will to your owne soule breake off your sinnes by repentance give no longer credit to the flesh or the Devill which prophesie prosperity to sinne as once the Pope to the powder traytors but beleeve God and the Scripture which manifestly proves that every man shall be judged according to his workes Revel 20.13 and 22.12 Make not Christ a bolster for sinne nor Gods mercy a warrant for your continuing in an evill course Be not therefore evill because he is good least like the foolish builder Luke 14. you come short of your reckoning Oh what a blasphemous imagination is this against Jesus Christ to thinke that he came into the world to be a patron of sinne or a Bolster whereupon we may more securely sleepe in sensuality and not to destroy the workes of the Devill as it is 1 Iohn 3.3.8.9.10 O that Christians should so live as if the practise of the Gospell were quite contrary to the rule of the law But such men shew what they are for none but base minds and perverse dispositions saith St. Barnard will therefore be evill because God is good And those that belong to Gods election and for whom Christ died will never make that liberty which he hath purchased for them with his pretious blood a warrant or cloak to sin but rather a spur to insite them to godlinesse As nothing so soone leades an ingenious minde to repentance as when he considers Gods bountifullnesse and long suffering towards him Rom. 2.4 What saith holy David There is mercy with thee that thou maiest be feared Psal 130.4 Not that thou mightest be dispised blasphemed c. Yea know this and wright it in the table booke of thy memory and on the table of thine heart that if Gods bountifulnesse and long suffering towards thee doe not lead thee to repentance it will double thy doome and increase the pile of thy torments for every day which does not abate of thy reckoning will increase it and thou by thine hardnesse and impenetencie shalt but treasure up unto thy selfe wroth against the day of wroth and the declaration of the just judgement of God Rom. 2.4 5. Swearer This is but one doctors opinion another who knowes as much as you will judge you but a legall preacher and call it ridgid devinity which breathes out nothing but damnation as being a meanes to make men dispayer rather then win them to Christ Are all damned except a few presizians Messenger I know it is the divinity of divers Let men live how they list in ignorance and all abominable filthynesse so they call at last and but say Lord have mercy upon me we must infalably conclude their estate as good as the best as if the Lord had not said you shall cry and not be heard Pro. 1.24 to 32. I know also that the Church hath never in any age or place of the world beene without many false prophets who are very ready to withstand and contrary whatsoever doctrine the true prophets are commanded by God to deliver and you may also see it 1 Kings 22. 6.23.24 Ier. 5.12.13.31 and 6.14 15. and 8.11 and 14.13 to 19. and 26.8.9 Acts 13 7. to 12. and 17.18 to 21. and 20.29.30 Ezek. 22.25 26.28 Deut. 13.3 Mar. 7.15 and 24.5.11.24 2 Tim. 3.8 2 Cor. 11.13 2 Pet. 2.1 2 3. Phil. 3.18 And these doe all that possibly they can by wresting and misaplying the Scripture to discourage the godly and incourage the wicked And therefore in stead of discovering of and rebuking for sinne Lam. 2.14 which is the first step tending to edification and conversion they flatter the people in their sinnes as those confederates of Korah did Israel The Congregation is holy enough Numbâ—â—â— 6.3 Oâ— preach pâ—ace unâ—o them as the Serpent to Eveâ— yee shall not dye at all Gen. 3.4 5. Or promisâ— thâ—m good successe in an evill way as those 400 false prophets to Ahaâ— Gâ—e up and prosperâ— for the Loâ—â— shâ—ll deliver it into thine hand 2 Chron. 18.11 Which the hâ—ly â—hâ—st calls daubing with untempered mâ—rter Ezek. 13 14.15 and 22.28 Saying moreâ—ver that from these Prophets prophanes goes forth into all the land Ier. 23.15 Whereas if they disâ—harged their â—â—ty and dealâ— plâ—inly with 〈◊〉 people thâ—y shâ—uld turne them from their â—ill way and from 〈◊〉 evill of th◠〈…〉 â—â—rse 21 22. Nâ—r can there be a better pâ—oofe of a false teacher then soothing 〈◊〉 â—s a Mâ—unâ—eâ—â—nke trick to heale an ulcer and leave in the corâ— Yea whâ—â— good Physâ—iâ—ian either for soule oâ— body doth not first tell us the state of the disealâ— with us symtomes â—nd then presâ—ribe and in prescribing first pull downe the body and then raisâ— it wiâ—h cordiaâ—ls â—nd â—â—â—se patient would 〈◊〉 that shâ—rpe medicens and bitter potions make short diseases and proâ—ure sound heaâ—tâ— Buâ— touching Ministers that edifie to damnation I refer you to a small booke called An Absâ—â—â—â— of some late Characters where they are painted out to the life Secondly How much better it is to strike the conscience then stroake the eare I shall shâ—w you hereafter upon another occasiâ—n Thirdly touching what I have said as it is for the discharge of my duty and according to Gods expresse command Levit. 