us how little the Thoughts or Words of ignorant men do contribute to our happiness or are to be accounted of And to turn our eyes from the unpertinâ—nt censures of flesh and blood to the judgement of our Almighty Soveraign to whom it is that we stand or fall 11. Remember also how little he made provision for the flesh and never once tasted of any immoderate sinful pleasure How farr was he from a life of voluptuousness and sensuality Though his avoiding the formal fastings of the Pharisees made them slander him as a gluttonous person and a Mat. 11. 19. wine bibber as the sober Christians were called Carnivori by those that thought it unlawful to eat flesh yet so farr was he from the guilt of any such sin that never a desire of it was in his heart You shall never find in the Gospel that Christ spent half the morning in dressing him choosing rather to shorten his time for prayer than not to appear sufficiently neatified as our empty worthless painted Gallants do Nor shall you ever read that he wasted his time in idle visitations or Cards or Diâ—e or in reading Romances or hearing Stage-plays It was another kind of example that our Lord did leave for his disciples 12. Mark also how farr Christ was from being guilty of any idle or lascivious or foolish kind of talk And how holy and profitable all his speeches were To teach us also to speak as the oracles of God such words as tend to edification and to administer grace unto the hearers and to keep our tongues from all prophane lascivious empty idle speeches 13. Remember that Pride and Passion are condemned by your pattern Christ bids you Learn of me for I am meek and lowly in heart and you shall find rest unto your souls Mat. 11. 28 29. Therefore he resolveth that except men be converted and become as little children they shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven Mat. 18. 3. Behold therefore the Lamb of God and be ashamed of your fierce and ravenous natures 14. Remember that Christ your Lord and pattern did humble himself to the meanest office of love even to â—â—sh the feet of his disciples Not to teach you to wash a few poor mens feet as a Ceremony once a year and persecute and murder the servants of Christ the rest of the year as the Roman Vice-Christ doth But to teach us that if he their Lord and Master washed his disciples feet we also should stoop as low in any office of love for one another Iohn 13. 14. 15. Remember also that Christ your pattern spent whole nights in prayer to God so much was he for this holy attendance upon God To teach us to pray allwayes and not wax saint Luke 18. 1. And not to be like the impious God-haters that Love not any near or serious addresses unto God nor those that use them but make them the object of their cruelty or scorn 16. Remember also that Christ was against the Pharisees out-side hypocritical ceremonious worship consisting in lip-labour affected repetitions and much babling their Touch not Taste not Handle â—â—â—â— and worshiping God in vain according to their Traditions teaching for doctrines the commandments of men He taught us a serious spiritual worship not to draw nigh to God with our mouth Maâ— 15 6 7 â— 9. and honour him with our lips while our hearts are farr from him but to worship God who is a Spirit in Jâ—h â— 23 24 Spirit and Truth 17. Christ was a sharp reprover of Hypocritical blind ceremonious malitious Pharisees and Maâ— â—â— warneth his disciples to take heed of their leven When they are offended with him he saith every plant which my Heavenly Father hath not planted shall be rooted up Let them alone they be blind leaders of the blind c. Mat. 15. 12 13 14. To teach us to take heed of Autonomous Supercilious domineering formal Hypocrites and false teachers and to difference between the shepheards and the wolves 18. Though Christ seems cautelously to avoid the owning of the Romans Usurpation over the Jews yet rather than offend them he payeth Tribute himself Mat. 17. 25 26 27. and biddeth them Render to Caesar the things that are Caesars and to God the things that are Gods Mat. 22. 21. The Pharisees bring their controversie to him hypocritically Whether it be lawful to give Tribute to Caesar or not For that Caesar was a Usurper over them they took to be past controversie And Christ would give them no answer that should either ensnare himself or encourage usurpation or countenance their sedition Teaching us much more to pay tribute chearfully to our lawful Governours and to avoid all sedition and offence 19. Yet is he accused condemned and executed among Malefactors as aspiring to be King of the Iews and the Judge called None of Caesars friend if he let him go Teaching us to expect that the most innocent Christians should be accused as enemies to the Rulers of the world and mistaken Governours be provoked and engaged against them by the malicious calumnies of their adversaries and that we should in this unrighteous world be condemned of those crimes of which we are most innocent and which we most abhorr and have born the fullest testimonies against 20. The furious rowt of the enraged people deride him by their words and deeds with a Purple â—â—â—â—â— a Scepter of Reed a Crown of Thorns and the scornful name of King of the Iews They 〈…〉 n his face and buffet him and then break jeasts upon him And in all this being reviled he reâ—â—â—â— not again but committed all to him that judgeth righteously 1 Pet. 2. 21 22 23. Teaching us to expect the rage of the ignorant Rabble as well as of deluded Governours and to be made the scorn of the worst of men and all this without impatience reviling or threatning words but quiâ—tting our selves in the sure expectation of the righteous judgement which we and they must shortly find 21. When Christ is urged at Pilates Barr to speak for himself he holds his peace Teaching us to expect to be questioned at the Judgement Seat of man and not to be over-careful for the vindicating of our Names from their most odious calumnies because the Judgement that will fully justifie us is sure and near 22. When Christ is in his Agony his Disciples fail him when he is judged and crucified they Matth. 26. 56. forsook him and fled To teach us not to be too confident in the best of men nor to expect much from them in a time of tryal but to take up our comfort in God alone when all our nearest friends shall fail us 23. Upon the Cross he suffereth the torments and ignominy of death for us praying for his Murderers Leaving us an example that we should follow his steps 1 Pet. 2. 21. and that we think not life it self too dear to part with in obedience to God and for the
you have the wisdom which is from above if you be first pure then peaceable gentle easie to be entreated full of mercy and good fruits without partiality and hypocrisie James 3. 17. But if you have hitter envying and strife in your hearts glory not and lye not against the truth as if this were the wisdom from above which glorifieth God For this wisdom descendeth not from above but is earthly sensual and devilish v. 14 15. A mâ—â—k and quiet Spirit is of great price in the sight of God 1 Pet. 3 4. An Ornament commended to women by the Scripture which is amiable in the eyes of all § 39. Direct 8. It honoureth God and your profession when you abound in love and in good works Direct 8. Loving the godly with a special love but all men with so much love as makes you earnestly desirous of their wâ—lâ—aâ—e and to love your enemies and put up wrongs and to study to do good to all and hurt to none To be abundant in love is to be like to God who is LOVE it self 1 Iohn 4. 7 11. and shâ—wâ—th that God dwelleth in us v. 12. All men may know that we are Christs Disciples if we love one another Iohn 13. 35. This is the new and the great commandment The fulfilling of the Law Rom. 13. 10. John 15. 12 17 13. 34. You will be known to be the children of your heavenly Father if you love your enemies and bless them that curse yâ—u and pray for them that hate and persecute you and dâ—spightfully use you Matth. 5. 44. Do all the good that possibly you can if you would be like him that doth good to the evil and whose mercies are over all his works Shew the world that you are his workmanship created to good works in Christ Iesus which he hath ordained for you to walk in Eph. 2. 10. Herein is your Father glorified that ye bring forth much fruit John 15. 8. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorifie your Father which is in Heaven Matth. 5. 16. Honour God with thy substance and with the first fruits of all thy increase Prov. 3. 9. And thâ—se that honour him he will honour 1 Sam. 2. 30. When barren worldly hypocrites that honour God only with their lips and flattering words shall be used as those that really dishonour him § 40. Direct 9. The Unity Concord and Peace of Christians doth glorifie God and their profession Direct 9. when their divisions contentions and malicious persecutiâ—ns of one another doth heinously dishonour him Men reverence that faith and practice which they see us unanimously accord in And the same men will despise both it and us when they see us together by the ears about it and hear us in a Babel of confusion one saying This is the way and another That is it one saying Lo here is the true Church and Worship and another saying Lo it is there Not that one man or a few must make a Shoo meet for his own foot and then say All that will not dishonour God by discord must wear this Shâ—â— Think as I think and say as I say or else you are Schismaticks But we must all agree in believing and obeying God and walking by the same rule so far as we have attained Phil. 3. 15 16. The strong must bear the infirmities of the weak and not please themselves but every one of us please his neighbour for good to edification and be like minded one towards another according to Christ Iesus that we may with one mind and one mouth glorifie God Receiving one another as Christ also received us to the glory of God Rom. 15. 1 2 5 6 7. § 41. Direct 10. Iustice commutative and distributive private and publick in bargainings and in Direct 10. Government and Iudgement doth honour God and our profession in the eyes of all when we do no wrong but do to all men as we would they should do to us Matth. 7. 12. That no man go beyond or defraud his brother in any matter for the Lord is the avenger of all such 1 Thess. 4 6. That a mans word be his Master and that we lye not one to another nor equivocate or deal subtilly and deceitfully but in plainness and singleness of heart and in simplicity and godly sincerity have our conversation in the world Perjured persons and Covenant-breakers that dissolve the bonds of humane society and take the name of God in vain shall find by his vengeance that he holdeth them not guiltless § 42. Direct 11. It much glorifieth God to worship him rationally and purely in Spirit and in truth Direct 11. according to the glory of his wisdom and goodness and it dishonoureth him to be worshipped ignorantly and carnally with spells and mimical irrational actions as if he were less wise than serious grave underderstanding men The worshippers of God have great cause to take heed how they behave themselves Lest they meet with the reward of Nadab and Abihu and God tell them by his judgements that he will be sanctified in all them that come nigh him and before all the people he will be glorified Lev. 10. 1 2 3. The second Commandment is enforced by the Iealousie of God about his Worship Ignorant rude unseemly words or unhansome gestures which tend to raise contempt in the auditors or levity of speech which makes men laugh is abominable in a Preacher of the Gospel And so is it to pray irrationally incoherently confusedly with vain repetitions and tautologies as if men thought to be heard for their babling over so many words while there is not so much as an appearance of a well composed serious rational and reverent address of a fervent soul to God To worship God as the Papists do with Images Agnus Dei's Crucifixes Crossings Spittle Oyl Candles Holy Water kissing the Pax dropping Beads praying to the Virgin Mary and to other Saints repeating over the Name of Iesus nine times in a breath and saying such and such sentences so oft praying to God in an unknown Tongue and saying to him they know not what adoring the consecrated Bread as no Bread but the very flesh of Christ himself choosing the tutelar Saint whose name they will invocate fasting by feasting upon Fish instead of Flesh saying so many Masses a day and offering Sacrifice for the quick and the dead praying for souls in Purgatory purchasing Indulgences for their deliverance out of Purgatory from the Pope carrying the pretended bones or other Relicts of their Saints the Popes canonizing now and then one for a Saint pretending Miracles to delude the people going on Pilgrimages to Images Shrines or Relicks offering before the Images with a multitude more of such parcâ—lls of Devotion do most heinously dishonour God and as the Apostle truly saith do make unbelievers say They are mad 1 Cor. 14. 23. and that they are children in understanding and not men v.
in a divided heart and Direct 2â— life See therefore that you serve God in singleness of heart or simplicity and integrity as being â—â—s alone Think not of serving God and Mammon A deep reserve at the heart for the world â—â—ile Matth. 23 â—â— â—â—â—â—h 4. 2 3 4 5. Luke 1â— 4â— Matth. 6. 4â— 2 Pet. 1. 1â— Joh. 6. 27. they seem to give up themselves in Covenant to God is the grand Character of an Hypocrite Live as those that have One Lord and Master that all power stoopeth to and One End or Scâ—pe to which all other are but means and One work of absolute Necessity to do and one Kingdom to seek first and with greatest care and diligence to make sure of and that have your hearts and faces still one way and that agree with your selves in what you think and say and do A double heart and a double tongue is the fashion of the Hypocrite Psal. 12. 2. 1 Tim. 3. 8. He hath a heart for the world and pride and lust which must seem sometimes to be lifted up to ask forgiveness that he may sin with quietness and hope of salvation you would not think when you see him drop his Beads or lift up his hands and eyes and seem devoutly to say his prayers how lately he came from a Tavern or a Whore or a Lie or from scorning at serious godliness As Bishop Hall saith He seemeth to serve that 〈…〉 m 2. 5. Jaâ—â—es 4. 1â— Hoâ— 10. 2. God at Church on Holy-dayes whom he neglecteth at home and â—â—weth at the Name of Jesus and sweareth prophanely by the Name of God Remember that there is but one God one Heaven for us one Happiness and one Way And this one is of such moment as calls for all the intention and attention of our souls and is enough to satisfie us and should be enough to call us off from all that would divert us A divided heart is a false and self-deceving heart Are there two Gods or is Christ divided While you grasp at both God and the world you will certainly lose one and it is like you will lose both To have two Gods two Rules two Heavens is to have no God no true Rule no Heaven or happiness at all Halt not therefore between two opinions If God be God obey him and love him If Heaven be Heaven be sure it be first sought But if thy Belly be 〈…〉 3. â—â— thy God and the World be thy Heaven then serve and seek them and make thy best of thâ—m § 31. Direct 26. Take heed of all that fleshly policy or craft and worldly wisdom which is contrary 〈…〉 26. to the wisdom of the Word of God and would draw thee from the plain and open heartedness which godly sincerity requireth Let that which was Pauls rejoycing be yours that in simplicity and godly sincerity nâ—t in fleshly wisdom you have had yâ—ur conversation in the world Christianity renounceth not wisdom and â—â—nest self-preservation But yet it maketh men plain-hearted and haters of crafty â—â—â—â—dulent minds What is the famous hypocritical Religion superadded to Christianity and called â—â—â—â—â—â— but that which Paul feared in his godly jealousie for the Corinthians lest as the Serpent begâ—â—leâ— â—â—ve by his sâ—btility so their minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. A forsaking thâ— Christian simplicity of DOCTRINE DISCIPLINE WORSHIP and CONVERSATION is the Hypocrisie of Religion and of liâ—e Equivocating and dishonest â—hiâ—â—s and hiding beseemeth those that have an ill cause or an ill conscience or an ill Master whom they dâ—â—â—â— not trust and not those that have so good a cause and God as Christians have § 32. Direct 27. Remember how much of sincerity consisteth in seriousness and how much of Hypocrite Direct 27. the 〈…〉 pleaâ—â—â—â—g and â—â—â—â—al Riâ—es and Ceremo 〈…〉 of outward and 〈◊〉 holiness Over-great 〈…〉 of traditions which â—aâ—â— of but â—ad â—he Church The 〈◊〉 of 〈…〉 an◠〈…〉 aâ—d lucâ—â— The 〈…〉 goâ—d in 〈◊〉 which openeth a gate to 〈…〉 and noveltieâ— Lord 〈…〉 describeth â—â—â—â—ila that he was a de 〈◊〉 of â—lesh and â—â—â—â— â—â—nd yet Religione persuasion 〈◊〉 basque de Dâ—s a gente sua 〈◊〉 usque ad sâ—perstitionem addictâ—◠〈…〉 3â—9 Pâ—al 78 37. 2 Cor. 7. 11. consisteth in seeming and dreaming and trifling in the things of God and our salvation see therefore that you keep your souls awake in a sensible and seriâ—us frame Read over the fifty Considerations which in the third Part of my Saints Rest I have given to convince you of the necessity of being serious See that there be as much in your faith as in your Creed and as much in your Hearts and Lives as in your Belief Remember that seeming and dreaming will not mortifie deep-rooted sâ—s nor conquer strong and subtile enemies nor make you acceptable to God nor save your sâ—â—ls from his revenging justice Remember what a mad kind of prophaneness it is to jâ—â—st and â—â—ifle about Heaven and Hell and to dally with the great and dreadful God Seeing all these things shall be dissolved what manner of persons ought you to be in all holy conâ—â—â—â—sation and godliness 2 Pet. 3. 11. You pray for an obedience answering the pattern of the heavenly society when you say Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven And will you be such Hypocrites as to pray that you may iâ—itate Saints and Angels in the purity and obedience of your hearts and lives and when you have done take up with shews and seemings and saying a few words and a lifeless Image of that Holiness which you never had yea and perhaps deride and persecute in others the very thing which you daily pray for O horrible abuse of the All-seeing God! Do you no more believe or fear his justice When the Apostle saith Gal. 6. 7. Be not deceived God is not mocked he intimâ—â—â—â—th that Hypocrites go about to put a scorn on God by a Mock-religion though it is not he but themselves that will prove mocked in the end They offer God a deaf Nutt or an empty Shell or Caâ—k for a Sacrifice An Hypocrite differeth from a true Christian as a Fencer from a Souldier He playeth his part very formâ—lly upon a Stage with much applause but you may perceive that he is not in good sadness by his tâ— flâ—ng and formality and never killing any of his sins Would men shew no more of the great everlasting matters of their own proâ—est Belief in any seriousness of affection or endeavour than most men do if they were not Hypocrites Would they hate and scorn men for doing but that and part of that which they pray and profess to do themselves if they were not hypocrites Wo to the world because of Hypocrisie Wo to the carnal members of the Church Wo to Idol Shepheards and the seeming 〈◊〉 lifeless Christians of what Sect soever For God will not be mocked They
stealeth from beauty and ornaments a spark to kindle that fire which prepareth for everlasting fire 3. Take heed of a greedy covetous eye which with Achan and Gehezi looketh on the bait to tempt you to unlawful love and desire and to bring you by their sin unto their ruine 4. Take heed of a Luxurious Gluttonous and Drunken eye which is looking on the forbidden fruit and on the tempting dish and the delicious cup till it have provoked the appetite of that greedy worm which must be pleased though at the rate of thy damnation 5. Take heed of a gazing wandring eye which like a vagrant hath no home nor work nor master Prov. 4. 25. but gaddeth about to seek after death and find out matter for temptation Prov. 17. 24. Wisdom is before him that hath understanding but the eyes of a fool are in the ends of the earth Prov. 21. 10. See Dr. Hammoâ—d on Mat. 6. 22. Prov. 22. 9. Ezek. 16. 5. 6. Take heed of an envious eye which looketh with dislike and discontent at the prosperity of others especially such as stand cross to your own interest Matth. 20. 15. Is thine eye evil because I am good It is the envious eye that in Scripture most usually is called by the name of an evil eye 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It is an eye that would see evil rather than good upon another as Deut. 15. 9. Lest thy eye be evil against thy poor brother c. Prov. 23. 6. it is an eye that grudgeth another any thing that is ours So Prov. 28. 22. Mar. 7. 22. 7. Take heed of a passionate cruel eye that kindleth the hurting or reviling Isa. 23. 18. Prov. 28. 27. fire in thy breast or is kindled by it that fetcheth matter of rage or malice from all that displeaseth thee in another 8. Take heed of a self-conceited and censorious eye that looketh on all the actions of Maâ—th 7. 3. â—uk 6. 41. another with quarrelling undervaluing censure or reproach 9. Take heed of a fond and fanciful eye that falls in Love too much with Houses or Friend or Child or Goods or whatsoever pleaseth it 10. Take heed of a sleepy sluggish eye that is shut to good and had rather sleep than watch and read Prov. 6. 4. Psal. 35. 21. Psal. 10 8. Psal. 36. 1. and pray and labour 11. Abhor a malignant eye which looketh with hatred on a godly man and upon the holy assemblies and communion of Saints and upon holy actions and can scarce see a man of exemplary zeal and holiness but the heart riseth against him and could wish all such expelled or cut off from the earth This is the heart that hath the Image of the Devil in most lively colours he being the Father of such as Christ calleth him Iohn 8. 44. 12. Abhor an Hypocritical eye which Maâ— 6 22 23. Luk. 11. 34. is lifted up to Heaven when the heart is on earth on lusts on honours on sports or pleasure or plotting mischief against the just Know the evil and danger of all these diseases of the eye § 3. Direct 3. Remember that the eye being the noblest and yet the most dangerous sense must have Direct 3. the strictest watch Sight is often put in Scripture for all the senses And living by sight is opposed to living or walking by faith 2 Cor. 5. 7. We walk by faith not by sight And a sensual life is called a walking in the ways of our heart and in the sight of the eyes Eccles. 11. 9. An ungoverned eye doth shew the power of the ungoverned senses Abundance of good or evil entreth by these doors All lieth open if you guard not these § 4. Direct 4. Remember that as your sin or duty so your sorrow or joy do depend much on the government Direct 4 of your eyes And their present pleasure is the common way to after sorrow What a flood of grief did David let in to his heart by one unlawful look § 5. Direct 5. Remember that your eye is much of your honour or dishonour because it is the index of Direct 5. your minds You see that which is next the mind it self or the most immediate beam of the invisible Prov. 23. 29. soul when you see the eye How easily doth a wandring eye a wanton eye a proud eye a luxurious eye a malitious eye a passionate eye bewray the treasure of sin which is in the heart Your soul lyeth opener to the view of others in your eye than in any other part your very reputation therefore should make you watch § 6. Direct 6. Remember that your eye is of all the senses most subject to the will and therefore there Direct 6. is the more of duty or sin in it For Voluntariness is the requisite to Morality both good and evil Your will cannot so easily command your feeling tasting hearing or smelling as it can your sight so easily can it open or shut the eye in a moment that you are the more unexcusable if it be not governed For all its faults will be proved the more voluntary C ham was cursed for not turning away his eyes from his Fathers shame and Shem and Iapheth blessed for doing it The righteous is thus described Isa. 33. 15. He that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil he shall dwell on high c. Mens Idols which they are commanded to cast away are called The abomination of their eyes Ezek. 20. 7. Covetousness is called The lust of the eyes 1 John 2. 16. It 's Psal. 6. 7. Lam. 3. 48 49 51 said of the unclean that they have eyes full of adultery 2 Pet. 2. 14. And as sin so punishment is placed on the eye Isa. 5. 15. The eyes of the lofty shall be humbled Yea the whole bodys of the daughters of Zion are threatned to be dishonoured with nakedness scabs and stink and shame because they walked with wanton eyes haughtily and mincing as they go c. Isa. 3. 16. § 7. Direct 7. Therefore let believing reason and a holy resolved fixed will keep a continual Law upon Direct 7. your eyes and let them be used as under a constant government This Iob calleth the making a covenant with them Job 31. 1. Leave them not at liberty as if a look had nothing in it of duty or sin or as if you might look on what you would Will you go to foolish tempting plaies and gaze on vain alluring objects and think there is no harm in all this Do you think your eye cannot sin as well as your tongue undoubtedly it 's much sin that is both committed by it and entereth at it Keep away therefore from the bait or command your eye to turn away § 8. Direct 8. Remember still how much more easie and safe it is to stop sin here at the gates and out-works Direct 8. than to beat it out again when it is
if he constrain his enemies to it his servants should not be backward to do it according to his will § 4. Direct 4. Only such Honour must be given to departed Saints as subserveth the Honour of God Direct 4. and nothing must be ascribed to them that is his prerogative All that of God which was communicated to them and appeared in them must be acknowledged But so that God must be still acknowledged the spring of all and no honour given ultimately to them but it is God in them that we must behold and Love admire and honour § 5. Direct 5. The Honour of the Saints departed must be only such as tendeth to the promoting of Holiness Direct 5. among the living It is a most horrid aggravation of those mâ—ns sins who make their Honouring of the Saints departed a cover for their hating and persecuting their followers or that make it an engine for the carrying on some base design Some make it a devise for the advancing of their Parties and peculiar Opinions The Papists make it a very great means for the maintaining the Usurped power of the Pope giving him the power of Canonizing Saints and assuring the world what souls are in Heaven A Pope that by the testimony of a General Council as Ioh. 23. Eugenius c. is a Heretick and a wicked wretch and never like to come to Heaven himself can assure the world of a very large Catalogue of persons that are there And he that by the Papists is confessed fallible in matters of fact pretendeth to know so certainly who were Saints as to appoint them Holy dayes and command the Church to Pray to them And he that teacheth men that they cannot be certain themselves of their salvation pretendeth when they are dead that he is certain that they are saved To pretend the Veneration of Saints for such carnal ambitious designes and cheats and cruelties is a sin unfit for any that mentioneth a Saint So is it when men pretend that Saints are some rare extraordinary persons among the living members of the Church to make men believe that honouring them Rom. 1. 7. 1 Cor. 1. 2. 14. 33. Eph. 1. 8. 2. 19. 4. 12. 5. 3. Rom. 15. 25 26. will serve instead of imitating them and that all are not Saints that go to Heaven God forbid say they that none but holy persons should be saved we confess it is good to be Saints and they are the chief in Heaven but we hope those that are no Saints may be saved for all that But God saith that without Holiness none shall see him Heb. 12. 14. Heaven is the inheritance of none but Saints Act. 26. 18. Col. 1. 12. He that extolleth Saints to make men believe that those that are no Saints may be saved doth serve the Devil by honouring the Saints The same I may say of those that give them Divine honour ascribing to each a power to hear and help all throughout the world that put up prayers to them § 6. Direct 6. Look up to the blessedness of departed souls as members of the same body rejoycing Direct 6. with them and praising God that hath so exalted them This is the benefit of holy Love and Christian Unity that it maketh our brethrens happiness to be unto us in a manner as if it were our own 1 Cor. 12. 25 26. That there should be no schism in the Body but that the members should have the same care one for another that if one member be honoured all the members rejoice with it So far as selfishness is overcome and turned into the Uniting Love of Saints so far are all the joyes of the blessed souls in Heaven become the joyes of all that truly Love them upon earth How happy then is the state of all true believers that have so many to rejoice with Deny not God that Thanks for the saving of so many souls which you would not deny him if he saved but your friends estates or lives Especially when afflictions or temptations would deprive you of the Ioy which you should have in Gods mercies to your selves then comfort your selves with the remembrance of your brethrens Ioy. What an incongruous undecent thing is it for that man to pine away in sorrows upon earth who hath so many thousand friends in Heaven in joy and blessedness whose Ioyes should all be to him as his own § 7. Direct 7. When you feel a cooling of your love to God or of your zeal or reverence or other Direct 7. graces think then of the temper of those Holy Sâ—uls that see his glory O think with what fervour do they Love their God with what transporting sweetness do they delight in him with what Reverence do they all behold him And am not I his servant and a member of his family as well as they shall I be like the strangers of this frozen world when I should be like my fellow Citizens above As it will dispose a man to weep to see the tears and grief of others and as it will dispose a man to mirth and joy to see the mirth and joy of others so is it a potent help to raise the soul to the Love of God and delight in his service to think believingly of the Love and Delight of such a world of blessed spirits § 8. Direct 8. When you draw near to God in his holy Worship remember that you are part of the same Direct 8. society with those blessed spirits that are praising him in perfection Remember that you are members of the same Chore and your part must go to make up the Melody and therefore you should be as little discordant from them as possibly you can The quality of those that we joyn with in Gods service is â—pt either to dull or quicken us to depress or elevate us and we move Heaven-ward most easily and swiftly in that company which is going thither on the swiftest pase A believing thought that we are Worshipping God in Consort with the Heavenly Chore and of the high and holy raptures of those spirits in the continual praise of their Great Creator is an excellent means to warm and quicken us and raise us as near their holy frame as here on earth may be expected § 9. Direct 9. When you would possess your hearts with a lively sense of the odiousness of sin and Direct 9. would resist all temptations which would draw you to it think then how the blessed souls with God do judge of sin and how they would entertain such a temptation if the motion were made to them What think they of Coveteousness Pride or lust What think they of malice cruelty or lying How would they entertain it if Lands and Lordships pleasure or preferment were offered them to entice their hearts from God Would they venture upon damnation for a whore or for their games or to please their appetites Do they set as light by God and their
Thess. 5. 5. They that were sometimes darkness are light in the Lord when they are converted and must walk as the children of the light Ephes. 5. 8. In the dark the Devil and wicked men may cheat you and do almost what they list with you You will not buy your wares in the dark nor travel or do your work in the dark And will you judge of the state of your souls in the dark and do the work of your salvation in the dark I tell you the Devil could never entice so many souls to Hell if he did not first put out the light or put out their eyes They would never so follow him by crowds to everlasting torments by day-light and with open eyes If men did but know well what they do when they are sinning and whither they go in a carnal life they would quickly stop and go no further All the Devils in Hell could never draw so many thither if mens Ignorance were not the advantage of temptations § 3. Another sort among us that are Ignorant of the things of God are sensual Gentlemen and Schollars Cum quâ—m paenitet pâ—câ—asse pene innoceâ—s est Maxima pâ—rgationum pars est volunta ia poeâ—iâ—entia dâ—lictoâ—um Scal. Thes. p. 74â— Faâ—ilius iis ignos itur qâ—i non peâ—severaâ—e sed ab â—râ—ato se revâ—care moâ—iâ—ntur est enim hâ—r aâ—â—m peccare sed belluinâ—m iâ— errore persâ—verare Cicero in Vat. Even Aristotle could say that he that believed as he ought of the Gods should think as well of himself as Alexander that commandeth so many men Plutarch de Tranquil Anim. p. 155. Nullus suavior animo cibus est quam cognitio vtâ—itatis Lactant. Instit. l. 1. c. 1. It is a marvelous and doleful case to think how ignorant some people live even to old age under constant and excellent Teaching Some learn neither words nor sense but hear as it they heard not Some learn words and know the sense no more than if they had learnt but a tongue unknown And will repeat their Creed and Catechism when they know not what it is that they say A worthy Minister of Helvetia told me that their people are very constant at their Sermons and yet most of them grosly ignorant of the things which they most frequently hear It is almost incredible what ignorance some Ministers report that they have found in some of the eldest of their auditors Nay when I have examined some that have professed strictness in Religion above the common sort of people I have found some ignorant of some of the fundamentals of the Christian faith And I remember what an ancient Bishop about twelve hundred years ago saith Maximus Taurinensis in his Homilies that when he had long preached to his people even on an evening after one of his Sermons he heard a cry or noise among the people and hearkening what it was they were by their outcry helping to deliver the Moon that was in labour and wanted help His words are Quis non moleste ferat sic vos esse vestrae salutis immemores ut etiam coelo teste peccetis Nam cum ante dies plerosque cum cupiditate pulsaverim ipsa die circiter vesperam tanta vociferatio populi extitit ut irreligiositas ejus penetraret ad coelum Quod cum requirerim quid sibi clamor hic velit dixerunt mihi quod Laboranti Lunae vestra vociferatio subveniret defectum ejus suis clamoris adjuvaret Risi equidem miratus sum vanitatem quod quasi devoti Christiani Deo â—erebatis auxilium Claâ—abatis enim ne â—acentibus vobis elementum tanquam infirmus enim imbecillis nisi vestâ—is adjuvaretur vocibus noâ— possâ—t luminaria defendere quae creavit It is cited also by Papiriuâ— Massonus in vita Hilarii Papae â—ol 67. Therefore Popery is suitable to the children of darkness and unsuitable to the children of light because it greatly befriendeth ignorancé hindering the people from reading the holy Scriptures and quieting them with the opiate of an easie implicite faith in believing as the Roman Church believeth though they know not what it believeth or mistake and think it believeth that which it doth not Ockam lib. de Sa ram Altar cap. 1. citeth Innocent Extra de sum Trin. to prove the great benefit and efficacy of implicite faith that it would prove an error to be no sin In tantum inquit valet fides iâ—plicita ut dicunt aliqui ut si aliquis eam habet quod scilicet credit quicquid Ecclesia credit si false opinatur ratione naturali motus quia pater est vel prior filio vel quod tres pâ—rjonae sint tâ—es â—â—s ab invicem distantes non est haeâ—eticus nec peccat dâ—mmodo hunc errorem non defendat hoc ipsum credit quia credit Ecclesiam sic credeâ—e suam opinionem fidei Ecclesiae supponit Quia licet sic male opinâ—tur non tamen est illa fides sua immo fides sua est fides Ecclesiae This implicite faith being nothing but to believe that the Church erreth not is not an Implicite faith in God to believe that all that God revealeth is true which all men have that believe in God as rational an excuse for ignorance and error as a belief in the Church of â—ome This is too short and easie a faith to be effectual to the true ends of faith Si igitur tantae sit efficaciae fides implâ—câ—â—a ut excuset ignoranter erraâ—tem ciâ—ca illa quae in Scriptura Canonica sunt expressa multo magis excusaâ—it ignoranter opinaâ—tem aliqâ—id quod nec in Scripâ—uâ—a Canonica reperituâ— expressum Okam ibid. that have so much breeding as to understand the words and speak somewhat better than the ruder sort but indeed never knew the nature truth and goodness of the things they speak of They are many of them as ignorant of the nature of faith and sanctification and the workings of the Holy Ghost in planting the Image of God upon the soul and of the Saints communion with God and the nature of a holy life as if they had never heard or believed that there is such a thing as any of these in being Nicodemus is a lively instance in this case A Ruler in Israel and a Pharisee and yet knew not what it was to be born again And the pride of these Gallants maketh their ignorance much harder to be cured than other mens because it hindereth them from knowing and confessing it If any one would convince them of it they say with scorn as the Pharisees to Christ Iohn 9. 40. Are we blind also Yea they are ready to insult over the Children of the Light that are wise to salvation because they differ from the loose or hypocritical Opinions of these Gentlemen in some matters of Gods Worship of which their Worships are as competent Judges as the Pharisees of the doctrine of Christ or as Nicodemus of Regeneration or
the world Rom. 8. 1 5 6 7 8 10 13 14. Whether all that were baptized are such as these when they come to age judge you § 4. It is true also that if you truly Repent you are forgiven But it is as true that true Repentance is the very Conversion of the soul from sin to God and leaveth not any man in the power of sin It is not for a man when he hath had all the pleasure that sin will yield him to wish then that he had not committed it which he may do then at an easie rate and yet to keep the rest that are still pleasant and profitable to his flesh Like a man that casts away the bottle which he hath drunk empty but keeps that which is full Or as men sell off their barren Kine and buy milch ones in their stead This kind of Repentance is a mockery and not a cure for the soul. If thou have true Repentance it hath so far turned thy heart from sin that thou wouldst not commit it if it were to do ☞ again though thou hadst all the same temptations And it hath so far turned thy heart to God and Holiliness that thou wouldst live a holy life if it were all to do again though thou hadst the same temptations as afore against it Because thou hast not the same heart This is the nature of true Repentance such a Repentance indeed is never too late to save but I am sure it never comes too soon § 5. Mark now I beseech you what a state of sin and what a state of Holiness is He that is in a state of sin hath habitually and predominantly a greater love to some pleasures or profits or honours of this world than he hath to God and to the glory which he hath promised He preferreth and seeketh and holdeth if he can his fleshly prosperity in this world before the favour of God and the happiness of the world to come His heart is turned from God unto the creature and is principally set on things on earth Thus his sin is the blindness and madness and perfidiousness and Idolatry of his soul and his forsaking of God and his salvation for a thing of nought It is that to his soul which poyson and death and sickness and lameness and blindness are to his body It is such dealing with God as that man is guilty of to his dearest friend or Father who should hate him and his company and love the company of a Dog or a Toad much better than his and obey his enemy against him And it is like a mad mans dealing with his Physicion who seeks to kill him as his enemy because he crosseth his appetite or will to cure him Think of this well and then tell me whether this be a state to be continued in This state of sin is something worse than a meer inconsiderate act of sin in one that otherwise liveth an obedient holy life § 6. On the other side a state of Holiness is nothing else but the Habitual and predominant devotion Nulla Religio vera est nisi 〈◊〉 virâ—â—t justitiâ— constat Id. ibid. and dedication of soul and body and life and all that we have to God An esteeming and loving and serving and seeking him before all the pleasures and prosperity of the flesh Making his favour and everlasting Happiness in Heaven our End and Jesus Christ our way and referring all things in the world unto that end and making this the scope design and business of our lives It is a turning from a deceitful world to God and preferring the Creator before the creature and Heaven before Earth and Eternity before an inch of Time and our souls before our corruptible bodies and the authority and Laws of God the Universal Governour of the world before the word or will of any man how great soever and a subjecting our sensitive faculties to our Reason and advancing this Reason by Divine Revelation and living by faith and not by sight In a word it is a laying up our treasure in Heaven and setting our hearts there and living in a Heavenly conversation setting our affections on the things above and not on the things that are on earth and a rejoicing in hope of the glory to come when sensualists have nothing but transitory bruitish pleasures to rejoyce in This is a state and life of Holiness when we perswade you to be Holy we perswade you to no worse than this When we commend a life of Godliness to your Choice this is the life that we mean and that we commend to you And can you understand this well and yet be unwilling of it It cannot be Do but know well what Godliness and Ungodliness is what Grace and Sin are and the work is almost done Direction 3. TO know what a life of Holiness is believe the Word of God and those that have Direct 3. tryed it and believe not the slanders of the Devil and of ungodly men that never tryed or knew the things which they reproach § 1. Reason cannot question the reasonableness of this advice Who is wiser than God or who is to be believed before him And what men are liker to know what they talk of then such as speak from their own experience Nothing more familiar with wicked men than to slander and reproach the holy wayes and servants of the Lord. No wisdom no measure of Holiness or righteousness will exempt the Godly from their malice Otherwise Christ himself at least would have been exempted if not his Apostles or other Saints whom they have slandered and put to death Christ hath foretold us what to expect from them John 15. 18 19 20 21. If the world hate you ye know that it hated me before it hated you If you were of the world the world would love his own but because ye are not of the world but I have chosen you out of the world therefore the world hateth you Remember the word that I said unto you The servant is not greater than the Lord If they have persecuted me they will also persecute you if they have kept my sayings they will keep yours also § 2. The truth is wicked men are the seed and children of the Devil and have his image and obey him and think and speak and do as he would have them And the Godly are the seed and members of Christ and bear his Image and obey him And do you think that the Devil will bid Victor utic saith that the Arrian Goths tormented the devoted Virgins to force them to confess that their Pastors had committed fornication with them but no torment prevaâ—â—ed with them though manâ— were killed with it pag. 407 408. lib. 2. Terrent praecepâ—â—s â—â—ralibus ut in medio Vandalorum nostri nâ—llatâ—â—us respirarent Neâ— usâ— quaâ—â—e orandi aut immolandi conâ—edâ—retâ—r gâ—mâ—ntibus locus Nam diversae calumniae non dâ—erant quotidie etiam illis sacerdotibus qui in his
regionibus versabantur quae palatio triouta pendebaâ—t Et si forsitaâ— quisâ—â—aâ— ut moris est duâ— Dei popâ—lum admoâ—cret Pharaonem Nabuchodonosor Holosernum aut aliquem similem nominasâ—â—t Objiciebatâ—r illi quod in personam Râ—gâ—s ita dixissâ—t staâ—im exilio trad batur Hoâ— enim tempore persâ—cutionis genus agebatur hic apâ—rtè alibi occultè ut piorum nomen talibus insidiis inteâ—iret NB. Victor Uticens p. miâ—i 382. Abundance of Pastors were then banished from their Churches and many tormented and Augâ—stine himself dyed with fear saith Victor ib. p. 376. when he had written saiâ—h he two hundred thirty two Books besides innumerable Epistles Homilies Expositions on the Psalms Evangelists c. his children speak well of the wayes or followers of Christ I must confess till I had found the truth of it by experience I was not sensible how Impudent in belying and cruel in abusing the servants of Christ his worldly malicious enemies are I had read oft how early an Enmity was put between the Womans and the Serpents seed and I had read and wondered that the first man that was born into the world did murder his Brother for worshipping God more acceptably than himself because his own works were evil and his brothers righteous 1 John 3. 12. I had read the inference ver 13. Marvel not my brethren if the world hate you But yet I did not so fully understand that wicked men and Devils are so very like and so near of kin till the words of Christ Iohn 8. 44. expounded by visible demonstrations had taught it me Indeed the Apostle saith 1 Iohn 3. 12. that Cain was of that wicked one that is the Devil But Christ saith more plainly Ye are of your father the Devil and the lusts of your Father ye will do He was a murderer from the beginning and abode not in the truth because there is no truth in him When he speaketh a lye he speaketh of his own for he is a lyar and the father of it Here note that cruel murdering and lying are the principal actions of a Devil and that as the Father of these he is the Father of the wicked who are most notoriously addicted to these two courses against the most innocent servants of the Lamb. How just is it that they dwell together hereafter that are here so like in disposition and action even as the Righteous shall dwell with Christ who bore his image and imitated his holy suffering life § 3. I conclude then that if thou wilt never turn to God and a holy life till wicked men give over belying and râ—proaching them thou maist as well say that thou wilt never be reconciled to God till the Devil be first reconciled to him and never love Christ till the Devil love him or bid thee love him or never be a Saint till the Devil be a Saint or will give thee leave and that thou wilt not be saved till the Devil be willing that thou be saved Direction 4. THat thy understanding may be enlightned and thy heart renewed be much and serious Direct 4. in Reading the Word of God and those Books that are fitted tomen in an unconverted state and especially in hearing the plain and searching preaching of the word § 1. There is a heavenly light and power and Majesty in the Word of God which in the serious Reading or hearing of it may pierce the heart and prick it and open it that corruption may go out and grace come in The Law of the Lord is perfect converting the soul The testimony of the Lord is sure making wise the simple The Statutes of the Lord are right rejoycing the heart Psal. 19. 7 8. Moreover by them it is that we are warned and in keeping of them there is great reward ver 11. The Eunuch was Reading the Scripture when Philip was sent to expound it to him for his conversion Acts 8. The preaching of Peter did prick many thousands to the heart to their conversion Acts 2. 37. The heart of Lydia was opened to attend to the preaching of Paul Acts 16. 14. The word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit Heb. 4. 11. These weapons are mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalteth it self against the knowledge of God and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ 2 Cor. 4. 5. Hâ—st thou often read and heard already and yet findest no change upon thy heart Yet read and hear again and again Ministers must not give over preaching when they have laboured without success Why then should you give over hearing or reading As the Husbandman laboureth and looketh to God for rain and for the blessing so must we and so must you Look up to God remember it is his Word in which he calleth you to Repentance and offereth you mercy and treateth with you concerning your everlasting happiness Lament your former negligence and disobedience and beg his blessing on his Word and you shall find it will not be in vain § 2. And the serious Reading of Books which expound and apply the Scriptures suitably to your case may by the blessing of God be effectual to your conversion I have written so many to this use my self that I shall be the shorter on this subject now and desire you to read them or some of them if you have not fitter at hand viz. A Call to the Unconverted A Treatise of Conversion Now or Never Directions for a sound Conversion A Saint or a Bruit A Treatise of Iudgement A Sermon against making light of Christ A Sermon of Christs Dominion Another of his Soveraignty c. Direction 5. F thou wouldst not be destitute of saving Grace let thy Reason be exercised about the Direct 5. matters of thy salvation in some proportion of frequent sober serious Thoughts as thou art convinced the weight of the matter doth require § 1. To have Reason is common to all men even the sleepy and distracted To use Reason is common to 1 Cor. 1â— 5. Pâ—a 4. 4 5 6 7. 1 Cor. 11. 28. The word â—t sâ—lf exciteth Reason and Preachers are by Reason to shame all sin as a thing unreasonâ—ble And the want of such exâ—â—tation by 〈…〉 and plâ—â—n instructing and the persons considering is a great cause of the worlds undoing For those Preachers that lay all the blame on the peoples stupidity or maligâ—â—â—â— I desire them to read a satisfactory answer in Acosta the Jesuite li. 4. c. 2 3 4. Few souls perish comparatively where all the means is used which should be used by their superiours for their salvation If every Parish had holy skilful laborious Pastors that would publickly and privately do their part great things might be expected in the world But saith Acosta Itaque praecipâ—a causa ad Ministros par
should be perfectly conformed to the will of God and that you might know him and love him and enjoy him more you are void of Godliness and true Christianity For this is the very Covenant which you make in Baptism which you call your Christening Matth. 28. 19 20. 2 Cor. 8. 5. 1 Cor. 6. 17. Iohn 1. 10 11 12. Gal. 4. 6. Rom. 8. 14 15. § 13. I Have now plainly shewed you and fully proved from the Word of God by what infallible Atque haud scio an Pieâ—aâ—e adversus Deos sublatâ fides etiam societas humani generis unâ— excellentissima virtus Justitia tollatur Cicero de Nat. Dâ—oâ— pag. 4. signs an ungodly man may know that he is Ungodly if he will May you not know whether it be thus with you if you are willing to know May you not know if you will whether your desire and design of life be more for this world or that to come and whether Heaven or Earth be preferred and sought first and whether your fleshly prosperity and pleasure or your souls be principally cared for and regarded May you not know if you will whether you love or loath the serious worshippers of God and whether you had rather be delivered from your sins or keep them and whether your wills be more against them or for them and whether you love a holy life or not and whether you had rather be perfect in Holiness and Obedience to God or be excused from it and please the flesh and whether you had rather be such a one as Paul or as Caesar a persecuted Saint in poverty and contempt or a persecuting Conquerour or King May you not know if you will whether you love a searching Ministry that telleth you of the worst and would not deceive you May you not know whether you are resolvedly devoted and given up to God the Father Son and Holy Ghost as your Father and felicity your Saviour and your Sanctifier and whether the scope design and business of your lives is more for God or for the flesh for Heaven or Earth and which it is that bears the sway and which it is that comes behind and hath but the leavings of the other or only so much as it can spare Certainly these are things so near you and so remarkable in your hearts that you may come to the knowledge of them if you will But if you will not who can help it § 14. What a soâ—â—ish cavill is it then of those ignorant men that ask us when we tell them of these things whether ever we were in Heaven or ever saw the Book of Life and how we can tell who shall be saved and who shall be damned If it were about a May-game this jesting were more seasonable but to talk thus distractedly about the matters of salvation and damnation and to make such a jeast of the damning of souls is a kind of foolery that hath no excuse What though we never were in Heaven and never saw the Book of Life Dost thou think I never saw the Scriptures Why wretched sinner dost thou not know that Christ came down from Heaven to tell us who they be that shall come thither and who they be that shall be shut out And did he not know what he said Is God the Governour of the world and hath he not a Law by which he governeth them And can I not tell by the Law who they be that the Judge will condemn or save What else is the Law made for but to be the Rule of Life and the Rule of Iudgement Read Psal. 1. 15. Matth. 5. 7. 25. and all the Texts which I even now cited and see in them whether God hath not told you who they be that shall be saved and who they be that shall be condemned Nay see whether this be not the very business of the Word of God And do you think that he hath written it in vain But some men have loved ignorance and ungodliness so long till the Spirit of grace hath cast them off and left them to the sottishness of their carnal minds so that they have eyes and see not and ears and hear not and hearts and understand not But those that are Willing and Diligent to know their sin and duty in order to their recovery God will not let them search in vain nor hide the remedy from their eyes Direction 9. WHen you have found your selves in a state of sin and death Understand and Consider Direct 9. what a state that is § 1. It may be you will think it a tolerable condition and linger in it as if you were safe or delay your Repentance as if it were a matter of no great haste unless you open your eyes and look round about you and see in how slippery a place you stand Let me name some instances of the misery of an unregenerate graceless state and then judge of it as the Word of God directs you 1. As long as you are unconverted you must needs be loathsome and abominable to God His holy nature Mira Ciâ—eroâ—is fictio in li. de Universit p. 358. Aâ—que ille qui â—ecte honeste curriculum vivendi à natura datum confecerit ad illud astrum quo cum aptus fuerit reverteâ—ur Qui autem immoderate intemperate vixerit eum secundus ortus in figuram muliebrem transferet si ne tum quidem finem viâ—iorum faciet gravius etiam jactabitur in suis moribus simillâ—mas figuras recâ—dum ferarum transferâ—tur neque maloâ—um terminum prius alpiciet quam illam sequâ—â—xperit conversionem quam habebat in se c. cum ad prâ—â—nam optimam affectionem animi pervenerit is unreconcilable to sin and would be unreconcilable to sinners if it were not that he can cleanse and purifie them Did you know what sin is and know Gods holiness you would understand this much better Your own aversness to God and your dislike of the holiness of his Laws and servants might tell you what thoughts he hath of you He hateth all the workers of iniquity Psal. 5. 5. Indeed he taketh you for his enemies and as such he will handle you if you be not converted I know many persons that are most deeply guilty especially men of honour and esteem in the world would scorn to have this title given to themselves But verlly God is not fearful of offending them nor so tender of their deâ—â—led honour as they are of their own or as they expect the Preacher should be If those be the Kings enemies that refuse his Government and set up another then those are the enemies of God and of the Redeemer and of the Holy Ghost that set up the base concupiscence of their flesh and the honour and prosperity of this world and the will of man and refuse the Government of God their Creator and Redeemer and refuse the sanctifying teachings and operations of the
clean and delectable and paved with mercies and fortified and secured by Divine protection and where Christ is your Conductor and so many have sped so well before you and the wisest and best in the world are your companions Live then as men that have changed their Master their end their hopes their way and work Religion layeth not men to sleep though it be the only way to Rest. It awakeneth the sleepy soul to higher thoughts and hopes and labours than ever it was well acquainted with before He that is in Christ is a new creature old things are past away behold all things are become new 2 Cor. 5. 17. You never sought that which would pay for all your cost and diligence till now You never were in a way that you might make haste in without repenting of your haste till now How glad should you be that Mercy hath brought you into the right way after the wanderings of such a sinful life And your gladness and thankfulness should now be shewed by your cheerful diligence and zeal As Christ did not raise up Lazarus from the dead to do nothing or live to little purpose though the Scripture giveth us not the history of his life So did he not raise you from the death of sin to live idely or to be unprofitable in the world He that giveth you his Spirit to be a principle of heavenly life within you expecteth that you stir up the gift that he hath given you and live according to that heavenly principle Direction 16. ENgage thy self in the chearful constant use of the means and helps appointed by God Direct 16. for thy confirmation and salvation § 1. He can never expect to attain the end that will not be perswaded to use the means Of your selves you can do nothing God giveth his help by the means which he hath appointed and fitted to your help Of the use of these I shall treat more fully afterwards I am now only to name them to thee that thou maist know what it is that thou hast to do 1. That you must hear or read the Word of God and other good Books which expound it and How Paenitents of old did rise even from a particular sin judge by these words of Pacianus Paâ—â—â—â—â—â— ad Poeâ—â—t Bibl. Pat. To. 3. p. 74. You must not only do that which may be seen of the Priest and praised by the Bishop to weep before the Church to lament a lost or sinful life in a â—ordid garment to fast pray to role on the earth if any invite you to the Bath or such pleasures to refuse to go If any bid you to a Feast to say These things are for the happy I have sinned against God and am in danger to perish for ever What should I do at Banquets who have wronged the Lord Besides these you must take the poor by the hand you must beseech the Widdow lye at the feet of the Presbyters beg of the Church to forgive you and pray for you you must try all means rather than perish apply it I shewed you before The new born Christian doth encline to this as the new born child doth to the breast 1 Pet. 2. 1 2. Laying aside all malice and guile and hypocrisies and envies and all evil speakings as new born babes that desire the sincere milk of the word that ye may grow thereby Psal. 1. 2 3. The blessed mans delight is in the Law of the Lord and therein doth he meditate day and night § 2. 2. Another means is the publick worshipping of God in communion with his Church and people Besides the benefit of the word there preached the prayers of the Church are effectual for the members and it raiseth the soul to holy joyes to joyn with well ordered Assemblies of the Saints in the Praises of the Almighty The Assemblies of holy worshippers of God are the places of his delight and must be the places of our delight They are most like to the Celestial Society that sound forth the praises of the glorious Iebovah with purest minds and cheerful voice In his Temple doth every one speak of his glory Psal. 29. 9. In such a Chore what soul will not be rapt up with delight and desire to joyn in the consort and harmony In such a flame of united desires and praises what soul so cold and dull that will not be enflamed and with more than ordinary facility and alacrity fly up to God § 3. 3. Another means is private prayer unto God When God would tell Ananias that Paul was converted he saith of him Behold he prayeth Acts 9. 11. Prayer is the breath of the new creature The Spirit of Adoption given to every child of God is a Spirit of prayer and teacheth them to cry Abba Father and helpeth their infirmities when they know not what to pray as they ought and when words are wanting it as it were intercedeth for them with groans which they cannot express in words Gal. 4. 6. Rom. 8. 15 26 27. And God knoweth the meaning of the Spirit in those groans The first workings of grace are in Desires after grace provoking the soul to servent prayer by which more grace is speedily obtained Ask then and ye shall have seek and ye shall find knock and it shall be opened to you Luke 11. 9. § 4. 4. Another means to be used is Confession of sin not only to God for so every wicked man may do because he knoweth that God is already acquainted with it all and this is no addition to his shame He so little regardeth the eye of God that he is more ashamed when it is known to men But in three Cases Confession must be made also to Man 1. In case you have wronged man and are thus bound to make him satisfaction As if you have robbed him defrauded him slandered him or born false witness against him 2. In case you are Children or Servants that are under the government of Parents or Masters and are called by them to give an acount of your actions You are bound then to give a true account 3. In case you have need of the Counsel or Prayers of others for the setling of your consciences in peace In this case you must so far open your case to them as is necessary to their effectual help for your recovery For if they know not the disease they will be unfit to apply the remedy In these cases it is true that He that covereth his sins shall not prosper but he that confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy Prov. 28. 13. § 5. 5. Another Means to be used is the familiar company and holy converse with humble sincere experienced Christians The Spirit that is in them and breatheth and acteth by them will kindle the like holy flames in you Away with the company of idle prating sensual men that can talk of nothing but their worldly wealth or business or their reputations or their appetites and lusts
