be with us If the Lord should give us those things that we think good we should soon bring an old house over our heads as they say Object But some will be ready to say There are some things that are good for me and I have them not Answ Let them be what you can imagine let others judge so as well as you yet I shall stand to this as I said before and make it good that there is nothing in the world that is truly good for the faithfull that God with-holds from them to whom he hath given himself let it be never so speciall a gift it is not good at that time for that person from whom it is with-held For instance some will be ready to say the thing that I want is this I have a stony and hard heart and fain would I have a heart of flesh I â—â—de I have a dead and wandering spirit in Gods service and fain would I have a setled spirit fain would I have a cheerfull heart and free spirit are not these good for me will you say And yet I seek God for these many times and having Gid they are mine owne it seems because they are in God and he himself is mine How can God be said to be my God and all he is and hath to be mine and I cannot come at these good things which are in him and are so needfull for me I answer First that God in giving himself unto persons gives himself to be communicated unto them at sundry seasons and in divers kindes and measures and yet so that he will be Judge of the fitnesse of the time The question then will be this Is it softnesse or more softnesse of heart you seek for Is it a largenesse or more largenesse of heart you seek I mean this that which you seek and inquire after from God as your God is it something you have nothing of or is it for more of something you have already If you say it is something I have nothing at all of I have a stony heart and I have no softnesse at all in it That is false there can be no seeking of God where there is no softnesse and all hardnesse for the Lord must first soften the heart to seek him But you conceive there is no softnesse at all because the apprehension of that which is wanting swallows up that which is injoyed and the want of that which you have not swallows up that you have Is it more that you would have in respect of measure But you will say Is it not good for me though I have a little softnesse to have more and when I have a little spirituality to have more enlargednesse of spirit then I have Is not this good for me I answer You must distinguish of time God doth not see it better at this instant that thou shouldest have more softnesse of heart then thou hast and this I am bold to affirm if the Lord did himselfe judge it were better thou shouldest be more spirituall at this instant beloved I speake of a person to whom God gives himself he would not detaine nor with-hold it at all from thee Mark it well you shall find that all the spirituality belonging to a Christian is the meer gift of God to him and onely at the disposing of God upon him and without the leave of the creature hee may make whom he will partaker of it and in what measure he thinks meet so that the creature can enjoy no more of spirituality then God will give him so runs the Covenant that you may not think that your spirituality depends upon your selves and the putting forth of your selves for it A new spirit will I put within thee and a new heart will I give thee and I will take away thy stony heart and give thee a heart of flesh and I will write my Law in thy inward parts and I will put my feare into thy heart and I will be their God and they shall be my people and I will remember their sinnes no more here is the conclusion now how shall men come by it must it not be of his own good pleasure and is it not as he hath freely passed the donation of it he gives it and he gives it freely he doth not in this Covenant condition with men in any one particle as a condition to get any thing to our selves Marke the Covenant well where ever it is whether in the 33. of Jeremiah and the 31. verse or in the 36. of Ezekiel or in the 8. to the Hebrews where the Covenant is again and again recited marke it there is not one clause of the Covenant that God will have men doe this and that good God doth not put them upon the bringing of any one thing in all the world to make up the Covenant but all that is required of the person covenanted withall the Lord is bound to make good all those things to that person Now if so be the Lord did see more of these spirituall enlargements requisite for thy use he that hath made such a solemne engagement of himselfe for the performance of all that is to be wrought in thee in the Covenant would not with-hold that at this instant from thee thou knowest not what a corrupt use thou at such a time mightest make of them for some through more abundance of spirituality and spirituall enlargements have abused them to grow more proud and scornfull Paul met with such to whom being puffed up with pride saith he What hast thou that thou hast not received wherefore then boastest thou Beloved your owne experience may witnesse Look into the world you shall finde some persons more eminent in spiritualnesse there is more abundance of pride in those persons As for example you shall finde some more excellent in prayer some more excellent in other gifts what follows The corruption in the heart