an accuser acquiter and comforter was in Adam before his fall As long as Adam obeyed the commandement of God there was no cause that conscience should accuse him but as soone as he disobeyed Gods commandement conscience flew in his face as appeares by his flying from the face of God Which plainely shewes us this truth that conscience was in Adam before his fall but did not begin to accuse ' til Adam began to sin Secondly conscience say I is a naturall power which the joule of man hath c. Now whether this power be in the understanding onely or partly in the understanding and partly in the will I finde controverted amongst the learned My opinion I here humbly lay downe but I undertake not to state and determine the controversie This power we speak of I conceive to be a reflect act of the practicke understanding onely transcendently seconded by the power of the holy Ghost Saint Iohn confirmes the first that it is a reflect act of the practicke understanding onely where speaking of this power in the soule saith And hereby we doe know that we know him if we keepe his Commandements 1 Iohn 2.3 That is as if Iohn had said We doe view our waies by the word of God which is an act onely of the understanding and finding them to be in some measure levell with that holy rule we have this comfortable reflection backe upon our soules that our faith is not a fancy but a faith which worketh by love and so sincere and saving which reflection is no other as I conceive but an act of the understanding collecting a divine conclusion from divine premises He that keepeth Gods Commandements knoweth God savingly that he may safely conclude but I doe keepe the Commandements of God this I know for I have viewed the Commandements of God and my life by them and therefore I know that is I am assured that I truely and savingly know God which is no other but that power in the soule which we call conscience The Apostle Saint Paul I conceive confirmes the second that it is a reflect act of the understanding transcendently seconded by the holy Ghost where he saith My conscience bearing me witnesse in the holy Ghost Rom. 9.1 That is my conscience transcendantly seconded and assisted by the holy Ghost doth strongly testifie to my soule that I am full of bowels towards my kinsmen after the flesh and could doe any thing or suffer any thing for their good The order according to which the holy Ghost strikes in with conscience is this The understanding makes a double proposition one grounded in the word of God the other in the heart of man as thus He that keepeth the Commandements of God truely loves God this proposition is grounded in the word of God but I doe keepe the Commandements of God this is grounded in the heart of man And then drawes a conclusion from both therefore I doe truely love God This conclusion whilst holy and drawne from divine premises to wit the word of God and the grace of God in the heart of man the Spirit of God strikes in with the soule in making this conclusion and assists the weake soule so that he concludes thus with strong confidence that he truely loves God and not onely secretly assistes but seconds and saies the same thing to man that his owne spirit doth Then is fulfilled that of the Apostle the Spirit beares witnesse with our spirits that we are the Sonnes of God If the premisses be corrupt which the understanding makes for the minde makes propositions suitable to the light that is in it from which to argue the goodnesse or badnesse of man then the Divell that lying spirit strikes in and seconds the soule in that corrupt conclusion which he collects from corrupt principles concerning himselfe So that now the deluded soule is peremptory and wiser then ten men that give a reason in these is fulfilled that of the Apostle Their minds and consciences being defiled Thirdly I affirme conscience to be a naturall power which the soule of man hath above all unreasonable creatures c. Bruite beasts have no conscience and yet they better serve God in their kind then many of us which have conscience Bruit beasts want reason and therefore are not capable subjects of conscience and yet against reason and against conscience man ofttimes does worse then a beast Fourthly conscience say I is a naturall power which the soule of man hath above all unreasonable creatures to compare his waies by some rule and according as his waies agree or disagree with that rule so answerably to bear witnesse with or against him By the former part of this description is shewed unto us what conscience is according to its being in the soule It is a naturall power c. By the latter part of this description is shewed unto us what conscience is according to its office in the soule The office of conscience according to the description here given consists in two things First conscience compares a mans waies by some rule Secondly Conscience beares witnesse with or against a man according as a mans waies agree or disagree with that rule First say I conscience compares a mans waies by some rule If the understanding be enlightened with the truth to wit the word of God then conscience compares the waies of man by a perfect rule to wit the word of God But if the understanding be inlightned with naturall and morall principles onely then conscience compares a mans waies according to these principles only and so by an imperfect rule For 't is my judgment with submission to better that conscience in every man followes that light which the understanding holds up unto it This I know that a man may and often doth goe against conscience but conscience goes not against that light which the understanding holds up unto it A man may outwardly say this or that contrary to the light of his understanding but conscience inwardly speakes at the same time according to that light I will further cleare this unto you by an apt example Paul you know zealously persecuted the Church of God and his conscience for ought that I can finde never checkt him but doubtlesse rather acquitted him for it I meane as long as he remained unconverted And the reason I thinke is sufficiently rendred where 't is said that he did it ignorantly That is according to that light which his understanding held up unto him he thought he did God good service in sheading the blood of his Saints which me thinkes makes manifest what I say that conscience still followes the light of the understanding The Apostle Paul persecuted the Church of God and yet obtained mercie because saith the text he did it ignorantly hee did out of conscience as I may say shead the blood of the Saints But now the most men have received the knowledge of the truth therefore if now men persecute the Saints of
