not where to be better then he will stick resolvedly to him Ioh. 6. 66 67 68. There are two great Pillars upon which Religion stands The one is a belief that God is and the other that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him Heb. 11. 6. Well let this dwell upon you then that you cannot better your state nor promote your happiness any way in all the world so much as by Religion No pleasure nor profit to that of Religion Riches and honour are with her all her ways are pleasantness she is a tree of Life to them that lay hold upon her and happy is he that retaineth her Prov. 3. 17 18. Here is true delight Psal. 40. 8. Rom. 7. 22. Here is meat and drink Iohn 4. 34. work and wages Psal. 19. 11. Pr. 5. That your time is short and your work great and must be done now or never Our Saviour made Religion his business Luke 2. 49. And Oh how busie was he He went up and down doing good and so much was he taken up with his work that he had not time to take his bread yea his carnal friends seeing how earnest he was said he was besides himself and began to lay hold on him Act. 10. 38. Mark 3. 20 21. And what did put him upon this earnest diligence The sense of the shortness of his time Ioh. 9. 4. Oh Sirs remember with him that now you have a day to work in and you have but a day and the night is hasting upon you when there is no work to be done no more praying no more hearing no more exhorting nor admonishing Now serve your generation now exhort one another dayly doe good with your Estates call upon your friends dayly for it must be now or never let it ever dwell upon you That there is no work nor device nor knowledge nor wisdom in the grâ—…ve whither thou art going and that will put you upon doing the work of Religion with all your might Be convinced of the weight of your work and that will make you answer intervening disturbance that would take you off as Nehemiah did Chap. 6. 3. Then remember of what dreadfull consequence t is your salvation is at stake and therefore you must work it out with fear and trembling Prin. 6. That except you make it your business all your Religion is in vain While you halt and halve it in Religion you come but half way to heaven Settle it upon your hearts that except you are throughout Religious you are Religious to no purpose Be sure you shall never come to heaven except you seek it in Gods order Mat. 6. 33. First seek c. It were not suitable to the wisdom of God so to undervalue his Christ and glory as to throw them away on those that account other matters better worth their pains and care Rule 4. You must have the love of God and Religion lying next your hearts Love is a busie Grace 1 Thes. 1. 3. Your labour of Love We may say of Love as Solomon of the vertuous woman she layeth her hands to the spindle and her hands hold the distaff she eateth not the bread of idleness she worketh willingly with her hands Prov. 31. Love will constrain you and put you upon a willing and dilligent keeping Gods commandements 2 Cor. 5. 14. 1 Ioh. 5. 3. Get your hearts in love with the Laws and Waies of God who more busie than David Morning evening and noon he was praying and praising yea talking and thinking of God and his ways all the day and all from his love to them Psal. 55. 17. 119. 147. 118. 71. 24. Oh how I love thy Law Psal. 119. 97. Lord I have loved the habitation of thy house Psal. 26. 8. You must beware of taking too much of the world into your hands When a mans heart and head is full as it can hold of worldly care and businesses and he cannot tell which way to turn himself in a crowd and throng of worldly affairs how can the care of Religion live in such a ones heart Luke 10. 41 42. If Martha will trouble her self about many things the ONE THING needfull shall be neglected You must buy and marry and weep and rejoyce and trade and care for these things as if you did it not not laying too much stress upon these things nor engaging too eagerly in seeking after them or else you will neglect the better things and learn to pray and hear and read as if you did it not 1 Cor. 7. 30. T is true that the work of your callings is part of your business for Heaven but then you must be sure to keep your affairs so at command as that you may have so much room for dayly Prayer and Meditation and self-reflection as may season your worldly business with Religion and sanctisie it to you that it may become a help and not a snare Rule 6. You must alwaies work as under your Masters eye When the Masters eye is known to look on there is as much work done in an hour as many times is done in two when the sence of his oversight doth not quicken the workman Psal. 16. 8. I have set the Lord alwaies before me Rule 7. You must ever carry your eye upon your mark So did Paul in the text I press towards the Mark for the prize of the high-calling of God in Christ The mark that a Believer ayâ—…s at is Gods Glory and his own that God may be glorisied in him and he with God This glorious prize will animate you to your work and swallow up the sense of labour and difficulty and make you for the joy set before you to endure the Cross and despise the shame Heb. 12. 2. Paul carried the Crown incorruptible in his eye and that made him with patience invincible to run and fight and keep under his body 1 Cor. 9. 25 26 27. All the afflictions and reproaches that attended Gods poor people and wayes in the time of their thralldom could not discourage Moses when he eyed the recompence of reward Heb. 11. 25. 26. Keep heaven in sight and your work will go on with pleasure and all your difficulties will seem light and easie and not worthy once to enter into comparison with the expected bliss 2 Cor. 4. 17 18. Rom. 8. 18. Rule 8. You must at the entrance of every action remember the Rules that you are to act by Else in vain doe you receive and lay up Rules if when occasion is you doe not apply them to the particular Case To what purpose have you rules for prayer if you do not remember and use them when you come to prayer To what purpose have you rules to examine your selves by if you do not observe them in examining your selves accordingly As ever you desire to make any thing of your Religion remember when you come to your tables the rules that you are to eat by when you go to your