of man gathers such corrupt in ferences from hence that pride riseth in the heart from such parts that another Saint because he hath a stammering tongue though equally sound hearted with himself yet is not fit for such a ones company God is a wise God he knowes the measure and proportion that is fit for every member of Jesus Christ and that proportion hee doth not with-hold I speake not this with any intent but that people should still rise to as much as can be attained but that people still presse hard to the marke of the price of the high calling of God in Jesus Christ Beloved when we seeke God in his owne way for increase of any good for soul or body let us stand to Gods good pleasure and beloved for incouragement let mee tell you if ever the Lord would have with-held any thing for the sinfulnesse of his creatures he would have with-held the gift of his owne Son but while we were enemies Christ dyed for us would not God spare his owne Son but deliver him up for us all while wee were
of God shall we tell Believers if they sinne they shall come under Gods wrath and except they do such and such good works God will be angry with them and that after he hath so sworn and ingaged himself that he will not be wroth with his people any more Is not this to make God a lier Againe wee doe not only so much as lies in us make God a lier but we offer an insufferable affront unto Jesus Christ and strike at the very heart of the whole office of Christs Mediatorship If wee say that God is wroth with Beleevers for whom Christ died for what end did Christ suffer death I say if this principle bee a truth that God will bee wroth with his people and angry with them then Christ died in vaine For God could have been but wroth hee could have been but angry with his people if Christ had never died And to bring the people of God under wrath and vengeance againe for their sins is to take away all the vertue of the death of Christ and to make it of none effect And how will this principle stand with that in the 53. of Isaiah where it is said that he beheld the travell of his soul and was satisfied Was God satisfied with sufrerings of Christ having the sinnes of men laid upon him and yet is God wroth and angry with Beleevers for those very sins again which before hee acknowledged satisfaction for If so be a man be indebted unto another and the creditor be willing to take a surety for the debt and this surety comes in and payes this debt for the man hee was bound for and hee thereupon gives a generall discharge under hand and seal shal he yet by by after take the debter by the throat and clap him up in Gaol when the surety hath answered for the debt before and after hee hath delivered under hand and seal that he was satisfied and that his book was crost Who but must say it is injustice in the highest degree What justice what equity is in this Beloved Christ became our surety God accepted of him for our debt he clapt up Christ in Gaol as I may so say for the debt God tooke every farthing of Christ that hee could demand of us he is now reconciled unto us he will not now impute our sins to us he hath acknowledged satisfaction it is upon record And now shall he come upon them again with fresh wrath for whom Christ hath done all this Shall hee charge the debt upon them againe He hath forgotten the death of Christ it seems if this be true Therefore know thus much that it is against the death of Christ it is a making of it of none effect it makes the coming of Christ to be in vaine to say that the wrath of God will breake out upon Beleevers if they commit such and such sinnes And for this that I have said If any man can produce one Scripture against it if any man can shew in all the Booke of God that it is any otherwise then I have delivered for my part I shall be of another minde and willingly recant my opinion But I see the Scripture runs wholly in this strain and is so full in nothing as in this that God hath generally discharged the sins of Beleevers Oh then take heed of falling into that error of the Papists that say that God hath taken away the sinne but not the wrath of God due to sinne that he hath forgiven our sins but not the punishment of sin But I beseech you consider that as our sinnes were then upon Christ he was so bruised for our iniquity that by his stripes we are healed and the chastisement of our peace was so upon him that he being chastifed for our sins there is nothing else but peace belongs to us And the chastisement of our peace was so upon him that he beheld the travell of his soule and was satisfied Christ was so chastised as I have often said with the rod of Gods wrath that it was quite worne out and wholly spent it selfe upon him This is apparent in the very tenor of the new Covenant it self It runs altogether upon free Gift and Grace God takes upon himself to do all that shall be in Believers asking and requiring nothing at all of us It is true he saith there shall be the new heart and a new spirit and that there shall bee a new Law written in the inward parts But hee requires it not of the Believer but hee himselfe hath undertaken to doe all and bestow upon the Beleever A new heart will I give thee and a new spirit will I put into thee and I will take away thy stony heart and I will give thee a heart of flesh Hee doth