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A76707 The copy of the covenant of grace With a true discovery of several false pretenders to that eternal inheritance, and of the right heir thereunto. Together with such safe instructions as will inable him to clear his title, and to make it unquestionable. Exactly evidenced by many perspicuous and unconstrained testimonies of scripture. Penned, and published upon mature deliberation, and good advise. / By Robert Bidwel, a servant, and minister of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Bidwell, Robert. 1657 (1657) Wing B2886; Thomason E2117_1; ESTC R212678 175,027 429

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faith For unlesse the heart beleeveth unto righteousnesse the mouth cannot confesse unto salvation And therefore St. Paul hath put them both together Rom. 10. 10. And secondly this confession must comprehend the whole mystery of Christs incarnation As the Divinity of his generation the purity of his conception and the perfection both of his divine and humane nature together with his doctrine and miracles his sufferings and satisfaction his resurrection and ascension And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh according to all these truths is not of God 1 Joh. 4. 3. If you will proceed to a further triall of the spirits observe their fruit The fruit of the spirit of God is love joy peace long-suffering gentlenesse goodnesse faith meeknesse temperance Gal. 5. 22. And they that live in the spirit do also walk in the spirit not desirous of vain-glory provoking one another envying one another Galat. 5. 25 26. And whomsoever we do really find walking contrary to these or any of these we may say with St. Jude Though they separate themselves they are sensuall having not the spirit Jude 19. But how shall a man behave himself if he shall happen to be beset or tempted by these or the like evil seducing spirits Why I beseech you brethren mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned and avoid them saith St. Paul Rom. 16. 17. If any man consent not to wholesome words even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ and to the doctrine which is according to godlinesse he is proud knowing nothing but doting about questions and strifes of words whereof cometh envie strife railings evil surmisings perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth supposing that gain is godlinesse from such withdraw thy self 1 Tim. 6. 3 4 5. They that have the form of godlinesse in profession and deny the power thereof in practice from such turn away 2 Tim. 3. 5. Their mouths must be stopped who subvert whole houses teaching things which they ought not for filthy lucres sake saith the same Apostle Tit. 1. 11. And thus that beloved disciple Whosoever transgress●●h and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ hath not God he that abideth in the doctrine of Christ he hath both the Father the Son If there come any unto you and bring not this doctrine receive him not into your house neither bid him God speed 2 John 9. 10. And therefore take heed what ye hear Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees which is hypocrisie saith our Lord and Master Luke 12. 1. And so we proceed to his second Caution Take heed how ye hear Not negligently not deceitfully not despitefully but attentively reverently and obediently First take heed how ye hear the word of God negligently As new born babes desire the sincere milk of the word that ye may grow thereby saith the Apostle 1 Pet. 2. 2. We must not look upon the word of God as a thing indifferent but we must desire it as babes desire milk their best-pleasing and most proper food and nourishment I esteemed thy word more then my necessary food saith holy Job Job 23. 12. And thy word was unto me the joy and the rejoycing of my heart saith the Prophet Ieremy to the Lord God of hosts Jer. 15. 16. If these be things to be neglected then may we also neglect the good word of God Neverthelesse we are sensible that the hearing of the word of God is very much damnified by the means of negligence And this negligence may be said to be three-fold First there is a negligence in coming to hear the word of God There are many men and women that think if they come to hear onely when their lazinesse or leisure will give them leave once or twice in a moneth or haply in a quarter is very fair But to day if ye will hear his voice harden not your hearts saith the Apostle Hebr. 3. 7 8. He that will not hear the voice of God from the mouth of his Ministers to day this day every day when it may be heard with any convenience It is a sore signe that his heart is either hardned or upon hardning A fearfull judgement And therefore the same Apostle in the same Chapter Take heed brethren least there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God But exhort one another daily while it is called to day least any of you be hardned through the deceitfulnesse of sin Hebr. 3. 