put into prison shall they then have an hundred fold in this life yes for their imprisonment is better then worldly mens liberty It is said that when Ioseph was put into prison that the Lord went in with him and was with him and therefore it was no prison for what is it that makes it a prison The Lords absence a man hath more joy in a prison wherein God is then in a Palace without God as you may see in Saul when the Lord was departed from him his Palace was but a prison to him Brethren if you beleeve this that you shall have more for the present if ye will accept of this match you will not any longer stand out But if you will not beleeve for all that I have said we have no more to say to you in briefe but this thou shalt have thy portion in this life as the Prodigall sonne he would have his portion presently well if you will have your portion ye shall have it as in that 17. Psal. 14. The men of this world who have their portions in this life You shall have your portions in this life thou shalt have thy belly filled with treasures but remember that terrible sentence Thou hast thy reward Therefore it is no marvell that worldlings live so contentedly with so much outward ease it is no marvell I say for their Father hath given them their portion Another impediment is when parents have provided a fit match for their children and come and propound it to their children then they are promised to another their hearts are set upon others and this is a great impediment in this and it is common Now the Lord comes to propound this match to thee but thou canst not forsake those things that thy affections are set upon thou hast made another choise thy heart is set upon these outward things thou hast promised thy love and delight to them and thou must now refuse the sute of the Kings Sonne This one day will lye heauy upon thy conscience when as this Christ that thou hast now rejected shall come to Iudgement and shall sit upon his glorious Throne and shall pronounce that heauy sentence Depart from me ye cursed and then thy conscience shall tell thee oh he was once a suter to mee but I had made another choice a worse choise which then thou findest though it seemed pleasant for the time yet indeed his service would have beene more pleasant and profitable for he would have thee live but according to the rule in temperance sobriety in diligence in thy calling and such like which would have kept thy body in health and preserved thy estate and now thou hast wasted thy body in fornication and uncleanenesse and hast wasted thy goods in drunkennesse and good-fellowship and all riotous living and so if we should stand to compare every particular service of each husband we should find that our obedience to our right husband is more pleasant then that we have now chosen nay wee should find that the worst actions that Christ commands are farre more pleasant then the best of the other as take sorrow for sinne that wee count the worst and the hardest duty yet even in that there goes along with it a secret sweetnesse and comfort those that have any experience in it know it to be true but when as thou yeeldest obedience to thy other husband even in the midst of thy carnall delights thy heart is sad there is a kinde of perplexity goes along with it this wee shall finde in all the actions wee doe to this wrong husband a secret griping and stinging of conscience and besides this wee shall at length be paid with death But in our obedience to our right husband more-over and above our comfort in his service he will give us wages and rewards eternall life and all the comforts appertaining thereunto But in briefe if you will not yeeld if you will not be ruled God will doe with you as parents doe with rebellious children if they are stubborne and match against their will when as neither promises nor perswasions will doe any good what will they doe Why they will disinherit them So if ye will be stubborne and neither perswasions nor promises will doe no good with you but notwithstanding all this you will not remove your affections from off your choice your Father shall disinherit you you shall loose your Kingdome you shall be damned if you will not cut off your right hands and cut out your right eyes that offend you ye shall keepe them but ye shall goe to hell with them If you will not beleeve us we have no more to say to you ye shall loose your birth-right Another impediment if so be we find we stand in need of an husband to pay our debts yet we are not disposed to marry yet But know if thou wilt not take the time before the time be past thou shalt sit long enough without suters Christ he is a suter by his Spirit and we are his friends to perswade you to match with him Now consider how that He onely must perswade we may perswade long enough if no other doe perswade you you will never be wonne but there is another the Lord himselfe he is his owne spokse-man and must be or else you will never be won And therefore take heede of deferring when thou findest the Holy Ghost a suter to thee and that Christ speakes to thy heart take heede of refusing his Spirit shall not alwayes strive with man if he knocke but once open to him perhaps he will knocke no more Take heed of delayes and puttings off bidding Christ come another time for