more and more for we are setling like the Jews in an outward formal Reformation without heart Now it would be terrible if the Lord should chuse our own administration and give us according to our own heart I hope he will not But this lay heavy upon my spirit to tell you of therefore the Lord direct you to make the best use you can that if it be his blessed will this place that is the honor and glory of the Kingdom and the refuge of the Saints that the Lord would not come against it FINIS THE TABLE  Page A  Abiding  ABiding with God in evil times 72 Actions  Saints not under the Law in their actions 157 Afflictions  Afflictions of godly and wicked how different 31 Afflictions turn to the good of Saints 119 The life of Faith in afflictions 130 Saints not under the Law in regard of afflictions 150 Afflictions not to be fainted in 194 Amend  All should amend when the wicked are punished 104 Angels  Angels pry into Gospel mysterie 201 Angels good and bad do it ibid. Apostacy  Apostacy a provoking sin 11 Assurance  Life of Faith in Assurance 130 Awake  Christians duty to awake God 86 B.  Betray  Not to betray Gods cause 88 Blasphemy  Blasphemy a provoking sin 9 Blessing see latter  Bristol  Gods mercy in recovering Bristol 107 C  Christ See cleaving  Christ makes all things amiable 192 Cleaving  Blessedness of cleaving to the Lord 70 Honor of cleaving to Christ in ill times 73 Special times of cleaving to God 77 Comfort  What should help Christians comfort 175 Conceits  Vain conceits of wicked men 33 Confidence  Ground of a Christians confidence 27 Consolation  Consolation a duty 40 Four things that hinder consolation ibid. Covenant  Spiritual understanding of the New Covenant effects of it 66 Covetousness  Covetousness a provoking sin 237 Creature  The vanity of the Creature why discovered 61 Conjunction  Conjunction of those that cleave to God 70 D.  Difference  Difference of Gods dealing with Saints 36 Difference between Saints and sinners 208 Discouraged  Weak Saints not to be discouraged 143 Distrust  Distrust in times of danger to be avoided 87 Division  Division among Saints a provoking sin 9 Duty See Consolation  Four grounds of Duty 149 E.  Enemies  Assurance of victory over enemies the effects of it 64 How God destroyes his enemies 85 Equality  Equality that should be between Saints 144 Evil see good  Example  Example of Saints a ground of prayer 150 F.  Faith  Faith the want of it what it doth 40 Faith the life of it 44 Faith how God tries it 83 Faith how the just live by it 128 See Affliction Assurance Sanctification  False  False dealing 237 Fondness  Holy fondness between God and the Saints 54 Holy fondness in five things 55 Fondness wrought four ways 61 Formality  Formality in duties a provoking sin 4 See Reformation  G.  Garison see Minde  God see Hypocrisie Persecutors  Good  To call evil good a provoking sin 11 See Afflictions Work  Gospel  Gospel precepts highest 162 Gospel Mysteries to be attended 202 Gospel riches to be admired 204 Gospels simplicity 225 Government  Government how to be affected 204 Greater  How to argue from less mercies to greater 120 Grace  Grace weak how to comfort it 45 Grace what meant by it 160 Of those that are under Grace 162 Power in Grace more then the Law 164 H.  Heart  Heart hardened 8 Hidden  Saints Gods hidden ones 90 Holiness  Holiness desired on wrong grounds 41 Right laboring for holiness 198 See Comfort  Hypocrisie  Hypocrisie hateful to God 48 Hipocrites honor creatures above God 50 Hypocrisie dishonors God ibid. I.  Judg.  Saints not to judg one another 143 Judgments  Maner of Gods proceeding to judgment 2 Cause of judgments what 3 Judgments why sent 103 Ingenuity  Ingenuity of right Saints 163 Justification  How to live by Faith in Justification 128 133 K.  Kiss  Holy Kiss what 145 L.  Latter Last  Blessing of the latter times 122 First shall be last how 138 Law  Saints under the Law how 156 See Persons Actions Afflictions Gospel  Learning  Learning humane wherein useful 211 Life see Faith Sanctification  Lord see cleaving  Love  Love of God what it works 62 To love though we be not loved 181 Mutual love how attained 184 M.  Minde  Garison of the minde what 16 Mingled  The life of a Christian mingled 133 Ministers  Ministers sins provoke God 149 N.  Nature  Duties grounded in nature 6 O.  Officers  Officers sins provoke God 8 Oppression  Sin of oppression 236 Ordinance  Prayer an Ordinance of God 149 Ordinances not to be neglected 152 Ordinances needful 153 P.  Patience see waiting  Peace  Peace to be studied by Saints 196 Perpetual see Prayer Persecutors Persecution  To cleave to God in persecution 78 Persecutors design 91 God persecuted in the Saints 93 Children of the godly may prove fierce persecutors 99 Persons  Persons of Saints how under the Law 156 Power  Power that Saints have 166 The Spirit called power how 173 See Grace  Prayer  Prayer a perpetual duty 151 Prayer whence it proceeds 169 Wants of prayer how supplied 170 See Ordinance Nature Precept Example Promise  Precept  Precepts ground of prayer 150 See Gospel  Promises  Promises ground of prayer 151 Protection  Protection of God who have right to it 21 Pride  Pride how discovered 185 R.  