without it and much ado to go with it If the flesh be kept high and lusty then 't is wanton and will not obey if low then it 's weak and soon tires Thus the Christian rids but little ground because he must go his weak bodies pace He wrestles with a body of sin as well as of flesh this mutters and murmures when the soule is taking up any duty Sometimes it keeps the Christian from duty so that he cannot do what he would As Paul said I would have come once and again but Satan hindred me I would have prayed may the Christian say at such a time and meditated on the Word I heard the mercies I received at another but this enemy hindred 'T is true indeed grace swayes the Scepter in such a soule yet as School-boyes taking their time when their Master is abroad do shut him out and for a while lord it in misrule though they are whip't for it afterwards thus the unregenerate part takes advantage when grace is not on its watch to disturb its government and shut it out from duty though this at last makes the soul more severe in mortifying yet it costs some scuffle before it can recover its throne and when it cannot shut from duty yet then is the Christian wofully yok't with it in duty it cannot do what it doth as it would many a letter in its copy doth this enemy spoil while he joggs him with impertinent thoughts when the Christian is a praying then Satan and the flesh are a prating he cries and they louder to put him out or drown his cry Thus we see the Christian is assail'd on every side by his enemy and how can it be other when the seeds of war are laid deep in the natures of both which can never be rooted up till the devil cease to be a devil sin to be sin and the Saint to be a Saint Though wolves may snarle at one another yet soon are quiet again because the quarrel is not in their nature but the Wolfe and the Lamb can never be made friends Sin will lust against grace and grace draw upon sin whenever they meet SECT III. Vse 1 First this may reprove such as wrestle but against whom against God not against sin and Satan These are bold men indeed who dare try a fall with the Almighty yet such there are and a Wo pronounced against them Isa 45.9 Wo unto him that striveth with his Maker 'T is easie to tell which of these will be worsted What can he do but break his shins that dasheth them against a rock A goodly battel there is like to be when thorns contest with fire and stubble with flame But where live those giants that dare enter the list with the great God what are their names that we may know them and brand them for creatures above all other unworthy to live Take heed O thou who askest that the wretched man whom thou seemest so to defie be not found in thy own clothes it self Iudas was the Traitour though he would not answer to his name but put it off with a Master is it I and so mayest thou be the fighter against God The heart is deceitful Even holy David for all his anger was so hot against the rich man that took away the poor mans ewe-Lamb that he bound it with an oath the man should not live who had done it yet proves at last to be himself the man as the Prophet told him 2 Sam. 12. Now there are two wayes wherein men wrestle against God First when they wrestle against his Spirit Secondly when they wrestle against his Providence First when they wrestle against his Spirit We reade of the Spirits striving with the creature Gen. 6.3 My spirit shall not alwayes strive with man Where the striving is not in anger and wrath to destroy them that God could do without any stir or scuffle but a loving strife and contest with man The old world was running with such a cariere headlong into their ruine he sends his Spirit to interpose and by his counsels and reproofes to offer as it were to stop them and reclaim them As if one seeing another ready to offer violence on himself should strive to get the knife out of his hand with which he would do the mischief Or one that hath a purse of gold in his hand to give should follow another by all manner of entreaties striving with him to accept and take it Such a kinde of strife is this of the Spirits with men They are the lusts of men those bloody instruments of death with which sinners are mischieving themselves that the holy Spirit strives by his sweet counsels and entreaties to get out of our hands They are Christs his grace and eternal life he strives to make us accept at the hands of Gods mercy and for repulsing the Spirit thus striving with them sinners are justly counted fighters against God Ye stiffe-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears ye do alwayes resist the Holy Ghost Now there is a twofold striving of the Spirit and so of our wrestling against it First the Spirit strives in his messengers with sinners They coming on his errand and not their owne he voucheth the faithful counsels reproofs and exhortations which they give as his own act Noah that Preacher of righteousnesse what he said to the old world is call'd the Preaching of the Spirit 1 Pet. 3.19 The pains that Moses Aaron and other servants of God took in instructing Israel is call'd the instruction of the Spirit Nehem. 9.20 so that when the Word which Gods Ministers bring in his Name is rejected the faithful counsels they give are thrown at sinners heels and made light of then do they strive with the Spirit and wrestle against Christ as really as if he visibly in his own person had been in the Pulpit and preached the same Sermon to them When God comes to reckon with sinners it will prove so then God will rub up your memories and minde you of his striving with you and your unkinde resisting him They whether they will heare or whether they will forbear shall know they had a Prophet among them Now men soon forget whom and what they hear ask them what was prest upon their conscience in such a Sermon they have forgot what were the precious truthes laid out in another and they are lost well were it for them if their memories were no better in another world it would ease their torments more then a little But then they shall know they had a Prophet among them and what a price they had with him in their hands though it was in fooles keeping They shall know what he was and what he said though a thousand years past as fresh as if it were done but last night The more zealous and compassionate the more painful and powerful he was in his place the greater shall their sin be found to break from such holy violence offered
must deliver thee up when that comes Even when thy strength is firmest and thou eatest thy bread with a merry heart that very food which nourisheth thy life gives thee withal an earnest of death as it leaves those dregs in thee which will in time procure the same O how unavoidable must this evil day of death be when that very staffe knocks us down to the grave at last which our life leans on and is preserved by God owes a debt both to the first Adam and second to the first he owes the wages of his sin to the second the reward of his sufferings The place for full payment of both is the other world so that except death comes to convey man thither the wicked who are the posterity of the first Adam will misse of that full pay for their sins which the threatening makes due debt and engageth God to perform The godly also who are the seed of Christ these should not receive the whole purchase of his blood which he would never have shed but upon the credit of thar promise of eternal life which God gave him for them before the world began This is the reason why God hath made this day so sure in it he dischargeth both bonds The third branch of the point follows That it behoves every one to prepare and effectually to provide for this evil day which so unavoidably impends us And that upon a twofold account First in point of duty Secondly in point of wisdome First in point of duty First it is upon our allegiance to the great God that we provide and arme our selves against this day Suppose a subject were trusted with one of his Princes castles and this man should hear that a puissant enemy was coming to lay siege to this castle yet takes no care to lay in armes and provision for his defence and so 't is lost how could such a one be clear'd of treason doth he not basely betray the place and with it his Princes honour into the enemies hand Our souls are this castle which we are every one to keep for God We have certain intelligence that Satan hath a design upon them and the time when he intends to come with all his powers of darknesse to be that evil day Now as we would be found true to our trust we are obliged to stand upon our defence and store our selves with what may enable us to make a vigorous resistance Secondly we are obliged to provide for that day as a suitable return for and improvement of the opportunities and meanes which God affords us for this very end We cannot without shameful ingratitude to God make waste of those helps God gives us in order to this great work Every one would cry out upon him that should basely spend that money upon riot in prison which was sent him to procure his deliverance out of prison And do we not blush to bestow those talents upon our lusts and Satan which God graciously indulgeth to deliver us from them and his rage in a dying houre what have we Bibles for Ministers and preaching for if we mean not to furnish our selves by them with armour for the evil day In a word what is the intent of God in lengthening out our dayes and continuing us some while here in the land of the living was it that we might have time to revel or rather ravel out upon the pleasure of this vaine world Doth he give us our precious time to be employed in catching such butterflies as these earthly honours and riches are It cannot be Masters do not use if wise to set their servants about such work as will not pay for the candle they borne in doing it And truly nothing lesse then the glorifying of God and saving our soules at last can be worth the precious time we spend here The great God hath a greater end then most think in this dispensation If we would judge aright we should take his own interpreration of his actions and the Apostle Peter bids us count that the long-suffering of the Lord is salvation 2 Pet. 3.15 which plate he quotes out of Paul as to the sense though not in the same forme of words which in Rom. 2.4 are these Or despisest thou the riches of his goodnesse and forbearance and long-suffering not knowing that the goodnesse of God leadeth thee to repentance From both places we are taught what is