hearts openly and plainly and particularly judge them by the Scriptures and observe their hearts in the course of Gods dealing with them and their dealing with God and accordingly apply the touchstone of the Scriptures I am confident by the signes and evidences of grace that are in the Scriptures people may come to discerne their own hearts not by any vertue or skill of their own but by the vertue and skill of God whose power goeth along with his Word It is true a Hypocrite may deceive the quickest-eyed Minister in the world if he will not openly lay his heart before him and therefore good Ministers oftentimes speake peace to them to whom no peace belongeth yet they speak the truth according to those evidences that are expressed to them Were not the wise virgins deceived in the foolish Was not David deceived in Achitophell Were not the Disciples deceived in Judas Yet notwithstanding as I said if people will sincerely deal with their fellow brethren and with their Minister and when God calleth upon them to try themselves if they will turne their inside outward if they will nakedly lay open the state of their own hearts so clearly as they can discerne I doubt not but the Minister of God from the word of God may speak assured peace and give them certaine evidences of the truth of grace Were not these things thus it were not possible we should ever come to assurance it were in vain that the Lord hath given us so many signes and tokens if by observing and trying we might not come to discerne the estate of our hearts Therefore for such of you as in truth find from time to time by these and the like evidences the truth of grace in you know you that there is ground of comfort for your soules And as this is ground of comfort to you that have these things so it is ground of terror to those that want them I know you are almost all frequenters of the Word speakers well of the practise of religion happily you have some reformation in you happily you have some Ministers that speak peace to you happily there is no disturbance in your consciences happily there is some kind of joy and rejoycing in you in hearing the Word c. But my brethren whatever there is that can be in you if this be not in you if there be not a death of sin and a life of righteousnesse be it known unto you that Christ is not in you neither are you in the state of grace You may go on and please your selves with dreams of a happy estate because of such and such appearances of grace yet this I assure you if the death of sin be not in you and the life of righteousnesse Christ is not in you nor never will be for you Again therefore be amazed and tremble and fear and cast away your vain hopes all you that have not found the death of sin and life of righteousnesse Be assured of what the Lord Christ speaks in John 12. The words that I speak shall judge you at the last day Be assured of this that the Lord Jesus Christ will judge your estates by these and such like tryals as these are at the last day and if you cannot be found meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the Saints in light by the Ministers and Ministry of the Word faithfully dispensed from the Scriptures you shall never be found meet to bee partakers of it in the judgement of God at the last day for so as the Word judgeth God judgeth and as the Minister judgeth while he keepeth to the Scriptures the Lord Christ will judge at the last day So that you see here is Comfort for some and Terror for others Comfort for such as have a death of sin and a life of righteousness though there bee much corruption though there be much weakness of grace in you yet here is comfort for you and terror for all others whatever their morall vertues and common graces or their restraining gifts or outward profession is Well then what now remains but that in the last place we be all exhorted from the Lord to labour to increase the death of sin and life of righteousness in us They are but imperfect in the best of us let us labour to make them both more perfect to perfect the death of sin and the life of righteousness Why so Because that the death of sin and life of righteousness they are the Evidences of Christs being in us the evidences of the goodness of our estates therefore the more these are the more are our Evidences of our part in Christ and the greater will our comfort be and we shall make more sure our calling and election This is that which the Apostle Peter meaneth 2 Pet. 1. 5. Give all diligence saith he to make your valling and election sure But how is that done by making sure those things in your selves that are the tokens and signs and evidences of Gods Election How shall this be done saith the Text there adde one grace to another to your faith vertue to your vertue knowledge and to knowledge temperance and to temperance patience and to patience brotherly kindnes and to brotherly kindness love perfect your grace increase the life of righteousnesse perfect in you the death of sin increase the ruine of the old man the more you increase these things the more you increase your Evidences of your part in Christ What can you desire that is able to administer to you so much comfort to provide so good a help for you against those fears we have so long justly feared what can prepare you for those ensuing calamities that are approaching as your Evidences of a part in Christ But nothing can give you so much evidence of a part in Christ as the death of sin and life of righteousnesse Therefore I beseech you studie above all things what ever else you neglect to increase and perfect in you the death of sin and life of righteousness that so the Evidences of Christ being in you may be certain And so much for this time and Text. FINIS GRACE MAGNIFIED OR THE PRIVILEDGES OF THOSE That are under Grace By that Reverend Divine THOMAS HOOKER Late Preacher in New England TIT. 2. 