Selected quad for the lemma: glory_n
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B05828
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The catalogve of the Hebrevv saints, canonized by St. Paul, Heb. 11th further explained and applied.
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Shaw, John, 1614-1689.
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1659
(1659)
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Wing S3032; ESTC R184043
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112,894
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165
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endearments be either inconsistent with or prejudiciall to our holy profession any lets or hinderances to us in the discharge and performance of the duties of Piety or Charity the love of God and Man then we are by all means to quit and dis-own them we must come out of Babylon though our Interests be there if we cannot stay but we must partake of their sins we must forsake Egypt if she distresse the People of God and our precious Faith for we cannot serve God and Mammon Christ and Belial Q. But what is there such a power and faculty in man to refuse or choose what he will And if so then doth not this power necessarily inferr a freedom in the will of man A. Certainly man is a free Agent in all his exercises and operations and what he doth not freely he doth not as a man but as a horse and mule which have no understanding and we are forbidden to be such Psal 32.10 for it is naturall for the will of man to move freely rationally and deliberately and this freedom or liberty of the will is an essentiall of humanity and the proper act of that freedom is Election which is exposed both to coaction and compulsion Voluntas non cogitur for that which is compelled is against the will and that which is against the will is not willed It is true the will may be letted changed and the commanded actions thereof compelled that is those inferiour faculties which are moved by the will but the immanent actions of the will that is to deliberate will and choose cannot be so and also to necessitation and determination to one For if the will be determined by the Physicall and speciall influence of outward causes then morives were in vain reason in vain deliberation in vain all perswasions and threats in vain but therefore are these used because man hath a power of Election that he may deliberate and act indifferently and either doe or not doe or doe this or the contrary For what exercise have we of our wills if we act not voluntary And how act we voluntarily if we be necessitated absolutely And to what end and designe are those terrors and promises of the Lord the danger we shall incurr by our disobedience and the reward we shall reape by our obedience if they be not as rationall motives and have not with them a persuasive efficacy It is true indeed that the will often mistakes and errs in her choyce putting bitter for sweer evill for good and one the contrary But this proceeds not from any forfeiture of what was naturall to the will and all or certainly very few excepted confesse that Adam had true and entire liberty but from the corrution of nature or the naturall faculty depraved which is a contracted contagion whereby we are averse and indisposed to good we are refractory and rebellious to the very Laws of Nature as well as of Grace of right Reason as holy Religion and we are prone and strongly enclined to observe and follow the desires and delights of the carnall sensitive appetite and to satisfie the lusts of the flesh for the understanding is full of ignorance and darknesse during this state of corruption of pride and contradiction against all sacred and saving truth the will is full of enmity and opposition against that which is good the conscience full of impurity and sophystry the heart of folly and madnesse of infidelity and hypocrysie and therefore no wonder if every imagination fancy and conception of the heart be unto evill and that continually Yet even in these aptnesses inclinations and prejudices the will moves freely and acts by choyce For as Angels and good Spirits by a most free agency doe good and nothing but good because their understandings are taken up with the contemplation and satisfaction and their affections with the desires and delight of good onely So Devills and wicked men long and thirst pursue and prosecute sin by chusing the evill and refusing the good having the understanding darkened being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them because of the blindnesse of their heart Ephes 4.18 and so allowing and approving of sinne and wickednesse So that whether the object be chosen good or evill the will acts 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by deliberation and with indifferency though that the good is chosen be from the causality of Faith and influences of spirituall Grace that evill from the corruption of Nature either transmitted and passed over to us by carnall propagation or contracted by vitious habits customes and education and this properly concerns not the liberty of the Agent but onely expresseth the reasons causes and motives for which he thus exerciseth and manageth his liberty It was from Nature that Moses chused or made a choyce it was by Faith he made this choyce He chused rather to suffer affliction c. Q. But what doth Faith Catechise and direct men rather to suffer affliction Can sufferings be the objects of our desires and longings Or are afflictions in numero eligibilium matters worthy of our election and complacency A. Doubtlesse they are in some degree and measure though not of themselves yet secondarily in respect of their uses as they relate either to the prevention of a greater threatned and demerited impendant evill or as they conduce to some present or future good For sometimes they are Fatherly corrections to avoyd the wrath and severity of dis-inheriting When we are judged we are chastened of the Lord that we should not be condemned with the World 1 Cor. 11.32 and that is an happy temporall judgement which barrs an Eternall a desireable chasticement which wards off future condemnation Sometimes they are Instructions It is good for me that I have been afflicted that I might learn thy Statutes Psal 119.71 and to receive Instruction is highly appetible and that with the most ingenuous and noble as well as holy and religious spirits Sometimes they are preparatives for Glory having not onely a purging but also a purifying quality 2 Cor. 4.17.18 For our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternall weight of Glory While we look not at the things which are seen but at the things which are not seen for the things which are seen are temporall but the things which are not seen are eternall Sometimes they are discoveries of the truth of the inward parts of our sincerity That the tryall of our Faith being much more precious then of Gold that perisheth though it be tryed with fire might be found unto prayse and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ 1 Pet. 1.7 that though they be sharp and biting yet have they in them somewhat of the bonum jucundum but indirectly and by consequence For we are to count it all joy when we fall into divers temptations Knowing this that the trying of your Faith worketh patience James 1.2.3 much of