the minde of God and the language he speaks to us in by every moments patience and inch of time that is granted to us It is a space given for repentance God sees as we are death and judgement could bring no good news to us we are in no case to welcome the evil day and therefore mercy stands up to plead for the poor creature in Gods bosome and begs a little time more may be added to its life that by this iudulgence it may be provoked to repent before he be called to the bar Thus we come by every day that is continually superadded to our time on earth And doth not this lay a strong obligation on us to lay out every point of this time unto the same end 't is begged for Secondly in point of wisdome The wisdom of a man appears most eminently in two things First in the matter of his choice and chief care Secondly in a due timing of this his choice and care First a wife man makes choice of that for the subject of his chief care and endeavour which is of greatest importance and consequence to him fools and children only are intent about toys and trifles They are as busie and earnest in making of a house of dirt or cards as Solomon was in making of his Temple Those poor bables are as adequate to their foolish apprehensions as great enterprises are to wise men Now such is the importance of the evil day especially that of death that it proves a man a fool or wise as he comports himself to it The end specifies every action and gives it the name of good or evil of wise or foolish The evil day of death is as the end of our dayes so to be the end of all the actions of our life Such will our life be found at last as it hath been in order to this one day If the several items of our life counsels and projects that we have pursued when they shall then be cast up will amount to a blessed death then we shall appear to be wise men indeed but if after all our goodly plots and policies for other things we be unprovided for that houre we must be content to die fooles at last And no such fool as the dying fool The Christian goes for the fool in the worlds account while he lives but when death comes the wise world will then confesse they mis-call'd him and shall take it to themselves We fooles counted his life to be madnesse and his end to be without honour But how is he now numbred among the
own Thus do thou consider what thou standest engaged to thy worldly credit profit slavish feare of God and selfish desire of happinesse and when thou hast allowed for all these see then what remaines of thy feare of God love to God c. if nothing thou art nought if any the lesse there be the weaker Christian thou art and when thou comest to be tried in Gods fire thou wilt suffer losse of all the other which as hay and stubble will be burnt up SECT V. Every soule clad with this Armour of God shall stand and persevere Or thus true grace can never be vanquish't The Christian is borne a Conquerour the gates of hell shall nor prevail against him He that is borne of God overcometh the world 1 John 5.4 Mark from whence the victory is dated even from his birth There is victory sowen in his new nature even that seed of God which will keep him from being swallowed up by sin or Satan As Christ rose never to die more so doth he raise soules from the grave of sin never to come under the power of spiritual death more These holy ones of God cannot see corruption Hence he that believes is said in the present tense to have eternal life At the Law that came foure hundred years after could not make void the promise made to Abraham so nothing that intervenes can hinder the accomplishing of that promise of eternal life which was given and passed to Christ in their behalf before the foundation of the world If a Saint could any way miscarry and fall short of this eternal life it must be from one of these three causes 1. Because God may forsake the Christian and withdraw his grace and help from him Or 2. Because the believer may forsake God Or lastly because Satan may pluck him out of the hands of God A fourth I know not Now none of these can be First God can never forsake the Christian Some unadvised speeches have drop't from tempted soules discovering some fears of Gods casting them off but they have been confuted and have eaten their words with shame as we see in Job and David O what admirable security hath the great God given his children in this particular First in Promises He hath said I will never leave thee nor forsake thee Five negatives in that promise as so many seals to ratifie it to our faith he assures us there never did or can so much as arise a repenting thought in his heart concerning the purposes of his love and special grace towards his children Rom. 11.29 The gifts and calling of God are without repentance even the believers sin against him their froward carriage stirs not up thoughts of casting them off but of reducing them For the iniquity of this covetousnesse I was wroth and smote him I hid me and was wroth and he went on frowardly in the way of his heart I have seen his wayes and will heal them Isa 57.27 28. The water of the Saints failings cast on the fire of Gods love cannot quench it Whom he loves he loves to the end Secondly God to give further weight and credit to our unbelieving and mis-giving hearts seals his promise with an oath See Isa 54.9 10. With everlasting kindnesse will I have mercy on thee saith the Lord thy Redeemer this is as the waters of Noah unto me for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should not return over the earth so have I sworn that I will not be wroth with thee Yea he goes on and tells them The monntaines shall depart meaning at the end of the world when the whole frame of the heavens and earth shall be dissolv'd but his kindnesse shall not depart neither shall his Covenant of peace be removed Now lest any should think this was some charter belonging to the Jewes alone we finde it v. 17. setled on every servant of God as his portion This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their righteousnesse is of me saith the Lord. And surely God that is so careful to make his childrens inheritance sure to them will con them little thanks who busie their wits to invalid and weaken his conveyances yea disprove his will if they had taken a bribe they could not plead Satans cause better Thirdly in the actual fulfilling these promises which he hath made to beleevers to Christ their Attourney As God before the world began gave a promise of eternal life to Christ for them so now hath he given actual possession of that glorious place to Christ as their Advocate and Attourney where that eternal life shall be enjoyed by them for as he came upon our errand from heaven so thither he returned again to take and hold possession of that inheritance which God had of old promised and he in one summe at his death had paid for And now what ground of feare can there be in the believers heart concerning Gods love standiog firme to him when he sees the whole Covenant performed already to Christ for him whom God hath not only called to sanctified for and upheld in the great work he was to finish for us but also justified in his Resurrection and Jayle-delivery and received him into heaven there to sit on the right hand of the Majesty on high by which he hath not only possession for us but full power to give it unto all believers A second occasion of feare to the believer that he shall not persevere may be taken from himself He has many sad feares and tremblings of heart that he shall at last forsake God The journey is long to heaven and his grace weak O saith he is it not possible that this little grace should faile and I fall short at last of glory Now here there is such provision made in the Covenant as scatters this cloud also First the Spirit of God is given on purpose to prevent this Christ left his mother with John but his Saints with his Spirit to tutour and keep them that they should not lose themselves in their journey to heaven O how sweet is that place Ezek. 36.27 I will put my Spirit in you and cause you to walk in my statutes and ye shall keep my judgements and do them He doth not say they shall have his Spirit if they will walk in his statutes no his Spirit shall cause them to do it But may be thou art afraid thou mayest grieve him and so he in anger leave thee and thou perish for want of his help and counsel Answ The Spirit of God is indeed sensible of unkindnesse and upon a Saints sin may withdraw in regard of present assistance but never in regard of his care as a mother may let her froward childe go alone till it get a knock that may make it cry to be taken up again into her armes but still her eye is on it that it shall not fall into mischief The Spirit withdrew from Samson and he fell into the
us flee for the Lord fighteth for them Whereas there be many now a dayes will rather give the honour of their discomfitures to Satan himself then acknowledge God in the businesse more ready to say the devil fought against them then God O you that have not yet worne off the impressions which the Almighty power of God hath at any time made upon your spirits beware of having any thing to do with that generation of men whoever they are Come not near their Tabernacle cast not thy lot in amongst them who are enemies to the Saints of the most High for they are men devoted to destruction God so loves his Saints that he makes nothing to give whole Nations for their ransome He rip 't open the very wombe of Egypt to save the life of Israel his childe Isa 43.3 Vse 2 Secondly this shews the dismal deplorable condition of all you who are yet in a Christ lesse state you have seen a rich mine open'd but not a penny of this treasure comes to your share a truth laden with incomparable comfort but it is bound for another coast it belongs to the Saints into whose bosome this truth unlades all her comfort see God shutting the door upon you when he sets his children to feast themselves with such dainties Esay 65.13 My servants shall eat but ye shall be hungry my servants shall drink but ye shall be thirsty God hath his set number which he provides for He knows how many he hath in his family these and no more shall sit down One chief dish at the Saints board is the Almighty power of God This was set before Abraham and stands before all his Saints that they may eate to fulnesse of comfort on it But thou shalt be hungry He is Almighty to pardon but he will not use it for thee an impenitent sinner thou hast not a friend on the bench not an attribute