Heaven upon Earth OR Good News FOR Repenting Sinners Being an account of the Remarkable Experiences and Evidences For eternal Life of many Eminent Christians in several Declarations made by them upon Solemn Occasions Displaying the exceeding Riches of the Free Grace and Love of God in supporting them under violent Temptations and at length filling their Souls with Divine Consolations Approved of as very necessary for comforting poor doubting Believers By William Dyer Min. of the Gospel Come and hear all ye that fear God and I will declare what he hath done for my Soul Psalm 66.17 LONDON Printed for Thomas and Nath. Crouch Jun. at the Bell in the Poultrey near Cheapside 1697. TO THE READER I Am very sensible that Discourses of Conversion in this Age are much slighted and derided by some kind of men that make high pretences to Learning and Knowledge who tell us that this talk of Conversion is sitter for Pagans and Infidels to hear than Christians and Protestants But as some people speak against Learning that have none themselves so such Persons may be thought to inveigh against Conversion and the Spirit of God because they never experienced the effects of either of them in themselves For certainly I. It is not the taking on us the Profession of Christianity that can save our Souls or make us happy forever If to cease to be Jews or Pagans and to put on the Christian Profession were sufficient then the Christians of Sardis and Laodicea who had a name to live would never have been condemned by our blessed Lord and threatned to be spewed out Rev. 3.1,16 Are there not many that name the name of Jesus Christ that yet depart not from Iniquity and profess they know God but in works deny him and will God receive these for True Converts because they are turned to the Christian Religion II. It is not being Baptized into the Christian Faith nor being Washed in the Laver of Regeneration that can denominate a Man a real and sincere Christian Many take the Press Money and wear the Livery of Christ that yet never stand to their Colours nor follow their Leader Ananias and Saphira and Simon Magus were baptized as well as the rest How fondly then do many men mistake deceiving and being deceived dreaming that the effectual Grace of God is necessarily joyned to the outward administration of Baptism and that being Converted and Regenerated already when Baptized they need no more But if this were so then all that were baptized in their Infancy must necessarily be saved because the promise of Pardon and Salvation is made to Conversion and Regeneration and we need look no further to see our Names written in Heaven but to search the Register and see whether we were baptized and the Certificate of our Baptism will be the fairest evidence for Heaven and we need only to cry God mercy and be absolved by the Minister at our Death and we 〈◊〉 inherit the Kingdom of God But let me tell you from the living God that whatever benefits you receive by baptism yet if when you come to years you be unholy unclean malicious covetous a scoffer or the like you cannot be saved except you be renewed again by repentance and a through and powerful change of your heart and life III. It is not Moral Righteousness that will evidence us to be Christians we must exceed the Scribes and Pharisees And though the blessed Apostle Paul before his Conversion says that he was touching the Righteousness of the Law blameless Phil. 3. So that none could charge him with the least immorality and though the self justifying Pharisee could say I am no Extortioner Adulterer Unjust c. Luke 18.11 yet this was not sufficient Thou must have something more than all this to shew or else God will not justifie thee I condemn not Morality but we are not to rest there Piety includes Morality as Christianity doth Humanity and Grace includes Reason but we must not divide the two Tables IV. External Conformity to the Rules of Piety is not enough to make us true Christians Many have a Form of Godliness without the Power they may pray long fast often hear gladly and be very forward in the service of God though costly and expensive and yet be strangers to Christianity and the divine Life It will not be enough for them to plead at the great Day of Account that th◠kept their Church said their Prayers received the Sacrament constantly gave Alms or the like For there is no outward service but an Hypocrite may perform it even to the giving all his goods to the poor and his body to be burned 1 Cor. 13.3 V. A Seeming Conformity to the will of God occasioned either by the restraint of humane Laws Education Afflictions or the like can never give us assurance of eternal happiness 'T is too common and easy to mistake Education for the Grace of God but if this were true who was a better man than Jehoash who while his Vncle lived was very forward in Gods service and calls upon him to repair the house of the Lord 2 Kings 12.2,7 yet there was nothing but good Education all this while for when his good Tutor was taken out of the way he appears to have been only chained up and presently falls to Idolatry so in case of humane Laws and Afflictions though men may seem very conformable while they are restrained by them yet that being removed many throw of all and commit iniquity with groodiness Having briefly declared what true Christianity is not I shall in short discover what it is Conversion or true Religion consists in the thro' change both of the heart and life by the Spirit of God through the merits and Intercession of Jesus Christ Where this is in truth it goes throughout all the powers principles and practices of a man His mind is changed and the scales of his natural ignorance fall off so that God and his glory weigh down all carnal and worldly Interests and he is turned from darkness to light He that thought formerly there was little hurt in sin now comes to see it to be the chief of evils Heretofore he saw no form nor comeliness in his holy Redeemer that he should desire him but now he finds him to be the hid Treasure and the Pearl of price for which he is willing to part with all to purchase it Now God is all to him and he values his favour and the light of his countenance above all the good that he formerly inquired after and set his heart upon Let the world now present her self in all the glory of her Kingdoms yet his Soul will prefer a naked a crucified a persecuted Christ before her and he will cry out The Lord is my portion saith my soul Whom have I in Heaven but thee and there is none upon Earth that I desire besides thee God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever He had rather be
