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A17320
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The Christians heauenly treasure. By William Burton of Reading in Barkeshire
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Burton, William, d. 1616.
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1608
(1608)
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STC 4168; ESTC S115749
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64,773
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170
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before the euill dayes come vpon thee and the dayes whereof thou shalt say I haue no pleasure And Esai cryeth out vnto thee saying Seeke the Lord while hee may be found and call vpon him while hee is nigh at hand to shew vs that the Lord will not alwayes bee found much lesse when wee thinke good neyther will the dayes of olde age and sicknesse bee like the dayes of youth and health for then shall wee feele our selues vnfit and vntoward to seek after these things in two regards first in regard of naturall infirmities and bodily paines which will hold thy mind occupied about meanes of ease as Phisicke and such like Secondly in regard of that strong hand which sin through long custome will beare ouer thy soule euen to the hardning of thy heart for custome of sinne breedeth hardnesse of heart and hardnesse of heart begetteth impenitencie as the Apostle sheweth in the second to the Romanes But the speciall time of gathering and laying vp this heauenly Treasure is the holy Sabboth and other times of holy assemblies and generally whensoeuer thou art called forth to heare the Word preached vnto thee or hast any occasion to exercise thy Faith in the workes of Charitie and pietie Then comes the Angell to stirre the Poole step in then if thou wilt doe thy selfe good for afterward will bee too late Whosoeuer carelessely neglecteth the Sabbaoth of the Lord and presumptiously giueth God the slip in the holy Assemblies as many carâ—all Christians doe who mistrusting God with their estate thinke it no sin to spend the Sabbaoth day in their worldly affaires or vaine exercises well may they with Esau get a sup of pottage to stay their hungry mawes withall if God doe not crosse their enterprises and curse their labours as oftentimes hee doth but surely their heauenly Birth-right is forâ—aite by the bargain and but bankroupts they proue in the heauenly Treasure of a Christian They heape vp but it is nothing but wrath against the day of wrath The Sabboth day is especially appointed for gathering of heauenly treasures Remember therefore that thou keepe it holy as the Lord comminandeth pâ—etend not a necessitie of breaking the 〈◊〉 rest where 〈◊〉 is apparant as the manner of some is when 〈◊〉 a faire Sabboth day they must work for feare of Raine but consider thou whose heart is buryed vnder thy loafe and wilt needs bee rich by deceiuing the Lord of his right consider I say hath not the Lord prouided for thee when it hath rained and darest thou not trust him when it is faire did he euer deceiue any that trusted him with their estate while they walked reuerently in his feare and carefully kept his commandements what indignitie then and dishonor is this that thou offrest vnto the most high in that thou darest not trust him with thy body whiles thou seekest for the good of thy Soule And how doest thou thinke to answere this geare when thy conscience shall bee summoned to answere therevnto before that Iudgement Seat which maketh the very Angels and Celestiall Powers to tremble Oh consider of these things betimes and the Lord 〈◊〉 thy drowsie soule And aboue all beware of sorting thy selfe with profane company which will cause thee to loose thy time and dull the edge of the Spirit decay thy graces and make thee to treasure vp sinne against the day of vengeance for one sinne admitted with loue and liking letteth out many graces and maketh hauock of all thy vertues Now the manner how to lay vp this heauenly Treasure commeth next to be remembred and that is done three waies First by relieuing of the Lord Iesus Christ in his members which stand in neede of help Sell that you haâ—e ouerplus saith Christ or that you can spâ—are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and giue to the poore Make you bags which waxe not old Luke 12. 33. to shew that when a man giueth almes to the poore hee doth but take it out of one purse and put it into another out of bags that waxe old and put it into bags that waxe not old and in so doing saith Christ thou shalt finde treasure in heauen in so doing I say but not for so doing as Papists teach If thou wilt be perfect saith Christ to the rich yong man goe and sell that thou hast and giue to the poore and what you doe to them I take it as done vnto my selfe for saith our Sauiour Christ when they my poore members were in prison I was in prison when they were hungry naked and cold c. I was hungry naked and cold and therfore what you did to them you did to mee To the like effect speaketh the Prophet Esai If saith hee thou deale thy bread to the hungry and bring the poore that wandreth into thy house and couer the naked when thou seest him then shall thy light breake forth as the morning and thine health shall grow speedely thy righteousnesse shall goe before thee and the glory of the Lord shal embrace thee These bee sweet encouragements and necessarie because poore people are vnable to recompence the kindnesse of those that bestow any thing vpon them and as they are vnable so for the most part they are very ingratefull and their vnthankfulnesse doth not a little discourage many who would otherwise bee more beneficiall then they are And in these respects men had rather venture their goods vpon any other thing then vpon the poore For say they quod ingrato feceris perijt It is cast away which is giuen to vnthankfull persons but howsoeuer it bee that many of the poorer sort bee both wretchedly vnthankfull and miserably vnable to repay thee yet if thou giuest them for Christ his sake in whose name commonly they aske it thou shalt finde it againe in heauen But it may bee thou wilt be content to giue part of thy ouerplus to the poore so thou maist reserue the other part to bestow on thy pleasure but beware thou deceiue not thy selfe for all thy ouerplus is for the poore when thy familie is prouided for thy debts paid and all Dueties that thou owest to the Church and Common-wealth thy Prince and Countrie are deâ—â—ayed that which remaineth is for the poore to play for that is to cast lots vpon the Garment of Christ Ne fundis parcendum est sayeth Calâ—sin Euen of a mans ground and Inheritance a Christian man must deuide some to poore Schollers some to scholes of learning some to the Ministry of the Gospel some to maimed souldiers some to poore hospitals in all to Christ he that giueth but a cup of cold water to the poore members of christ hauing no more to giue shall not loose his reward The second way to lay vp Treasure in heauen is by suffring constantly and patiently for Christ when thou art thereunto lawfully called and required and that two wayes First thou must suffer the word
