is set all in a flame with love to God Friends observe this that proportionable to the apprehensions we have of the love of God to us in Jesus Christ such is the manifestation of our love to God what is the reason the Martyrs have embraced the flames with such courage which at other times it may be a few days before they were ready to sink at the apprehensions of the bitter cup they were to drink but the clear sence they had of the love of God to their souls We know this my Friends that the greater and clearer evidences we have of that good which at present we do receive from a Friend oâ— hopes to receive from them for the future it doth abundantly stir up our affections and inflame our love towards them if we look into the Corinthians we may see that God hath put Faith and Love together and what God hath joyned together let no man put asunder 1 Cor. 13.13 And now abideth Faith Hope and Charity Gal 5 6. Neither Circumcision availeth any thing nor Uncircumcision but faith which worketh by love Friends how do you find it what love have you to the worship of God to the Ordinances of God and to the people of God do your souls bear you witness that you can say of the word of God as David did that 't is sweeter than the honey or the honey-comb in the 3d. place Try it by your hope likewise a true faith doth always accompany a true hope 'T is true Friends we had need be criticol about these things for go and ask an unbeliever whether he loves God and he will answer you 't is pitty he should live else and again ask them whether they hope to have Salvation by Christ alone yes say they who do you think we should have it from besides 1 Joh. 3.3 But what saith the Apostle of this hope and every man that hath this hope he purifies himself as he is pure My Friends all the difference that is between faith and hope is this Faith doth respect the cetainty of the promise and hope doth respect the goodness of the thing promised and where one of these are there they are both for they both go together but now you may say what is the meaning of this purifying himself as he is pure can aâ—y one be so pure as God is My Friends 't is altogether impossible that the Creature should attain to that degree of perfection and purity that is in God pure signifies to be without mixture a person may be said to be purely evil as God is purely good he purifies himself as he is pure that is he hath not a heart for God another for the world he is really such as he seems to be he is without hypocrisie 4thly Again would'st thou know the soundness of thy Faith then try iâ— by thy constant implacable hatred of sin this we may see laid down as a true mark of Faith Acts 15.9 Purifying their hearts by Faith Faith doth present the soul with a Crucified Jesus as Crucified for it in particular the formal Professor pleaseth himself with this that Christ dyed for sinners and â—e are all sinners My Friends there is nothing that gives such a mortal wound to sin in the soul of believers as when they do apprehend that Christ did suffer such grievous things for its self in particular 5thly Wouldest thou know whether thy faith be right then see if thou hast a high esteem of Jesus Christ 1 Pet. 2.7 Unto you therefore that believe he is precious or he is a honour a true believer he looks upon it as his honour that he is a member of Christs mistical body that he is a branch in that blessed Vine he looks upon it as his honour that Christ will look upon him as his Servant as the Emperor Theodosius said he looked upon it to be more honour to him that he was a Servant of Jesus Christ then that he was Emperour of the World But I have seen such Christians that would be very forward to own the people of God and Messengers of Christ in times of prosperity but when the ways of God hath been persecuted the Ordinances of Christ hath been trampled under feet then they would look upon them as if they had never seen them before My Friends this is a bad sign of a true Faith and of a good Christian to you that believe he is an honour my Friends is Christ precious to you in all his Offices as King Priest and Prophet thou that art a believer I can tell how 't is with thee as well as thy self thou dost never more rejoyce then when thou canst experience the power of Christ in thy Soul in subduing of thy Corruptions and bringing under the Old man and is he pretious to thee in all his attributes a wicked man God is precious to him in his mercies but as for the power of God and the Justice of God they cannot indure to hear of let a Minister go and tell them of the terrors of God they will presently cry Oh there is a Legal Preacher indeed enough to make one run mad in a word to a true believer Christ is precious to him in all his Offices and attributes and in all his providential dispensations and in all his promises and in his threatnings he is precious to every true believer Again sixthly wouldest thou know whether thou art indeed a true believer then see whether thou hast the witness of it in thy self 1 John 5.6 He that believeth hath the Witness in himself Oh but me-thinks I hear some poor soul ready to say Oh if it must be so I am in a worse condition then I was aware of I thought I could experienced some of the other Tryals but I have so little of the spirits witness in me that I question whether I have any true faith Now the Devil is very subtile as he will perswade a wicked man that he hath the marks of a true believer so he will perswade a true believer that he hath them not when he hath them as for example suppose a person is in great trouble for fear they don't love God they come into the Congregation and there it may be God hath directed his Minister to such a subject where he hath been treating on such a truth of Gods love to us and of our love to him if God hath loved thee then he hath subdued thy Corruptions these little Foxes he hath taken and destroyed now it may be the spirit of God hath set home this word on the soul and that he can say this hath been my condition Now Friends there was the witness that we are speaking of Rom. 8.16 The Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are the Children â—f God Now my Friends you that are so ready to say that you have not the witness of God in you wouldest thou part with that little glimmeâ—ing hope thou hast of true Faith
