THE PLAINE MANS Path-way to Heauen Wherein euery man may cleerely see whether he shall be saued or damned Set forth Dialogue-wise for the better vnderstanding of the simple By ARTHVR DENT Preacher of the word of God at South-Shoobery in Essex The ninth Impression Corrected and amended with a Table of all the principall matters and three Prayers necessarie to be vsed in priuate families hereunto added ZEPH. 3. 5. Euery morning the Lord bringeth his iudgement to light he faileth not but the wicked will not learne to be ashamed LONDON Printed for EDVV. BISHOP and are to be solde in Pauls Church-yard at the signe of the Brasen Serpent 1607. THE CONTENTS of this Dialogue FIrst it sheweth mans misery in nature with the meanes of recouery Secondly it sharply inueigheth against the iniquity of the time and common corruption of the world Thirdly it sheweth the markes of the children of God and of the Reprobates with the apparant signes of saluation and damnation Fourthly it declareth how hard a thing it is to enter into life and how few shall enter Fiftly it laieth open the ignorance of the world with the obiections of the same Last of all it publisheth and proclaimeth the sweet promises of the Gospel with the abundant mercies of God to all that repent beleeue and truly turne vnto him To the right Worshipfull Sir IVLIVS CAESAR Knight one of the Masters of the Requests to the Kings Maiestie Iudge of the high Court of Admiraltie and Master of S. Catherines A. D. wisheth all good things in Christ Iesus HAuing finished Right worshipfull and made ready for the Presse this little Dialogue I bethought me sith the common maner of all that write any bookes in this age is to dedicát the same to one or to other of great place to whom I might dedicate these my poore labours At last I did resolue with my selfe none to be more fit then your worship both in regard of some affinity in the flesh as also because of those manifold good parts wherewith the Almighty hath endued you Hauing therefore none other thing to present your worship withall in token of a thankfull heart for your curtesies shewed towards me behold I doe heere send vnto you this third fruite of my labours now published Most humbly beseeching you to take it in good worth not weighing the value of the thing which is of no value but the simple and good minde and meaning of the giuer This worke doth sharply reproue and euict the world of sinne and therefore is like to find many deadly enemies which with cruell hatred will most eagerly pursue it vnto death Zoilus also and his fellowes I know will bitterly carpe at it Therefore it flieth vnto your Worship for protection and humbly desireth to take Sanctuary vnder your wings Wherefore I humbly intreat you to take vpon you the patronage and defence of it that by your meanes it may be deliuered both from the calumnious obloquies of euill disposed persons and also from the worlds malignity so as it may take no iniury And concerning this little volume the summe of the matter of it you shall finde in the Epistle to the Reader As concerning the manner heere is no great matter in learning wit arte eloquence or ingenious inuention for I haue heerein specially respected the ignorant and vulgar sort whose edification I doe chiefely aime at yet somewhat there is which may concern the learned giue them some contentment Whatsoeuer it be I leaue it with your Worship beseeching you to giue it entertainement And so I doe most humbly take my leaue commending both your selfe your good wife and your whole family to the mercifull protection of the euerliuing God From South-Shoobery in Essex April 10. Anno Dom. 1601. Your Worships to command in the Lord ARTHVR DENT THE EPISTLE TO the Reader GEntle Reader seeing my little Sermon of Repentance some few yeeres since published hath beene so well accepted of I haue for thy further good published this Dialogue being the third fruit of my labour wishing to it the like successe that God thereby may haue the glory and thou who art the Reader comfort I haue in one part of this Dialogue produced some of the ancient writers and some of the wise Heathen also to testifie vpon their oath in their owne language and to beare witnesse of the vglinesse of some vices which we in this age make light of which I wish may not be offensiue to any In other parts of this worke I do in a manner relinquish them But in this case I haue in my weake iudgement thought them to be of some good vse to shew forth thus much that if we doe not in time repent forsake our sinnes seeke after God both the auncient Christian fathers whose eies saw not that we see nor their eares heard that we heare yea the very Heathen also shall rise vp in iudgement against vs. Let none therefore stumble at it But if any doe let them remember I am in a Dialogue not in a Sermon I write to all of all