so with God he likes not any tree that can doe nothing else but yeeld a shaddow if you will finde fauour in his sight you must be trees of righteousnesse you must be trees that yeeld some good fruit and be not wholly barren Learne I beseech you not to satisfie your selues with shewes with formalities with bare leaues but shew your faith by the fruites and let the grapes and figgs that may bee gathered of you testifie for you before God and your owne consciences that you be trees of Gods owne planting Content not your selues with a forme of religion applaude not your selues in your hearing and receiuing in your talking and seeming and your outward good dealing but O let your liues your whole liues and the tenour of all your whole conuersation be vniformerly constantly and in all things conformeable to the doctrine and example of our Lord Iesus Christ walke as he hath walked and hath commanded you to walke Let me vrge vpon you the words of Iohn Baptist to the Pharisies men that went for as deuoute holy and religious persons in their times till Christ the heart-searcher came to deale with them as any of you likely can be taken now begin not saith he to say with your selues we haue Abraham to our father but bring forth fruites worthy amendment of life Satisfie not your selues in hauing Abraham for your father I meane in the externall formalities of religion but looke to the course of your liues and see that it be such as may beseeme repentance Why will you loose your labour why will you die O house of Israel why will you rest your selues in that that will not profit Labour now to leade a godly conuersation in Christ Iesus let the common streame and current of your actions fauour of the holinesse of that Word of God which you say you beleeue and of the vertues of that Lord Iesus Christ in whom you say you place your confidence Assure your selues you shall neuer attaine the benefits of Christs death and resurrection vnlesse you shew forth the power of both in your liues that is to say vnlesse the serious consideration of the loue and goodnesse of God shewed in these two and of the hatefulnesse and filthinesse of sinne manifested in the former of them doe leaue so deepe an impression in your soules that here-hence you grow both resolute and able in some degree to cast away all the former lusts of your ignorance and now to turne your feete into the pathes of righteousnesse to fight against all the corrupt lusts of your hearts to labour to forbeare all wicked actions to endeauor to plant in your soules all vertues and to be abundant in religious mercifull iust temperate and all other godly actions that you may shew forth the vertues of him that hath translated you from darkenesse to light and be holy in all good conuersation euen as hee is holy Vrge and presse your selues therefore to this fruitfulnesse and make the constant carriage of your whole man inward and outward euen depose for you that yon are truly ingraffed into the true vine This fruitfulnesse shall arise for you in the day of tentation as it did for Iob and inable you to stand for your vprightnesse against all accusations of men and diuels and against all feares and doubtings of your owne hearts When a man is cast into the fornace ot aduersitie then will the leaues be blowne off as in the winter they be from trees then if the grapes of a good conuersation doe not lye by him to witnesse that he was a true branch in Christs body nothing will remaine for him but horror and amazement and a fearefull expectation of vengeance to befall him for all his shewes Be you therefore prepared for the day of triall which
sincere Christians Whosoeuer amongst you findeth that in his soule the consideration of Gods infinit goodnes through his onely Son hath had such a powerfull working that it hath euen knit his heart sast vnto the author of so great kindnesse and made him euen say and sweare within himself that he would surely keep his righteous iudgements made him constant in taking all pains to mortifie his corruptions to doe his duty in euery thing according to the diuine direction so that there is no one thing so comfortable to him as when he can carry himselfe in some good maner as beseems the Gospel of Christ nothing doth more humble abase him than when he fails of this holy walking if it were demaunded of his very soule what in all the world he most hartily desires and would fainest attaine in all his life his hart would make this answer for him that it is to please God to get acquaintance with his duty and to accomplish it accordingly this he wisheth this hee longeth for this he coueteth more than all wealth or greatnesse or other gailded toy that the world hath to giue him I say now in Gods name to euery such person and require him in Gods name to giue credit vnto my words because they are infallibly grounded on Gods Word that he ought to be of good comfort that he is a true Christian and no dissembler that for such an one he ought to take himfelfe notwithstanding all the blemishes errors ignorances imperfections and it may be also sometimes grosse out-strayings of his life Brethren the true-hearted had neede to bee made to vnderstand their trueth as well as the false-hearted their falsehood For as the latter out of his selfe-liking disposition is ready to flatter himselfe with sweet words so the former out of his acquaintance with his own guilesulnes and the sight of his owne badnesse and vnworthinesse is ready to threaten himselfe ouer-sharpely and to charge himselfe eagerly though wrongfully that he is but an hypocrite But now ye seruants of God consider that it is a fault to molest your selues with causelesse accusations of your selues or to be ignorant of the vnspeakeable fauour that God hath shewed you or to deny the blessed work of his good Spirit in you Yea you are bound in conscience to acknowledge your own true-heartednes and with hearty thanks vnto God much chearefulnes in your selues to approue your selues to him and to your owne consciences I confesse that it is far more dangerous to hope then to feare without a cause but yet the inconueniences of these false seares are also very many very great When a man that is vpright doth not account himselfe so to be he is vnable to thinke comfortably of dying and leauing this World he is backward to prayer he can hardly giue thanks for any thing he cannot long for the comming of our Lord Iesus Christ he cannot so much delight himselfe in the contemplation of heauen he cannot be so patient in affliction he cannot be so abundant in godly speeches to the edification of others as else hee might be These feares therefore though by God they be made profitable for the beating downe of pride and for the ferretting out of the reliques of guile that remaine in vs are yet vnlesse they be seasonably opposed remoued very noysome and hurtful like an East wind cold and dry do bite nip the branches and cause the grapes to grow but few and little vpon them Wherfore you must be giuen to vnderstand that fruitfulnesse may well stand with the hauing many weakenesses sins and