of the Gate from one Post to the other with a broad blade most keen and cruel at which sad sight being almost distracted with fear I shriekt out yet had not the least power to stop but was forcibly carried toward it so that the edge of the threatning blade meeting with my Body it seemed to â—e impossible that I should escape death and I made no other account but to be quite off and parted asunder but afterwards being hurried through with that irresistible force I had strength to stay a little beyond it and to contemplate the desperate peril that I was in I stood as one amazed and scarce knew whether I were alive or dead yea I could hardly believe my self to be any thing but a dead man or at least mortally and deadly wounded if not wofully and deplorably cut in twain Oh! how I stood trembling and turmoiled in my thoughts until after some time the Vital blood which was retired for the hearts defence began to disperse and circulate in its former course and then I lookt about and turned to the gate way but the appearance was passed away the Sword gone and vanishâ— whilst I was left alone the rest running away in a Labarynth of fears griefs and doubts free from any wound without but deeply and wofully wounded within and never since to the praise of Gods grace as I know of have I made such vain and irreverent meâ—ntion of the name of the Lord. But good God! what was thy will herein Thou who art not tyed to means or order best orderest and disposest of all things for thine own design and glory and so this was I am sure but what it was I know not yet it left a lasting impression upon me and the Sear is still to be be seen in my heart though the wound be healed But alas how long and lamentably did I lye afflicted and in continual fears after this Every Thunder and Lightning I lookt upon as fatal to me and sent to destroy me and then I would fall to my prayers and saying my Creed and Commandments and to my Sermons as fast as I could that I might be found well doing at least if not as a Charm to preserve me or a challeng to God by virtue of them to keep and defend me And I remember it was a great comfort to me to confider that others did not do as I did but that they altogether flighted holiness prayer c. and lived wickedly and carnally in drunkeness disobedience Sabbath-breaking and other sins every day this I was so far from grieving at and weeping over that I in my heart rejoyced in it as having more hopes and fancying my self to be in a better condition than they and therefore should have more favour from the hand of God but all this while like an Israelite in Aegypt I work't for life and my Services were my Saviours and I would often take occasion to discourse with my Brothers Sisters and School-fellows about Heaven and Hell and what a hard thing it was to be saved Being at Malden in Essex some time after I had a certain Dream which seemed afterward fulfied It was about the time when the Spaniards and Hollanders had a Sea fight in the Downs which I hearing some talk of it filled me with fears and the following night I dreamed that I saw fire rained or rather powred down round about and looking where I was I thought my self to be without the Coach yard Gate of my Fathers house I was much affrighted to see nothing out fire on every side of me and looking upward and about me praying earnestly for Deliverance none came nigh me by a good space though flaming in all places else so that I could see none exempted wherefore being afflicted for my Father and our Family I fell on my knees to ask mercy for them and continued praying a long while before I could be heard but at last I thought I was bid to arise and look and then the Fire seemed not to fall so fast on my Fathers House as before but abated by little and little till I awaked Now though this Dream seized much upon my Spirits for the present yet I accounted it only a fancy till about six years after meeting with Dr. Draiton in the Isle of Ely and repeating it to him he declared to me that for several Reasons which he gave this must be more than a meer Dream or working of fancy and that something would happen which this did presignisie instancing in some of the like kind which himself his Wife and others had met with as warnings and predictions and therefore he wished me by no means to slight or contemn it because he was confident it did presage some fiery and angry Dispensation upon our Family and that my Father and the rest would fall undersome trouble by the times or otherwise and my self should be free and at liberty to pray for them and that by degrees they should be brought out and the Fire abated this interpretation which he gave more fully was for the most part verified some years after But all this while I was labouring for Heaven in an exceeding formal way and did much covet to know the things of God and therefore often wisht that I were a Minister such a one as Mr. Fenner Mr. Marshall Mr. Hooker my Father or some other Eminent Preacher that so I might attain to their Knowledge and then I thought I should do more abundant Service for God as if the Lord were beholding to me for my obedience and should the more easily and surely obtain Salvation thus I poor Creature continued for several years together keeping many fast Days by my self Heard Read Sung Psalms Meditated used Soliloquies and prayed many times a day and what not and yet at last sunk into the depth of despair what by the often thoughts of Hell in reading Drexelius upon Eternity and then thinking of the Endless Easeless and Remediless Torments of the Damned what by frequent Frights as before and what by my Father once preaching on the Parallel of the Fool in the Gospel Luke 10.20 Thou Fool this Night will I take away thy Soul then whose shall these things be that thou hast provided From whence he discovered the unaccountable folly of Men to lay up the Trifles of this World and forget Heaven That Eternal Happiness is not to be obtained upon a Down Bed nor without much pains and care since our Blessed Lord tells us that many strive hard to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven and shall not be able and that Except our Righteousness exceed the Righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees we shall in no case enter into the Kingdom of Heaven Matth. 5.20 what with these and other things I was almost thrown into the bottomless abyss of Desperation I took the Bible to look these Scriptures and read them over and over again but the more I read the more I was filled with Horror