sinned not You have got the victory and are more than Conquâ—r 〈…〉 Rom. 8. 37 38 39. Doth it sâ—â—m strange to you that few rich men are saved when Christ telleth you it is so hard as to be impossible with men Luke 18. 27. Mar. 10. 27. Or is it strange that Rich men should be the ordinary Rulers of the Earth Or is it strange that the wicked should hate the godly and the world hate them that 〈◊〉 châ—sen out of the world What of all this should seem strange Expect it as the common lot oâ— the fâ—â—thful and you will be better prepared for it § 2. Sâ—e therefore that you resist not evil by any Revengeful irregular violence Mat. 5. 39. Let every soul be subject to the higher powers and not resist leâ—t they receive damnation Rom. 13. 1 2 3. Imitate your Lord that When he was reviled reviled not again when he suffered he threatned not but committed all to him that judgeth righteously leaving us an ensample that ye should follow his steps 1 Pet. 2. 21 23. An angry zeal against those that cross and hurt us is so â—asily kindled and hardly suppâ—essâ—â— that it appâ—areth there is more in it of corrupted nature than of God We are very râ—â—dy to think that we may call for fire from heaven upon the enemies of the Gospel But you know not what manner of Spirit ye are then of Luke 9. 55. But Christ â—aith unto you Love your enemies bless them that curse you do good to them that hate you and pray for them that despi 〈…〉 htfully use you and persecute you that ye may be the children of your Father which is in Heaven Matth. 5. 44 45. You find no such prohibition against patient suffering wrong from any Take heed of giving way to secret wishes of hurt to your adversaries or to reproachful words against them Take heed of hurting your self by pâ—ssion or sin because others hurt you by slanders or persecutions Keep you in the way of your duty and leave your names and lives to God Be careful that you keep your innocency and in your patience possess your souls and God will keep you from any hurt from enemies but what he will cause to work for your good Read Psal. 37. Commit thy way unto the Lord trust also in him and he shall bring it to pass And he shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light and thy judgement as the noon-day Rest in the Lord and wait patienly for him fret not thy self because of him that prâ—spereth in his way because of the man that bringeth wicked devices to pass Cease from anger and forsake wrath fâ—et not thy self in any wise to do evil Vers. 5. 6 7 8. Direct 10. WHen you are repenting of or avoiding any extream do it not without sufficient Direct 10. fear and caution of the contrary extream § 1. In the esteem and Love of God your Ultimate End you need not fear over-doing Nor any Extreams in Religion where when impediments and backwardness or impotency do tell you that you can never do too much But sin lyeth on both sides the Rule and Way And nothing is more common than to turn from one sin to another under the name of duty or amendment Especially this is common in matter of opinion Some will first believe that God is nothing else but Mercy and after take notice of nothing but his Justice First They believe that almost all are saved and afterwards that almost none First That every Profession is credible and next that none is credible without some greater testimony First that Christ satisfied for none at all that will not be saved and next that he dyed for all alike First that none are now partakers of the Holy Spirit and next that all Saints have the Spirit not only to illuminate and sanctifie them by transcribing the written Word upon their hearts but also to inspire them with new Revelations instead of Scripture First they think that all that Papists hold and do must be avoided and after that there needed no reformation at all Now they are for Legal bondage and anon for Libertinism To day for a liberty in Religion to none that agree not with them in every circumstance and to morrow for a liberty for all This year all things are lawful to them and the next year nothing is lawful but they scruple all that they say or do One while they are all for a Worship of meer shew and Ceremony and another while against the determination of meer circumstances of order and decency by man One while they cry up nothing but Free-grace and another while nothing but Free-will One while they are for a Discipline stricter than the Rule and another while for no Discipline at all First for timerous complyance with evil and afterwards for boysterous contempt of Government Abundance such instances we might give you § 2. The remedy against this disease is to proceed deliberately and receive nothing and do nothing rashly and unadvisedly in Religion For when you have found out your first error you will be affrighted from that into the contrary error See that you look round about you as well to the error that you may run into on the other side as into that which you have run into already Consult also with wise experienced men And mark their unhappiness that have fallen on both sides and stay not to know evil by sad experience True mediocrity is the only way that 's safe Though negligence and lukewarmness be odious even when cloked with that name Direct 11. I Et not your first Opinions about the controverted difficulties in Religion where Scripture Direct 11. For Modesty in your first Opinions is not very plain be too peremptory confident or fixed But hold them modestly with 〈…〉 your unâ—ipe understandings and with room for further information supposing it possible 〈…〉 that upon better instruction evidence and maturity you may in such things change yâ—ur minds § 1. I know the factions that take up their Religion on the credit of their party are against this Direction thinking that you must first hit on the right Church and then hold all that the Church doth hold and therefore change your mind in nothing which you this way receive I know also that some Libertines and half-believers would corrupt this Direction by extending it to the most plain and necessary truths perswading you to hold Christianity it self but as an uncertain probable Opinion But as Gods foundation standeth sure so we must be surely built on his foundation He that believeth not the Essentials of Christianity as a certain necessary revelation of God is not a Christian but an Infidel And he that believeth not all that which he understandeth in the Word of God believeth nothing on the credit of that Word Indeed faith hath its weakness in those that are sincere and they are fain to lament the râ—mnants of unbelief and cry Lord increase
another and Tempt 25. that of two evils you must choose the lâ—ss as if there were no other way Thus James and John did by sinful unchâ—ritable zeal desire to punish sin Luke 9. 54. Peter would sinfully fight against the sinful Iews Mat. 26. 52. Thus he bids men lie to avoid some dishonour to God and Religion and persecute to preserve the unity of the Church and keep out sin and commit a lesser sin themselves to escape a greater § 74. Direct 25. This is to abuse God as if he had made that necessary which he forbids and Direct 25. had not provided you lawful means enough to use against every sin This is willfully to do that which you pretend you are unwilling to do even to sin Of two evils avoid both but be sure you consent to neither § 75. Tempt 26. He pleadeth Christian Liberty to entise to sin especially to sensuality Hath Tempt 26. not Christ purchased you Liberty to use the Creatures all things are yours No men but the godly have just title to them § 76. Direct 26. He never purchased us Liberty to abuse the Creature as poyson to hurt our Direct 26. selves to hinder Mortification and strengthen our enemy and our snare and to steal away our hearts from God It 's a Liberty from sin and not a Liberty to sin that Christ hath purchased us § 77. Tempt 27. He pleadeth the Necessity of Wife Children Estate Life c. Necessity makes Tempt 27. it Lawful § 78. Direct 27. There is no Necessity of sinning He cannot be Christs Disciple that thinks it Direct 27. more necessary to save his life or provide for Wife and Children than to obey his Lord Luke 14. 26 33. God must be Trusted with these § 79. Tempt 28. But saith the Tempter it 's Natural to Lust to love Honour Ease Pleasure c. Tempt 28. Therefore it 's no sin § 80. Direct 28. Nature is corrupted and sinful And it 's Natural to you to be Rational and to Direct 28. rule your sense and appetite by Reason and not to do what lust or appetite desireth Else man is but a beast § 81. Tempt 29. But saith the Tempter Authority commandeth it It is your Parents or Masters Tempt 29. will and you must obey § 82. Direct 29. There is no power but from God Therefore none against him or above him Direct 29. They must be obeyed in all things lawful but not in sin They cannot save you nor themselves from the wrath of God § 83. Tempt 30. But saith the Tempter you have promised or vowed that you will do it and are not Tempt 30. at liberty § 84. Direct 30. The vow of a lawful thing must be kept but if you vow to sin it 's another Direct 30. sin to perform it and to wrong God or man because you have vowed to wrong him § 85. Tempt 31. But saith the Tempter it is a controversie and many learned and good men Tempt 31. think it is no sin § 86. Direct 31. You have the more reason to be fearful and cautelous when you see that the Direct 31. case is so obsure and the snare so subtile and are sure that many learned and good men on one side or other are deceived before you Remember God is your King and Judge who will not take it for an excuse for sin that learned or good men did it or defended it Consult not with flesh and blood but with God § 87. Tempt 32. But saith the Tempter will you be singular and be pâ—inted or hooted at by all Tempt 32. § 88. Direct 32. In doctrine I will not be singular from the Holy Catholick Church of God Direct 32. In worship I will not in singularity or schisme seperate from the Communion of Saints But in doctrine I will be singular from Infidels and Hereticks and in a holy life I will be singular from the ungodly and prophane and sensual lest if I do as they to avoid their scorns I speed as they § 89. Tempt 33. But you are weak and you cannot help it till God will give you grace to Tempt 33. do it § 90. Direct 33. Therefore I must not be willful and negligent and rash and do that evil Direct 33. which I may forbear nor resist and refuse that Grace and help and mercy without which I can do nothing § 91. Tempt 34. But you repent and ask God forgiveness through Christ every night for the sins Tempt 34. of the day § 92. Direct 34. Repenting is a sorrowful turning of the heart from sin to God You Repent Direct 34. not if you turn not To mock God with such Hypocritical praying and repenting is it self a 〈…〉 us siâ— Will you take it for Repenting if a man that spits in your face and beateth you shall dâ— it every day and ask you forgiveness at night and purpose to do it still because he ask'd forgâ—vâ—nâ—◠§ 93. Tempt 35. Bâ—t every man sâ—nneth daily You do but as the best men in the world do 〈◊〉 â—5 § 94. Direct 35. No true Christian that is Justified hath any sin but what he hateth more than 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—â—â—â—th â—â—â—â—d would â—â—in be rid of and striveth against in the use of holy means He hath no beâ—â—â—â—d 〈◊〉 which he would not part with but had â—ather keep than leave § 95. Tempt 36. But thâ—se that seem strict and godly are hypocrites and sâ—â—râ—tly as bad as you 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 § 96. â—â—â—â—ct 36 This is just like the Devil the accuser of those that are sanctified and justified 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by Christ the father of malice and liâ—s to charge that on them which he confâ—sseth is seâ—râ—t and he cannot prove So he said of Iob that iâ— he were touched in his â—state or body he would forsake his godliness but he was found a lyar But be it how it will I am sure I must be 〈◊〉 14 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Hâ—â—y â—â— I shall not see God and if I live after the flesh I shall die and other mens misery will be no â—asâ— tâ— me § 97. Tempt 37. But saith the Tempter if you will not sin come but near it and do that which â—â—mpt â—7 iâ— laâ—â—ul § 98. Direct 37. Indeed we must not run into a contrary extream under pretence of flying far 〈◊〉 â—7 â—nougâ— from sin But if you keep out of other sin you cannot go too far from any To be near sin is to be near Gods wrath and near that which tendeth to Hâ—ll fire And to come near it is the câ—mmon way of coming to it He that could wish he might do it is infected at the heart allrâ—â—dy Kâ—ep a tender conscience and a constant sense of the danger of sinning § 99. Tempt 38. It 's a great snare when sin is got into credit 1. By putting fair names upon Tempt â—8 it â—alling â—uxuâ—y and Gluâ—tony
basest of the people whose poverty might tempt them to discontent nor set thee upon the pinnacle of worldly honour where giddiness might have been thy ruine and where temptations to pride and lust and luxury and enmity to a holy life are so violent that few escape them He hath not set thee out upon a Sea of cares and vexations worldly businesses and encumberances but fed thee with food convenient for thee and given thee leisure to walk with God He hath not chained thee to an unprofitable profession nor used thee as those that live like their beasts to eat and drink and sleep and play or live to live But he hath called thee to the noblest and sweetest work when that hath been thy business which others were glad to taste of as a recreation and repast He hath allowed thee to converse with Books and with the best and wisest men and to spend thy dayes in sucking in delightful knowledge And this not only for thy pleasure but thy use and not only for thy self but many others O how many sweet and precious truths hath he allowed thee to feed on all the day when others are diverted and commonly look at them sometimes a far off O how many precious hours hath he granted me in his holy Assemblies and in his honourable and most pleasant work How oft hath his Day and his holy uncorrupted Ordinances and the communion of his Saints and the mentioning of his Name and Kingdom and the pleading of his cause with sinners and the celebrating of his praise been my delight O how many hundreds that he hath sent have wanted the abundant encouragement which I have had When he hath seen the disease of my despondent mind he hath not tryed me by denying me success nor suffered me with Ionas according to my inclination to overrun his work but hath ticed me on by continued encouragements and strowed all the way with mercies But his mercies to me in the souls of others have been so great that I shall secretly acknowledge them rather than here record them where I must have respect to those usual mercies of believers which lye in the common road to Heaven And how endless would it be to mention all All the good that friends and enemies have done me All the wise and gracious disposals of his providence in every condition and change of life and change of times and in every place whereever he brought me His every dayes renewed merciâ—s His support under all my languishings and weakness his plentiful supplies his gracious helps his daily pardons and the Glorious Hopes of a blessed Immortality which his Son hath purchased and his Covenant and Spirit sealed to me O the mercies that are in One Christ one Holy Spirit one Holy Scripture and in the Blessed God himself These I have mentioned unthankful heart to shame thee for thy want of Love to God And these I will leave upon record to be a witness for God against thy ingratitude and to confound thee with shame if thou deny thy Love to such a God Every one of all these mercies and multitudes more will rise up against thee and shame thee before God and all the world as a monster of unkindness if thou Love not him that hath used thee thus Here also consider what God is for your future good as well as what he hath been hitherto How all sufficient how powerful merciful and good But of this more anon § 24. Direct 7. Improve the vanity and vexation of the Creature and all thy disappointments and Direct 7. injuries and afflictions to the promoting of thy Love to God And this by a double advantage First By observing that there is nothing meet to divert thy Love or rob God of it unless thou wilt Love thy trouble and distress Secondly That thy Love to God is the comfort by which thou must be supported under the injuries and troubles which thou meetest with in the world And therefore to neglect it is but to give up thy self to misery Is it for nothing O my soul that God hath turned loose the world against thee That Devils rage against thee and wicked men do reproach and slander thee and seek thy ruine and friends prove insufficient and as broken Reeds It had been as easie to God to have prospered thee in the world and suited all things to thy own desires and have strawed thy way with the flowers of worldly comforts and delights But he knew thy proneness to undo thy self by carnal loves and how easily thy heart is enticed from thy God And therefore he hath wisely and mercifully ordered it that thy temptations shall not be too strong and no creature shall appear to thee in an over-amiable tempting dress Therefore he hath suffered them to become thy enemies And wilt thou love an enemy better than thy God What! an envious and malicious world A world of cares and grief and pains a weary restless empty world How deep and piercing are its injuries How superficial and deceitful is its friendship How serious are its sorrows What toyish shews and dreams are its delights How constant are its cares and labours How seldome and short are its flattering smiles Its comforts are disgraced by the certain expectation of succeeding sorrows Its sorrows are heightned by the expectations of more In the midst of its flatteries I hear something within me saying Thou must dye This is but the way to rottenness and dust I see a Winding-sheet and a Grave still before me I foresee how I must lye in pains and groans and then become a lothesome corpse And is this a world to be more delighted in than God What have I left me for my support and solace in the midst of all this Vanity and Vexation but to look to him that is the All-sufficient sure never failing good I must love him or I have nothing to love but enmity or deceit And is this the worst of Gods design in permitting and causing my pains and disappointments here Is it but to drive my foolish heart unto himself that I may have the solid delights and happiness of his Love O then let his blessed will be done Come home my soul my wandering tired grieved soul Love where thy love shall not be lost Love him that will not reject thee nor deceive thee nor requite thee as the world doth with injuries and abuse Despair not of entertainment though the world deny it thee The peaceable region is above In the world thou must have trouble that in Christ thou maist have peace Retire to the harbour if thou wouldst be free from storms God will receive thee when the world doth cast thee off if thou heartily cast off the world for him O what a solace is it to the soul to be driven clearly from the world to God and there to be exercised in that sacred Love which will accompany us to the world of Love § 25. Direct 8. Labour for the truest
ever the world had who taught it not only by his words but by his blood by his life and by his death If thou canst not learn it of him thou canst never learn it Love is the greatest commander of Love and the most effectual argument that can insuperably constrain us to it And none ever loved at the measure and rates that Christ hath loved To stand by such a fire is the way for a congealed heart to melt and the coldest affections to grow warm A lively faith still holding Christ the Glass of infinite Love and Goodness before our faces is the greatest Lesson in the Art of Love § 28. 2. Behold God also in his Covenant of Grace which he hath made in Christ. In that you may see sucâ— sâ—râ— such great and wonderful mercies freely given out to a world of sinners and to your selves among the rest as may afford abundant matter for Love and Thankfulness to feed on while you live There you may see how loth God is that sinners should perish How he delighteth in mercy And how great and unspeakable that mercy is There you may sâ—e an Act of Pardon and Oblivion granted upon the reasonable condition of Believing Penitent Acceptance to all mankind The sins that men have been committing many years together their willâ—ul hâ—ynous aggravated sins you may there see pardoned by more aggravated Mercy and the enemies of God reconciled to him and condemned rebels sav'd from Hell and brought into his family and made his sons O what an Image of the Goodness of God is apparent in the tenor of his word and Covenant Hâ—liness and Mercy make up the whole They are exprest in every leaf and line The precepts which seem too strict to sinners are but the perfect Rules of Holiness and Love for the health and happiness of man What Loveliness did David find in the Law it self And so should we if we read it with his eyes and heart It was sweeter to him than hony he loved it above gold Psalm 119. 127 and 97. he crieth out O how I love thy Law it is my meditation all the day And must not the Law-giver then be much more lovely whose Goodness here appeareth to us Good and upright is the Lord therefore will he teach sinners in the way Psalm 25. 8. I will delight my self in thy Commandments which I have loved My hands also will I lift up to thy Commandments which I have loved and I will meditate in thy statutes Psalm 119. 47 48. How delightfully then should I love and meditate on the Blessed Author of this holy Law But how can I read the history of Love the strange design of Grace in Christ the mystery which the Angels desirously pry into the pâ—omises of life to lost and miserable sinners and not feel the power of Love transform me Behold with what Love the Father hath Loved us that we shâ—uld be called the sons of God 1 John 3. 1. How doth God shed abroad his Love upon our hearts but by opening to us the superabundance of it in his word and opening our hearts by his spirit to perceive it O when a poor sinner that first had felt the load of sin and the wrath of God shall feelingly read or hear what mercy is rendered to him in the Covenant of Grace and hear Christs messengers tell him from God that All things are now ready and therefore invite him to the heavenly feast and even compel him to come in what melting Love must this affect a sinners heart with When we see the Grant of Life eternal sealed to us by the blood of Christ and a pardoning justifying saving Covenant so freely made and surely confirmed to us by that God whom we had so much offended O what an incentive is here for Love § 29. When I mention the Covenant I imply the Sacraments which are but its appendants or confirming seals and the investing the believer solemnly with its benefits But in these God is pleased to condescend to the most familiar communion with his Church that Love and Thankfulness might want no helps There it is that the Love of God in Christ applyeth it self most closely to particular sinners And the meat or drink will be sweet in the mouth which was not sweet to us on the table at all O how many a Heart hath this affected How many have felt the stirrings of that Love which before they felt not when they have seen Christ crucified before their eyes and have heard the Minister in his name and at his command bid them Take and Eat and Drink commanding them not to refuse their Saviour but Take him and the benefits of his blood as their own assuring them of his good will and readiness to forgive and save them § 30. 3. Behold also the Loveliness of God in his Holy ones who bear his Image and are advanced by his Love and Mercy If you are Christians indeed you are taught of God to Love his servants and to see an excellency in the Saints on earth and make them the people of your delight Psalm 16. 1 2. 1 Thes. 4. 9. And this must needs acquaint you with the greater Amiableness in the most Holy God that made them Holy O how oft have the feeling and heavenly prayers of lively believers excited those affections in me which before I felt not How oft have I been warmed with their Heavenly discourse How amiable is that Holy Heavenly disposition and conversation which appeareth in them Their faith their Love their trust in God their cheerful obedience their hatred of sin their desire of the good of all their meekness and patience how much do these advance them above the ignorant sensual proud malignant and ungodly world How Good then is that God that makes men Good And how little is the Goodness of the best of men compared to his unmeasurable Goodness Whenever your converse with holy men stirs up your Love to them rise by it presently to the God of Saints and let all be turned to him that giveth all to them and you § 31. And as the excellency of the saints so their priviledge and great advancement should shew you the Goodness of God that doth advance them As oft as thou seest a saint how poor and mean in the world soever thou seest a living monument of the abundant kindness of the Lord Thou seest a child of God a member of Christ an heir of Heaven Thou seest one that hath all his sins forgiven him and is snatcht as a brand out of the fire and delivered from the power of Satan and translated into the Kigdom of Christ Thou seest one for whom Christ hath conquered the powers of Hell and one that is freed from the bondage of the flesh and one that of the Devils slave is made a Priest to offer up the sacrifices of Praise to God Thou seest one that hath the spirit of God within him and one that hath daily intercourse with