corruptions though not with the allowing excusing maintaining extenuating denying and wilfull winking at any Thou hast manifold corruptions in thee much pride vaine-glory worldlinesse lust passion reuengefulnesse twenty other like But tel me Dost thou see and feele these corruptions Dost thou constantly obserue the motions risings of them with griefe dislike detestation iudging of thy selfe for them Dost thou make opposition to them by pressing on thine heart the promises threates and precepts of the Word by consideration of the death and sufferings of Christ by groanes in thy selfe and by supplications vnto God and so keepest them from vsuall breaking forth in extremitie and grossenesse or if they do at any time breake forth dost thou arraigue thy selfe for them in Gods presence not ceassing to wound and pierce thine owne heart till thou findest it wrought to a renewed loathing of them not ceassing to confesse them to the Lord and cry for his helpe till thou hast renewed in thy selfe a firme purpose of no more returning vnto them Dost thou these things I say in all thy faults weaknesses and wandrings then I affirme that thou mayest be and art fruitfull notwithstanding all these faults and I tell thee for the comforting of thine heart that these things cannot bereaue thee of the title and priuiledgeof a fruitfull branch and an vpright person Againe thou art very defectiue in vertues of all kindes in faith in meekenesse in patience in thankefulnesse in heauenly-mindednesse and the rest But dost thou take notice of these thy defects Art thou grieued and ashamed of them Dost thou call vpon God to make a supply and call on thy selfe to labour for an encrease of them Dost thou stirre vp thy selfe to grow in these graces not excuse please and content thy selfe in thy wants pretending that euery man must haue his faults and so hast thou thus sleightly passing them ouer then I assure thee againe that for all thy wants thou art yet fruitfull in Christ and so vndoubtedly a true Christian For to fruitfulnes is not required an actuall knowing and doing of all Gods will but a labouring and striuing to know and do the same and that constantly out of loue vnto him for his glory Wherefore if the loue of the Lord do so inflame thy soule that thou resistest earnestly to all thy corruptions and if the intention and purpose of pleasing and honouring him doe so constantly stand before thine eies as to make thee take continuall paines to reforme and amend thy selfe I dare pronounce thee a fruitfull branch a sound-hearted Christian and I doe now require and enioyne thee to fall downe before the Lord with heartie praises for this so vnspeakeable goodnes of his in ingraffing thee into the right Oliue and making thee a liuing member of his Sonne the Head and Prince in whom all fulnesse dwelleth Yea I wish thee to reioyce to delight thy selfe in abundance of peace through the certaine acknowledgement of thine happy estate that thou art not alone in but also of the Church and truely partaker of the fatnesse and verdure of the right Oliue tree To know a mans selfe fruitfull in some degree will make him fruitfull in an higher The man that suspecteth himselfe to be worse than nothin goes fearefully faintly about his businesse but he that is certaine hee hath something
of those kindes of men to whom any of those things agree that I haue set downe vnto you He should be vntrue and falsifie his word if hee should not bring damnation vpon all each of those that I haue said Princes often threaten meerly to terrifie and pronounce harder sentences in publike then they meane shall be executed as they doe with vs in case of those that are adiudged to bee pressed to death It is not so with the Iudge of all the world not one tittle of a word more is to be found in his sentence then shall be felt in his execution his blowes shall bee as terrible as his threats and his iust menaces as exactly accomplished as his most gracious promises not one tittle of the Word of God shall faile and therfore no part of the misery denounced against Hypocrites till all bee fulfilled Marke then I pray you the precise and punctuall dealing of our Lord in this place hee saith particularly euery branch loe euery one without any partiality and exception and He the God of heauen that hath a strong arme and no question a knife sharpe enough for this businesse and cutteth off taketh quite away vtterly remoueth from the root and all the benefits of the root euen to his endlesse destruction as it must needs be granted for what but damnation can betide him that is separated from Iesus the author of life by whose Name alone saluation is to be found Wherfore take no more paines to flatter thine owne soule and make thy selfe hope to speed better then thou hast heard whosoeuer thou bee whom the forenamed things haue discouered to bee but a dissembler thou shalt surely haue thy portion without amongst the searefull and dogs and inchanters and theeues and whoremongers in that fiery and yet darke Lake that is prouided for the fairest Hypocrites as well as for the blacker and more infamous sinner there is no escaping there is no getting out no one Hypocrite shall bee able to shun the eye and hand of God hee will picke out euery one by himselfe and euery one shall be cut off and vtterly destroyed the Word shall proue an axe affliction shall proue an axe prosperity shall proue an axe and all Gods ordinances and all that thou doest and all that thou seest and hearest and is done to thee shall be but in the nature of a sharpe cutting knife by little and little to take thee off from Christ and ripen thee for vengeance In comming to Church thou hastenest towards hell in preaching thou speedest towards death in giuing almes thou runnest forwards to hell in liuing as thou callest it iustly thou doest but step a step neerer to hell all that thou dost and all that betideth thee helping to increase and further thy damnation O miserable man and beyond all conceit wretched vnlesse thou wilt heare and feare and prepare thy selfe to come out of this misery by feeling it Be thou cut off from the Vine be thou spiritually excommunicated from Christ let thy sinnes bee bound vpon thee as a bundle and be thou bound ouer to the great Day of the vengeance of God Almighty what should we adde to that that wee haue already spoken againe and againe The case of the Hypocrite not alone the grosse hypocrite that knowes himselfe to be such cares not but euen of the close hypocrite that takes himselfe to be far better is most wretched hidious intolerable O that you could beleeue it O that the deceitfulnesse of sin might not harden your hearts that the effectuall working of Satan might no longer blind your eyes but that you may see and feele your selues to be if you be dissemblers and withall to be so vnhappy and sure and certaine of such an vnhappy end I feare brethrē lest in laboring thus mainly to affright the hypocrite out of his guile I may perhaps against my will and purpose scar the trueharted out of the present fruitiō of their comfort as if a shepheard