too apparently destructive of a good life And I begin 1. With their Doctrines And because I have no mind to aggravate lesser matters I will single out four or five points of Doctrine which they have added to the Christian Religion and which were neither taught by our Saviour and his Apostles nor own'd in the first ages of Christianity And the First which I shall mention and which being once admitted makes way for as many errors as they please to bring in is their Doctrine of Infallibility And this they are very stiff and peremptory in though they are not agreed among themselves where this Infallibility is seated whether in the Pope alone or a Council alone or in both together or in the diffusive body of Christians But they are sure they have it though they know not where it is And is this no prejudice against it can any man think that this priviledg was at first conferred upon the Church of Rome and that Christians in all Ages did believe it and had constant recourse to it for determining their differences and yet that that very Church which hath enjoyed and used it so long should now be at a loss where to find it Nothing could have fallen out more unluckily than that there should be such differences among them about that which they pretend to be the onely means of ending all differences There is not the least intimation in Scripture of this priviledg confer'd upon the Roman Church nor do the Apostles in all their Epistles ever so much as give the least direction to Christians to appeal to the Bishop of Rome for a determination of the many differences which even in those times happen'd among them And it is strange they should be so silent in this matter when there were so many occasions to speak of it if our Saviour had plainly appointed such an infallible Judg of controversies for this very end to decide the differences that should happen among Christians It is strange that the ancient Fathers in their disputes with Hereticks should never appeal to this Judg nay it is strange they should not constantly do it in all cases it being so short and expedite a way for the ending of controversies And this very consideration to a wise man is instead of a thousand arguments to satisfie him that in those times no such thing was believed in the world Now this Doctrine of Infallibility if it be not true is of so much the more pernicious consequence to Christianity because the conceit of it does confirm them that think they have it in all their other errors and gives them a pretence of assuming an Authority to themselves to impose their own fancies and mistakes upon the whole Christian world 2. Their Doctrine about Repentance Which consists in confessing their sins to the Priest which if it be but accompanied with any degree of contrition does upon absolution received from the Priest put them into a state of salvation though they have lived the most lewd and debauched lives that can be imagin'd than which nothing can be more plainly destructive of a good life For if this be true all the hazard that the most wicked man runs of his salvation is only the danger of so sudden a death as gives him no space for confession and absolution A case that happens so rarely that any man that is strongly addicted to his lusts will be content to venture his salvation upon this hazard and all the arguments to a good life will be very insignificant to a man that hath a mind to be wicked when remission of sins may be had upon such cheap terms 3. The Doctrine of Purgatory By which they mean a state of temporary punishments after this life from which men may be released and translated into Heaven by the prayers of the living and the sacrifice of the Mass That this Doctrine was not known in the primitive Church nor can be proved from Scripture we have the free acknowledgment of as learned and eminent men as any of that Church which is to acknowledg that it is a superstructure upon the Christian Religion And though in one sense it be indeed a building of gold and silver upon the foundation of Christianity considering the vast revenues which this Doctrine and that of Indulgences which depends upon it brings into that Church yet I doubt not but in the Apostles sense it will be found to be hay and stubble But how groundless soever it be it is too gainful a Doctrine to be easily parted withall 4. The Doctrine of Transubstantiation A hard word but I would to God that were the worst of it the thing is much more difficult I have taken some pains to consider other Religions that have been in the world and I must freely declare that I never yet in any of them met with any Article or Proposition imposed upon the belief of men half so unreasonable and hard to be believed as this is And yet this in the Romish Church is esteemed one of the most principal Articles of the Christian Faith though there is no more certain foundation for it in Scripture than for our Saviours being substantially changed into all those things which are said of him as that he is a rock a vine a door and a hundred other things But this is not all This Doctrine hath not only no certain Foundation in Scripture but I have a far heavier charge against it namely that it undermines the very foundation of Christianity it self And surely nothing ought to be admitted to be a part of the Christian