the vnderstanding and the mind to the things that are offered and makes the minde intent vpon them it is a candle held to the minde to giue it light in the thing to be done and in the manner of doing it Secondly it informeth the iudgement the chiefe office whereof is to trie and compare things together which hath euer been the circumspection of the wise as Dauid compares his present estate with the former It is the definition of a mad man to bee without iudgement to follow his fancie and to be led by appearances without triall so the prodigall sonne when he began to consider is said to come to himselfe Luk. 15. 17. till which time he was as a mad man out of or besides himselfe therefore Elthu counselleth his friends Iob 34. 4. thus Let vs seeke iudgement amongst vs and know among our selues what is good that is Let vs trie Iobs speech how true and iust it is Thirdly sound consideration inclines and determines the will according to the light of the mind and the sound informing of the iudgement and accordingly perfecteth the action He were a mad man that knowing he hath apiece of poyson in his hand would incline his will to eate it Now when consideration hath soundly enlightned a mans minde informed his iudgement according to that light and determined his will according to that iudgement it must needs bring forth sound resolutions purposes and actions Againe see the truth of this doctrine in sundrie instances First a man that is to goe a small iourney will consider whether he be in his right way what time hee hath to go through in what places are most dangerous how neere he is to his iourneyes ende what is the vse of his iourney and accordingly hee resolues for his furniture and expedition So if a man consider of his iourney to heauen of the difficultie of the way the danger by theeues or robbers of the shortnesse of his time how neere his waies end is c. he would speedily resolue of repentance and amendment of life which without this consideration is not onely deferred but also vtterly neglected Secondly a man that considers of the haruest of the returne and profit of his husbandrie will also consider of the seed-time and of the sowing of his ground he wil not spare his seede as distrusting the haruest or fearing to lose it So whereas many are bad husbands because they neuer consider of the haruest others expecting an happy haruest in the Kingdome of heauen sow to the spirit consider this their seede-time and while they haue time will sow their seede cast it liberally on the ground or waters distribute to the necessities of the Saints and after many daies they finde it with increase an hundreth thousand fold Thirdly wise men thinke theeues and fellons to bee mad men that seeing euery Assises so many hanged for theft yet will steale and rob and this is because they consider not the ende but hee that considers the vnauoidable danger of the law the seueritie of it the eye of the Iudge vpon him the irreuocable sentence of death and the shamefull execution of it resolues to depart out of the way of such danger So what makes the wicked to be accounted mad men in wise mens eyes but their foole-hardy rushing into a thousand rebellions and treasons against God they know that one sinne is able to damne them had they ten thousand soules and bodies and yet they rush into thousands of sinnes it being with them as it is with him that knowes one or two graines of poison will kill him and yet eates a pound of it because he considers not the ende Whereas if men did consider the danger of sinne the curse of the Law the torment of conscience here and of hell hereafter durst they so aduenture vpon sinne But I speake of a sound consideration for it is true that most men in grosse beleeue an heauen an hell a iudgement an account and a punishment but not not digesting it with due meditation and application to their owne soules it doth them no more good then Phisicke put into a mans pocket can helpe him to his health all this knowledge is lockt vp in the braine and brest and is as insensible as fire in a flint-stone if it bee not beaten out by sound consideration All this serues to stirre vs vp to consider of our waies and of our estates and of the actions that wee doe for these respects First inasmuch as without it no state of life can bee rightly ordered the Mariner if hee consider not his compasse continually and his course by it runnes into remedilesse dangers and so it with vs in our voyage to our hauen of Heauen The Marchant if he consider not his affaires by his count-booke of gaines or losses his debts and wares will soone proue banquerupt so we in our spirituall traffique without sound consideration shall soone be blowne vp If Eue had considered of the Serpents words had she and had we by her been such losers Had Adam considered of Eues gift had hee been so deceiued If Abraham had considered the counsell of Sarah would hee haue taken Agar into his bosome What doth all this proue but that if we were as rich as Adam in innocencie yet wants of considering our estate would lay vs to spoile Secondly it is a prerogatiue that man hath aboue all creatures to haue a facultie of examining his actions by consideration and yet how little doth man respect this priuiledge without which hee were to be sorted with beasts or mad men especially in sound consideration for the good of his soule the beast liues by things present man should consider the end before he beginne Thirdly without consideration no action can bee done well or succeed happily no spirituall action because it is not in faith if it be done without consideration as for example First we can neuer heare the Word well if first before-hand we consider not whom we come to heare and to what ende namely to further our saluation without this we come but as to a play Secondly in hearing if wee consider not our selues to bee in Gods presence Thirdly after hearing if wee consider not of what wee haue heard and that God will iudge vs by it Secondly in prayer we are commanded first to consider and then to pray as Eccles. 