set his dog vpō a Goat feeding amongst a flocke of sheepe all the sheepe will runne and bee afraid But I hope I haue so plainely deciphered this child of hell this sonne of Satan the Hypocrite as that I hope none of Gods true Saints shall catch any harme by hearing them thus prosecuted with feares and terrours and threats from whom they may perceiue themselues to bee thus manifestly differenced I say not euery one in whom much and very much hypocrisie and many very bad effects of very much hypocrisie is to be found shall be damned but euery Hypocrite in whom this sin ruleth and shewes it selfe to beare-rule by not being seene and bewailed and opposed and the other notes before set downe euery such one I say and say it againe vnlesse hee become new shall surely be damned But if the true-hearted out of his weaknesse shall be put into some feare by the hearing of this terrour so that hee doe seasonably returne to inioy comfort it will doe him good and not harme to bee so feared for these causelesse feares of the vpright proceed from the want of vprightnesse though not from the vtter absence of it and from the too much hypocrisie though not ouer-ruling hypocrisie that is in them And so if for a while they bee euen almost out of conceit with themselues as with Hypocrites till these doubts haue made them more bitterly to lament and heartily to confesse and mightily to fight against their hypocrisie they shall receiue none other euil by hauing been so frighted then the being purged from that that was the cause of their feares And if through the smalnesse of the quantity of truth and sincerity they cannot so euidently perceiue it at the first but that they see cause to become suspitious of themselues the grieuing for the want of truth and labouring and praying for increase of it which the holy Ghost will work in them by meanes of such suspitions will bee helpfull though accidentally as the besieging of a City to its fortification to the growth of their vprightnesse But the truth is that this aptnesse to fall into iealousie of ones selfe and when such terrours are deliuered to feare lest they belong to him and so framing ones selfe to be humbled because so many fruits of much hollownesse are seene in him as doe minister matter to such feare this aptnesse I say to feare is euen as sure a signe of one that is not an Hypocrite as can bee named I would not wish a better proofe of ones not being dead then to heare him complaining that sure he is but a dead man neither can one likely finde a truer note of one that is not dead in this sinne of hypocrisie then when the worke of the Word in the reprehensions and menaces thereof doth driue him to complaints and feares of his owne guilefulnesse onely so that he be driuen to prayer and confession heereby and so to seeke strength against the mischiefe feared But on the
other side a worse and more likely signe of a man wholy sold ouer into the hands of guile we can scarce meet with then this to be vnmoued in the hearing of such threats to haue no risings of feare and doubt and suspition nor no troublesome conceits of his owne estate either such man is so abundantly and extraordinarily sanctified as that the ouer-euident proofe of his vprightnesse doth presently secure him from such thoughts or else he is wholly buryed and bound hand and foot in the hollow graue of guile and therefore cannot feele it because hee is altogether vnder the power of it For this is the nature of these darke and hidden vices they are euer the lesse felt by how much they doe more strongly preuaile euen as the pangs of death are least troublesome when they haue quite ouercome the strength of nature Wherfore nothing fearing any danger that may come vnto the true hatred by this earnestnes let me yet once againe settle vnto those that be dissemblers adiure protest and call Angels men and Christ God and their owne soules and all things that are to witnesse against them that vnlesse they wil open their eyes see themselues to be in a damnable estate they shall surely be damned You may perhaps maruel that we should presse the poynt so hard but the cause is we know the Hypocrite to bee the most noysome weed in Gods garden and faine would we make him see his danger that he might escape it Yea we know that hypocrisie doth harden and deadden the hart aboue all other sins that nothing in the world is more difficult then to make him see and feele his perill who will rather thinke any man yea all men Hypocrites then himselfe although by this his ouer-aptnesse to thinke so hardly of others hardnes to be made conceiue so hardly though truly of himselfe he might if he were not blind discerne himselfe to be as hee is But now if thou beest such and so proued by what hath been formerly spoken how good soeuer thou hast been to see to and beest still how full soeuer of knowledge and of zeale blazing outward how glad soeuer to God and heare Sermons how able soeuer to pray and to repeat Sermons how well soeuer accounted of by others and by thy selfe and how strongly soeuer perfwaded and in that perswasion ioyed of thy being Gods child and being saued as all this may befall thee and yet the former notes discouer thee to be but hollow I doe now in Gods name adiudge thee and preiudge thee vnlesse thou repent to cutting off to burning to eternall death lo here is the portion of thy cup At length Gods arme and axe shall fell thee and grub thee vp by the roots if thou wert as tall as the Cedar of Lebanon and as tough as the Oakes of Bashan and as strongly rooted as the tree that groweth neere a rocke CHAP. V. Containing the third vse viz. An exhortation to the Hypocrite to come out of his hypocrisie Vse 3 BVt to what purpose doe we thus earnestly fight against Hypocrites with the sword of Christs mouth Let the Hypocrite bee carefull to come out of hypocrisie which he hath put into our mouthes Onely onely at least chiefly if it may be to conuert him and to make him cease to be an Hypocrite when he sees the lamentable condition of such kind of men It is your conuersion which we wish O all yee that haue been dissemblers and your reformation which wee aime at which we are well assured can neuer bee effected but by shewing you the woe which is comming vpon you Now therefore seeing the case of counterfeit Christians is so bad so hard so intolerably so desperately so ineuitably wretched but by turning wee beseech you suffer your selues to be wrought vpon to be conuerted to become true and to receiue the Spirit of vprightnesse which the Lord of heauen is now ready to powre forth vpon you Be it knowne vnto thee O thou that hast been hither to but an Hypocrite that thy case is not altogether irrecouerable but that thou maist if thou wilt not at this time also refuse Gods gracious offer bee made sincere and so bee receiued into grace For brethren be ye well assured of this truth that when the Lord of heauē sends his seruants vnto you in his owne name to call vpon you to performe any good duty tending to your owne saluation that then he is also present in his ordinance by the gracious cooperation