the Bellows of Sedition or Rebellion or of an envious hurtful Zeal or a snare for the Innocent or a Pistol to shoot at the Upright in Heart These are not they that have been the shame of their Profession the hardning of Ungodly Men and Infidels and that have caused the Enemies of the Lord to blaspheme If any Man will make a Religion of or for his Lusts of Papal Tyranny or Pharisaical Formality or of his private Opinions or of proud censoriousness and contempt of others and of Faction and 〈◊〉 warrâ—ntable Separations and Divisions and of standing at a more observable distance from common Professors of Christianity than God would have them or yet of pulling up the Hedg of Discipline and laying Christ's Vineyard common to the Wilderness the Storm is coming when this Religion founded on the Sand will fall and great will be the fall thereof When the Religion which consisteth in Faith and Love to God and Man in mortifying the Flesh and crucifying the World in Self-denyal Humility and Patience in sincere Obedience and faithfulness in all Relations in watchful Self-Government in doing Good and in a Divine and Heavenly Life tho' it will be hated by the ungodly World shall never be a dishonour to your Lord nor deceive or disappoint your Souls A Short Catechism Quest 1. WHat is the Christian Religion Answ The Christian Religion is the Baptismal Covenant made and kept wherein God the Father Son and Holy Ghost doth give himself to be ouâ— reconciled God and Father our Saviour and Sanctifier and we believingly give up our selves accordingly to him renouncing the Flesh the World and the Devil Which Covenant is to be oft renewed specially in the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper Quest 2. Where is our Covenant-part and Duty fullier opened Answ 1. In the Creed as the Sum of our Belief 2. In the Lord's Prayer as the Sum of our Desires 3. And in the Ten Commandments as given us by Christ with the Gospel-Explications as the Sum of our Practice Which are as followeth The CREED I Believe in God the Father Almighty Creator of Heaven and Earth And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord which was conceived by the Holy Ghost born of the Virgin Mary suffered under Pontius Pilate was Crucified dead and buried he descended into Hell The third day he arose again from the Dead he ascended into Heaven and sitteth on the right Hand of God the Father Almighty from thence he shall come to Judg the Quick and the Dead I believe in the Holy Ghost the Holy Catholick Church the Communion of Saints the Forgiveness of Sins the Resurrection of the Body and the Life Everlasting Amen The LORD'S Prayer OUR Father which art in Heaven Hallowed be thy Name Thy Kingdom come Thy Will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven Give us this day our daily Bread And forgive us our Trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us And lead us not into Temptation but deliver us from Evil for thine is the Kingdom and the Power and the Glory for ever Amen The Ten Commandments I. I Am the Lord thy God which have brought thee out of the Land of Egypt out of the House of Bondage Thou shalt have no other Gods before me II. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven Image or any likeness of any thing that is in Heaven above or that is in the Earth beneath or that is in the Water under the Earth thou shalt not bow down thy self to them nor serve them For I the Lord thy God am a jealous God visiting the iniquity of the Fathers upon the Children unto the third and fourth Generation of them that hate me and shewing Mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my Commandments III. Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain For the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his Name in vain IV. Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy six days shalt thou labour and do all thy Work but the seventh Day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God in it thou shalt not do any Work thou nor thy Son nor thy Daughter thy Man-servant nor thy Maid-servant nor thy Cattel nor the Stranger that is within thy Gates For in six days the Lord made Heaven and Earth the Sea and all that in them is and rested the seventh Day wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath-Day and hallowed it V. Honour thy Father and thy Mother that thy Days may be long upon the Land which the Lord thy God giveth thee VI. Thou shalt not Kill VII Thou shalt not commit Adultery VIII Thou shalt not Steal IX Thou shalt not bear false Witness against thy Neighbour X. Thou shalt not covet thy Neighbour's House thou shalt not cover thy Neighbour's Wife nor his Man-servant nor his Maid-servant nor his Ox nor his Ass nor any thing that is thy Neighbour's Quest 3. Where is the Christian Religion most fully opened and entirely contained Answ In the Holy Scriptures especially of the New Testament Where by Christ and his Apostles and Evangelists inspired by his Spirit the History of Christ and his Apostles is â—ufficiently delivered the Promises and Doctrine of Faith are perfected the Covenant of Grace most clearly opened and Church-Offices Worship and Discipline established in the understanding whereof the strongest Christians may increase whilst they live on Earth The explained Profession of the Christian Religion I. I Believe that there is one GOD an infinite Spirit of Life Understanding and Will perfectly Powerful Wise and Good The Father the Word and the Spirit the Creator Governour and End of all things our absolute Owner our most just Ruler and our most gracious Benefactor and most amiable Good II. I believe that Man being made in the Image of God an imbodied Spirit of Life Understanding and Will with holy Viâ—acity wisdom and Love to know and love and serve his Creator here and for ever did by wilful finning fall from his God his Holiness and Innocency under the Wrath of God the Condemnation of his law and the Slavery of the Flesh the World and the Devil And that God so loved the World that he gave his only Son to be their Redeemer who being GOD and one â—ith the Father took our Nature and became MAN being conceived by the Holy Ghost born of the Virgin Mary called Jesus Christ who was perfectly holy sinless fulfilling all Righteousness over came the Devil and the World and gave himself a Sacrifice for our Sins by suffering a cursed Death on the Cross to ransom us and reconcile us unto God â—nd was buried and went among the Dead the â—hird Day he rose again having conquered Death And he fully established the Covenant of Grace that â—ll that truly repent and believe shall-have the love of the Father the Grace of the Son and the Comâ—union of the Holy Spirit and if they love God and â—bey him sincerely to the
But who hath hardened himself against thee and hath prospered The whole Creation proclaimeth thy Perfection But it is Heaven where the Blessed see thy Glory and the Glory of our Redeemer where the Angels and Saints behold thee admire thee adore thee love thee and praise thee with triumphant joyful Songs the Holy Holy Holy God the Father Son and Holy Ghost who was and is and is to come Of Thee and through Thee and to Thee are all things To Thee be Glory for ever Amen A short Prayer for Families MOst Glorious Ever-living God Father Son and Holy Ghost Infinite in thy Power Wisdom and Goodness Thou art the Creator of all the World the Redeemer of lost Mankind and the Sanctifier of thine Elect. Thou hast made us living reasonable Soulâ— placed a while on Earth in Flesh to seek and know and love and serve thee which we should have done with all our Soul and Might For we and all things are Thine own and Thou art more to us than all the World This should have been the greatest Businesâ— Care and Pleasure of our Lives We were bound to 〈◊〉 by thy Law and invited by thy Love and Mercy and the Promise of a Reward in Heaven And in our Baptism we were devoted to this Christian Life of Faith and Holiness by a solemn Covenant and Vow But with Grief and Shame we do confess that we have been too unfaithful to that Covenant and too much neglected the Lord our Father our Saviour and our Sanctifier to whom we were devoted And have too much served the Flesh and the World and the Devil which we renounced We have added to our Original Sin the guilt of Unthankfulness for a Saviour and resisting his Spirit and Grace that should have renewed governed and saved us We have spent much of our Lives in fleshly and worldly Vanity and finfully neglected the greatest work of making a sure Preparation for Death and Judgment and our endless State In a Custom of sinning we have hardened our Hearts against thy Word and Warnings and the Reproofs of thy Ministers and of our Consciences that have oft told us of our Sin and Danger and called us to Repent And now O Lord our convinced Souls confess that we deserve to be forsaken by thee and left to our own lust and folly and to the deceits of Satan and untoendless Misery But seeing thou hast given a Saviour to lost Man and a pardoning Covenant through the Merits of Christ promising Forgiveness and Salvation to every true penitent Believer we thankfully accept thy offered Mercy and penitently bewail our Sin and cast our miserable Souls upon thy Grace and the Sacrifice Merits and Intercession of our Redeemer Forgive all the sins of our Hearts and Lives and as a reconciled Father take us as thy adopted Children in Christ O give us thy renewing Spirit to be in us a powerful and constant Author of Holy Light and Love and Life to fit us for all our Duty and for Communion with thee and for Everlasting Life And to dwell in us as thy Witness and Seal of our Adoption Let him be better to our Souls than our Souls are to our Bodies Teaching us thy Word and Will and bringing all our love and will to a joyful compliance with thy Will