when we come to see him we may be pierced and be in bitternesse for him Yea 3. That a Soul may truly and in earnest feel and discern its need of such a Jesus to bear and deliver from that wrath When such a glimpse of God upon it such a shaking such an abasement in its own vilenesse such a tasting of wrath then a Christ to quiet and calm a desolate soul is worth looking after indeed But it will presently be enquired whether every Soul is brought into Christ this way I will first open the height of this tempest upon a Soul and then I will satisfie this Query It is thus When God musters up our sins and sets them in order before our eyes Psal 50.21 When he will make sin appear exceeding sinfull to be abounding sin When God writes bitter things against a Soul and makes it to possesse the iniquity of its youth I need seek no further then the 38. Psalm for this tempest and the 88. In both of them you have a description of this tempest upon a poor creature Thine arrows stick fast in me There is no rest in my bones because of my sin Mine iniquities are gone over my head and are a burthen too heavy for me to bear Troubled and bowed down and go mourning all the day filled with his terrours as Heman To this as it may be conceived to have been the case with David and Heman in both these Psalmes is usually added some sharp affliction either of sicknesse or of the imbittering some choice creature-comfort our spirits were inordinately let out unto which causeth this shaking and tempest to be the more grievous that we become as David speaks even as broken vessels under the mighty hand of God This also by the sufferance of God is often heightned by Satans violent assaults black and horrible suggestions blasphemous accusations representing sin as unpardonable joyns with an accusing conscience and all our fleshly reasonings that God is in a way of destroying and beginning of wrath here and therefore is apt to suggest self-destruction so crossing Gods design perswading the Soul to fly from God as an Enemy when Gods main design is mercy to turn it to him Now then take all these the appearing of a great and holy and terrible God shaking a poor earthly creature the powerfull awakenings and enlightenings of his Word a sense of his fierce wrath the dread of a miscarrying soul the burthen of sin the accusations of conscience the afflicting hand of God the desperate assaults of Satan these like several windes make a tempest in the whole man and make it to cry out Thy waves O Lord and thy billows go over my soul who is able to abide thine appearance These like severall windes meeting in a cranny of the earth make a concussion and mighty shaking upon the spirit of a sinner when the Lord thus takes him in hand Now to answer the question whether every Soul be brought in to Christ such a way in the height of this tempest This is more then I dare assert yet that many a poor Soul comes thus shipwracht Christ thus tempestuous and forlorn I know I need not insist to prove This I may call the storming of a Soul when Christ takes a Soul by his great power suddenly breaks down all the strong holds and high things 2 Cor. 10.5 This is usually the way of an open sinner though not in the same height neither in every open sinner at his first conversion But then sometimes Jesus Christ takes a Soul as I may so speak upon easier terms brings it in leni afflatu with a more gentle gale yet so that in the progresse of it there will be some shakings something of this tempest upon it though the Soul hath a glimpse of Christ and his hand more sensibly supporting it which I clear thus First If the seed of grace be sown early in the heart as sometimes it is that some Souls cannot remember the first work of it yet if the Soul grow up to any measure of experience it must be more shaken in order to its further subduing and purifying It will meet with some kinde of tempests ordinarily I never spake with any as to this Point but more or lesse did allow of it But when the work of God is begun at some further ripenesse of years then certainly it shall meet with what I have set forth in some measure Consider for a Soul to be awakened out of the deep sleep of carnall security which sin hath bound him in To have Satan the strong man dispossest by a stronger then he To have the guilt and filth of sinne discovered by the holy Spirit To have Christ destroy the works of Satan the power and peace of corruptions that will set against him with all the reasonings of flesh and bloud mustered up To have in a word the secure dead earthy dark hard proud atheisticall unbeleeving heart of an obstinate wretch of death to become life of darknesse light of a stone flesh To have a grain of faith break through all naturall impossibilities spirituall wickednesses all discouragements within and without when nothing within us to help forward beleeving but every thing against us as I shall further shew Though all these be not enough to hinder the Lord Jesus when he by his strong arm will work Isa 43.13 I will work and who shall let it yet certainly this work is not wrought forth in a dream as we use to speak of things insensibly done not without some shaking and concussion upon the spirit something of this tempest upon it partly in the beginning and partly in the progresse of conversion Fides non fit sine multo motu saith Melancthon faith is not wrought forth without much motion in the Soul Yea I might here shew into how many tempests from without and within many a poor Soul specially such whom God will most humble and fit for some speciall service fals into how many overwhelmings of spirit and gusts of temptations it is frequently shaken with but I intend to keep my self chiefly to the discovery of the souls first approach to Christ It may yet be further enquired What is the lowest measure of such conviction in the bringing in of a Soul to Christ In this there have been extreams somtimes I presume gracious men giving forth the tenour of their own conversion as a generall rule to all others But in this case I may safely assert that the first work of the Spirit is to convince of sin Joh. 16.7 And that such a convincement that shall give a creature such a sight of sin that it must appear exceeding sinfull to be abounding sin Rom. 5.18 to be tyrannizing fin filthy sinne condemning sinne which must not only flote in the head but convince the conscience and affect the heart that it must needs humble and abase a creature as he goes out of himself and rowls upon Jesus Christ yea he shall come in a