of his good Spirit to inable you with strength from himselfe to performe that duty For Gods ordinances are not idle neither shall his VVord returne in vaine but shall be effectuall for all for which hee sendeth it and he that desireth not the death of the sinner but rather that he may turne and liue will effectually turne him from his euill way if he doe not wilfully harden himselfe therein and euen refuse to be conuerted Be willing therefore to be made vpright that thou maist be so indeed and be it for certaine deliuered vnto thy soule that thou shalt bee made able to become such if thou doe not stiffen thy selfe in the naturall vnwillingnesse of thy corrupted nature I demand therfore of thee in the same question that our Sauiour vsed to the sicke man that lay at the Poole of Bethesda Wilt thou be made whole If thou be willing now the waters are stirred now the Spirit of God is come downe in this ordinance now thou mayest bee put into these waters and now thou shalt bee made whole If thine answere bee that thou art willing then I say vnto thee make it appeare that thou art so in very truth and that thou dost not onely say thou art so for many a mans words and meaning are farre distant each from other many a man affirmeth with loud voyce and open profession of speeches that hee is willing to receiue that grace which hee is not willing to receiue There is a faint motion of the will which is rather an act of the vnderstanding conuinced that one should be willing to get a thing thē any true and earnest working of the will towards that thing and this kind of willingnesse must men take for a true being willing But heerein they doe much deceiue themselues for a man may bee inforced to acknowledge that hee ought to bee willing to get such or such a thing and withall finde in himselfe some slothfull wishes to haue the same and yet be destitute of that stedfast and fixed resolution of the will which is indeed the motion of the will required to be in vs if we will receiue good from the Lord. But how shall it be made manifest whether a mans willingnesse bee settled or ouert well grounded or shallow Surely he that indeed bendeth his will to any thing will be contented to deuoure the paines of seeking and striuing after it as he that would be rich
but from gracious acceptation of them in that blood by dipping wherein the spots of them are done away For there is I thinke none of vs which denyeth but that God accepting our workes as perfect in Christ doth reward vs for them as if they were perfect but seeing the reward becomes due in Christ and not by the workes themselues wee thinke it a foolish pride to maintaine the stately name of merit of workes when wee are faine to beg the reward for anothers sake and cannot chalenge it simply for the workes sake Thus this truth inforceth them after much turning and winding in effect to confesse it though the truth is they would not haue it seeme so for feare of a sore losse that might follow thence vnto their Clergies kitchin and manger I meane their liuing and pompe But let them passe There is a second errour of heretickes 2. Of perfection of holinesse in this life dreamed of by the ancient Puritans so they may well be called no lesse dangerous yea verily I suppose much more dangerous then the former of old condemned vnder the name of Puritans from a conceited and imaginary purity or absolute freedome from all sinne whereof they boasted and now as the speech goes reuiued in some parts of this Land This is that the Saints of God in this life may attaine to such perfection as not at all to commit any sinne with such gay fancies they please to seed themselues and their seduced followers Now it is most certaine that these men are the most abominable and dissembling hypocrites in all the world or else the most besotted and benummed spirits for their owne whole carriage and continuall experience doth confute them euen to themselues and yet they will not see themselues confuted If euer any of you meet with any foolish Hypocrite offering to tel you a tale of such perfection that he hopes to get or that he hath gottē or that may be gotten by any in this life as neuer to sinne any more neuer any more to need repentance doe no more but turne him to Saint Iohns Epistle and tell him that he that saith he hath no sinne deceiueth himselfe and the truth is not in him Bid him consult with Salomon againe who propoundeth the question as of a thing impossible Who can say his heart is pure and tell him againe that the same Salomon knew what he said when he said that there is a generation which is pure in their owne eyes but are not cleansed from their filthinesse and tell him that those branches in Christ which need no pruning are sure like a branch ouerladen with Grapes through the conceit of their much fruitfulnesse broken off from him for he saith that euery one remaining in him needeth and receiueth pruning which were not needfull if he were faultlesse And so leaue the fond deceiued and selfe-conceited Hypocrite vnto himselfe and haue no more to doe with him For either he speaketh altogether against his owne heart or else his heart is nought worth as Salomon saith of the wicked yea more hope is there of the saluation of the most desperate sinner aliue then of such an one For Christ alwayes 〈◊〉 the full empty away and pronounceth a 〈◊〉 vpon these spiritually rich persons Seest thou a man wise in his owne eyes saith Salomon there is more hope of a foole then of him Surely he is wise in his owne eyes that thinketh he hath no sinne wherefore we can haue little hope of him This errour is so contrary to all the feeling and sense of all Gods Saints who are faine still to say with Dauid Lord who can know his errors as that a man would maruel how any man in whom there was euer any knowledge of the Word and any shew and beginning of goodnesse should bee so farre seduced and drawne away as to entertaine such an opinion But the cause is manifest hypocrisie is alwayes accompanied with pride and the growth of hypocrisie breeds also a growth of pride and pride swels out the eyes that a man cannot see the cleerest truthes And thus haue we briefly discouered vnto you these errours to rectifie your iudgements For if the words of Christ be true these opinions that are directly opposite vnto the truth contained in them must needs be false Now heare some other vses to rectifie your practice also CHAP. VIII Containing a second vse of the poynt stirring vp the seruants of God to an holy longing for death Vse 2 SEE heere 〈◊〉 how great cause wee haue to follow the Apostle Paul We should long for the time of our dissolution when we shall be perfectly freed from sinne and to long that wee were once dissolned and perfectly vnited vnto Christ that as hee prayes for vs being where he is and seeing his glory we might be perfectly like him in a spotlesse purity and holinesse Impatient folkes are many times so tormented with worldly crosses made so troublesome vnto them alone by their owne folly and pride whereby they neglect to see God and to stoope vnto him in crosses