we commonly say delayes are dangerous If thou dost thou maist loose thy suter and Christ may let thee sit all thy life time and never be a suter to thee againe There is indeed a time when all would match with Christ in their extremity at their deaths as the foolish Virgins they came when it proved too late the doores were shut When the arrest comes upon us then we would match with Christ but then it is too late then Christ will not match with thee then we may fly to the hornes of the Altar as Ioab did but then Christ will say as Solomon did of Ioab Goe fall upon him and kill him even there There is a refuge in the City but thou must be a Citizen there before the avenger of bloud comes Then is not a time to marry with Christ then is a time to call to mountaines to fall upon you and cover you and furthermore whereas thou sayest thou wilt hereafter match with Christ but not yet what knowest thou but that thy soule may presently be taken from thee and therefore you see what a deale of folly men shew in their puttings off Another impediment is When the parties are brought together to see one another many times they doe not like one another and
that thou carest not for any thing so thou maist have him this is to have a wedding conjugall affection but this is not all that makes the marriage garment Consider besides what boldnesse thou hast in his presence for perfect love casts out feare now by perfect love is not meant onely love in the perféction that is growne to a height such wee shall not have till wee come to heaven but by perfect love is to bee understood sincere love therefore if thou wouldest know if thou have the wedding garment whether this conjugal affection be wrought thou shalt know it by the boldnes thou hast with thy husband wilt thou say thou art married to him and yet darest not speake to him but lookest on him as on a Iudge as a hard Master or a stranger that thou darest not aske any thing of or if thou dost thou knowest not whether thou shalt obtaine it there is a certaine boldnesse and familiarity goes along with this is there such a disposition put into thy heart Besides this is not all there doe withall accompany this all spirituall graces that cloathe thy soule that doe alter the habit of it for there is something understood in the similitude of a garment as importing the very cloathing that the soule weares when it hath another habit than it had before Now this cloathing is a party-coloured garment made of all the graces of the Spirit therefore if thou wouldest know whether thou have this wedding garment or no thou must looke to every grace for the Image of God is nothing else but the bundle and heape of all graces as the olde man the image of Satan and the first Adam is the heap of all corruptions so this wedding garment this Image of the new Adam it is that which consists of all the graces these must cloath thy soule And now beloved when this is done the second thing that we are to doe after this examination is To perswade every man to bee content to take Iesus Christ for his Husband If already you be in Christ wee have no more to doe but to exhort you but to continue and intend that desire and affection and love to your Husband but if upon this examination you finde you are yet strangers I say the next use we are to make of it is to bring your hearts to a willingnesse to match with him Now to perswade you to this I will pitch briefly on these three particulars First consider whether thou bee able to live without a husband or alone The truth is thou must marry of necessity or thou art undone for it is the case of every man which is said of the Captive woman in Deut. 21. when they had overcame a City if there were a woman among them to whom they had a favour they might marry her if they would if shee consented shee saved her life by it I say that is the case of every man living that when wee were all exposed to death Iesus Christ had a favour to us and we must marry him or we dye for it Now therefore when he shall be a suitor to thee consider what thou hast to say art thou able to live without him art thou able to pay thy ransome certainely thou art not able and is it not then a madnesse in thee to refuse Consider what is thy debt and consider thou art bound to pay the utmost farthing which the Lord requires at thy hands when a man considers seriously of this that every idle word every sinne of omission or that is committed is a debt and stands upon his owne score and that himselfe is not able to pay this will make a man begin to looke about him My beloved all the afflictions that wee have in this life they are but a paying the use money required for the debt the maine debt remaines intire that must bee payd at that day the day of wrath at the day of declaration of the just Iudgement of God therefore consider first thy debt and withall consider thy poverty 'T is true though thou wert in debt if thou hadst somewhat to pay it it were another matter And indeed many men are puffed up with a conceit and thinke they have something to pay and this is the case of all hypocrites that thinke they have some good workes they have done many good things they come to Church duely c. But you must know that all this will not pay your debt as it is Revel 3. I counsell thee to