another To conclude this Mark of a gracious Man he thinks of the Lord's Supper as it was said he thought of Baptism The Lord will not hold him guiltless that takes the Lord's Supper in vain And he accounts that they do in great measure so take it who do not as is said in the Lines foregoing He knows that the strongest man in Christ doth need it and is not above it and that the weakest Babe in Christ is habitually qualified for it and the Ordinance is not above him No but is even chiefly for such as he is As Holy as Adam was in his innocent state he wanted a Sacrament And as imperfectly Wise and Holy as Christ's Disciples were before his Ascension and Mission of the Spirit they had this holy Sacrament that I speak of He is therefore one that valueth the holy Feast above his daily Bread And not without cause It is said of the Egyptian Youth whom his Master left sick in the Field that being brought to David and having eaten and drank his spirit came again to him The gracious Man can tell you that he hath often been sick and faint in his inner Man and being brought unto David's Son and Lord and having Eaten and Drank at his Table his spirit also hath come again unto him If every Lord's-Day he hath not resorted unto this Banquet yet ordinarily he hath tasted of its twelve manner of Fruits every Month if I may allude unto that in Rev. 22.2 And virtue hath come forth from Jesus Christ into his Soul and done mighty Works there even in despight of its Unbelief and deadly Fears foregoing Though he doth not think the Lord's Supper a Converting Ordinance as from a state of Sin into a state of Grace yet he doth experience it to be a Converting Ordinance as from lower degrees of Grace and Peace unto higher ones He pitieth in his heart every Soul of each sinful Tribe both those that prophanely keep away from the holy Table and those that do but come and prophane it And he spiritually hears God saying to those vilifyers of holy Bread and Wine as it is Isai 65.13 14. Behold my Servants shall Eat but ye shall be Hungry behold my Servants shall Drink but ye shall be Thirsty behold my Servants shall Rejoyce but ye shall be Ashamed Behold my Servants shall sing for joy of heart but ye shall cry for sorrow of heart and howl for vexation of spirit I will here Publish the words of a Judicious and Pious Author which have been useful to me and may be so unto some of my Readers Even these of Mr. Daniel Rogers which I find in his Treatise of Sacraments Part 2. p. 241. I mourn to speak it divers Ministers neither Unlearned nor Unpainful in their kind nor Ungodly yet in Point of the Sacrament do little acquaint either themselves or the People with it almost through the Year except in a passage afar off I dare not boast my self but if I might draw any to Emulation I durst say that whereas my poor Labours for TWELVE YEARS were more upon this than any other Point I am not ashamed to say I found the Argument more FRUITFUL at the end than all the while And doubtless many good People there are who mourn for the barrenness of their Ministers in this kind So in his Preface to his Reader he harmoniously eenough saith I could not see wherein I could do greater honour to God than to enhanse the Knowledge of CHRIST SACRAMENTAL And to incite others to do it whose learned Abilities can better perform it It hath been said who is the good Man's KING and FATHER who is his ADVOCATE and FRIEND in the Court of his fatherly King who is his GUIDE and COMFORTER on Earth sent down unto him from that Court And also what are the BONDS and COVENANT TRANSACTIONS that have passed betwixt them and him Wherefore our last Mark is this Mark 5. Assurance of Saving Grace is sweetly possessed or painfully sought by him By Saving Grace I mean ELECTION REDEMPTION VOCATION JUSTIFICATION and GLORIFICATION By Assurance I understand Certainty of Mind such as is Proper tho' it be Imperfect No man living is Perfectly Assured of God's Love or is so certain that he cannot be made more certain But many a man is Properly Assured of it and hath more than a guess or a conjecture that he is a Possessor of it For many a man's Assurance is built upon proper rational assuring grounds Many a man's Assurance hath proper real Victory over his doubts and against his fears Many a man's Assurance hath proper genuine Fruits of Assurance Peace Patience Joy c. Many a man's Assurance hath the name of Assurance given it by God himself who always giveth things their proper Names St. Paul's is called a sure Perswasion Rom. 8.38 St. John's a sure Knowledge 1 Joh. 2.3 The Faith of all is called an 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or evident proof of things not seen Heb. 11.1 In a word many I say have and enjoy the comfort of this proper Assurance of God's Grace And the good man that hath it not that either never attained it or having attained it hath lost it he knoweth that it is ATTAINABLE that it is DESIRABLE and that it is NECESSARY And therefore dares not to desist from seeking it or to be remiss in seeking it He knows it is Attainable For the H. Scriptures are Revelations of God's Grace and that Free indeed as to any Merit of ours but most Engaged as to the Promises and Covenant of God They are a Revelation both Full and very Plain and Intelligible yea and given of God for this very end that we thro' comfort of the Scriptures might have hope Rom. 15.4 Besides this he knoweth the Nature of Man and the Power of Conscience too well to dream that Assurance is unattainable The Scripture is a Lamp to see by and Conscience is an Eye to see with what then should hinder Assurance Conscience is we know an inner Judge and justifies or condemns us at its Bar. It is also a Witness in our selves as to the matter of Absolution or Condemnation It is likewise a Rewarder or a Punisher of us a good man is more than a little satisfied from himself and a Cain and Judas more than a little tormented in themselves Moreover the good man knows that what hath been full often attained even under the Old Testament it is not to be thought unattainable under the New Especially that thing which under the New Testament very many have attained and all are commanded to seek and consequently have a promise that in the due use of means they shall find To conclude he knows that it is possible to attain assuring Evidences and therefore possible to attain Assurance it self Those said Evidences are Demonstrative ARGUMENT Credible SENSE and Infallible TESTIMONY The inseparable and distinguishing Effects of Grace do demonstrate the being of it Preference of Christ and his Spirit