not say you must get you new hearts and new spirits and you must get your stony hearts taken away and you must get you hearts of flesh But I will take the worke in hand and I will see all done my self All runs freely upon Gods undertaking for his people Seeing therefore God doth all things freely of his own accord in us then beloved see how the Grace of God is abused by those that would make men beleeve that the Grace of God depends upon mens doings and performances upon actions in the creature and tell men if they doe it not the wrath of God will follow thereupon This likewise batters down to the ground that way of urging men to holinesse which some men hold forth that if men doe not these and these good workes and leave these and these sins then they must come under the wrath of God and that the wrath of God is but hidden all this while they doe these and these good works but if they faile in any of these then the wrath of God will breake out upon them whereas they ought rather after the example of the Apostle to excite them to these good workes because they are already freed from wrath Certainly this that I have delivered proves this sufficiently that the appearing of the Grace of God doth teach men to doe the will of God effectually the love of God constrains the faithfull and not the feare of wrath But to conclude do not mistake me in the mean while I have no thoughts as if wrath and vengeance were not to be preached and made known even to Believers yea beloved wrath and vengeance is to be made known to them and that as the deserts of sin and as the means to keep men from sin Obj. But now some may say this seems to be against all that you have said before this seems to overthrow all that you have delivered Answ Observe me well do not mistake me You must know that wrath and vengeance must be revealed to Believers and it must bee known to the end to restraine them from sin but not in that way men doe ordinarily think I mean thus Wrath and vengeance is not to be revealed as if
dismayednesse is prejudiciall to all religious duties first it is a damper of prayer Beloved you know that the life of prayer lies in faith If any man pray let him aske in faith saith St. James Faith is the wing of prayer and carries it up to heaven clip the wings of prayer and the motions of it must be slow Beloved you that are afraid doth feal and dismayednesse take hold of your spirits marke in such a fit what hearts you have to pray In brief there is this great prejudice in fear it makes all the duties that persons perform meerly selfish You know that a servant is very diligent for his master when no danger cometh but let the servant be in fear of any danger he will leave his masters businesse to shift for himselfe and seek for his own safety So consider it well whether your hearts are not for your selves in your services when there is a strong passion of feare in your spirits when a man is in prayer against some evill he fears is approaching unto him what prayer is it He is altogether for himselfe that he may be delivered from his present feare there is not a thought so far as this fear prevails that God may be glorified all the while but only of the evill that is upon him or that is like to fall upon him whereas the Believer should serve with sincerity and singlenesse of spirit he should do that which he doth as unto the Lord saith the Apostle Do not mistake it is not the spiritualnesse nor the fervency in the performance of duties that carries it duties are not expiatory helpers with Christ But I say when duties are performed as to the Lord and for the Lord and not to and for himself then are they right as services But all our hope that we must have in any condition must be only from the grace of God and all our performances that we do act must be to the Lord for what he hath done for us Therefore seeing it is the Lord himself that calls upon you and claps you on the back and bids you be not affraid take courage from the Lord and quit your selves like men In danger be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might There is this difference between Gods call and mans call to do any thing men call men to services and employments but cannot give them power ability to perform that which they are called unto but God calls and gives influence of his owne to make men doe such things as he calls them unto The Lord saith Feare not and in the voyce of the Lord there is life to frame the same temper in your hearts Christ he shall stand over your dead hearts as he did over the dead body of Lazarus saying Lazarus arise who immediatly arose the word of his mouth carried life into it and with it So it saith Fear not and immediately it takes away all feare from the spirit of that man he speaks inwardly unto other men may speak and speak their hearts out and never the better but when God calls upon you not to be afraid he is present in his Ordinances meerly for his owne sake to hold out this undauntednesse of spirit to you it is now with you if you imbrace it it is at your dores he wil make you of a strong and undaunted spirit he shal strengthen you as that Leviathan the Lord speakes of in the 41. of Job which esteemed Iron as straw and brasse as rotten wood because his scales were so strong know this that Believers are the Leviathans