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A13542
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A man in Christ, or A new creature To which is added a treatise, containing meditations from the creatures. By Thomas Taylor, Dr. in Diuinity.
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Taylor, Thomas, 1576-1632.
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1629
(1629)
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STC 23833; ESTC S101983
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68,841
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266
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the axe to hew thee downe and cast thee into the fire 4. I see a good Tree bringeth not fruits onely but good fruits and an evill Tree bringeth forth no good fruit No man gathereth grapes on thistles By my fruits must I bee knowne A good and a bad Tree may bring forth leaves and armes and greenesse alike so good and bad have many externall things alike in common as wealth name beauty yea hearing speaking profession But good fruits from good juyce and sap are proper to good and living rootes I must examine the goodnesse of my fruites 5. I see fruitfull Trees the more laden the more they encline and bow themselves downe neare the ground offering their fruite to every gatherer So must I the more fruitfull in grace bee the more humble and free and beneficiall to every one that can gather any thing from me 6. What particular can I behold and not gather some spirituall fruit See I a Palme Tree It is an image of a just man thriving by afflictions The more weight the more growing Psalme 92. 13. Looke I upon a Vine Christ compareth himselfe to a Vine Iohn 15. and the faithfull to the Branches set into him How many Meditations may one draw hence Nay the very Thornes and Briars teach us to beware of earthly and choaking cares Luke 8. 14. and pleasures which choake the Word that the seede of God cannot thrive in their hearts besides the sight of our sinne in the abundance of them Aske the beasts and every one of them will teach thee something Iob 12. 7. All the beasts on a thousand hils are the Lords Psal 50. In the Lyon behold the Lyon of the tribe of Iudah who foyled the roaring Lyon In a Lambe see the Lambe of God that taketh away the sinnes of the world In a Sheepe note the wandring disposition Isay 53. 6. And the duty to heare the voyce of Christ the Shepheard and follow him Ioh. 10. In a Goate a stinking creature see the image of a reprobate who shall bee set on the left hand Mat. 25. 33. In the Oxe and Asse to know our Master that feedeth us Isay. 1. In the Horse and Mule indocible creatures who cannot bee taught by rules but by over-ruling and bridling see our untaught and refractarie nature therefore let us not bee like them Psal. 32. 9. In the little Emmet see what providence and diligence thou art to use while time lasteth to lay up for time to come Avoide lazinesse and idlenesse and know thy season Prov. 6. 6. In the contemptible Worme trodden under foote Consider the humility of Christ who was as a worme and no man Psal. 22. Let the same minde bee in you Thus shall wee use them as their Lords when wee see the Lord in them And while we cannot bee beyond them in strength of body quicknesse of senses and swiftnesse of foote wee shall be beyond them in discourse of minde and in divine and spirituall contemplation Looke on the Birds upon and about the earth and consider from them all 1. The providence of GOD they reape not nor spin and yet are fed a Sparrow falleth not to the ground without his will Matth. 6. 26. Are not we better than they 2. In the Dove wee have a lesson of patience meekenesse innocency simplicity without wrath or revenge Matth. 10. 16. David mourned for sinne like a Dove 3. The Turtle Crane and Swallow teach us wisedome to know our seasons Ier. 8. 7. Let us learne to know the day of our visitation 4. The Eagle to flye unto Christ where ever he be in earth or heaven Mat. 24. 28. 5. The Henne brooding her chickings puts us in minde of Gods mercy in gathering us and stretching the wing of his mercy over us Matthew 23. 27. Wee have no safety but under him wee lye open to prey and spoyle without him 6. The Raven of the valley must put children in minde of their dutie towards their Parents least they picke out their eyes Prov. 30. 17. 7. The nests of birds must put us in minde of our Saviours poverty Matth 8. 20. If we want such conveniences wee must bee content as he was 8. The taking of silly birds in a net or snare must put us in minde to beware of hasting to sinne which is as if a bird should hasten unto the snare Prov. 7. 23. Looke upon the sea and fishes and behold the wonders of God in the deepes 1. Who is it who calmeth the sea by his power and by his understanding smiteth the pride of it who measureth the face of the waters with a compasse Iob 26. 10 11. and keepeth it from flowing over the earth 2. The sea is like unto God an inexhaust fountaine for when so many flouds and rivers are run out as so many thousand millions of creatures enjoy it is not diminished but remaineth in the same fulnesse for this is the river of God that is full of waters Psal. 65. So the Lord is a sea of grace the more he giveth himselfe hath never the lesse 3. I see all rivers runne into the sea and pay a tribute to that whence they doe receive So as all is from God all must returne to him by way of thankfulnes 4. I see the sea obey his maker keepe his bounds and banks I must feare God shew my obedience stand in my vocation Ier. 5. 22. 5 I see in the sea a mappe of the misery of mans life it floweth and ebbeth seldome is the sea quiet but after a little calme a tempest riseth suddenly So I must looke for stormes upon this sea of so troublesome a world 6. In the Sea are innumerable creatures small and great there walke the shipps there play the Leviathans some of which have beene found sixe hundred foote long and three hundred and sixtie foote broade all which sheweth the power wisedome and providence of God for all these doe waite on thee O Lord Psal. 104. 25. 7. In the Fishes it will not bee fruitlesse to consider what miracles God hath wrought by them Ionah saved by a fish two fishes multiplyed by Christ to feede five thousand men besides women and children how Christ made himselfe known by a great draught of fishes Mat. 17. 27. 8. When I see fishes caught in a net or hooke unawares Consider the folly of men taken by baites of pleasure and thinke no more of their time but are taken as fishes in an evill net Eccles. 9 12. 9. When I see a Fisher cast in his nets to catch fish I may enter into a large field of the net of the Gospel cast into the sea Matth. 13. 47. and of Ministers the fishers of men Matth 4. 19. and of the pulling men out of the sea of the world by the power and preaching of the Gospel as is shewed in that Propheticall vision of Ezekiel 17. 9 10. Thus have wee shewed how all earthly things may minister heavenly meditations to heavenly mindes How a