sorrow and health without sickness and life without death and shall have the shinings of Gods Countenance without the least mixture of the hiding of his face and as for thou that aâ—t an unbeliever what wilt thou do 2 vast d fference there will be between thy condition and a true believers when thou art cast into everlasting flames which I wish that none here may experience the torments of when thou shalt never more have the least hope of the least Ray of the Son of Consolation shineing on thee Oh then what woe and terror will surprize thy Soul and what unspeakable horror to think that thou hast been all thy life time heaping up to thy self wrath against the day of wrath I should have proceeded to other inferences but I shall defer them till the Afternoon Consider what hath been said and the Lord give you understanding The end of the Morning Sermon THen in the sixth place if it be so that all true believers shall be saved it may inform us of the great necessity we have of hearing the Word Preached though my Friends God is able to convert without means he is a free agent he can work how he will and when he will but Preaching is the ordinary means whereby God doth turn Sinners from Satan to God 2 Chron. 4 4 5. where you may see there is a molton Sea which was a Type of Christ it stood upon 12. Oxen three looking towards the North and three looking towrds the West and three looking towards the South and three looking towards the East and if you look into the Revelations there you shall see the Elect shall come from the East and from the West and from the North and from the South and there is twelve doors open in the new Jerusalem three North three West three South and three East Christ he is the Molten Sea through whom 't is we are brought to Life he it is that is the Sea of Grace and mercy for poor Sinners therefore if you would have this Sea of Grace the Lord Jesus Christ we must have an eye unto the twelve Oxen the twelve Apostles and their successors which are the Ministers of the Gospel and faith the Apostle in Rev. 10.17 So faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the Word of God My Friends I durst not limit the Holy One of Israel so as to say there is no way to convert a Soul but by Preaching of the Gospel but this is the ordinary way God is pleased to make use of for the opening of their eyes that are blinded by the god of this world for we are all naturally blind and we must lye by the way side to be cured of this blindness the Preaching of the word they are Gods Pools of Bethesda whereby he doth cure those that are troubled with spiritual lameness and those that come into Congregations possessed with Devils as in Mark. 1.23.24.25 He casts out a Devil of Pride out of one Soul and a Devil of Covetuousness out of another Soul and the Devil of Lust out of another and those devillish Lusts Christ doth cast out while we ere in the Synagogue Then 7thly It may inform us what enemies they are to our immortal Souls that go about to deprive us of the means of Grace you see Preaching is the ordinary means for the Conversion of Souls so they must be soul-murderers that go about to hinder the preaching of the Gospel Eighthly It may inform us of the uncharitableness and sensoriousness of those persons that for smal differences from them in circumstances of Religion will send whole Congregations to everlasting perdition that if they cannot comply with them in every circumstance they are presently all damned But we see that it is not being of this or that perswasion that will bring us to Heaven but believing in Jesus Christ but yet my Friends though such a thing is desirable and we hope will be when the Lyon shall lye down with the Lamb and the Leopard shall eat grass with the Oxe yet in the mean while let us not pass such uncharitable censures on those that cannot comply with us in every circumstantial point in Religion you see faith is the main thing that the Apostle drives at believe in the Lord Jesus Christ that is the main thing that is to be looked at I shall now come to an use of examination if it be so that none but true believers shall be saved then it lyes upon us to see whether we are such believers or not My Friends if any of us were but to lay out a little money upon a purchase though of a little value how circumspect should we be least our evidences should prove false and this care is not discommendable neither but how will this condemn the practice of the greatest part of the World that are so strict and careful about trifles and neglect the concerns of their immortal Souls I shall endeavour to lay down some Rules and Tryals which by the assistance of Gods spirit we may know whether we are true believers and so consequently such as are in a state of Salvation First would'st thou know whether thou art a true believer then try whether thou dost know God for we will never venture any great concernment upon a person that we know little of thou that art a believer thou hast greater concerns to venture on God then ten thousand worlds me-thinks I hear some say what do you think we don't know God to be our Father and Christ our Redeemer My Friends have you any reality of the knowledg of God in your Souls have you a practical knowledg of him see what our Lord Christ saith Joh. 17.3 And this is Life Etarnal that they may know the only true God and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent the Practical knowledg of God is Eternal life in its incoation My Friends do you know God so in his power as to fear him and in his mercy to love him and in his omnisciency not to commit any sin in secret though the eye of the Creator be upon thee this was a sign that Joseph had a true knowledg of God that when he was tempted to sin which possibly might have been hid from the eyes of the World yet he dared not to commit it but on the contrary if you know so little of God in his mercy that it doth not draw out your love to him and know him so little in his Justice that you see no need of Jesus Christ to be your Redeemer and you know him not in his faithfulnesses that you dare not trust him then 't is a sign thou art an unbeliever canst thou say with Paul I know whom I have believed 2 Tim. 12. 2ly If thou art one that art a true believer then thou art one that hast an indeared affection ro God when a Soul believes that God hath sent his dear Son to dye for him and this comes to be realized to the Soul that soul