to justifie from sin and a rowling the soul upon it and also some delightfull savour of it Then the main temptation is to become negligent in duty As to neglect humble awfull diligent waiting upon God in prayer and other Ordinances This reasoning being upon a young convert because our duty and obedience doth not justifie us before God therefore for no other purpose But this is a dangerons snare and too many poor souls endangered with it Neglect of duty begets a vain and a wanton spirit and causeth the Lord to withdraw from us and will stagger faith and cause thee to question any work upon thy spirit 2. Sleightnesse of Humiliation for former sins in our unregenerate state begets a dead and slight spirit Though they are not to be remembred after effectuall calling as now able to condemn us and God declares in his Covenant of grace to forget them also to remember them no more against us yet they are not to be forgotten to other considerations viz. that we may be the more humbled and abased before the Lord that we may loathe our selves in our former detestable waies and the sense of the pardon of them may the more melt our hearts Eze. 36.31 Zech. 12.10 Therefore after grace received 't is good to be frequent in the renewing of serious and through and as particular as may be humiliation for sins of unregeneracy though pardoned to us and changed from them 3. Too familiar converse with carnall company haply such which before our calling we did most frequently converse with this will deaden our spirits and beget discomfort when a convert will not own and acknowledge to the praise of the rich and free grace of God the change and work the Lord hath wrought upon him And so the want of that serious composed reserved wary carriage and demeanour answerable to a change upon the inward man which will also quickly beget deadnesse staggering discomfort 4. Either a neglectfull or a curious criticall hearing the Gospel preached as to judge of the gifts and parts of Preachers which will at last grow to a matter of fancy rather then to a trembling at the word that it may purisie and assure the heart This joyned with a negiect of reading the Scriptures or reading them out of a curious enquiry to be able to speak discerningly before others to have praise of men This will also quickly cause a staggering 5. As consequentiall of this latter a self-conceit of knowledge and parts growing to an over-weaned conceit of our selves This self-conceit is the main bait of Satan in young converts and the cause of many after-trials till a through discovery of it and so a mortifying of it usually by afflictions temptations or desertions or all No evil more natural then to be lifted up in our selves to have an itch to appear to be some body and to excell others and to seek for gifts and graces not so much to honour God with as to please others and to gain a repute with men This to be lookt to with a godly jealousie as that which will cause a staggering upon thy spirit at last 9. The want of diligent searching our own hearts from whence the former and other evils get strength and lie close specially as to pride and hypocrisie and so not attending to that main grace which is the soul of all sincerity and simpliciy of heart to aim at God and not at our selves A slight practise of searching the more close and spiritual corruptions begets an unsafe temper and when they appear and the Lord gives a deeper discovery of them will stagger thy faith and bring all afresh into question whether any soundnesse at all in thee 7. Not attending to growth in mortification sincerity zeal and holinesse but to content our selves we are we trust converted therefore safe enough much carnall joy mixing with that of the spirit This growth upon a young convert is apt for a time to be neglected whereby faith is overgrown ere they are aware and begin to be at a losse till the Lord have a way to awaken them to it 8. Inordinate enjoyment of any creature-mercy be it what it will either by too affectionate pursuit or delight in it staying upon and feeding upon the creature and not carried up to Gods goodnesse by it and so not using it with a loose heart This is apt to bring many snares upon our spirits and waies and at last to cause us to loose the favour of God 9. Want of a holy fellowship with such who are godly either by frequent conference and communicating their experiences of God specially in a more holy Church-fellowship then the mixt Congregations are yet reduced into which will abundantly quicken and strengthen faith and every gift and grace of beleevers and maketh much for the retaining and encrease of comfort 10. In a word a slight frame of spirit the heart not being daily awed with a holy fear of God whereby lightnesse and vanity and discomposure ariseth As also negligence in a mans calling or in some duty to some relations These are the speciall things which are apt to stagger and deaden Faith to cause the Lord to withhold or withdraw comfort that we are brought to question all again whether any true saving work upon us to cause the Lord to let out sore temptations upon us or to lay his hand upon us very usually sicknesse or crosses in our estates or friends And indeed by these a sounder and deeper humiliation is wrought forth even a second conversion when a narrower search is set up in our hearts and sincerity watchfulnesse and other graces come more in view Now as all those evils negligences and defects do thus startle weaken faith and hinder comfort so a diligent care opposite to all those as thou maist particularly review them or means blessed of God to strengthen faith and comfort which I shall