me Denyal of our grace may seem to be humility but it tendeth to extinguish Love and Gratitude § 57. But you 'l say I must avoid soul-delusion and Pharisaical ostentation on the other side and few reach assurance how then should we keep up the Love of God Answ. 1. Though I am not come to the point of Trying and Discerning Grace I shall give you this much help in the way because it is so useful to the exercises of Love 1. If you have not Enjoying delighting Love yet try whether you have not Desiring seeking Love Love appeareth as truly in deâ—iâ—â—ng and seeking Good as in delighting in it Poor men shew their Love of the world by Desiring and seeking it as much as rich men do in delighting in it What is it that you most desire and seek 2. Or if this be so weak that you scarce discern it do you not find a mourning and lamenting Love You shew that you loved your money by mourning when you lose it and that you loved your friend by grieving for his death as well as by delighting in him while he lived If you heartily lament it as your greatest unhappiness and loss when you think that God doth cast you off and that you are void of Gracâ— and cannot serve and honour him as you would this shews you are not void of Love 3. If you feel not that you Love him do you feel that you would fain Love him and that you Love to Love him If you do so it is a sign that you do Love him When you do not only desire to find such an Evidence of salvation in you but when you desire Love it self and Love to Love God Had you not rather have a heart to Love him perfectly than to have all the riches in the world Had you not rather live in the Love of God if you could reach it than to live in any earthly pleasure If so be sure he hath your hearts The Will is the Love and the Heart If God have your Will he hath your Heart and Love 4. What hath your Hearts if he have them not Is there any thing that you prefer and seek before him and that you had rather have than him Can you be content without him and let him go in exchange for any earthly pleasure If not it is a sign he hath your Hearts You love him saâ—ingly if you set more by nothing else than by him 5. Do you love his holy Image in his word Do you delight and meditate in his Law Psalm 1. 2. Is it in your hearts Psalm 40. 8. Or do you pray Incline my heart unto thy Testimonies Psalm 119. 36. If you love Gods Image in his word the wisdom and holiness of it you love God 6. Do you love his Image on his Children If you Love them for their heavenly wisdom and holiness you so far Love God He that loveth the Candle for its light doth love the light it self and the sun He that loveth the wise and holy for their wisdom and holiness doth love wisdom and holiness it self The word and the saints being more in the reach of our sensible apprehensions than God himself is we ordinarily feel our Love to them more sensibly than our Love to God when indeed it is God in his word and servants that we love 1 Iohn 3. 14. Psalm 15. 4. 7. Though for want of Assurance you feel not the delights of Love have you not a heart that would delight in it more than in all the riches of the world if you could but get assurance of your interest Would it not comfort you more than any thing if you could be sure he Loveth you and could perfectly Love him and obey him If so it is not for want of Love that you delight not in him but for want of Assurance So that if God have thy heart either in a delighting Love or a seeking and desiring or a lamenting mourning Love he will not despise it or reject it He is â—igh to them that be of a broken heart Psalm 34. 18. A broken and contrite heart is his sacrifice which he will not despise Psalm 51. 17. The good Lord will have mercy on every one that prepareth their hearts to seek him though they do it not according to the preparation of the sanctuary 2 Cor. 30. 18 19. By these Evidences you may discern the sincerity of Love in small degrees and so you may make Love the occasion of more Love by discerning that Goodness of God which is manifested to you in the least § 38. 2. But suppose you cannot yet attain assurance Neglect not to improve that Goodness and Mercy of God which he revealeth to you in the state that you are in Love him but as Infinite Goodness should be loved who so loved the world as to give his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life John 3. 16. Love him as the most blessed merciful God who made you and all things and hath given to the world an universal pardon on condition of their penitent acceptance and offereth them everlasting life and all this purchased by the blood of Christ Love him as one that offereth you reconciliation and intreateth you to be saved and as one that delighteth not in the death of the wicked but rather that they turn and live and as one that would have all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth though he will save none but the penitent that do acknowledge the truth And when you love him sincerely on these accounts you will have the evidence of his special Love to you § 39. Direct 16. Improve thy sense of natural and friendly love to raise thee to the Love of God Direct 16. When thou seest or feelest what Love a parent hath to children and a Husband to a wife or a Wife to a Husband or faithful friends to one another think then What Love do I owe to God O how inconsiderable is the Loveliness of a child a wife a friend the best of Creatures in comparison of the Loveliness of God Unworthy soul Canst thou love a drop of Goodness in thy friend And canst thou not Love the Ocean of Goodness in thy God Is a spark in the creature more amiable than the fire that kindled it Thou canst Love thy friend for all his blemishes his ignorance his passions and manifold imperfections And canst thou not love thy God who hath none of these nor any thing to discourage or damp thy love Thou lovest and deservedly lovest thy friend because he loveth thee and deals friendly with thee But O how much greater is the Love of God Did ever friend Love thee as he hath loved thee Did ever friend do for thee as he hath done He gave thee thy being thy daily safety and all the mercies of thy life He gave thee his Son his Spirit and his Grace He pardoned thy sins and
revived who came to the assembly or to their pastors in great distress and allmost in despair See Iob 33. 23. 2 Cor. 1. 3 4. It is the office and delight of the Ministers of Christ to be helpers of his peoples faith and joy 2 Cor. 1. 24. Phil. 1. 4 25. 1 Thes. 2. 20. § 16. Direct 14. Make use of all that Prosperity and lawful pleasure which God giveth you in outward Direct 14. things for the increase and advantage of your Delight in God Though corrupted nature is apter to abuse Prosperity and earthly delights than any other state to the diverting of the heart from God and allmost all the Devils poyson is given in sugered or guilded allectives yet the primitive natural use of prosperity of health and plenty and honour and peace is to lead up the mind to God and give us a tast of his spiritual delights That the neighbourhood of the Body might be the souls advantage and that God who in this life will be seen by us but in a glass and will give out his comforts by his appointed means might make advantage of sensitive delights for his own reception and the communications of his Love and pleasure unto man That as soon as the eye or ear or tast perceiveth the delightfulness of their several objects the holy soul might presently take the hint and motion and be carried up to delightful thoughts of him that giveth us all these delights And doubtless so far as we can make use of a Delight in friends or food or health or habitations or any accomodations of our Bodies to further our Delight in God or to remove those melancholy fears or sorrows which would hinder this spiritual Delight it is not only Lawful but our duty to use them with that moderation as tendeth to this end § 17. Direct 15. Make use of affliction as a great advantage for your purest and unmixt delight in Direct 15. God The servants of Christ have usually never so much of the joy in the Holy Ghost as in their greatest sufferings especially if they be for his sake The soul never retireth so readily and delightfully to God as when it hath no one else that will receive it or that it can take any comfort from God comforteth us most when he hath made us see that none else can or will relieve us When all friends have forsaken us save only one that one is sweeter to us then than ever When all our house is â—â—red down except one room that room is pleasanter to us than it was before He that hath lost one eye will love the other better than before In prosperity our Delights in God are too often corrupted by a mixture of sensual delight But all that remaineth when the creature is gone is purely Divine § 18. Direct 16. Labour by self-examination deliberately managed under the direction of an able Direct 16. spiritual Guide to settle your souls in the well-grounded perswasion of your special interest in God and Heaven And then suffer not Satan by his troublesome importunity to renew your doubts or molest your peace An Orderly well-guided diligent self-examination may quickly do much to shew you your condition And if you are convinced that the truth of Grace is in you let not fears and suspicion go for reason and cause you to deny that which you cannot without the gainsaying of your Consciences deny You see not the design of the Devil in all this His business is by making you fear that you have no interest in God to destroy your Delight in him and in his service And next that to make you through weariness forsake him and either despair or turn to sensual delights Foresee and prevent these designs of Satan and suffer him not at his pleasure to raise new storms of fears and troubles and draw you to deny your Fathers mercies or to suspect his proved love § 19. Direct 17. Damp not your Delights by willful sin If you grieve your Comforter he will Direct 17. grieve you or leave you to grieve your selves In that measure that any known sin is cherished Delight in God will certainly decay § 20. Direct 18. Improve your observation of wicked mens sensual delights to provoke your souls Direct 18. to delight in God Think with your selves shall hawks and hounds and pride and filthyness and cards and dice and playes and sports and luxury and idleness and foolish talk or worldly honours be so delightful to these deluded sinners and shall not my God and Saviour his Love and promises and the hopes of Heaven be more delightful to me Is there any comparison between the matter of my delights and theirs § 21. Direct 19. Labour to overcome those fears of Death which would damp your Iâ—ys in the Direct 19. foresight of Everlasting joyes As nothing more feedeth Holy delights than the fore-thoughts of Heaven so there is scarce any thing that more hindreth our delight in those forethoughts than the fear of interposing death See what I have written against this fear in my Treatise of Self-denyal and Saints Rest and in my Treatise of Death as the last enemy and in my Last work of a Believer § 22. Direct 20. Pretend not any other Religious duties against your Delight in God and Holiness Direct 20. but use them all in their proper subserviencie to this Penitent sorrow is only a purge to cast out those corruptions which hinder you from relishing your spiritual delights Use it therefore as Physick only when there is need and not for it self but only to this end and turn it not into your ordinary food Delight in God is the Health of your souls Say not you cannot have while to be heathful because you must take physick or that you take Physick against Health or instead of health but for your health So take up no sorrow against your Delight in God or instead of it but for it and so much as promoteth it See the Directions for Love beforegoing § 23. By this time you may see that Holy Delight adjoyned to Love is the principal part of our Religion and that they mistake it which place it in any thing else And therefore how unexcusable are all the ungodly enemies or neglectâ—rs of a holy life If it had been a life of grief and toyle they had had some pretense But to fly from pleasure and refuse delight and such delight is unexcusable Be it known to you sinners God calleth you not to forsake Delight but to accept it To change your Delight in sin and vanity for Delight in him you dare not say but this is better you cannot have your houses and lands for ever nor your lust and luxury for ever but you may have God for ever And do you hope to live for ever with him and have you no Delight in him Men deal with Christ as the Papists with the Reformed Churches Because we reject their formalities and ceremonious toyes
a name above every name that at the name of Iesus every knee should bow of things in Heaven and things in Earth and things under the Earth and that every tongue should confess that Iesus is Christ to the glory of God the Father Phil. 2. 9 10 11. Pray therefore that the God of our Lord Iesus Christ the Father of glory may give you the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation in the acknowledgement of him the eyes of your understanding being enlightned that ye may know what is the hope of his calling and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the Saints and what is the exceeding greatness of his power to usward who believe according to the working of his mighty power which he wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead and set him at his right hand in the coelestials fâ—r above all principality and power and might and dominion and every name that is named not only in this world but in that which is to come and hath put all things under his feet and gave him to be Head over all things to his Church Eph. 1. 17 c. The Father hath glorified his name in his Son Iohn 12. 28. 13. 31 32. 14. 13. 17. 1. § 6. Direct 4. Behold God as the End of the whole Creation and intend him as the End of all the Direct 4. actions of thy life You honour him not as God if you practically esteem him not as your ultimate end even the Pleasing of his will and the honouring him in the world If any thing else be made your chiefest end you honour it before him and make a God of it § 7. Direct 5. Answer all his blessed attributes with suitable affections as I have directed in my Direct 5. Treatise of the Knowledge of God and here briefly Dir. 4. and his Relations to us with the duty which they command subjection Love c. as I have opened in the foregoing Directions We glorifie him in our hearts when the Image of his Attributes is there received § 8. Direct 6. Behold him by faith as allways present with you And then every Attribute will Direct 6. the more affect you and you will not admit dishonourable thoughts of him Pray to him as if you saw him and you will speak to him with reverence Speak of him as if you saw him and you dare not take his name in vain nor talk of God with a common frame of mind nor in a common manner as of common things By faith Moses forsook Egypt not fearing the wrath of the King for he endured as seeing him that is invisible Heb. 11. 27. God is contemned by them that think they are behind his back § 9. Direct 7. Think of him as in Heaven where he is revealed in Glory to the blessed and magnified Direct 7. by their high everlasting Praise Nothing so much helpeth us to Glorifie God in our minds as by faith to behold him where he is most Glorious The very reading over the description of the Glory of the New Ierusalem Rev. 21. 22. will much affect a believing mind with a sense of the Gloriousness of God Suppose with Stephen we saw Heaven opened and the ancient of daies the Great Jehovah Gloriously illustrating the City of God and Jesus in Glory at his right hand and the innumerable army of Glorifyed Spirits before his throne Praysing and magnifying him with the highest admirations and joyfullest acclamations that creatures are capable of would it not raise us to some of the same admirations The soul that by faith is much above doth most Glorifie God as being neerest to his Glory § 10. Direct 8. Foresee by faith the coming of Christ and the day of the universal Iudgement when Direct 8. Christ shall come in flaming fire with thousands of his holy Angels to be Glorified in his Saints and admired in all them that do believe 2 Thes. 1. 10. § 11. Direct 9. Abhor all Doctrines which blaspheam or dishonour the name of God and would Direct 9. blemish and hide the Glory of his Majesty I give you this rule for your own preservation and not in imitation of uncharitable firebrands and dividers of the Church to exercise your pride and imperious humour in condemning all men to whose opinions you can maliciously affix a blasphemous consequence which either followeth but in your own imagination or is not acknowledged but hated by those on whom you do affix it Let it suffice you to detest false doctrines without detesting the persons that you imagine guilty of them who profess to believe the contrary truth as stedfastly as you your selves § 12. Direct 10. Take heed of sinking into flesh and earth and being diverted by things sensible from Direct 10. the daily contemplation of the Glory of God If your belly become your God and you mind earthly things and are set upon the honours or profits or pleasures of the world when your conversation should be in Heaven you will be glorying in your shame when you should be admiring the Glory of your Maker Phil. 3. 18 19 20. and you will have so much to do on earth that you will find no leisure because you have no hearts to look up seriously to God Directions for Glorifying God with our tongues in his Praises § 13. Direct 1. Conceive of this duty of Praising God according to its superlative excellencies as being Direct 11. the highest service that the tongue of men or Angels can perform To Bless or Praise or Magnifie How great a duty Praising God is God is not to make him Greater or better or happier than he is but to declare and extol his Greatness Goodness and felicity And that your hearts may be inflamed to this excellent work I will here shew you how great and necessary how high and acceptable a work it is § 14. 1. It is the giving to God his chiefest due A speaking of him as he is And when we have Christianus est homo dicens faciâ—â—â—â—â—â—grata diabolo oâ—nans 〈…〉 am Dâ—â— â—â—â—â—oris vitae à salutis suae Bâ—choâ—â—â—â— spoken the highest how far fall we short of the due expression of his glorious perfections O how great Praise doth that Allmightiness deserve which created and conserveth all the world and over-ruleth all the sons of men and is able to do whatsoever he will Great is the Lord and Greatly to be praised and his Greatness is unsearchable One Generation shall praise his works to another and declare his mighty acts I will speak of the glorious honour of thy Majesty and of thy wondrous works And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts and I will declare thy Greatness Psalm 145. 3 4 5. What Praise doth that knowledge deserve which extendeth to all things that are or were or ever shall be and that wisdom which ordereth all the world He knoweth every thought of man
with him and about Pope Ioan and many the like cases where you may read scores of Historians on one side and on the other § 53. 18. Remember that the holiest Saints or Apostles could never please the world nor escape their censures slanders and cruelties no nor Iesus Christ himself And can you think by honest means to please them better than Christ and all his Saints have done You have not the wisdom that Christ had to please men and to avoid offence You have not the perfect innocency and unblameableness that Christ had You cannot heal their sicknesses and infirmities and do that good to them to please and win them as Jesus Christ did You cannot convince them and constrain them to reverence you by manifold miracles as Jesus Christ did Can you imitate such an excellent pattern as is set you by the holy patient charitable unwearied Apostle Paul Acts 20. 1 Cor. 4. 9. 2 Cor. 4. 5. 6. 10. 11. 12. If you cannot how can you please them that would not be pleased by such unimitable works of love and power The more Paul loved some of his hearers the less he was beloved 2 Cor. 12. 15. They used him as an enemy for telling them the truth Gal. 4. 16. Though he became all things to all men he could save but some nor please but some 1 Cor. 9. 22. And what are you that you should better please them § 54. 19. Godliness vertue and honesty it self will not please the world and therefore you cannot Aâ—â—stiâ—â—s having gâ—t the Sâ—â—name oâ— Iâ—st was hatâ—d by the Aâ—â—â—â—iais who decreed to bâ—â—ish him and every one that voted against him being to write down his Name a Clown that could not write came to Aristides to desire him â—o wrâ—te down Aâ—istiâ—â—s name He asked him wheâ—her he knew Aristidis and the man answered no but he would vote against him because his name waâ— Iâ—st Aristides concealing himself fulfilled the mans desire and wrote his own Name in the Roll and gave it hâ—m so â—asily did he bear it to be condemned of the world for being Iust Plutarch iâ— Aristide It was not only Socraâ—s that was thus used saiâ—h Laertius Nam Homerum velut insanientem drachmâ—s quinquaginta mulctarunt Tyâ—â—aeumque mentis impotem dixeâ—â—â—â— â— Which of the Prophets have not your Fathers persecuted Maâ—th 23. hâ—pe to please them by that which is not pleasing to them Will men be pleased by that which they hate and by the actions which they think accuse them and condemn them And if you will be Ungodly and Vicious to please them you sell your souls your Conscience and your God to please them God and they are not pleased with the same wayes And which do you think should first be pleased Iâ— you displease him for their favour you will buy it dear § 55. 20. They are not pleased with God himself yea no man doth displease so many and so much as he And can you do mâ—re than God to please them or can you deserve their favour more than he They are daily displeased with his works of providence One would have rain when another would have none One would have the winds to serve his voyage and another would have them in a contrary end One party is displeased because another is pleased and exalted Every enemy would have his cause succeed and the victory to be his Every contender would have all go on his side God must be ruled by them and fit himself to the interest of the most unjust and to the will of the most vicious and do as they would have him and be a servant to their lusts or they will not be pleased with him And his Holy Nature and his Holy Word and Holy Wayes displease them more than his ordinary providence They are displeased that his Word is so precise and strict and that he commandeth them so holy and so strict a life and that he threatneth all the ungodly with damnation He must alter his Laws and make them more loose and fit them to their fleshly interest and lusts and speak as they would have him without any difficulties before they will be pleased with them unless he alter their minds and hearts And how do you think they will be pleased with him at last when he fulfills his threatnings When he killeth them and turneth their bodies to dust and their guilty souls to torment and despair § 56. 21. How can you please men that cannot please themselves Their own desire and choice will please them but a little while Like children they are soon weary of that which they cryed for They must needs have it and when they have it it is naught and cast away They are neither pleased with it nor without it They are like sick persons that long for every meat or drink they think of and when they have it they cannot get it down For the sickness is still within them that causeth their displeasure How many do trouble and torment themselves by their passions and folly from day to day And can you please such self-displeasers § 57. How can you please all others when you cannot please your selves If you are persons fearing God and feel the burden of your sins and have life enough to be sensible of your diseases I dare say there are none in the world so displeasing to you as you are to your selves You carry that about you and feel that within you which displeaseth you more than all the enemies you have in the world Your passions and corruptions your want of Love to God and your strangeness to him and the life to come the daily faultiness of your duties and your lives are your daily burden and displease you most And if you be not able and wise and good enough to please your selves can you be able and wise and good enough to please the world As your sins are nearest to your selves so are your graces and as you know more evil by your selves than others know so you know more good by your selves That little fire will not warm all the room which will not warm the hearth it lyeth on § 58. Direct 10. Remember what a life of unquietness and continual vexation you choose if you place your peace or happiness in the good will or word of man For having shewed you how impossible a â—ask you undertake it must needs follow that the pursuit of it must be a life of torment To engage Viâ— esse in munâ—o Contemâ—â— tâ—mnâ—re disce Abr. Buâ—holtzâ—r your selves in so great cares and be sure to be disappointed To make that your end which you cannot attain To find that you labour in vain and daily meet with displeasure instead of the favour you expected must needs be a very grievous life You are like one that dwelleth on the top of a mountain and yet cannot endure the wind to blow upon him Or like him that dwelleth in a
thou be proud Why Devils possessing thy body are not so bad or hurtful to thee as sin in thy soul. The sight of a sin should more take down thy pride than the sight of a Devil Should that man be proud that hath lived as thou hast lived and sinned as thou hast sinned from thy childhood untill now that hath lost so much time and abused so much mercy and neglected so much means and omitted so many duties to God and man and been guilty of so many sinful thoughts and so many false or foolish words and hath broken See my Treatise of Self-ignorance all the Laws of God Should not he be deeply humbled that hath yet so much ignorance error unbelief hypocrisie sensuality worldliness hard-heartedness security uncharitableness lust envy malice impatience and selfishness as is in thee Should not thy very Pride it self be matter of thy great humiliation to think that so odious a sin should yet so much prevail Look thus on thy leprous defiled soul and turn thy very Pride against it self Know thy self and thou canst not be Proud § 93. Direct 12. Look also to the desert of all thy sins even unto Hell it self and try if that will Direct 12. bring thee low Though Pride came from Hell effectively yet Hell objectively may afford thee a remedy against it Think on the worm that never dyeth and the fire that never shall be quenched and consider whether Pride become that soul that hath deserved these Wilt thou be proud in the way to thy damnation Thou mightest better be proud of thy Chains and Rope when thou art going to the Gallows Think whether the miserable souls in Hell are now minding neat and well set attire or seeking for dominion honour or preferment or contending who shall be the greatest or striving for the highest rooms or setting out themselves to the admiration and applause of men or quarrelling with others for undervaluing or dishonouring them Do you think there is any place or matter there for such works of Pride when God abaseth them § 94. Direct 13. Look to the day of Iudgement when all proud thoughts and looks shall be taken Direct 13. down and to the endless misery threatned to the proud Think of that world in which your souls must ere long appear before the Great and Holy God whose Presence will abase the proudest sinner When the Tyrants and Gallants and Wantons of the Earth must with trembling and amazement give up their accounts to the most righteous Judge of all the world then where are their lofty looks and language Then where is their glory and gallantry and proud imperious domineering and their scornful despising the humble lowly ones of Christ Would you then think that this is the same man that lately could scarce be seen or spoken with that looked so big and swaggered it out in wealth and honour Is this he that could not endure a scorn or to be slighted or undervalued or plainly reproved that must needs have the honour and precedency in wit and greatness and command Is this the man that thought he was perfect and had no sin or that his sins were so small as not to need the humiliation renovation and holy diligence of the Saints Is this the woman that spent half the day in dressing up her self and house and furniture for the view of others and must needs be in the newest or the neatest fashion that was wont to walk in an artificial pace with a wandring eye in a wanton garb as if she were too good to tread on the earth Oh then how the case will be altered with such as these Can you believe and consider how you must be judged by God and yet be Proud § 95. Direct 14. Look to the Devils themselves that tempt you to be Proud and see what Pride Direct 14. hath brought them to and remember that a proud man is the Image of the Devil and Pride is the Devils special sin He that envyeth your happiness knoweth by sad experience the way to misery and therefore tempteth you to be proud that you may come by the same Way to the same End that he himself is come to The Angels which kept not their first estate but left their own habitation are reserved in everlasting chains under darkness to the judgement of the great day Jude 6. § 96. Direct 15. Look well upon thy self both body and soul and think whether thou be a person Direct 15. fit for Pride God hath purposely clothed thine immortal soul in the course attire of corruptible flesh and placed it in so poor and ruinous a Cottage that it might be kept from pride yea he made this frail and corruptible body to be a constitutive part of our very persons that in knowing it we may know our selves Some will have a dead mans skull stand by them in their Studies or Chambers as an Antidote against pride But God hath fastned us yet closer to mortality Death dwelleth Fama est fictilibus caenasse Agathoclea Regem Atque abacum Samio saepe onerasse luâ—o Fercula gemmatis cum pokerâ—t aurea vasis Et misceret opes pauperiemque simul Quaerenti causam respondit Rex ego qui sum Sicaniae figulo sum gâ—nitore satus Fortunam reverenter habe quicunque repente Dives ab exili progrediere loco Auson li. Epi. ram in our bowels We are apt to marvel that so noble a soul should be lodged in so mean a body made of the earth to which it must return A Stone is durable and clean but my flesh is corruptible and must turn to lothesome filth and rottenness A Marble Pillar will stand firm and beautiful from age to age but I must perish and consume in darkness The Seats we sit upon the Pillars we lean to the Stones we tread upon will be here when we are turned to dust The house that I build may stand when I am rotten in the Grave A Tree will live when he that planted it is dead Our bodies are of no better materials than the Brutes Our substance is in a continual flux or waste and loseth something every day and if it were not repaired and patched up by daily air and nourishment it would soon be spent and our Oyle consumed If you were chained to a dead carkass which you must still carry about with you it were not a matter so fit to humble you as to be united so nearly to so vile a body of your own We carry a dunghill continually within us Alas how silly a piece is the greatest the strongest and the comeliest of you all What is that flesh which you so much pamper but a skin full of corruption a bag of filth of flegm or choller or such like excrements Iâ— the curiousest Dames had but a sight of the flegm in their heads and bowels the choller about their liver and galls the worms or filâ—h in other parts they would go near to vomit at