5. 2. Be not rash with thy mouth and let not thine heart be hastie to vtter any thing before God For this consideration must offer both matter of prayer and also stirre vp affection and desire else it will be but a dead and cold prayer Thirdly in the Sacraments we must first examine and consider our selues of the Couenant of the seales of it of our faith worthinesse and repentance and afterward we must consider the fruite of it else all is but hypocrisie and vnsound By all which we see that it is onely sound consideration that brings
feele them and set himselfe on some merrie pinne to face out the matter as if hee were at good ease when all this is eyther a senselesse estate more void of comfort then of feeling or a laughter in the face when the heart is heauie or the laughter of fooles as Salomon sayth whose propertie is to laugh most when they haue least cause Thirdly what true ioy or cause of ioy can he haue on whom the sentence of condemnation is passed the execution of which sentence hee may daily expect Surely the greatest Monarch aliue if hee were in chaines vnder his greatest Enemie and condemned to dye could take no ioy of his wealth greatnesse or of any earthly delight but wicked men are in the chaines of the Deuill and abide vnder the sentence of death euer readie to feed vpon them Baltazer indeede was merrie and in his Reuels with his Princes but what cause had hee when the Hand-writing appeared on the wall So Amnon was merry in his brother Absoloms House but what cause had hee seeing men were appointed presently to kill him Let a wicked man be as merry as hee will sure it is his estate giues him no leaue Fourthly what can minister true ioy to him that hath no part in any of Gods Ordinances which begin and perfect the ioy of Gods people First for the Word of God hee refuseth the ioyfull tydings of his saluation the doctrine of free Remission of sinnes which onely bringeth lasting ioy he hath no part in nor in that Redemption purchased by Christ and published in the Gospell thus the word is a bill of Inditement to him Secondly the Sacraments seale nothing to him but are as seales set to blankes for hauing no part in the Couenant hee hath nothing by the seales onely hee makes himselfe guilty of the bodie and bloud of Christ as Iudas did and for want of faith eates and drinkes his owne damnation Thirdly Prayer from him is not onely not heard but euen abominable besides hee hath no helpe of Christs intercession for he prayes not for the World nor of the Prayers of Gods people because he is not of that communion Fourthly the duties of his calling are sinne to him To the impure all things are impure euen his best actions exclude him out of heauen neyther can a man haue any ioy of his actions till he can reioyce that his person is a member of Christ. Fiftly the creatures of God hee can no more truely reioyce in then a Thiefe can of a true mans purse neyther can that be true ioy in the creature that riseth from the creature resteth in the creature and goeth no higher then the creature but such is the wicked mans ioy Sixtly lesse ioy can hee haue in his sufferings or sorrowes because their nature being not altered they are no tokens of loue nor tend to their good as in the godly but are punishments in part and in hand and flashes of Gods euerlasting wrath and beginnings of Hell In the Lord. from this limitation which is the third part of the verse we may learne this instruction namely that All the reioycing of godly men ought to bee in the Lord that is spirituall and Christian a ioy worthy the Lord. And then it is spirituall and Christian when it hath two conditions First when it is in the Lord as the authour and fountaine of all the good wee can enioy or ioy in yea the matter of our ioy Secondly when it is in the Lord that is according to the will of the Lord and not against it so the phrase is vsed 1. Cor. 7. 39. Let her marry onely in the Lord that is according to Gods Word and direction and not against it First God must be the authour and matter of our ioy as Dauid made the Lord his Song all the day long for First how great reason haue wee to make him the matter of our ioy of whom wee are all that wee are both in our first and second Creation He is the Potter and we are the Clay nay we are his new Creation and workemanship regenerated iustified sanctified and saued are become his by a new couenant in which hee accepts vs as children reconciled by the death of his Sonne in whom wee may reioyce as in a mercifull Father yea as a wife married to a most louing husband by vertue whereof she hath interest into his person and whole estate Of this the Apostle speaketh Rom. 5. 