only mention viz. Diligence in praier and every other duty renewing of humiliation avoiding much converse with carnall men carefull attending upon the Word preached not with curiosity but humility Not to be pufft up with self-conceit of parts search for hypocrisie attending to growth enjoying the creatures with a loose and mortified heart the fellowship of the Saints a serious frame of spirit joyned with wisedome and care as to all relations towards God or man these are the waies wherin God usually sheddeth comfort upon his people It may further be enquired Whether faith will ever cast out all fear I answer It may in good measure keep under servile base disheartening fear But there is a fear which is vigil animae the watchman of the soul a Servant to faith which makes the heart not over-despondent and bears off security and keeps all awake as the Centinell of the heart Heb. 4.1 Let us therefore fear c. And when the blessed intervals of joy and assurance come then let this fear be stirring and 't will preserve thee from wantoning with thy joy
of smoak perfumed with Myrrhe and Frankincense with all Powders of the Merchant c. A little to enlarge this I will shew what considerations they are that make any work appear wonderfull and they will be found in this of the Lord Christs to his People 1. A repugnancy in nature to the effect wrought forth this causeth wonder So is it in the whole work of Christ for us and in us That which was for us being but as one continued rich glorious mystery Col. 1.26 All of nature against it As to his work in his people what reluctancy obstinacy strivings with the holy Spirit before a proud hard rebellious self-exalting heart will yeeld to bow before the Lord Jesus Not only listnesnesse heartlesnesse impotency but a strong enmity and resolute opposition against the work of grace yea as to our case in hand the quieting of the tempest upon a soul what resistency to comfort by the carnall part what putting up of fresh reasonings and doubtings and will not beleeve Jesus Christ upon his word till the spirit of power perswade command enables to do so 2. Such things do beget wonder which are unexpected or unhoped for so is the first appearing and work of Christ to and in us When a Soul securely sits with folded arms in the shadow of death in the grosse darknesse that is naturally upon it the strength of the heart after vanity when little expectation of such a voice of Christ as hath been shewed in the first Arise Awake Come away c. Matthew sitting at the Receipt of Custom little expected that the Lord Christ whom he never lookt after should come and speak to him in such a commanding voice and he should presently leave all so wealthy an income and follow a persecuted Christ He would have been like enough to have spit in the face of him who should have prophesied such a thing to him as every sinfull wretch is till the Lords voice be heard within him And so in the matter of comfort when poor and languishing and complaining a tempest is up then even before we are aware above what we durst to expect comes a Christ and speaks and calms all 3. Things formerly unknown to us when they appear beget wonder so are the things that Christ works and reveals to us we are utterly ignorant and know not what preciousnesse in Christ rill he open his heart to us What refreshings what treasures of all goodness and sweetnesse are in him 4. Things that are seldome done beget wonder so comparatively with the world of souls that are passed by 't is but seldome and rare work for Jesus Christ to lay hold upon souls here and there a soul he chaseth forth And saith a poor delivered soul What was I more then another that the Lord should passe by abundance of poor creatures who haply never dishonoured God so much as I have done Oh this consideration makes grace appear abundant and admirable this is a heightning enlarging Meditation upon a poor calmed soul indeed In a word the Lord Jesus so convays himself to his own that it shall be marvellous in their eyes That they may attribute the first motion of light and life in the soul from him the perfecting and continuing of it That his children may be kept humble and lowly before him and ascribe all to him and depend upon him that they may have nothing to rejoyce in but only in the name of the Lord Jesus Vse If a calmed soul be thus full of the wonders of Christs power and love first By this any soul may know whether the calm that is upon his spirit be from Christ or not If so then his hand his power and love is admired and extolled in it Consider therefore any soul by the way What are the wondrous things upon thy Spirit what are the things thou hast deep thoughts of heart about Canst thou feelingly say Oh how wonderfull have been the thoughts of Christ towards me what wonders hath he wrought for me and in me Who is a God pardoning iniquity like unto thee Mic. 7.18 That 's the temper and voice of a pardoned soul So he breaks out into the admiration of him A pardoned Soul cannot have such sleight thoughts about it as the pretenders to a dead hope of it have If it be not so with thee let me once more counsell thee to go to Christ and tell him what wonders thou hearest he can doe And pleade with him that there 's an object before him to manifest one upon even by raising up such a worm dead in sin as thou art unto life Tell him he shall have the glory of the Miracle Oh let him say unto thee Live and thou shalt live in his sight 2. If Jesus Christ be able to work forth such wonders upon and for poor souls Videant quam tutò se committunt Sancti c. saith Bucer See then how safely we commit our selves to such a Pilot who can guide and anchor us through all storms and difficulties can cease our tempests within or without to make way for sweeter Sun-shines and calms And therefore should not the Saints pierce through the thickest darkest tempests and hang upon him when all appears but in a perishing way yea will not the Lord Jesus pierce through them all to us and make our hears melt with chiding us for our little faith Say not Fainting Soul within thy