with Christ but in Christ to bee a member of Christ. So Christ appeared in great humilitie to advance us to this honour Secondly it is a most comfortable condition for First now there is no condemnation to them that are in Iesus Christ Rom. 8. 1. Secondly all thy debts are discharged Thou hast in him satisfied and in him fulfilled al righteousnesse for who payeth the wives debt but the husband and the bebt being once payed it shall never be demanded more Thirdly all the grace and good that Christ hath in himselfe is thine whole Christ is thine by imputation of his merits holinesse obedience active and passive This loving Husband hath all holinesse and happinesse for his Spouse His life is thine for hee that hath the Sonne hath life his death is thine and all the fruits of his passion his resurrection and ascension is thine that thou mayest boldly ascend in affection and cause thy prayers to ascend yea and in person to ascend into thy fathers house and pull downe his intercession Oh what a rich estate is this that a man can aske nothing but hee shall have it Iohn 15. 7. Thirdly it is a most safe condition to bee in Christ our head is above water an able head will save and protect the members All sinnes and imperfections are now covered and hid for the head will hide the defects of the members He takes upon him all the quarrels of the Christian and mightily overcommeth hell the grave death the devill and all adversary power so as the elect cannot bee seduced nor severed from God Fourthly it is a most fruitfull condition Iohn 15. 2. Every branch that beareth fruit in mee hee purgeth that it might bring forth more fruit How can a branch set into such a roote but bee fruitfull Et contra Whereas the misery of one that is out of Christ is that hee can doe nothing at all No branch can bring any fruit that abideth not in him And whatsoever branch bringeth not fruit in him is cast out as a withered branch into the fire A fruitlesse barren tree dishonoureth God Herein is the Father glorified c. Hee disgraceth the stocke into which he is set Fftly it is the onely state of perfection in this life For all perfection is originally in him and derived to us because wee are in him So as that in him wee attaine all that maketh for grace or glory Col. 2. 10. Ye are compleat in him who leadeth into all truth who giveth all graces in their kinde and addeth all degrees of those graces which makes up their full happinesse Yea the perfection of this state is also in the preservance and continuance of it For wee beare not the roote but the roote beareth us Our salvation dependeth not on our selves but on him for being in him we not onely grow but increase and the older we grow the more we flourish and bring fruit Psalme 92. 20. All other branches may bee plucked away from their stocke by violence of windes or mans hand or consumed by time and age but it is not so with those that are in this roote life nor death things present nor things to come can separate them c. From the state of a man renewed we come to the note of him Hee is a new creature Where consider first what is meant by a new Creature and why a man in Christ is so called secondly how a man may know himselfe to bee a new Creature which is here implyed thirdly how a man may become a new Creature seeing hee must bee so Fourthly why he must be a new Creature Fiftly Vse both for instruction and secondly consolation First the new Creature is the regenerate man who is indued with new qualities of righteousnesse and holinesse according to the image of the new or second Adam To understand which consider in man three things 1 The substance of soule and body 2 The faculties of them 3 The qualities of both For the first the same substance of soule and body remaineth which GOD created at first For the second the faculties be the same the same understanding will memory affections senses naturall motions the same they were but the qualities of them all are changed and new framed for whereas in the old Adam the understanding was blind now it is inlightened the will that was rebellious is now bored in part unto dutie the conscience memory thoughts desires which were dull earthly dead estranged from God now are quickned wakened raised upwards the affections which were crooked and corrupt are changed and straightened the senses which were servants of sin are servants of grace senses of discipline the members that were weapons of unrighteousnesse are now become members of Christ in one word the whole man is in these qualities repaired and renewed and made as here a new creature so elsewhere a new man Col. 3. 10. The qualities thus framed in the hearts of the elect at their first conversion are called a new creature The man being the same in substance faculties and members onely in the frame and order of them not the same The new creature is not in respect of substance but of malice Quest. But why is hee called a new Creature Answer The worke of grace is a kinde of creation Psal. 51. 10. Create in me a new heart Now if restoring of Grace where it was be a kind of creation much more the framing of grace at the first where it is not Secondly there is a great resemblance betweene these two great workes of God the first creation and the second First the Author of the creation was the Sonne of God God by Christ made all things By him were all things made 1 Cor. 8. 6. There is one Lord Iesus Christ by whom are all things and we by him he is the beginning of the Creatures Acts 15. 15. He being the mighty Iehovah giveth being and beginning to all creatures not in Nature-onely but in Grace and Glory Againe none can re-creat but hee that first created What is decayed in nature must bee restored by the Author of nature hee that brought his whole order out of confusion can onely bring our confusion into order Secondly the matter of the creation was of nothing which is the difference of Creation from Generation which is the producing of a substance from a substance so here was no preiacent grace no preparing grace For how could Adam prepare himselfe to his owne creation and as little can a man dead in sinne prepare himselfe to the life of God Nay in the first Creation was nothing to resist but here is nothing but an old rubbish strong in resistance Thirdly the manner in the first Creation all was made by a word Psal. 33. 6 9. By the Word of God were the Heavens made and Psal. 148. 1. and 9. He spake the word and all things were made so this is done by the same mighty