Jews Joh. 8. thought we may put away our wives we may swear we may hate our enemies we may kill the Prophets subject the Word of God to our traditions and follow our own lusts and yet they most confidently believed and stiffly maintained that God was their Father vers 41. Though by their leave Christ calls them bastards and finds out another Father for them ver 44. Ye are of your Father the Devil and the lusts of your Father ye will do As indeed they did not long after 〈◊〉 they murthered the same Christ who was the onely Son of God which proved it sufficiently Even so will the worst of men in these days boast themselves Christians Such as do nothing but sin and make others to sin such as glory in and maintain their sins CHAP. VI. ONe minds nothing but his cups another nothing but his coine a third nothing but his Courtizan yet all these promise to meet in Heaven Yea there is scarce a man on earth but he thinks to go to Heaven Which yet is no wonder if you consider all For what the Apostle speaks 2 Cor. 3. is appliable to all that are in their natural condition Their minds were blinded for until this day remaineth the same Vail upon their hearts untaken away in the reading of the Old Testament which Vail when they shall turn to the Lord shall be taken away in Christ v. 14 15 16. Neither do they speak other than they think in this case as being of and holding that reprobate and yet common error of Unomius That faith without works will serve Onely believe and thou shalt be saved no matter how men live Whence it is they do not in the least doubt but to have benefit by the Gospel when yet they will not be tied to the least tittle of the Law Whence it is that most men walk in the broad way and yet every man thinks to enter in at the strait gate They will boldly do what God forbids and yet confidently hope to escape what he threatens But let all such read these two Scriptures and tremble The first is Deut. 29.19 20. where the Lord tells us exprefly that he will not be merciful to such as flatter themselves in an evil way but that his wrath and jealousie shall smoak against them and every curse that is written in his Book shall light upon them c. And the second is Prov. I. That if we will not regard nor hearken unto God when he calls upon us for repentance he will not hear nor râ—â—â—rd us when in our distress and anguish we shall call upon him for mercy but even laugh at our destruction and mock when our fear cometh v. 24 to 33. See other places to this purpose Heb. 12.29 Deut. 4.24 Matth. 25.30 41 to 64. and 3.10 These are Scriptures that would startle them were they not stark dead but all is one God they may hear but the Devil will they believe as it fared with our First Parents when they eat the forbidden fruit at the price of death eternal Sin like Opium brings them into a dead sleep and in sleeping they dream and suppose themselves good Christians Even as a Beggar may dream he is a King or a Traytor that he shall be crowned when he is to be beheaded and for the time be as much pleased therewith And so in this case whereof we have three most remarkable instances in the New Testament the one Rev. 3.17 another Luke 18.11.12 the third Mark 10.19 20. Which examples sufficiently declare that these mens saith is but a dream their hope but a dream their obedience but a dream their whole religion but a dream and so their assurance of salvation is but a dream They have Regeneration in conceit Repentance and righteousness in conceit they serve God well in conceit and they shall go to Heaven onely in conceit or in a dream and never wake until they feel themselves in the flames of Hell And the truth is were it not for Pride and Ignorance a world of men would be ashamed to have their faces seen abroad As but take away from mens minds vain opinions flattering hopes false valuations imaginations and the like you will leave the minds of most men and women but poor shrunken things full of melancholly indisposition and unpleasing to themselves O my brethren take heed of sinning away your reason lest by loss of conscience you become Atheists and by loss of reason beasts As what are these better than beasts for matter of reason For suppose they are as wicked as Devils in their lives yet this shall serve to blind conscience They have good hearts and mean well whatever their lives be When every wise man knows that the outward actions declare the inward intentions A good conversion is proved by a good conversation Nor is there any evil in the mouth or hand which was not in the heart first of all as the stream is first in the Fountain Out of the heart saith our Saviour proceed evil thoughts murthers adulteries fornications thefts false witness blasphemies Matth. 15.19 Yet we have good hearts and mean well Alas poor ignorant souls for every drop of wickedness that appears in the life there is an Ocean in the heart The heart of man is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked Jer. 17.9 and when a man thinks there is no deceit in it even in that he is most of all deceived Insomuch that every man hath need to pray O God defend me from my self for a mans own heart is as arch a traytor as any he shall meet withal we trust it too much and know it too little as it fared with Hazael 2 King 8.12 13. and Peter Matth. 