in all Gods Name will speak for thee Mercy it self will sit and vote with the rest of its fellow-attributes for thy damnation God is able to save and help in a time of need but upon what acquaintance is it that thou art so bold with God as to expect his saving arme to be stretcht forth for thee Though a man will rise at midnight to let in a childe that cryes and knocks at his doore yet he will not take so much paines for a dog that lies howling there This presents thy condition sinner sad enough yet this is to tell thy story fairest for that Almighty power of God which is engaged for the beleevers salvation is as deeply obliged to bring thee to thy execution and damnation What greater tie then an oath God himself is under an oath to be the destruction of every impenitent soul That oath which God sware in his wrath against the unbeleeving Israelites that they should not enter into his rest concernes every unbeleever to the end of the world In the Name of God consider were it but the oath of a man or a company of men that like those in the Acts should sweare to be the death of such a one and thou wert the man would it not fill thee with feare and trembling night and day and take away the quiet of thy life till they were made friends What then are their pillows stuft with who can sleep so soundly without any horrour or amazement though they be told that the Almighty God is under an oath of damning them body and soul without timely repentance O bethink your selves sinners is it wisdome or valour to refuse termes of mercy from Gods hands whose Almighty power if rejected will soone bring you into the hands of justice and how fearful a thing that is to fall into the hands of Almighty God no tongue can expresse no not they who feel the weight of it Vse 3 Thirdly this speaks to you that are Saints indeed Be strong in the faith of this truth make it an Article of your Creed with the same faith that you beleeve there is a God beleeve also this Gods Almighty power is thy sure friend and then improve it to thy best advantage As First in agonies of conscience that arise from the greatnesse of thy sinnes flie for refuge into the Almighty power of God Truly Sirs when a mans sinnes are displayed in all their bloody colours and spread forth in their kâ—lling aggravations and the eye of conscience awakened to behold them through the multiplying or magnifying glasse of a temptation they must needs surprize the creature with horror and amazement till the soul can say with the Prophet for all this huge hoast There is yet more with me then against me One Almighty is more then many Mighties All these mighty sinnes and devils make not one Almighty sinne or an Almighty devil Oppose to all the hideous charges brought against thee by them this onely attribute As the French Ambassadour once silenced the Spaniards pride in repeating his Masters many titles with one that drowned them all God himself Hosea 11.9 when he had aggravated his peoples sinnes to the height then to shew what a God can do breaks out into a sweet promise I will not execute the fiercenesse of mine anger and why not I am God and not man I will shew the Almightinesse of my mercy Something like our usual phrase when a childe or a woman strikes us I am a man and not a childe or woman therefore I will not strike again The very considering God to be God supposeth him Almighty to pardon as well as to avenge and this is some relief But then to consider it is Almighty power in bond and Covenant to pardon this is more As none can binde God but himself so none can break the bond himself makes and are they not his own words that he will abundantly pardon Isa 55. he will multiply to pardon as if he had said I 'le drop mercy with your sinne and spend all I have rather then let it be said my good is overcome of your evil It fares with the gracious soul in this case as with a Captaine that yields his Castle upon gracious termes of having his life spared and he safely convey'd to his house there to be setled peaceably in his estate and possessions for all which he hath the Generals hand and Seal on which he marcheth forth but the rude souldiers assault him and put him in feare of his life he appeals to the General whose honour now is engaged for him and is presently releeved and his enemies punisht Thou mayest poore soule when accused by Satan mollested by his terrours say It is God that justifies I have his hand to it that I should have my life given me assoon as I laid down my armes and submitted to him which I desire to do behold the gates of my heart are open to let the Prince of peace in and is not the Almighty able to performe his promise I commit my selfe to him as unto a
command which bids us do good to all May not we Ministers be charged with the want of this when the straine of our preaching is solely directed to the Saints and no paines taken in rescuing poor captived soules yet uncall'd out of the devils clutches who may hale them to hell without any disturbance while we are comforting the Saints and preaching their priviledges but in the mean time let the ignorant be ignorant still and the profane profane still for want of a compassionate charity to their soules which would excite us to the reproving and exhorting of them that they might also be brought in to the way of life as well as the Saints encouraged who are walking therein We are stewards to provide bread for the Lords house the greatest part of our hearers cannot must not have the childrens bread and shall we therefore give them no portion at all Christs charity pitied the multitude to whom in his publike preaching he made special application as in that famous Sermon most part of which is spent in rowsing up the sleepy consciences of the hypocritical Pharisees by those thunderclaps of woes and curses so often denounced against them Mat. 23. Again how great advantage hath Satan from the want of this charity in our families Is it not observ'd how little care is taken by professing Governours of such Societies for the instructing their youth Nay 't is a principle which some have drunk in that 't is not their duty O where is their charity in the mean time when they can see Satan come within their own walls and let him drive a childe a servant in their ignorance and profanenesse to hell and not so much as sally out upon this enemy by a word of reproof or instruction to rescue these silly souls out of the murtherers hand We must leave them to their liberty forsooth and that is as faire play as we can give the devil give but corrupt nature enough of this rope and it will soon strangle the very principles of God and Religion in their tender yeares SECT III. Thirdly the entirenesse of the Saints armour may be taken not only for every part and piece of the Saints furniture but for the compleatnesse and perfection of every piece As the Christian is to endeavour after every grace so is he to presse after the advance and increase of every grace even to perfection itself as he is to adde to his faith vertue so he is to adde faith to faith he is ever to be compleating of his grace It is that which is frequently prest upon believers Mat. 5.48 Be ye perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect And purifie your selves as God is pure Where we have an exact copy set not as if we could equallize that purity and perfection which is in God but to make us strive the more when we shall see how infinitely short we fall of our copy when we write the fairest hand So James 1.3 Let patience have its perfect work that you may be entire wanting nothing or wanting in nothing Thou who makest a hard shift to carry a little burden with thy little patience wouldest sink under a greater therefore there is need that patience should be ever perfecting lest at last we meet a burden too heavy for our weak shoulders Take a few reasons why the Christian should thus be compleating of his grace First because grace is subject to decayes and therefore ever needs compleating as in an army especially which often engageth in battel their armes are batter'd and broken one man hath his helmet bent another his sword gap't a third his pistol unfix't and therefore recruits are ever necessary In one temptation the Christian hath his helmet of hope beaten off his head in another his patience hard put to it The Christian had need have an Armourers shop at hand to make up his losse and that speedily for Satan is most like to fall on when the Christian is least prepared to receive his charge Simon Simon Satan hath desired to sift you he knew they were at that time weakly provided Christ their Captain now to be taken from the head of their troop discontents among themselves striving who should be greatest and their recruits of stronger grace which the Spirit was to bring not yet come Now he hath a design to surprise them and therefore Christ carefully to prevent him promiseth speedily to dispatch his Spirit for their supply and in the mean time sends them to Jerusalem to stand as it were in a body in their joynt supplications upon their guard while he comes to their relief shewing us in the weaknesse of our graces what to do and whither to go for supply Secondly because Satan is compleating his skill and wrath 'T is not for nought that he is call'd the old Serpent subtil by nature but more by experience wrathful by nature yet every day more and more enraged like a bull the longer he is baited the more fury he shewes And therefore we who are to grapple with him now his time is so short had need come well appointed into the field Thirdly it is the end of all Gods dispensations to compleat his Saints in their graces and comforts Wherefore doth he lop and prune by afflictions but to purge that they may bring forth more fruit that is fuller and fairer Tribulation works patience 'T is Gods appointment for that end It works that is it encreaseth the Saints patience it enrageth indeed the wicked but meekens the Saints 'T is his design in the Gospel preached to carry on his Saints from faith to faith Rom. 1.17 And accordingly he hath furnished his Church with instruments and those with gifts for the perfecting of the Saints and for the edifying of the body of Christ Eph. 4.14 Wherefore doth the Scaffold stand and the Workman on it if the building go not up For us not to advance under such means is to make void the counsel of God Therefore the Apostle blames the Christian Jewes Heb. 5.12 for their non-proficiency in the School of Christ When for the time ye ought to be teachers ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the Oracles of God O how few are there who endeavour thus to promove in their spiritual state and labour to perfect what is yet lacking in their knowledge patience and the rest First tell some of adding faith to faith one degree of grace to another and you shall finde they have more minde to joyne house to house and lay field to field their souls are athirst ever gaping for more but of what not of Christ or Heaven It is earth earth they never think they have enough of till death comes and stops their mouth with a shovel-full digg'd out of their own grave What a tormenting life must they needs have who are alwayes crying for more weight and yet cannot presse their covetous desires to death O Sirs the only way if