Reflect  Reflect acts hard to man 177 Saints to reflect on their estate 178 Reformation  Formal Reformation a provoking sin 5 Refuge  God a refuge 14 To repair to God as a refuge 17 Religion  Religion wherein it consists 211 Riches see Gospel  Revolting  Revolting a provoking sin 239 S.  Saints see Weak Sanctification  Life of Faith in Sanctification 129 131 Saintship to be prized 194 Satan  Grounds of Caution against Satan 202 Security  Security why to avoyd it 140 Self-love  Self-love a provoking sin 10 Shame  Iudgments sent to shame men 103 Simplicity  Simplicity of Religion 212 Simplicity of the Gospel 223 Sin  What sins provoke judgments 3 Carriage of Saints faln into sin 43 Saints carriage in a deluge of sin 77 Aggravations of sin 240 Silent  God silent in danger why 83 Soul  The soul of God departs from incorrigible sinners 244 Spirit  Spirit powerful in Saints 166 Spirit undervalued how 167 Spirit wherein powerful 169 Spirit differs Saints and Sinners 208 Spirit how known 210 Spirit to be labored for 213 Spirits excellency 215 Spirits grieving dangerous 220 Spirit to be prized 221 See Word Teaching Work Power  T.  Teaching  Teaching of the Spirit 170 Testament  Testaments compared 188 Trouble  Trouble in Saints whence 190 V.  Vengeance  Vengeance of God against the wicked 27 Union  Union between Christ and Christians 229 Upright  Uprightness ground of it 22 Uprightness how tried 84 W.  Waiting  Ground of waiting on God 112 Weak  Weak Saints not to be contemned 141 Weak Saints their carriage to stronger 142 Weak Saints to be encouraged 196 Word  Spirit to be advanced as speaking in the Word 168 Work  Who works in and for us 172 To be ready to every good work 206 FINIS
can get himself in those three things Saints under the Law in three respects out from it then he is wholy clear The Saints are under it partly either In respect of their Persons Actions Afflictions For their persons that is we do conceive that we do 1. As to their persons deal with God in some measure according to his law we think that God doth deal with us according to his law and that we deal with God in some measure according to his law Whereas we should conceive that God doth not look on me or speak to me or deal with me at all according to the law Christ having fulfilled it and I being dead to it but only in reference to grace so I deal with God as he is my Father as he is revealed to me in grace in the Doctrine of the Gospel so that if we could conceive that our persons are fully justified that all my weaknesses thoughout the day or week or year do not make me according to his Law one jot more unjust nor all my good doth not make me more just for Christ Jesus his Death and Resurrection doth that wholly therefore my person for ever is freed from the power of the Law and if I sin grace may call me to account for it and whip and scourge me with his Ferula but for the Law what have I to do with that what have I to do with a husband that is dead and buried what have I to do with the Covenant of works that Jesus Christ hath fulfilled and cancelled Therefore get your persons clear of the Law for that is it that evidenceth many times that you are not because when you sin against God then there ariseth storms within you that were once without you on Mount Sinai that blackness and darkness then you fear you are hypocrites then you finde wrath in your consciences as oft as you finde wrath that is the work of the Law for the Law worketh wrath it shews clearly that your persons are not quite freed from the Law for though there should be sorrow and more kindly and abundant sorrow then ever you felt before and care and other things yet even that wrath and horror and hardness of heart and risings of spirit against God will testifie that in some measure your persons are under the Law Ye are not under the Law Secondly Your actions I say should not be under 2 In respect of their actions the Law for as one saith as our persons are justified fully by Christ so are our actions that is whatsoever action I do or commit however that action may not be pleasing to God according to Grace or the Gospel it may not be an acceptable sacrifice as all our actions should be yet notwithstanding we should not conceive that our actions are to be squared and measured according to the rule and life of the Law which is the Covenant of works As for Instance when a man is under the Law whose actions are under the Law he labors all the day long to please God to serve and obey him but if he fail but once or twice that day in his duty there is some confusion whispered in his soul that all is lost there is more trouble for that one failing then he hath comfort for all that he hath done that day that is just the Law for the Law saith if he fail in one he is guilty of all Now if a man be under grace he rejoyceth in his sincere indeavor to honor God and he rejoyceth in the passages of that day that he hath had communion with God and where there is weakness there would be a sweet clear mourning for it in reference to God as a Father and not to have the heart estranged