12 13. Secondly there is a negligence in hearing If the Devil cannot hinder a man from coming in at the Church door then commonly he endeavoureth to block up the door of his heart that the word may finde no profitable entrance And to further him in this his design either he disordereth the senses and disposeth them to slumbring prating gazing or the like ungodly ingagements or else he breedeth such a mutiny in the affections that they will by no means agree to give the word of God the least cordial entertainment As if the Lord had sent the same desperate curse among these negligent hearers which he sometime sent by his Prophet unto the Rebellions Israelites Go and tell this people hear ye indeed but understand not and see ye indeed but perceive not make the heart of this people fat and make their ears heavy and shut their eyes least they see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and convert and be healed Isa 6. 9 10. Thirdly there is a negligence after hearing and that appeareth in not practising the word when and after it is heard And I conceive that the parable of our Saviour concerning the Sower may not impertinently be applied to this purpose I pray observe his own exposition Luke 8. beginning verse 11. The seed saith he is the word of God Those by the wayes side are they that hear then cometh the Devil and taketh away the word out of their hearts least they should believe and be saved Here is the malice of the Devil They on the Rock are they which when they hear receive the word with joy and these have no root which for a while believe and in time of temptation fall away There is the infirmity of the flesh And that which fell among Thorns are they which when they have heard go forth and are choaked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life and bring no fruit to perfection Here are the cares and snares of the world These were all hearers but never a practiser The malice of the Devil and the infirmity of the flesh together with the cares and snares of the world will not leave them so much as one word as we say to blesse themselves withall And truely much of this through negligence When was it that the enemy came and sowed Tares among the Wheat but while men slept Mat. 13. 25. While they
commend them for this Let all things be done decently and in order saith St. Paul 1 Cor. 14. 40. We do all strive to seem very spiritual But glorifie God in your bodie and in your spirit which are Gods saith the same Apostle 1 Cor. 6. 20. Glorifie God in your body as well as in your spirit if you will acknowledge that your body belongeth unto God It is a fault amongst us that in matters of religion we do commonly indeavour to make our out-sides seem better then our insides really are But if our insides be not much better then our out-sides in this particular we are in nothing so good as we ought to be Let the wife see that she reverence her husband saith this third rule But if she do not reverence him in her outward actions as well as in her inward affections who can see that she reverenceth him at all besides her self We proceed to the fourth rule Let every woman have her own husband 1 Cor. 7. 2. The Soul that 's married unto Christ must have none other husband but Christ wherefore she will not suffer her affections to run out towards her old acquaintance her old suter sin For she reckons her self to be dead indeed unto sin being alive unto God through Jesus Christ her Lord as Rom. 6. 11. And therefore she will love her Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity as Eph. 6. 24. That so in every case of dread or danger She may indear him with good Hezekiah I beseech thee O Lord remember how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart 1 Kings 20. 3. The fift Rule is this let not the wife depart from her husband 1 Cor. 7. 10. And therefore when the Soul is truely wedded to her dear husband Christ the flesh the Devil the world with all their provocations assaults allurements and temptations can neither draw nor drive her to depart or flee away from her beloved Lord they cannot make her such a wicked harlot as to forsake the guide of her youth and to forget the covenant of her God like that strange woman Prov. 2. 17. They peradventure may so over-power her that they may force her accidentally to slip aside or slide a little back But she remembereth immediately that gracious invitation of her Lord Turn O back-sliding children for I am married unto you Jer. 3. 14. Together with that excellent assurance I will heal thy back-slidings and will love thee freely Hosea 14. 4. And thereupon she makes a quick return she humbly sues unto her Lord for pardon which she through faith obtaineth and by love renews her covenant and so resolves to walk more wisely for the time to come She bears in minde that wholsome caveat Take heed brethren least there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God Heb. 3. 12. And she forgetteth not that woefull curse which doth attend on such Apostasie cursed be the man whose heart departeth from the Lord for he shall be like the heath in the desert and shall not see when good cometh but shall inhabit the parched places in the wildernesse in a salt land and not inhabited Jer. 17. 