that they are euen altogether weary of their liues because of them and our of a kind of stomackfull sullennesse against God as once Ionas or else a feeble sinking vnder the burthen of misery as once Eliah they euen thinke with themselues I would I were dead and are bold to trouble God with that vnsauoury petition of making an end of their daies that they may be rid of their crosses which they haue neither patience enough to beare for the present nor hope enough to looke for a good issue out of for the time to come But my brethren consider Haue you not other and worse things to be weary of then crosses and for which if for any thing to be weary of life also as of a burthen which you long to be remoued from off your shoulders Hast thou not pride passion worldlinesse ambition lust enuie vaine-glory blindnesse hollownesse deadnesse of heart and a thousand more besides these corruptions within thee which giue thee farre iuster cause of panting for the period of thy dayes and wishing that thy life heere might bee but short then the frowardnesse of a yoke fellow the stubbornnesse of a child the meannesse of thine estate the falsenesse of thy friends the power and fury of thine enemies or any other crosse if any be worse then these Ah wee haue not sufficiently informed our selues of the loathsomnesse of sin neither are we sufficiently heauie laden with the sense thereof if the cumbersomnesse of this doe not cause vs euen in the time of our greatest immunity from other miseries to couet our departure hence If sicknesses make men cry for death because they be terrible to the body how should not the sicknesses of the soule make vs much rather to seeke for it seeing wee shall not cease to suffer the fits of this disease till death be sent to seuer our soules from our bodies and both from our
corruptions But death at once with a most happy paricide as I may terme it kils both it selfe our last foe and sinne its mother our first foe and sorrow its sister our daily foe That one pang which puls away the soule from the body doth also pull away sinne both from the soule and the body O most desireable pang and worthy to be thirsted after more then any earthly thing Iob when his body was full of botches could say with much vehemency of passion Why dyed I not from the wombe why gaue I not vp the ghost when I came out of the belly then should I haue lyen still and beene quiet I should haue slept then had I been at rest Hee could in elegancy of speech commend death and say There the wicked cease from troubling and there the weary be at rest there the prisoners rest together and heare not the voyce of the oppressour yea hee saith that a miserable man would long for it and dig for it more then for hid treasures and would reioyce exceedingly and be glad if he could find it This impatiency of life is no way worthy commendation it sauours too much of selfe loue to be good and allowable But if out of an holy impatiency of sinne wee could as feelingly take vp speeches of a like nature O how truly might it witnesse with vs that we did hate sinne that we were enemies to the lusts of our hearts that our corruptions were to vs as imprisonment sicknesse paine captiuity and so that wee were sure of our part in Christs goodnesse who comes to preach liberty vnto the captiues Verily our soules are as full of hotches many of them as Iobs body and it will hardly bee better with many of vs so long as we abide in these earthly tabernacles were we as full of spirituall life as hee of naturall and our soules as truly indued with holinesse as his body with sense we should complaine of this burthen with much bitternesse and say O that I could tell where to seeke death O that I might finde the graue and come to those quiet regions where worldlinesse and pride and wrath shall no more torment mee and where my will shall be no more carryed away with any fleshly perturbation I confesse that this is the least part of the good that death bringeth vnto the Saints that it doth vtterly dismisse them from the seruitude of the flesh but were we so thorowly spirituall as we should be this would seeme of so great worth with vs as wee would preferre it before all that the world counts delightfull The Bridegroome would rather go to his graue then to his bride-chamber the traueller would rather lye downe in his bed of earth then in a bed of downe and euery man would bee of Salomons minde and count the day of death better then the day of birth I confesse that wee must so farre resigne our willes to Gods will as with all contentednesse of minde to weare out the dayes of our apprentiship and pilgrimage For so long as God hath any seruice for vs to doe any where though the place and company be full of troublesomnesse yet should wee force our willes to doe him seruice with our owne disquietment but yet a vertuous desire of being separated from this vnhappy condition of life wherein wee shall neuer fully be separated from the sinne that cleaueth so fast would be very commendable and very profitable The gavvdes of this vvorld vvould not so easily beguile vs the cumbers of this vvorld vvould not so frettingly gawle vs if wee did dis-sweeten the one with making our selues to taste the bitternesse of our sinne and dis-imbitter the other with feeling the far greater bitternesse of that which is as farre more harmefull then it as lead is heauier then corke Then should wee proue our selues to bee men and women of a discerning spirit that can know of things what is good what is bad and of bad things what is more what is lesse bad Then should we shew our selues to approch neere that height of grace which the blessed Apostle had who in relating of bonds imprisonment hunger thirst nakednesse whipping stocking shipwrack and daily dying neuer bursts forth into lamentations but rather recounts with ioy that which was so painfull to suffer and seemeth to bee glad of life for nothing else but that by suffering more of those troubles hee might doe more seruice to the Church and honour to Christ but when he hath occasion to declare his sinfulnesse the body of death the law of his members the rebellion of his flesh then onely is heard bewailing and crying out O miserable man that I am who shall deliuer me from this body Let therefore the feeling of sinne make our desires so earnest after full freedome from it that we may for this cause euen breathe after death when there are none other aduersities to distaste the comforts of this life vnto vs that by it wee shall be set at liberty from the diuels tentations the worlds affrightments allurements but specially from the corrupt lusts which we both doe and whilest we lodge in this dungeon shall carry about with vs. And let each of vs say often to himselfe O that I were parted from husband and wife from children from friends from lands and goods and from this world and all that in this world is counted worth hauing so that I might also bee parted from my corruptions and neuer more hereafter stand in need of pruning Fasting and prayer will purge the Word and Sacraments will cleanse and all Gods