self that because 't will be a wonderfull thing for thee to be raised up comforted whatever thy condition be and therefore it will not be No No Say thou hangest upon a Christ whose works are all wonders and therefore it shall be so And now what will this poor Soul do that is thus through the abundant grace of Christ silled in some measure with such precious wonders of Christ when it is blessedly calmed by Christs refreshing voice For so I will now suppose that soul either already or shall be so who hath been or is in this tempestuous perishing condition at Christs feet and is or shall be thus calmed Will it not to this purpose break forth O welcome ten thousand times sweetest Christ Come Lodge for ever in my soul though a mean habitation for I cannot let thee go Ah will not that soul study returns of love and honour to Jesus Christ Will it not love him and love him more abundantly Will it not lay it self at his feet to be disposed by him Will it not smile upon and embrace reproaches for him Shall any thing be too dear and precious to part with for Christ No It shall not Shall the pursuit of empty creatures come in competition with him Let me ask thee Soul in earnest Wilt thou canst thou seek great things for thy self and let Christs honour be slighted Go then and daily treat with Christ to this purpose Say unto him Master Master what shall I do for thee For whom shall I live and die but for thee Dear Lord let me some way or other bring honour to thy tender glorious Name among the living before I come to thee and adore thee for ever Now Soul to point thee out thy particular duty that livest in the sense of the favour and love of Christ is more then I designed in this brief Treatise only I will minde thee with a word or two and so have done Art thou a Soul that hast been by the strong arm of the Lord carried through some of these experiences as have been set forth in this Treatise If thou art a poor Soul not yet attained to this measure of comfort and joy I have endeavoured to lay down Directions to thee and what may by the blessing of the Spirit with it uphold thee till these wonders shall be made good upon thy soul But now to a Soul that in some measure enjoyeth them 1. Consider that though Jesus Christ hath made such a calm upon thy Spirit yet know that there 's more than enough in thy heart to distemper all again though at present kept under Therefore thou art to look up to the same mighty hand to keep all in peace and in a comfortable frame as well as at first to create it and to give in new refreshings else that which is within thee already will decay and wither If Jesus Christ withdraw his hand all is in a mutiny again Oh therefore walk humbly and jealously before him and still be committing all to him and be drawing fresh supplies from him or else the sense of this blessed calm will grow dead in thee 2. Beware how carnal joy mixeth with thy spiritual by fetching in too large additions from Creature-comforts whence will follow lightnesse and vanity of spirit and then comes a Cloud ere thou art aware 3. Be vigilant as I have before hinted and diligent in such waies wherein thou hast speciall communion with God By which thou shalt finde greater wonders by the strong arm of the Lord then thou hast yet felt The danger of this neglect is spoken before 4. Do not sit down in a slender stock of Grace and the Knowledge of Christ There are depths in Christ and depths in thy own heart to be searcht which haply doe yet lie close undiscerned upon thy spirit 5. Be in the frequent remembrance of how much is forgiven and this will raise up thy love and zeal and quicken it when it begins to slack 6. Beware of venturing on the least sin do not say 't is a little one and thou maist venture 't will like an Achan disturb all The fear and hatred of the least evil maintains a solid setled communion with God vain and carnal company as hath been shewed dulls a mans spirit as also a frothy carriage and liberall jesting 7. Much might be said but in a word know 'T is the hardest work of a Beleever to manage comfort and assurance The heart the carnal part of it is apt to be lifted up in it Indeed a comforted Soul at the first coming of it is apt to conceive that such a temper can never be lost But this is a vanity Lastly Get the aims of thy heart more raised after purity and likenesse of God then joy and comfort To be like God and see him at he is 1 Joh. 3.2 is the highest aim of a gracious Soul which the blessed holy God give thee and me to aspire after till we shall be fully with him and so see him as he is to all eternity Amen FINIS
THE TEMPESTUOUS SOUL CALMED BY Jesus Christ BEING An Extract of severall SERMONS PREACHED By ANTHONY PALMER Pastor of the Church at Bourton on the Water in Gloucester-shire LONDON Printed by A. M. for E. Brewster and G. Sawbridge and are to be sold at the Signe of the Bible on Ludgate-hill MDCLIIII To my dear Father Brothers and Sisters and others of my Beloved Kindred and Friends c. IF I know my own heart there were two Reasons prevailed with me for sending forth this Treatise into the light First to witnesse what the Lord to the praise of his abundant grace hath done for my own poor soul Secondly As drawn forth by tender affections and yerning bowels I desire more and more to put on for your immortall souls which my hearts desire is should be as dear and pretious to me as my own yea that my heart might be enflamed with that zeal of holy Paul Rom. 11.14 If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are of my flesh and might save some of them In this brief Treatise though chiefly pointing at the comforting a disquieted spirit yet there is laid down in the former part of it what may suit with your severall conditions and so to set up a rest lesse enquiry in your spirits after the Lord Jesus till he shall fill your souls with this blessed calm of his own presence here shadowed forth unto you If it should be objected by any other that I might have directed you to other Books before extant of which blessed be God there 's abundant choice I answer and I verily beleeve will you with me that the room I have in your affections will render something from my self though far short of the excellencies of other Pieces more gratefull to you and that you will be the more inclined to reade it Vpon which account I send it to you with my breathings to heaven for the blessing of the Spirit of grace to be with it and all others to whose hands it shall come craving a candid interpretation with them I Rest Yours most affectionately in Christ Jesus A. P. Bourton on the Water Sept. 21. 