the chief part of this sin is to be cured according to the Directions in the first Chapter as a state of wickedness is and more I shall say anon about the Worship of God and Chap. 3. Direct 11. containeth the cure also Only here I shall add a few Directions to a God-hating Generation § 2. Direct 1. The first thing you have to do is to discover this to be your sin For you are confident Direct 1. that you love God above all while you hate him above all even above the Devil You will confess that this is horrid wickedness where it is found and well deserveth damnation Take heed lest thy own confession judge thee Remember then that it is not the bare Name that we now speak of I know that Gods Name is most honoured and the Devils name is most hated Nor is it every thing in God that is hated None hateth his Mercifulness and Goodness as such Nor is it every thing in the Devil that is loved None love his hatred to man nor his cruelty in tormenting men But the Holiness of God which is it that man must receive the Image of and be conformed to is hated by the unholy And the Devils unholiness and friendship to mens sin and sensuality is loved by the sensual and unholy And this hatred of God and Love of the Devil one would think you might casily perceive § 3. 1. In that you had rather God were not so Iust and Holy you had rather he had never commanded you to be Holy but leâ—t you to live as your flesh would have you you had rather God were indifferent as to your sins and would give you leave to follow your lusts Such a God you would have And a God that will damn you unless you be Holy and hate your sins and forsake them you like not you cannot abide but indeed do hate him § 4. 2. Therefore you will not Believe that God is such a holy sin-hating God Because you would Malunâ— nescire quia jam oderunt Tertul. Apoâ—get c. â— not have him so you will not believe he is so and so hate his nature while you believe that you love him and love but an Idol of your unholy fantasies Psal. 50. 21 22. These things hast thou done and I kept silence thou thoughtst that I was altogether such a one as thy self but I will reprove thee and set them in order before thy eyes Now consider this ye that forget God lest I tear you in pieces and there be none to deliver § 5. 3. You love not the Holiness of the Word of God which beareth his Image You love not these strict and holy passages in it Ioh. 3. 3 5. Luke 14. 26 33. Matth. 18. 3. Rom. 8. 13. Col. 3. 1 2 3 4. 2 Cor. 5. 17. with abundance more You had rather have had a Scripture that would have left your ambition covetousness lust and appetite to their liberties and that had said nothing for the absolute necessity of Holiness nor had condemned the ungodly § 6. 4. You love not the holiest Ministers or servants of Christ that most powerfully preach his holy Word or that most carefully seriously and zealously obey it your hearts rise against them when they bring in the Light which sheweth that your deeds and you are evil Iohn 3. 19 20. They are an eye-sore to you your hearts rise not so much against Whoremongers Swearers Lyars Drunkards Atheists or Infidels as against them What sort of persons on the face of the earth are so hated by the ungodly in all Nations and of all degrees and used by them so cruelly and pursued by them so implacably as the holiest servants of the Lord are § 7. 5 You love not to call upon God in serious fervent spiritual prayer praises and thanksgiving You are quickly weary of it you had rather be at a Play or Gaming or a Feast your hearts rise against holy Worship as a tedious irksome thing § 8. 6. You love not holy edifying discourse of God and of heavenly things Your hearts rise against it and you hate and scorn it as if all serious talk of God were but hypocrisie and God were to be banished out of our discourse § 9. 7. You cannot abide the serious frequent Thoughts of God in secret but had rather stuff your minds with thoughts of your Horses or Hawks or bravery or honour or preferments or sports or entertainments or business and labours in the world So that one hour of a thousand or ten thousand was never spent in serious delightful thoughts of God his holy truths or works or Kingdom § 10. 8. You love not the blessed day of Judgement when Christ will come with his holy Angels to judge the world to justifie his accused and abused servants to be glorified in his Saints and admired in all them that do believe 2 Thess. 1. 8 9 10 11. And can you be so blind after all this as not to see that you are HATERS OF GOD § 11. Direct 2. Know God better and thou canst not hate him especially know the beauty and Direct 2. glorious excellency of that Holiness and Iustice which thou hatest Should the Sun be darkned or disgraced because sore eyes cannot endure its light Must Kings and Judges be all corrupt or change their Laws and turn all men loose to do what they list because Malefactors and licentious men would have it so § 12. Direct 3. Know God and Holiness as they are to thee thy self and then thou wilt know them not only to be Best for thee as the Sun is to the world and as life and health is to thy body but to be thy only good and happiness and then thou canst not choose but love them Thy prejudice and false conceits of God and Holiness cause thy Hatred § 13. Direct 4. Cast away thy cursed unbelief If thou believe not what the Scripture saith of God Direct 4. and man and of the souls immortality and the life to come thou wilt then hate all that is Holy as a deceit and needless troubler of the world But if once thou believe well the Word of God and the life everlasting thou wilt have another heart § 14. Direct 5. Away with thy beastly blinding sensuality While thou art a slave to thy flesh Direct 5. and lusts and appetite and its interest reigneth in thee thou canst not choose but hate that Holiness which is against it and hate that God that forbiddeth it and tells thee that he will judge thee and damn thee for it if thou forsake it not This is the true cause of the Hatred of God and Pene omnis sermâ— Div nus habet aemuloâ— suos Quot genera prâ—â—â—ptorum sunt â—â—t adversa â—oâ—um si larg 〈…〉 esse 〈…〉 buâ— juâ—â—t Dominus avarus irascitur si parsimomam eâ—gâ—â— prodigus execratur Sermones sacros improbi hostes suos dicunt Salvian li. 4 ad Eccles. Cath. Non ego tibi
revenger to execute wrath upon him that doth evil Would you have the fuller exposition of this It is in 1 Pet. 3. 10 11 12 13 14 15. For he that will love life and see good dayes let him refrain his tongue from evil and his lips that they speak no guile Let him eschew evil and do good let him seek peace and ensue it For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous and his eares are open to their prayers but the face of the Lord When Socâ—aâ—es wife lamenâ—ing him said Injuste mâ—riâ—râ—s he answered An tu juste malles 〈◊〉 in So 〈…〉 is against them that do evil And who is he that will harm you if ye be followers of that which is good But and if ye suffer for righteousness sake happy are ye and be not afraid of their terrour neither be troubled but sanctifie the Lord God in your hearts and be ready alwayes to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear Having a good conscience that whereas they speak evil of you as evil-doers they may be ashamed that falsly accuse your good conversation in Christ. For it is better if the will of God be so that ye suffer for well-doing than for evil doing See also 1 Pet. 4. 13 14 15. § 5. Direct 5. Either you fear sufferings from men as guilty or as innocent for evil doing or for well doing or for nothing If as guilty and for evil doing turn your fears the right way and fear God and his wrath for sin and his threatnings of more than men can inflict and acknowledge the goodness of Iustice both from God and man But if it be as innocent or for well doing remember that Christ commandeth you exceedingly to rejoyce and remember that martyrs have the most glorious Crown And will you be excessively afraid of your highest honour and gain and joy Believe well what Christ hath said and you cannot be much afraid of suffering for him Matth. 5. 10 11 12. The seven Bâ—eâ—hren that suffâ—red in Aâ—â—â—â—â— under Hâ—â—â—â—eâ—iâ—us Incedâ—â—ans cum â—iducia ad supplicium quasi ad epulas decanâ—â—nâ—es Gloria Deo in excelsis c. Voâ—â—va nobis haec est dies omni solennitate fâ—stivior Ecce nunc tempus acceptabile ecce nunc dies est salutis quando pro side nunc domini dei nostri perferimus praeparatum supplicium ne amittamus acquifitae fidei vndumentum sed populi publica voce clamabant Ne timeatis populi Dei neque formidetis minas atque terrores presentium tribulationum sed moriâ—mur pro Christo ut ipse mortuus est redimens nos pretioso sanguine salutari Victor Uticâ—â—s p 368. In Paulo qumque gloriationes observavi Gloriatur in imbecillitate in cruce Christi in bona conscientia in afflictionibus in spe vitae aeternae Bucholtzâ—â— Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsly for my sake Rejoyce and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in Heaven for so persecuted they the Prophets which were before you And will you fear the way of blessedness and exceeding joy Matth. 10. 17 18 19. Beware of men for they will deliver you up to the Councils and they will scourge you in their Synagogues and ye shall be brought before Governours and Kings for my sake for a testimony against them But take no thought c. You are allowed to beware of them but not to be over fearful or thoughtful of the matter Vers. 22 23. And ye shall be hated of all men for my names sake but he that endureth to the end shall be saved But when they persecute you in this City fly to another Fly but fear them not with any immoderate fear vers 39. He that findeth his life shall lose it and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it Luk. 18. 29 30. Verily I say unto you there is no man that hath left house or Parents or Brethren or Wife or Children for the Kingdom of Gods sake who shall not receive manifold more in this present time and in the world to come life everlasting Can you believe all this and yet be so afraid of your own felicity O what a deal of secret unbelief is detected by our immoderate fears 1 Pet. 4. 12 13 14 16 19. Beloved think it not strange concerning the fiery tryal which is to try you as though some strange thing happened to you But rejoice in as much as ye are partakers of Christs sufferings that when his glory shall be revealed ye may be glad also with exceeding joy If ye be reproached for the name of Christ happy are ye for the spirit of Glory and of God resteth on you On their part he is evil spoken of but on your part he is glorified But let none of you suffer as an evil doer yet if any man suffer as a Christian let him glorifie God on that behalf wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing as unto a faithful Creator There is scarce any point that God hath been pleased to be more full in in the holy Scriptures than the encouraging of his suffering servants against the fears of men acquainting them that their sufferings are the matter of their profit and exceeding joy and therefore not of too great fear § 6. Direct 6. Experience telleth us that men have never so much joy on earth as in suffering for the Direct 6. cause of Christ nor so much honour as by being dishonoured by men for him How joyfully did the ancient Christians go to Martyrdom many of them lamented that they could not attain it And what Idololatria taÌ„ altas in mundo egit radices ut non possit extirpari Ideo optimum est Câ—nsiteâ—i Patâ— Bâ—choltâ—â—r Victor Utiâ—ensis saith That Gensericus commanded that when Mâ—sculin â—s came to dye if he were fearful they should execute him that he might dye with shame but if he were constant they should forbear lest he should have the honour of a glorious Martyrdom And so his boldness saved his life Etsi martyrem invidus host is nolâ—â—t same coâ—â—â—â—â—orem tamen non potuit violaâ—e comfort have Christs Confessours found above what they could ever attain before And how honourable now are the names and memorials of those Martyrs who dyed then under the slanders scorn and cruelty of men Even the Papists that bloodily make more do yet honour the names of the antient Martyrs with keeping Holy dayes for them and magnifying their shrines and relicts For God will have it so for the honour of his holy sufferers that even that same generation that persecute the living Saints shall honour the dead and they
wouldst be free from lust keep far enough from the tempting object If possible Direct 3. dwell not in the house with any person that thou feelest thy self endangered by If that be not possible avoid their company especially in private Abhor all lascivious and immodest actions Dost thou give thy self the liberty of wanton dalliance and lustful embracements and yet think to be free from lust wilt thou put thy hand into the fire when thou art afraid of being burnt either thou hast the power of thy own heart or thou hast not If thou hast why dost thou not quench thy lust If thou hast not why dost thou cast it upon greater temptations and put it farther out of thy power than it is Fly from a tempting object for thy safety as thou wouldst fly from an enemy for thy life These Loving enemies are more dangerous than hating enemies They get the Key of our hearts and come in and steal our treasure with our consent or without resistance when an open enemy is suspected and shut out § 6. Direct 4. Command thy Eyes and as Job 31. 1. make a Covenant with them that thou mayest Direct 4. not think on tempting objects Shut these Windows and thou preservest thy heart Gaze not upon any 〈…〉 and â—â—proveâ—â— them that â—ast a wanton 〈…〉 at women in Coaches aâ— they pass by and look out at Windows to have a full view of them and yet think that they 〈…〉 fault suffering a curious eye and a wandering mind to slide and run every way pag. 142. alluring object A look hath kindled that fire of Lust in many a heart that hath ended in the fire of Hell It s easier to stop lust at these outward doors than drive it out when it hath tainted the heart If thou canst not do this much how canst thou do more An ungoverned eye fetcheth fire to burn the soul that should have governed it § 7. Direct 5. Linger not in the pleasant snares of lust if thou feel but the least beginnings of it Direct 5. but quickly cast water on the first discerned spark before it break â—um hâ—â—t modiâ—â—â—angunt praecordia motus Sâ— pâ—get in primo lâ—minâ— siste pedem Opâ—r me dum nova sunt subiti mala semina morbi â—â—â—â—uus incipienâ—ire resiâ—â—aâ— equus Nâ—m mâ—â—a daâ— vires Dum noâ—uâ—â—st câ—â—pto poâ—ius pugnemus amoâ—i Hamma râ—â—â—â—ns parva sparsa resedit aqua Iâ—â—â—â—ea â—aciâ—â— serpunt in vesâ—era flammae â—â— mala â—adiâ—es altius arbor agit out into a flame The Amorous Poet can teach you this Ovid. de Rem Am. If ever delay be dangerous it is here For delay will occasion such engagements to sin that you must come off at a far dearer rate If the meat be undigestible its best not look on it it s the next best not to touch or taste it but if once it go down it will cost you sickness and pain to get it up again and if you do not you perish by it § 8. Direct 6. Abhor lascivious immodest speech As such words come from either vain or filthy Direct 6. hearts and shew the absence of the fear of God so they tend to make the hearer like the speaker And if thy eares grow but patient and reconcileable to such discourse thou hast lost much of thy innocence already Christians must abhor the mentioning of such filthy sins in any other manner but such as tends to bring the hearers to abhor them Be not deceived evil words corrupt good manners 1 Cor. 15. 33. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth but that which is good to the use of edifying that it may minister grace to the hearers and grieve not the holy spirit of God Corrupt communication is rotten stinking communication and none but Dogs and Crows love Carrion But Fornication and all uncleanness and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 inordinate lust or luxury let it not be once named among you as becometh Saints neither filthiness nor foolish talking nor jesting c. § 9. Direct 7. Abhor the covering of filthy lust with handsome names to make it the more acceptable Direct 7. Their discourse is more dangerous that would thus dress up an ugly lust than theirs that speak of it in nâ—sty language Thus among the bruitish party it goeth under the names of Love and having a Mistris and Courting and such like But as one saith thats cited in Stobaeus It is doubled Lust that is commonly called Love and doubled Love is stark madness If filthiness will walk abroad let it go for filthiness and appear as it is § 10. Direct 8. Avoid the Reading of Romances and Love stories which are the Library of Venus Direct 8. or the Devils Books of the Lustful art to cover over filthiness with cleanly names and bewitch the fantasies of fools with fine words To make men conceive of the ready way to Hell under the notions and images of Excellency Beauty Love Gallantry And by representing strong and amorous passions to stir up the same passions in the Reader As he that will needs read a Conjuring Book is well enough served if Devils come about his ears so he that will needs read such Romances and other Books of the Burning art it is just with God to suffer an unclean Devil to possess them and to suffer them to catch the Feaver of Lust which may not only burn up the heart but cause that pernicious deliration in the brain which is the ordinary symptome of it § 11. Direct 9. Avoid all wanton Stage-plays and Dancings which either cover the odiousness of lust Direct 9. or produce temptations to it As God hath his preachers and holy assemblies and exercises for the Communion 〈…〉 ial 30. of Saints and the stirring up of Love and holiness so these are Satans instruments and assemblies and exercises for the communion of sinners and for the stirring up of lust and filthiness They that will go to the Devils Church deserve to be possessed with his Principles and numbred with his Disciples The ancient Christians were very severe against the seeing of these spectacula shews or plays especially in any of the Clergy § 12. Direct 10. Avoid all tempting unnecessary ornaments or attire and the regarding or gazing Direct 10. on them upon others It is a procacious lustful desire to seem comely and amiable which is the common Ly 〈…〉 dâ—r forbad his daughters to wear the brave attire which Dâ—o 〈◊〉 sent them Ne lâ—xuâ—iâ— consâ—iâ—uae tâ—â—poâ—â—es videantur Iâ—st câ—â—spicuoâ—s in â—â—â—â—ury they shoâ—ld seem the moâ—e dâ—formed cause of this excess The Folly or Lust or both of fashionists and gawdy Gallants is so conspicuous to all in their affected dress that never did Pride more cross it self than in such publications of such disgraceful folly or lust They that take on them to be adversaries to lust and yet are careful when they present themselves to sight to appear
2. 1â— see God and that Christ shall come in flaming fire to render vengeance to them that obey not his Gospel and that all they shall be damned that obey not the truth but have pleasure in unrighteousness when God hath resolved that Hell shall be the wages of ungodliness dost thou not desire them to damn themselves when thou desirest them to be ungodly If thou believe that there is any Hell at all then tell me what its possible for any man to do to murder his soul and damn himself but only to be ungodly If this way do it not there is no danger of any other Tell me dost thou think that the Devil deserveth to be called A Murderer of souls If not it seems thou wilt openly take the Devils part But if he do deserve it then the reason of all the World be judge whether that man deserve it not much more that will do much more against himself than the Devil ever did or can do The Devil can but tempt but thou wouldst have men do the thing that he tempts them to and actually to sin and neglect a holy life And which is the worse he that doth the evil or he that only perswadeth them to it If the Devil be called Our Adversary that like a roaring Lyon goeth about night and day seeking whom he 1 Pâ—t 5. 8. may devour what should that man be called that doth far more against himself than all the Devils in Hell do against him Sure he is a devourer or destroyer of himself Tell me thou distracted scorner Is the Devils work thinkest thou Good or Bad If it be Good take thy part of it and boast of it when thou seest the end If it be Bad to deceive souls and entise them to sin and Hell why wouldst thou have men do worse by themselves He that sinneth doth worse than he that tempteth Tell me what way doth the Devil take to do men hurt and damn their souls but only by drawing them to sin He hath no other way in the World to undoe any man but by tempting him to that which thou temptest men to even to sin against God and to neglect a Holy life So that it 's plain that thou scornest and opposest men because they will not be worse than Devils to themselves § 19. 13. Moreover thou opposest men for not forsaking God! What is it to forsake God but to refuse to Love and honour and obey him as God He hath told us himself that He that cometh to God must believe that God is and that he is the Rewarder of them that diligently seek him Heb. 11. 6. And is it not this diligent seeking him that thou deridest It 's plain then that thou wouldst scorn men away from God and have them forsake him as thou hast done § 20. 14. Thou scornest men for not being Hypocrites Because they will be that in good earnest which thou hypocritically callest thy self and wouldst be thought Thou callest thy self a Christian and what is it but for being serious Christians that thou deridest them Thou takest on thee to believe in God and what is it but for obeying and serving God that thou deridest them Thou takest on thee to believe the Scripture to be the Word of God And what is it but for following the holy Scriptures that thou deridest them Thou saist thou believest the Communion of Saints and deridest them that hold the Communion of Saints in practice Thou saist thou believest that Christ shall judge the world and yet scornest them that are serious in preparing for his judgement Thou prayest that Gods name may be hallowed and his Kingdom come and his will-be done on Earth as it is in Heaven And yet thou deridest them that Hallow his name and are Subjects of his Kingdom and endeavour to do his will O wretched Hypocrite And yet that tongue of thine pretendeth that it is their Hypocrisie for which thou hatest and deridest them when thou dost it because they be not such blind and sensless Hypocrites as thy self Can there be grosser Hypocrisie in the World than to hate and scorn the serious practice of thy own profession and the diligent living according to that which thy own tongue professeth to believe If thou say that it is for doing too much and being too strict I answer thee If it be not the will of God that they do though I would not deride them I would seek to change them as well as thou But if it be the will of God then tell me dost thou think they do more than those that are in Heaven do or do they live more strictly than those in Heaven If they do then oppose them and spare not If not why prayest thou that Gods will may be done on Earth as it is in Heaven § 21. 15. Thou deridest men for doing that which they were made for and that which they have their Reason and will and all their faculties for Take them off this and they are good for nothing A Beast is good to serve Man and the Plants to feed him But what is Man good for or what was he made for but to serve his Maker And dost thou scorn him for that which he came into the World for Thou maist as well hate a Knife because it can cut or a Sythe for Mowing or a Clock for telling the hour of the day when it was made for nothing else § 22. 16. Thou deridest men for being saved by Christ and for imitating his example What came Christ for into the World but to destroy the works of the Devil and to save his people from 1 Joh. Matth. 1. 21. Tit. 2. 12. their sins and to redeem us from all iniquity and Purifie to himself a peculiar people zealous of good works And hath Christ to the astonishment of men and Angels come down into flesh and lived among men and given them his holy doctrine and example and suffered death for them and all this but to bring men to zealous Purity and darest thou make a scorn of it after this What is this but to scorn thy Saviour and scorn all the work of Redemption and tread under foot the Son of God and despise his blood his life and precepts § 23. 17. Thou scornest men for being renewed and sanctified by the Holy Ghost What is the work of the Holy Ghost on us but to sanctifie us And what is it to sanctifie us but to cleanse us from sin and cause us entirely to devote our souls and lives to God Dost thou believe in the Holy Ghost or not If thou do what is that but to Believe in him as the sanctifier of Gods Elect. And what didst thou take Sanctification to be but this purity and holiness of heart and life And yet darest thou deride it § 24. 18. Thou deridest men for imitating those ancient Saints whose names thou seemest thy self to honour and in honour of whom thou keepest Holy-days Thou takest on thee
by him It is men forsaken of God that ordinarily come to this dâ—sperate Hoâ—â—â—â— 10. Part â— â—oâ— 2. pag 150 cited before in my Now or N 〈…〉 p. 125. degree of sin Insomuch that the Book of Homilies thus describing them saith The third sort he calleth scorners that is a sort of men whose hearts are so stuffed with malice that they are not contended to dwell in sin and to lead their lives in all kind of wickedness but also they do contemn and scorn in others all Godliness true Religion all honesty and virtue Of the two first sorts of men I will not say but they may take repentance and be converted unto God Of the third sort I think I may without danger of Gods judgement pronounce that never any yet were converted unto God by Repentance but continued still in their abominable wickedness heaping up to themselves damnation against the day of Gods inevitable judgement Though I take this to be too severe yet it 's the judgement of the Church of England and terrible to scorners that profess their assent to it § 49. Direct 3. Take heed of scorning at the very circumstances or modes of worship which you dislike For Direct 3. such scornes come so near to the worship it self that the minds of the hearers may easily be hence drawn to dishonour the substance for the sake of the derided mode or circumstance and it plainly savoureth of a hold prophaneness which grave and sober Christians do abhor In the case of Idolatry or where the very substance of the worship is impious and forbidden I deny not but Elias may sometime and with wariness be imitated who derided Baals Priests But to do thus upon smaller differences in the Manner or circumstances of worship is the way to teach men to turn all Religion into matter of derision and contempt If you see about the King some circumstance of cloathing ornament or attendance of his followers which you dislike or judge ridiculous if you look towards him with a scornful laughter it will not excuse you to say I laughed not at the King but at such or such a thing about him For his presence should have restrained you from that which seemeth to be a deriding of him So here I know Nicknames themselves are the great engines of the Devil and to be avoided It was well with the Church when there was no other name but Christiaâ—s put by Christs Disciples on each other though by the enemies they were scornâ—â—â—â—ly called Nazarâ—nâ—s and a Sect and heresie you will say it is not at Gods worship but at such words or gestures of the Minister that I scorn But take heed of dallying with holy things Play not so near the consuming fire Give not others occasion to deride the thing it self by your deriding the circumstances though they were unapt Have we not seen while factious Christians raise jeasts and nicknames and scornes against each other how the prophane and common enemies of Religion do take them up and turn them against all serious godliness to the trouble of others and their own damnation And we have had experience in these contentious times that it is the Sectaries and the Prophane that are apt to use these scoffs and scorns against the things and persons that they mislike and that sober peaceable judicious men of all sides do abhor it How unsavoury and prophane have all sober men thought it when they heard some young and hot-braind persons mocking at the Common-prayer by the name of Pâ—ttage and at the Surplice by the name of the Whore of Babylons Smock And from hence the same spirit led them as proudly and bitterly to deride at Ministers Universities Learning Temples Tythes and all the appurtenances of worship Yea at the Lords-Day and singing Psalms and Preaching and almost all the duties of Religion For when once men will pretend to strive for God with the spirit and weapons of Satan and the world and flesh there is no stop till they come to the bottom of impiety and do Satans work in Satans way And so on the other side while some have too reproachfully scorned such as Precisians or Puritans who differed from them about the form of Church government and Ceremonies the rabble of the prophane soon get advantage by it and turned these words to so common and bitter reproaches of the godly sober peaceable pleople of the Land that Mr. Rob. Bolton saith I am perswaded Disc. of Happiness p. 193 there was never poor persecuted Word since malice against God first seized on the damned Angels and the graces of Heaven dwelt in the heart of man that passed through the mouths of all sorts of unregenerate men with more distastefulness and gnashing of teeth than the name of Puritan doth at this day which notwithstanding as it is now commonly meant and ordinarily proceeds from the spleen and spirit of prophaneness and good-fellowship is an honourable nickname that I may so speak of Christianity and grace See more cited out of him and Bishop Downam Bishop Abbot c. in my Formal Hypocrite pag. 210. 212 c. § 50. Direct 4. Be very fearful of making the persons of the Godly contemptible though for their real Direct 4. faults lest the ungodly easily step thence to the contempt of Godliness it self For it is easie to observe how commonly the vulgar judge of the Doctrine and Religion by the Person that professeth it If a Papist or a Sectary live a holy life take heed of making a scorn of their persons notwithstanding thou takest the rise of thy derision from their mistakes For even a mistaking Saint is dearly beloved and honoured of God And where ever Holiness is it is the most great resplendent and predominant thing in him that hath it And therefore puts a greater honour on him than any mistake or infirmity can dishonour him As the person of a King must not be dishonoured by a reproachful mention of his infirmities lest it reflect upon his office So neither must the person of a holy man lest it reflect on his Pliâ—â— saith that as Pearles though they lie in the bottom of the sea are yet much nearer kin to Heaven as their splenâ—or and excellency showeth so a godly and generous soul hath more dependance on Heaven whence it comes than on earth where it abideth A good sâ—â—ing for a Heaâ—hen Religion Not that any mans person should credit or secure his faults Nor that we should judge of the faults or manners by the men instead of judging of the men by their manners But you must judge of them by that which is predominant and so blame their faults as to preserve the honour of their Virtues and Religion and of their persons for their virtues sake So blame the falls of Noah and Lot and David and Peter as may make the sin more odious but not so as may make their persons contemptible lest it make their Religion next to