sinners know who that God is they fight against this were enough to breed a mutiny in the devils camp Silly soules they are drawn into the field by a false report of God and his wayes and are kept there together with lies and faire tales but Christ is not afraid to shew his Saints their enemy in all his Power and Principality the Weaknesse of God being stronger then the powers of hell CHAP. I. Sheweth the Christians life here to be a continual wrestling with sin and Satan and the paucity of those who are true Wrestlers as also how the true Wrestlers should manage their combate THe words contain a lively description of a bloody and lasting war between the Christian and his implacable enemy in which we may observe First the Christians state in this life set out by this word wrestling Secondly the Assailants that appear in armes against the Christian who are described First Negatively Not flesh and blood Or rather comparatively not chiefly flesh and blood Secondly Positively but against Principalities Powers c. SECT I. First for the first the wrestling or conflicting state of a Christian in this life is rendered observable here by a threefold circumstance First the kinde of combate which the Christians state is here set out by 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which though it be used sometimes for a wrestling of sport and recreation yet here to set out the sharpnesse of the Christians encounter there are two things in wrestling that render it a sharper combate then others First wrestling is not properly fighting against a multitude but when one enemy singles out another and enters the list with him each exerting their whole force and strength against one another as David and Goliah when the whole Armies stood as it were in a ring to behold the bloody issue of that duel Now this is more fierce then to fight in an army where though the battel be sharp and long the souldier is not alwayes engaged but falls off when he hath discharged and takes breath a while yea possibly may escape without hurt or stroak because there the enemies aime is not at this or that man but at the whole heap but in wrestling one cannot scape so he being the particular object of the enemies fury must needs be shaked and tried to purpose Indeed the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies such a strife as makes the body shake again quia corpus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Satan hath not only a general malice against the army of Saints but a spite against thee John thee Joane he 'll single thee out for his enemy We finde Jacob when alone a man wrestled with him As God delights to have private communion with his single Saints so the devil to try it hand to hand with the Christian when he gets him alone As we lose much comfort when we do not apply the Promise and Providence of God to our particular persons and conditions God loves me pardons me takes care of me the water at the town-conduit doth me no good if I want a pipe to empty it into my cisterne so it obstructs our care and watchfulnesse when we conceive of Satans wrath and fury as bent in general against the Saints and not against me in particular O how careful would a soule be in duty if as going to Church or Closet he had such a serious meditation as this Now Satan is at my heels to hinder me in my work if my God help me not Secondly 't is a close combate Armies fight at some distance Wrestlers grapple hand to hand An arrow shot from afar may be seen and shunn'd but when the enemy hath hold of one there is no declining but either he must resist manfully or fall shamefully at his enemies foot Satan comes close up and gets within the Christian takes his hold of his very flesh and corrupt nature and by this shakes him Secondly the universality of the combate We wrestle 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which comprehends all on purpose you may perceive the Apostle changeth the pronoune 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the former verse into 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in this that he may include himself as well as them as if he had said the quarrel is with every Saint Satan neither feares to assault the Minister nor despiseth to wrestle with the meanest Saint in the Congregation great and small Minister and people all must wrestle Not one part of Christs Army in the field and the other at ease in their quarters where no enemy comes here are enemies enough to engage all at onee Thirdly the permanency or duration of this combate and that lies in the tense 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Not our wrestling was at first Conversion but now over and we past the pikes not we shall wrestle when sicknesse comes and death comes but our wrestling is the enemy is ever in sight of us yea in fight with us there is an evil of every dayes temptation which like Pauls bonds abides us wherever we become So that these particulars summ'd up will amount to this Point SECT II. The Christians life is a continual wrestling He is as Jeremy said of himself borne a man of strife or what the Prophet to Asa may be said to every Christian From hence thou shalt have wars from thy spiritual birth to thy natural death from the houre when thou first diddest set thy face to heaven till thou shalt set thy foot in heaven Israels march out of Egypt was in Gospel-sense our taking the field against sin and Satan and when had they peace not till they lodged their colours in Canaan No condition wherein the Christian is here below is quiet Is it prosperity or adversity here is work for both hands to keep pride and security down in the one faith and patience up in the other no place which the Christian can call priviledg'd ground Lot in Sodom wrestled with the wicked inhabitants thereof his righteous soule being vexed with their unclean conversation And how fares he at Zoar do not his own daughters bring a spark of Sodoms fire into his own bed whereby he is inflamed with lust Some have thought if they were but in such a family under such a Ministery out of such occasions O then they should never be tempted as now they are I confesse change of aire is a great help to weak nature and these forenamed as vantage-ground against Satan but think'st thou to flie from Satans presence thus No though thou should'st take the wings of the morning he would flie after thee these may make him change his method in tempting but not lay down his designe so long as his old friend is alive within he will be knocking at thy door without No duty can be performed without wrestling The Christian needs his sword as much as his trowel He wrestles with a body of flesh this to the Christian in duty is as the beast to the traveller he cannot go his journey
is most personal that corruption which David calls his own iniquity Psal 18.23 This is the skirt which Satan layes hold of observe what it is and mortifie it daily then Satan will retreat with shame when he sees the head of that enemy upon the wall which should have betrayed thee into his hands Secondly the Romane wrestlers used to anoint their bodies so do thou bathe thy soul with the frequent meditation of Christs love Satan will finde little welcome where Christs love dwells love will kindle love and that will be as a wall of fire to keep off Satan it will make thee disdain the offer of a sinne and as oile supple thy joynts and make agile to offend thy enemy Think how Christ wrestled in thy quarrel sin hell and wrath had all come full mouth upon thee had not he coped with them in the way And canst thou finde in thy heart to requite his love by betraying his glory into the hands of sin by cowardise or treachery say not thou lovest him so long as thou canst lay those sins in thy bosome which pluck't his heart out of his bosome It were strange if a childe should keep and delight to use no other knife but that wherewith his father was stabb'd Thirdly improve the advantage thou gettest at any time wisely Sometimes the Christian hath his enemy on the hip yea on the ground can set his foot on the very neck of his pride and throw away his unbelief as a thing absurd and unreasonable now as a wise wrestler fall with all thy weight upon thine enemy though man think it foule play to strike when his adversary is down yet do not thou so complement with sin as to let it breath or rise Take heed thou beest not charged of God as once Ahab for letting go this enemy now in thy hands whom God hath appointed to destruction Learne a little wisdome of the Serpents brood who when they had Christ under their foot never thought they had him sure enough no not when dead and therefore both seale and watch his grave Thus do thou to hinder the resurrection of thy sin seal it down with stronger purposes solemn covenants and watch it by a wakeful circumspect walking Vse 3 This is ground of consolation to the weak Christian who disputes against the truth of his grace from the inward conflicts and fightings he hath with his lusts and is ready to say like Gideon in regard of outward enemies If God be with me why is all this befallen me why do I finde such struglings in me provoking me to sin pulling me back from that which is good Why doest ask The Answer is soon given because thou art a Wrestler not a Conquerour Thou mistakest the state of a Châ—istian in this life when one is made a Christian he is not presently call'd to triumph over his slaine enemies but carried into the field to meet and fight them The state of grace is rhe commencing of a war against sin not the ending of it rather then thou shalt not have an enemy to wrestle with God himself will come in a disguise into the field and appear to be thine enemy Thus when Jacob was alone a man wrestled