A Spiritual LOOKING-GLASS Wherein Is briefly discoursed the Excellency and the necessity of saving FAITH AND Likewise how it may be known whether we have this FAITH or no. BEING The Substance of two Sermons Published in London July the 23. 1671. By Sam. Pack Preacher of the Gospel Printed in the Year 1671. A Spiritual Looking-glass Acts 16. V. 31. And they said believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved IN this Chapter we have a conspicuous manifestation of that enmity that is in the Devil that evil one against God the fountain of goodness We see in this Chapter that no sooner had the Lord Jesus Christ that Prince of peace sent Paul and Silas those Sons of Peace to Preach unto the World the Gospel of peace in order to the bringing in of poor Souls to the God of peace but presently the Devil shewed his enmity against mod by endeavouring to stop the course of the mospel and thereby to hinder Souls from coming to Jesus Christ The Prince of Darkness that rules in the hearts of the Children of darkness did no sooner see that ouâ— Lord Jesus Christ had by his Servant Paul cast the Devil of sooth-saying out of a Maid but presently be shews his enmity in filling the heart of her Master with a persecuting spirit being ushered in by an inordinate love to the World and this we see in the 19. vers And when her Masters saw the hope of their gains was gone that caught Paul and Silas and drew them into the Market place unto the Rulers This poor Maids Masters instead of being thankful to God that bad gained the Soul of a poor Maid thâ—t did practice unlawful arts he was inraged because that their temporal earthly gain was gone I do verily thâ—nk that t is one of the surest peices of Armour that the Devil hath even this inordinate love to the World for the defence of his own Kingdom when the Devil sees that no course will serve to keep souls at a distance from Christ then he betakes himself to this wâ—apon the inordinate love to the world and that doth seldom or never fail him and this we may see in Demus Demus he made a large profession of Christ as you may see in the Epistle to Philemon 24. v and yet you see the Devil overcame him with this approved peice of armour inordâ—nate love the world ancl did thereby bring him to Apostacy 2. Tim. 4.10 well we see how far the Devil did prevail not only to set this poor Maids Masters in a rage but also to set the Rulers in a rage likewise nay he prevailed so far that they were scourged and they were thrown into Prison and cast into very great afflictions and had their feet made fast in the stocks new one would have thouâ—ht that it was high time for the Devil to get into his Chariot of Tryumph now one would have thought that the enemy having such advantage and those servants of God such disacvantage as they had that now the Gospel would have been stopped in that place and that the Devil should have lost no more of his Subjects for my Friends if you look in 1 he beginning of the Chapter you shall see in the 9th vers there appeared to Paul a Vision for to go over to Macedonia without question this Vision which Paul saw was a great encouragement to him to go to Mâ—â—edonia and now when he was come there as soon as ever he had cast a Devil out of one Maid presently they must be cast inro Prison without question had not God come in with fresh supplies of comfort these poor men would have been at a great loss they would have been much disheartned in their work and this the Devid knew would be a very great discouragement to them Ezek. 1.16 but now my Friends behold a wheel within a wheel all this while the providence of God doth seem to go upon the wheels as if he had not cared what became of his Servants nor what became of his own glory and of these poor souls that he had commanded these men to come into Macedonia to convert but now my Friends here is a wheel within a wneel here is the over-ruling and the infinite wisdom of God appearing in the very nick of time catching the crafty in his own device Job 5.12.13 and carrying the counsel of the wicked and a crafty Devil that having vented his malice and his rage against the servants of mod thought himself now sure enough of the day and that his Kingdom should not be molested in that place but we see that though the Devil is called an old Serpent yet the Antient of days did out-wit him Rev. 20.2 Dan. 7.22 1 Pet. 5.8 and though the Devil is called a Lyon for his strength and power and a a roaring Lyon for his fury yet the Lyon of the Tribe of Judah was too many for him our Lord Christ did make this very â—ages of Sathan this discovery of his malice a means to throw down the Devils Kingdom and to exalt and propagate hâ—s own for we see that when Paul and Silas was brought into the Prison instead of being discouraged they sung Psalms instead of lying there until the Irons had entred into their souls every Prisoners bands was unloosned well what follows the Goaler he comes in and he finds the doors open he thought his prisoners had been fled and now what course doth he take he draws out his sword to murder himself he had been doing what lay in him to murther his soul all the days of his life before and now he was about by one act to murther both soul and body together Now without question the Devil that had encoutaged him in the exasperating of his cruelty on these worthy servants of God he was now as ready to rejoyce in the downfall of this poor Creature My Friends by the way I pray excuse this digression O let it be a means to make us have very low contemptible thoughts of this ill conditioned Master the Devil that when his servants have done him the utmost seâ—vice they can he is so far from having ever the better thoughts of them and from loving of them the better that he doth wait his opportunity and doth prompt them on in those actions that he may bring inevitable ruine and and destruction upon them I do verily believe this that when the Devil saw the poor mans sword drawn and the point of it ready to be set again his breast that he did rejoyce to see the poor man ready to tumble headlong into everlasting flames but now this wise God Rom. 16.27 Rev. 1.14 whose head is as white as wool did frustrate the expectation of this subtile serpent he did catch the crafty in his own devices you need not question but the Devil did endeavour to help forward this cruty which this Goaler did exercise towards these seâ—vants of God and you