19.17 Heb 2.13 So search the Scriptures and try whether my doctrine and allegations be of God or no as those noble Bâ—reans did when Paul preacht Acts 17 11. And then if they agree not with the pensill of the Holy ghost reject them but if they doe eâ—teraine it as if it were an epistle sent from God himselfe to inviâ—e and call you 〈◊〉 repentance And so doing it shâ—ll with Gods blessing upon it be unto you as Ionathans three Arrows were to David which occasioned his escape from Saules fury Oâ— as Davids harpe was to Saule which frighted away the evill spirit from him 1 Sam 16.23 Yea as the Angell was to Peter Acts 12.7 to 12 that opened the Iron gates loosed his bands brought him out of the Pâ—ison and delivered him from the thraldome of his enemies Which is my prayer and hope and should be my joy to see it These things have I said that yee might be savâ—d 1 Cor. 10 33. wherefore consider seriously what I have said and doe not Oh doe not mocke at Gods word nor sport away your soulâ— into those paines which are easelesse endlesse and remedilesse Shall we give an account at the day of judgement for every idle word we speake Mat. 12.36 never give a râ—ckoning for our wicked swearing cursing we shall be judged by our words verse 37. Are you willing to be saved if you are Breake of your sinnes by repentance Dan. 4.24 Cease to doe evill leaâ—ne to doe well Isay 1.16.17 Seriously greive and bewayle for the millions of â—â—mes that you have blasphemed God and peirsed your saviour and never more commit the lâ—ke impiety Yâ—a doe not only leave your swearing but feare an oath and make conscience of it resolve
As heare how the Holy Ghost delivers it Psal 109. As he loved cursing so shall it come unto him and as he loved not blessing so shall it be farre from him As hee cloathed himselfe with cursing like a garment so shall it come into his bowels like water and like oyle into his bones let it be unto him as a garment to cover him and for a girdle wherewith he shall alwaies be girded ver 17 18 19. Here this all ye whose tongues tunne so fast one the devills arrand you loved cursing you shall have it both upon you about you and in you and that everlastingly if you persereve and goe on for Christ himselfe at the last day even he which came to save the world shall say unto all such depart from me ye cursed into everlasting fire prepared for the Devill and his Angells Mat. 25.41 Where they shall doe nothing but curse for evermore for they no farther apprehending the goodnesse mercy and bounty of God then by the sense of their owne torments the effects of his justice shall hate him and hating him they shall curse him Revel 16.11.21 They suffer and they blaspheme there is in them a furious malice against him being cursed of him they recurse him they curse him for making them curse him for condemning them curse him because being ajudged to death they can never finde death they curse his punishments because they are so unsufferable curse his mercies because they may never tast them curse the blood of Christ shed on the Crosse becuse it hath satisfied for milions and done their unbeleeving soules no good curse the Angells and Saints in heaven because they see them in joy and themselves in torment Cursings shall be their sins and their chiefe ease Blasphemies their Prayers Lacrimae their notes Lamentation all their harmony these shall be their evening songes their morning songs their mourning songs for ever ever And indeede who shall go to hell if cursers should be left out Wherefore let all those learne to blesse that looke to be heirers of the blessing Swearer O But God is mercifull and Christ came into the world to save sinners witnesse the Theefe upon the Crosse who was heard by him at the last houre Messenger I grant the Lord is exceeding mercifull and gratious flow to anger and abundant in goodnesse and truth keeping mercy for thousands forgiving iniquity transgression and sinne for he proclaimes himselfe so Exod. 34.6 7. But he will by no meanes cleare the ungodly but visit the iniquitie of their fathers upon their children and upon their childrens children unto the third and fourth generation as it followes in the very same verse Yea he will reward the wicked according to their workes Revel 20.12.13 and 22.12 Indeed a world of men beleeve with Orrigen that God is so mercifull that all shall be saved they presume that God must needs save them because he made them without any other ground though in another fit they are as apt to dispayre to say with the same Origen should all other sinners obtaine mercy yet not I. Wicked men are altogether in extreames at first they make question whether this or that be a sinne at last they apprehend it such a sinne that they make question whether it can be forgiven Either God is so mercifull that they may live how they list or so just that he will not pardon them upon their repentance No meane with them between the rock of presumption and the gulfe of dispayer But the tenure