Doctrine which destroys the reason of our belief of the whole And that this Doctrine does so will appear evidently if we consider what was the main argument which the Apostles used to convince the world of the truth of Christianity and that was this That our blessed Saviour the Author of this Doctrine wrought such and such miracles and particularly that he rose again from the dead And this they proved because they were eye-witnesses of his miracles and had seen him and conversed with him after he was risen from the dead But what if their senses did deceive them in this matter then it cannot be denied but that the main proof of Christianity falls to the ground Well! We will now suppose as the Church of Rome does Transubstantiation to have been one principal part of the Christian Doctrine which the Apostles preached But if this Doctrine be true then all mens senses are deceived in a plain sensible matter wherein 't is as hard for them to be deceived as in any thing in the world For two things can hardly be imagin'd more different than a little bit of water and the whole body of a man So that the Apostles perswading men to believe this Doctrine perswaded them not to trust their senses and yet the argument which they used to perswade them to this was built upon the direct contrary principle that mens senses are to
Scripture Does our Saviour any-where speak one word concerning the worshipping of Her Nay does he not take all occasions to restrain all extravagant apprehensions and imaginations concerning the honour due to Her as foreseeing the degeneracy of the Church in this thing When he was told that his Mother and Brethren were without Who says he are my mother and my brethren He that doth the will of my Father the same is my mother and sister and brother And when the Woman brake forth into that rapture concerning the blessed Mother of our Lord Blessed is the womb that bare thee and the paps that gave thee suck Our Saviour diverts to another thing Yea rather blessed are they that hear the word of God and keep it Does either our Saviour or his Apostles in all their particular Precepts and directions concerning Prayer and the manner of it and by whom we are to address our selves to God give the least intimation of praying to the Virgin Mary or making use of her Mediation And can any man believe that if this had been the practice of the Church from the beginning our Saviour and his Apostles would have been so silent about so considerable a part of Religion Insomuch that in all the Epistles of the Apostles I do not remember that her Name is so much as once mentioned And yet the worship of her is at this day in the Church of Rome and hath been so for several Ages a main part of their publick worship yea and of their private devotions too in which it is usual with them to say ten Ave Maries for one Pater Noster that is for one Prayer they make to Almighty God they make ten addresses to the blessed Virgin for that is the proportion observed in their Rosaries He that considers this and had never seen the Bible would have been apt to think that there had been more said concerning Her in Scripture than either concerning God or our blessed Saviour and that the New Testament were full from one end to the other of precepts and exhortations to the worshipping of Her and yet when all is done I challenge any man to shew me so much as one sentence in the whole Bible that sounds that way And there is as little in the Christian Writers of the first three hundred years The truth is this practice began to creep in among some superstitious people about the middle of the fourth century And I remember particularly that Epiphanius who lived about that time calls it the Heresie of the Women And thus I have given you some Instances of several Doctrines and Practices which the Church of Rome have built upon the Foundation of Christianity Much more might have been said of them but from what hath been said any man may easily discern how dangerous they are to the salvation of men I proceed now in the Second place II. To consider whether our granting a possibility of salvation though with great hazard to those in the Communion of the Roman Church and their denying it to us be a sufficient argument and encouragement to any man to quit our Church and go to theirs And there is the more need to consider this because this is the great popular argument wherewith the emissaries and agents of that Church are wont to assault our people Your Church say they grants that a Papist may be saved Ours denies that a Protestant can be saved therefore it is safest to be of our Church in which salvation by the acknowledgment of both sides is possible For answer to this I shall endeavour to shew that this is so far from being a good argument that it is so intolerably weak and sophistical that any considerate man ought to be asham'd to be catch'd by it For either it is good of it self and sufficient to perswade a man to relinquish our Church and to pass over to theirs without entring into the merits of the cause on either side and without comparing the Doctrines and Practises of both the Churches together or it is not If it be not sufficient of it self to perswade a man to leave our Church without comparing the Doctrines on both sides then it is to no purpose