rationall creatures and therefore proposeth rationall methods to engage us to accept his Grace rationall punishments and rewards because we are to deal with a righteous Judge Who will render to every man according to his deeds To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality eternall life But unto them that are contentious and doe not obey the truth but obey unrighteousnesse indignation and wrath Rom. 2.6.7.8 11. It s the Observation of Theoph. Moses accounted it a sin not to suffer with the people of God and unlesse it were a sin not to be sensible of the sins and sufferings of his Flock God would not have caused a mark to be set Ezek. 9.4 nor upbrayded and threatned their either dulnesse or hardnesse of heart who grieved not for the afflictions of Joseph Amos 6.6 nor the Apostle required us to be kindly affectioned and this to be expressed as in others so in this Duty to weep with them that weep Rom. 12.15 12. I shall adde one more from Haymo Quando quisque c. in suffering times and condition look and remember the promised reward and these Texts Mat. 5.10.11.12 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousnesse sake for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evill against you falfly for my sake Rejoyce and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in Heaven for so persecuted they the Prophets which were before you Rom. 8.18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us 2 Cor. 4.16.17.18 For which cause we faint not but though our outward man perish yet the inward man is renewed day by day For our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternall weight of glory While we look not at the things which are seen but at the things which are not seen for the things which are not seen are Eternall Promises though alwayes necessary yet most usefull in extremities The Third Part. O Lord God of infinite excellencies and mercies who sent thine onely Son holy Jesus to redeem us from an intollerable servitude the commanding and condemning power of sin and to teach us an holy Religion to despise the world the pomps and vanities thereof and the sinfull desires of the flesh strongthen us by thy grace that as we would accept of thy Son for our Saviour so we may follow him as our teacher refusing the glories and treasures of this Egypt this land of darknesse wherein all things shall be forgotten choosing the better part which shall not be taken from us esteeming our Adoption to be called the Sons of God the highest honour the mercies of God and merits of Christ the most desireable treasury the Kingdom of Heaven the best Inheritance the glory and joyes of Heaven the onely satisfactory pleasures the most happy exchange to give or lose all for the fruition of Christ make us to covet the best things And to this end make us wise and prudent in our choice to be men in understanding to approve what is excellent being filled with all spirituall understanding not to be ashamed to suffer for well doing to count it all joy when we are called to endure affliction with the People of God and to beare in our bodies the marks of the Lord Jesus Sanctifie them to us by thy grace attend them with thy spirit and reward them with thy glory Satisfie our Soules that we may tast and see how gracious the Lord is even in those his dispensations and fill them with the apprehensions of the excellencies and preciousnesse of the promises in Jesus Christ that we may resolve with David Whom have I in Heaven but thee and there is none on Earth we desire besides thee That like as the Hart c. Break O Lord we pray thee the powers infatuate the policies of the persecutors of thy Church Bring her out of Egypt and leade thy People by the Hands of Moses and Aaron Sanctifie all their sufferings and conduct them to the heavenly Canaan to live with their Lord unto all Eternity to whom be honour and power might majesty and dominion for ever Amen MOSES his Courage Heb. 11.27 By Faith he forsook Egypt not fearing the wrath of the King for he endured as seeing him who is invisible MOses had before mastered the false hopes of Egypt now he is to encounter with the foolish fears thereof and having quit himself of the right hand assaults of the World its allurements objects promises he is now to conquer the left hand temptations threatnings force and fury of Pharaoh and his Host the Gyants and Sons of Anak and by Faith in Christ he is in all these more then Conqueror For the Discourses and Reasoning of Faith first taught him to sleight Pharachs Court then his Power First to conquer himself and Fortior est qui se quam qui fortissima vincit and then his and the people of Gods enemy It first instructed him with Piety and then furnished him with Resolution and Courage For By Faith he forsook Egypt not fearing the wrath of the King c. The first Part. Moses did twice forsake Egypt The first time was as was last Recorded When at forty Years old he fled into Midian Exod. 2.15 The second time was when that after Egypt was smitten in every quarter he and the whole Body of the Israelites departed thence And upon this difference of time a question ariseth which time the first clause here in the Text relates unto Some will have the former to be referred unto here as Iun. Paral. lib. 3. because the Apostle in this Historicall computation strictly observeth the circumstance and order of time through all the fore-going and subsequent instances And it 's clear Moses celebrated the Passe-over before the second time which yet is after related here in the following verse and therefore it cannot relate to this unlesse we invert the Order And also because in the 29. ver the Peoples departure out of Egypt is set by it self as a severall and distinct instance of Faith from this here Others conceive it to be meant of the second time for if the former were here considered the Apostles Position here seems to contradict the Historicall Natration Exod. 2.14 where it is said He feared and fled Others as the most judicious Calvin understand it of both times tam de priore quam secundo For though it be said that at the first he feared yet this fear was a fear of prudence he had not strength to oppose Pharaoh and so he could not he had not as yet sufficient authority and so he might not not of difference or the event that God would not preserve him from Pharaoh if he used the most safe course for his preservation and reserved himself for a