buy of me gold that thou maiest be rich Till a man hath a husband till he have Iesus Christ all the workes he doth are little worth I but though a man bee in debt and have not a penny to pay his debt yet there is usually a time given a man is not cast presently into prison I answer though thou bee not yet thou art in danger all the time and it is a miserable thing to live in another mans danger to bee in danger of an enemy when a man shall have many writs out against him and knowes not when the Serjeant will seize upon him I say put the case hee be not arrested yet he is in continuall feare this is thy case before thou bee under this covert before thou be matched to this thy husband Christ when thou hast him thou art safe but in the meane time thou art in continuall feare As Heb. 2. 14. it is given as a reason Why Christ tooke part with the children that he might deliver them that for feare of death were all their life long subject to bondage So that though a man bee not cast into prison hee is all his life time subject to bondage Now if it were but to be delivered from this feare and bondage that every other man is in it were a great motive to move us to this I but is there not some bayle may not a man flee from this arrest I answer no every man without Christ is like a woman that is friendlesse that hath none to stand for her that is destitute of wisedome that hath no counsell to direct her Wee are destitute of righteonsnesse we have none to speake for us we are destitute of sanctification wee have none to cleanse us from our leprosie wee are destitute of redemption therefore you know it is said Iesus Christ is made Wisdome Righteousnesse Sanctification and Redemption which implies thus much that till wee bee married to him wee have neither wisedome wee have no righteousnesse to speake for us wee have none to cleanse us wee have none to redeeme us this is the first thing to move thee to it Secondly when thou hast well pondered this first motive that thou art not able to live alone without a husband I say consider secondly the excellency of thy husband who it is that is a suitor to thee And here first looke on Christ himselfe with
all his Attributes and how that the Lord himselfe will become thine consider the infinite wisedome of Christ his Almighty power consider his eternity consider whatsoever is in him and thinke with thy selfe that all this is in Him who offers himselfe to bee my husband and all this shall be mine all this is for my use and advantage this is a great motive to winne us to match with him as you know in earthly marriages the excellency of a husband the parts that are in him those that are inherent in his very person is the greatest motive of all other thinke therfore of all Christs excellencies draw to your selves some Idea of him and thinke all these are mine for my use as his wisedome to give me direction his power and strength for my protection upon all occasions whatsoever is in him is mine hee himselfe is become my portion this is a great motive to us Besides this consider that thou hast not onely the person of Christ alone with all his Attributes but how much comes with him which adde to this as the immunity thou hast by matching with Christ that when thou art once matched with him thou art under covert thy debts are paid thou art out of all danger My beloved if it were but to bee freed from those injuries and wrongs that a woman is subject unto from potent enemies that are able to hurt her upon all occasions you know it is a great motive to move her to match Now Iesus Christ frees us from all those great enemies of our salvation as it is Luke 1. 74. That being delivered from the hands of all our enemies wee might serve him in holinesse and righteousnesse all the days of our lives This wee have by him that when Satan shall come to us and arrest us wee may say to him I am now under covert thou must goe to my husband hee is bound to pay my debts My beloved we consider not what a benefit this is what it is to have Iesus Christ at such a time when you come to dye when you shall be arrested by death now to have the Lord Iesus to undertake all your debts now to bee under covert it is a great matter as you know to expresse it to you a little what it is Iudas when hee had committed that great sinne he was indited and arrested hee had none to flee to Peter when he had committed a sinne hee had a covert to goe to and you all know the difference that was betweene their conditions in the events upon both Saul and David if you looke on them in their distresse David had a covert to goe to when he was in distresse for I speake not now of the debt of sinne but of all calamities in which you shall have a husband to bee a refuge for you I say David when hee was in distresse upon any occasion when his Citty was burned and his Wives taken hee had a covert to fly to but when Saul was in distresse hee had none hee went to the Lord but he had no answer I say it is a great matter to consider this that we have a covert that when the Lord shall raine downe fire and brimstone upon us when there is no rock to shelter us now for Iesus Christ to bee a covert to us We know the Aegyptians when they were in that deadly storme of haile the Israelites were in their houses under covert and