take another Sign and Seal thereof on my part and give another Bond and put on another Badge on thy own part and as thus anew Encouraged and Engaged go Persevere and make Progress in Faith Hope Love and Obedience The good Man of whom I am speaking is neither Ignorant nor Forgetful nor less than practically mindful hereof He no more dares to Omit what his God Commands than to Commit what he Forbids He as truly dreads to disuse the Cup of the Lord as to Drink the Cup of Devils and to deny to partake of the Lord's Table as to comply and partake of the Table of Devils THIS DOE IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME saith Christ Yea Lord saith he THIS WILL I DOE THIS I CANNOT BUT DOE I whose DESIRE and PRAYER is that in all things Thy Will be done He minds the AUTHOR of that Command who is his Supream Caesar to whom he grudges no Tribute and the COMMAND it self which is as Easie and Pleasant as Beneficial and Honourable as any in the Gospel All the Pain of it is but parting with the Plague of allowed Sin It binds to the Pleasure of receiving the greatest ensurance of Salvation The Benefit no Man knows but he that hath it and the Honour is of things unspeakable Moreover the gracious Man when there is need doth melt his heart with that Argument wherewith Joseph's Brethren did melt his Thy Father did command before he died or when he was dying He reasons with himself thus How my Soul wilt thou look my Saviour in the face at the Resurrection if thou slightest the very Charge he gave thee at his Death Thy Saviour did command this the same Night wherein he was betrayed Wo unto me if I less observe my Redeemer than the Rechabites their Jonadab and the Turks their Mahomet They being under Prohibition abstained from Wine I am a wretch if at a dying Saviour's Command I do not use holy Wine for my Soul's sake and my often infirmities He likewise awefully thinketh of the Scandal given by a neglect of God's holy Table Of the contempt it casts upon the whole Generation of them that have sought God's face therein in all Ages Yea and found it too in degrees of light and strength not communicated ordinarily in other Ordinances Of the sore reproach which it poureth upon the heads of our Martyrs in Q. Maries days who vainly rescued from the Papists the pure administration of the Lord's Supper with the Price of their Life blood if it be so very indifferent a thing that we may without Sin against God and without harm to our selves go without it Nor doth he without trembling consider what a fearful stumbling block unto raw and weak Christians his neglect of the Lord's Table wou'd be Such a stumbling-block as would cause the fall of many and it may be to the Ruin at least to the sore Wounding of their Souls in Grace and Peace In a word if Doubts and Fears perplex him the gracious Man rests not in them He carries his Evidences to Men skilful in God's Law and and takes their Judgment If his Soul be Distempered he will have the advice of a spiritual Physician And that is what God doth ordinarily bless unto his relief But being God hath given WORD and SACRAMENTS for two Breasts of gracious Consolation he cannot make or endure himself to live an Amazon or with but one Breast The Scythian Women cut off one of their Breasts that they might the more advantageously draw their Bows in Battel But the Captain of his Salvation never taught him so to do No but the clean contrary So that he dareth not to Pray for spiritual strength and victory over spiritual Enemies without the use of this especially strengthening Ordinance I mean in conjunction with all others Preparing diligently for the Lord's Table and Repairing frequently unto it and Demeaning himself becomingly at it he conscientiously sets himself to Answer the ends of it in his daily walk with God and Men. Coming from the Ordinance he Reviews the MERCY that he hath received and the DUTY that he hath performed He quickly finds a time to go and offer unto God PRAISES for both and PRAYERS for all supplies of his Spirit for the improvement of both He sedulously watches against the excess of worldly PLEASURES and BUSINESS also which he knoweth to chill spiritual Heat and to rase out holy Impressions He commands all that is within him to act the grace received against the invasion of DISTRUST and the joynt insurrection of DISOBEDIENCE To Plead what God did and what he did at the holy Table against all DISCONTENT under Afflictions against all SINFUL COMPLYANCE under Temptations against all PRIDE and SLOTH in the most Prosperous Condition So far is he from dreaming that his Work is ended when the holy Supper is ended Or that the holy Feast will work like Physick whether one do sleep or wake He tells himself that now his Encouragements are greater and now his Engagements to all Duty are stronger than before he sâ—t down at the holy Table God expects that he should now fall by Negligence more seldom and rise by Repentance more soon than he used to do before this holy Banquet He telleth himself his Baptismal Covenant is not ordained by God to be thus renewed for nothing No but that in this Ordinance seeing how Christ was Hated for sin Denied for sin and Crucified for sin we might more Hate it more Deny it and more Crucifie it Seeing how Christ loved God and us we might more love God and Him and all days of our lives exclaim O hateful Sin O lovely God and Saviour Having in this Ordinance received from Christ by the hand of his Minister another Seal of our Pardon and our title to Eternal life and having given back unto God another publick Protestation of all Gospel-Obedience we should strive and strain after another degree of Confidence in God and another size of Obedience than what we have yet attained And that upon this Motive-Consideration held in Mind and kept as the apple of our eye for the purpose For this purpose we should indeed be ever telling our selves we are God's Servants and Children by REPEATEDLY SIGNED AND SEALED COVENANT It should never be out of our thoughts We should have our first thoughts of it in the Morning our last thoughts of it at Night and as many thoughts of it as may be all day In our Prayers very many and under our Conflicts with any temptation we should have a special abundance St. Austin saith this holy Supper should be received every Lord's-Day if he might advise us and as to the taking it every day of the Week that practice he will neither blame nor praise If I erre let the learned teach me better this I judge It would be my Duty to receive it every day of the Week if I could not otherwise keep upon my heart the sense of what is aforesaid from one Lord's-Day to