26.33 and those Jews Act. 2.36 But though they know not their own hearts yet God knows them and others may know them For words and actions express our hearts to men as thoughts to God Why else does our Saviour say by their fruits ye shall know them Matth. 7.16 20. And again more expresly Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh Matth. 12. verse 34. Yea yet more fully A good man out of the good treasury of his heart bringeth forth good things and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth evil things ver 35. But besides out warrant from Gods Word the tongue is the bewrayer of the heart says Pythagoras A man is by nothing better known then by his communication says Seneca The habit of the mind is best perceived by a mans talking saith Diogenes He who cannot rule his Tongue can much less rule his lusts says Socrates And another Evil speaking discovers an evil heart as the striking of the clapper does a broken Bell. Yea it were senseless to think the Fountain pure when the streams that flow from it are corrupt that Garlick should grow out of a Vine-stock That Wine should be in the Vessel when onely Vinegar comes forth Away than with
that more foolish than common boast of a good heart when the tongue is foul and the life filthy For when smoak comes out of the chimney there must needs be fire on the hearth When the floods of wickedness come gushing out at thine hands and mouth thire must needs be a spring in thine heart which mantains them CHAP. VII WHerefore take heed of flattering or soothing thy self up with a vain and false hope which is much more common in the World than that which is sound and good even as bastard Pearls are more frequently worn then true Pearls are And in case thou wouldest be loosed from the chains of thy sins and delivered from the chains of plagues That thou wouldest have the same Christ with his precious blood to free thee that shall with his Word sentence others Then endeavour to become a true and real Christian and resolve so neer as thou canst to obey Christ in all that he commands And indeed if Christ be formed in any he destroyeth the devils power which formerly he had in them Heb. 2.14 15. and his wicked works 1 John 3.8 If any man be in Christ he is a new creature 2 Cor. 5.17 Wherefore cease to do evil learn to do well Isa 1.16 17. For fruitfulness is the best argument that we are begotten anew Nor can it be denied but the signs of salvation are to be sought in our selves as the cause in Jesus Christ Our Justification is to be proved by the fruits of our Sanctification and though faith alone justifieth yet justifying faith is never alone but ever accompanied with spiritual graces the beauties of the soul and good works the beauty of graces Yea they are as inseparable as the root and the sap the sun and its light And as fire is to be discerned by heat and life by motion so a mans faith may be discerned by the fruits of it Wherefore fancy not thy self to be a Christian until thou beest one and when thou art so thou wilt by help from above endeavour to bring into captivity every thought and thing to the obedience of Christ 2 Cor. 10.5 1 Joh. 2.4 And indeed the very end of Gods electing and of Christs redeeming us was that we might be holy Ephes 1.4 Matth. 19.17 And therefore he binds it with an Oath that whomsoever he redeemeth out of the hands of our spiritual enemies they shall worship him in holiness and righteousness all the days of their lives Luke 1.70 to 76. 1 Pet. 2.24 They therefore that never came to be holy were never chosen never redeemed Other Scriptures to this purpose are many see onely Tit. 2.12 14. 1 Pet. 2.24 Mat. 19.17 Nor ought any indeed to call upon Christ or once to name him with their mouths except they depart from iniquity 2 Tim. 2.19 And take this for a rule If Christ be not our King to govern us he will neither be our Prophet to forewarn nor our Priest to expiate I speak this in hope that God may it to some one that shall read the same but for the generality It is as meer lost labor to preach unto men the things of God before they be truly humbled with the sight of their wants as it is to offer light to a blinde man to speak to a deaf man or to labor to make a bruit Beast wise as Cyprian hath it CHAP. VIII THus I have proved That all who walk contrary to the Gospel are so far from being Christians that they are the Devils servants who in the end will pay them their deserved wages I come now to shew who are Christians in appearance onely or almost Christians and what their reward will be the former I fear are two thirds of the Nation these in all probability are two thirds of the Residue And of this sort are first such as are meerly civil or moral because they take morality and restraining grace for piety and renewing grace conviction for conversion reformation for regeneration True morality and civility may commend us to men like our selves that see only the outside but not to God who knows the heart nor will it bring us to Heaven and Salvation They may suppose themselves in a good estate but except they be renewed renounce their own righteousness and seek to be justified onely by Faith in Christ and his righteousness Thieves and Harlots shall go before them into the Kingdom of Heaven as our Saviour told their brethren the Scribes and Pharisees who counted themselves just and trusted to their own merits Matth. 