11. Wee reioyce in God through our Lord Iesus Christ by whom we haue receiued the atonement Secondly this ioy is most perfect which riseth of the presence of that which is most perfect and the greater the good enioyed is the greater is the ioy and therefore in Heauen it shall be most perfect and glorious because wee shall perfectly enioy God and see him as hee is in whose face is fulnesse of ioy Thirdly to make God the matter of our ioy is to perpetuate our ioy and make choise of that which shall neuer faile vs for as GOD himselfe is euerlasting so shall the ioy of his people bee like a streame which continually runs knoweth not the yeere of drought yea it shall hold out in dangers troubles and persecution Romans 5. 3. as the Martyrs reioyced in the verie flames What may wee not ioy in outward things as meat drinke wife children wealth honour c. Yes but neuer out of God or without reference vnto him neyther in outward nor inward things we hold all in capite and must bee Homagers of all vnto him hee must haue the glorie of all as Ier. 9. 23. 24. Let not the rich man reioyce in his riches nor the wise man in his wisedome c. but herein let him glorie that he knoweth mee to be mercifull and righteous this must be the chiefe pleasure honour riches and wisedome of a Christian to know God reconciled and to hold all in this tenure We may also reioyce in the meanes of saluation but if wee reioyce not onely in Gods fauour but desire to bring something of our owne towards it as the ignorant or wilfull Papists doe This is not to reioyce in the Lord but in our selues We must reioyce in our Prayers but onely because God is a God hearing Prayer in our hearing reading and receiuing of the Word with ioy but in this respect to God that hee teacheth and speaketh to the soule in the duties of our callings but because we are in Gods Worke in the duties of loue but because we lend to the Lord and feed and cloath Christ in all the comforts of life in the wife of our youth in gracious children in prosperitie c. but because and so farre as these are pledges and fruits of Gods fauour in Christ. Yea more we must reioyce in aduersitie and tribulation because it is that estate which God sees best for vs yea in death it selfe but as it is a going to GOD to enioy him more immediately
to your Lordship first For the seruice I owe vnto Your Lordship as one whō you pleased to fauour as a soules Physician whose businesse is to preuent or stop vp the loth some issue of this disease which hath ouer-spred euery mans nature so as no man can say My heart is cleane neither are great Men freer from diseases of the soule then of the body Secondly To testifie my true and humble affection in putting into your Lordships hand DAVIDS learning fit for Princes and Counsellors directing the high way to true happinesse For it shewes first the entrance into this way which is godly sorrow confession and mortification of sinne secondly the markes of it that it is the straite the streight the lightsome the cleanest and shortest way of all thirdly the end of it which is gladnesse pleasure and ioy which none shall take away Thirdly To put Your Honour in minde that as the world hath made you almost as happy as it can raysing you first out of an ancient Noble and religious Stocke secondly vnto a goodly Inheritance thirdly into the grace fauor of your Prince fourthly vnto the most Honourable place and seruice with such late accesse of Honours as few of Your Noble Ranke are afore You So Your Lordships care be to annexe that Honor which is from aboue from which there can be no fall whereas daily experience sheweth how miserable the world sometimes leaueth her greatest fauorites Fourthly To prouoke and pray your Honour that imitating the gracious footsteps of your Noble Father and following your owne religious beginnings you proceed with full purpose of heart to cleaue to the truth of God and with heartie and earnest affection continue to embrace the true Church of Christ which the Antichrist of Rome oppugneth and oppresseth yea and with vnweariable endeuours to perseuere in the practice of that holy faith and religion which you haue professed and loued which is the one and onely faith learned of God and his holy Scriptures the onely Catholike and sauing faith the onely ancient because the onely Propheticall and Apostolicall faith the onely true Christian faith which the Truth himselfe hath taught and ratified by his precious bloud euen the bloud of the Couenant the faith not onely preached and written by the ancient Fathers but professed and practised by all the faithfull in all ages As for that Popish faith falsly called Catholike wee are sufficiently able through God to prooue it a new Samaritanisme patched vp of Iudaisme and Gentilisme thrust vpon the blind side part of the world vnder the title of Christianisme And yet in these our so perillous and last times what great numbers and persons are daily carryed away from the faith of Christ into that Apostacie and Idolatry of that great Antichrist I wish other parts of the Land could not bring in euidence