look't out and saw the danger they were in and they then knew the benefit what it was to bee under shelter such is the condition of all those that are in Christ. Besides this immunity consider all those great priviledges that doe come by him for this is not all but when you have matched with him hee will make you rich hee will make you heires of all things all the precious promises belong to you which it may be you reckon a small matter but the promises of God are most precious and will make one rich as you know a man that hath nothing but bills and bonds and evidences may bee very rich though he have not a penny by him so to have all the promises belong to us now as soone as we were in Christ there is not a promise in all the booke of God but it belongs to us that is the misery of another man that is not in Christ there is not one promise his Therefore till thou have him thou hast nothing And besides the hope of the promises consider what you have for the present what dowry hee brings with him in 1 Cor. 3. Wherefore let no man rejoyce in men for all things are yours whether it be Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world c. all is yours and you are Christs Marke here is the expression of that dowry that Christ brings with him an Inventory of the wealth of a Christian saith he when once you are matched to Christ all that is his belongs to you Paul or Apollos or Cephas all his servants all are bestowed on you to wait upon the Spouse as it were hee hath given all to you all those gifts are bestowed on them for your sakes besides the world is yours that is as farre as it is good for you the world and all things in the world are so a Christians though hee have but little of it yet indeed the world is his other men are the worlds if wee speake properly the world is not said to bee any mans but onely a Christians for his use he is the master of it Indeed whilest a man is in his minority you know the heire doth not possesse his goods because it is the time of his education so it may bee thou hast not full possession It is dispensed to thee as the Lord sees meete because it is the time of thy nurture and education thou art in thy minority but yet the world is thine Then he goes on life or death that is all this life is bestowed on a Christian for his advantage to another man it is not so the longer hee lives it is the worse for him hee hath the further reckoning it doth but make his sinne ripe and but lay up a treasure of wrath for him so that all a mans life long hee doth but gather stickes to make a fire to consume him at the last day But now in the portion of a Christian this is one thing that Iesus Christ bestows upon him that all his life is for his advantage all the good workes he doth all those shall bee remembred all those shall goe along with him and bring a sure reward and then not onely life is his but death is also My beloved it is a strange thing that this should be reckoned among the dowries and commodities and priviledges that Christ bestowes on his Spouse to bring death with him yet this is a great priviledge that hee bestowes death on us for what were the condition
of a Christian if death were not were it not the most miserable of all other for if there were no death there should be no Resurrection therefore death must needs bee a very great advantage it is that that makes way for us to deliver us out of all the miseries of this life and to give us possession of that everlasting Kingdome that is provided for us Whether they bee things present or things to come that is all that belong to this present life and not onely those but those that belong to the life to come all those are yours this is that we have by Christ. And lastly consider how faire a life you shall live with him in what plenty that there is nothing that your heart can desire but you shall have it In that security that you neede feare no enemy whereas other men have a thousand feares a Christian hath this benefit hee makes the Lord his dread that hee need feare nothing but he is delivered from the hands of all his enemies Consider with what contentment thou shalt live that thou hast such a husband that is an adequate object that I may so say that shall fill thy soule that when thou hast him thou needest not thirst after any thing besides That is the great benefit that is promised that thou shalt Thirst no more that is when a man is married to the Lord Iesus hee is so filled and satisfied with contenment that hee lets all other things goe if hee have them so it is if he want them it is no great matter hee hath one that is contentment enough to him hee hath one that is instead of all But you will say if I have this husband I must live in subjection to him our wills must bee subject to his will our liberty must bee taken from us My beloved what if it bee you must consider what kinde of subjection it is it is such a subjection as whereby the members are subject to the head now doe you thinke it any burthen for the members to bee subject and to bee ruled by the head it is a naturall subjection that is such a subjection as is convenient for you therefore if you complaine you have lost your liberty know it is quite contrary when you have matched with Christ now you are delivered from bondage and set