21.31 32. Luk. 18.10 11 12. Besides as nothing is more easily broken then that which is most hard so notorious offenders are nothing so hard to be convinced and converted as the civilly honest which also greatens their misery though their condition of it self is very deplorable For all such are to know that their very best services as praying and fasting and receiving and giving of alms c. because they are not done in faith and obedience to the Word and that God may be glorified thereby are no better in Gods account than if they had slain a man or cut off a dogs neck or offered swines blood or blessed an Idol as himself affirms Isai 66.3 Nor will God accept of any action except it flow from a pious and good heart sanctified by the Holy Ghost Yea civil honesty severed from true piety humility saving knowledg sincere love to God true obedience to his Word justifying faith a zeal of Gods glory and a desire to edifie and win others God will neither accept nor reward but account of their moral vertues as of shining or glistering sins because they spring from pride ignorance infidelity self-love and other the like carnal respects as many examples prove namely Cains sacrificing 1 Joh. 3.12 The Jews fasting Isa 58. those Reprobates preaching in Christs name and casting out Devils Matth. 7.22 23. and the like whose outward works were the same which the godly perform And what saith S. Austin most excellently There is no true Vertue where there is no true Religion and that conscience which is not directed by the Word even when it does best does ill because it doth it not in faith obedience and love Secondly let them know that being out of Christ they are bound to keep the whole Law Gal. 5.2 3. or stand liable to suffer the penalty thereof for not keeping it For though this be the condition of the New Covenant Believe and thou shalt be saved yet all that they have to trust unto is Do this and live Rom. 10.5 And cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the Book of the Law to do them Gal. 3.10 And I wish that they would seriously think of it and what need they have of Christ whom they rather persecute then obey his Gospel in love Indeed let them get a true lively and justifying faith Put ye off concerning the former conversation the Old man which is corrupted
through the deceiveable lusts and be renewed in the spirit of your minds and put on the New man which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness Eph. 4.22 23 24. and then Christ and all his benefits and promises will belong unto you but not before In the mean time you are in your blood Ezek. 16.6 and have to answer not onely for your Original guilt but for every thought word and action of yours from your infancy Matth. 9.12 13 Luk. 1.53 Gal. 5.1 to 7. enough to make you bethink your selves And so much of Civil and Moral men CHAP. IX SEcondly there are others and not a few that seem and profess themselves real Christians when if they were well examined and discovered as Jephta once discovered and distinguished who were Ephramites and who Gileadites by their pronouncing the word Shibboleth Judg. 12.6 It would be found that the most of these also are no more like Christians than Michaels Image of goats hair was like David Many have a form of godliness while they deny the power of it yea there are too many titular Christians who stand more upon the outward appearance of godliness than the inward essence Such as seem and are not say and do not profess and practise not Others there are who be not onely great talkers of Religion but great frequenters of holy exercises yet altogether neglect to practice the same Ezek. 33.31 That like sick stomacks much do swallow down but little do disgest that go to Church onely to be seen there and out of self-ends that it may the more inhaunse their gain increase their custom or to get credit and esteem thereby Nor do they always miss of their aim for for outward shew they come short of none Neither is there any duty done by a Christian but an Hypocrite may outstrip him in it Who may be resembled to that unwelcome guest the wind for as the wind will counterfeit any disease of the body whether it be the stone gowt and the like So these outside and formal Christians will counterfeit every grace of the soul as faith zeal and the like Yea to the eye of the world they resemble Moscovia-glass which though it be of little worth is as clear as Christal as transparant as air yea the Hypocrite may not onely pass for a true Christian as did Judas Annanias and Saphira Nicholas the Deacon c. but they will seem to outstrip them in goodness as snow does salt and sugar in whiteness And well they may when their principle care is onely to hide their defects as Julius Caesar wore a garland of Bays onely to hide his baldness Nor can you blame their discretion therein whatever you do their honesty For Each cunning sin being clad in virtues shape Flies much reproof and many storms doth scape These have form of godliness but are the worse for it