to this bill of complaint as well as ours Thus humbly crauing pardon for my boldnesse I beseech God to strengthen your Lordships heart and hands to withstand by all your Greatnesse this Gangrene and long to continue you vnder His Maiestie by your faithfull Counsell a muniment to the decayed estate of our Church an ornament of the Common-wealth a prop of Religion a pillar of Iustice a father of Wards and Orphanes and a comforter of comfortlesse Widdowes the Noble Leiftenant of our Country and high Steward of our Corporation And the same God preserue you vnblamable in your spirit soule and body vntill the day of his appearing Your Honours humbly at commandement T. T. To the Christian Readers Grace bee multiplyed with all Gods blessings MY Christian Readers with whom I haue for some yeeres now trauelled that Christ might be formed in you my harts desire and prayer to God for you is that ye may be saued To this end haue I bended my thoughts labors as one that haue desired to be faithful in seeking not yours but you as your selues I trust will witnesse with mee How Satan hath many wayes bestirred himselfe to hinder vs from attayning that maine end he is of small iudgement but of lesse obseruation that hath not discerned The malicious man neuer ceaseth sowing of Tares but especially when Gods Husbandmen sleepe and keepe not their Watches in their Lords field Many of his enterprizes against vs I will conceale and as one iealous ouer you with an holy iealousie I thought fit to note vnto you an ancient stratageme of his plotted against you to draw you if it were possible from the simplicitie and sinceritie of the Gospell receiued which you must so much the more vigilantly watch against as hee confidently hopeth to cause you to fall by it Satan sees the curiositie sicklenesse and inconstancie of mans nature that it is not content with ancient necessarie truthes and that good things please vs not long but new conceits and doctrines like vs wel and therefore he laboureth in all Churches to mingle and blend with Gods receiued Truth humane conceits and nouel opinions by which practice hee soone brought the Church of Galatia to reuolt to another Gospell Or if Satan cannot doe the great mischiefe which hee would quite to cast the faith of Beleeuers from off the foundation he will doe the lesse which he can he wil surely disturbe them and trouble their mindes with impertinent and vnnecessary to call them from more necessary and pertinent truths and hinder their edification whilest he holdeth them in a kind of suspence and doubt of maine points which should haue bin long since as fast fixed in their hearts as Boaz and Iacim the two Pillars set vp in the porch of Salomons Temple I will passing by all other conceits wherewith you haue beene encombred fasten at this time vpon that straggling deuice of Vniuersall Election and Redemption and reach vnto you such helpe as my selfe haue beene led out of this Labyrinth withall that you may also bee able to put foolish men to silence I may not suffer my Epistle to grow into a Volume or Treatise and therefore referring you to other learned Treatises for the Doctrine I wil stand here as your Defendant to answere such maine or rather vaine obiections as you haue or may be troubled withall Those who would haue vs beleeue that euery singular man is elected and redeemed lay this sandie for a sound ground Obiect First Euery man is bound to beleeue hee is elected and therefore he is elected Euery man is bound to beleeue hee is redeemed and therefore he is redeemed Euery man is bound to beleeue that Christ dyed for him and therefore CHRIST dyed for euery singular man Answ. Master Perkins in his book of Predestination answering to this sophisme findeth iust fault with the manner of reasoning which is wholly vicious neyther can it be concluded in any true forme of Syllogisme And it may bee easie in this kind of sophisme to conclude any thing be it neuer so absurd As for example That which God commands a man
Pet. 2. 7. God deliuered iust Lot vexed with the vncleane conuersation of the wicked Thirdly get thy heart washed with the bloud of Christ bee a true Israelite a true beleeuer for God is good to Israel euen to the pure of heart Psal. 73. 1. and Deliuer Israel O Lord. Fourthly get innocency and vprightnesse into thy life to be able to say with DAVID Deliuer me according to mine vprightnesse Fifthly draw daily neerer vnto God and if God bee with thee or thou with him thou needest not feare though thou walkest in the shaddow of death Psal. 2â— 4. and doe this three wayes first get neere him in thy affection loue him in his Word and Image Psal. 91. 14. Because he hath loued me I will deliuer him and exalt him that is set him out of the reach of trouble Secondly in obedience I am thine saith DAVID O saue thy seruant Thirdly in thy confident prayer so Psal. 91. 