of God hee will so steel their spirits that they shall cut Iron as straw and Brasse as rotten wood The Lord is able to put such a spirit into you and he will make good his promise wherein he hath ingaged himselfe that his strength shall be made perfect in weaknesse therefore though you have said My strength faileth me 〈◊〉 yet the Lord shall be the strength of your heaâ—ts and your portion for ever thus you shall give that to the Lord that fearfull men rob him of that is the glory of his power of his faithfulnesse of the freenes and riches of his grace and care of his peoples welfare and Christ of his sufficiency wherein he hath promised plentifully to supply you with all spirituall strength and vigor that you shall run and not be weary that you shall walk and not be faint In a word there are a few civill respects that I will mention as motives against this fear I will but touch them First know fear especially dismayednesse puts a man besides his wits that while he is in such a passion he is to seek for common wayes of safety so that whereas men thinke that fear will hâ—lpe them to avoid danger commonly in amazednesse you shall have people stand still not able to stir or slip aside to save themselves Besides this fear is such a rack and torment that commonly those evills so much feared prove not so hurtfull nor evill to a person as the present fears and besides this feare many times it doth not only daunt the spirit of a man in himself but proves very dangerous to others you already have had sufficient experience not long since of the evill and mischiese this fear had like to have occasioned in the Army a thousand to one it was that the fear of some had not made all the rest to flye and it was a miracle of mercy that there should be so great a feare in the Army and the Army yet stand so to it feare at such a time is of a wonderfull spreading and dangerous nature fearfulnesse in one kindles fearfulnesse in many and so not only mens persons but also the Cause it selfe is hazarded but these are but low things in respect of the prejudice God himselfe sustains in the feare of men therefore for your encouragement consider what the Lord hath in store for you nothing he hath nothing he is or can give doth he think too good for you but he is willing to part with it to make you happy he parts not with his goods but with his Son for you nay beloved he parts with that which is more if any thing can be more then his Son that is himselfe Will you now deprive your selves of the sweet enjoyment of all these by your base and unbelieving and fearfull hearts Nay rather let us freely receive let us thankfully acknowledge and confidently rest upon our Fathers abundant mercy expressed in so many blessings but especially in the gift of his only Son given unto us that we might serve him without feare in holinesse and righteousnesse all the dayes of our life Luke 1.74 75. SERMON II. Isaiah 41. vers 10. Feare thou not for I am with thee be not dismayed for I am thy God I will strengthen thee yea I will help thee yea I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousnesse VPon the like occasion that
is in a little Diamond How do men prize the dust of gold Despise not small things say not 't is a little book a â—ittle starre may light thee to Christ great bodies have most humours grosser volumes commonly are thickned with too much earth If thou ask what is in this I answer as the voyce once spake to Austin Tolle Lege or as Philip to Nathaniel Come and see If I should say all that I know of the Author some that know me would say that I flatter him because of my relation to him in his life though I know there 's little to be gotten by dead mens favour But this I shall bee bold to affirm there 's no Antinomianisme in the Title or Tract and from all vicious licentiousnesse of life and scandalous aspersions cast on his person by lying lips I stand upon mine owne experience and more than twelve yeers knowledge to vindicate him let the father of lies and all his brood come forth and make good their charge against him I fear not to appear in his cause yea if I should not open my mouth in his behalfe whose industry and integrity God and his Saints have so much approved and from whose labours and yoke-fellow I have reaped so much comfort if yet I should be silent I desire to be marked with a black coal Try him now and judge thou wilt find no poison in his hive no Serpent lurks under his leaves Tolle lege come and see whether Jesus of Nazareth be not here not sealed up in a Sepulchre guarded with a rude train to keep his Disciples from him as the High Priests use to do but thou shalt find him in his garden opening his fountaine blowing on his spices leading into his banqueting-house staying with flaggons comforting on every side thou shalt find more in this booke then I will promise only be perswaded to peruse it if thou lovest thy rest read it Here is newes of drye land footing for thy soul the Olive branch doth witnesse it feare not be not dismayed the waters are abated let not thy sloth make thee guilty of thy misery Will not the weather-beaten Marriner employ all his strength and oars to thrust into a quiet harbour Is any thing more desired by the chased Hart then the cooling streams How do men pursued by the enemie rejoyce in the