11. For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men c. LONDON Printed by G. D. for Francis Eglesfield and are to be sold at the Sign of the Marigold in Pauls Church-yard 1651. GRACE Magnified OR The PRIVILED GES of those that are under Grace SERMON III. Rom. 6. 14. For sin shall not have dominion over you for you are not under the Law but under Grace THe blessed Apostle Saint Paul having in the two former Verses exhorted the Romans to whom he wrote this Epistle that they should not let sin reign in their mortall bodie nor yeeld their members as instruments of unrighteousnesse unto sin He cometh in this Verse to prevent a
THE SAINTS DIGNITIE AND DUTIE TOGETHER WITH The Danger of IGNORANCE and HARDNESSE Delivered in Severall SERMONS By that Reverend Divine THOMAS HOOKER Late Preacher in New-England HEBR. 10.38 Now the just shall live by Faith but if any man draw back my soul shall have no pleasure in him LONDON Printed by G. D. for Francis Eglesfield and are to be sold at the Sign of the Marigold in Pauls Church-yard 1651. To the Reader Reader THou hast here set forth to thy view the last memoriall for ought I know in this kind of that Reverend Divine Mr. Thomas Hooker Rev. 14.13 who now rests from his labours being dead in the Lord. And though this present work be but small in quantitie yet it comprehends a great many divine Truths For thou shalt in this as in a glasse see thine owne condition be it what it will If thou be indeed a child of God thou shalt find him herein a Barnabas a son of Consolation to thee in discovering what thy Priviledges are and what thy practise is or should be But if thou be yet in thy unregenerate estate he will prove a Boanerges a son of Thunder in shewing the danger of Non-proficiencie under the means of grace and knowledge and in wilfull hardness against admonition and reproof These Sermons are upon severall Texts of Scripture which I suppose will prove the more delightfull for the variety which is pleasing to all And though there bee no great dependance of these Sermons each upon other yet the whole without forcing may be reduced to these three Heads Dignitie Dutie Danger In the three former Sermons is set forth the dignitie or priviledges of true beleevers The inestimable gift of the Lord Jesus Christ for the redemption of his people is sweetly and fully explained in the First Sermon In the Second is shewed that Christ hath not only given himself for believers but to them and that he is in them with the blessed Effects of his Inhabitation In the Third thou shalt find the happie condition of the people of God being now freed from the Law and under Grace the Priviledges whereof are inlarged in severall Branches The duties of the Saints that injoy these dignities and priviledges are set forth in the two next Sermons In the Fourth That they ought only to attend to the voice of Christ who is the wisedome of the Father and to be obedient to him In the Fifth is shewed what kind of obedience is required of them even the obedience of Faith which is set forth in the fruitfulness and activitie of it in their Imitation of Abraham the Father of the faithfull And then in the two last Sermons is laid down the danger of neglecting these Priviledges and Duties either by remissness and ignorance under the means of knowledge and grace which is the sum of the Sixth Sermon or else which is worse by hardning the heart against instruction and reproof which is the Subject of the last that those that will not sweetly be drawn by the cords of love shall bee violently surprized with the chains of wrath The Works of this worthy man already Extant have proved by Gods blessing profitable and comfortable to many and I make no question but there is a blessing reserved for this also Therefore as the Wiseman saith Eccles 11.6 In the morning sow thy seed and in the evening with-hold not thy hand for thou knowest not whether will prosper this or that or whether they shall be alike good In this confidence it is commended to thy Prayers and paines in perusing it and that it may prove a furtherance in thy progresse towards heaven is the desire of Thy Christian Friend T. S. THE GIFT OF GIFTS OR The END why CHRIST Gave Himself By that Reverend Divine THOMAS HOOKER Late Preacher in New England ROM 5.15 But not as the offence so also is the free gift for if through the offence of one many be dead much more the grace of God and the gift by grace which is by one man Jesus Christ hath abounded unto many LONDON Printed by G. D. for Francis