with him until breaking of the day and therefore set thy heart at rest if this be thy scruple Thy soule may rather take comfort in this that thou art a wrestler This strugling within thee if upon the right ground and to the right end doth evidence there are two Nations within thee two contrary natures the one from earth earthly and the other from heaven heavenly yea for thy further comfort know though thy corrupt nature be the elder yet it shall serve the younger Vse 4 O how should this make thee Christian long to be gone home where there is none of this stir and scuffle 'T is strange that every houre seems not a day and everyday a year till death sounds thy joyful retreat and calls thee off the field where the bullets flie so thick and thou art fighting for thy life with thy deadly enemies to come to Court where not swords but palmes are seen in the Saints hands not drums but harps not groanes of bleeding souldiers and wounded consciences but sweet and ravishing musick is heard of triumphing Victors caroling the praises of God and the Lambe through whom they have overcome Well Christians while you are below comfort your selves with these things There is a place of Rest remains for the people of God You do not beat the aire but wrestle for a Heaven that is yonder above these clouds you have your worst first the best will follow You wrestle but to win a Crown and win to wear it yea wear never to lose it which once on none shall take off or put you to the hazard of battel more Here we overcome to fight again the battel of one temptation may be over but the war remaines What peace can we have as long as devils can come abroad out of their holes or anything of sinful nature remains in our selves unmortified which will even fight upon its knees and strike with one arme while the other is cut off but when death comes the last stroak is struck this good Physician will perfectly cure thee of thy spiritual blindnesse and lamenesse as the Martyr told his fellow at the stake bloody Bonner would do their bodily What is it Christian which takes away the joy of thy life but the wrestlings and combates which this bosome-enemy puts thee to Is not this the Peninnah that vexing and disturbing thy Spirit hath kept thee off many a sweet meale thou mightest have had in communion with God and his Saints or if thou hast come hath made thee cover the Altar of God with thy teares and groans and will it not be a happy hand that cuts the knot and sets thee loose from thy deadnesse hypocrisie pride and what not wherewith thou wert yoak't 'T is life which is thy losse and death which is thy gaine Be but willing to endure the rending of this vaile of thy flesh and thou art where thou wouldest be out of the reach of sin at rest in the bosome of thy God And why should a short evil of paine affright thee more then the deliverance from a continual torment of sins evil ravish thee Some you know have chose to be cut rather then to be ground daily with the stone and yet may be their pain comes again and canst thou not quietly think of dying to be delivered from the torment of these sins never to return more And yet that is not the half that death doth for thee Peace is sweet after war ease after pain but what tongue can expresse what joy what glory must fill the creature at the first sight of God and that blessed company none but one that dwells there can tell Did we know more of that blisseful state we Ministers should finde it as hard a work to perswade Christians to be
that ye are of mine elect ones which will stand you more in stead at the great day then all this SECT II. A second Priviledge is when God honours a person to suffer for his truth this is a great Priviledge Vnto you it is given not only to beleeve but to suffer for his sake God doth not use to give worthless gifts to his Saints there is some preciousnesse in it which a carnal eye cannot see Faith you will say is a great gift but perseverance greater without which faith would be little worth and perseverance in suffering this above both honourable This made John Carelesse our English Martyr who though he died not at the stake yet in prison for Christ say Such an honour 't is as Angels are not permitted to have therefore God forgive me mine unthankfulnesse Now when Satan cannot scare a soul from prison yet then he will labour to puffe him up in prison when he cannot make him pity himself then he will flatter him till he prides in himself Affliction from God exposeth to impatience for God to pride and therefore Christians labour to fortifie your selves against this temptation of Satan how soon you may be called to suffering work you know not such clouds oft are not long arising Now to keep thy heart humble when thou art honoured to suffer for the truth Consider First though thou doest not deserve those sufferings at mans hand thou canst and mayest in that regard glory in thy innocency thou sufferest not as an evil doer yet thou canst not but confesse it is a just affliction from God in regard of sin in thee and this methinks should keep thee humble the same suffering may be Martyrdome in regard of man and yet a fatherly chastising for sin in regard of God none suffered without sin but Christ and therefore none may glory in them but he Christ in his own we in his God forbid that I should glory save in the Crosse of Christ Gal. 6. This kept Mr. Bradford humble in his sufferings for the truth none more rejoyced in them and blessed God for them yet none more humble under them then he and what kept him in this humble frame reade his godly letters and you shall finde almost in all how he bemoans his sins and the sins of the Protestants under the reign of King Edward It was time saith he for God to put his rod into the Papists hands we were grown so proud formal unfruitful yea to loath and despise the means of grace when we enjoyed the liberty therof and therfore God hath brought the wheele of persecution on us As he look't at the honour to make him thankful so to sinne to keep him humble Secondly consider who bears thee up and carries thee through thy sufferings for Christ Is it thy grace or his that is sufficient for such a work thy spirit or Christs by which thou speakest when call'd to bear witnesse to his truth how comes it to passe thou art a sufterer and not a persecutour a confessour and not a denier yea betrayer of Christ and his Gospel This thou owest for to God he is not beholden to thee that thou wilt part with estate credit or life it self for his sake If thou hadst a thousand lives thou wouldest owe them all to him but thou art beholden to God exceedingly that he will call for these in this way which has such an honour and reward attending it He might have suffered thee to live in thy lusts and at last to suffer the losse of all these for them O how many die at the Gallowes as Martyrs in the devils cause for felonies rapes and murders Or he might withdraw his grace and leave thee to thy own cowardise and unbelief and then thou wouldest soon shew thy self in thy colours The stoutest Champions for Christ have been taught how weak they are if Christ steps aside Some that have given great testimony of their faith and resolution in Christs cause even to come so near dying for his Name as to give themselves to be bound to the stake and fire to be kindled upon them yet then their hearts have failed as that holy man Mr. Benbridge in our English Martyrol who thrust the faggots from him and cried out I recant I recant Yet this man when re-inforc't in his faith and indued with power from above was able within the space of a week after that sad foile to die at the stake cheerfully Qui pro nobis mortem semel vicit semper in nobis vincit He that once overcame death for us 't is he that alwayes overcame death in us And who should be thy Song but he that is thy strength applaud not thy selfe but blesse him 'T is one of Gods Names he is call'd the glory of his peoples strength Psal 89.17 The more thou gloriest in God that gives thee strength to suffer for him the lesse thou wilt boast of thy self A thankful heart and a proud cannot dwell together in one bosome Thirdly consider what a foule blot pride gives to all thy sufferings where it is not bewailed and resisted it alters the case The old saying is that 't is not the punishment but the cause makes the Martyr we may safely say further it is not barely the cause but the sincere frame of the heart in suffering for a good cause that makes a man a Martyr in Gods sight Though thou shouldest give thy body to be burnt if thou hast not an humble heart of a sufferer for Christ thou turnest Merchant for thy self Thou deniest but one self to set up another runnest the hazard of thy estate and life to gain some applause may be and reare up a monument to thy honour in the opinions of men thou doest no more in this case then a souldier who for a name of valour will venture into the mouth of death and danger only thou shewest thy pride under a religious disguise but that helps it not but makes it the worse If thou wilt in thy sufferings be a sacrifice acceptable to God thou must not only be ready to offer up thy life for his truth but sacrifice thy pride also or else thou mayest tumble out of one fire into another suffer here from man as a seeming champion for the Gospel and in another world from God for robbing him of his glory in thy sufferings SECT III. A third priviledge is when God flowes in with more then ordinary manifestations of his love then the Christian is in danger of having his heart secretly lift up in pride Indeed the genuine and natural effect which such discoveries of divine love have on a gracious soule is to humble it The sight of mercy encreaseth the sense of sin and that sense dissolves the soule kindely into sorrow as we see in Magdalen The heart which possibly was hard and frozen in the shade will give and thaw in the Sun-shine of love and so long all pride is hid from the creatures eye Then saith God