of this that made this rich worldling to be branded for a fool Give Alms plentifully and provide for your selves Bags that wax not old be sparing as to your selves but lay out and spare not upon the Service of God Give your selves unto prayer let reading the Word Meditationâ—… Self-examination be your daily exercises do good to all men serve your generation with diligence study to be useful sill up your relations with duties and when you have done all go out of your selves look wholly unto Jesus and live by faith this do and you shall have treasure in Heaven and let death come when it will it will but set you in possession of glory But woe to them that have laid up nothing on the other side the Grave Death will break them for ever and will prove their eternal undoing 4. Be the death of your sins that they may not fasten like Hell-hounds upon you when you are most helpless Mortifie your corruptions and then the bitterness of Death is past Sin is the sting of Death that makes it dreadful that makes it hurtful O do not arm your enemy against you death cannot hurt you but by the weapons that you put into its hands by your sins if Sin be dead death is conquered This is the top of misery when sin and death shall sly upon a poor creature together when death as the unclean Spirit taking with him seven other Spirits worse than himself shall set a man's Sins all upon him and besides the terrour of its own apaling looks shall shew him the more ghastly and affrighting faces of those Fiends and Furies his unpardoned sins this is the sting of death and makes that the King of terrours 5. Observe the approaches of your enemy daily and remember that you are for ought you know more than half dead already Let not gray hairs be here and there upon you and you know it not observe all the warnings of death and consider in all your pains and insirmities that these are but twitches and items from death How often is death knocking at your doores Death hath a great part of you already in possession whatsoever is past is death's and how little how very little is to come God knows sure I am nothing is yours but the present time Christians shall Death get ground upon you every day and be marching up towards you and will not you provide accordingly and make preparations for it every day as Death comes daily towards you do you labour to make it good against Death Let your fortifications go on daily let some breach be made up let somewhat be mended every day forget not that holy Counsel to meditate every evening that seeing thy dayes are numbred there is one more of thy number spent and thou art now nearer to thy end by a day 6. Dare not to live in such a case or course that you would not dare to dye in How know you but your next step may be into the grave and would you be found in your sins how do you know but death may meet you at the next turning and O how unwelcome a meeting will it be if you be found by it laden with the gains of unrighteousness or with lusts and pleasures would you have Death to find you out of your harnesses would you meet your enemy without a weapon or be found by him in a careless secure and sleeping posture If not how dare you live at such a rate are you at an agreement with Death 7. Be alwayes in your Fathers business that Death may not be able to find you doing evil or doing nothing the holy Calvin would not sorhear his labours in his dying Sickness but when perswaded to give over replyed what shall my Lord come and find me idle it was said of the laborious Willet who was alwayes very early at his work that he was half way on his journey before others did set out Blessed is that Servant whom his Lord when he cometh shall find so doing Remember in what you undertake that Death may overtakq you before you have ended therefore see that you do nothâ—…ng without Gods warrant carry this with you and you need not fear Death's surprisal Woe unto you if Death find you with your work to do How holily how happily ended that Blessed Saint Mr. Lovo who could dare to say in his last Prayer Father I have glorisied theâ—… on Earth I have sinished the work which thou gavest stâ—…ma to do and now O Father glorifie me withthy own self Surely the end of that man was peace The last words that ever he spake were Blessed be God for Jesus Christ. Blessed be God for peace of Conscience He lived a life of exemplary diligence and the comfort of his death answered the holy painfulness of his life This was Paul's joy I have fought a good sight I have sinished my course I have kept the faith henceforth is laid up for me tâ—…e Crown of life 8. Get Conscience to be your friend least that should set Death upon you to worry you when yóu come to dye Beware you mistake not the slumber of Conscience for a