and there is nothing got by it For if upon examination and comparing of Doctrines the one appear to be true and the other false this alone is sufficient inducement to any man to cleave to that Church where the true Doctrine is found and then there is no need of this argument If it be said that this argument is good in it self without the examination of the Doctrines of both Churches this seems a very strange thing for any man to affirm That it is reason enough to a man to be of any Church whatever her Doctrines and Practices be if she do but damn those that differ from her and if the Church that differs from her do but allow a possibility of salvation in her Communion But they who use this argument pretend that it is sufficient of it self and therefore I shall apply my self to shew as briefly and plainly as I can the miserable weakness and insufficiency of it to satisfie any mans conscience or prudence to change his Religion And to this end I shall 1. Shew the weakness of the principle upon which this argument relies 2. Give some parallel instances by which it will clearly appear that it concludes false 3. I shall take notice of some gross absurdities that follow from it 4. Shew how unfit it is to work upon those to whom it is propounded And 5. How improper it is to be urged by those that make use of it I. I shall shew the weakness of the principle upon which this argument relies And that is this That whatever different parties in Religion agree in is safest to be chosen The true consequence of which principle if it be driven to the head is to perswade men to forsake Christianity and to make them take up in the principles of natural Religion for in these all Religions do agree For if this principle be true and signifie any thing it is dangerous to embrace any thing wherein the several parties in Religion differ because that only is safe and prudent to be chosen wherein all agree So that this argument if the foundation of it be good will perswade further than those who make use of it desire it should do for it will not only make men forsake the Protestant Religion but Popery too and which is much more considerable Christianity it self II. I will give some parallel instances by which it will clearly be seen that this argument concludes false The Donatists denied the Baptism of the Catholicks to be good but the Catholicks acknowledged the Baptism of the Donatists to be valid So that both sides were agreed that the Baptism of the Donatists was good therefore the safest way for St. Austin and other Catholicks according to this argument was to be Baptized again by the Donatists
from the error of thy way be well save thy self as soon as possibly thou canst When happiness presents it self to thee do not turn it off and bid it come again to morrow Perhaps thou mayest never be so fairly offered again perhaps the day of salvation may not come again to morrow nay perhaps to thee to morrow may never come But if we were sure that happiness would come again yet why should we put it off Does any man know how to be safe and happy to day and can he find in his heart to tarry till to morrow Now the God of all mercy and patience give every one of us the wisdom and grace to know and to do in this our day the things that belong to our peace before they be hid from our eyes for the sake of our blessed Saviour and Redeemer To whom with the Father and the Holy Ghost be all honour and glory now and for ever Amen A SERMON Preached before the KING Febr. 25 th 1675 6. 1 John III. 10 In this the children of God are manifest and the children of the Devil whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God IT is certainly a matter of the greatest consequence to us both in order to our present peace and future happiness truly to understand our spiritual state and condition and whether we belong to God and be his Children or not And it is not so difficult as is commonly imagined to arrive at this knowledg if we have a mind to it and will but deal impartially with our selves For the Text gives us a plain mark and character whereby we may know it In this the children of God are manifest and the children of the Devil whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God From which words I shall endeavour by Gods assistance to lay men open to themselves and to represent to every one of us the truth of our condition and then leave it to the grace of God and every mans serious consideration to make the best use of it And it will conduce very much to the clearing of this matter to consider briefly the occasion of these words And this will best appear by attending stedfastly to the main scope and design of this Epistle And I think that no man that reads it with attention can doubt but that it is particularly designed against the impious Sect of the Gnosticks who as the Fathers tell us sprang from Simon Magus and pretended to extraordinary knowledg and illumination from whence they had the name of Gnosticks but notwithstanding this glittering pretence they did allow themselves in all manner of impious and vicious practice turning the grace of God into lasciviousness as St. Jude speaks of them And that St. John particularly aims at this sort of men is very evident from the frequent and plain allusions throughout this Epistle to those Names and