embraced the present world O what mischief has Satan done us in these few late years in this one particular what is become of this communion of Saints where are there two or three to be found that can agree to walk together those that could formerly suffer together cannot sit together at their Fathers table can hardly pray one with or one for another the breath of one Christian is strange to another that once lay in his bosome This is a lamentation and shall be for a lamentation CHAP. V. The words opened and what is meant by the evill day That ye may be able to withstand in the evil day and having done c. WE come to the argument with which the Apostle urgeth the exhortation and that is double The first hath respect to the houre of battel that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day The second to the happy issue of the war which will crown the Christian thus arm'd and that is certain victory and having done all stand First of the first That ye may be able to withstand in the evil day But what is this evil day Some take this evil day to comprehend the whole life of a Christian here below in this vale of tears and then the argument runs thus Take to your selves the whole Armour of God that you may be able to persevere to the end of your life which you will finde as it were one continued day of trouble and trial Thus Jacob drawes a black line over his whole life Few and evil have the days of my life been Gen. 47. What day shines so faire that over casts not before night yea in which the Christian meets not with some shower or other enough to deserve the name of an evil day Every day hath its portion yea proportion Sufficient is the evil of the day We need not borrow and take up sorrows upon use of the morrow to make up our present load as we read of daily bread so of a daily crosse Luke 9.23 which we are bid to take not to make we need not make crosses for our selves as we are prone to do God in his Providence will provide one for us and we are bid to take it up but we hear nothing of laying it down till crosse and we lie down together our troubles and our lives are coetaneous live and die together here when joy comes sorrow is at its heel staffe and rod go together Job himself whose prosperity the devil so grudg'd and set forth in all his bravery and pomp Job 1.10 as if his Sun had no shadow heare what account this good man gives of this his most flourishing time chap. 3. 26. I was not in safety neither had I rest neither was I quiet There were some troubles that broke his rest when his bed was to thinking as sort as heart could wish even now this good man tosses and tumbles from one side to the other and is not quiet If one should have come to Job and blessed him with his happy condition and said Surely Job thou couldest be content with what thou hast for thy portion if thou mightest have all this setled on thee and thy heires after thee he would have said as once Luther that God should not put him off with these Such is the Saints state in this bottome that their very life here and all the pompous entertainments of it they are their crosse because they detain them from their crown We need nothing to make our life an evil day more then our absence from our chief good which cannot be recompenced by the world nor enjoyed with it Only this goodnesse there is in this evil that it is short our life is but an evil day it will not last long and sure it was mercy that God hath abridged so much of the terme of mans life in these last dayes wherein so much of Christ and Heaven are discovered that it would have put the Saints patience hard to it to have known so much of the upper worlds glory and then be kept so long from it as the Fathers in the first age were O comfort one another Christians with this though your life be evil with troubles yet 't is short a few steps and you are out of the raine There is great difference between a Saint in regard of the evils he meets with and the wicked as two travellers riding contrary wayes both taken in the rain and wet but one rides from the raine and so is soon out of the showre but the other rides into the rainy corner the further he goes the worse he is The Saint he meets with troubles as well as the wicked but he is soon out of the showre when death comes he has faire weather but the wicked the further he goes the worse what he meets with here is but a few drops the great storme is the last The pouring out of Gods wrath shall be in hell where all the deeps of horrour are opened both from above of Gods righteous fury and from beneath of their own accusing and tormenting consciences Secondly others take the phrase in a more restrained sense to denote those particular seasons of our life wherein more especially we meet with afflictions and sufferings Beza reads it tempore adverso in the time of our adversity Though our whole life be evil if compared with Heavens blisseful state our clearest day night to that glorious morning yet one part of our life compared with another may be called good and the other evil we have our vicissitudes here The Providences of God to his Saints here while on this low bottome of earth are mixt and particoloured as was signified by the speckled horses in Zechariahs vision Red and white peace and war joy and sorrow checker our days Earth is a middle place betwixt heaven and hell and so is our state here it partakes of both we go up hill and down till we get to our journeys end yea we finde the deepest slough nearest our fathers house Death I mean into which all the other troubles of out life fall as streames into some great river and with which they all end and are swallowed up This being the comprehensive evil I conceive to be meant here being made remarkable by a double article 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that day that evil day not excluding those other dayes of tribulation which intervene These are but so many petty deaths every one snatching away a piece of our lives with them or like Pages sent before to usher in this King of terrours that comes behinde The phrase being opened let us consider the strength of this first argument with which the Apostle reinforceth his exhortation of taking to our selves the whole Armour of God and that consists in three weighty circumstances First the nature and quality of this day of affliction it is an evil day Secondly the unavoidablenesse of this evil day of affliction implied in the forme of speech that
Peter who set out so valiantly at first to walk on the sea the winde doth but rise and he begins to sink now he sees there was more unbelief in his heart then he before suspected Sharp afflictions are to the soule as a driving raine to the house we know not that there are such crannies and holes in the house till we see it drop down here and there Thus we perceive not how unmortified this corruption nor how weak that grace is till we are thus search't and made more fully to know what is in our hearts by such trials This is the reason why none have such humble thoughts of themselves and such pitiful and forbearing thoughts towards others in their infirmities as those who are most acquainted with afflictions they meet with so many foiles in their conflicts as make them carry a low saile in respect of their own grace and a tender respect to their brethren more ready to pity then censure them in their weaknesses Fourthly this is the season when the evil one Satan comes to tempt What we finde call'd the time of tribulation Mat. 13.22 we finde in the same parable Luke 8.13 call'd the time of temptation Indeed they both meet seldome doth God afflict us but Satan addeth temptation to our wildernesse This is your houre saith Christ and the power of darknesse Luke 22.53 Christs sufferings from man and temptation from the devil came together Esau who hated his brother for the blessing said in his heart The dayes of mourning for my father are at hand then will I kill my brother Gen. 27.41 Times of affliction are the dayes of mourning those Satan waits for to do us amischief in Fifthly and lastly the day of affliction hath oft an evil event and issue and in this respect proves an evil day indeed All is well we say that ends well the product of afflictions on the Christian is good the rod with which they are corrected yields the peaceable fruits of righteousnesse and therefore they can call their afflictions good that is a good instrument that lets out only the bad blood It is good for me that I was afflicted saith David I have read of a holy woman who used to compare her afflictions to her children they both put her to great pain in the bearing but as she knew not which of her children to have been without for all the trouble in the bringing forth so neither which of her afflictions she could have missed notwithstanding the sorrow they put her to in the enduring But to the wicked the issue is sad first in regard of sin they leave them worse more impenitent hardened in sin and outragious in their wicked practices Every plague on Egypt added to the plague of hardnesse on Pharaohs heart he that for some while could beg prayers of Moses for himself at last comes to that passe that he threatens to kill him if he come at him any more O what a prodigious height do we see many come to in sin after some great sicknesse or other judgement Children do not more shoot up in their bodily stature after an ague then they in their lusts after afflictions O how greedy and ravenous are they after their prey when they once get off their clog and chain from their heeles when Physick works not kindly it doth not only leave the disease uncured but the poison of the Physick stays in the body also Many appear thus poisoned by their afflictions by the breaking out of their lusts afterward Secondly in regard of sorrow every affliction on a wicked person produceth another and that a greater then it self The last wedge comes the last which shall rive him fit for the fire the sinner is whip't from affliction to affliction as the vagrant from Constable to Constable till at last he comes to hell his proper place and setled abode where all sorrrows will meet in one that is endlesse The second branch of the point follows This evil day is unavoidable We may as well stop the chariot of the Sun when posting to night and chase away the shades of the evening as escape this houre of darknesse that is coming upon us all None hath power over the Spirit to retain it neither hath he power in the day of death and there is no discharge in that war Eccl. 8.8 Among men 't is possible to get off when prest for the wars by pleading priviledge of yeares estate weaknesse of body protection from the Prince and the like or if all these fail possibly the sending another in our room or a bribe given in the hand may serve the turn But in this war the presse is so strict that there is no dispensation David could willingly have gone for his son we hear him crying Would God I had died for thee O Absalom my son my son but he will not be taken that young Gallant must go himself We must in