1652. July 12. 1653. Imprimatur Joseph Caryl The Tempestuous Soul Calmed by Jesus Christ MAT. 8.23,24,25,26,27 And when he was entred into a Ship his Disciples followed him And behold there arose a great tempest in the Sea insomuch that the Ship was covered with the waves but he was asleep And his Disciples came to him and awoke him saying Lord save us we perish And he saith unto them Why are ye fearfull O ye of little faith Then he arose and rebuked the windes and the Sea and there was a great calm But the men marvelled saying What manner of man is this that even the windes and the Sea obey him THe Words contain an entire work and miracle of the Lord Christ so that we need not look for coherence They are usually held forth by Divines to set forth the presence of the Lord Jesus with his Church in all the tempests that come upon it which if I conceive may without wresting be also used to discover the presence of Christ calming a particular soul in all the tempests that befall it At least by way of Allegory it will hold as Austin saith there is such a spirituall use to be made of every miracle of the Lord Christs And in this sense I shall make use of them and so unfold them into these six Ohservations 1. When Jesus Christ draws in a Soul to himself he usually raiseth a tempest in that soul There arose a tempest c. 2. The Soul when thus in a tempest it comes in a perishing condition to Jesus Christ Lord save us we perish c. 3. Jesus Christ seems for a time to take no notice of a soul in such a tempest and perishing condition He was asleep c. 4. True faith may be mixt with much weaknesse and fear and yet may engage the heart of Christ to succour Why are ye fearfull O ye of little faith 5. A word from Christ can rebuke that tempest upon a Soul He rebuked the windes c. 6. The Soul that is thus calmed is filled with the wonders of Christs power and love They marvelled saying What manner of man is this that the windes and Sea obey him These I shall open in their order When Christ draws in a Soul to himself he usually raiseth a tempest in that soul The word for a tempest in the Originall is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which properly signifies an Earthquake which causeth a shaking of che Earth The same word is used by the Septuagint in Ezekiel frequently to signifie a rushing winde a noise a shaking Now then this doth very well fit our purpose to discover this tempest upon a poor soul as drawing in to Christ which is a kinde of earthquake a shaking of an earthy heart whose principles and aims were earthly as promised by the Lord Christ Isa 11.4 And he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth when he comes in with a rushing and a noise like the voice in Ezekiels Vision Cap. 3.22 when the awakenings and enlightenings of the Word and voice of God fall in shaking the spirit of a dead sinner like the noise of many waters Rev. 11.15 Thus when the fear of a miscarrying soul laies hold upon it such a kinde of shaking and tempest is upon it Now the Lord ordereth it to be thus with a Soul for these Reasons 1. God causeth a glimpse of his holinesse to passe by a Soul that the Creature by such a reflexion from God may see in some measure what sin hath done upon him at what an infinite distance it hath set him at with the most holy God how unlike unto him sin hath made him That he may in some measure see and feel what he is when the great and righteous God takes him in hand which makes him ready to cry out with Peter at the appearance of Christ to him Depart from me for I am a sinfull man Luk. 5.8 And as Moses in his self-abasement when God appeared to him Exod. 3.6 Moses hid his face for he was afraid to look upon God And ver 11. Who am I that thou shouldst send me A glimpse of God causeth such an abasement upon a soul and even a shaking to be upon it That the creature may magnifie the greatness and purity of God and be vile in its own eyes before him This is the first Reason of it 2. He raiseth such a tempest and shaking upon a sinfull worm To cause him in part to taste what a bitter cup it was he could so delightfully and boldly quasse of yea to have a taste of that bitter cup that Jesus Christ drank brim full of his fathers wrath that if one dram of it be so unsupportable to a soul what were the full vials of it that were poured forth upon the sinless soul and body of Christ that thence
will joyn righteousnesse with thine In a word in stead of being a well-conceited Pharisee for 't is uo better Go and be a poor sinner at Christs feet and be willing to let him have all the glory in thy salvation Even put on Jesus Christ by an humble free totall resignment of thy self unto him to undertake thy cause as hath been shewd to work all thy works for thee and in thee And in stead of thy own defiled righteousnesse thou hast stood a tip-toe in the entire obedience of Christ shall be thine and thou shalt appear before God in that full pure spotlesse acceptable righteousness of the Son of his in which the soul of God is infinitely delighted Ah Soul what a change is this to part with filth and abomination for the glorious righteousnesse of the Son of God to be clad in it and even shine forth before God in it 4. Well do the same as to any considence in all thy Church-priviledges of being baptized being a Protestant no heretick Do the same as to all creature-refuges as hath been shewed and being undone and shattered in them do not dare to be safe in them any longer no no pretension to safety till thou shalt be safe in the Lord Jesus by a clear and full closure with