shelter of a strong hold Can any thing be more welcome to a notorious offender justly condemned then a gracious pardon Is not God and his Righteousnesse all this and much more to a poor creature in such conditions Behold an Haven a Brooke a Tower a Pardon a full a free Pardon a Ransome for thy soule the righteousnesse of God breaking through the sides the hands the heart of Christ to make way to thee to revive thy ding drooping bleeding heart Incline thine ear hearken for the time to come hear and thy soul shall live forsake not thine owne mercies to observe lying vanities leane not to the reeds of Egypt when thou hast the rod of Gods strength put into thy hand Shal there be a price in the hand and no heart to it It may be thy feet have not yet stumbled though thou hast walked on the hils of earth the Mountains of the world the high Mountains of the flesh thy way hath beene smooth and easie so is the wilde Asse's till her moneth overtake her thy conscience perhaps hath fancied some shadow of peace by the dull glimmering of an earthly spark but they that walk in the light at last lye downe in sorrow Isaith 50.11 Be not proud therefore but give glory to God before he cause darknesse before he turn your light into the shadow of death make it grosse darknesse that darknesse that might be felt was not the least of the Egyptian plagues What greater torment then the conscience once sensible of being destitute of the light of life The Authors aim is to lead thee into Goshen to guide thy feet into the way of peace follow him walke in the steps of the faith of our Father Abraham that faith oâ— which circumcision was no cause nor evidencâ— to himself for he had it and he knew he had it before he was circumcised by this faith he gave glory to God we give glory to the robe of Gods righteousnesse when we put none of our owne under it to make it sit uneasie nor weare any of our own upon it to obscure the full glory of it thou wilt finde this garment the best fashion and as wel held forth by this as by any man whost intentions were to cover all blemishes all sins to hide all deformity with it yet to shelter no lust nor sin under it I might launch out into his life and call in all his practice to prove it but till more need require I shall referre thee to Mr. R.L. in his preface to the first volume and to the present triall of his doctrine Let a Christian heart moderate a critical eye find fault who can The God that once breathed the rich knowledg of himself through the frail organs of this earthen vessel into the eares of those that heard him now dart a greater glory of his righteousnesse and grace into the eyes of all their understandings that shall read him I know I can adde no worth to this work 't is of divine value it hath the stamp of heaven the Image of God is on it the Author is gone home and yet living with the Lord though some think the Saints dye and like the wicked leave a stink behind them I deny not the mortality of any nor need I hang thiâ— mans hearse with odoriferous Encomiums yet hee that visits his friend though never 〈◊〉 godly in the grave had need take a little Frankincense in his hand if hee be buried amonâ— men all the aire in the world is so contagiously infected with the stinking breath of thâ— living that you cannot come neer the deaâ— without a bundle of myrrhe Malice and madâ—nesse like a Gangrena stands at the tombe antent of every blessed soul crying Noli me taâ—gere Of all men one would have thought 〈◊〉 sweet a man as Christ had needed no spices 〈◊〉 his Sepulchre for hee did no evill and he saâ— no corruption Yet Joseph would not intenâ— his body without sweet odors though Mâ— had bestowed a whole boxe of precious oynment on his feet in his life time but a little before his buriall Let the Saints walke never wisely warily circumspectly let them keeâ— their feet as clean as sweet as they can they hâ—â— need have their winding sheet and coffin pâ—â—fumed I say not with the Parasiticall smoâ— of a perfumed Oration but with a just viâ—â—cation of their innocency as occasion shall â—â—quire But I hope there will be need of no â—â—gagement from me this way in the Authors 〈◊〉 halâ—â— for his two last Sermons in this voluâ— are a cleer vindication of him from those coâ—mon â—spersions laid upon
childe hath his land disposed for his use by the father but I say the propriety is the same So far as God may be usefull for a creature so far God is the creatures to doe good to the creature I doe not speak here according to the foolish fantasie of some nor conceive as if there were a transmutation of the creature into God but I speake of God in respect of his usefulnesse for accommodation so far as it is possible for a creature to have him He hath made over himselfe in particular man may have a propriety in God pâ—â—sed over unto him as those good things of God that we injoy are not transmuted into mans nature nor is mans nature changed into that good but so far as they may be usefull to him or so far as they may conduce to his welfare so far he may make use of them So when God is thy God so far as he may be usefull to thy good so far he is as much thine as any one thing in the world is thine Be it far from thee therefore to think that God is able to do thus and thus and to do good in such and such a case and yet