ordinances and all our Christian indeuours will helpe to lop off these disordered passions that are within vs. But this is alone a cleansing in part a paring off some euill and leauing much behind onely the last blow of death will make a full riddance of all that is euill in vs and after that blow giuen there shall nothing remaine behinde that may call for any more purging This is the soueraigne medicine that will consummate the cure of our diseased soules which till then shall neuer bee deliuered from all diseases though wee bee in Christ as the Vine and haue God the Father for our Husbandman O then Lord send thou this last enemy which may doe mee more good then all the former friends I meet with can doe euen worke a dissolution of my soule from my body and of my sinne from them both Let it come Lord let it come speedily doe thou hasten it in due season and take away all sinne by taking away this life of nature to make way for a farre more excellent life of glory Desire of death is then only warrantable when a desire of Gods full presence and of sinnes perfect absence be the causes mouing that desire CHAP. IX Containing the third vse of the poynt viz. an exhortation and direction how to keepe downe our corruptions whilest wee liue Vse 3 BVt as wee should moderately wish for death We
of Nathan the Prophet And now are you clean saith our Sauiour anon after the text by the word that I haue spoken vnto you And as all the exhortations and admonitions of the Word of God doe serue to rub off the rust from the soules of his people so chiefly the doctrine of the Gospell by vertue of the blood of Christ which it offereth and giueth vnto them is a most cleansing doctrine This leaueth in the will of the truly iustified man such a deepe impression of the bitter death of Christ for sinne as worketh in it a loathing detestation of sinne and maketh it to turne it selfe away from a thing so abominably euill And this is to crucifie our sinnes vpon the Crosse of Christ when the consideration of the extreme foulenesse and vnvtterable odiousnesse of sinne which is cleerly manifested in the sufferings of our Lord for it and of the most excellent beauty and brightnesse of the tender mercy and kindnesse of God shining forth in the same passion is so seriously receiued and doth so deeply sinke into the very heart-root of a man that it mightily draweth him to set downe and inact this conclusion in himselfe of sinning no more In this meaning it is said that faith purifieth the heart and that hauing this hope wee purge our selues as Christ is pure and therefore the Word of God chiefly the Gospell being applyed to the working and increasing of our faith and hope becomes a blessed instrument of our purging And with these proper and naturall meanes Some accidentall are vsed also certaine accidentall meanes that are made so beyond their owne nature These are chiefly three Afflictions Tentations and falls into sinne for euen by poyson oftentimes is poyson cured and by iron is iron driuen out For the first 1. Chastisements the seruants of God are and must often be chastised that they may be whited These corrections are fit to stirre vp sorrow in those to whom they befall which sorrow by grace is turned into godly sorrow the most effectuall corrosiue to eate out the dead flesh of the soule and so the fruit of them is as the Prophet speaketh the taking away of sinne Afflictions make vs to feele the dangerousnesse of sinne they testifie Gods dislike of wickednesse they manifest our owne frailty and basenesse they conuince vs of the vanity of the world they pull downe the pride of our stomacke so eating out the proud flesh that growes within vs that the medicine of the Word may come neere the sore they quicken vs to prayer they driue vs to examine our selues and inforce vs to consider of our wayes that at last wee may be able to professe with the Prophet Before I was afflicted I went astray but now I keepe thy righteous iudgements There is scarce any thing more needfull for Gods children then these Fatherly chastisements they doe breake open the heart to make a free passage for the Spirit of God to enter in at They doe plough vp the heart to make it capable of the seed of life the holy doctrine of the Word of God that is spoken to them In prosperity many times the soule is dull of hearing and scorneth to bee reproued It is sated with outward contents and takes no delight in remembring the death and blood-shedding of Iesus Christ It taketh pleasure in vanity and cannot haue while to thinke of things spirituall and most profitable But afflictions awaken the heart out of the deepe sleepe of security they distaste the sweet meates of the world and bore the eare and couer the pride of heart and make a man in whom the Spirit of God is to hearken and attend vnto the motions of the Word and of the Spirit The truth is that afflictions of themselues and in their owne nature as being fruits of sinne and euill are not of this force to purge the heart but through the wisedome of him that is able to turne all things to the best and by the working of the Spirit which taketh aduantage of all seasons and opportunities they doe become most happy instruments of our cleansing and there is scarce any one of all the Saints of God but may from his owne experience affirme that it hath been a great part of his happinesse to take and drinke these potions from the hand of his wise and louing Father for they haue purged out of his soule those noysome and euill humours which would otherwise haue made him little lesse then deadly and desperately sicke But moreouer 2. Satans bitter tentations the Lord doth make the diuell himselfe an vnwilling instrument of pruning his seruants by meanes of those fierce tentations wherewith hee doth mightily assault them Euen Satans violent buffettings are by Gods goodnesse turned into most excellent purgations When the diuell is let loose vpon a Christian man as the shepheards dog vpon the sheepe and with fury and craft striues to bring him to vtter despaire making him beleeue that the very pit of hell it selfe stands gaping before him ready to swallow him vp or when he doth worke mightily vpon his sinfull affections with a kind of excessiue violence haling him to the practice of those detestable sinnes which his soule hateth and making none end to lye at him with vncessant and vehement sollicitations to commit such and such foule deeds Oh this cuts this woundeth this vexeth and tormenteth this sets them on praying on weeping on crying on bleeding this doth so shame him and disgrace him to himselfe this makes him so farre out of loue and conceit with himselfe and so extremely vile and odious in his owne eyes that he thinkes no name nor vsage bad enough for himselfe this also maketh him with a blushing and confounded face and with a most deiected and a broken spirit to runne and cry vnto the Lord his God for helpe and strength Thus the more Satan striueth to stirre corruption the better it is purged for stirred it must bee before it can bee purged and by his tentations being brought to see and feele a number of corruptions which else we would neuer see and feele wee finde his sinfull malice by Gods goodnesse made an excellent furtherance to our cleansing of our selues And not onely so 3. Their owne slips and faults but in the third and last place our owne sinnes faults and slips doe become instruments of our making cleane from sinne euen as a man doth better scowre his foule hands hauing first smeared them with some foule thing that helpeth more to rub off the foulenes that cleaueth fast vnto the skinne not that the Children doe or may at any time of purpose commit sinne to this end for it is quite besides and against the nature of them to bring forth this effect yea euery sinne is apt to leaue as a filthy spot behind the committing of it a greater pronenesse to commit it then before but that the Lord doth please diuers times to giue them ouer to be foyled of