Titles which this Sect assumed to themselves as Chap. 2. ver 4 He that saith I know him and keepeth not his commandments is a liar and the truth is not in him And vers 9 He that saith he is in the light and hateth his brother is in darkness even until now Which passages and many more in this Epistle do plainly refer to the pretences of this Sect to more than ordinary knowledg and illumination in the mysteries of Religion notwithstanding they did so notoriously contradict these glorious pretences by the impiety of their lives and particularly by their hatred and enmity to their fellow-Christians For as the ancient Fathers tell us they pretended that whatever they did they could not sin And this our Apostle intimates in the beginning of this Epistle If we say that we have no sin we deceive our selves and the truth is not in us And they held it lawful to renounce Christianity to avoid persecution and not only so but also to joyn with the Heathen in persecuting the Christians which seems to be the reason why the Apostle so often taxeth them for hatred to their Brethren and calls them Murderers Now to shew the inconsistence of these principles and practises with Christianity the Apostle useth many arguments amongst which he particularly insisteth upon this That nothing is more essential to a Disciple of Christ and a Child of God by which Titles Christians were commonly known than to abstain from the practise of all sin and wickedness vers 6. of this Chap. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not whosoever sinneth hath not seen him neither known him whatever knowledg they might pretend to it was evident they were destitute of the true knowledg of God and his Son Jesus Christ and vers 7 Little Children let no man deceive you he that doth righteousness is righteous even as he is righteous and vers 8 He that committeth sin is of the Devil and vers 9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin let men pretend what they will wickedness is a plain mark and character of one that belongs to the Devil as on the contrary righteousness is an evidence of a Child of God In this the children of God are manifest and the children of the Devil c. I shall briefly explain the words and then consider the matter contained in them By the children of God and the children of the Devil are meant good and bad men It being usual in the phrase of Scripture to call persons or things which partake of such a nature or quality the children of those who are eminently endued with that nature and disposition Thus they who are of the faith of Abraham and do the works of Abraham are called Abraham's children In like manner those who in their disposition and actions imitate God are called the children of God and on the contrary those that addict themselves to sin and impiety are counted of another race and descent they resemble the Devil and belong to him as the Chief and Head of that Faction By righteousness is here meant universal goodness and conformity to the Law of God in opposition to sin which is the transgression of that Law By being manifest is meant that hereby good and bad men are really distinguished so that every one that will examine his condition by this mark may know of which number he is and to what Party he belongs I come now to the main argument contained in the words which is to give us a certain character and mark of distinction between a good and bad man 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by this the children of God are manifest and the children of the Devil whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God In the management of the following Discourse I shall proceed in this method First We will consider the character and mark of difference between a good and bad man which is here laid down Whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God Secondly I shall endeavour to shew that by this mark every man may with due care and diligence come to the knowledg of his spiritual
persons but are rather the effects of Melancholy than any reasonable ground of trouble Some think that every deliberate sin against knowledg and after conviction is the sin against the Holy Ghost This is aknowledged to be a very great aggravation of sin and such as calls for a great and particular repentance but does by no means render a man incapable of forgiveness Others are troubled with blasphemous thoughts and those they think to be the sin against the Holy Ghost But this is generally the meer effect of Melancholy And the persons that are troubled with these black thoughts are no ways consenting to them but they rise in their minds perfectly against their wills and without any approbation of theirs And in this case they are so far from being the unpardonable sin that I hope yea and verily believe they are no sins at all but the meer effects of a bodily distemper and no more imputed to us than the wild and idle ravings of a man in a frenzy or a fever And God forbid that the natural effects of a bodily disease should bring guilt upon our souls So that these persons have reason enough for comfort but the misery is their present distemper renders them incapable of it 2. Secondly The other Use I would make of this discourse is to caution men against the degrees and approaches of this sin For if the sin