setled peace the Serpent may be but frozen in your bosoms when you think him dead Death will rouze the sleeping Lyon and then Oh fearful work that he will make his roaring will shake the heart of Rock and apale the countenance of Kings and loose their joynts and break all their bones If you be wise get and keep a good Conscience carry it to the fountain opened for sin and for uncleanness get it sprinkled with the blood of Christ. Exercise your selves to keep a Conscience void of osfence towards Goâ—… 〈◊〉 towards all men In all your undertakings let Conscience have the casting voice ask counsel of it diligently hear its rebukes patiently thankfully as a precious balm that will not break your heads make it to give in its judgment about your Estates If it be confident be sure it be upon Scripture evidence if it be doubtful get it well setled in time if it condemn you away with speed to your Redeemer sue out your pardon get it purified and pacified Follow after peace and holiness but accept of no peace but of God's speaking Please Conscience rather than all the world keep her and she shall keep you they that are careless of defending Conscience are preparing for their own torment at death 9. Remember your Sick-bed resolutions and set a mark upon those things that did make death look most ghastly Woe to you if Sickness find you again in the same sins which formerly stung you what will you say to Conscience or how will you look Death in the face if you be found at last to have been false to your Sick-bed vows Alphonsus King of Aragon sent to the Bishop to know how he should do to become a good man he answered he should be the man he promised to be when last sick of the Gout 10. Keep no
heart wouldst thou live in heaven wouldst thou walk in the light of Gods countenance grow in grace have thy corruptions overcome and subdued Behold a most excellent receipt the best that ever was prescribed Seventhly Consider with what face wilt thou be able to go to God and beg of him to subdue thy corruptions and to strengthen thy graces when thou wilt not use the means Think upon it with what face wilt thou be able to look up to God and put up such a petition Eighthly How wilt thou be able to excuse thy self from hypocrisie if thou neglect this duty When thou dost hear it laid down as a Character of sincerity not to live in the neglect of any known duty Ninthly Consider what base ingratitude you will be guilty of both to God in sending his servant among you and to his servant for all the care and pains that he hath taken for your souls Tenthly Consider what answer will you be able to make to God or how you will be able to look his servant in the face another day when he and you must stand together and give up your accompt he of his doctrine and you of your obedience to it Eleventhly Consider how conscience will sting thee for this neglect when thou comest to dye Ah Christian when thou shalt be ready to leap into eternity and shalt want assurance not knowing whether thy lot shall fall either in heaven or hell And conscience shall tell thee if thou hadst taken such a course thou mightest have had assurance when thou shalt with grief of soul remember this and the other miscarriage and that if thou hadst taken this course thou mightest have prevented this trouble O how will this adde to thy sorrow and break thy heart I come now to give some directions for the constant conscionable easie performance of this duty First Set about this course speedily The longer thou dost delay the work the more difficult thou wilt find it VVhat is said of repentance is true here he that is not fit to day will be less fit to morrow Secondly Be deeply humbled that thou hast neglected such a duty so long Hath it been out of ignorance bewail thy ignorance Hath it been out of laziness bewail that when men would make the building strong they will lay the foundation low It is a good way to be constant and successful in any duty to begin with sorrow and humiliation Thirdly Do it out of a principle of conscience in obedience to Gods command because it is thy duty and God commands it Fourthly Bless God for making known this duty and prescribing to thee so easie away for the performing of it Bless God for making known the duty aâ—…d God will bless thee in the doing of it Fisthly VVhen you come together let this duty be the matter of your conference or at least be osten speaking one to another of it Doubtless it will be good for the carrying on of this work to choose out a Christian friend and for these to agree together and unbosome themselves each to other what doth hinder the work and what benefit they find c. and engage one another to take up this course and be constant in it whatsoever times may come Sixthly Take heed of formality or keeping on a round in the duty without a due regard of the end of the duty Take some time once in a week or fortnight and call thy heart to an accompt how thou hast sped what thou hast got Seventhly Take heed of resting in the duty If thou do 〈◊〉 make an Idol of the duty God will make nothing of it God will curse the work and blast thy design Eightly Be careful to live up to those Rules by which thou hast engaged to examine thy self As he said of prayer If thy praying do not make thee leave off sinning thy sinning will make thee leave off praying So here if thy examining thy self do not make thee to leave off thy remissness thy remissnesse will certainly make thee leave off thy self-examination VVhen a man hath been careless in the day