Pride as if we were more than Angels or else to be torn with Discontent as if we thought God's Servants were no better than Gally-slaves To conclude thus saith the gracious Man I believe in God the Father and in the Son and I believe in the Holy Ghost also The Father worketh hitherto and the Son works and blessed equally be his Name the Holy Spirit worketh By his ASSISTANCE through Christ's MEDIATION is my access unto GOD. Mark 4. The Covenant of Grace is Spiritually entred Sacramentally confirmed and Practically observed by him He knows no Religion but what is Federal and by Covenant He is one fast-bound to all three Persons of the Godhead undividedly and unto each of them distinctly And this by the BOND OF THE COVENANT as Ezek. 20.37 Even the COVENANT OF GOD'S PEACE as Isai 54.10 He hath learned the first Covenant of Works He hath been Convinced of his breach of it in his first Parents and in his own Person And of his becoming thereby first a Runnagate from God and then an Exile or Banished Creature and one remedilesly miserable without a NEW and BETTER Covenant He hath been wounded by this his said breach of the first Covenant and that unto Death it self The death of all his Comforts in any thing under the Sun and of all his Hopes of welfare in the next World He hath cried in the anguish of his Soul O that I had never been born Nor ever could he change his Mind or desist from that cry or come to any life of Peace and Hope till he had got knowledge of this Covenant of Grace By the balm hereof his Wounds that stank and were corrupt were healed He Revived when he heard that God being by Christ appeased had made and offered a NEW Covenant A new Bond to bind again unto himself those that had run from him To bind himself to bless and save the Penitent and that as strongly and more than ever he bound himself in the first Covenant to bless and save the Innocent He cannot forget the sweet feelings that he had in his heart when he first heard what this Covenant was What it 's Promises and what it's Demands Indeed at first he exclaimed in his haste Away away this is too good to be true Indeed if Light and Darkness and Fire and Stubble were possible to be made Friends this were a way to make them so If GOD and a SINNER were possible to be united and reconciled this New Covenant is one that would unite them But how CAN this be Nevertheless being by and by brought to himself and not daring to give the Lye to Him that CANNOT Lye he ceased to Doubt and began to Wonder and Bless Uttering words to this purpose HEAVEN HEAVEN HEAVEN here 's HEAVEN on Earth Here is a BEATIFICK VISION Why here shine all the astonishing Excellencies and attracting Beauties of God of the whole Trinity I never saw before some of them I never before knew the ten thousandth part of the rest of them Is this the COVENANT OF GRACE 'T is of GRACE indeed and of GLORY too I think O that I had known it sooner That I had asked after it as soon as I could speak That I had given my Parents Ministers and God himself no rest till I had been made to know this Covenant of Grace This HEAVEN HEAVEN HEAVEN upon Earth Briefly he hath admired the exquisite suitableness of both the Privileges and Duties of the Covenant of Grace Their suitableness to the state wherein he lay That was a state of Sin and Misery He did therein nothing but dishonour God and destroy himself Now comes this Covenant of Grace and as to his Sin preacheth Repentance and return to Duty as to his Misery preacheth Remission and return into God's Favour It gives as well as requires Repentance and freely for the sake of Christ not for any Merit in Repentance giveth Remission The Promised Privileges of the Covenant of Grace are such as our Nature craves for and all it can desire To wit PARDON and SALVATION comprehending all Blessings In these God respected our Want The demanded Duties which also are promised in the use of means are such things as our Corrupt Nature doth loath and turn from To wit ENTRANCE and PERSEVERANCE in the Obedience of the Gospel comprehending all Duties In these God respected his own Honour And of equal Wisdom and Grace by the former which are craved by our Nature he allureth us to these latter which are averted from by our Corruption This the gracious Man hath observed much and blessed and magnified God in the observation of it By the former his Spirit Soul and Body have been strongly and sweetly drawn into the latter He hath a true heart that is a heart resolved upon all the Duties of the Covenant and that because he hath also full assurance of Faith that is a heart trusting in God for all the Promised Blessings of the Covenant Thus is he a Spiritual Covenanter with God His Heart and Spirit taking truly the Blessings of the Gospel for his Happiness and as truly taking the Duties of the Gospel for his Work and Business Be it added the Man whom we describe is one that neither Thinks nor makes Light of any Ordinance of his God He knows that God's Positive Laws do bind the Conscience as well as his Moral ones And he remembers that the effects of the first Sin though it were a breach of a Positive Law were tremendous He considers that under the New Testament the Number is but Two the Observation not difficult and if Piously observed exceedingly Beneficial And he infers that the disuse or abuse of Baptism or the Lord's Supper must therefore greatly incense God and injure a Soul He rests not in the foresaid spiritual Covenanting with God though good necessary and of greatest necessity The bare word of the Covenant of Grace as it is in the Scripture he highly prizeth but the signified sealed and engaged word thereof as it is in the Holy Sacraments he most religiously useth and justly prefers He Useth it because he is Commanded and he Preferreth it because in it's use he hath the word of the Covenant with extraordinary Advantages Among Men any Covenant made is first expressed by Words then by Writings then by Hands and Seals mutually added and this last is the highest strongest and utmost Confirmation that Men can give to each other The Covenant between God and Us made is first expressed by his Spirit unto us and by our Spirits unto him in spiritual Language Nextly by Words or Confession with our Mouth we alledging God's part of the Covenant and professing our own restipulation Lastly By Sacraments which are Rites in their outward appearance contemptible but ordained by God for both Signifying Sealing and Engaging Ordained to be Signs and Seals on God's part and to be Bonds and Badges on our part of the Covenant And in this last way is the most noble and
Ames in Sciagraph Cateches It is his perpetual Soliloquy How shall I that am dead to sin that am Baptized and have solemnly Vowed Death unto all Sin how shall I live any longer therein I that am in the import and signification of my Baptism Risen with Christ what shall become of me if I do not seek the things that are above If unbaptized Infidels be damned without mercy of how much sorer punishment shall I be thought worthy if I Forget though I do not verbally Renounce my Baptism If I become blind see not far off and FORGET that I was washed from my old sins If I bear my holy Baptism but as an empty Formality If I use it not as daily Food for the strength of my Faith and as my ordinary Physick for its Health If under Temptations I do not advance the Considerations of it for gaining Victory over them and if at other times I do not advance the same for keeping my Conquest Better may a Servant forget that he was Hired a Souldier that he was Listed a Wife that she was Married than I forget that I was Baptized Their Folly would be less their Sin would be less their Loss and Shame incomparably less And the rather because I consider my Baptism was Infant-Baptism it