sorts I speake not to some few of one sort But that which is done herein is not much more then that of the Apostle As some of your own Poets haue said Act. 17. which is warrantable One thing deare Christian I pray thee let me beg of thee to wit that thou wouldest not reade two or three leaues of this Booke and so cast it from thee but that thou wouldest reade it throughout euen to the end For I do assure thee if there be any thing in it worth the reading it is bestowed in the latter part thereof and most of all towards the conclusion Be not discouraged therefore at the harshnesse of the beginning but looke for smoother matter in the middest and most smooth in the perclose and wind-vp of all For this Dialogue hath in it not the nature of a Tragedy which is begunne with ioy and ended with sorrow but of a Comedie which is begun with sorrow and ended with ioy This booke medleth not at all with any controuerfies in the Church or any thing in the state Ecclesiasticall but onely entreth into a controuersie with Sathan and sinne It is contriued into six principall heads First it sheweth mans misery in nature with the meanes of recouery Secondly it sharpely inueigheth against the iniquity of the time and common corruptions of the world Thirdly it sheweth the markes of the children of God and of the Reprobates together with the apparant signes of saluation and damnation Fourthly it declareth how hard a thing it is to enter into life and how few shall enter Fiftly it laieth open the ignorance of the world with the obiections of the same Last of all it publisheth and proclaimeth the sweet promises of the Gospell with the abundant mercy of God to all that repent beleeue and truely turne vnto him The Authour of all blessing giue a blessing vnto it The God of peace which brought againe
all our loue and chearefull obedience towards him For therefore wée loue him and obey him because we know hée hath loued vs first and written our names in the booke of life But on the contrarie the Doctrine of the Papists which would haue men alwaies doubt and feare in a seruile sort is most hellish and vncomfortable For so long as a man holds that what encouragement can he haue to serue God What loue to his Maiestie What hope in the promises What comfort in trouble What patience in aduersity Antil Touching this point I am flat of your minde For I thinke verily a man ought to bee perswaded of his saluation And for mine owne part I make no question of it I hope to bee saued as well as the best of them all I am out of feare for that For I haue such a stedfast faith in God that if there should be but two in the world saued I hope I should be one of them Theol. You are very confident indéed You are perswaded before you know I would your ground were as good as your vaine confidence But who is so bold as blinde Bayard Your hope is but a fancie and as a sick mans dreame You hope you can not tell what You haue no ground for that you say For what hope can you haue to be saued when you walke in no path of saluation What hope can a man haue to come to London spéedily that trauelleth nothing that way but quite contrary What hope can a man haue to reape a good crop of corne that vseth no meanes neither ploweth soweth nor harroweth What hope can a man haue to be fat and well liking of his body that seldome or neuer eateth any meat What hope can a man haue to escape drowning which leapeth into the Sea Euen so what hope can you haue to be saued when you walke nothing that way when you vse no meanes when you doe all things that are contrary vnto the same For alas there is nothing in you of those things which the Scriptures doe affirme must bée in all those that shall be saued There be none of the fore named signes and tokens in you You are ignorant prophane and carelesse God is not worshipped vnder your roofe There is no true feare of God in your selfe nor in your houshold You seldome heare the word preached You content your selfe with an ignorant Minister You haue no praiers in your family no reading no singing of psalmes no instructions exhortations or admonitions or any other Christian exercises You make no conscience of the obseruation of the Sabbaths you vse not the name of God with any reuerence you breake out sometimes into horrible dathes and cursings you make an ordinary matter of swearing by your faith your troth Your wife is irreligious your children dissolute and vngratious your seruants prophane carelesse You are an example in your owne house of al Atheisme and conscienceles behauiour You are a great gamester a rioter a spend-thrift a drinker a common ale-house-haunter an whoore hunter and to conclude giuen to all vice and naughtinesse Now then I pray you tell me or rather let your conscience tell mée what hope you can haue to be saued so long as you walk and continue in this course Doth not