against the Holy Ghost be of such a high nature and so unpardonable then all approaches to it are very dreadful Such as are profane scoffing at Religion and the Holy Spirit of God which dwells in good men Abuse of the holy Scriptures which were indited by the Spirit of God Perverse Infidelity notwithstanding all the evidence which we have for the Truth of Christianity and sufficient assurance of the Miracles wrought for the confirmation of it brought down to us by credible History though we were not eye-witnesses of them Obstinacy in a sinful and vicious course notwithstanding all the motives and arguments of the Gospel to perswade men to repentance Sinning against the clear conviction of our Consciences and the motions and suggestions of God's Holy Spirit to the contrary Malicious opposing of the Truth when the Arguments for it are very plain and evident to any impartial and unprejudiced mind and when he that opposeth the Truth hath no clear satisfaction in his own mind to the contrary but suffers himself to be furiously and headily carried on in his opposition to it These are all sins of a very high nature and of the nearest affinity with this great and unpardonable sin of any that can easily be instanced in And though God to encourage the repentance of men have not declared them unpardonable yet they are great provocations and if they be long continued in we know not how soon God may withdraw his grace from us and suffer us to be hardned through the deceitfulness of sin Be ready then to entertain the truth of God whenever it is fairly propounded to thee and with such evidence as thou art willing to accept in other matters where thou hast no prejudice nor interest to the contrary Do nothing contrary to thy known duty but be careful in all things to obey the convictions of thine own conscience and to yield to the good motions and suggestions of God's Holy Spirit who works secretly upon the minds of men and inspires us many times gently with good thoughts and inclinations and is griev'd when we do not comply with them and after many repulses will at last withdraw himself from us and leave us to be assaulted by the temptations of the Devil and to be hurried away by our own lusts into ruin and perdition A SERMON OF CHARITY AND ALMES Acts X. 38 Who went about doing good WHen Almighty God designed the Reformation of the World and the restoring of Man to the Image of God the Pattern after which he was first made he did not think it enough to give us the most perfect Laws of holiness and virtue but hath likewise set before us a living Pattern and a familiar Example to excite and encourage us to go before us and shew us the way and as it were to lead us by the hand in the obedience of those Laws Such is the Sovereign Authority of God over men that he might if he had pleased have only given us a Law written with his own hand as he did to the people of Israel from Mount Sinai but such is his Goodness that he hath sent a great Embassadour from Heaven to us God manifested in the flesh to declare and interpret his will and pleasure and not only so but to fulfil that Law himself the observation whereof he requires of us The bare Rules of a good life are a very dead and ineffectual thing in comparison of a living Example which shews us the possibility and practicableness of our Duty both that it may be done and how to do it Religion indeed did always consist in an Imitation of God and in our resemblance of those excellencies which shine forth in the best and most perfect Being but we may imitate him now with much greater ease and advantage since God was pleased to become Man on purpose to shew us how Men may become like to God And this is one great End for which the Son of God came into the world and was made flesh and dwelt among us and conversed so long and familiarly with mankind that in his own Person and Life he might give us the Example of all that holiness and vertue which his Laws require of us And as he was in nothing liker the Son of God than in being and doing good so is he in nothing a fitter Pattern for our imitation than in that excellent character given of him here in the Text that He went about doing good In which words two things offer themselves to our consideration First Our Saviour's great Work and Business in the world which was to do good 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Who employed himself in being a benefactour to mankind This refers more especially to his healing the bodily diseases and infirmities of men God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power who went about doing good and healing all that were oppressed of the Devil Intimating to us by this instance of his doing good that he who took so much pains to rescue mens Bodies from the power and possession of the Devil would not let their Souls remain under his tyranny But though the Text instanceth only in one particular yet this general expression of doing good comprehends all those several ways whereby he was beneficial to mankind Secondly Here is his Diligence and Industry in this work He went about doing good he made it the great business and constant imployment of his life I shall propound to you the Pattern of our Saviour in both these particulars I. His great Work and Business in the world was to do good