of God shall haue the vpper hand and our faith shall bee our victory We are many times little lesse then out of heart because the proceedings doe seeme very slow and well-neere indiscernable But bee not discouraged O ye Christian soules promise your selues victory in this spirituall conflict for the Lord doth fight on your side and you shall conquer In truth we want much of that mortification which we might attaine if out of this confidence we would put forth our selues to the vtmost The diuel labours to make vs beleeue that it wil be to no purpose to resist our lusts wee haue so often resolued to leaue such a fault and cannot yet leaue it we haue thus often resolued against anger lust pride worldlinesse and the like and yet behold the passions and motions of them are stirring and also breake forth againe sure therefore it will neuer be better and it is in vaine to continue striuing about that which cannot bee effected These be the heartlesse and vnbeleeuing conclusions wherewith the diuell and the flesh would dismay vs. But now know thou that these conclusions are false I tell thee the quite contrary in the name of the Lord It shall not be in vaine to striue against sinne the husbandman will prune the branches and shall not hee bee able to bring his workes to passe according to his promise Tell me from thine owne feeling doe not these sins vexe thee more and more and art thou not more and more angry and discontented against thy selfe for them and more and more out of loue with thy selfe because of them if so as sure thou canst not deny but it is so then all is safe this is to be in pruning now the sinne is dying onely doe thou make vse of Gods words to Ioshua fighting against the Canaanites Faint not nor bee discouraged but take to thy selfe a valiant spirit to continue praying against meditating on the Word of God and the death of Christ opposing the first motions of it and vsing all other good wayes that God hath directed thee vnto for the subduing of it and I say vnto thee thou shalt prosper goe vp and fight against these Philistims and the Lord will deliuer them into thine hands Our want of being sufficiently purged doth come from want of sufficient indeuours to purge our selues and this want springeth from a want of faithful assurance of Gods assistance and good successe in our indeuours But now I beseech you all that bee members of Christ set in earnestly and with a good courage and you shall vanquish them you shall more and more preuaile against them till at last you haue quite ouercome them in the ouercomming of the last enemy which is death If wee did labour against sin alone in our owne strength we should finde indeed that vaine is the helpe of man and the labour of flesh and blood in this behalfe but the God of heauen he is the husbandman and hee pruneth The Lord is present with thy prayers to make them effectuall for the killing of thy lusts The Lord is present in his Word to make it a two-edged sword to cut off all carnall affections and to wound the body of death more and more The Lord is present with thine holy meditations to make them effectuall to weaken any of thy sinfull passions Faint not therefore but stir vp thy selfe to worke with God in those holy exercises know that thy successe shall be as often it hath been with Gods people in the naturall battell farre beyond thine expectation And of the matter of Gods Husbandry so farre We must now looke into the end and effect of it for God will neuer misse of his ends though hee often misse of those ends whereto his actions in their owne nature are fitted and which speaking after the manner of men to our capacity he tells vs that he intended This is that they may bring forth more fruit CHAP. XVI Containing the fourth poynt of doctrine that the people of God must increase in fruitfulnesse SO are we come to the last poynt wee intended to speake of Doct. 4 The true Christian must waxe better and better viz. that the true branches of the Vine must labour to increase in fruitfulnesse Euery true Christian man must proceed and goe forward in the fruits of the Spirit growing better and better and more and more abundant in the worke of the Lord. As we looke that a tree the longer it growes in our Orchard the more and more increase it should yeeld vs in like manner should wee behaue our selues towards God The Apostle Peter wisheth vs to long for the sincere milke of the Word that we may grow thereby A Christian is like a young child that sucketh on the brest of his mother who doth to this end receiue that kindly nourishment that he may increase in stature and strength of body Paul aduertizeth the Thessalonians saying I beseech you brethren as you haue receiued of vs how you ought to walke and to please God 1. Thes 4.1 and 10. that yee abound more and more And afterwards concerning brotherly loue We beseech you that you increase more and more And Dauid saith Psalm 92.14 that the trees which are planted in the courts of Gods House doe bring forth fruit in their age and are fat and flourishing But the poynt is without deniall and the reasons of it are more then euident Reason 1 First they are short of perfection They are not yet perfect so long as they liue in this world and therefore must striue forward to perfection Paul himselfe tels the Philippians that he pressed hard towards the marke because he not yet reached it and wisheth as many as are perfect to be so minded In a race a man must neuer cease running till hee touch the goale wee shall neuer touch the goale of perfection till wee haue deliuered vp our soules into the hands of God by death for heere we know but in part and therefore can doe nothing in whole hence it followes that till death we must be still going onward When a man hath attained his full stature he must grow then indeed hee needeth onely nutrition but till then augmentation is requisite for these two motions are very different as you know and his limmes must become greater and stronger yea and will doe so vnlesse diseases hinder Now we be but striplings or rather infants in goodnesse In truth wee are but in the wombe of the Church all the while we walke in this world our death-day will be our birth day and then we shall at once be made full and compleat wherefore till then there must be a continuall addition of grace to that wee haue already receiued Indeed some Christians in comparison of others are called strong men as euen of infants in the wombe some are perfecter then other but simply there is none a full growne man brought to the measure of the fulnesse of the stature of Christ