at liberty I but you will say it is a pleasant thing for a man to doe what he will liberty is a sweet thing and to part with this and now to live under a husband it is a hard case For this my beloved I beseech you consider that it is true for a man to live as hee will if his will bee right it is a great benefit but for a Franticke man to doe what hee will for a man whose will is set upon things hurtfull to himselfe for such a man to have his will it were better hee were restrained and this is the case of every man till hee bee matched with the Lord Iesus therefore that you may know what this liberty is wee will put you but this case you must know that every man is marryed to one of these two husbands either hee is subject to the law of righteousnesse or to the law of sinne either hee is in bondage to the flesh or to the spirit either hee is subject to Christ or else he is subject to Sathan Now consider which of these two thou wouldest choose whether to bee subject to the law of sin or to Christ and that you may know which to choose I will expresse it to you by this It is as when a sicke man lyes betweene the Physician and the disease hee must needes bee subject to one of them the disease counsells him to doe one thing the Physician another now consider which of these two thou wouldest obey You will say I would doe what I list I would doe as my disease suggests to mee and would have me doe that seemes easie for the present but will not this increase thy bondage and pay thee with death in the end on the other side if thou bee content to be subject to the Physitian and have thy will subject to his doth not this draw to liberty and restore health and bring thee to life therefore consider what a small objection that is and consider withal what you will choose for I say every man must be subject to one husband and that you may see the difference of these husbands consider that in Romans 7. you shall finde there that whosoever is not married to Christ is subject to another husband that is the Law Know you not brethren that the Law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth for the woman that is subject to a man is bound by the Law to the man while he liveth and if she take another man she shall be called an adulteresse but if the man be dead shee is freed from the Law so that shee is not an adulteresse though she take another man This is but the similitude but the meaning is before ever a man bee marryed to Christ he is marryed to the Law and he cannot be marryed to Christ Iesus till hee be dead to the Law and when he is dead once to that then he may be marryed to him Now you shall see the reddition of this similitude so you brethren are dead to the Law by the body of Christ that you might be marryed to another to him that was raised from the dead that you might bring forth fruit unto God For when you were in the flesh the motions of sinne that are by the Law had force in your members to bring forth fruit unto death c. The meaning is this that till a man be matched to Iesus Christ the Law of God the morall Law that is written in every mans conscience it rules there like an hard husband a severe cruell husband that sets an hard taske to doe and gives no strength at all to doe it and therefore it brings forth death for when the Law commands a man to doe a thing he hath no ability to performe it and withall it doth signifie unto him that if he doe not performe it he shall bee cursed this is to bee subject to the Law and so a man lives in bondage all his time so that whosoever is not marryed to Christ he is all the while subject to an evill conscience to the Law that suggests what hee should doe with threatning him if not and when conscience tells him that he hath not performed it it is a continuall vexation a burthen and a griefe to him but now when he is marryed to Christ then he serves in newnesse of spirit not in the oldnesse of the letter as it followes there that is hee doth every thing freely hee doth it out of choice he doth that which his owne spirit caries him to looke what commandement he hath he hath some ability to performe
is well expressed in the parable of the sonnes one said he would goe into the vineyard there were good intentions the other said he would not he that said he would and went not went besides the reward and hee that said he would not but went it was hee that received the reward It is not good desires but actuall performing of obedience that shall provide a Crowne for you And good reason why tryall should be taken by this for tryall is in difficult things To professe and know much are easie but to bring your affections into subjection to wrestle with lusts to crosse your wils and your selves upon every occasion this is hard The Lord looketh that in our lives wee should bee serviceable to him and usefull to men that which is within the Lord and our brethren are never the better for it but the outward obedience flowing thence glorifies God and doth good to man The Lord will have this done What else is the end of our preaching our planting and watering but that the trees may be filled with sap And what is the end of that sap but that the tree may bring forth fruit what careth the husband-man for leaves or barren trees not onely the thornes are cast into