and quickening our dull 〈◊〉 drowsie Hearts to a Holy and Heavenly Conversation Let him turn all our sinful Pleasures and Desires into the delightful love of thee and of thy Ways and Servants Save us from the great Sins of Selfishness Pride and Worldliness and give us Self-denial Humility and a Heavenly Mind That while we are on Earth our Hearts may be in Heaven where we hope to live in thy joyfull Love and praise with Christ and all his Holy Ones for even Let us never forget that this Life is short and that the Life to come is endless That our Souls are precious and our Bodies vile and must shortly turn to rottenness and dust that Sin is odioâ—s and Temptationâ— dangerous and Judgment dreadful to unprepaved guilty Souls and that without a Saviour and his Grace and Spirit there is no Salvation Cause us to live as we would die and let no Temptation Company or Business draw us to forget our God and our everlasting state Lord bless the World and specially these Kingdoms â—ith Wise Godly Just and Peaceable Princes and â—nferiour Judges and Magistrates and guide protect â—nd prosper them for the common good and the proâ—oting of Godliness and suppressing of sin And blesâ—â—ll Churches with able godly faithful Pastors that are â—ealous Lovers of God and Goodness and the Peoples â—ouls And save the Nations and Churches from Opâ—essing Tyrants and Deceivers and from melignanâ— Enemies to serious Piety And cause Subjects to live in just Obedience and in Love and Peace Bless Families with wise religious Governours who will carefully instruct their Children and Servants and restrain them from Sin and keep them from Temptation Teach Children and Servants to fear God and honour and obey their Governours O Our Father which art in Heaven Let thy Name bâ— hallowed Let thy Kingdom comâ— Let thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven 〈◊〉 in this day our daily Breâ—d Forgive us our Trespasses as 〈◊〉 forgive them that Trespass against us Lead us not into Temptation but Deliver us from Evil For thine is the Kingdom the Power and the Glory for ever Amen Before Meat MOst Gracious God who hast given 〈◊〉 Christ and with him all that is necessary to Life and Godliness We thankfully take this our Food as the Gift of thy Bounty procured by his Merits Bless it to the Nourishment and Strength of our frail Bodies to fiâ— us for thy chearful Service And save us from the abuse of thy Mercies by Gluâ—tony Drunkennesâ— Idleness or sinful fleshly Lusts for the sake of Jesus Christ our only Saviour and Lord. Amen After Meat MOst Merciful Father Accept of our Thanks for these and all thy Mercies And give us yet more thankful Hearts O give us more of the great Mercies proper to thy Children even by Sanctifying and Comforting Spirâ—â— assuâ—â—nce of thy Love thrâ—ugh Christ and a â—reasure and 〈◊〉 Conversation in Heaven And bring and keep 〈◊〉 in a constant readiness for a safe and Comfortable Death For the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord and only Saviour Amen FINIS a Mar. 8. 36. Mat. 6. 33. Job 21. 14. and 22. 17. Psal 1. 2 3. Psal 14. and 12. b Psal 8. 4 5 6. Gen. 1. 26 27 Gen. 9. 6. Col. 3. 10. c Joh. 17. 3. 1 Joh. 4. 6 7. Jer. 9. 24. d Luk. 12. 4 5. e Psal 16. 5 to 11. f Isa 45. 18. g Psal 14. 1. Gen. 1. 1. Rev. 1. 8. Rom. 1. 19. 20. Psal 46. 10. Psal 9. 10. Psal 100. and 23. Psal 19. 1 2 3. Psal 47. 7. Ezek. 18. 4. Gen. 18. 25. Mal. 1. 6. h Matth. 22. 37. Jer. 5. 22. 2 Cor. 5. 8 9. Titus 2. 14.
to all the adopted Sons of God to cause them with filial Affection and Dependance to cry Abba Father Know not desire not love not any Creature but purely as subordinate to God! Without him let it be nothing to you but as the Glass without the Face or scattered Letters without the Sense or as the Corps without the Soul Call nothing Prosperity or Pleasure but his Love and nothing Adversity or Misery but his Displeasure and the Cause and the Fruits of it When any thing would seem lovely and desirable which is against him call it Dung And hear that Man as Satan or the Serpent that would entice you from him and count him but Vanity a Worm and Dust that would affright you from your Duty to him Fear him much but love him more Let Love be the Soul and End of every other Duty It is the End and Reason of all the rest but it hath no End or Reason but its Object Think of no other Heaven and End and Happiness of Man but Love the final Act and God the final Object Place not your Religion in any thing but the Love of God with its Means and Fruits Own no Grief Desire or Joy but a mourning a seeking and a rejoycing Love V. Live in the belief and hopes of Heaven and seek it as your Part and End and daily delight your Souls in the sore-thoughts of the endless Sight and Love of God As God is seen on Earth but as in a Glass so is he proportionably enjoyed But when mourning seeking Love hath done and Sin and Enemies are overcome and we behold the Glory of God