field shall yeeld no meate the flocke shall be cut off from the folds and there be no herd in the stalles yet I will rejoyce in the Lord I will joy in the God of my salvation saith the Prophet Hab. 3.17,18 Habakkuk will rise in judgement against a thousand thousand soules which would never judge God worthy to be lookt after muchlesse delighted in if he had not Corne and Wine Heaven and Earth to bestow upon his favorits This text I conceive is a plaine testimony that God alone is the object of divine joy that is not God as very wealthy and very bountifull but as very holy and an absolute compleat being above all things beside him This was Pauls joy to wit in God alone as he whom his conscience told him he served sincerely though weakely Upright men eye the divine rule in their rejoycing as well as in all other things Now the divine rule of joy is that it should be bounded and terminated in God Rejoyce in the Lord ye righteous Psal 97.12 This rule is repeated againe and againe in Scripture to note how apt we are to rejoyce in creatures and sinnes which are worse then any creatures and not in God as also to note how strictly God lookes at this that we should make him onely the object of our joy and all other good things as beames of this Sunne as blessings from his hand and so consequently to rejoyce still as long as we have communion with God and our consciences witnessing with us that we sincerely serve him though we have nothing else in the world beside him as Paul and Timothy did For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisedome but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the world c. Thirdly divine joy is called spirituall because all the manifestations of it are spirituall They that have this joy in their hearts do not let their tongues sing ribaldry and vanity such as flesh and blood delights in but they sing in the waies of the Lord Psal 138.5 That is they rejoyce in divine things to be thinking and speaking of and walking in the waies of the Lord. 'T was Pauls and Timothies matter of joy that they could walke sincerely in the waies of the Lord and this they humbly gloried in Such as have the joy of the Lord in their hearts their tongues speake and sing in such a manner that God is extolled and magnified according to one attribute or another which is making melody to God as the Apostle termes it As here in my text the Apostles so expressed divine joy that the power and goodnesse of the Lord were magnified that he could and would give internall comfort to those that did sincerely though weakely serve him when all externall comforts failed Divine joy doth not as carnall joy transport men into drunkards whore-masters wantons libertines and so turne them out of the waies of the Lord but raises their spirits to a higher pitch of love to God and so makes them walke more strictly and chearfully in the waies of God Divine joy makes a man rejoyce and worke righteousnesse and not rejoyce and worke wickednesse Thou meetest him that rejoyceth and worketh righteousnesse Isa 64.5 Paul Timothy thus rejoyced that they could worke righteousnesse that they could order their conversation sincerely though by many handled injuriously For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisedome but by the grace of God wee have had our conversation in the world c. 2 Divine joy is the soules rejoycing in God as reconciled in Christ Divine joy as man upon earth is the subject of it hath God in Christ for its object that is God as reconciled in Christ for otherwise God is an enemy and no man rejoyceth in an enemy And not onely so but we also rejoyce in God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom we have received the attonement Rom. 5.11 We cannot joy immediately in God as Adam could because of our sinne in Adam which made God angry with us we must now have some to interpose betweene God and us in whom is made up what is wanting in us and so Gods anger against us appeased and therefore 't is that the Apostle thus speakes in the person of the godly we joy in God through our Lord Iesus Christ by whom we have received the attonement This is sweetly set forth also unto us under metaphoricall termes by the Prophet Isaiah I will greatly rejoyce in the Lord my soule shall be joyfull in my God for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation he hath covered me with the robe of righteousnesse as a Bride-groome decketh himselfe with ornaments and as a Bride adorneth her selfe with Jewels Isa 61.10 God as cloathing us with the garments of salvation and as covering us with a robe of righteousnesse is the object of joy to fallen man and thus we know he doth in Christ God freely reveales an infinite love to man in Christ and this begets love to him and joy in him He washed away all our sinnes in Christs blood covers all our wants with Christs righteousnesse subjects his Sonne to suffer what we had deserved and to merit for us all that from which we were justly excluded to wit communion with God and eternall life This love God sheads abroad in the heart of man and this makes man love God and joy in him God out of Christ is no other but a condemner of man conscience so apprehending God is no other but a tormentour of man and man betweene both these is in no other but Hell and there is no joy in Hell God in Christ reconciles man to himselfe and then God joyes in man and man in God The blood of Christ makes peace betweene God and man and betweene man and his conscience and makes God acquit and conscience acquit God to speake peace though man be not perfect conscience to speake peace though man walke weakely yet whilst sincerely and this makes divine ioy in the heart in the midst of all troubles naturall or accidentall For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisedome but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the world c. You have had a briefe hint now by what hath beene said what that joy is which the testimony of conscience brings to the soule to wit a conciliatory joy as I may fitly call it A joy of peace and friendship betweene God and man and betweene man and himselfe to wit conscience Conscience tels that man which walkes sincerely that he for his part is at peace with him and that God is the like though men and divels be at variance with him and that he shall have favours spirituall and temporall here and eternally hereafter say and