our own person come into the field and look death in the face Some indeed we finde so fond as to promise themselves immunity from this day as if they had an ensuring office in their breast They say they have made a Covenant with death and with hell they are at an agreement when the overflowing scourge shall passe through it shall not come unto them And now like debtors that have feed the Serjeant they walk abroad boldly and feare no arrest But God tells them as fast as they binde he will loose Your Covenant with death shall be disannulled and your agreement with hell shall not stand and how should it if God will not set his seal to it There is a divine Law for this evil day which came in force upon Adams first sin that laid the fatal knife to the throat of mankinde which hath opened a sluce to let out his heart-blood ever since God to prevent all escape hath sowen the seeds of death in our very constitution and nature so that we can assoon run from our selves as run from death We need no feller to come with a hand of violence and hew us down there is in the tree a worme which grows out of its own substance that will destroy it so in us those infirmities of nature that will bring us down to the dust Our death was bred when our life was first conceived and as a breeding woman cannot hinder the houre of her travel that follows in nature upon the other so neither can man hinder the bringing forth of death with which his life is big All the pains and aches man feels in his life are but so many singultus morientis naturae groans of dying nature they tell him his dissolution is at hand Beest thou a Prince sitting in all thy state and pomp death dare enter thy Palace and come through all thy guards to deliver the fatal message it hath from God to thee yea runs its dagger to thy heart wert thou compassed with a Colledge of Doctors consulting thy health Art and Nature both
hast had against them some of them thou wilt finde poor and persecuted yet Christ is not ashamed to call them brethren neither must thou If thou findest thy heart now in such a disposition as suits these Interrogatories I dare not deny the banes yea I dare not but pronounce Christ and thee Husband and Wife Go poor soul if I may call so glorious a Bride poor Go and comfort thy self with the expectation of thy Bridegrooms coming for thee and when the evil day approaches and death it self draws nigh look not now with terrour upon it but rather revive with old Jacob to see the chariot which shall carry thee over unto the embraces of thy husband whom thou hearest to be in so great Honour and Majesty in Heaven as may assure thee he is able to make thee welcome when thou comest there Amongst the all things which are ours by being Christs the Apostle forgets not to name this to be one Death is ours And well he did so or else we should never have look't upon it as a gift but rather as a judgement Now soul thou art out of any danger of hurt that the evil day can do thee Yet there remains something for thee to do that thou mayest walk in the comfortable expectation of the evil day We see that gracious persons may for want of a holy care fall into such distempers as may put a sting into their thoughts of the evil day David that at one time would not feare to walk in the valley of the shadow of death is so affrighted at another time when he is led towards it that he cries Spare me O Lord that I may recover my strength before I go hence Psal 39. The childe though he loves his father may do that which may make him afraid to go home Now Christian if thou wouldest live in a comfortable expectation of the evil day First labour to die to this life and the enjoyments of it every day more and more Death is not so strong to him whose natural strength has been wasted by long pining sicknesse as it is to him that lies but a few dayes and has strength of nature to make great resistance Truly thus it is here that Christian whose love to this life and the contents of it hath been for many years consuming and dying will with more facility part with them then he whose love is stronger to them All Christians are not mortified in the same degree to the world Paul tells us he died daily He was ever sending more and more of his heart out of the world so that by that time he came to die all his affections were pack't up and gone which made him the more ready to follow 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I am ready to be offered up 2 Tim. 4.6 If it be but a tooth to pull out the faster it stands the more pain we have to draw it O loosen the roots of thy affections from the world and the tree will fall more easily Secondly be careful to approve thy self with diligence and faithfulnesse to God in thy place and calling The clearer thou standest in thy own thoughts concerning the uprightnesse of thy heart in the tenure of thy Christian course the more composure thou wilt have when the evil day comes I beseech thee O Lord saith good Hezekiah at the point of death as he thought remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart and have done that which is good in thy sight This cannot be our confidence but it will be a better companion then a scoulding conscience if the blood be bad the spirits will be tainted also the more our life has been corrupted with hypocrisie and unfaithfulnesse the weaker our faith will be in a dying houre There is great difference between two children that come home at night one from the field where he hath been diligent and faithful about his fathers work and another that hath played the Truant a great part of the day the former comes inconfidently to stand before his father the other sneaks to bed is afraid his father should see him or ask where he hath been O Sirs look to your walking These have been trying times as ever came to England It has required more care and courage to keep sincerity then formerly And that is the reason why it is so rare to finde Christians especially those whose place and calling hath been more in the winde of temptation go off the stage at death with such a Plaudite of inward peace in their bosomes Thirdly familiarize the thoughts of the evil day to thy soul Handle this serpent often walk daily in the serious meditations of if do not run from them because they are unpleasing to flesh that is the way to increase the terrour of it Do with your souls when shy of and scared with the thoughts of affliction or death as you use to do with your beast that is given to bogle and start as you ride on him When he flies back and starts at a thing you do not yield to his fear and go back that will make him worse another time but you ride him up close to that which he is afraid of and in time you break him of that quality The evil day is not such a scareful thing to thee that art a Christian as thou shouldest start for it Bring up thy heart close to it Shew thy soul what Christ hath done to take the sting out of it what the sweet promises are that are given on purpose to overcome the feare of it and what thy hopes are thou shalt get by it These will satisfie and compose thy Spirit whereas the shunning the thoughts of it will but increase thy feare and bring thee more into bondage to it CHAP. VIII The second Argument with which the Exhortation is pressed drawn from the assured victory which shall crown the soules conflict if in this Armour where several Points couched in the Argument are briefly handled WE come now to the second Argument the Apostle useth further to presse the exhortation and that is taken from the glorious victory which hovers over the heads of believers while in the fight and shall surely crown them in the end this is held forth in these words And having done all to stand The phrase is short but full SECT I. First observe Heaven is not won with good words and a fair Profession Having done all The doing Christian is the man that shall stand when the empty boaster of his faith shall fall The great talkers of Religion are oft the least doers His Religion is in vaine whose Profession brings not letters testimonial from a holy life Sacrifice without obedience is Sacriledge Such rob God of that which he makes most account of A great Captain once smote one of his souldiers for railing at his enemy saying that he called him not to raile on him but to fight against him and kill him 'T is
should use him more then themselves And 't is observable that the lusting for flesh broke out among the mixt multitude and baser sort of people Numb 11.4 5. but this of pride and envie took fire in the bosomes of the most eminent for place and Piety O what need then have we poor creatures to watch our hearts when we see such precious servants of God led into temptation The Spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy James 4.5 Our corrupt nature is ever putting on to this sin 'T is as hard to keep our hearts and this sin asunder as it is to hinder two lovers from meeting together Thatch is not more ready to be fired with every flash of lightening then the heart to be kindled at the shining forth of any excelling gift or grace in another It was one of the first windows that corrupt nature look't out at a sin that shed the first blood Cains envy hatcht Abels murder Now if ever thou meanest to get the mastery of this sin First call in help from heaven No sooner hath the Apostle set forth how big and teeming full the heart of man is with envy but he shews where a fountain of grace is infinitely exceeding that of lust The Spirit within us lusteth to envie but he giveth more grace v. 5. And therefore sit not down tamely under this sin it is not unconquerable God can give thee more grace then thou hast sin more humility then thou hast pride Be but so humble as cordially to beg his grace and thou shalt not be so proud as wickedly to envy his gifts or grace in others Secondly make this sin as black and ugly as thou canst possibly to thy thought that when it is presented to thee thou mayest abhor it the more Indeed there needs no more then its own face wouldest thou look wishly on it to make thee out of love with it For first this envying of others gifts casts great contempt upon God and that more wayes then one First when thou enviest the gifts of thy brethren thou takest upon thee to teach God what he shall give and to whom as if the great God should take counsel or ask leave of thee before he dispenseth his gifts and darest thou stand to thy own envious thoughts with this interpretation such a one thou findest Christ himself give Matth. 