in Heaven the Delights of Love will then be perfect You may desire more on Earth than you may hope for Look not for a Kingdom of this World nor for Mount Zion in the Wilderness Christ reigneth on Earth as Moses in the Camp to guide us to the 〈◊〉 and of the Promise Our perfect Blessedness will be where the Kingdom is delivered up to the Father and God is All in All. A Doubt or a strange heartless thought of Heaven is Water cast on the sacred Fire to quench your Holiness and your Joy Can you travel one whole day to such an End and never think of the Place that you are going to which must be intended in every righteous Act either notedly or by the ready unobserved Act of a potent Habit. When Earth is at the best it will not be Heaven You live no further by Faith like Christians than you either live for Heaven in seeking it or else upon Heaven in Hope and Joy VI. Labour to make Religion your Pleasure and Delight Look oft to God to Heaven to Christ to the Spirit to the Promises to all your Mercies Call over your Experiences and think what matter of high Delight is still before you and how unseemly it is and how injurious to your Profession for one that saith he hopeth for Heaven to live as sadly as those that have no higher hopes than Earth How should that Man be filled with Joy who must live in the Joys of Heaven for ever Especially rejoyce when the Messengers of Death do tell you that your endless Joy is near If God and Heaven with all our Mercies in the way be not reason enough for a joyful Life there can be none at all Abhor all Suggestions which would make Religion seem a tedious irksome Life And take heed that you represent it not so to others for you will never make them in love with that which you make theâ— not perceive to be delectable and lovely Not as the Hypocrite by forcing and framing his Religion to his carnal Mind and Pleasure but bringing up the Heart to a holy suitableness to the Pleasures of Religion VII Watch as for your Souls against this flattering tempting World especially when it is represented as more sweet and delectable than God and Holiness and Heaven This World with its Pleasures Wealth and Honours is it that is put in the Ballance by Satan against God and Holiness and Heaven And no Man shall have better than he chooseth and preferreth The Bait taketh advantage of the brutish part when Reason is asleep and if by the help of Sense it get the Throne the Beast will ride and rule the Man and Reason become a slave to Sensuality When you hear the Serpent see his Sting and see Death attending the forbidden Fruit When you are rising look down and see how far you have to fall His Reason as well as Faith is weak who for such Fools-gawds as the Pomp and Vanitles of this World can forget God and his Soul and Death and Judgment Heaven and Hell yea and deliberately command them to stand by What Knowledge or Experience can do good on that Man who will venture so much for such a World which all that have tried it call vanity at the last How deplorable then is a Worldâ—ings case Oh fear the World when it smileth or seems sweet and amiable Love it not if you love your God and your Salvation VIII Fly from Temptations and crucify the Flesh and keep a constant Government over your Appetite and Seâ—â—â—es Many who had no designed stated Vice or worldly Interest have shamefully fallen by the sudden surprize of Appetite or Lust When custom hath taught these to be greedy and violent like a hungry Dog or a lusting Bâ—ar it is not a sluggish Wish or Purpose that will mortify or rule them How dangerous a case is that Man in who hath so greedy a Beast continually to restrain that if he do but neglect his Watch one Hour is ready to run him headlong into Hell Who can be safe that standeth long on so terrible a precipice The Tears and Sorrows of many Years may perhaps not repair the loss which one Hour or Act may bring The â—ase of David and many others are dreadful Warnings Know what it is that you are most in Danger of whether Lust and Idleness or Excess in Meats or Drinks or Play and there set your strongest Watch for your Preservation Make it your daily Business to mortify that â—ust and scorn that your brutish Sense or Appetite should conquer Reason Yet trust not purposes alone but away from the Temptation Touch not yea look not on the tempting Bait keep far enough off if you â—esire to be safe What Miseries come from small beginnings Temptation leads to Sin and small Sins to greater and those to Hell And Sin and Hell are not to be played with Open your Sin or Temptation to some Friend that shame may save you from Danger IX Keep up a constant skilful Government over your Passions and your Tongues To this end keep a tender Conscience which will smart when in any of these you sin Let Holy Passions be well ordered and selfish carnal Passions be restrained Let your Tongues know their Duties to God and Man and labour to be skilful and