5 6. There is a fixth Rule yet And that she findeth implyed by St. Paul Tit. 2. 4. Whereby it doth appear that women ought to love their husbands And this in truth compleateth all the rest For first if the wife submitteth her self unto her husband and not in love all her submission is but constrained Secondly without love her obedience is but slavish Thirdly her reverence without love is hypocritical Fourthly if she keepeth her self to her own husband and not in the way of love it is but to avoid reproach or scandal or shame or some such inconvenience And Fifthly if it be not for loves sake that she departeth not from her own husband it is in reference to some self-ends some carnal or sinister by respects Wherefore the Soul that is married unto Christ will be exceeding carefull that this rule of love be well and faithfully observed ANd now the spouse being resolved to please her husband after these and the like Rules desireth to conceive a godly seed That she may be filled with the fruits of righteousnesse which are by Jesus Christ unto the glory and praise of God as Phil. 1. 11. For as the foresaid tree that 's richly planted well rooted full of vegitable Sap will bring forth fruit as well as leaves and blossoms Even so the Soul that is by faith and love united unto Christ not onely will professe her pure zeal and prepare her self to entertain please her heavenly husband But likewife she is evermore in labour to bring forth fruit after her Lords own likenesse such as deserves the name of godlinesse And therefore she doth constantly endeavour to walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing being fruitfull unto every good work as Col. 1. 10. If you demand how our imperfect works can gain the title of true godlinesse I answer thus every work or thing will passe before our God for godlinesse that is performed by a true believer according to these three ensuing Rules set forth unto us by the Apostle Paul where he implyes the power of godlinesse Remembering saith he your work of faith and labour of love and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ 1 Thes 1. 3. First our work must be undertaken by faith Secondly it must be laboured in by love And Thirdly it must be continued by Patience by Patience of Hope in our Lord Jesus Christ First I say it must be undertaken by faith Not onely such a faith as makes a man a true believer in the common sense A justifying and a saving faith For this is alwaies to be presupposed But we must undertake what we intend in order unto such a special faith as onely minds that very thing it self For in this sense we are to understand that place of our Apostle Paul whatsoever is not of faith is sin Rom. 14. 23. And this faith must be established either by precept or by president By the word precept I intend not onely an absolute command but every word of exhortation or incouragement and every necessary consequence provided they be clear and unsuspected proceeding freely from the word of Truth not forced fained doubted or desired nor flattering nor favouring the flesh but answering the dictates of the Spirit in the design of Gods eternal glory By the word president I understand the pure example of our Saviour and of the pen-men of his holy Spirit there where their words and works are paralels But where the word of God is not the Rule the surest Saints may prove no safe examples And he that shall examine all his actions and square them to this principle I doubt not but he is one step in the way to godlinesse For this is that obedience of faith for which Gods holy Gospel is made known as Rom. 16. 25 26.
First if it deserveth the right name of hatred it is impartial And therefore he that truely hateth sin he doth hate all manner of sin and in all manner of persons He must hate all manner of sin He may not hate riotousnesse and love covetousnesse hate swearing and love lying hate publick prophanesse and love private perfidiousnesse or the contrary I hate every false way saith good David Psal 119. 128. And to that purpose he prayeth unto his God saying Incline not my heart to any evil thing Psal 41. 4. Doubtlesse 't is hard to finde a man whose heart is not inclin'd to many evil things But wher 's that Soul amongst us that is not so wedded unto some bewitching lust some Dalila one bosom sin or other of which we are inclineable to say as Lot did sometime say concerning Zoar Is it not a little one Gen. 19. 20. Yet every sin is a transgression of the Law 1 Joh. 3. 4. 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 therefore the Prophet David Search me O God saith he and know my heart try me and know my thoughts And see if there be any wicked way in me and lead me in the way everlasting Psal 139. 23 24. And the Apostle Paul Let us cleanse our selves from all filthinesse of the flesh and spirit perfecting holinesse in the fear of God 2 Cor. 7. 