For in that they draw neer to God with their mouths and honour him with their lips when their hearts are far from him they are stiled Hypocrites both by Isaiah chap. 29.13 and our Saviour Mat. 15.7 8. as well they deserve it But there are yet far worse than these yea too many who may be called white Devils even such as make Religion a stalking horse to villany or a cloak to cosen the world unseen Such as shrowd an Egyptian heart under the habit of an Israelite whose life and profession is a continual incongruity and whose works are antipodes to their words Their profession being honey while their practice is poyson Even such as speak like Angels live like Devils have Jacobs voyce Esaus hands That like Ethiopians are white in teeth onely every way else coal black being Christians in skin Atheists at core Judas you know was openly a Disciple but secretly a Devil The Scribes and Pharisees were fair Professors foul sinners for they devoured widows houses under a colour of long prayers Matth. 33.14 28. Which grosser sort of Hypocrites may be resembled to some wicked Ale-house that hath Fear God Be sober Watch and Pray painted upon the walls when there is nothing but swearing and drunkenness in the same To a filthy Strumpet with a painted face To the Serpent Requius that hath scales as glorious as the Sun but breath as infectious as the Aconite Or to the Devil in Samuels likeness But let these take heed for as dissembled piety is double iniquity so their plagues shall be double in that they most wofully shame Religion by professing it and make the way of truth evil spoken of 2 Pet. 2.2 Yea as of old the people abhorred the service of God and became despisers of his worship because those prophane sons of Eli were so wicked and scandalous 1 Sam. 2.17 so do these Yea thou Hypocrite thou white Devil thy ill life single puls down more than many good tongues can build up CHAP. X. I Grant there are of them so like Christians as to the external parts of Christianity that it is no easie matter to convince them that they are not really such for they have been baptized live unreprovably pay their dues pray in their families are charitable chaste temporate hear the best Ministers repeat Sermons instruct their children and servants with many the like therefore they must needs be good and real Christians To which I answer All this they may do and yet be but almost Christians For as a child of God by looking more upon his sins then his graces more upon his failings then his faith more upon in-dwelling lusts then renewing grace may think his condition very bad when it is very good So the sinner by looking more upon his duties then his sins may think his condition very good and yet be in a wicked estate And the reason is Many mistake common grace for saving grace through the resemblance that is between them As many take counterfeit mony for current coin And as Saul took the Devil for Samuel because he appeared in Samuels likeness So many take common gifts for saving graces because of the resemblance And this is the common Rock that so many souls split upon to their eternal hazard They take up a form of godliness but deny the power thereof And as many might have been wise had they not so thought themselves so many a formal Professor might have been a sincere Believer had he not mistook his Profession for Conversion his Duties for Graces and so rested in that for Sincerity which is indeed but Hypocrisie A man may be like or almost a Christian and yet not be a Christian A man may come neer to the Kingdom of Heaven and yet be ne're the neer Thou art not far from the Kingdom of Heaven said our Saviour to the young man Mark 12.34 There is an external and an internal worship of God There may be the likeness of grace without the life of grace There is no grace but an Hypocrite may have somewhat like it and there is no duty done by a
Christian but an Hypocrite may do somewhat like it A man may attain to many gifts and seeming graces and make a great progress in Religion yea he may do all as to external duties and worship that a true Christian can do and yet be but almost a Christian As observe what God saith Isai 58. of that people They seek me daily They delight to know my way as a Nation that did righteousness and forsook not the Ordinances of their God They ask of me the Ordinances of Justice They take delight in approaching to God vers 2. yea in the next verse They were a people much in fasting and afflicting their souls Wherefore have we fasted say they and thou seest it not And yet for all this they were no better then a generation of Hypocrites as you may finde if you read the Chapter Some neither hear nor do as prophane sinners some both hear and do as true Believers some hear but do not as hypocritical Professors A man may believe all the truths of the Gospel all the promises all the threatnings all the Articles of the Creed to be true and yet perish for want of saving faith A man may be converted from a course of prophaneness to a form of godliness from a filthy conversation to a fair profession and yet be but almost a Christian A man may be outwardly reformed and yet not savingly renewed c. CHAP. XI BUt would you know who are indeed Christians as Saint Paul