Eglesfield and are to be sold at the Sign of the Marigold in Pauls Church-yard 1651. The Particular Titles and Texts of each SERMON SERM. I. The Gift of Gifts on Tit. 2.14 SERM. II. The Blessed Inhabitant on Rom. 8.10 SERM. III. Grace magnified on Rom. 6.14 SERM. IV. Wisdomes Attendants on Prov. 8.32 SERM. V. The Activitie of Faith on Rom. 4.12 SERM. VI. Culpable Ignorance on Isai 27.11 SERM. VII Wilfull Hardness on Prov. 29.1 The GIFT of GIFTS OR The End why Christ gave Himself SERMON I. TIT. 2.14 Who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquitie and purifie unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works THe Apostle in the beginning of this Chapter had given several exhortations to severall sorts of Persons To the Aged men vers 2. To the Aged women vers 3. To the younger women and younger men vers 5 6. And to Servants in vers 9 10. Having thus exhorted these severall sorts to severall duties he subjoyneth an Argument that might serve to perswade them all to the practise of the duties he had exhorted them unto and that is laid down from the beginning of the 11th verse to the end of the 14th Wherein he describeth the end of the Doctrine of the Gospel and of the grace of God revealed therein which is That it should bring men to deny ungodlinesse and worldly lusts and to live soberly and righteously in this present world Vers 12. Looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ Vers 13. To bring people to this temper and disposition is the end and scope of all the Gospel Now having spoken of Christ in the end of vers 13. Our Saviour Jesus Christ he cometh also to describe Christ in ver 14. by such things as may also serve as Arguments to perswade to the former duties exhorted to The Lord Christ is described in this 14th Verse by an Act of his Who gave himself for us and this same action of Christ it is illustrated First by the Object for whom it was done He gave himself for us Secondly By the end Why it was done That he might redeem us from all iniquitie and purifie to himselfe a peculiar people zealous of good works Thus you see the Coherence of these words and the Scope of them and also the Parts of the Text They are the Action of Christ described by the Object and End of it We will first speak of the Action and Object joyning of them both together Who gave himself for us Give me leave to spend a little time in the opening of the Words And first what is meant here by us Who they are that are the object of this action of Christ Who they are for whom Christ gave himselfe In a word the Persons for whom Christ gave himself they are beleevers In 1 Tim
Judas may thus farre have his understanding inlightned concerning all the truths of life and salvation that are either discovered or made known out of the Book of God as to perceive the sense of the words that are set down and understandingly to discourse of the meaning of the Scripture and reason of the points therein contained and that more freely and abundantly in outward appearance then many of the deare Saints and Servants of God are able to doe and yet all this is but that which the Apostle Paul cals a form of knowledge Rom. 2.20 Such an one hath onely got religion by rote as we use to say like a child that happily may be taught a sillogisme or some forme of an argument he may say it without book but understands it not so hypocrites may have a form and as it were an outside of knowledge but there is something in the bottome concerning the savingnesse and holinesse of knowledge which they can never attain unto For certain it is there is never a carnall person under heaven howsoever he can talk of God and of Christ and of Faith that either knoweth God in the works of his wayes toward him or hmselfe in the works of his duty toward God That is a strange passage concerning Hazael 2 Kings 8 When the Prophet Elisha setled his countenance upon him and wept Hazael said Why weepeth my Lord And he answered Because I know the evill that thou wilt doe unto the children of Israel their strong holds wilt thou set on fire and their young men wilt thou stay with the sword and wilt dash their children and rip up their women with childe And Hazael said But what is thy servant a dog that he should doe this great thing He thought that there was no such matter in himselfe he perceived not the corruption of his nature And truth it is that as it was with Hazael so it is with every wicked man under heaven further then God is pleased to awaken him he neither knowes what he is himselfe nor what God is talk of it he may but cannot apprehend it in truth in the the generall he may speak of it but in his own particular he cannot 2. For the further proof of this point That there is a main difference between a child of God and an hypocrite in their very knowledge though I know it is the judgement of many and those holy and godly too that wicked men in matters of knowledge may go as far as any Saint under heaven yet I take it they are deceived for no sanctifying work of the holy spirit of God is common to those that are wicked and reprobates but the work of saving understanding and illumination is a work of sanctification and to prove that goe no further