him till thou hast him in thy arms by faith thy soul embracing and twining it self about him till he shall say unto thee I am thine and thou shalt finde power and vertue coming from him From what hath been said maist thou now with deep thoughts of heart say thus within thy self Ah wretch that I have been fond self-pleasing self-flattering wretch how well conceited of my self how able thought I my self to do every thing how confidently have I stood before the perfect God in the performance of my carnall duties when they were as filthy as sin could make them and God was loathing of them Now I see one Jesus Christ is ten thousand times better then them all Now I will cast anchor into him now I will contend for him as for life Now I will enquire seek wait upon his voice his spirit enabling me till I shall finde him and all those Blessings are reported to be in him Now I will be diligent in duties upon a better account not as they are able to render me accepted and justified before God so I do and ever will renounce them but as means blessed be God to conveigh Christ to my soul and as the testimony of my obedience to him And now if by the Lords blessing unto thee what hath been said or thou wast such before even a more perishing sinner in thy own eyes take yet what farther is implied in the heart of these words Lord save I perish which may be enlarged in such a plea as this Oh blessed Lord Jesus of Life and Glory Here 's a soul at thy feet with the weight of numberlesse sins upon it but not one dram of righteousnesse to cover him a desolate forlorn shipwrackt worm that stands bound over in thousands of debts to the just and dreadfull God of heaven and earth But hath not so much as one mite to pay him unlesse with the forfeiture of my immortall soul Here I come with thee as thou hast commanded and throw my self upon thee He venture an immortall soul with thee If thou hast not treasures enough to spare lying by thee the infinite merits of thy own bloud If thou wilt not freely satisfie for me and take the debts of my sins upon thee and so stand between a just God and a condemned sinner If thou hast not favour enough with the righteous God to prevail for me Oh I must perish everlastingly perish Lord It implies thou art mighty and able to do it for all power is committed to thee If there be not power enough with thee thou who art the mighty God the Prince of Peace and so able to rescue my darling soul I am contented to sink before thee but thou thou alone art the Lord of Life oh magnifie thy great power upon me and even be my Lord my Lord other Lords beside thee I would have none Lord save c. Save 'T is for a great and weighty matter that I pleade that I come unto thee for No lesse then to be eternally saved saved from the everlasting wrath and vengeance of God saved to everlasting life and glory in the glorious presence of God for evermore O thou Saviour of men that 's thy Name and honourable Title didst thou not passe through many abasements when thou wast upon earth very unsuitable to thy glorious person didst thou not drink of a most bitter cup full of the wrath of divine justice And was not this then in thy heart did not this then bear thee up that thou shouldest save ah save poor helplesse souls that could never have been saved without thee Oh hadst thou not infinitely delighted in saving lost souls thou hadst never been at so much pains and travell and cost in the work Oh therefore Save Lord Save Yea Save I perish Must will perish If thou dost not save Save for the waters are come over my soul I am sinking without thee Master Master I perish Luk. 8. Master Carest thou not that I perish Mar. 4. Oh let it never be told in Gath that even a complaining forlorn soul perished at thy feet What at the feet of a Jesus Alas if thou carest not that I perish who will If thou pitiest not who will or can Oh for the honour of thy own Name pity If I should now perish in the view of harbour now I have seen and cried to a Saviour Thy enemies will speak evil of thy Name Well blessed Lord thou seest all the arguments I have to move thee That which I will stick upon and never give thee over with is that I must perish perish without thee yea perish in thy sight if thou succour me not Lord save I perish Well now Soul If thou dost in this or the like manner pant after Jesus Christ in such a perishing posture and thine eyes are upon him and followest him and waitest what he will speak unto thee I will a little prevent thee and shew thee a copy or two of his tender heart in this particular See Luk. 19.10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost He came 't was his errand his businesse 't was the main thing he had in his heart What that which thou so earnestly look'st for even to save yea more to seek whom he might save but what kinde of persons even such as thou presentest thy self unto him that which is lost souls that come as lost and perishing in themselves to seek him Have the worst thoughts of thy self it can reach but to be a lost soul and such saith Christ if he be worthy of credit with thee he came to seek If thou art seeking him why he was seeking thee before He left it
sin as horrible as ever he argued it pleasant and commodious yea his chief darts lie at the faith of a beleever to be reasoning against the grounds of beleeving questioning their election severing the promises out of their sight mudding and darkening their sight of Christ accusing them for unsound and hypocrites tempting them from means which make for strengthening of faith Peter saith Christ Satan hath desired to winnow thee but I have prayed that thy faith fail not implying Satans design lay most against his faith through the malice and subtlety of Satan faith is put hard to it till the Lord rebuke him 5. Faith is wrought forth gradually in the soul by degrees at first sown as a grain of mustard-seed a small seed corruptions and reasonings like overspreading tares ready to choak it therefore being sown as I may so speak in weaknesse at first 't is thus put to it for comfort therefore Paul tels the Thessalonians 