self Other Baptism is like the Tower of David builded for an Armory wherein there hang a thousand Bucklers and Shields against our spiritual Adversaries But of Infant-Baptism it must be said There is none like that None like it for numerous and powerful enforcements unto Faith and Obedience Being Baptized in my Infancy upon the account of God's Covenant with my Ancestors I am thereby given to see that Sin is a Herod that sought my life from the very womb That it was In me before ever it proceeded actually From me That it is an earlier Enemy of mine than they dream of who disown Original Sin For what need of the holy Washing if I was not then it self Unclean And being that I was surely so methinks I am the more engaged to contrive and endeavour the death of so early as well as deadly Foe as my Sin is Being in Infancy Baptized so early entred into league with God against it and encouraged extremely unto holiness and righteousness the date of my Obligation addeth weight unto it I cannot but think that of all Men living the so early bound had need exquisitely and entirely to obey Being in Infancy Baptized I am thereby certified God is not only my God but he was the God of my Fathers before me And I cannot but much the more promptly trust in him as it 's Usual with all the World to trust the most readily of any Men their own Friends and their Father 's before them For this also have I the Example of God's Saints on Scripture-Record who often strengthened their Faith on their Father's Covenant Exod. 32.13 c. Yea good warrant from God I have being he tells me he shews mercy to thousands of them that love him and Children are beloved for their Father's sake Rom. 11.28 Being baptized in Infancy I can and shall often plead the Covenant therein sealed with special Advantage The Object of my Faith is not only God in Covenant but God in Covenant with the Seal of Baptism administred to strengthen that my Faith And this whenever administred is a strong Plea But as all the World will acknowledge Experience and long Acquaintance do make a mighty inducement to Trust and Confidence in any one that we Plead with Now this Inducement I have by the means aforesaid And thus do I humbly Plead with my God both for Spirituals and for Temporals Lord when I could only Want and could not Know Desire or Ask for the good things that I wanted whether Initial Graces or After-supplies of Grace whether Necessaries or Convenient Comforts of this Life then most freely of Grace visibly and without question free thou didst Seal a Promise of all of them unto me Forbid the unbelief in my heart I meekly beseech thee And let me not doubt but thou wilt faithfully bestow them all on me now that I am daily in thy dear Son's Name an earnest Supplicant for them Now that of thy own Grace whereof thou art as constantly the Rewarder as the Author I ask seek knock and pray without ceasing O what will the People say the People of the Congregation that saw thee solemnly seal Promise of all unto me when I was carried in Arms if they should see that sealed Promise fail me now What will the Minister be tempted to say he who in Christ's Name and Place did then solemnize the Covenant betwixt thee and my soul What will he say should he see me now at these years coming to thee and yet cast out and cast off by thee O be it far from me to distrust thee and especially then to distrust thee when I consider 1 that thou art my God in sealed Covenant and 2 that thou art my God in sealed Covenant from my Mother's belly By thy Grace assisting I will never forget or less than Practically remember my Infant-Baptism for therewith thou hast quickned me And therewith I trust thou wilt always quicken me When of old thou didst promise Life to Hezekiah his query was What shall be the sign that the Lord will heal me But I am past that doubt Thou hast promised me Life and all good things in Christ Jesus and holy Baptism is the Sign and Witness between Thee and Me. The sign and seal of the Righteousness which is by Faith even of all the Grace promised to me in Christ Amen and Amen! It must be added the gracious Man is one that doth not use to forget that he is a creature Weak and but Imperfectly fanctified and during his abode in this World always miserably Tempted And therefore one that had need to make use of all the means of grace by God provided To have a due respect unto ALL the Covenant Word of God and unto BOTH of the Sacraments or Seals thereof He forgets not that the Word of God is a Covenant word and that the Covenant of God is a signed sealed Covenant and that the signed sealed Covenant of God for our more abundant Instruction and Consolation hath two distinct Seals ordained for it Baptism the first for our Initiation the Lord's Supper the other for our Confirmation Baptism once to be administred for our one Entrance into Covenant the Lord's Supper often to be administred I think always on Lords-Days for our Continuance in Covenant for our Perseverance and Progress in grace Baptism in which God constructively saith Come thou and obey the Gospel as thus Encouraged and Engaged by the Sign and Seal on my part and by the Bond and Badge on thy own part And the Lord's Supper in which God saith Forasmuch as thou hast Vnderstood and Consented unto and Professed thy consent unto the Covenant sealed between me and thee in Baptism Come thou and
above all things Purification of heart and hands c. do so do And these are attainable Inward spiritual Sense and Perception is not to be discredited In proposing of Ends and in prosecuting them with Means we have sensations of our actions and these sensations are as worthy to be believed as our bodily Eyes at any time are There is a seeing Light in God's Light there is a Feeling of Divine Power with its exceeding greatness prevailing upon our Wills there is a Tasting that the Lord is good and his Word sweeter than Honey he that hath these may safely conclude from them that he is an Heir of Grace And these are attainable also Lastly The Testimony of a Person that can neither be Deceived nor Deceive us is worthy of all acceptation The Holy Ghost is such a Person infinitely Wise and alike Good He is sent from the Father and Son to testifie unto the Children of God that they are his Children and his Heirs and Coheirs with Christ To Testifie it with their Spirits that they are so To be an additional and deciding Witness The Word of God lays down sure marks of Grace and witnesseth those marks to be true The Conscience of a Believer or his Spirit witnesseth those marks to be found in his heart and life The Spirit of God supervenient to both presents himself and witnesseth by self-evidencing Light that those marks are true and are truly in the Believer and the Believer truly in the unchangeable Love of God And who dares say this Testimony of the Holy Ghost is unattainable or being attained will not give true and proper Assurance The good man knows well the Desireableness of such Assurance For without it who can Do God's