I cannot I shall not have God for such a good to may selfe this man that so thinketh must needs conclude God is not his God Was it ever heard that a man had money in his purse and yet wanted bread and did perish for want of bread except there were no bread to be had to be bought for money So this is to deny the All-sufficiency of God to think that he cannot that he will not supply us with all needful blessings Assure your selves as God is your owne so as far as may be for your good you have him as much as any thing that is yours only you have not the dispoâ—ng of him to your selves and for your selves but that he hath in trust for you And this will serve to give a hint by way of answer to some questions by and by Thus considering what men have in having God let us now take it into our consideration what the stock and treasure is in having him to be our God It is true there are some things in which creatures have propriety and yet are little the better for them in that the things they have propriety in are not of sufficiency A woman may have propriety in a Husband and yet she may be a bâ—gger if he be a begger she can have no more then he hath therefore propriety simply is no comsort but the nature of the thing wherein there is propriety If God bee an empty and scant propriety then there were but little comfort in having God himselfe but mark God that doth make himself over in covenant the God of such a people is the greatest richest most incomprehensible treasure that can be You have heard of some that have been raised from beggers to huge and mighty estates they have been had in admiration that they should be made so rich What should the sons of men do if they were able to apprehend what infinite superlative treasure they have all at once cast upon them when God casts himself upon them Beloved I do conceive it a matchlesse mercy of God that he doth reveal but glimmeringly for the present and some smatch of the trcasure that we have in him for cortainly the over-brightnes the over-excellency of that fulnes he gives unto us in himselfe would swallow us up we should not bâ— able to endure the glory of it if the Lord should reveal all unto us and that is the reason wherefore we know but in part now because we should be confounded in the knowledge of all that is to be known and all what God is to his own people There are three particulars whereby specially you may observe what great treasure people have in having God to be their God 1. In regard of the quality of the treasure 2. In regard of the vertue of this treasure 3. In regard of the soveraignty and the universality and variety of helpfulnesse in this treasure First in regard of the quality of the treasure men may have many things which may be of little worth for want of excellency of quality There is a great deal of difference between a heap of Dust in propriety and a heap of Diamonds he that hath one may be a begger and the others having the same quantire is the richest man in the world So we having propriety in God are the richest persons in heaven or earth by reason of the excellencies that are in him Some men have not many acres of land but those few acres they have in regard of the riches of them are more worth then many millions of other acres One acre as I may say of propriety in the Lord is worth a thousand of the richest proprieties in the world I say so rich is God and every thing that is in him All things that are given to inâ—oy they are but beams of this Sun of righteousnesse and if there be so much glory in the beams what is there in the body of the Sun it self David when he considered the countenance of the Lord and the superlative excellencies that are therein he breaks out into admiration of the excellency of it There be many saith he in the 4 Psal which say Who will shew us any good but Lord lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us and thou shalt put more gladnesse into my heart then when their corne and wine and oyle increase Marke while others look for good he looks for the light of Gods countenance when others looke for wine and oyle he looks for Gods gracious countenance and having that he lyes downe and sleeps as one filled and satiated There is abundance of treasure and superlative excellency in God silver and gold are not to be compared untohim Nay the Apostle Peter comparing of silver and gold unto Christ saith they are but corruptible things in respect of Christs blood how much more is God himselfe whereunto Christs blood is but the means now the means is subordinate unto the end for which it is a means If then the blood of Christ be so precious that silver and gold are but corruptible things in comparison of it what is God that the blood of Christ brings us unto Secondly consider the vertue of it for God to be the God of people Many things are of worth in the world that are of little vertue in themselves many things are worth a thousand pound in respect of their value but when they come to use and to afford vertue they are but dry things and unprofitable they can never cure the sick nor warm the cold nor recover the weak such are gold and silver in themselves they can afford the weak heart no nourishment they have none in them A little bread in the house in a famine is worth a house full of silver so God being your