An exhortation to growth in goodnesse to approue himselfe a true branch by indeuouring after this increase in fruitfulnesse for nothing doth more infallibly argue life then growth I meane a sutable and proportionable growth of each part Be not therefore satisfied with what you haue already gotten but striue to get more Make your selues euen vnsatiably couetous after grace account your selues neuer to haue enough but for this matter imitate the Horse-leach and the graue and be alwayes saying Giue giue for no grace is further sound then it is ioyned with an hungring after more O then trauell forward in the paths of righteousnes daily Labour to be each weeke more holy more heauenly minded more patient more temperate more contentfull more prayerfull more abundant and affectionate in holy cogitations and to doe all good things more sincerely and more heartily with a more particular and actuall intending of Gods glory in each of them and with a more feeling attractiue of loue inducing you to them Grow I say continually either bigger or better or both Let these words put wings to your soules and let this exhortation as it were a good gale of wind to a ship carry you more swiftly towards the hauen of perfection You cannot glorifie God or profit your selues or edifie your brethren more or better you cannot make a better preparation for death or the day of affliction nor make your assurance of eternall happinesse more large and vndeceiuable then by making a continuall progresse in the vertues of Christ Iesus Faint not therfore nor grow weary let not your hands fall from this worke slow not your pace in this iourney but prouoke your selues and let the Word of God prouoke you to be yet more and more godly righteous sober and to proceed from faith to faith from vertue to vertue till you be made at last fully conformable to the Image of Christ Let there bee no going backe in any hand no flying no reuolting By going backe you shall as much as proclaime to all the world that you account Gods seruice an ill seruice and his worke an vnprofitable worke not worth the while to imploy your selues in it By going backe you should giue occasion of discouragement to others and lay vp matter of griefe and shame for your selues Offer not God this iniury doe not such hurt to your selues and to your brethren But as the God of heauen reneweth his mercies daily and inlargeth his bounty so doe you daily renew your obedience and let your graces be still on the thriuing hand But that my words may not bee fruitlesse in perswading you to grow let me also declare vnto you what it is that you must doe to the intent you may grow Growth you know doth presuppose life Meanes of growing and that wee must take for granted to bee in all those that shall be fruitfull hearers of this exhortation And yeelding a man to liue with a spirituall life in Christ the meanes of growth to his soule may not vnfitly be resembled to those that concerne his body The body will grow if it be of a good constitution and haue a good stomacke good diet and good digestion so will the soule also and therefore wee will speake a word or two of each of these First then as the body 1. To preserue the good constitution of the soule so the soule must inioy the benefit of a good constitution Now as the good constitution of the body consists in a right mixing together and tempering of the foure first and chiefe qualities so the good constitution of the soule standeth in a right and due ordering of the principall faculties of the minde towards the different obiects thereof I meane the iudgement the will and the affections when the iudgement entertaineth an high and excellent esteeme of God and things diuine but a meane and base esteeme of ones selfe and all things earthly when the will most vehemently and earnestly inclineth it selfe to God the chiefe Good and carefully withdraweth it selfe from fained or inferiour good things when the affections are inflamed towards God and heauen and cooled towards earth and the things of the earth This is a sweet and happy constitution of the soule and if this constitution be not preserued by a diligent watching ouer the mouing and working of our mindes and a daily striuing to pull them from things below and set them on things aboue there is no possibility of growing but if this constitution bee carefully preserued the meanes following will infallibly procure a proceeding in all the fruits of good liuing And the second thing required 2. To keepe a good appetite is to keepe a good stomack or appetite that is a continuall desire of more grace feeling its wants and longing for a supply Wee must tell our selues often how farre short we come of that wee might attaine and others haue attained and wee must earnestly prouoke our selues to desire a supply of what we feele our selues to want Wee should often say to our selues Alacke how poore a quantity of faith patience hope charity temperance heauenly-mindednesse haue I gotten how slender are all graces in mee If I compare my selfe with those of Gods Saints whose examples are commended in Scripture for mine imitation I come so short of them that it may almost bee a question whether I haue any goodnesse or none at all What a little meeknesse haue I in comparison of Moses what a little zeale of Gods glory in comparison of Dauid what little patience to beare affliction for Christs sake in comparison of Paul what little faith in Gods promises in comparison of their faiths that the Apostle to the Hebrewes commendeth to mee O how farre did Iob surpasse mee in patience in bounty in religiousnesse in the feare of God How farre did Nehemiah goe beyond me in loue to the Church and people of God and zealous desire of promoting the worship of God So weigh thy selfe in the ballance against the godly men which are famous in holy Writ and seeing how much thou wantest of what they had gotten and yet that which they had commeth farre shorter of what they should haue had then what thou hast doth come short of what they had then moue thy desire to an increase and thinke thus Ah that I could get at least a little more grace Ah that my graine of faith were made two graines Ah that my one talent were made two talents my two fiue What might I doe to get more grace what course might I take to fil vp that which is wanting to my faith patience temperance confidence and other like vertues To whet a mans appetite in this manner and to sharpen his desires towards vertues doth exceedingly helpe to make him capable of them and is as one may terme it a great inducement to the Lord to bestow more vpon him for the Lord as once Iob doth loue to feed the hungry and to giue drinke vnto them that thirst