Will or Praise his Name Who can come unto the Throne of Grace with a becoming boldness Who can Rejoyce or not Mourn always Who can Comfort or not Sadden others Who can Live but very uneasily or Die but very unwillingly But Assurance is Joy and Joy is our strength Our strength against Corruptions Temptations and the Fear of Death Assured Paul beat down his Body and kept it in subjection Assured Moses chose rather to suffer Affliction with the People of God than to be Heir of the Crown of Aegypt Assured Simeon could say and sing Lord now lettest thou thy Servant depart in peace But lastly The gracious man conceives of this Assurance as a thing most Necessary Even upon a nearer consideration Necessary I mean upon consideration of the Command of God laid on him to seek it God requireth nothing more expresly and plainly in all the Bible than that we give Diligence to make our Calling and Election SURE 2 Pet. 1.10 We desire that EVERY ONE of you do shew the same diligence to the full ASSURANCE of Hope unto the end Heb. 6.11 Yea many another duty doth God require from us as means of getting and keeping this said Assurance Our Ways must be searched our Hearts must be searched the Scriptures must be searched our H. Baptism must be recognized the Lord's Supper must be frequently repeated Men to whom is given the Tongue of the Learned to speak a word in season must be oft consulted and for what less than to get and keep sure that God's Law is written in our Hearts and our Names be written in Heaven in his Book of Life Many a serious thought of this riseth walks and lieth down with the gracious man Whose setled Judgment therefore is that if the bare want of Assurance be no Sin or Loss at all yet the neglect of it is such a sin and argues such a want of all Spiritual sense as scarce consists with grace He is satisfied indeed that spring-tydes of Assurance and over flowing Comforts may be wanted without sin For they are rather Priviledges than Duties But as for Assurance which Schoolmen call Moderate and which reacheth unto Hope and Peace though not unto Dancing for joy and Triumph this the good man thinks God seldom or never denies but upon some sinful Provocation Upon the contempt of some Ordinance neglect of some Duty unexercisedness of some Grace indulgence of some Lust And therefore inclines to think the want of this sort of Assurance to be his sin This whose want he judgeth meritoriously procured by sinful Causes and he feeleth to be malignantly full of sinful Effects Nevertheless he awefully concludeth that should he add unto that sinful want the more sinful carelesness of getting out of it should he forget or despise God's positive command to seek Assurance though therein the divine goodness maketh his Comfort to be his Duty should he together break such a Gospel-Precept and slight such a Gospel-Priviledge he should then contract a much more frightful Symptom of Reprobation upon his Soul In short our gracious Man is ever busie in Getting or Preserving and Promoting his Assurance of grace The Holy Ghost must indeed work grace in us before he can Witness it to be in us But it is most certain that he may and doth often work it in a Soul long before he doth witness unto it that he hath wrought it Nor do I dare to say that he doth not let some Children of God live and die without ever witnessing it unto them at all in this World Although we all believe and teach that ordinarily he doth first or last witness the grace he works to be true and saving And doth either by and by after their Conversion or after some good Proficience in Sanctification or at least a little before their Death Assure God's people of his grace in them There are several Seasons in which above all other times he is observed to give them the said Assurance and there are several Duties which above others he useth graciously to reward and honour with Assurance There are six Seasons which are eminent The first is when a Soul hath been extraordinarily bemoaning its sin Ephraim was heard so doing And what was the next news He was straitways called a dear Son a pleasant Child Jer. 31. The second is when a Soul hath been Praying in Prayer and that with all Prayer When it hath been most restless and denied to give the Lord rest and been most importunate for Assurance in order unto holiness then frequently cometh an assuring Testimony As when our Saviour had been at Prayer then came the voice from Heaven saying This is my well beloved Son Luke 3. The third Season is when a Soul hath been Waiting for Assurance and looking for it in all the Ordinances of God no one of them excepted It is in his Ordinances that he will dispense his Consolations See what is said of them that follow those Ordinances Psal 36. They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house thou shalt make them drink of the rivers of thy pleasure In the Ordinances we see most of Christ's Blood as prevailing to God's satisfaction and we feel it most prevailing as to our Consciences Pacification The
fourth Season is when a Soul is called to undertake some extraordinary Service for God Before Abraham was called to the extremity of Self-denial in offering up his Isaac he was certified that God wou'd be his exceeding great reward Before Steven was stoned he saw the Heavens opened and his Advocate standing at God's right hand Before our Saviour himself was Crucified he was Transfigured He did shine in glory before he was clothed with shame The fifth Season is when a Soul hath done some eminent service and extraordinarily held its integrity After that Abraham had in his admirably prompt intention offered up his Son he received that transcendent testimony Now I know that thou fearest God And after that Job had made his Patience to be heard of though not without sore fits of Impatience immixed the Lord accepted the face of Job gave him twice as much as before and proclaimed it that none of his Friends had spoken the thing that was right like unto Job Job 42. The sixth Season is when the Soul is taking leave of the Body Then when Flesh and Heart faileth the God of all consolations oft pleaseth to be most sensibly the Strength and the Portion and the Joy of his Children Making them then most sure that they have a building of God an house made without hands Eternal in the Heavens when the earthly House of their Tabernacle is dissolving Thus doth he who is Master of his own Consolations and may and doth dispose of his own as he pleaseth both for the Measure and the Season thus doth he oftentimes dispose of them And hereof the gracious Man is no negligent observer Let it still be remembred that God will use a liberty and arbitrarily dispense the sweet Assurance we speak of And it is not for us to prescribe to him either Times or Means in which he shall necessarily give it to us But as it hath been said of special Seasons so it must be affirmed of these following Duties ordinarily God doth in them give the sense of his Love and the moderate Assurance of his Eternal