and come to read over these questions and conscience shall answer guilty in most of these things this will make the work so tedious that thou wilt never long bear the trouble of it Unless thou art able to live up to these rules thou wilt never be able to hold on in it long And therefore remember this if at any time you find that you have been carelesse â—…n the day foregoing be sure in the next morning to set up a new resolution to stick close to these rules Undo all that you have done before as it were and begin again Try in the strength of God what you can do this day how exact you can be this day Ninthly Let us set about the work with some shore ejaculation to God for his Assistance in it and his blessing upon it Tenthly Solemnly engage to God that you will take up this course and be constant in it and never lay it down what ever times may come and temptations may assault you When God doth enjoyn any duty he requires all the means that tend to the performing of that duty Now this is the best means that can be thought upon for every one to engage to God that he will set upon it and be constant in it I know that the deceitful heart will be very backward they are very shy of such engagements But if they are remember this that there is something in the bottom which you will do well to look out And when you have found it out to cast it forth with indignation VVhy should we be backward to do that between God and our selvs which we have done publickly before many witnesses and I believe shall be called to do again To set about this work is no more than you have done already when you sate under that great ordinance and set your seals that you would perform all the duties of the new Covenant And did you except this You will find this engagement a great help to the work Let us this night before we sleep put this direction in practice engage your selves to God in some such words as these O eternal God thou that searchest the heart and wilt not hold them guiltless that take thy name in vain especially in solemn Covenants made with thy self I do here solemnly promise that I will set upon this duty of daily self-examination and in this practise to live and dye Such engagements God is well pleased with Jerem. 30. 21 Who is this that engageth his heart to draw nigh to me As if the Lord had said come thou art welcome I take this kindly from thee A serious call to Christians to win Souls to Christ with helps thereunto Prov. 11. 30. And he that winneth Souls is wise IN this verse we have set forth unto us the excellency of a Righteous man and that in two things First He is more useful than
it with such tenderness to them as may make this bitter pill to go down How do many souls miscarry to all eternity for want of professors faithful dealing with them Oh is it not enough that we have the guilt of our own sins upon us but must we needs have the guilt of our Neighbours sin upon us too Ah Brethren this is enough to convince us that we have little Love to our Brethrens souls in that we have so little care to reprove their sins Fifthly By your convincing conversations Live before all thou dost converse with in the convincing power of a holy Life This is the way to convince them 1 Pet. 3. 1 2. Likewise you wives be in subjection to your own husband that if any obey not the word they also may without the word be won by the conversations of the wives while thy behold your chast conversation coupled with fear Observe here First That even those that be weakest and seemingly out of a capacity to win souls may by their Godly conversations win souls Women who more weak than they Do not you think that this belongs onely to Ministers to win souls this belongs to all Secondly Observe that a careful and tender walking in the duties of our Relations towards men with a conjunction with the duties of piety towards God is a most powerful means to convert souls When wives shall be strict in their profession and yet not be in subjection to their husbands this will offend the men and not work upon them Your profession and practice must one answer the other and then you are like to gain others I beseech you take this course to gain souls to Christ let there be a suteableness in all the parts of your conversation be the same at home that you are abroad and bring forth your Religion into your Shops and Trades and Fields That whosoever converse with you may see the power of Godliness in you Sixthly By your frequent exhortations Hebrews 3. 13. But exhort one another dayly while 't is called to day lest any be hardned through the deceitfulness of sin Observe it 't is not the duty of Ministers onely to abound in exhortations but 't is the work of you all Every one must look to his Neighbours Soul and that daily There must be instancy and frequency in this work and the reason is lest he be hardned Dost thou see such a Neighbour fall into sin go to him It may be thou wilt do it hereafter why it may be the man may be hardned It may be the man may dye or thou mayest not have the opportunity or you may be removed from one another and the work may be for ever cut off if thou Neglect it Seventhly By your careful observation of all those advantages that God hath put into your hands for the dealing with your Brothers Soul Consider and study with thy self what advantages thou hast upon him First Take the advantage of affliction It may be he is taken down by affliction Now go and warn him of his sin It may be now he will hearken to thee Job 36. 8. 9. 