from God and straitned Our actions in a great measure are under the Law Our actions are freed from the Law in this life but we know not our freedom They are freed thus all arise either from flesh or spirit for those are the two beginnings the two first beeings of all Now those of the flesh for a Christian may do an action that is purely flesh that hath no good in it then that is a sin Christ Jesus hath done it away Now if it be an action that ariseth from his holy Spirit that flows from the principle of Iesus Christ that is in him the Lord accepts of it that is done already if he were able to do it yet it comes too late but onely he doth it as the honest upright indeavor of a loving childe to a dear father So could we measure our actions according to that rule our lives would be more holy and more sweet and comfortable Thirdly our afflictions or sufferings it were well 3 Relating to their afflictions if we could get out from under the lash of the Law in all these there we are deeply under it as soon as ever we are whipped then we say God hath found me out and it is true God may whip me for it because I will not take notice of it though God will not hide his countenance and his smiles from his childe one jot further then he must needs do it for fear of cockering him therefore I know if God frown and hide his face that God loves me and he would shew it but I have a base heart that at such times as that would like some sin and be wanton otherwise God hath no delight to hide his face a moment Now all my afflictions and sufferings I am not to look on them under the Law that is as though God in reference to these had a purpose to satisfie himself and his vengeance and to let his wrath fall upon me that is clearly to frustrate the death of Christ but I am to look on that as fully satisfied and done by Christ and God is more faithful then to be paid twice but I am to look upon all my afflictions as proceeding from the love of a dear father and I can take notice of many sins that displease him and he hath many Gospel-ends to do me good therefore in afflictions I admit not one hard thought of God but love him more for his favor in the Gospel If we see afflictions under grace aright then afflictions do exceedingly kindle love to God and increase our communion with him and whereas they make us run from God they would make us run to him and delight in him but we are under the Law and that makes our persons and actions and afflictions to be a burthen O that the Lord would help us to get clear of it that every one would labour to get his spirit his person his actions and his corrections and all clear of that and dead to that But ye are under grace Grace in this place as I conceive hath a very large extent and is not taken onely for that favor of God as it is usually in Scripture but there is something meant by it that shall
shall detain thee no longer from the matter but commend it to thy serious and judicious Consideration and it and thee to the blessing of him who onely can give increase to all good endevors and rest Thine in Christian Duty THO. SHELTON ISAIAH 9. 12 13 c. For all this his anger is not turned away but his hand is stretched out still c. MY intention is not to expound this Scripture but onely at this time to take occasion from the main drift of it to instruct you a little in that we are about The main drift of it is this That here the Lord by the Prophet threatens many and grievous judgments that should come upon this people you shall see who they are in the Chapter I say they were many and they were sore and grievous And the Lord doth begin as his usual maner is with some first and with the least and when the people would not turn to him that smote them then the Lord would send another plague on them For that is the meaning of that phrase His hand is stretched out still They went on in wickedness and then the Lord sends another plague His hand is stretched out still The stretching out of Gods hand is the executing of judgment upon wicked people usually So that he goes on with very fore judgments as here in this Chapter it is said A man shall eat the flesh of his own arm and yet the hand of the Lord is stretched out still A man would think that were the sorest that could be a man would think that were enough yet notwithstanding the hand of the Lord is stretched out still It is the maner of God throughout the Scripture The maner of Gods proceeding to and in judgments to defer judgments a long while before they come and when they come he sends them by degrees but when they come usually they are many and sore and it is uncertain when they will end as we see in Levit. 