increase his strength that hee was able to beare it on his shoulders when it was an Oxe so doth the Christian Soule by inuring his patience and faith to beare smaller crosses that in time hee is able through daylie exercise of the spirit to beare greater crosses and to put vp mighty wrongs Through negligent slothfulnesse cursed ingratitude prophane abusing of Gods heauenly Graces they may dye and decay in thee but the more they are vsed the more they are increased The glorious Garment and royall Robe of Christ that Sonne of Righteousnesse wherewith Saint Iohn saw the Church clothed is neuer worne out nor shall euer be put off vntill faith and Hope bee abolished their pure Gold that they buy of him is neuer spent and their Sunne is neuer set though sometime perhaps it may bee vnder a cloud The Oyle of gladnesse wherewith they are annointed is like the widdows Oyle of Sarepta wherewith shee paid her debts maintained her selfe her house and yet her Cruse was still full Nay Christ turneth the water of his seruants that loue to enuite him vnto their feasts into wine and the oftner it is powred forth the sweeter it is One Helmet of Hope one Shield of Faith one Sword of the Spirit c. shall last all thy life and saue thee in a thousand battailes of temptations and spirituall conflicts and neuer bee worne for whom the Lord loueth hee loueth â—to the end and his mercies endure for euer There is but one Faith one God one Lord one Baptisme one Word one Spirit and one Hope though there bee many misbeliefes many Diuels many falsehoods many doubts there is but one supreame goodnes though many euils that one shall ouercome all and remaine alwayes the same that we may still sing with the Psalmist The mercies of the Lord endure for euer And as the Christians heauenly treasure doth excell for Perpetuitie so also for Securitie for it is laid vp in heauen where the Lord himselfe dwelleth and from whence hee laugheth all Theeues both infernall and terrestiall to scorne Many lay vp their treasure in the bottome of a ship and the sea swalloweth it vp but what sea can deuoure those Treasures that are layd vp in heauen Many put their treasure into other mens hands who spend it vainely or runne away secretly but who can spend or runne away with that which is laid vp in heauen Many bestow their Treasure vpon their backe belly and building three such Bees as will sting the land to death if they be not taken heed of and all perish in the vse by fire or by age or by sicknesse or by death but no such thing can happen to those treasures which are laid vp in heauen Many haue houses and lands and riches and friends to day in very good securitie as the world thinketh and by to morrow they are gone or sold or wasted or stolne or dead or turned to another minde but they that haue once laid vp the Treasures of a good life and a good Conscience in heauen shall bee sure to finde them there and to enioy them for euer for they are so kept to his vse that no Theefe can euer steale them from him And howsoeuer some vaine and presumptuous Persons will not sticke through greedinesse of gaine to vndertake for a quantitie of money to secure a mans goods at sea or at land yet considering the miserable vnquietnesse that mans life is exposed vnto and the vniuersall disagreement and warre that is betweene man and all the Creatures in the world yea betweene the Creatures themselues nay more betweene man and man in all estates and degrees nay more than that between euery man in himselfe I see no reason why any man should be so vnwise as to promise vnto himselfe any secure enioying of any worldly commoditie or why another should so confidently or desperately rather vndertake to secure any mans goods or estate when as hee cannot secure himselfe one minute of an houre to an end And first for the miserable and vnquiet estate of this life I see not what can bee said more to discouer the same then hath beene already said by Petrach that learned Italian Oratour the substance of whose discourse concerning this point I thinke will not bee lost labour to lay before thee which briefly is this that considering the vncertaine and sodaine chaunces changes whereunto the affaires and estates of men are subiect nothing can be more fraile nothing more vnquiet then the life of man In other liuing creatures saith hee it is not so and why because nature hath prouided for them a wonderfull kinde of remedy but what is that remedy might not wee enioy it with them Oh no for it is a certaine ignorance of theÌ„selues by reason wherof they inioy their life and being in lesse misery and more quiet then man doth for in vs onely that haue degenerated both our memory vnderstanding our prouidence and all the diuine gifts of our minde are conuerted or peruerted rather vnto our owne toile destruction for are wee not haunted alwayes with vaine and superfluous yea with noysome and pestiferous Cares which cause vs to bee grieued with the present time to bee vexed with the time past and to bee afraid of the time to come If our life were well gouerned it were the most happy and pleasant thing that wee possesse but now so many causes of miseries and nourishments of sorrowes doe wee daylie heape together that we make our life a wretched and wofull toile whose Entrance is blindnes whose Progresse is labour whose End is sorrow and the whole Course error What Day doe we passe oueâ— in rest and quietnes or rather that we finde not more painefull and troublesome then other What Morning haue we euer passed so merry and pleasant that hath not been ouertaken with some sorrow and heauinesse before night What perpetuall warre is it that wee make against Fortune as some speake which know not the diuine prouidence to be the gouernor of all things Wee onely being weakelings and vnarmed take vpon vs to encounter a most fierce foe in vnequall fight and bee againe as lightly as things of naught tosseth vs vp and throweth vs downe turneth vs round about and playeth with vs so that it were better for vs to be quite oâ—ercome then continually to bee had in scorne And the cause heereof is nothing else but our own lightnesse and daintinesse for wee seeme to bee good for nothing else but to bee tossed hetâ—er and thither like a tennis-ball being creatures of a very short life of infinit carefulnes and ignoraunt vnto what shore to fall with our ship or vnto what resolution to apply our mindes And besides the present euill we haue alwayes somewhat to grieue vs behinde our backs and before our eyes to make vs afraid which thing hapnâ—th to