of the word of God runs thus Let the wicked forsake his wayes and the unrighteous his own imaginations and returne unto the Lord and he will have mercy upon him and to our God for he is very ready to forgive As Esay hath it Chap. 55 7. And that we should not doubt of this the Lord redoubles his promise Ezek. 18. And confirmes the same with an oath Chap. 33.11 Yea he is more ready to shew mercy upon our repentance then we are to beg it as appeares in the example of the Prodigall Sonne Luke 15.20 Doe but repent and God will pardon you bee your sinnes never so many and innumerable for multitude never so haynous for qualitie and magnitude for repentance is alwayes blest with forgivenesse Yea sinnes upon repentance are so remitted as if they had never beene committed I have put away thy transgressions as a cloud and thy sinnes as a mist Esay 44.22 And what by corruption hath beene done by repentance is undone as a bundance of examples witnesse Hee pardoned Davids Murther and Adultery Solomons Idolatry Peters Apostacy Paul did not only deny Christ but persecuted him yet he obtained mercy upon his repentance yea amongst the worst of Gods enemies some are singled out for mercy witnesse Manasses Mary Magdalen the Theefe c. Many of the Jewes did not onely deny Christ the holy one and the just but crucified him yet were they pricked in there hearts at Peters Sermon gladly received the word were baptized Act. 2.41 But on the other side unlesse we repent and amend our lives we shall all perish as Christ himselfe affirmes Luk. 13.3.5 For though mercy rejoyceth against justice Iam 2.13 yet it destroyeth not God justice he is just as well as mercifull his mercy is a just mercy and his justice is not an unmercifull justice he is infinite in both and therefore in his word he hath equally promised all blessings spirituall temporall and eternall unto those that keepe his commandements and threatned all mannor of judgements to those that break them with their severall extreames according to the measure degree of every sin Deut. 28. which chapter together with the former I wish thee to reade if thou wilt know thy selfe and foreknow thy judgement Neither is salvation more promised to the godly then eternall death and destruction is threatned to the wicked both in the old and new Testament And as Christ is a Saviour so Moses is an accuser Iohn 5.45 Alasse though to all repentant sinners he is amost mercifull God yet to wilfull and inpenitente sinners hee is a consuming fire Heb. 12.29 Deut. 4.24 Doth not the Apostle say that neither fornecators nor idolaters nor adulterers nor buggerers nor theeves nor coveteous nor drunkards nor raylers nor extortioners to which number Saint Iohn Revel 21.8 addeth the fearefull and unbeleeving murtherers and sorserers and all lyers shall not inherit the Kingdome of God but shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone which is the second death 1. Cor. 6.9 10. Gal. 5.21 And doth he not likewise affirme that all they shall bee damned which beleeved not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousnesse 2 Thes 2.12 doth not the Lord say Ier. 16.13 that he will have no mercy for such as are deseparately wicked and againe Deut. 29.19.20 That if any man blesse himself in his heart saying I shall have peace although I walke according to the
stubbornenesse of mine owne heart so adding drunkenesse to thirst the Lord will not be mercifull unto him but the wrath of the Lord and his jelousie shall smoake against that man and every curse that is written in his booke shall light upon him and the Lord shall put out his name from under Heaven c. Doth not our Savour himselfe say that the gate of heaven is so straight that few finde it Mat. 7.13.14 and will he not at his comming to judgement aswell say to the disobedient depart from me ye cursed as to the obedient come ye blessed of my father inherit the kingdome c. yes they are his owne words Mat. 25 34.41 In fine he that beleeveth in the sonne hath everlasting life but he that obeyeth not the sunne shall not see life but the wrath of God abideth on him Iohn 3.36 And in all reason if he punished Davids Adultery and Murther so sharpely a man after his owne heart yea and that after his sinne was remitted what will he doe to his enemies but send them to that devowring fire that everlasting burning Isay 33.14 If Gods owne children who are as neere and deare to him as the aple of his eye or the signet on his right hand Zach. 2.8 Duet 32.10 Suffer so many and greivious afflictions here what shall his adversaries suffer in hell If Sampson be thus punished shall the Philistems escape Yea if judgement begin at the house God what shall their end be that obeay not the Gospel 1 Pet. 4.17 If many shall seeke to enter in at the straight gate and shall not be able how shall they be able who seeke not at all Luke 13.24 If the righteous shall scarcely be saved when shall the ungodly and sinner appeaâ—e as the Scripture speakes 1 Pet. 4.18 So that mercy iâ— for