10. Secondly Make use of thy Relation It may be thou art some near Relation in the flesh to him take that advantage to be dealing with him for his eternal good Thirdly Make use of his dependance upon thee It may be he is such a one as is concerned in thy good-will to him it may be he works for thee or depends upon thy Charity for his livelyhood take this advantage upon him it may be he will hearken to thee Fourthly Make use of thy interest in him It may be he hath some affection for thee make use of it for God And this may be a means to win him to Christ. Rev. 3. 1. I know thy works that thou hast a name that thou livest and art dead THese words are part of Christs Epistle from heaven to the Church of Sardis wherein he shrewdly checks her hypocrisie and formality and throughout gives counsels and directions for her recovery out of that sad estate from the words we have given you this observation Doct. That the Lord Jesus Christ doth take special notice of and makes strict observation upon the works and ways of his professed people He takes notice of their works for the matter of them for the quantity for the quality of them as hath been shewed We gave you the Reasons for confirmation and made entrance into the Application and have applyed it as to the two first branches to wit the matter and the quantity of our works To come now to the Application of the third thing namely the quality of them Use. Is it so that the Lord Jesus Christ doth take such notice of our works for the quality of them then this may be usefull by way of Reprehension and Exhortation First For Reprehension this reproves us that we rest so much in the work done and do so little enquire into the quality of our works as to the sincerity and soundness of them O my Brethren how often do we pray and never examine how we have prayed and hear and never enquire how we have carried it while we have been hearing O how many a mans bosome am I now in Brethren this is a great evil among men Yea I fear among Gods own people that there is not that care to look into their duties how they are performed Brethren if the Lord Jesus Christ did as you look no farther than the outside of your duties and the work done then you may rest in that O but Jesus Christ he looks into the inside of them and he labours to see what there is of soundness and sincerity in them And seeing the Lord Jesus Christ looks so narrowly into them should not you This is the cause of many sins and mischiefs among Prosessors First This is the cause of much undoing Self-deceit when persons rest in the work done and do not carefully examine what principles they did act by and ends they did act for this doth cause many souls to be undone to their destruction This was the reason why Sardis was so miserably out and Laodicea that she was so much mistaken they kept on the trade of Religious duties and because the thing was done and the duty performed with conâ—…tancy they thought they were in a good state You know the speech of that Church I am rich c. you are to understand it of spiritual Riches she thought her self upon the growing hand O but when Jesus Christ comes and sees how little sincerity there was in them he disrellisheth them and shews them that their works were not perfect before him And thus it is with many Professors in these days that because they keep on in family-Family-prayer and good duties they think all is well and for want of looking into the Spring of their duties and their ends in them they are undone by them O what a miserable deceit is this when a poor creature
whether they be going forward or going backward all this is from want of care to examine and enquire into their duties For want of this men do not know whether they be sound or unsound for how doth a man know the tree but by the fruit When all is done 't is mens actual obedience that is the great evidence that their estates must be tryed by Whatsoever seeming principles of grace and life and love may seem to be within and good resolutions yet if all this be not strong enough to bring forth the fruits of obedience in a holy self-denying and flesh displeasing godliness all is unsound But then we mâ—… not look onely to the outside of our obedience we must not take the Carkass without the soul. Now when persons do not look into their duties but rest in the work done how can they make any judgment into their estate by them So many that are sound Christians do not know whether they are decaying or increasing for want of this because they do not look into their duties how they perform them Christians how do you perform your duties Do you more look into them how sweet they are to you whether it is better than it was Christians you must look to this are you more extensive and intensive in your duties Are you more extensive Heretofore you looked onely at home to do your selves good do you do good now to others Heretofore Religion was consined to your knees but now do you bring it forth into your Shops and Callings Hereâ—…osore you were for personal godliness but are you now for Relative godliness Heretofore you were for duties of the first Table onely but now do you put both Tables together this would be a good sign but for want of mens searching into this they are at a loss they do not know whether they are better or worse declining or increasing Fifthly This is the cause of so much 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in duty When a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 know that there will be a strict 