souls to do their undertaken work § 1. Motive 1. Consider that the Holy Government of Families is a considerable part of Gods own Government Motive 1. of the world and the contrary is a great part of the Devils Government It hath pleased God to settle as a natural so a Political order in the world and to honour his creatures to be the instruments of his own operations And though he could have produced all effects without any interior causes and could have Governed the world by himself alone without any instruments he being not as Kings constrained to make use of Deputies and Officers because of their own natural confinement and insufficiency yet is he pleased to make inferiour causes partakers in such excellent effects and taketh delight in the frame and order of causes by which his will among his creatures is accomplished So that as the several Justices in the Countries do govern as Officers of the King so every Magistrate and Master of a family doth govern as an Officer of God And if his government by his Officers be put down or neglected it is a contempt of God himself or a rebellion against him What is all the practical Atheism and Rebellion and ungodliness of the world but a rejecting of the Government of God It is not against the Being of God in it self considered that his enemies rise up with malignant rebellious opposition But it is against God as the Holy and Righteous Governour of the world and especially of themselves And as in an Army if the Corporals Sergeants and Lieutenants do all neglect their offices the Government of the General or Colonels is defeated and of little force so if the Rulers of Families and other Officers of God will corrupt or neglect their part of Government they do their worst to corrupt or cast out Gods Government from the earth And if God shall not Govern in your families who shall The Devil is always the Governour where Gods Government is refused The world and the flesh are the instruments of his Government Worldliness and Fleshly living are his service Undoubtedly he is the Ruler of the family where these prevail and where Faith and Godliness do not take place And what can you expect from such a Master § 2. Motive 2. Consider also that an ungoverned ungodly family is a powerful means to the damnation Motive 2. of all the members of it It is the common Boat or Ship that hurrieth souls to Hell that is bound for the devouring gulf He that is in the Devils Coach or Boat is like to go with the rest as the Driver or the Boatman pleaseth But a well-governed family is an excellent help to the saving of all the souls that are in it As in an ungodly family there are continual temptations to ungodliness to swearing and lying and railing and wantonness and contempt of God so in a Godly family there are continual provocations to a holy life to faith and love and obedience and heavenly mindedness Temptations to sin are fewer there than in the Devils Shops and Workhouses of sin The Authority of the Governours the conversation of the rest the examples of all are great inducements to a holy life As in a well ordered Army of valiant men every coward is so linked in by order that he cannot choose but fight and stand to it with the rest and in a confused rowt the valiantest man is born down by the disorder and must perish with the rest even so in a well ordered holy family a wicked man can scarce tell how to live wickedly but seemeth to be almost a Saint while he is continually among Saints and heareth no words that are profane or filthy and is kept in to the constant exercises of Religion by the authority and company of those he liveth with O how easie and clean is the way to Heaven in such a gratious well ordered family in comparison of what it is to them that dwell in the distracted families of prophane and sensual worldlings As there is greater probability of the salvation of souls in England where the Gospel is preached and professed than in Heathen or Mahometane countrys so is there a greater probability of their salvation that live in the houses and company of the Godly than of the Ungodly In one the advantages of instruction command example and credit are all on Gods side and in the other they are on the Devils side § 3. Motive 3. A holy well-governed Family tendeth not only to the safety of the members but also Motive 3. to the ease and pleasure of their lives To live where Gods Law is the principal Rule and where you may be daily taught the mysteries of his Kingdom and have the Scriptures opened to you and be led as by the hand in the paths of life where the praises of God are daily celebrated and his name is called upon and where all do speak the heavenly language and where God and Christ and Heaven are both their daily work and recreation where it is the greatest honour to be most holy and heavenly and the greatest contention is who shall be most humble and godly and obedient to God and their superiors and where there is no reviling scornes at Godliness nor no prophane and scurrilous talk what a sweet and happy life is this Is it not likest to Heaven of any thing upon earth But to live where worldliness and prophaneness and wantonness and sensuality bear all the sway and where God is unknown and holiness and all religious exercises are matter of contempt and scorn and where he that will not swear and live prophanely doth make himself the hatred and derision of the rest and where men are known but by their shape and speaking-faculty to be men nay where men take not themselves for men but for bruits and live as if they had no rational souls nor any expectations of another life nor any higher employments or delights than the transitory concernments of the flesh what a sordid lothsom filthy miserable life is this made up by a mixture of BEASTLY and DEVILISH To live where there is no communion with God where the marks of Death and Damnation are written as it were upon the doors in the face of their impious worldly lives and where no man understandeth the holy language and where there is not the least foretast of the Heavenly everlasting joys what 's this but to live as the Serpents seed to feed on dust and to be excommunicated from the face and favour of God and to be chained up in the prison of concupiscence and malignity among his enemies till the judgement come that is making haste and will render to all men according to their works § 4. Motive 4. A holy and well-governed family doth tend to make a Holy Posterity and so to propagate Motive 4. the fear of God from Generation to Generation It is more comfortable to have no children than to beget
sin and misery of Cain and take warning by him Give place to others and in honour prefer others and seek not to be preferred before them Rom. 12. 10 16. God delighteth to exalt the humble that abase themselves and to cast down those that exalt themselves When the interest of your flesh can make you hate or fall out with each other what a fearful sign is it of a fleshly mind Rom. 8. 6 13. § 2. Direct 2. Take heed of using provoking words against each other For these are the bellows Direct 3. to blow up that which the Apostle calleth the fire of Hell Jam. 3. 6. A foul tongue setteth on fire the course of nature and therefore it may set a family on fire Jam. 3. 5 6. Where envying and strife is there is confusion and every evil work V. 15 16. If ye be angry refrain your tongues and sin not and let not the Sun go down upon your wrath neither give place to the Devil Ephes. 4. 26 27. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamour and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice and be ye kind one to another tender hearted forgiving one another even as God for Christs sake hath forgiven you Ephes. 4. 31 32. Revilers shall not inherit the Kingdom of God 1 Cor. 6. 10. § 3. Direct 3. Help one another with love and willingness in your labours and do not grudge at Direct 4. one another and say such a one doth less than I but be as ready to help another as you would be helpt your selves It is very amiable to see a family of such children and servants that all take one anothers concernments as their own and are not selfish against each other Psal. 133. 1. Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity c. § 4. Direct 4. Take heed that you prove not Tempters to draw each other to sin and misery Either Direct 5. by joyning together in ryotousness or wronging your Masters or secret revelling and then in lying to conceal it Or lest immodest familiarity draw those of different sexes into a snare Abundance of sin and misery hath followed such tempting familiarity of men and maids that were fellow servants Their nearness giveth them opportunity and the Devil provoketh them to take their opportunity and from immodest wanton dalliance and unchaste words they proceed at last to more lasciviousness to their own undoing Bring not the straw to the fire if you would not have it burn § 5. Direct 5. Watch over one another for mutual preservation against the sin and temptations which Direct 6. you are most in danger of Agree to tell each other of your faults not proudly or passionately but in love and resolve to take it thankfully from each other If any one talk foolishly and idly or wantonly and immodestly or tell a lye or take Gods name in vain or neglect their duty to God or man or deal unfaithfully in their trust or labour let the other seriously tell him of his sin and call him to repentance And let not him that is guilty take it ill and angrily snap at the reprover or justifie or excuse the fault or hit him presently in the teeth with his own but humbly thank him and promise amendment O how happy might servants be if they would faithfully watch over one another § 6. Direct 6. When you are together and your work will allow it let your discourse be such as Direct 7. tendeth to edification and to the spiritual good of the speaker or the hearers Some work there is that must be thought on and talked of while it is doing and will not allow you leisure to think or speak of other things till it is done But very much of the work of most servants may be as well done though they think and speak together of heavenly things besides all other times when their work is over O take this time to be speaking of good to one another It is like that some one of you hath more knowledge than the rest Let the rest be asking his counsel and instructions and let him bend himself to do them good Or if you are equal in knowledge yet stir up the grace that is in you if you have any or stir up your desires after it if you have none Waste not your pretious time in vanity Multiply not the sin of idle words O what a load doth lye on many a soul that feeleth it not in the guilt of these two sins Lâ—ss of time and idle words To be guilty of the same sins over and over every day and make a constant practice of them and this against your own knowledge and conscience is a more grievous case than many think of Whereas if you would live together as the heirs of Heaven and provoke one another to the Love of God and holy duty and delightfully talk of the Word of God and the life to come what blessings might you be to one another and your service and labour would be a sanctified and comfortable life to you all Ephes. 4. 29 30. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth but that which is good to the use of edifying and may minister grace to the hearers and grieve not the holy Spirit of God 5. 3 4. But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness or rather inordinate fleshly desire let it not be once named among you as becometh Saints neither filthiness nor foolish talking nor jeasting which are not convenient but rather giving of thanks Of this more anon § 7. Direct 7. Patiently bear with the failings of one another towards your selves and hide those Direct 7. faults the opening of which will do no good but stir up strife But conceal not those faults which will be cherished by concealment or whose concealment tendeth to the wrong of your Master or any other For it is in your power to forgive a fault against your selves but not against God or another And to know when you should reveal it and when not you must wisely fore-know which way is like to do more good or harm And if yet you be in doubt open it first to some secret friend that is wise to advise you whether it should be further opened or not § 8. Direct 8. If weakness or sickness or want afflict a Brother or Sister or fellow-servant be Direct 8. kind and helpful to them according to your power Love not in word only but in dead and truth 1 John 3. 18. Jam 2. CHAP. XVI Directions for holy Conference of Fellow-servants or others BEcause this is a duty so frequently to be performed and therefore the peace and edification of Christians is very much concerned in it I shall give a few brief Directions about it § 1. Direct 1. Labour most for a full and lively heart which hath the feeling of those things Direct 1. which your tongues should
among those that cannot pray Iohn and Christ taught their Disciples Mat. 6. Luk. 11. to pray Tit. 4. Special Directions for secret Prayer § 1. Direct 1. LET it be in as secret a place as conveniently you can that you may not be Direct 1. disturbed Let it be done so that others may not be witnesses of it if you can avoid it and yet take it not for your duty to keep it unknown that you pray secretly at all for that will be a snare and scandal to them § 2. Direct 2. Let your voice be suited to your own help and benefit if none else hear you If it be Direct 2. needful to the orderly proceeding of your own thoughts or to the warming of your own affections you may use a voice But if others be within hearing it is very unfit § 3. Direct 3. In secret let the matter of your prayers be that which is most peculiarly your own Direct 3. concernment or those secret things that are not fit for publick prayer or are there passed by Yet never forgetting the highest interest of Christ and the Gospel and the World and Church § 4. Direct 4. Be less sollicitous about words in secret than with others and lay out your care about Direct 4. the heart For that 's it that God most esteemeth in your prayers § 5. Direct 5. Do not through carnal unwillingness grow into a neglect of secret prayer when you Direct 5. have time Nor yet do not superstitiously tye your selves to just so long time whether you are fit or at leisure from greater duties or not But be the longer when you are most fit and vacant and the shorter when you are not To give way to every carnal backwardness is the sin on one side and to resolve to spend so long time when you do but tire your selves and sleep or business or distemper maketh it a lifeless thing is a sin on the other side Avoid them both § 6 Direct 6. A melancholy person who is unfit for much solitariness and heart-searchings must be much Direct 6. short if not also seldomer in secret prayers than other Christians that are capable of bearing it And they must instead of that which they cannot do be the more in that which they can do As in joyning with others and in short ejaculations besides other duties but not abatâ—ing their piety in the main upon any pretence of curing melancholy CHAP. XXIV Brief Directions for Families about the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ. OMitting those things which concern the publick administration of this Sacrament for the Reasons before intimated Tom 2. I shall here only give you some brief Directions for your private duty herein § 1. Direct 1. Understand well the proper ends to which this Sacrament was instituted by Direct 1. Christ and take heed that you use it not to ends for which it never was appointed The true ends Q. What are the Ends of the Sacramâ—nâ— Matth. 26. 28. Mar. 14. â—4 Luâ— â—2 â—0 1 Cor. 11. 25. Heb. 9. 15 16 â—â— 1â— 1 Cor. 10. 16 24. Joh. 6. 32 35 51 58. are these 1. To be a solemn commemoration of the Death and Passion of Jesus Christ to keep it as it were in the eye of the Church in his bodily absence till he come 1 Cor. 11. 24 25 26. 2. To be a solemn renewing of the holy Covenant which was first entred in Baptism between Christ and the Receiver And in that Covenant it is on Christs part a solemn delivery of Himself first and with Himself the Benefits of Pardon Reconciliation Adoption and right to life eternal And on mans part it is our solemn acceptance of Christ with his Benefits upon his terms and a Delivering up our selves to Him as his Redeemed ones even to the Father as our Reconciled Father and to the Son as our Lord and Saviour and to the Holy Spirit as our Sanctifier with Professed Thankfulness for so great a benefit 3. It is appointed to be a lively objective means by which the spirit of Christ should work to stir up and exercise and increase the Repentance Faith Desire Love Hope Ioy Thankfulness and new-obedience of Believers by a lively Representation of the evil of sin the infinite Love of God in Christ the firmness of the Covenant or promise the greatness and sureness of the mercy given and the blessedness purchased and promised to us and the great obligations that are laid upon us And that herein Believers might be solemnly called out to the most serious exercise of all these 1 Cor. 11. 27 28 29 31. 1 Cor. 10. 16 17 â—1 1 Cor. 11. 25 26. 2 Cor. 6. 14. Act 2 42 46. 20. 7. graces and might be provoked and assisted to stir up themselves to this Communion with God in Christ and to pray for more as through a sacrificed Christ. 4. It is appointed to be the solemn profession of Believers of their Faith and Love and Gratitude and obedience to God the Father Son and Holy Ghost and of continuing firm in the Christian Religion And a badge of the Church before the world 5. And it is appointed to be a signe and means of the Unity Love and Communion of Saints and their readiness to communicate to each other § 2. The false mistaken ends which you must avoid are these 1. You must not with the Papists think that the end of it is to turn Bread into no bread and Wine into no wine and to make them Really the true Body and blood of Jesus Christ. For if sense which telleth all men that it is still Bread and wine be not to be believed then we cannot believe that ever there was a Gospel or an Apostle or a Pope or a man or any thing in the world And the Apostle expresly calleth it Bread three times in three verses together after the consecration 1 Cor. 11. 26 27 28. And he telleth us that the use of it is not to make the Lords Body really present but to shew the Lords death till be come that is As a visible representing and commemorating sign to be instead of his bodily presence till he come § 3. 2. Nor must you with the Papists use this Sacrament to sacrifice Christ again really unto the Father to propitiate him for the quick and dead and ease souls in Purgatory and deliver them out Rom. 6. 9. 1 Cor. 15. 3. 2 Cor. 5. 14 15. Heb. 9. 26. 10. 12 26. Heb. 9. 24. of it For Christ having dyed once dyeth no more and without killing him there is no sacrificing him By once offering up himself he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified and now there remaineth no more sacrifice for sin Having finished the sacrificing work on earth he is now passed into the Heavens to appear before God for his Redeemed ones § 4. 3. Nor is it any better than odious impiety to receive the Sacrament to
§ 30. 1. Your duty with your hearts consisteth in these particulars 1. That you do your best in the close Examination of your hearts about your states and the sincerity of your Faith Repentance and Obedience To know whether your hearts are true to God in the Covenant which you are to renew and seal Which may be done by these enquiries and discerned by these signs 1. Whether Marks of Sincerity you truly lothe your selves for all the sins of your hearts and lives and are a greater offence and burden to your selves because of your imperfections and corruptions than all the world beside is ☜ Ezek. 6. 9. 20. 43. 36. 31. Rom. 7. 24. 2. Whether you have no sin but what you are truly desirous to know and no known sin but what you are truly desirous to be rid of and so desirous as that you had rather be perfectly freed from sin than from any affliction in the world Rom. 7. 22 18 24. 8. 18. 3. Whether you Love the searching and reforming light even the most searching parts of the Word of God and the most searching Books and searching Sermons that by them you may be brought to know your selves in order to your setled peace and reformation Iohn 3. 19 20 21. 4. Whether you truly love that degree of Holiness in others which you have not yet attained your selves and love Christ in his children with such an unseigned love as will cause you to relieve them according to your abilities and suffer for their sakes when it is your duty 1 Iohn 3. 14 16. 1 Pet. 1. 22. 3. 8. Iames 2. 12 13 14 15. Matth. 25. 40 c. 5. Whether you can truly say that there is no degree of Holiness so high but you desire it and had rather be perfect in the Love of God and the obedience of his Will than have all the riches and pleasures of this world Rom. 7. 18 21 24. Psal. 119. 5. Matth. 5. 6. and had rather be one of the Holiest Saints than of the most renowned prosperous Princes upon earth Psal. 15. 4. 16. 2. Psal. 84. 10. 65. 4. 6. Whether you have so far laid up your treasure and your hopes in Heaven as that you are resolved to take that only for your portion and that the hopes of Heaven and interest of your souls hath the preheminence in your hearts against all that stands in competition with it Col. 3. 1 3 4. Matth. 6. 20 21. 7. Whether the chiefest care of your hearts and endeavour of your lives be to serve and please God and to enjoy him for ever rather than for any worldly thing Matth. 6. 33. Iohn 5. 26. 2 Cor. 5. 1 6 7 8 9. 8. Whether it be your daily desire and endeavour to mortifie the flesh and master its rebellious opposition to the Spirit and you so far prevail as not to live and walk and be led by the flesh but that the course and drift of your life is spiritual Rom. 8. 1 6 7 8 9 10 13. Gal. 5. 17. 21 22. 9. Whether the world and all its honour wealth and pleasure appear to you so small and contemptible a thing as that you esteem it as dung and nothing in comparison of Christ and the Love of God and Glory and are Resolved that you will rather let go all than your part in Christ and which useth to carry it in the time of tryal in your deliberate choice Phil. 3. 7 8 9 13 14 18 19 20. 1 Iohn 2. 15. Luke 14. 26 30 33. Matth. 13. 19 21. 10. Whether you are resolved upon a course of holiness and obedience and to use those means which God doth make known to you to be the way to please him and to subdue your corruption and yet feeling the frailties of your hearts and the burden of your sins do trust in Christ as your Righteousness before God and in the Holy Ghost whose grace alone can illuminate sanctifie and confirm you Acts 11. 23. Psal. 119. 57 63 69 106. 1 Cor. 1. 30. Rom. 8. 9. Iohn 15. 5. 2 Cor. 12. 9. By these signs you may safely try your states § 31. 2. When this is done you are also to try the strength and measure of your grace that you may perceive your weakness and know for what help you should seek to Christ And to find out what inward Corruptions and sinful inclinations are yet strongest in you that you may know what to lament and to ask forgiveness of and help against My Book called Directions for weak Christians will give you fuller advice in this § 32. 3. You are also to take a strict account of your Lives and to look over your dealings with God and men in secret and publick especially of late since the last renewal of your Covenant with Psal. 4. 4 5 6. God and to hear what God and Conscience have to say about your sins and all their aggravations Psal. 139. 23. 1 Cor. 11. 28. § 33. 4. And you must labour to get your hearts affected with your condition as you do discover it To be humbled for what is sinful and to be desirous of help against your weakness and thankful for the Grace which you discern § 34. 5. Lastly you must consider of all the work that you go to do and all the mercies which you are going to receive and what Graces are necessary to all this and how they must be used and accordingly look up all those Graces and prepare them for the exercise to which they are to be called out I shall name you the particulars anon § 35. II. Your duty towards God in your Preparation for this Sacrament is 1. To cast down your selves before him in humble penitent confession and lamentation of all the sins which you discover And to beg his pardon in secret before you come to have it publickly sealed and delivered 2. To look up to him with that Thankfulness Love and Ioy as becomes one that is going to receive so great a mercy from him And humbly to beg that grace which may prepare you and quicken you to and in the work § 36. III. Your duty towards others in this your preparation is 1. To forgive those that have done you wrong and to confess your fault to those whom you have wronged and ask them forgiveness and make them amends and restitution so far as in your power and to be reconciled to those with whom you are fallen out and to see that you love your neighbours as is your selves Matth. 5. 23 24 25 26 44. Iames 5. 16. 2 That you seek advice of your Pastors or some fit persons in cases that are too hard for your selves to resolve and where you need their special help 3. That you lovingly admonish them that you know do intend to communicate unworthily and to come thither in their ungodliness and gross sin unrepented of that you shew not such hatred of your Brother as to suffer sin upon
little more And to see a man fell his God and Soul and Heaven for fleshly pleasure when perhaps he hath not a year or a month or for ought he knoweth a day more to enjoy it For a man to be weary and give over prayer just when the mercy is at hand and to be weary and give over a holy life when his labour and sufferings are almost at an end How sad will this day be to thee if Death this night be sent to fetch away thy soul Then whose will all those pleasures be that thou â—oldst thy soul for Luk. 12. 19 20 21. If thou knewest that thou hadst but a month or year to live wouldst thou not have held out that one year Thou knowest not that it shall be one week This is like the sad story of a Student in one of our Universities who wanting money and his Father delaying to send it him he stayed so long till at last he resolved to stay no longer but steal for it rather than be without And so went out and robbed and murdered the first man he met who proved to be his Fathers messenger that was bringing him the money that he rob'd and killed him for which when he perceived by a letter which he found in his pocket he confest it through remorse of Conscience and was hang'd when a few hours patience more might have saved his innocency and his life And so is it with many a backsliding wretch that is cut off if not like Zimri and Cosbi in the act of their sin yet quickly after and enjoy the pleasure which they forsook their God for but a little while § 43. Direct 4. When you are awakened to see the terribleness of a relapsed state presently return Direct 4. and fly to Christ to reconcile your guilty souls to God and make a stop and go not one step further in your sin nor make no delayes in returning to your fidelity It is too sad a case to be continued in If thou darest delay yet longer and wilfully sin again thou art yet impenitent and thy heart is hardened and if the Lord have not mercy on thee to recall thee speedily thou arâ— lost for ever § 44. Direct 5. Make haste away from the occasions of thy sin and the company which ensnareth Direct 5. thee in it If thou knewest that they were Robbers that intended to murder thee thou wouldst be gone If thou knewest that they had plague sores running on them thou wouldst be gone And wilt thou not be gone when thou knowest that they are the servants of the Devil that would infect thee with sin and cheat thee of thy salvation Say not Is not this company lawful and that pleasure lawful c. If it be like to entise thy heart to sin it is unlawful to thee whatever it is to others It is not lawful to undoe thy soul. § 45. Direct 6. Come off by sound and deep repentance and shame thy self by free confession Direct 6. and mince not the matter and deal not gently with thy sin and be not tender of thy fleshly interest and Jam. 5. 16. Neh. 9. 2 3. Matth. 3. 6. Act. 19. 18. skin not over the sore but go to the bottom and deceive not thy self with a seeming cure Many a one is undone by repenting by the halves and refusing to take shame to themselves by a free confession and to engage themselves to a through reformation by an openly professed resolution Favouring themselves and sparing the flesh when the sore should be lanced and searched to the bottom doth cause many to perish while they supposed that they had been cured § 46. Direct 7. Command thy senses and at least forbear the outward acts of sin while thy Conscience Direct 7. considereth further of the matter The drunkard cannot say that he hath not power to shut his mouth Let the forbidden cup alone No one compelleth you You can forbear it if you will The same I may say of other such sins of sensuality Command thy hand thy mouth thy eye and guard these entrances and instruments of sin § 47. Direct 8. Engage some faithful friend to assist thee in thy watch Open all thy case to some Direct 8. one that is fit to be thy guide or helper And resolve that whenever thou art tempted to the sin thou wilt go presently and tell them before thou do commit it And intreat them to deal plainly with you and give them power to use any advantages that may be for your good § 48. Direct 9. Do your first works and set your selves seriously to all the duties of a holy life Direct 9. And incorporate your selves into the society of the Saints For holy employment and holy company are very great preservatives against every sin § 49. Direct 10. Go presently to your companions in sin and lament that you have joyned with them Direct 10. and earnestly warn and intreat them to repent and if they will not renounce their course and company and Mat. 26. 75. Luk. 22. 62. tell them what God hath shewed you of the sin and danger If really you will return as with Peter you have faln so with Peter go out and weep bitterly and when you are converted strengthen your brethren and help to recover those that you have sinned with Luk. 22. 32. § 50. I have suited most of these Directions to those that relapse into sins of sensuality rather than to them that fall into Atheism Infidelity or Heresie because I have spoken against these sins already and the Directions there given shew the way for the recovery of such Tit. 2. Directions for preventing Backsliding or for Perseverance APostacy and Backsliding is a state that is more easily prevented than cured And therefore I shall desire those that stand to use these following Directions lest they fall § 1. Direct 1. Be well grounded in the Nature and Reasons of your Religion For it is not the highest Direct 1. zeal and resolution that will cause you to persevere if your judgements be not furnished with sufficient Reasons to confute gainfayers and evidence the truth and tell you why you should persevere I speak that with grief and shame which cannot be concealed The number of Christians is so small that are well seen in the Reasons and Methods of Christianity and are able to prove what they hold to be true and to confute Opposers that it greatly afflicteth me to think what work the Atheists and Infidels would make if they once openly play their game and be turned loose to do their worst If they deride and oppose the immortality of the soul and the life to come and the truth of the Scriptures and the work of Redemption and office of Christ alas how few are able to withstand them by giving any sufficient Reason of their hope We have learnt of the Papists that he hath the strongest faith that believeth with least Reason and we have