vessells of mercy Mat. 5. and not for vessells of wrath And what though Christ in the Gospell hath made many large and precious promises therâ— are none so generall which are not limitted with the condition of faith and the fruit thereof unfained repentance And each of them are so tyed entailed that none can lay claim to them but true beleevers who repent and turne from all their sinnes to serve him in holynesse without which no man shall see the Lord Heb. 12.14 Isay 59 20. So that he must forsake hiâ— sinnes that will have God to forgive them 1 Sam. 2.30 Marke 16.16 Heb. 5.9 Neither was it ever heard that any one ascended into heaven without going up the staires oâ— obedience and good workes that any have attained unto everlasting life without faith repentance and sanctification for even the theife upon the crosse which you ignorantly aleadge beleeved in Christ and shewed the fruits of his faith in acknowledging his owne sinne reproving his fellow in confessing our Saviour Christ even then when his Apostles denied anâ— forsooke him in calling upon his name desiring and confidently trusting by his meanes and merrits to have everlasting life Neither doth his example make any whit for the comfort oâ— procrastinators for he is a foole that makes an ordinary rule of an extraordinary example and such is this of the theifes convertion for it was a miracle Not unlike the Suns standing still in Ioshuas time or its going backe in the dayes of Hezekiah Or rather those other miracleâ— of the graves opening the dead arising the vaile of the temple renting the light of the Sunne failing c. which Christ wrought at the same time with the glory whereof our Saviour would honour the ignominy of his Crosse Besides hee was then to take his leave of the world and to enter into his glory and we know it is usuall with Princes to save some hainous malefactors at their coronation when they enter upon their Kingdomes in tryumph which they are never knowne to doe afterward Besides the Scripture speakes of another even his fellow in that very place and at that very instant which was damned There was one saith St. Austine converted at the last hower that none might dispair there was buâ— one that none should presume Yet every drunken beast swearing Athiest can wrest this scripture to their owne distruction and decoct the mercy of God in pardoning him into ranckâ— poyson taking the same for an encouragement and thinkeing it a sufficient warrant for them to continue in their evill and vicious courses Not once taking notice of other Scriptures which shew that millions who had lesse iniquity have found lesse mercy And that whosoever Christ saveth with his blood he sanctifieth with his spirit and in whom his death taken takes away the guilt and punishment of sinne it is also effectuall for the mortifying of sinne as is plaine by Rom. 6.5 6. Titus 2.14 Ephes 1.4 and many the like Yea the Lord bindeth it with an oath that whomsoever he redeemeth out of the hands of their spirituall enemies they shall worship him in holynesse and righteousnesse all the dayes of their life Luk. 1.70 to 76. Other Scriptures to this purpose are many see only Titus 2.12 1 Pet. 2 24. But to make it yet more cleare what else did thy vow in baptisme which is a seale of the Covenant importe but that there are Articles conditions viz. Certain duties on thy part to be performed as well as promises on Gods part to be fullfiled A Sacrament is a sealing of a league with Covenants between party and party saith Parreus Now as God hath covenanted and bound himselfe by his word and seale to remit thee thy sinnes adopt and regenerate thee his childe give thee the Kingdome of heaven and everlasting life by and for his sons sake so thou diddest for thy part bind thy selfe by Covenant promise and vow that thou wouldest forsake the Divell and all his workes constantly beleeve Gods holy word and obediently keepe his commandements the better thereby to expresse thy thankefulnesse towards him for so great a benefit 1 Pet. 4.1 2 3. Psal 116.12 13.14 And we know that in-Covenants and Indentures if the conditions be not kept the Obligation is not in force Whereby many even Magus like after the water of Baptisme goe to the fire of hell Yea except we repent and beleeve the Gospell we are perjured and that holy Sacrament together with the offer of grace and in stead of sealing to us our salvation will be an obligation under our hand and seale against us and so prove a seale of our greater condemnation Alasse ignorant Worldlings who will beleeve nothing which comes not within the compasse of their five sences thinke that because God strikes not he mindes not Psal 50.21 Because sentence against an evill worke is not executed speedily therefore the heart of the children of men is fully set in them to doe evill as Solomon speakes Eccles 8.11 Because God doth not forthwith strike one dead with a Thunder Bolte and raine downe fier and brimestone upon another and cause the earth to swallow downe a