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 into him his preparation will be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but when he fears not that he 〈◊〉 the more remisse So 't is here If we 〈◊〉 a strict examination into our hearts then they will be the more careful to ply the work the more when they know they shall be looked after But when they know they shall not be looked into they will do the work thereafter Beloved if we would do the work of Religion to purpose we must deal by our hearts as we would by trewantly servants if you would have any thing done you must keep your eye upon them If you keep your selves to this course constantly to enquire into your duties how they were done then your hearts will be careful to make thorough work of it And indeed this enquiring into your duties is not onely a means to make your hearts sincere in duty but it is a great part of sincerity That man that makes no enquiry into his heart that man is an hypoerite there is no soundness in that man And the lesse care thou hast in looking into thy heart the less there is of Christianity in thee Sixthly This is that that puts Christ so much out of use O Brethren would you know the Reason why Christ is so little set by Why it is because we are not thorowly acquainted with our defects Were we much searching into our duties then we should fly to our Advocate and make use of him And after the performing of our duties fly to him for a covering of our nakedness and shame Second Use of exhortation Let us do likewise if Christ take such notice of our duties O be much in observing your own duties How your hearts carry it in your duties If I could but perswade my self and my hearers to the observing of these two Directions we should make another manner of progress in Religion O That you would be but perswaded First In the entrance of your duties set before you your rule foâ—…â—…hat duty as the Schollar doth his coppy and do your work by rule You know the Mason will lay the line before he will lay the stone in the foundation or else he may commit many errors and the building may come to nothing So when you come to perform your duties set your rule before you Suppose you come to pray have some thoughts of it what be the rules you are to pray by Consider you are not to come in your own names but in Christs Take heed that you come not in your own Rignteousness but Christs And go out to Christ for strength Remember that God calls for faith and life induty And so when you come to hear consider what rules have I to hear by And so in giving your Alms. And then your work is like to be done to purpose Secondly Reflect upon your rule in the close of your duty and examine whether your work hath been done by rule or no. Observe what graces have been acting in your duty and thankfully take notice of the influences of your graces Take notice what corruptions have been working in your duty and take the shame of it before God that you should thus miscarâ—…y If these two rules were but observed by us we should come to another manner of proficiency in Religion than we do But more particularly let me give you three directions for your duties First Take special notice of the ends of your duties O How many do miscarry for want of a Right understanding in this Come see my zeal for the Lord of hosts said John And all this while he was â—…t Acting for himself And because he did Gods work for such carnal ends God accounts the blood that he had shed to be so much murder and requires it afterwards at his hands Hos. 1. 4. The Pharisees were a very strict generation in the performance of their duties Much in Alms and much and long in prayer and yet all rejected because they did it for carnal ends Math. 23. 5. Therefore I beseech you as you Love your souls look to your ends in praying When you come to prayer Consider what end do I propound in this duty Is not this done out of custome because 't is the custome of my family to pray morning and evening When you go to visit the sick is it onely a civil custom that I am going about or am I going to visit Jesus Christ in a sick servant of his And so of our Alms. If a man set out with never so much diligence in the morning and it be to a wrong point he is all the while out of his way Although a man cannot in every motion of the day mind his end yet in every solemn action as I have shewed you formerly with care and pains taking with your hearts you may come to mind your end and the rule for that particular action As for example When you go to your callings or to pray or to eat and the like in these solemn
every one of your hearts be all on fire with strongest burning love to the name of Jesus and offered as a flaming sacriâ—… to him Beloved I am affraid almost to tell you what Christ looks for from you I think of his mercies to you with fear and great joy Know my beloved and remember that he Looks for great things from you you have received much and God will 〈◊〉 much I beseech you be not as other people My mouth is open to you my heart is enlarged but my time is very streight Sleep hath departed from my eyes to write a few lines unto you but I am upon your service when you know it not yet I cannot end without telling you that you had need look to it that you be in all things more than ordinary because the Lord looks for extraordinary prosiciency from you Brethren let your hearts be entire with God be abundant in secret Duties Prayer Meditation Self-examination Watchfullness Self-denial Let none of you be another