Come to him therefore as the Saviour of souls that be may Teach you the will of God and Reconcile you to his Father and pardon your sins and renew you by his spirit and acquaint you with his Fathers Love and save you from damnation and make you heirs of life eternal For all this may yet possibly be done as short as your time is like to be And it will yet be long of you if it be not done The Covenant of Grace doth promise pardon and salvation to every Penitent Believer when ever they truly turn to God without excepting any hour or any person in all the world Nothing but an unbelieving hardened heart resisting his grace and unwilling to be Holy can deprive you of pardon and salvation even at the last It was a most foolish wickedness of you to put it off till now but yet for all that if you are not yet saved it shall not be long of Christ but you Yet he doth freely offer you his mercy and he will be your Lord and Saviour if you will not refuse him yet the match shall not break on his part see that it break not on your part and you shall be saved Know therefore what he is as God and Man and what a blessed work he hath undertaken to Redeem a sinful miserable world and what he hath already done for us in his life and doctrine in his death and sufferings by his Resurrection and his Covenant of Grace and what he is now doing at his Fathers right hand in making intercession for penitent believers and Heb. Rom. 5. what an endless Glory he is preparing for them and how he will save to the uttermost all that come to God by him O yet let your heart even leap for Joy that you have an allsufficient willing gracious Saviour whose Grace aboundeth more than sin aboundeth If the Devils and poor damned souls in Hell were yet but in your case and had your offers and your hopes how glad do you imagine they would be Cast your selves therefore in Faith and Confidence upon this Saviour Trust your souls upon his Sacrifice and Merit for the pardon of your sins and peace with God Beg of him yet the renewing grace of his spirit Be willing to be made holy and a new Creature and to live a holy life if you should survive Resolve to be wholly ruled by him and give up your self absolutely to him as your Saviour to be justified and sanctified and saved by him and then trust in him for everlasting happiness O happy soul if yet you can do thus without deceit § 8. Direct 4. Believe now and consider what God is and will be to your soul and what Love he Direct 4. hath shewed to you by Christ and what endless Ioy and Glory you may have with him in Heaven for For a new heart and the Love of God and a Resolution for a holy obedient life ever notwithstanding all the sins that you have done And think what the world and the flesh hath done for you in comparison of God Think of this till you fall in Love with God and till your hearts and hopes are set on Heaven and turned from this world and flesh and till you feel your self in Love with Holiness and till you are firmly Resolved in the strength of Christ to live a holy life if God recover you and then you are truly sanctified and shall be saved if you die in this condition Take heed that you take not a Repentance and good purposes which come from nothing but Fear to be sufficient If you recover all this may die again when your fear is over You are not sanctified nor God hath not your hearts till your Love be to him that which you do through fear alone you had rather not do if you might be excused And therefore your Hearts are still against it When the feeling of Gods unspeakable Love in Christ doth melt and overcome your hearts when the infinite Goodness of God himself and his mercies to your souls and bodies do make you take him as more Lovely and desirable than all the world when you so believe the Heavenly Joyes above as to desire them more than earthly pleasures when you Love God better than worldly prosperity and when a life of such ☜ Love and Holiness seemeth better to you than all the merriments of sinners and you had rather be a Saint than the most prosperous of the ungodly and are firmly resolved for a holy life if God recover you then are you indeed in a state of grace and not till then This must be your case or you are undone for ever And therefore meditate on the Love of Christ and the Goodness of God and the Joyes of Heaven and the happiness of Saints and the misery of worldlings and ungodly men meditate on these till your eyes be opened and your hearts be touched with a holy love and Heaven and Holiness be the very things that you desire above all and then you may boldly go to God and believe that all your sins are pardoned And it is not bare terrour but these believing thoughts of God and Heaven and Christ and Love that must change your hearts and do the work § 9. These four Directions truly practised will yet set you on safe ground as sad and dangerous as your condition is But it is not the hearing of them or the bare approbation of them that will serve the turn To find out your sinful miserable state and to be truly humbled for it and to discern the Remedy which you have in Christ and penitently and believing to enter into his Covenant and to see that your Happiness is wholly in the Love and fruition of God and to believe the Glory prepared for the Saints and to prefer it before all the prosperity of the world and Love it and set your hearts upon it and to resolve on a holy life if you should recover forsaking this deceitful world and flesh all this is a work that is not so easily done as mentioned and requireth your most serious fixed thoughts and indeed had been fitter for your youthful vigor than for a painful weak distempered state But necessity is upon you It must needs be yet done and throughly and sincerely done or you are lost for ever And therefore do it as well as you can and see that your hearts do not trifle and deceive you In some respect you have greater helps than ever you had before You cannot now keep up your hard-heartedness and security by looking at death as a great way off You have now fuller experience than ever you had before what the flâ—sh and all its pleasures will come to and what good your sinful sports and recreations and merriments will do you and what all the riches and greatness and gallantry and honours of the world are worth and what they will do for you in the day of your necessity You stand so
the greatness of those sins which you before accounted small the benefit may be very great For it will help to a more deep and sound repentance and to a stronger Resolution against all sins if you recover And affliction is a very great help to us in this Many a man hath been ashamed and deeply humbled for that same sin when sickness did awake him which he could make his play-fellow before as if there had been neither hurt nor danger in it § 3. Direct 3. There is many a deep corruption in the heart which affliction openeth and discovereth Direct 3. which deceitfulness bid in the time of prosperity And the detecting of these is no small benefit to the soul. When you come to part with wealth and honour you shall better know how much you loved them than you could before Mark therefore what corruptions appear in your affliction and how the heart discloseth its deceits that you may know what to repent of and reform § 4. Direct 4. When affliction calleth you to the use and exercise of your graces you have a great Direct 4. help to be better acquainted with the strength or weakness of them When you are called so lowdly to the use of Faith and love and patience and heavenly-mindedness you may better know what measure of every one of these you have than you could when you had no such help Mark therefore what your hearts prove in the tryal and what each Grace doth shew it self to be in the exercise § 5. Direct 5. You have a very great help now to be throughly acquainted with the vanity of the Direct 5. world and so to mortifie all affections unto the things below Now judge of the value of wealth and honor of plenty and high-places Are they a comfort to a dying man that is parting with them Or is it any grief to a poor man when he is dying that he did not enjoy them Is it not easie now to rectifie your errors if ever you thought highly of these transitory things O settle it now in your firm Resolution that if God should restore you you would value this world at a lower rate and set by it and seek it but as it deserveth § 6. Direct 6. Also you have now a special help to raise your estimation of the happiness of Direct 6. the Saints in Heaven and of the necessity and excellency of a holy life and of the wisdom Luke 10. 42. Phil. 1. 19. 23. of the Saints on earth and to know who maketh the wisest choice Now you may see that it is nothing but Heaven that is worth our seeking and that is finally to be trusted to and will not fail us in the hour of our distress Now you may discern between the Righteous and the Wicked between those that serve God and those that serve him not Mal. 3. 17 18. Now judge whether a loose and worldly life or a holy heavenly life be better and resolve accordingly § 7. Direct 7. You have also now a very great help to discern the folly of a voluptuous life and Direct 7. to mortifie the deeds and desires of the flesh when God is mortifying its natural desires it may help you in mortifying its sinful desires Now judge what Lust and Playes and Gaming and Feasting and Drunkenness and Swaggering are worth You see now the end of all such pleasures Do you think them better than the Joyes of Heaven and worthy the loss of a mans salvation to attain them Or better than the pleasures of a holy life § 8. Direct 8. Also now you have a great advantage for the quickning of your hearts that have lost Direct 8. their Zeal and are cold in Prayer and dull in Meditation and regardless of holy conference If ever you will pray earnestly sure it will be now If ever you will talk seriously of the matters of salvation sure it will be now Now you do better understand the reason of servent prayer and serious Religion and circumspect walking than you did before And you can easily now confute the scorns or railings of the loose ungodly enemies of holiness even as you consute the dotage of a fool or the ravings of a man beside himself § 9. Direct 9. You have a great advantage more sensibly to perceive your Dependance upon God Direct 9. alone and what reason you have to please him before all the world and to regard his favour or displeasure more than all the things or persons upon earth Now you see how vain a thing is man and how little the favour of all the world can stand you instead in your greatest necessity Now you see that it is God and God alone that is to be trusted to at last And therefore it is God that is to be obeyed and pleased what ever become of all things in the world § 10. Direct 10. You have now a great advantage to discern the Pretiousness of Time and to see how Direct 10. carefully it should be redeemed and to perceive the distractedness of those men that can waste it in pastimes and curiosity of dressings and needless complements and visits and a multitude of such vanities as rob the world of that which is more pretious than Gold or treasure Now what think you of idling and playing away your Time Now do you not think that it is wiser to spend it in a holy preparation for the life to come than to cast it away upon childish fooleries or any unnecessary worldly things § 11. Direct 11. Also you have now a special help to be more serious than ever in your preparations for Direct 11. death and in your thoughts of Heaven and so to be readier than you were before And if sickness help you to be readier to dye and more to set your hearts above whether you live or dye it will be a profitable sickness to you § 12. Direct 12. Let your friends about you be the witnesses of your open Confessions and Resolutions Direct 12. and engage them if God should restore you to your health to remember you of all the promises which you have made and to watch over you and tell you of them when ever there is need By these means sickness may be improved and be a mercy to you § 13. I might next have given some special Directions to them that are Recovered from sickness Directions to them that recover But because I would not be needlesly tedious I refer such to what is here said already 1. Let them but look over these twelve Directions and see whether these benefits remain upon their hearts 2. Let them call to their lively remembrance the sense which they had and the frame they were in when they made these Resolutions 3. Let them remember that sickness will come again even a sickness which will have no cure And 4. Let them bethink themselves how terribly Conscience will be wounded and their souls dismayed
we are here on earth They were compassed with temptations and clog'd with flesh and burdened with sin and persecuted by the world and they went out of the world by sickness and death as we must do and yet now their tears are wiped away their pains and groans and sears are turned into unexpressible blessedness and joy And would we not be with them Is not their company desirable and their felicity more desirable The glory of the new Ierusalem is not described to us in vain Rev. 21. 22. God will be all in all there to us as the only sun and Glory of that world and yet we shall have pleasure not only to see our Glorified Redeemer but also to converse with the Heavenly society and to sit down with Abraham Isaac and Iacob in the Kingdom of God and to Love and Praise him in consort and harmony with all those holy blessed spirits And shall we be afraid to follow where the Saints of all Generations have gone before us And shall the company of our best and most and happiest friends be no inducement to us Though it must be our highest joy to think that we shall dwell with God and next that we shall see the Glory of Christ yet is it no small part of my comfort to consider that I shall follow all those holy persons whom I once conversed with that are gone before me and that I shall dwell with such as Henoch and Elias and Abraham and Moses and Iob and David and Peter and Iohn â—nd Paul and Timothy and Ignatius and Polycarpe and Cyprian and Reader bear with this mixture For God will own his image when piâ—vish contenders do deny it or blaspheam it and will receive those whom faction and proud domination would cast ouâ— and vilifie with scorn and slanders Naziaâ—zene and Augustine and Chrysostome and Bernard and Gerson and Savonarola and Miraâ—dula and Taulerus and Kempisius and Melancthon and Alasco and Calvin and Bucholâ—zer and Bullinger and Musculus and Zanchy and Bâ—cer and Paraeus and Grynaeus and Chemnitius and Gerhard and Chamier and Capellus and Blondel and Rivet and Rogers and Bradford and Hooper and Latimer and Hildersham and Amâ—sius and Langley and Nicolls and Whitaker and Cartwright and Hooker and Bayne and Preston and Sibbes and Perkins and Dod and Parker and Ball and Usher and Hall and Gataker and Bradshaw and Vines and Ash and millions more of the family of God I name these for my own delight and comfort it being pleasant to me to remember what companions I shall have in the heavenly joyes and praises of my Lord. How few are all the Saints on earth in comparison of those that are now with Christ And alas how weak and ignorant and corrupt how selfish and contentious and froward are Gods poor infants here in flesh when above there is nothing but Holiness and Perfection If Knowledge or Goodness or any excellency do make the creatures truly amiable all this is there in the highest degree but here alas how little have we If the Love of God or the Love of us do make others Lovely to us it is there and not here that these and all perfections flourish O how much now do I find the company of the wise and learned the godly and sincere to differ from the company of the ignorant bruitish the proud and malitious the false-hearted and ungodly rabble How sweet is the converse of a holy wise experienced Christian O then what a place is the new Ierusalem and how pleasant will it be with Saints and Angels to See and Love and Praise the Lord. § 8. Direct 8. That sickness and death may be comfortable to you as your passage to Eternity Direct 8. take notice of the seal and earnest of God even the spirit of grace which he hath put into your hearts That which emboldened Paul and such others to groan after immortality and to be most willing to be absent from the body and present with the Lord was because God himself had wrought or made them for it and given them the earnest or pledge of his spirit 2 Cor. 5. 4 5 8. For this is Gods mark upon his chosen and justified ones by which they are sealed up to the day of their redemption Ephes. 4. 30. Ephes. 1. 13. In whom also after ye believed ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise 2 Cor. 1. 21 22. God hath annointed us and sealed us and given us the pledge or earnest of his spirit into our hearts This is the pledge or earnest of our inheritance Ephes. 1. 14. And what a comfort should it be to us when we look towards Heaven to find such a pledge of God within us If you say I fear I have not this earnest of the spirit Whence then did your desires of holiness arise what weaned you from the world and made you place your hopes and happiness above whence came your enmity to sin and opposition to it and your earnest desires after the Glory of God the prosperity of the Gospel and the good of souls The very Love of Holiness and holy persons and your desires to know God and perfectly Love him do shew that heavenly nature or spirit within you which is your surest evidence for eternal life For that spirit was sent from heaven to draw up your hearts and fit you for it And God doth not give you such natures and desires and preparations in vain This also is called The witness of the spirit with or to our spirit that we are the children of God and if Children then heirs heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ Rom. 8. 15 16 17. It witnesseth our adoption by evidencing it as a seal or pledge doth witness our title to that which is so confirmed to us The nature of every thing is suited to its use and end God would not have given us a heavenly nature or desire if he had not intended us for Heaven § 9. Direct 9. Look also to the testimony of a holy life since grace hath imployed you in seeking after Direct 9. the heavenly inheritance It is unlawful and perillous to look after any works or righteousness of So Hezektah your own so as to set it in whole or in part instead of Christ or to ascribe to it any honour that is proper to him As to imagine that you are innocent or have fulfilled the Law or have made God a compensation by your merits or sufferings for the sin you have committed But yet you must judge your selves on your sick beds as near as you can as God will judge you And he will judge every man according to his work and will recompense and reward men according to their works Matth. 25 39 40 c. Well done good and faithful servant Thou hast been faithful over a little I will make thee ruler over much Come ye blessed of my father inherit the Kingdom prepared for you for I was hungry
sense and reason but will wish that they had Loved God and sought and served him not formally in hypocritical complement but with all their heart and soul and might § 9. Direct 8. Labour also to fortifie the minds of your friends against all fears of suffering for Direct 8. Christ and all impatience in any of their afflictions Say to them The sufferings as well as the pleasures of this life are s◠short that they are not worthy once to be compared with the durable things of the life to come If I have past through a life of want and toil if my body hath endured painful sickness if I have suffered never so much from men and been used cruelly for the sake of Christ what the worse am I now when all is past Would an easie honourable plentiful life have made my death either the safer or the sweeter O no! It is the things eternal that are indeed significant and regardable Neither pleasure nor pain that is short is of any great regard Make sure of the Everlasting pleasures and you have done your work O live by faith and not by sense Look not at the temporal things which are seen It is not your concernment whether you are rich or poor in honour or dishonour in health or sickness but whether you be justified and sanctified and shall live with God in Heaven for ever Such serious counsels of dying men may make their sickness more fruitful than their health CHAP. XXXI Directions to the Friends of the Sick that are about them § 1. Direct 1. WHen you see the sickness or death of your friends take it as Gods warning Direct 1. to you to prepare for the same your selves Remember that thus it must be with you Thus are you like to lye in pain and thus will all the world forsake you and nothing of all your honour or wealth will afford you any comfort This will be the end of all your pleasures of your greatness and your houses and lands and attendance and of all your delicious meats and drinks and of all your mirth and play and recreations Thus must your carkasses be forsaken of your souls and laid in a grave and there lie rotting in the dark and your souls appear before your Judge to be sentenced to their endless state This certainly will be your case and O how quickly will it come Then what will Christ and Grace be worth Then nothing but the favour of God can comfort you Then whether will it be better to you to look back on a holy well-spent life or upon a life of fleshly ease and pleasure Then had you rather be a Saint or a Sensualist Lay this to heart and let the house of mourning make you better and live as one that looks to dye § 2. Direct 2. Use the best means for the recovery of the sick which the ablest Physicions shall advise Direct 2. you to as far as you are able Take heed of being guilty of the Pride and folly of many self-conceited ignorant persons who are ready to thrust every Medicine of their own upon their friends in sickness when they neither know the nature of the sickness or the cure Many thousands are brought to their death untimely by the folly of their nearest friends who will needs be medicining them and ruling them and despising the Physicion as if they were themselves much wiser than he when they are meerly ignorant of what they do As ignorant Sectaries despise Divines and set up themselves as better Preachers so many silly Women despise Physicions and when they have got a few Medicines which they know not the nature of nor how to use they take themselves for the better Physicions and the lives of their poor friends must pay for their pride and folly No means must be trusted to instead of God but the best must be used in subservience unto God And one would think that a small measure of wit and humility might serve to make silly women understand that they that never bestowed one year in the study of Physick are not so likely to understand it as those that have studied and practised it a great part of their lives It is sad to see people kill their dearest friends in kindness even by that ignorance and proud selfconceitedness which also maketh them the destroyers of their own souls § 3. Quest. But seeing God hath appointed all mens time what good can Physick do If God hath Quest. appointed them to live they shall live and if he have appointed them to dye it is not Physick that can save them Answ. This is the foolish reasoning of wicked people about their salvation If God have appointed Answ. me to salvation I shall be saved if he have not all my diligence will do no good But such people know not what they talk of God hath made your duty more open and known to you than his own decrees And you separate those things which he hath joyned together As God hath appointed no man to salvation simply without respect to the means of salvation so God hath appointed no man to live but by the means of life His Decree is not Such a man shall be saved or Such a man shall live so long only But this is his Decree Such a man shall be saved in the way of faith and holiness and in the diligent use of means and Such a man shall live so long by the use of those means which I have fitted for the preservation of his life So that as he that liveth a holy life may be sure he is chosen to salvation if he persevere and he that is ungodly may be sure that he is in the way to Hell so he that neglecteth the means of his health and life doth shew that it is unlike that God hath appointed him to live and he that useth the best means is liker to recover though the best will not cure uncurable Diseases nor make a man immortal The reasoning is the same as if you should say If God have appointed me to live so long I shall live though I neither eat nor drink But if he have not eating and drinking will not prolong my life But you must know that God doth not only appoint you to live that is but half his Decree but he decreeth that you shall live by eating and drinking § 4. Direct 3. Mind your friends betimes to make their Wills and prudently by good advice to settle Direct 3. their estates that they may leave no occasion of contending about it when they are dead This should be done in health because of the uncertainty of life But if it be undone till sickness it should then be done betimes The neglect of it oft causeth much sinful contending about worldly things even among those near relations who should live in the greatest amity and peace § 5. Direct 4. Keep away vain company from them as far as you can conveniently
know by your own experience thâ—se Joyes or Torments which the wicked will not know by faith And O what a preparation doth such a change require II. You are next to know what persons they are and how they differ who must abide for ever in these different states As we are the Children of Adam we are all corrupted our minds are carnal and set upon this world and savour nothing but the things of the flesh And the further we go in sin the worse we are being strangers to the Life of faith and to the Love of God and the Life to come taking the prosperity and pleasure of the flesh for the felicity which we most desire and seek The name of this state in Scripture is Carnal and ungodly and unholy because such men live in a meer flâ—shly nature or disposition for fleshly ends in a fleshly manner and are not at all Devoted to God and carryed up to Heavenly Desires and Delights but live chiefly for this life and not for the life to come And though they may take up some kind of Religion in a second place and upon the by for fear of being damned when they can keep the world no longer yet is it this world which they principally value love and seek and their Religion is subject to their worldly and fleshly interest and delights And though God hath provided and offered them a Saviour to teach them better and reclaim and sanctifie them by his word and spirit and forgive them if they will believe in him and return yet do they sottishly neglect this mercy or obstinately refuse it and continue their worldly fleshly lives till time be past and mercy hath done and there is no remedy These are the men that God will condemn and this is the true description of them And it will not stand with the Governing-Justice and Holiness and truth of God to save them But on the other side all those that God will save do heartily believe in Iesus Christ who is sent of God to be the Saviour of souls and he maketh them know by his word and spirit their grievous sin and misery in their state of corrupted nature and he humbleth them for it and bringeth them to true Repentance and maketh them loath themselves for their iniquities and seeing how they have cast away and undone themselves and are no better than the slaves of Satan and the heirs of hell they joyfully accept of the remedy that is offered them in Christ They heartily take him for their Saviour and King and give up themselves in Covenant to him to be justified and sanctified by him whereupon he pardoneth all their sin and further enlighteneth and sanctifieth them by his spirit He sheweth them by faith the infinite Love of God and the sure everlasting Holy Ioyes which they may have in Heaven with him and how blessed a life they may there obtain through his purchase and gift with all the blessed Saints and Angels He maketh them deliberately to compare this offer of Eternal Happiness with all the pleasures and seeming commodities of sin and all that this deceitful world can do for them And having considered of both they see that there is no comparison to be made and are ashamed that ever they were so mad as to prefer Earth before Heaven and an inch of Time before Eternity and a dream of pleasure before the Everlasting Ioyes and to love the pleasures of a transitory world above the presence and favour and Glory of God! And for the time to come they are firmly Resolved what to do Even to take Heaven for their only Happiness and there to lay up their Hopes and Treasure and to live to God as they have done to the flesh and to make sure of their salvation whatever become of their worldly interest And thus the spirit doth dwell and work in them and renew their Hearts and give them a hatred to every sin and a Love to every holy thing even to the holy word and worship and wayes and servants of the Lord and in a word he maketh them New Creatures and though they have still their sinful imperfections yet the bent of their Hearts and Lives is Holy and Heavenly and they long to be perfect and are labouring after it and seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness and live above the world and flesh And shortly Christ will make them perfect and Iustifie them in the day of their judgement and give them the Glorious end of all their faith obedience and patience These are the persons and none but these among us that have the use of Reason that shall live with God III. Now this being the infallible truth of the Gospel and this being the true difference between the Righteous and the wicked the Iustified and Condemned souls O how neerly doth it now concern you to try which of these is your own condition Certainly it may be known For God will judge the world in righteousness by the same Law or Covenant by which he Governeth them Know but whom the Law of Christ condemneth or justifieth and you may soon know whom the Judge will condemn and justifie For he will proceed according to this Law If you should die in an unrenewed state in your sins your Hopes of Heaven would all die with you And if you should think never so well of your self till death and pretend never so confidently to trust on Christ and the Mercy of God one hour will convince Mat. 18. 3. Heb. 12. 14. Joh. 3. 3 5 6. you to your everlasting woe that Gods mercy and Christs merits did never bring to Heaven an unsanctified soul. Self flattery is good for nothing but to keep you from Repenting till time be past and to quiet you in Satans snares till there be no remedy Therefore presently as you love your soul examine your self and try which of these is the condition that you are in and accordingly judge you self before God judge you May you not know if you will whether you have most minded Earth or Heaven and which you have preferred and sought with the highest esteem and Resolution and whether your Worldly or Heavenly interest have born sway and which of them it is that gave place unto the other Cannot a man tell if he will what it is which his very soul hath practically taken for his chief concernment and what it is that haâ—â— had most of his Love and Care and what hath been next his heart and which he hath preferred wheâ—â—hey came to the parting and one was set against the other Cannot you tell whether you have lived principally to the flesh for the prosperity of this world and the pleasures of sin or whether the spirit of Christ by his word hath enlightned you and shewed you your â—in and misery and humbled you for it and shewed you the Glory of the life to come and the happiness of living in the Love of God and hereupon hath