1. And likewise St. Jude exhorteth To hate even the Garment spotted by the flesh Jude 23. Alluding haply to those forbidden things of the Law whereby their very Garments were defiled And intimating to us under the Gospel That we ought to abstain even from all appearance of evil according to that of Paul 1 Thes 5. 22. And as we must hate sin in general so we must hate all sinne in every person A man would think there had been no great cause of offence for Jehosaphat to assist Ahab in the recovery of Ramoth Gilead They were both of the stock of Abraham joyned in affinity professed the same Religion the cause was just and the enemy an idolatrous Heathen Neverthelesse Jehu the Seer said unto Jehosaphat the King Shouldest thou help the ungodly and love them that hate the Lord Therefore is wrath upon thee from before the Lord 2 Chron. 19. 2. And are there not too many amongst us that do professe much detestation against the miscarriages of such as are either averse or unprofitable to our designs whereas a little affinity or friendship or faction or the like carnal complyance will easily over-rule us to approve and patronize the most abomi●able actions Like wicked Ahab who hated the saving truth in the mouth of Micaiah because it was contrary to his intention and imbraced a pernitious lye from the mouths of his false Prophets because it was agreeable to his present resolution as in the 2 Chron. 18. Yea such is the damnable deceitfulnesse of self-love that many of us are thereby bewitched to censure those sins most severely in others which we our selves are ten times more notoriously guilty of And thinkest thou this O man that judgest them which do such things and dost the same that thou shalt escape the judgement of God saith Paul Rom. 2. 3. Verily this carnal self-love must of necessity be turned into spiritual self-hatred either temporal or eternal For we are sure that the judgement of God is according to truth against them which commit such things as saith the same Apostle Rom. 2. 2. Nothing is so offensive unto God or so destructive to our selves as sin The pestilence in our bloud the poyson in our bowels and the sword in our sides all these together can but kill the body according to a temporary death But sin is of so desperate a strain that it destroyes both soul and body too and hurries them into eternal torments And therefore he that hateth not all sin and in all persons chiefly in himself his seeming hatred is Hypocrisie and his love to God and his own Soul is nothing bettter Therefore be not deceived God is not mocked Gal. 6. 7. Secondly hatred if 't is true and perfect it is impetuous or violent nothing will satisfie it but the death or the destruction of every thing whereon it resteth We finde that Esau hated his brother Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father had blessed him And Esau said in his heart the dayes of mourning for my father are at hand then will I slay my brother Jacob Genes 27. 41. And doubtlesse he had done as he intended had not the Lord his God preserved Jacob according to his power Gen. 32. 11. We likewise finde how that the sons of Jacob did hate their brother Joseph Gen. 37. 4. And they consulted together to slay him verse 20. And if we deal more kindly by our sins it is a sign we are but angry with them we do not hate them with a perfect hatred like that of David wherewith he did hate the haters of his God Do not I hate them O Lord saith he that hate thee And am I not grieved with those that rise up against thee I hate them with a perfect hatred Psal 139. 21 22. There are two great evils in and belonging unto every sin to wit the evil of iniquity Psal 32. 5. And the evil of punishment Lam. 3. 39. Whereof the first is essential and offensive to the spirit the second is accidental and offensive to the flesh And from hence it proceedeth that the spiritual man hateth sin for the iniquity thereof In reference to God But the carnal man is angry with sin onely because of the punishment thereof in relation to himself God is not in all his thoughts saith David Psal 10. 4. And therefore because he hateth not the iniquity which he ought to hate the punishment which he hateth shall fall upon him unto his confusion Gen. 4. 13. Whilest he which hateth that which God doth hate shall surely be approved of by God Rev. 2. 6. And therefore it will be of special use unto us to consider with what vehemency the Prophet David endeavoureth to aggravate the violence or the severity of his hatred against sin and sinners in his 101. Psalm Wherein he maketh divers protestations or promises unto this very purpose saying I will see no wicked thing before mine eyes I hate the work of them that turn aside it shall not cleave to me verse 3. A froward heart shall depart from me I will not know a wicked person verse 4. Who so privily slandereth his neighbour him will I cut off him that hath an high look and a proud heart will not I suffer verse 5. He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my h●use he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight verse 7. I will early destroy all the wicked of the land that I may cut off all wicked doers from the citie of the Lord verse 8. Thus