26. Amos 4. Isai 5. And here and in some of the Chapters following His hand is stretched out still Just so beloved it is with us at this time as I shall Application to our times shew you briefly for I told you I would not expound but take a word to quicken your hearts and mine that we may speak unto the Lord more advisedly You know a little while agone we thought that the Lord was coming to end the wars The Lord gave us victory upon victory after many corrections and judgments before and we thought they were now over but we were deceived as we were many times before You know God hath been many times about to end our miseries but he hath sent back for his mercies and so he hath done now he hath very strangely called back his mercies and loving kindness and hath stretched out his hand many ways against us God begins to raise up enemies again and to strengthen them he suffers the enemy to break in among us besides all expectation And how long or how far God will stretch out his hand that way who knoweth Let me deal plainly with you For this day we The cause of Gods judgment to be sought in our selves should deal plainly with God and our own souls and however through the week we look for Reasons and Causes of things in a natural way who followed and who were the Commanders and what were the Forces and the like yet it should be the business of this day to judg of things spiritually to see spiritual Reasons And here we see in this Chapter and many such That God stretcheth out his hand while there is some continuation of sins or some new provocation against the Lord therefore it may be God hath many more ends in it as doubtless he hath but certainly there is some strange provocation of God among us that the Lord deals so with us again And all this that we may now see that the miseries that are beginning to rise they are but the stretching out of Gods hand It is Gods Those are wilful provoking sins hand and as of private persons so of publike Nations it is not common frailties that grieve the Spirit but some wilful wickedness When a man hath sin at the slaves end and yet lets it come in to his bosome and when he sees sin through the Key-hole and yet opens the door and lets it come in So in a Nation it is not frailties and weakness there will be whoredom and drunkenness though these provoke God It is not so much this as some wicked provocations of God that are among us Therefore in a word give me leave a little to tell you what I conceive what I fear rather what is the reason why God afresh and anew stretcheth out his arme when we thought his sword was half put up yet now it comes out again and God knows how far it will go or how long it will continue Beloved we should be born with in searching our selves and beholding and confessing our sins and the sins of those that are among us especially in such days as these unlesse we will deale hypocritically with God and proclaim a fast day and come to humble your souls and no man look after his own sins and men not be allowed to bewaile the common sins I was considering that the Saints before confessed their own sins and the sins of others of their Princes and Magistrates and great ones and the true prophets were bold to tell them also of their sins Therefore though I delight not God he knoweth of any thing to speak of mens sins and if I do the Lord he knoweth I am more willing thorow his What they are among us grace to see my own then any mans sins and to speak of them and bewaile them Therefore I say I hope you will bear with me if I tell you my heart if I now were on my death-bed what I think according to this blessed book provokes the Lord that now so terribly he threatneth us again when we thought his anger was over Therefore I pray hear me I shall be brief The first thing that I fear highly provokes God among 1. A formal practice of penltential duties us and as long as we stretch out this line of sin he will stretch out the line of wrath That is our formall humiliation and repentance and fasting and such like things I do not speak neither can any man that hath charity think I speak against humiliation or repentance or fasting I desire to practise it but our humiliation and fasting and praying and repentance and these things they grow every day more formall then other that truly there is almost nothing but formality in the eye of spirituall Christians and they begin to loath it how much more the Lord who is a pure Spirit whose eyes are brighter then the Sun In Isay 1. you shall read that the Lord punished and chastised the people that there was no
them one by one by degrees He hath brought us from repetition of the word and from singing of Psalms and many from baptizing of the infants of the godly and divers from the supper of the Lord and from hearing the word of God preached and now he comes and begins to bring people from praying or calling upon the name of the Lord therefore let us do as Rehoboam did when he had lost Ten Tribes he went and strengthened the two that remained Beloved there are but a few ordinances that remaine and they are almost gone too therefore let us do our best to keep those One is praying or calling upon God which our Lord Christ divers ways by precept and example and parables c. doth exhort his Disciples to to pray alway and not to faint So that this is it that you should do well to consider that Prayer or calling upon the name of God in Christ is an ordinance and a perpetuall ordinance of God And though it may be many of you do not doubt of it and therefore you think why should I speak of it Truly no more did not I doubt of it yet I have had many thoughts of it