but to the naked consideration of a mans bare understanding When the Lord is pleased to work effectually upon the soule there is a sanctifying work on the understanding as well as on the will Now that work which is upon the understanding of a servant of God as truly differs from the inlightning of a carnall hypocrite as the heart of a Saint from the heart of a man not sanctified As the Spirit of God I say hath a proper and peculiar work of sanctification upon the will of Gods children so also hath he upon their mind and understanding therefore of necessity wicked men having no work of sanctification the children of God must needs differ from them in this particular of knowledge Again the Apostle is clear enough 1 Cor. 2.14 The naturall man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God neither can he know them because they are spiritually discerned Before a man can discern spirituall objects he must have spirituall light therefore wicked men being as all hypocrites are but bare nature and wanting spirituall light are not able to perceive and discern the things of God So you see there is a plain and broad difference between the Saints of God and carnall hypocrites in the point of knowledge and understanding Now then for the point it selfe That there is such a knowledge as is peculiar to the Saints take it my brethren thus The godly doe not onely apprehend the meaning of the words in the Scripture and are able to discourse of the reasons therein contained but they discern also the spiritualnesse of the work of grace that is discovered in the same Observe it There being first the Word of God set down in his book and then reasons that goe along with it and lastly a spirituall work of grace that God hath made known in those reasons the Saints of God alone see the spiritualnesse of the work that is manifested and communicated in that reason there set down The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him Psal 25.14 wicked men may know repentance but there is a secret of repentance which the godly onely have Wicked men may pray but there is an inward spiritualnesse and closing with the Lord a secret humbling of the soule before the Lord which the godly onely have wicked men I say can pray and hear and discourse of repentance and of faith and the like but there is a secret in all these and a spirituall work derived into the soule thorough the knowledge of all these which the Saints onely apprehend and understand Take but an Apple there is never a man under heaven can tell what tast it is of whether sweet or soure untill he have tasted of it he seeth the colour and the quantity of it but knoweth not the tast so there is no man under heaven discerneth more of grace then he findeth in himselfe A carnall man may talk of repentance and faith and obedience yet notwithstanding there is a sappinesse which I call the spiritualnesse in these blessed works that no man can tell and understand but onely those that indeed have found by experience the work in themselves We use to say and we say truly that no woman knoweth the nature of a mother before she hath been a mother So it is here first a man must have the work of grace in himselfe before he can rightly understand the nature of it No man knoweth what it is to be the child of God or what it is to have a child-like affection toward God but so farre forth as he findeth and feeleth this in some measure wrought in himselfe by the operation of the Spirit I will not dispute that text Rev. 2.17 I will give him a white stone and in the stone a new name written which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it but I take this to be the main thing intended there which makes for my present purpose Name there signifies Adoption and the white stone Absolution the Lord will absolve and acquit him of all those sinnes that he is guilty of and withall he will give him the name of a sonne The Lord sealeth to the soule of a Christian man that he is God
reconciled to him Now when the soul findeth this and the like and withall hath an inward work which though happily he cannot discover the manner and order thereof nor expresse it to others yet he knows more thereof then any man under heaven Ask a child How doe you know such a man is your father Alas he cannot tell you yet he hath a strong affection toward him above all others and feels in himself such a leaning in his affection towards him as another feels not So the mother of the child that was brought before Solomon had no Argument in the world to prove the child to be hers but the yerning of her bowels and relenting of her spirit toward the child proved it sufficiently So there is in a Saint of God an inward tenderness of affection a leaning of his soul towards God which no man knowes but he that hath it If a curious workman after he hath made a clock or a watch shew the frame thereof to a man ignorant of that Art and declare to him the manner of making it happily he will conceive his words and his reasons and perceive that he saith truth but he cannot make such another because he hath not the Art it self of clock-making My brethren so it is here There is a curious frame in the soule of a Christian of grace