20.15 Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with my own as if Christ had said what hath any to do to cavil at my disposure of what is not theirs but mine to give Secondly thou malignest the goodnesse of God It troubles thee it seems that God hath a heart to do good to any besides thy selfe thy eye is evil because his is good Wouldest not thou have God be good you had as good speak out and say you would not have him God he can assoon cease to be God as to be good Thirdly thou art an enemy to the glory of God as thou defacest that which should set it forth Every gift is a ray of divine excellency and as all the beams declare the glory of the Sunne so all the gifts God imparts declare the glory of God Now envy labours to deface and fully the representations of God it hath ever something to disparage the excellency of another withal God shewed Miriam her sin by her punishment she went to bespatter Moses that shone so eminently with the gifts and graces of God and God spits in her sace Numb 12. yea fills her all over with a noisome scab Doest thou cordially wish well to the honour of God why then hangest thou thy head and doest not rather rejoyce to see him glorified by the gifts of others Could a Heathen take it so well when himself was passed by and others chosen to places of honour and government that he said he was glad his City could finde so many more worthy then himself and shall a Christian repine that any are found fit to honour God besides himself Secondly thou wrongest thy brother as thou sinnest against the law of love which obligeth thee to rejoyce in his good as thy owne yea to prefer him in honour before thy self Thou canst not love and envy the same person envy is as contrary to love as the hectical feavourish fire in the body is to the kindly heat of nature Charity envieth not 1 Cor. 13. How can it when it lives where it loves and when thou ceasest to love thou beginnest to hate and kill him and doest not thou tremble to be found a murderer at last Thirdly thou consultest worst of all for thy self God is out of thy reach what thou spittest against heaven thou art sure to have fall on thy own face at last and thy brother whom thou enviest God stands bound to defend him against thy envy because he is maligned for what he hath of God in him Thus did God plead Josephs cause against his envious brethren and Davids against wicked Saul Thy selfe only hast real hurt First thou deprivest thy self of what thou mightest reap from the gifts of others That old saying is true Tolle invidiam mea tua sunt tua mea What thou hast is mine and what I have thine when envy is gone Whereas now like the leach which they say draws out the worst blood thou suckest nothing but what swells thy minde with discontent and is after vomited out in strife and contention O what a sad thing is it that one should go from a precious Sermon a sweet prayer and bring nothing away but a grudge against the instrument God used as we see in the Pharisees and others at Christs preaching Secondly thou robbest thy self of the joy of thy life He that is cruel troubles his own flesh Prov. 11.17 The envious man doth it to purpose he sticks the honour and esteem of others as thornes in his own heart he cannot think of them without paine and anguish and he must needs pine that is ever in paine Thirdly thou throwest thy self into the mouth of temptation thou needest give the devil no greater advantage it is a stock any sin almost will grow upon What will not the Patriarchs do to rid their hands of Joseph whom they envied that very pride which made them disdain the thought of bowing to his sheaf made them stoop far lower even to debase themselves as low as hell and be the devils instruments to sell their dear brother into slavery which might have been worse to him if God had not provided otherwise then if they had slaâ—n him on the place What an impotent minde and cruel did Saul shew against David when once envy had envenomed his heart from that day which he heard David preferr'd in the womens Songs above himself he could never get that sound out of his head but did ever after devote this innocent man to death in his thoughts who had done him no other wrong but in being an instrument to keep the crown on his head by the
hazard of his own life with Goliah O it is a bloody sin It is the wombe wherein a whole litter of other sins are formed Rom. 1.29 full of envy murder debate deceit malignity c. and therefore except you be resolved to bid the devil welcom and his whole train resist him in this that comes before to take up quarters for the rest CHAP. X. Of pride of Grace SEcondly pride of grace This is another way Satan assaults the Christian 'T is true grace cannot be proud yet 't is possible a Saint may be proud of his grace there is nothing the Christian hath or doth but this worme of pride will breed in it The world we live in is corruptible and all here is subject to putrefie as things kept in a rafty muggish room subject them to mould It is not the nature of grace but the salt of the Covenant keeps and preserves the purity of it in heaven indeed we shall be safe But how can a Saint be said to be proud of his grace Then a soule is proud of his grace when he trusts in his grace Trust and confidence is an incommunicable flower of Gods Crown as Soveraign Lord even among men it goes along with royalty Set up a King and as such he expects you should give him this as the undoubted Prerogative of his place and therefore to seek protection from any other is as it were to set up another King Judg. 9.15 If indeed you anoint me King over you then come and put your trust under my shadow therefore when a soule puts his trust in any thing beside God he sets up a Prince a King an Idol to which he gives Gods glory away Now it doth not make the sin lesse that it is the grace of God we crown then if it were a lust we crowned 'T is idolatry to worship a holy Angel as well as a cursed devil to make our grace a god as well as our belly our god nay rather it addes to it because that is now used to rob him of his glory which should have brought him in the greatest revenue of glory certainly the more treasure you put into your servants hands the greater wrong to you for him to run away with it I doubt not but David could have borne it better to have seen a Philistine drive him from his throne then a sonne an Absalom But how can or may a Saint be said to trust in his grace First by trusting to the strength of his grace Secondly by trusting on the worth of his grace Indeed a professed trust in grace I conceive cannot stand with grace but there is an oblique kinde of trust or that which by interpretation may savour of it Satan is slie in his assaults SECT I. First of the first to trust in the strength of grace is to be proud of grace This is opposed to that poverty of spirit so commended by our Saviour Matth. 5. by which a man lives in the continual sense of his spiritual beggery and nothingnesse and so hath his recourse to Christ as the poor to the rich mans door knowing he hath nothing at home to maintain him Such a one was Paul not able to do any thing of himself he is not ashamed to let the world know that Christ carries his purse for him Our sufficiency is of God yea after many years trading this holy man sees nothing he hath got Phil. 3.13 I count not my self to have apprehended he is still pressing forward ask him how he lives he 'll tell you who keeps house for him I live yet not I Gal. 2.20 as ask a beggar where he hath his meat cloathes c. he 'll say I thank my good Master Now Satan chiefly labours to puffe the soul up with an over-weening conceit of his own ability as the readiest means to bring him into his snare Satan knows 't is Gods method to give his children into his hands when once they grow proud and self-confident Hezekiah was left to a temptation 2 Chron. 32.31 to try him Why God had tried him to purpose a little before in an affliction what needs this O Hezekiahs heart was lift up after his affliction It was time for God to let the tempter alone a little to foile him probably now Hezekiah had high thoughts of his grace O he would never do as he had done before and God will let him see what a weak creature he is Peter makes a whip for his own back in that bravado Though all should forsake thee yet will not I. Christ now in meer mercy must set Satan on him to lay him on his back that seeing the weaknesse of his faith he might be dismounted from the height of his pride All that I shall say from this is to entâ—eat thee Christian to have a care of this kinde of pride You know what Joah said to David when he perceived his heart lift up with the strength of his Kingdom and therefore would have the people numbered The Lord God adde unto thy people how many soever they be a hundred fold but why doth my Lord the King delight in this thing 2 Sam. 24.3 The Lord adde to the strength of thy grace a hundred fold but why delightest thou in this why shouldest thou be lift up is it not grace shall the Groom be proud because he rides on his Masters horse or the mud wall because the Sun shines on it mayest thou not say of every dram of grace as the young man of his hatchet Alas Muster it is borrowed nay not only borrowed but thou canst not use it without his skill and strength that lends it thee O beware of this let not those vain thoughts lodge in thee left thou enter into temptation It is a breach a whole troop of sins may enter at yea will except speedily fill'd up First it will make thee soon grow loose and negligent in thy duty 'T is sense of insufficiency keeps a soul at work to pray and heare as want in the house and hutch holds up the market no man comes thither to buy what he hath at home Vp saith Jacob go down to Egypt for corne that we live and not die Thus saith the needy Christian Up soul to thy God thy faith is weak thy patience almost spent ply thee to the throne of grace go with thy homer to the Ordinances and get some supplies Now a soule conceited of his store hath another song Soul take thine ease thou art richly laid in for many dayes Let the doubting soule pray thy faith is strong let the weake lie at the breast thou art well grown up nay 't is well if it goes not further to a despising of Ordinances except they have some more courtly fate then ordinary such a passe were the Corinthians come to 1 Cor. 4.8 Now ye are full now ye are rich ye reign like Kings without us I pray observe how he layes the accent on the particle now now ye are rich as if