Good-will unto Believers I would make no such Comparisons between Duties as should be lessening of the worth and weight of any But I may be allow'd to say thus much I suppose Look as some Sins do above ordinary so grieve the holy Spirit that he refuseth to comfort such as do commit them so do some Duties above ordinary please and delight Him insomuch that he useth not to let it be very long before he doth pacifie and comfort the Believers who do duly perform them And of this sort are the Duties which I shall propose First The religious use of our Gospel Sacraments Unto the scarcity whereof I do very much impute the notorious scarcity of Assurance in these our days In which we have many that never in their lives spake to this purpose unto themselves Come I perceive that without some Assurance my Religion cannot be my Delight And it horribly reproacheth God to be served without greatest Delight And men will unavoidably be prejudiced against all inward and spiritual service of him by the sight of my sad and drooping life My Children and Servants and Neighbours will be hardned in Irreligion while they see my Religion to be for the present not at all Joyous but Grievous I have learned that Baptism and the Lord's Supper were ordained for the very purpose to BEGET and PROMOTE assurance of God's grace Wherefore by the help of his grace this day and hour I will BEGIN and I will PERSEVERE in the use of them for this blessed benefit Beloved Readers stop here and before you read on take to task your selves The discreet and gracious Man knows the Holy Ghost is the Sealer and Comforter of God's Children But he himself in his Scriptures hath named Sacraments by the name of Seals Rom. 4.11 And testified that Abraham received his Old Testament Baptism for a greater ground of Assurance of the righteousness he had by Faith As also that the Old Testament Lord's Supper was for the Church's further Assurance that the destroying Angel should not smite them And accordingly we see that the New Testament Circumcision when duly considered and improved is blessed to ensure believing Souls of the divine Promises The Baptized Eunuch found it so and went his way rejoycing Act. 8.39 And the New Testament Passover is sweetly blessed to remove fear of the destroying Angel It appears so Act. 2.46 For continuing in breaking of holy Bread the Primitive Christians eat their common meat with gladness of heart praising God Not to repeat all that is foresaid this remember In the WORD God woes us but by his Minister in the SACRAMENTS he woes us also by his Son 's very Picture In the WORD he speaks in General He that believes shall be saved in the SACRAMENTS he is more particular Son or Daughter be of good chear thy sins are forgiven thee And in the use of these Sacraments it is that he useth so to speak not in the carnal spiritless use of them but in that use which is declared in our foregoing Mark. An use in the neglect whereof I think it not safe to Pray for Assurance but full as wicked as it wou'd be to Pray that Faith may come in the resolved neglect of Hearing the Word In short who knoweth not many Christians that have come to the study and practical improvement of the Sacraments with a Hell of Fears in their Souls and have e're long received a Heaven of Joys in the room of those banished Fears For the most part gracious Souls be wiser but some Babes will object and do so that it is a sin for them to come to the Lord's Table until they have Assurance And a great deal of pains it costeth to teach some of them these plain Truths 1. The Faith that qualifies for the Lord's Supper is not higher than that of Acceptation of Christ on the Gospel-terms and Reliance upon God's truth for making it good When a Soul hath this he is spiritually Alive and as soon as he is so he may and he ought to feed on this spiritual food for strength and growth 2. It is not indispensably necessary to ones right unto the Lord's Table that he should have a certain or assured Knowledge that this Faith it self in him be true and that he is in Christ It is enough if God's Word may be believed if his heart condemn him not though it cannot fully absolve him and rid him of his scruples 1 Joh. 3.20 True he ought to Examine himself for how else should a man Condemn or Justifie himself But if upon Examination an enlightned heart finds it self weary of sin Desirous to be rid of it in Christ's own Method Pleased that Christ promiseth rest and relief unto such burthened Souls as his and Resolved to wait in the use of all means to have that promise made good unto him what then Truly these things being so he ought to
come to the Lord's Supper desiring God to seal unto him the Promise which he layeth hold on and to promote his cravings for Christ as a fountain of both Pardoning and Purifying grace They that rashly deny this do audaciously and most barbarously exclude from the Lord's Table all Christians under desertion and doubting all bruised reeds which it may be are the sittest as well as neediest of any Souls for the holy Banquet I will be the shorter in the remaining Duties because in a manner all are comprehended in this first A second Duty which the Holy Ghost doth often make a means of working Assurance in Believers is Self-Examination Not all that Men will call by the name hereof but that which really is so that which is strictly managed and is as constantly issued That wherein a man sets God before him and having beseeched his gracious Conduct and Counsel falleth to compare what he Hath done and Doth do with what the Gospel Requireth and he Ought to do Examineth his Actions and especially the sincerity of the same q. d. Have I Repented or do I and is my Repentance sincere Have I Believed on Jesus Christ or do I so and is my Faith sound and unfeigned Have I begun or am I beginning a life of Repentance Faith and New Obedience and is it in truth and integrity that I do so Speak out Conscience for judge thou must and conclude one way or other And I will not sleep till thou tellest me what thy Sentence is At least what it is that thou inclinest to believe of my Actions of the soundness of them and of my state thence to be judged of If thou dost say I do not Repent Believe and Obey the Gospel or that I do not sincerely so do I will not build upon a present rotten title I will beg for God's Spirit and a new Heart by him wrought and new Acts by him excited and a new Claim will I make e're I stir out of this place If thou O Vicegerent of God within me if thou sayest that upon thy utmost search things appear better unto thee and that by the Scriptures judging thou believest me to be a true Penitent sound Believer sincere Obeyer of the Gospel I will not give way to importunate scruples and refuse all comfort and be afraid to bid my Soul bless the Lord and all that is within me Magnifie his Name I will humbly Hope in his grace and loudly Praise him in that hope Vncertainty or somewhat worse must be theirs who will not thus Examine themselves But of Souls