of faith of repentance of holinesse of love patience and the like a blessed disposition of heart whereby the soul runneth right toward God and every holy dutie and strikes right as I may say in all holy obedience to God this is a frame reared up by the hand of the Spirit of God alone in the heart of a Christian Now the Apostle Paul who had such a work as this wrought in him can tell the nature of hope and of faith and of repentance but I that read what he hath written of these things being a naturall man though happily I understand the sence and apprehend the meaning of the words yet the true knowledge of the nature of repentance or faith or hope I cannot possibly attain to so long as I remain a meer naturall man Even as an ignorant man cannot conceive the Art of Watch-making in that manner as the Artist himself understands it so cannot I discern the nature of this spiritual frame in the heart further then God is pleased to teach me this skill by the work of his Spirit within my self When I finde my own heart wrought upon then I can best discover it to another then doe I know that which before I never understood though happily I could discourse something concerning such things and understand the outside as it were yet that was all I never knew the bottom as I doe now You see then the difference between the knowledge of Hypocrites that live in the bosome of the Church and the knowledge of Gods Elect or saving knowledge Now for the Use of all in a word or two If this be so that men may live in the Church of God and enjoy the means of grace and yet be a people of no understanding have no saving knowledge then my brethren here is a word of reproof to check all those conceits and pull down all those silly imaginations of poor ignorant carnall creatures that live here among us in the bosome of the Church who because the Lord hath been pleased to put them into a place where the truth is plainly taught and preached presently perswade their own souls that they have wise dome and knowledge enough to bring them to life and salvation If happily you come to any of these men and tell them that they ought to be inlarged in those duties God requireth of his children that they should be able to catechise their families to pray with them to instruct them that they should be skilfull in the art of humbling their souls before God in private conversing and spirituall communion with him Alas they will answer you that for the present they are too weak and unable for such things as these Well but prove them again afterwards when they have continued a longer time under the means and demand of them how they have bettered themselves what strength of grace they have attained unto By no means you must meddle with them What they have not lived so long in a good Parish under a panfull Minister and gone so often to Church but surely they have sufficient to bring them to heaven and although they cannot doe so and so though they cannot give you a reason of the hope that is in them yet they make no question but to speed as well as the best Men think it enough to be good Church-men to have and injoy the helpes God vouchsafeth and bestoweth upon his people to be often hearers of the Word read and preached and so rest themselves contented and there set up their staffe though in the mean time they remain as blind and ignorant and as carnall as ever My brethren be not deceived the Lord will not be mocked It is not sufficient to salvation for a man to be an often hearer to have his heart now and then inlarged to give assent to the truths delivered to conceive the grounds of them or to be able happily to discourse of some points of religion Oh look further he that hath saving knowledge indeed goes farre beyond all this You that are tradesmen or you that have children will any man say my child is a good Schollar for he hath gone so long to schoole or my Apprentise hath good skill in his trade because he hath served me so many yeares It is true he ought to be so but it doth not follow that because he hath had such and such helps and lived so long under them that therefore he is so So it is here there is no reason for any man to ground his assurance of salvation on his injoyment of the meanes or to imagine that God hath wrought mercifully for him in the matter of knowledge which accompanieth life and happiness because of his long living under a good ministry no it is not enough to have the preaching of the word among us and to have the meanes and helps of saving knowledge you may have all these and yet remain ignorant and blind and be a people of no understanding Secondly this is a word of instruction to us We are hence given to understand the sinfulnesse of our nature and the blindnesse of our mindes seeing a man may have all the means under heaven and yet all prove unprofitable to him may injoy all the helpes that God hath set up in his Church for the good of peoples soules and yet receive no good by them What a strange heart is ours Yet so it is even amongst many of us in this place and I wish it were not so with most that live in the Church at this day I fear me that if a man should goe from heart to heart and observe every ones particular