was and who but almost Christians as Agrippa was Or rather wouldst thou rightly know the sincerity of thine own heart of thy profession of thy Religion which as one would think should be the earnest desire of every ingenious soul then ask thy conscience these questions Art thou sensible how evil and wicked thou art Dost thou seriously lay to heart first the corruption of thy nature by reason of Original sin secondly thy manifold breach of Gods righteous Law by actual sinne thirdly the guilt and punishment due to thee for them both And in case thou art truly sensible of thy wretchednesse it is a good sign that thou art in some forwardnesse to be recovered And indeed the very first step to grace is to feel the want of grace and the necessity of a Redeemer And the next way to receive mercy is to see your self miserable Dost thou find that the Word and Spirit hath wrought an apparent change in thy judgment affections and actions to what they were formerly is Christ thy greatest joy sin thy greatest sorrow and grace the prime object of thy desires Art thou as conscientious alone and in private where God onely sees thee as if thy greatest enemy or all the World did behold thee Dost thou make conscience of evil thoughts grieve for thy unprofitableness under the means of grace for the evil which cleaves to thy very best actions and for sins of Omission Whatever thou enjoyest on this side Hell dost thou think thy self unworthy of it Dost thou more fear the want of grace then confide in what thou hast Dost thou endeavour to leave every sin and make conscience of every duty Dost thou make Gods glory the chief end of all thy actions and aims Dost thou desire the conversion of others Then my soul for thine thou art more then almost a Christian Again the love of grace in another is a good proof of the life of grace in our selves a child of God cannot love a sinner as a sinner Psal 15.4 Prov. 29.27 So a sinner cannot love a child of God as a child of God Briefly when a mans heart is throwly renewed by grace his mind savingly enlightned his conscience throwly convinced the will truly humbled and subdued the affections spiritually raised and sanctified and when mind and will and conscience and affections all join issue to help on with performance of duties commanded then is a man altogether a Christian But contrarily he that takes up with a form of Godliness hating or denying the power thereof is an Hypocrite ipso facto And let men take heed of that sin with two faces and whose reward is the deepest place in Hell as appears by Matth. 23. And the rather for that wickedness does most rankle the heart when it is kept in and dissembled Besides the scab of Hypocrisie does not seldom break out into the plague sore of Apostacy Julian the Apostate was first Julian the Professor To conclude if thou findest not these notes of sincerity in thy self let it be the earnest desire of thy soul and thy principal endeavour to obtain the same Otherwise woe unto thee For outward profession where there is want of inward truth and real practice does but help to draw on and aggravate judgment The Scribes and Pharisees had not heard of so many woes but for their glorious pretences and had the Figtree in the Gospel been utterly bare and leafless it had in all probability escaped the curse Thus mistake through ignorance is one great cause of many mens falling short of their hopes and of their being but almost Christians while they think themselves Christians indeed CHAP. XII BUt Secondly Pride is another cause We are so proud by nature that we have an eye to see our beauty but not our deformity our parts but not our spots our seeming righteousness but not our real-naughtiness our spiritual wretchedness We have all for the most part a self righteousness Every man says Luther is born with a Pope in his belly But it must be the work of grace onely that will make us see our extream vileness and that will make us acceptable to God and it must be the work of grace that must shew a man his want of grace It is the Believers Motto The least of Saints the greatest of Sinners But the Carnal mans Motto is I thank God I am not as other men Eph. 3.8 1 Tim. 1.15 Luke 18.11 But the onely way to become good is first to believe that we are evil Thirdly Another cause is Laziness and the love of the World Almost thou perswadest me to become a Christian says Agrippa to Paul but he could not find in his heart to become one altogether for then he must live a more strict life and relinquish the worlds wicked customs So Balaam could be willing to die the death of the righteous but to part with his covetousness and live the life of the righteous he could not finde in his heart And therefore Christ profited him nothing Hell is to be had with ease but the Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence Matth. 11.12 Many shall seek to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven but shall not be able because they did not strive Luke 13.24 Yea many run well in the way of Christianity for a while but they do not hold out Gal. 5.7 But perseverance is the crown of all grace and Heaven the crown of perseverance It is said of the truly righteous he shall scarcely be saved 1 Pet. 4.18 And it