9. For hee said to the Lord Thou art my refuge VERS 7. Thou art my secret place thou preseruest mee from trouble thou compassest me about with ioyfull deliuerance SELAH NOw followes a second vse of this worthy doctrine of Dauid which concerneth affiance in God when the heart can lay hold vpon God as Dauid doth here First for the present time Thou art my secret place Secondly for time to come Thou shalt preserue mee from trouble and compasse mee about with ioyfull deliuerance Whether these be the wordes of Dauid holding in his soule the sweet sense of remission of sinne or whether it be a forme of prayer which the godly man comming vnto God doth preferre in his presence it is not materiall but howsoeuer it is the speech of one assured of the pardon of his sinnes and from that assurance this confidence ariseth to say Thou art my secret place whence note that The Fountayne of Gods protection and our assurance of deliuerance in trouble is from the remission of sinnes A man cannot say Thou art my secret place till he can say Thou forgauest my sinne Iob 22. 21 to 25. Acquaint thy selfe I pray thee with God and make peace and so shalt thou haue prosperity If thou put away iniquitie the Almightie shall be thy defence when others are cast downe thou shalt say I am lifted vp Psal. 103. 3. The Prophet prouoking his soule to praise the Lord for all his benefits reckons vp the healing of all his infirmities and the redeeming of his life from the graue but before all these hee setteth forgiuenesse of sinnes as the Leader and the cause of all the rest thereby shewing that all other of Gods mercies haue their rise from hence as from their head and originall First sinne layeth open the sinner to all Gods wrath and the curses of the Law in this life the life to come it sets a man as a butt against whom the Lord shooteth all the arrowes of his displeasure sinne not remitted makes vs enemies to God and God to vs so as we cannot expect any other but fruits of hatred Exod. 32. 25. Israel hauing worshipped the Calfe was naked to Gods iudgements and hauing sinned a sinne could not stand before the men of Ai Iosh. 7. 11 12. Sinne is transgression that is a thrusting of vs out of our way and so from vnder Gods protection who hath giuen his Angels charge ouer vs to keepe vs no longer then we are in our way Psal. 91. 11. Secondly this is Gods couenant who promising to put his Law into their inward parts and to write it in their hearts and to become their God and accept them for his people he giueth the reason of all the former articles because he would forgiue their iniquitie and remember their sinnes no more Ier. 31. 33 34. And indeed euery-where wee may obserue how God begins all our good here Ier. 32. 41. First he takes away the sinnes of his people and then delights to doe them good to watch ouer them to build and to plant them And Hos. 2. 17 18 First the Lord takes their Baalim from his people and then makes a couenant and marries his Church vnto himselfe and then to safeguard his Spouse hee makes a league with the Beasts of the field with the Fowles of heauen and creeping things then will hee breake the Bow and Sword and battell out of the earth that they may sleepe safely While man kept couenant with God hee had dominion ouer the Creatures but rebelling against God by sinne the Creatures rebell against him and now God making and renewing his couenant againe with man himselfe reneweth also this clause of it concerning the Creatures that they shall be at peace which is no other then a promise of protection Thirdly confidence is a fruit of faith for wee must first beleeue God to be our God before we can be perswaded that his mercy and truth belongs to vs our ground for our confidence in outward mercies and deliuerances must bee an assurance of his inward loue in which wee may glorie as Psal. 42. 5. Why art thou cast downe O my soule trust in God he is my God and my present helpe And Rom. 8. 33. the Apostle laying this ground It is God that iustifieth challengeth with great confidence principalities and powers things present things to come and all creatures as too weake and impotent to separate vs from Christ. Fourthly what doe the Scriptures else teach vs while euery-where they make the particulars of our comfort fruits of this root as Luk. 1. 74. Deliuerance from all enemies proceedes from the release of the punishment of sinne Our peace with God boldnesse with him accesse to the Throne of grace come from our iustification by faith Rom. 5. 1. Peace at home in our owne soules is a fruit of remission of sinne Luk. 7. 7. Thy sinnes are forgiuen thee Goe in peace Yea our whole redemption from first to last from all enemies spirituall and temporall and all the fruits of sinne is called by the name of remission of sinne Ephes. 1. 7. and Col. 1. 14. and in the entrie of our Psalme we haue shewed that all our blessednesse is placed in remission of sinne But then it seemes that where men are not protected and deliuered from danger that their sinnes are not remitted This was the error of the Iewes that they thought those on whom the Tower of Siloam fell greater sinners then the rest and those whose bloud Herod mingled with the sacrifices But wee must know that the Lord doth performe his promises of temporall deliuerances and benefits not absolutely but conditionally so farre as will stand with his wisedome and glorie and the good and saluation of his owne children Sometimes the Viper cannot hurt Paul nor the Lyons Daniel but againe sometimes they may bee ouer-taken with dangers and seeme to be left in them but so as first they are sanctified to the former mayne ends and secondly as they are good for