fire but barren trees Therefore looke to your fruits and deceive not your selves It is a common error for men to thinke their estates good when in the meane time they walke after the stubbornenesse of their hearts they that doe the will of the Lord shall be saved What is the end of every grace but to mollifie the heart and make it plyable to some commandement or other Looke how many commandements so many graces there are in vertue and efficacy although not so many severall names are given them The end of every such grace is to make us obedient as the end of temperance is chastity to bow the heart to those commands be yee sober c. not in chambering and wantonnesse c. When the Lord commandeth us not to be angry with our brother the end of meekenesse and why the Lord infuseth it is to keepe us from unadvised rash anger so faith the end of it is to take Christ Iesus to make us obedient to the command of the Gospell which commands us to beleeve in him so as all graces doe joyne together but to frame and fashion the soule to obedience Then so much obedience as is in your lives so much grace in your hearts and no more therefore aske your hearts how subject you are to the Lord in your lives it was the counsell that Francis Spira gave to them about him saith he Learne all of mee to take heed of severing faith and obedience I taught justification by faith but neglected obedience and therefore is this befallen me I have knowne some godly men whose comfort on their death beds hath beene not from the inward acts of their mind which apart considered might be subject to misapprehensions but from the course of obedience in their lives issuing thence Let Christians looke to it that in all their conversation as they stand in every relation as Schollers trades-men husbands wives looke to this that when they come to dye they have beene subject in all things this will afford solid comfort What will you say when Satan chargeth you with this it is true you have large promises and hee that beleeveth shall be saved but then you must have beene obedient and bring forth fruits and when you looke upon your lives and finde not these fruits where are you But you will say then there is none but may doubt himselfe for who can say his obedience is perfect I answer it is not so much the perfection as the sincerity that is required But how shall we know that you will say First consider whether thou be obedient in every thing This is in the words of the Text therfore I mention it first he that hath taken Christ there is never a commandement but hee is subject to it though hee faile in the performance of the commandements yet never an one but hee is subject to as for example the Lord hath commanded to sanctifie the Sabbath not to forsake the fellowship of the Saints to pray continually to take heede how wee heare to wash our hearts from evill thoughts and lusts When an obedient heart one that hath taken Christ truely heares these commands he is obedient to every one of them hee goeth about the businesse as an obedient servant about his masters service though he may be overtaken with negligence and some contrary passion yet he goeth about it I meane he doth it as well as hee is able Another will not set himselfe to doe the businesse but is readie to expostulate the matter with God and say The commandement is too strict or else hee refuseth by plaine stubbornnesse As for example that commandement Take heede how you heare that is let not one instruction fall to the ground see that you work it upon your hearts a disobedient heart goeth not about this hee lendeth his eares for an houre but when the Sermon is done there is an end so that other to pray continually it may be he prayeth not alone nor with his Family or if both yet in a sleight and negligent manner as good never a whit as never the better so also let your communication be alwayes gracious such an one thinkes it a needlesse thing to bee so strict and indiscreet he is not nor will not be subject this is disobedience Marke the generality and thinke it no more then needs when the Scripture there saith We must be subject to him in every thing that is not onely to the maine commandement but to every part of it he that hath said Thou shalt not commit adultery hath said Thou shalt not have an adulterous heart or eye or thought or dalliance Now if thou be subject to the maine if thou neglect the smallest as thou countest them thou art disobedient and thou art one to whom God will render vengeance 2 The. 1. 7. For it is to them that know not the Lord or that will not obey him though they know that he will doe this unto them ver 8. and I aske you if you know not that there is such a commandement as this Redeeme the time c. where is thy obedience to it thou that triflest away thy precious time and makest no conscience of it If the Lord hath said He that doth his worke negligently shall be cursed what shalt thou be that dost it not at all Students that loose their time and will not be obedient to that command hath not the Lord commanded you here to be subject in all things so he hath said Forsake not the fellowship of the Saints that is the element you should live in and it is not enough onely to abstaine from evill company but to frequent good so for your speeches being