1 Thes 3.10,13 that there was something lacking in their faith and the establishment of their faith is much praied for by him 6. The Lord suffers it to be so that his power in the supporting of a weak soul may the more appear Faith is called the operation of the Son of God 1 Thess 2. and that your faith might stand in the power of God when a soul is full of fears and mis-givings and ready to sink under them theu the hand of the Lord is more visible in sustaining then we see by his power alone we stand Had we a strong setled faith presently we should rather be lifted up in our selves or rest upon grace received and so not glorifie the Lord Jesus and live upon him for strength as he requires Therefore the Lord suffers these fightings and reasonings within that we might have continuall recourse to him for support and that we might see that the beginnings life and growth of faith it is all in and from Jesus Christ as the Authour and Finisher of it For these Reasons viz. the wisedom and pride of flesh and bloud the natural power of Unbelief not being wholly subdued sense of unworthinesse the depth of guilt accusations of conscience and the disputings of Satan faith sown in weaknesse at first and all this suffered to ends of glory to the Lord Jesus Christ that his power and grace may be the more magnified therefore true faith is mixt with many reasonings doubtings misgivings disputings fears which do annoy it I will first endeavour to apply this before I prove further that such a faith may engage Christ to succour 1. If true faith be thus mixt with fears and reasonings It meets first with the easie faith that the most of people please themselves in as I thank God I alwaies beleeved God forbid but I should beleeve in Jesus Christ 'T is easie very easie indeed to presume away a precious soul 't is easie to flatter a mans self with an opinion of beleeving and indeed 't is nothing else but a customary opinion of Christ But to beleeve in Christ Jesus and savingly and effectually to apply his bloud by his Spirit enabling this is hard ah hard indeed to a poor convinced soul that hath deep thoughts of heart about the pardon of sins Lord help my unbelief and Lord if thou wilt and the like This easie beleeving is the dead sleep of sin upon the conscience and a generall opinion in the brain that Christ died for sinners even for all sinners to whom he is preached heightned by the strong delusion of the devil whose work it is to perswade souls that have nothing but a dead generall faith that they beleeve well and on the contrary to dispute against the faith of true beleevers that they do not truly believe And this among others may be a discovery of true faith unbelief is still mixing and Satan disputing against it as in the reasons shew'd If so much faith against beleeving pardon of sinne in the Lord Jesus how can it choose but be so but it must be a hard thing to a poor soul to fasten upon Christ in a promise for remission of sins when so much opposition to it Therefore this is an infallible note true beleevers deeply feel and are humbled for unbelief Oh 't is the deep evil of their hearts and that they most tremble at but take a carnall formall dead-hearted Protestant and no such matter with him He could beleeve a thousand years together and if he have any scruples they be as nothing a little praier or the like will quickly hekl it And herein also is another great snare Naturall conscience that is a conscience not savingly enlightned and sanctified may give some checks before in or after the commission of a sin and then unregenerate persons do most usually gather that they have truth of grace because they have some little conflicts within which they fasten upon from Rom. 7. the thing that I would not that do I but that former I is meant of the regenerate nature distinct to and warring against the fleshly part and not a little conflicting of the naturall conscience from common enlightenings of the word So also as to doubting and some small mis-givings these argue not a truth of saith unlesse these are only allayed by the going out of the soul to Jesus Christ and the evidence of the work of saith with power wrought forth in us If thy doubtings be such that do not settle again till thou hast made a true entire close with Jesus Christ in self-renouncing then they are of the spirit subduing sin and unbelief in thee Therefore look narrowly to unbelief as true faith interests the soul in Christ and all his grace and promises so unbelief excludes while unsubdued from all of Christ It sins against totum dei every attribute of God So then they could not enter in because of unbelief An utter impossibility upon it And this may reign through deluded mis-perswasion of true faith though the conversation in the eye of men civil and regular I desire to acknowledge to the praise of the rich grace of God that the opening of the power of unbelief by a holy Preacher of the Gospel was the first time of the Lords speaking to me in powerfull convincement that I was in the state of unbelief though before full of confidence of the safety of my condition Oh therefore Soul whoever thou art be jealous of thy own heart in this particular unbelief is a close spirituall undiscerned evil till the Lord come in and shew thee what the strength of it is by casting in a grain of faith to grapple with it which without the continuall supply of his Spirit will be overwhelmed by it Therefore let me presse thee with a serious triall of thy self this way that this is a dangerous snare easinesse to beleeve pardon of sin and peace with God So that unlesse thou canst make out a work of faith with power by the word and spirit Question all and so