and though we doubt not of it yet the considering of it out of the word may stir us up to do it more then we do for I am afraid though many of you doubt not of it yet many of you are slack and though you believe not what the others say yet you hearken so much to them as to slacken of what the old Saints did and of what your selves did before you do not set your selves so earnestly and so frequently and follow God so hard in prayer as you have done this I greatly fear For I find many times that the devill plays a double game that when he comes to take away an ordinance from people to cheat them of it he knowes that some are so giddy that he can gull and cheat them clearly and he knows this that those that he cannot cheat yet he can cast them into a kinde of remisnesse As for instance he hath taken away from many singing of Psalms prasing God according to that manner that the Saints have had for divers ages whereas there is no particular manner in the scriptures for the outward thing now as he hath brought many that they will not sing at all so there are many that are indifferent and so for baptising the infants of the godly and so for hearing the Word and so for praying The devil hath a dilemma if you will do so so it is or else do this so I say while some giddy heads or hearts are throwing away the Ordinance of prayer I am afraid there is a general remisness or carelesness growing upon your hearts therefore I shall shew these two things concerning prayer First I shall shew you that it is an Ordinance of God Prayer an Ordinance of God Prayer a perpetual duty that it is a duty that it is the duty of a Saint Secondly I shall shew you that it is a lasting duty a duty to be performed in all ages untill the coming of Christ and that briefly and plainly For the first That it is a duty consider any duty in the world and whatsoever you would have to prove it a duty I dare say it is clear in the Word concerning this duty of Prayer that and much more you cannot name any duty in the Book of God any external duty that is underpropped that hath such foundations such clear ground-works for it as the duty of Prayer There are four main grounds of duty and one of Four main grounds of dutie them many times is a sufficient ground for any one as First that it is a thing that the law of Nature hath 1. The 〈◊〉 of Nature written in the heart of man to call upon God it was written in the Creation There are many duties among us that are not so under the Gospel especially Now that you see in all ages all kinde of people call upon the name of their God As in the ship where Jonah was the Heathens by the dictates of Nature they awake Ionah to call on his God and they were calling on their god it is a thing in the law of Nature And by the By that is the reason why we may pray with carnal men though we may not receive the Lords Supper because the Supper of the Lord is an Ordinance by institution the other is a natural Ordinance or duty Now when a man doth a Natural duty it is supposed that it is in the heart of a wicked man and he doth but what he ought when he doth it A carnal man when he prays he sins not in that he prays much less do I sin in doing the duty with him in doing what he ought But wherein doth he sin In the maner that he prays without faith it is his fault and not mine and so an hypocrite that prayeth without faith when I do the duty I look that the thing be good but for the maner of his heart and spirit that is for him to look to So a man may pray with carnal people though he may not receive the Supper of the Lord because that is an Ordinance by institution and is onely for the Saints That by the by Secondly There is this ground for it for prayer 2. Command of the Word we have more precepts then for any other dutie Christ Jesus saith here Pray always And the Apostle 1 Thes 5. he bids us pray evermore pray alway I need not stand to prove this Then you have also presidents for it almost in every 3. President and Example Saint in the Book of God you seldom hear of a Saint but he was a praying Saint And let me tell you this that Saints and Churches or Assemblies for so the Greek word is indifferently and people that call on God with a pure heart they are Synonomies Sometimes Paul saith Grace mercy and peace to the Saints sometimes to the Churches and sometimes to those that pray and call on the name of the Lord Iesus 1 Cor. 1. 1. It is a thing so proper to a Saint that it is usually taken for the description of a Saint Therefore in Zech. 12. where there is a Prophesie concerning the conversion of the Iews saith God I will poure on them the Spirit of Grace and Supplication What is that That is they shall be converted To have a spirit of Supplication a praying heart is the same as conversion to convert the Iews is to give them a spirit of Grace and Supplication As soon as Paul was converted Act. 9. when Ananias inquired of him he was praying therefore you have examples enow 4. Promises entailed on it Psalm 50. And then you have Precepts for it and Promises to it all along in the Book of God Call upon me in the time of trouble and I will deliver thee So in the new Testament