thing in your Families or Closets from what he is in the Assembly and the open profession that he makes Look to the heart-work See that you be truly thorowly and unreservedly the Lords Beware lest with any of you a secret root of Hypocrisie should spoil a forward and goodly profession Care above all things in the world to approve your hearts to the piercing eye of the â—…lous God Let your good works shine besore men but reckon your selves to be no more than what you are in secret Maintain a holy jealousie of your selves till upon much prayer and tryal and self-observation you have found out by Scripture-marks the certainty of your state But I intrench on other things to wade thus far To my keeper I commend you and with dearest loves to you all in the Bowels of our Lord I remain Your Ambassador in Bonds Joseph Alleine My dear father and brother Norman remembers you tenderly desiring you to hold fast what you have received and heard and that you be holy harmless exemplary and without offence in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation A Practical CASE on Phil. 3. 13 14. This ONE thing I do I press toward the Mark. Q. HOw may we come to make Religion our business Rule 1. You must throughly acquaint your selves with the rule and the compass that Religion steers by Unless the Mariner know every point of his Compass he is like to make but foul work of it The word is a believers Compass Gal. 6. 16. As many as walk according to This rule c. A believer walks by Rule and by this Rule the Rule of the word you can never mannage the business of Religion except you do throughly know and often eye your Rule and put the rule to your work How can you trade religiously unless you know the Rules you are to deal by Or pray rightly if ignorant of the Rules you are to pray by Beloved the commandement is exceeding broad and prescribes you Rules for your whole Man and sor the right behaving of your selves in every part of your conversation Oh hide the word in your hearts lay up the Rules you are to work by and the Rules that you are to give by the Rules that you are to speak by and the Rules that you are to hear by and the Rules that you are to examine your selves by Be sure there be no part of your conversation but that you have some Rules that you doe set to your selves about it How can you carry your selves Religiously in your Relations unless you doe conscienciously observe the Rules that you are to carry your selves by If wives do not know their Rules and husbands their Rules and servants their Rules and children their Rules how can you bring your profession to any thing beloved as ever you would make any thing of Religion know the Rules of your places set it down with your selves you husbands you wives you children you servants these be the Rules that I will walk by and wherein I sail of these Rules I will seé my errour and study to come up to what is lacking Resp. 2. You must have the whole lump of the heart leavened and seasoned with Religion Matth. 13. 33. The Kingdom of Heaven is like unto leaven which a woman hid c. The word is this leaven The heart is this lump in which this leaven is hid now when the whole lump is throughly seasoned then their will be such a suitableness between the heart and the work that Religion will become a pleasure A true Christian hath the law of the Spirit of Life within him he hath a transcript of the word in his soul. Now where the law of Religion is in the heart there will be a love of delight in and propensity to the work of Religion Rom. 8. 2. Heb. 8. 10. I delight to doe thy will thy law is within my heart Psal. 40. 8. who naturally careth for your state Phil. 2. 20. where Religion hath taken deep root in the heart the concerns of Christ will become its natural care Now that which is natural is delightful and when a man loves his work he will be much in it Again that which is natural is constant so that when the heart is naturalized and habituated to Religion the man will constantly follow it To a heart throughly sanctified Religion is the very Element it lives in whereas a carnal heart in holy exercises is like a fish out of the water it cannot away with the strictness of a holy self-denying life when the heart is renewed and made spiritual t will naturally mind the things of the Spirit Rom. 8. 5. Joh. 3. 6. Rule 3. You must have these six Principles inwrought and deeply engraven into your souls Prin. 1. That Religion is the very end of your being that you were made and maintained for This is the end and use of all your powers and faculties That you may serve and glorisie the God that made you He made you for himself Prov. 16. 4. For his pleasure you are and were created Rev. 4. 11. Oh man look upon thy self think whence thou art and for what a little while since thou wast not how camest thou to be hath not the hand of God framed thee Think with thy self wherefore serve all these powers and faculties To what end were they given me what to eat and drink and sleep and sport If I had been a brute I could have done this why should it repent the Lord that he hath made me a man that he hath given me an understanding soul wherefore have I reason above the rest of the Creatures but that I should understand the Law of my Creation and the end of my being and know my makers ends and doe his pleasure Better I had never been born than not to answer my end Better I had been a Brute than a Man unless I glorifie God with my understanding and imploy my powers and faculties in his service