nor lusts nor barrennesse nor earthlinesse nor deafnesse nor blindenesse shall stand before him Come then oh come with such and expectation and thou shalt know the mighty power of his word But to the fearing Soul I need not I hope further encourage thee to come to Christs Ordinances Only a word Hast thou waited on them but not a comfortable answer yet Consider well Hast thou come to hear Christ speak I will hear what God the Lord will speak Hast thou not too much hang'd on the Preacher upon his lips This may be a snare Eye the promise Isa 57.19 I create the fruit of the lips Peace Peace saith the Lord and I will heal them So Is 55.10,11 speaking of the word It shall accomplish that which I please know If all the host of glorified Saints and Angels should joyn with all the holy Preachers of the Earth and should encompasse thy soul to speak life or peace unto it and beseech thee to be comforted unlesse Christ speak by them 't would be all fruitlesse Therefore get thy heart into a clear expectation for Christ to speak to thy heart by the Preacher that is to distill the dews and consolations of his spirit by it or all to no purpose So the Spouse Cant. 2.8 The voice of my Beloved v. 10. My Beloved spake and said unto me Rise up my Love and fair One and come away So Gant 4.16 Awake O North-winde and come thou South and blow upon my Garden that the Spices thereof may flow out which is the Spirit of Christ blowing upon the Ordinances causing the vertues thereof to flow out Therefore if thou still continuest a disquieted fearing perishing soul and pants after comfort and assurance Pray thy heart may be raised up to abstract from any power as the voice of man but wait that the Spirit of Christ may breathe in the voice and then thou art in a readier posture for the Lord to rebuke the Tempest of fears upon thee A poor Soul may take further encouragement beside the promises from the blessed experiences of many and many a comfortlesse creature who after many tempests perishings fears sinkings of spirit have at last by waiting publikely and privately for Christs voice found the rebuking power of it and their distempers sweetly allayed And even a sudden heavenly calm upon them There was a great calm saith the Text 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to smile such a calmnesse stillnesse such a wonderful serenity that is after a storm when the heavens and the earth seem as it were to smile So Christ smiles upon a soul having withheld his face and beauty and causeth a blessed serenity clearnesse quietnesse to be upon it sometimes by a sudden breaking in sometime by a secret graduall illapsing into a soul that it becomes comforted it knows not how ere it was aware Oh blessed for ever blessed the souls that wait and finde this And finde it Soul thou shalt if thou art in this posture described Let the Storm be what it will the clouds never so dark one ray and beam from Christ shall raise even a heaven in thy Spirit c. Thus far have I brought a Soul bottomed upon free and faithfull promises to the immediate expectation of Christ to rebuke the tempest and fears upon it to succour its perishing condition The Lord grant it may settle thee upon the power promise purpose delight of the Lord Jesus to do it I will a little speak of the wonders thou maist expect Obs 6. The calmed Soul is filled with the wonders of Christs power and love They marvelled saying What manner of man is this that the Windes and the Sea obey him His Name Isa 9. is called Wonderfull described to be Wonderfull in Counsell Excellent in Working Isa 28. last We may view those Meditations of the Saints when thus in the admiration of his wonderfull goodnesse and sweetnesse Psal 90.5 Many O Lord my God are thy wonderfull works which thou hast done and thy thoughts which are to usward they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee If I would declare and speak of them they are more then can be numbred So Psal 34.2 c. My Soul shall make her boast in the Lord c. Oh magnifie the Lord with me and let us exalt his Name together I sought the Lord and he heard me and delivered me out of all my sears This poor man cried unto him and he saved him out of all his troubles Oh taste and see that the Lord is good Blessed is the man that trusteth in him Psa 36.7 How excellent is thy loving kindenesse O God c. Psa 116.7 Return unto thy Rest O my Soul c. And what shall I render unto thee So Mic. 7.18,19 The Church is brought in so admiring Christ Who is a God like unto thee why that pardonest iniquity and passest by transgressions c. He will turn again though he hide his face he will have compassion upon us yea it will break forth Come and hear all ye that fear God and I will declare what he hath done for my Soul yea then Soul thou shalt know what is the exceeding greatnesse of his power towards them that beleeve according to the working of his mighty power Eph. 1.19 These wonders of Christs power and love will be thus enlarged in thy soul Oh the wonders of his power Who is like unto thee Indeed Lord who wast able at first to lay hold of me and take me as a brand out of the fire Oh Am I not saved as a brand out of the fire Zech. 3.2 Thou who wast able to say unto me Live when I was in my bloud dead as a stone in my sins Thou who wast able to subdue all the strong rebellion and obstinacy of my heart to turn the violent stream of it from earth to heaven yea thou wast able to deal with all mine iniquities and corruptions the least of which had been too strong for me yea thou wast able to rebuke all the tempestuous assaults of Satan such tempests such a perishing condition such fears upon a poor soul to command the waves to be still and they were so Oh who is like unto thee my Almighty glorious Lord Joyn this to the greater wonders of thy free-love who hadst love and bowels enough to regard such a rebellious wretch when thus in his bloud serving his lusts and loving pleasures more then God When I was daringly and delightfully sinning against thee Oh infinite Love to pity and support and succour such a poor tempestuous wretch as I was after thou hadst awakened me when fitter my self being Judge to have been a cast-away from thy presence for ever Oh the Ocean of grace Oh the wonders of thy love Oh the unfadomed heights and depths of it Eternity will but serve to admire and adore thee in it So sings the Spouse in the Song c. 3.6 filled with the loves of Christ Who is this that cometh out of the Wildernesse like pillars