well informed about the Covenant of Grace and qualified for Self-Examination and much Exercising it in this manner they are few if any that do long endure tormenting uncertainty Vain are all Trials indeed that are not brought unto an Issue and utterly unqualified they are for trial of their states who are unacquainted with the Covenant of Grace the Law and rule of Trial. A third Duty is Putting our one Talent to use with Thankfulness for it and without murmuring against God for want of Assurance Repent as much as thou canst Believe and Obey so and it is more than probable thou shalt soon discern thy self to Repent Believe and Obey Especially if thou art thankful for the little light that keeps thee from very Distraction and Horrors as bad as Francis Spira's it 's very like that God will encrease it unto the light of Noon-day A fourth Duty is accumulated diligence in all Ordinances Fervence in Prayer loosed Peter's Bonds it made Hannah's Countenance to be sad no more c. Accurate Reading and Hearing the Word hath done as great things and so has holy Conference of which I have lately Printed much in a little room Spiritual singing of Psalms is notably commended by devout Ancients and our Modern Divines for this purpose A fifth Duty is Abounding in such acts of Obedience as do most singularly thwart flesh and blood e. gr Full often doth God hasten to make known his Mercy to them who resist carnal temptations and exceed in mercy towards men Isai 58.7 to the 11th To them who run the hazard of their Names and Estates in reproving Sinners To them who bring their bodies into most subjection and make least of carnal Pleasures for the sake of God's spiritual Consolations To them that unweariedly promote Peace though ill requited by the Parties differing Mat. 5.9 To them that resolutely and painfully against the grain of corrupt Nature do love their Enemies and pardon their Injuries and pray for their Salvation A sixth Duty is a most peculiar War against that one sin which above any or all others causeth a Man to doubt of the love of God Some one such there is And when once that capital Make-bate is with a due specialty of care and pains resisted Assurance may be soon expected God useth to command a Calm as soon as such Jonah's be cast overboard A seventh Duty is Bearing in Mind the many Arguments which we may Plead humbly with God before we get Assurance of his Love e. gr 1 His Names Long-suffering Of great Mercy Forgiving Iniquity Transgression and Sin 2 Our own Extremities these Heman did Plead and we ought to Plead Psal 88.14 15. 3 Our Readiness to forgive others their offences against us Luk. 11.4 4 Our Ministers and Friends Compassions and Prayers Alas shall Men's iron Bowels yern and shall the Lords gracious ones be restrained Psal 80.4 5 The ill use that ill men and good ones too are like to make of our horrors and tremblings Psal 69.6 6 Lastly and principally The universal offer of Grace by Christ Jesus made and of all sinners unto heavy laden ones and weary of their sins and of such lives as sin do make them In a word The gracious Man layeth up these things in his heart Indeed he finds not in his Bible that God hath promised that every one that is a sound Believer shall some time or other in this World be made sure that he is so And he thinks it possible that a man may be saved without Assurance Nevertheless he cannot be content with the Possession of Godliness without the Assurance and certain Persuasion of it As we see Men use not to be quieted with Bread and Water though they be enough to keep Life and Soul together no but all do employ their thoughts for further Provisions He is one that wou'd be able to do the things which without Assurance cannot be done To Despise the World to Bear its Reproaches to Die for Christ's sake to be Bold at the Throne of Grace to have the Word and Sacraments as honey to his Taste to be enlarged in Thanksgiving and Praise to be furthered in Repentance to be fortified against Errors c. And in order to these if he hath never gain'd Assurance he is seeking it if he hath it he is diligently maintaining it if he hath lost it he is at work to regain it And one Cordial he hath
and acceptably unto God you are void of Grace Young Joseph hath ability to repel Temptations and Older David hath ability to comply with Temptations Satan cannot force us unto Evil and the Holy Ghost doth not ever force us unto Good it is voluntarily that we do all the Evil and the Good done by us Grace doth find us sinful Men and free unto Evil and it makes us sincere Christians and free unto Good It doth not as Glory doth take away our possibility of sinning in Mind Will or Work Our state on Earth is one and that in Heaven is another 3 Your Duty of Duties it is therefore to make the best use of your Liberty To side with the Spiritual Principle against the Carnal To take the part of Purity against Impurity And strain hard to live according to the Spirit in every Walk not allowing the Flesh one step To keep the Candle of the Lord your internal Light shining And the fire on the Altar of your hearts your holy Zeal burning To see that your Minds be blinded by no Objections and your Wills blunted by no Oppositions and your Lives blackned by no avoidable Abominations For why God rewards Grace with Grace and your Obeying the new Nature in you strengthens it And the strengthning thereof is the weakning of Sin its opposite It doth make and shew it to be weak But on the other hand let it be awefully considered It is a frightful Sin to receive in vain the offer of Grace in the Gospel and far worse it is to make vain and not improve the very Work of Grace in one's Soul This is no less than going about to destroy that which is Conceived in us of the Holy Ghost For the new Nature in us like a new-born Child quickly languisheth if it be not tenderly cherished And besides the Holy Ghost who is the Parent of it will be more than a little incensed if it be but little made of and not by all possible means nourished wherefore blessed are they who set not themselves to gratifie but to crucifie their Senses Appetites and Passions And content not themselves to Possess unless they do also exercise and Increase their spiritual Gifts Graces and Comforts Going forward in them and going apace so and that sensibly and visibly Knowing that shortly I must put off this my Tabernacle I have thus endeavoured that ye may be able after my Decease to have these things always in remembrance For if these be in you and abound they make you that ye shall not be Barren nor Unfruitful in the Knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ And an entrance shall be ministred unto you abundantly into his everlasting Kingdom Amen and Amen Bishop Wilkins his Character of the best Christians is here added for your Profit and for the shame of such as traduce us for New-fangled Opinionists and contrary to all the Learned of the Church of England THey are Persons of a Moderate and healing Temper of Catholick and