S. Iohn saie If wee say wee haue fellowship with him and walke in darkenesse we are liers Doth not the same Apostle auouch that such as say they know God and kéepe not his commandements are liers Againe doth he not say Heth at committeth sin is of the Diuell And whosoeuer doth not righteousnesse is not of God Doth not our Lord Jesus flatly tell the Jewes which bragged that Abraham was their father that they were of their father the diuell because they did his works Doth not the Apostle Paul say His seruants we are to whom we obey whether it be of sin vnto death or of obedience vnto righteousnes Doth not the scripture say Hee that doth righteousnesse is righteous Doth not our Lord Jesus affirme that nor euery one that saith Lord Lord shall enter into the kingdome of heauen but he that doth the will of my father which is in Heauen Therefore I conclude that forasmuch as your whole course is carnall carelesse and dissolute you can haue no warrantable hope to be saued Phila. I doe verily thinke that this mans case which now you haue laied open is the case of thousands Theo. Yea doubtles of thousand thousands the more is the pity Asune Soft and faire sir you are very round indeed Soft fire maketh sweet mault I hope you know wee must be saued by mercy and not by merit If I should doe all my selfe wherefore serueth Christ I hope that which I cannot doe hee will doe for me And I hope to be saued by Iesus Christ as well as the best of you all Theol. Oh now I sée which way the game goeth You would faine make Christ a cloake for your sinnes You will sinne that grace may abound You will sinne frankly and set all vpon Christs score Truely there be many thousands of your minde which hearing of Gods abundant mercie in Christ are thereby made more bold to sin But they shall know one day to their cost what it is so to abuse the mercie of God The Apostle saith The mercy and louing kindnesse of God should leade vs to repentance But we sée it leadeth manie to further hardnesse of heart The Prophet saith With him is mercy that hee may bee feared But many thereby are made more secure and carelesse But to come néerer the marke you say you hope to be saued by Jesus Christ And I answer that if those things be found in you which the Scriptures do auouch to be in all that shall be saued by him then you may haue good confidence and assured hope otherwise not Now the Scriptures do thus determine it and set it downe That if a man bée in Christ and looke to be saued by him he must be indued with these qualities following First he must be a new creature Secondly hee must liue not after the lusts of men but after the will of God Thirdly he must be zealous of good works Fourthly hee must die to sinne and liue to righteousnesse Fiftly he must be holy and vnblameable Sixtly he must so walke as Christ hath walked Seuenthly hee must crucifie the flesh with the affections and lusts Eigthly he must walke not after the flesh but after the spirit Last of all he must serue God in righteousnesse and true holinesse all the daies of his life Loe then what things are required of all that shal be saued by Christ Now therefore if these things be in you in some measure of tenth then your hope is currant sound good otherwise it is nothing worth For in vaine doe men say they hope to be saued by Christ when as they walke dissolutely The reason hereof is because the
members must be sutable to the head But Christ our head is holy therfore we his members must be holy also as it is written Be ye holy for I am holy Otherwise if we will ioine prophane vnholy members to our holy head Christ then we make Christ a monster As if a man should ioyne vnto the head of a Lion the necke of a Beare the body of a Wolfe and the legges of a Foxe were it not a monstrous thing would it not make a monstrous creature Euen such a thing doe they goe about which would haue Swearers Drunkards Whoremongers and such like to be the members of Christ and to haue life and saluation by him But sith you doe so much presume of Christ I pray you let mée aske you a question Antil What is that Theol. How doe you know that Christ died for you particularly and by name Antile Christ died for all men and therefore for me Theol. But all men shall not bée saued by Christ How therefore doe you know that you are one of them that haue speciall interest in Christ and shall be saued by his death Antil This I know that we are all sinners and cannot be saued by any other then by Christ Theol. Answer directly to my question How doe you know in your selfe and for your selfe that you are one of the Elect and one of those for whom Christ died Antil I know it by my good faith in God because I put my whole trust in him and in none other Theol. But how know you that you haue faith or how shall a man know his faith Antile I know it by this that I haue alwaies had