Comprehensive Charity They do not Baptize their Religion with the Name of a Sect nor Espouse the Interest of a Party but love all Good men that Fear God and work Righteousness They are not guilty of the Corinthian Vanity in crying up a Paul an Apollos or a Cephas but look upon it as the great Design of Christianity to make men good and where it hath not that Effect they know it matters not what Church such a Man is of because a Bad Man can be saved in none They shun the dangerous Extreams and keep the Regular mean and in Divine Worship prefer a reverend Decency before pompous Superstition or popular Confusion neither bowing down to the Altar of Baal nor Admiring the Calves of Bethel They are true Primitive Christians and think it lawful to hold Communion with any true Church of Christ that is sound in the Substantials of Religion notwithstanding some Circumstantial Differences in the External Modes of Administration And they suspect it sinful and Schismatical to separate from any true Christians who Agree in Apostolical Doctrine and maintain the Discipline of the purest Ages They prove all Things and hold fast only that which is Good and are perswaded those Christians are most in the Right who choose out of all Parties whatsoever things are true whatsoever things are honest whatsoever things are just c. and not they that think every thing to be so that 's maintained by their own party They place Religion more in the serious practice of Piety than in the Observance of Ceremonious Forms they are neither fond of needless Rituals nor yet molested with groundless Scruples but long for the Philadelphian State of the Church wishing that all the World might with one mouth glorifie the Eternal God They pay a great Deference to Antiquity yet they are not so fond of Error as to fall in love with it meerly for its gray Hairs but make use of their own Reason to judge of the Reasonings of other men Though they apply themselves to spiritual Guides yet they love to enquire the Way to Sion and not follow them in the Dark except they carry a Lanthorn in their hands They refer the Decision of all the Differences amongst good Christians primarily to the Sence and Meaning of the Holy Scriptures And they know every man must Judge for himself therefore where they see men do all they can to find out the Truth to please God and to save their own Souls they give them a Liberty of Interpreting as knowing themselves not to be Infallible They know there are many Controversies amongst Christians of that Intricacy that the Day of Judgment must determin who are most in the right therefore they dare not judge of mens final Estates or of the Sincerity of their Hearts by their speculative Opinions or different Relishes of things because every man must believe what he can and not what he will They admire to see some Christians so egregiously mistake in the Notion of true Catholicism as to confine Salvation to their particular Communion and they think it strange to hear men contend for an Infallible Guide when Moses and the Prophets Christ and his Apostles do with one consent declare that the way to the Blessedness of the Righteous is by observing the Rule and Exercise of Holy Living from a Principle of Divine Life They never charge other mens Doctrines with such odious Consequences as they never intended nor Asperse their Persons with such invidious Names as they never deserved but make charitable Allowances for their different Educations Constitutions and Apprehension of things supposing that other men may differ from them with the same Sincerity that they differ from others and sometimes from themselves They are for a Religious Loyalty and prefer the Wisdom of Publick Authority before their own private Judgments in all such Matters as are not Determined by the Soveraign pleasure of their Maker And if in any thing they differ from the Wisdom of their Superiours they do it with great Modesty and Reservation and are always ready to change their Minds when better Information leads them to it not thinking they undervalue their Judgments by so doing They are afraid of being infected with the Heresie of Bigottism and have great cause to fear that if the merciful God should damn us all for such things for which strait-laced Christians condemn one another none could be saved They think there is no particular human Form of Ecclesiastical Polity so acceptable to the great God as the Exercise of Mutual Charity under our different Forms They neither make their Opinions Articles of Faith nor their Modes Terms of Communion but believe those Principles and practise those Precepts which wise and good men are all agreed in well Knowing if they should happen to be mistaken in those things wherein they differ they could not lose the Way to Heaven whilest they sincerely love God believe in Christ and obey the Motions of the Holy Spirit They are of peaceable and Reconciling Dispositions and neither call for Fire from Heaven nor Kindle Fires upon Earth to destroy all those that follow not them as well knowing that Truth cannot be engraven in the Minds of Men with the Points of Swords nor can their Understandings be illuminated with flaming Faggots They neither make the Way to Heaven Broader nor Narrower than the Head and Pillars of the Universal Church have made it And they walk on soberly righteously and godly in that Path which upon great Consideration they take to be the Right without rudely Justling those whom they fear to be in the Wrong They think the best way to find out to what Mother the Child of Truth belongs is to make use of Solomon's Test viz. To give up the Cause to them that first lay down the Sword of Division When one Party saith Lo here is Christ in this Church and another saith Lo he is there they Believe what Christ himself hath told them That where Two or Three are met together in his Name there is He in the midst of them They do not think their Zeal Luke-warm except it burn up their Discretion but can joyn the Prudence of the Serpent with the Innocency of the Dove and are grieved to observe men contend so Eagerly about the Pinnacles of the Temple as that they threaten to overturn the Foundations of the Church They take more pains to make good their Baptismal Covenant than to dispute about the Manner of its Administration as if they were Baptized with the Waters of Strife and they are more frequent in a Devout Participation of the Lord's Supper than in Metaphysical Contests about the Real Presence They Know there 's nothing required of Man as Necessary to Salvation but what is clearly Revealed and beyond all Dispute They choose rather to take up the Cross of Christ than wrangle about it and more sollicitously observe the Complexion of their own Souls than the Colour of Ministers Garments Nor do they so contend about the Number of the Elect as to Reprobate themselves for want of Charity but endeavour to perform the Whole Duty of Man in so doing they know they are in the Way to the Saints Everlasting Rest FINIS