as good a meaning and as good a faith to Godward as any man of my calling and that is not booke-learned I haue alwaies feared God with all my heart and serued him with my praiers Theol. Tush now you goe about the bush and houer in the aire Answer me to the point How doe you know certainely and assuredly that Christ died for you particularly by name Antil You would make a man mad You put me out of my faith you driue mee from Christ But if you go about to driue mee from Christ I will neuer beleeue you For I know wee must be saued onely by him Theo. I go not about to driue you frō Christ but to driue you to Christ For how can I driue you from Christ seeing you neuer came néere him How can I driue you out of Christ séeing you were neuer in him But this is it that deceiueth you many others that you think you beléeue in Christ because you say you beléeue in Christ As though faith consisted in words or as though a man had faith because he saith so If euery one that saith he hath faith therefore hath faith euery one that saith he beléeueth in Christ doth therefore beléeue then who wil not haue faith who will not beléeue But in very déed your faith and the faith of many others is nothing else but a méere imagination But all this while you haue not answered my questiō touching your particular knowledge of Christ Antile I can answer you no otherwise then I haue answered you And I thinke I haue answered you sufficiently Theol. No no you faulter in your spéech your answer is not worth a button you speake you wot not what you are altogether befogd and benighted in this question But if there were in your heart the true knowledge liuely féeling of God then I am sure you would haue yéelded another and a better answer Then you would haue spoken something from the sense and féeling of your owne heart from the worke of Gods grace within you but because you can yéeld no sound reason that Christ died for you particularly and by name therefore I suspect you are none of them which haue proper interest in him and in whom his death taketh effect indéed Phila. I thinke this question would grauell a great number and few there be that can answer it aright Theol. It is most certaine I doe know it by lamentable experience that not one of an hundred can soundly and sufficiently answer this question none indéed but only those in whom the new worke is wrought do by the inward worke of the spirit féele Christ to be theirs I haue talked with some which are both witty sensible and learned who notwithstanding when they haue been broght to this very point and issue haue stucke sore at it staggred very much And howsoeuer they might by wit and learning shuffle it ouer and in a plundred sort speake reason yet had they no feeling of that which they said and therfore no assurance and consequently as good neuer a whit as neuer the better It is the sanctifying spirit that giueth féeling in this point And therefore without the féeling of the operation of the same spirit it can neuer be soundly answered Thus then I doe close vp this whole matter As the vinebrauch cannot liue and bring forth fruit except it abide in the Ume no more can wée except we abide in Christ and be truely grafted into him by a liuely faith None can haue any benefit by him but they only which dwel in him None can liue by Christ but they which are changed into Christ None are partakers of his body but they which are in his body None can be saued by Christ crucified but they which are crucified with Christ None can liue with him béeing dead but those which die with him béeing aliue Therefore let vs root down-ward in mortification that we may shoot vpward in sanctification Let vs die to sinne that we may liue to righteousnesse Let vs die while we are aliue that we may liue when we are dead Asune If none can be saued by Christ but onely those which are so qualified as you speake of then Lord haue mercy vpon vs then the way to heauen is very straight indeed and few at all shall be saued For there be few such in the world Theo. You are no whit therein deceiued For when all comes to all it is most certaine that few shal be saued Which thing I wil shew vnto you both by scripture reason and examples Asune First then let vs heare it proued by the scriptures Theo. Our Lord Jesus saith Enter in at the straight gate For it is the wide gate and broad way that leadeth to destruction and many there be which goe in thereat because the gate is strait and the way narrow that leadeth vnto life few there be that find it Againe he saith Many are called but few are chosen In another place we read of a certaine man which came to our sauiour Christ asked him of purpose whether few should be saued To whō our Lord Jesus answered thus Striue to enter in at the straight gate For many I say vnto you will seeke to enter in and shall not be able In which answer