life and consequently rejected Christ as a Saviour and the Holy Ghost as a sanctifier and all the mercy which he offered you on these terms Quest. 8. If this hath been your case are you now unfeignedly grieved for it Not only because it hath brought you so near to Hell but also because it hath displeased God and deprived you of that Holy and comfortable life which you might all this while have lived and endangered all your hopes of Heaven Do you so far Repent as that your very Heart and Love is changed so that now you had rather have a Holy life on earth and the sight and enjoyment of God in the Heavenly Joyes for ever than to have all the pleasure and prosperity of this world Do you hate your sins and loath your self for them and truly desire to be made Holy Are you firmly Resolved that if God do recover you to health you will live a new and Holy life that you will forsake your fleshly worldly life and all your wilful sins and will set your self to learn the will of God and call upon him and live in the holy Communion of Saints and make it your chief care to please God and to be saved Quest. 9. Are you willing to these ends to Give up your self absolutely now to God the Father Son and Holy Ghost as your Reconciled Father your Saviour and your Sanctifier to be sanctified and Iustified and saved from your sins and from the wrath of God and live to God in Love and Holiness And are you willing to bind your self to this by entring into this Covenant with God renouncing the Flesh the World and the Devil Either your Heart is willing and sincere in this Resolution and Covenant or it is not If it be not there is no hope that your sin should be pardoned and your soul be saved upon any other or easier terms And for all that God is merciful and Christ died for sinners it was never his intent to save one impenitent unsanctified soul But if your Heart unfeignedly consent to this I Matth. 28. 19 â—0 2 Cor. 6. 10 17 18. have the commission of Christ himself to tell you that God will be your Reconciled God and Father and Christ will be your Saviour and the Holy Spirit will be your Sanctifier and Comforter and your sins are pardoned and your soul shall be saved and you shall dwell in Heaven with God for ever God did consent before you consented He shewed his Consent in purchasing and making and offering you this Covenant Shew your unfeigned Consent now by accepting it and giving up your self unreservedly to him and you have Christs Blood and Spirit and Sacrament to seal it to you The flesh and the world have deceived you but Trust in Christ upon his Covenant terms and he will never deceive you And now alas what pity is it that a soul that is in so miserable a case and is lost for ever if it have not help and speedy help should be deprived of all this Grace and Glory and only for want of Repenting and Consenting What pity is it that a soul that is ready to go into another world where mercy shall never more be offered it should rather go stupidly on to hell than Return to God and Accept his mercy Do but truly Repent and Consent to this Covenant and all the mercies of it are certainly yours God will be your God and Christ and the Spirit and pardon and Heaven and all are yours The Lord open and perswade your heart that you may not be undone and lost for ever for want of accepting the mercy that is offered you And now I know it would be comfortable to you if you could be fully assured that you are forgiven and shall be saved In a matter of such unspeakable moment how jâ—yful would a well-grounded certainty be to any man that hath the right use of his understanding I tell you therefore from God that there is no cause of your doubting on his part but only on your own There is no doubt to be made whether God be merciful nor whether Christ be a sufficient Saviour and sacrifice for your sins nor whether the Covenant be sure and promise of pardon and salvation to all true penitent believers be true All the doubt is whether your faith and Repentance be sincere or not And for that I can but tell you how you may know it and I shall open the Truth to you that I may neither Deceive you nor causlâ—sly Discomfort you If this Repentance and Change which you now profess and this Covenant which you have made Matth. 13. 19 20 21 22 23. Rom. 8. 7 8 9. Heb. 12. 14. Joh. 3. 3 5 6. Matth. 18. 3. 2 Cor. 5. 17. Eph. 6. 24. 1 Cor. 16. 22. Luk. 14. 26 27. with God 1. Do come only from a present fear and not from a changed renewed heart 2. And if your Resolutions be such as would not hold you to a holy life if you should recover but would die and fade away and leave you as were before when the fear is past then is it but a forced hypocritical Repentance and will not save you if you so die Though a Minister of Christ should Absolve you of all your sins and seal it by giving you the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ for all this you are lost for ever if you have no more For Absolution and the Sacrament are given you but on supposition that yâ—ur faith and Repentance be sincere And if this Condition fail in you the Action of the holiest Minister in the world will never save you But 1. If your Repentance and Covenant come not only from a present fear but from a Renewed Heart which now Loveth God and Christ and Heaven and Holiness better than all the Honours and Riches and Pleasures of the flesh and world and had rather have them even on Gods terms 2. And if this change be such as if you should recover would hold you to a Holy Life and not die or dwindle into hypocritical formality when the fright is over then I can assure you from the word of God that if you die in this Repentance you shall certainly be saved And though Late Repentance have so many difficulties that it too seldom proveth true and sound and it is an unspeakable madness to cast our salvation on so great a hazard and to defer that till such a day as this which should be the principal work of all our lives and for which the greatest care and diligence is not too much Yet for all that when Conversion is indeed sincere it is alwayes acceptable how late soever And a returning prodigal shall find Luk. 15. 19 20 21 22. Joh. 6. 37. better entertainment with God than he could possibly expect And never will Christ cast out one soul that cometh to him in sincerity of heart The Lord give you such a Heart and all is yours Amen
and shadow of felicity the world puts off its followers with How they act their parts as Players on a stage and they that in a dream or Mask did yesterday seem Princes Lords or Conquerours to day are buryed in a darksome grave And they that yesterday seemed great and rich to day have no more of their furniture or possessions than a Coffin and a Winding-sheet and a place to hide their lothesome flesh And they that yesterday were merry and jovial and in health and honour to day lye groaning in painful misery and are leaving their dear bought beloved riches never to be delightful to them any more How little doth it concern them that must dwell in Heaven or Hell for ever whether they live in wealth or poverty in honour or shame in a Palace or a Cottage in pain or pleasure for so short a time as this transitory life which is almost at an end as soon as it is begun How many millions of dying Parents have cryed out of the world as VANITY and VEXATION and yet their besotted posterity admire it and through the love of it lose their souls and everlasting hopes They boast or rejoyce in the multitude of their Riches as if their houses would continue for ever though in their honour they abide not but are like the beasts that perish and death feedeth on them when like sheep they are laid in the grave And though this their way is their folly yet their posterity approve their sayings and follow them by the same sin to the same Perdition Psal. 49. 6 7 10 11 12 13 14 17 19 20. And is this a world for a holy soul to be in love with Hath it merited our affections Doth it love us so much or use us so well that we should be lothe to leave it Iohn 15. 18 19 20. As it loved our Lord it will love his followers As it used him it will use us if he restrain it not Is a blinded Bedlam world a malitious cruel and ungodly world a false perfidious deceitful world a place for 1 John 2. 15. John 15. 17 18 19 20. a Saint to be lothe to leave O blessed be that Love that Blood that Grace which hath provided better for us And shall we be unwilling to go to so sweet a Feast and to partake of a happiness which cost so dear Come on then Dear Friend and faint not at the last and fear not to encounter with the King of Post illam pugnâ—m tâ—â—umphabimus Victoâ—es eâ—m nostro Signiâ—ero in vita aeterna Diu in Christum credidi Desidero jam finem fide ut non â—mplius credam in eum sed videam eum in quem credidi ut gustem quam suavis sit Dominus palpem manibus Dominum meum Deum meum Ibi vocabor Abraham qui laetatur videns diem Christi Exper us sum quod in â—âc vitâ peccatum sit omnia in omnibus Experiar etiam aliam vitam ubi est Dominus omnia in omnibus Abr. Bâ—choltze rfâ—â—â—â—ate Abr. Scâ—lâ—eto ia Cuâ—ic vitae suae pag. 15. fears It is the last enemy and it is a conquered enemy Conquer this and you have no more to conquer Lift up your head and look to your Victorious Reigning Lord Gird up the loins of your mind and let faith and patience hold out yet a little while and play well this last part and all 's your own If the Tempter now assault your faith and sinking flesh do give him any advantage abhorr his blasphemies and cry for help to him that conquered him Do you think yonder high and spacious 1. mansions are uninhabited When every part of Sea and Land hath its inhabitants Why have those blessed Angels been so long employed in ministring for you but to let you know that your souls are not so distant from them but that they are glad of familiarity with you and you may be like them Luke 20. 26. or equal with them in felicity Nature hath put you out of doubt that there is a God of Infinite Eternal Being Power Wisdom and Goodness who is the Efficient Dirigent and Final Cause of all the Creator and Governour of the world And the same Nature hath put you out of doubt that All that his Creatures have or can do is due to him from whom they have it and that so far as you are capable to Know and Love and Serve him that you should employ your faculties herein And nothing is more undenyable to you than that it is our Duty to Love and Serve our God with all our heart and soul and might And it is as clear to you that neither are these Powers given us in vain nor this Duty required of us in vain nor yet that mans Natural highest Duty is made to be the way of his misery and undoing And sure that way which turneth the mind from sensual pleasures and casteth a man on the 2. malice and cruelty of the world and engageth him in so much duty which both the flesh and the world are utter enemies to would be his misery and torment if there were no Rewards and Punishments hereafter and no future Judgement to set all strait that seemed crooked in the judgements of men If all the intrinsick evidences of credibility in the Sacred Word were not sufficient If all the cntecedent Evidences of Prophecy were too little If the concomitant Evidence of all the Miracles of Christ and his Apostles and other of his servants with his own Resurrection and Ascension did seem too distant from you yet mark what subsequent continued Evidences it hath pleased God to bring even to your very sense to assure you of the truth of his Gospel and of the life to come Whence 3. cometh that Universal unreasonable enmity which in all Generations and Nations of the world from Cain and Abel till this day is found in the Carnal against the Spiritual holy seed Even a Seneca telleth us of it among Heathens against that remnant of vertue and temperance and sobriety that was found in the better sort of men Could all mankind be thus infected and hate a Saint that never hurt them much more than those that themselves confess to be most vitious if the fall of Adam were not true Have we a whole world before our eyes that are visibly polluted with that irrational Leprosie and yet shall we doubt whether our common Father was sick of that disease And do you not see that 4 the Gospel where ever it is heartily entertained doth renew the soul and change the life and make the man to be another man not only amending some little things that were amiss but making us new creatures and turning the bent of heart and life another way Though the carnal nominal Christian that never heartily received the Gospel do differ from a Heathen but in opinion and formality yet serious Christians are other men and so transformed as that their holy desires
is through the faith of Christ that being made conformable unto his death I may attain to the Resurrection of the dead and may by him be presented without spot or blemish My God thou hast encouraged my fearful soul by the multitude of thy mercies as well as by thy promises to trust thee and yield it self to thee Thou hast filled up all my dayes with mercy Every place that I have lived in and every relation and all that I have had to do with in the world are the witnesses of thy Love and mercy to me Thy eyes beheld my substance being yet imperfect and all my members were written in thy Book My parents were instructed by thee to educate me and all things commanded by thee to serve for my preservation comfort and salvation Thou hast brought me forth in a land and age of mercies and caused me to hear and see the things which others have not seen or heard The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places My life hath not been spent in a howling wilderness nor in banishment from thy Sanctuary or the communion of thy Saints nor hath it been wholly consumed in darkness and sorrow and unserviceable barrenness But often have I heard the joyful sound and I have gone with the multitude to the house of God and there have seen the light of thy countenance and drank of the Rivers of thy pleasure even of the waters of life and have been solaced with the voice of joy and praise How oft have I cryed unto thee in my trouble and thou hast delivered me out of my distresses When for my folly and transgression I was afflicted thou broughtst me out of darkness and the shadow of death Thou renewedst my age as Hezekiahs and causedst the shadow of my Dyal to go back and hast set me at liberty to praise thee for thy Goodness and declare thy Psal. 107. 8. 15 Psal. 50. 15. 2 Cor. 1. 9 10. Psal. 23. Psal. 139. 17 18. Heb. 13. 5. John 13. 1. Psal 57. 10. 108. 4. 36. 5. 103. 17. 136. Psal. 63. 3. Phil. 1. 23. Luke 2. 29 30. 2 Cor. 1. 2 3 4 5 7 8. works to the children of men In the day of trouble I called upon thee and thou didst deliver me that I might glorifie thee Thou causedst me to receive the sentence of death that I might trust in God that raiseth the dead My Shepheard hath led me in his pleasant pastures by the silent streams He restored my soul and conducted me in the paths of righteousness How pretious are thy thoughts unto me O God! how great is the summ of them If I should count them they are more in number than the sand And will that mercy now forsake me which hath abounded to me and supported me so long Thou hast said I will never fail thee nor forsake thee Having loved thy own that are in the world thou wilt love them to the end For thy mercy is great and reacheth to the Heavens and it endureth for ever O therefore when I awake let me be with thee And as thy loving kindness is better than Life and to depart and be with Christ is far better than the best condition upon earth so let thy servant depart in peace his eye of faith beholding thy salvation And when my earthly house of this tabernacle is dissolved let me have that building of God the house not made with hands eternal in the heavens Let my present burden of sin and suffering make me more earnestly to groan not to be unclothed but to be clothed upon that mortality may be swallowed up of life that being absent from the body I may be present with the Lord. And seeing this Cup may not pass from me and I must not look for the Chariot of Elias to carry me unto Heaven let thy Will be done and let me rest therein and let death be the gain and advantage of my soul And Phil. 1 21. 2 Cor. 4. 16 â—8 1 Kings 19. 4. while this outward man is perishing let the inner man be renewed from day to day For what am I better than my Fathers and all thy Saints and the generations of mankind that I should think of any other passage than this of Death to the world of immortality O let this fainting heart be glad and let my glory rejoyce and in Love and Ioy in Thankfulness and Praise let me pass into the world of Love and Ioy where Thanksgiving and Praise shall be my work for ever And though my flesh and heart will fail Psal. 73. 26. be thou the strength of my heart O God and my portion for ever Though I must walk through the valley of the shadow of death let me fear no evil But be thou still with me and let me be comforted by thy rod Psal. 23. 4 5 6. and staff Let the goodness and mercy which hath followed me thus far all my dayes receive me at the last that I may dwell with thee for ever For it is the will of my Redeemer that those which thou hast given him be with him where he is to behold the glory which thou hast given him And that his servants John 17. 24. John 12. 26. Acts 7. 59. Luke 23. 43. John 20. 17. Joh. 14. 1 2 3. Psal. 16. 11 12. should follow him that where he is there also may his servants be Amen Lord Iesus Good is thy Will and the Word which thou hast spoken Into thy hands I commend my Spirit which thou hast Redeemed Receive it and let me be with thee in Paradise O thou that hast called us thy Brethren when thou didst ascend to thy Father and our Father and to thy God and our God take up this poor unworthy soul to the mansions which thou hast prepared for us that I may be with thee where thou art And though this flesh must perish let it rest in hope and be but sowed as a grain of wheat till thy powerful Call shall raise it from the dust and this corruptible shall put on incorruption and this mortal shall put on immortality and this 1 Cor. 15. 53 54 55. natural body shall be raised a spiritual body and death shall be swallowed up in Victory For though I be dead my life is hid with Christ in God And when thou appearest who art my Life then let me appear with Col. 3. 3 4 5. 2 Thess. 1. 10 11. thee in glory O hasten that appearance and come with thy holy glorious Angels to be glorified in thy Saints and admired in and by Believers When thou wilt change our vile bodies and make them like to thy Glorious Body by the mighty working by which thou canst subdue even all things to thy self Hast Phil. 3. 21. Rev. 2â— 20 17 Eph. 5. 26 27. 1 Cor. 15. 45. Acts 3. 5. John 14. 19. Rev. 14. 13. Matth. 10. 30. Luke 21. 18. Heb. 12. 22 23 Rev. 1. 6. Rom. 11. 36. Rev.
them greater Love and Honour than you ow 〈…〉 ny Saints on Earth Eph. 3. 15. The whole â—â—â—â—ly in Heaven and Earth is named of Christ. Those are the happiest and noblest paâ—â—s that are most pure and perfect and dwell in the highest and most glorious habitations nearest unto Christ yea with him If Holiness be lovely the most Holy are the most lovely We have many obligations therefore to Love them more than the Saints on earth They are more excellent and amiable and Christ Loveth them more And if any be Honourable it must especially be those spirits that are of greatest excellencies and perfections and advanced to the greatest Glory and nearness to their Lord. Make Conscience therefore of this as your duty not only to Love and Honour blessed souls but to Love and Honour them more than those that are yet on Earth And as every Duty is attended with Benefiâ— so we shall find this exceeding great benefit in the performance of this duty that iâ— will incline our â—earts to be the more Heavenly and draw up our Desires to the society which we so much Love and Honour § 2. Direct 2. Remember that it is a part of the life of faith to see by it the Heavenly Society of Direct 2. the blessed and a part of your Heavenly Conversation to have frequent serious and delightful thoughts Heb. 11. 1. of thâ—se Crowned souls that are with Christ. Otherwise God would never have given us such descriptions of the Heavenly Ierusalem and told us so much of the Hosts of God that must inhabit it for ever that must come from the East and from the West and sit down with Abraham Isaac and Jacob in the Kingdom of God When it is said that our conversatiâ—n 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is in Heaven Phil. 3. 20. the meaning extendeth both to our Relation Priviledges and Converse We are Denizâ—ns or Citizens of the Heavenly Society and our title to their happiness is our highest Priviledge and Honour and therefore our daily business is there and our sweetest and most serious converse is with Christ and all those blessed spirits Whatever we are doing here our Eye and Heart should still be there For we look not at the temporal things which are seen but at the eternal things which are not seen 2 Cor. 4. 18. A wise Christian that hath forsaken the Kingdom of darkness will be desirous to know what the Kingdom of Christ is into which he is translated and who are his fellow Subjects and what are their several ranks and dignities so far as tendeth to his congruous converse with them all And how should it affect us to find that we are come unto Mount Zion and unto the City of the living God the Heavenly Jerusalem and to an innumerable company of Angels to the general Assembly and Church of the first born which are written in Heaven and to God the Iudge of all and to the spirits of Iust men made perfect and to Iesus the Mediator of the new Covenant Heb. 12. 22 23 24. Live then as the members of this society and exclude not the chief members from your thoughts and converse though our local visible communion be only with these rural inferiour inhabitants and not with the Courtiers of the King of Heaven yet our Mental Communion may be much with them If our home and treasure be there with them our Hearts will be there also Mat. 6. 21. § 3. Direct 3. It is the will of God that the Memory of the Saints be honoured on earth when they are Direct 3. dead It is some part of his favour which he hath promised to them Prov. 10. 7. The memory of the just is blessed but the name of the wicked shall rot Matth. 26. 13. Verily I say unto you wheresoever this Gospel shall be Preached in the whole world there shall also this that this woman hath done be told for a memorial of her The history of the Scripture recordeth the Lives of the Saints to their perpetual honour And God will have it so also for the sake of his abused servants upon earth that they may see that the slanders of malicious tongues shall not be able to obscure the glory of his Grace and that the lies of the ungodly prevail but for a moment And God will have it so for the sake of the ungodly that they may be ashamed of their malicious enmity and lyes against the godly while they perceive that the departed Saints do leave behind them a surviving testimony of their sanctity and innocency sufficient to confound the venemous calumnies of the Serpents Seed Yea God will have the Names of his eminent servants to be honoured upon earth for the honour of their Head and of his Grace and Gospel so that while malice would cast dishonour upon Christ from the meanness and failings of his servants that are alive the memory of the dead who were once as much despised and slandered shall rise up against them to his honour and their shame And it is very observable how God constraineth the bitter enemies of Holiness to bear this Testimony for the honour of Holiness against themselves that many who are the cruelest persecutors and murderers of the Living Saints do honour the Dead even to excess How zealous are the Papists for the multitude of their Holy dayes Concil Later sub Innoc. 3. can 3. and the honouring of their Names and Relicts and pretending many Miracles to be wrought by a very touch of their Shrines or Bones whilest they revile and muder those that imitate them and deprive Temporal Lords of their Dominions that will not exterminate them Yea while they burn the living Saints they make it part of their crime or Heresie that they honour not the Dayes and Relicts of the Dead so much as they To shew us that the things that have been shall be and that wickedness is the same in all generations Matth. 23. 29 30 31 32 33. Woe unto you Scribes and Pharisees Hypocrites because ye build the Tâ—mbes of the Prophets and garnish the Sepulchres of the righteous and say If we had been in the dayes of our fathers we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the Prophets wherefore ye be witnesses to your selves that ye are the Children of them which killed the Prophets Filâ— ye up then the measure of your fathers Ye Serpents ye generation of Vipers how can ye escape the damnation of Hell I know that neither did the Pharisees nor do the Papists believe that those whom they murdered were Saints but Deceivers and Hereticks and the troublers of the World But if Charity be the grace most necessary to salvation then sure it will not keep any man from damnation that he had malice and uncharitableness sufficient to perswade him that the members of Christ were Children of the Devil But thus God will force even the persecutors and haters of his Saints to honour them And
salvation as the ungodly world doth Oh with what scorn and holy indignation would they refuse a world if it were offered them instead of God with what detestation would they reject the motion to any sin § 10. Direct 10. When you would revive in your minds a right apprehension and estimation of all earthly Direct 10. things as Riches and Honours and Greatness and Command and full provisions for the flesh bethink you then how the blessed souls with Christ esteem them How little do they set by all those things that worldlings make so great a stir for and for which they â—ell their God and their salvation How contemptible are Crowns and Kingdoms in their eyes Their judgement is more like to Gods than ours is Luk. 16. 15. That which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God All the world would not hire a Saint in Heaven to tell one lie or take the name of God in vain or to forget God or be estranged from him for one hour § 11. Direct 11 When you see the Godly under the contempt of sinners here accounted as the filth of Direct 11. the world and the off-scouring of all things defamed reviled hated and persecuted Look up then to the 1 Cor. 4. 12 13. Saints with Christ and think how they are esteemed and used And when you would truly know what â—am 3. 45. a Believer is think not how they are esteemed and used by men but how they are esteemed and used by Christ. Judge not of them by their short afflictions nor by their meanness in the flesh but by their endless happiness and their glory above Look up to the home and world of Saints if you would know what Saints are and not to the few scattered imperfect passengers in this world that is not Heb 11. 33. worthy of them § 12. Direct 12. When you are tempted to think meanly of the Kingdom of Christ as if his flock were Direct 12. so small and poor and sinful as to be inconsiderable look up to the world of blessed souls which dwell above And there you shall see no such paucity or imperfections or blemishes as are here below The Subjects there are such as dishonour not their King Christs Kingdom is not of this world Joh. 18. 36. If you would know it in its Glory look up to the world where it is Glorious If when you hear men contemn the Kingdom of the Saints of Christ and at the same time did but see as Stephen did a glimpse into that Kingdom and all the Glory of the blessed there what thoughts would you have of the words which did dishonour it § 13. Direct 13. When you hear sinners boast of the Wisdom or Numbers of their party and appealing Direct 13. to the learned or great ones of the world look up to the blessed souls with Christ and ask whether they are not more wise and numerous than all the sinners upon earth The greatest Doctors are ignorant and unlearned in comparison of the meanest soul with Christ The greatest Monarchs are but worms in comparison of the Glorified Spirits with God If they say to you Are you wiser than so many and so wise and Learned men ask them Are you or all the ungodly wiser than all the blessed souls with Christ Let the wiser party carry it § 14. Direct 14. When you are tempted to be weary of a holy life or to think all your labour is vain Direct 14. look up to the blessed souls with Christ and there you will see the end of Holiness There you will see that of all the labour of your lives there is none that you are so sure to gain by and that in due time you shall reap if you faint not and if you sow to the spirit of the spirit you shall reap everlasting life Gal. 6. 8 9. And that when you have done the will of God if you have but patience you shall inherit the promise Heb. 10. 36. Ask your selves whether any of those blessed souls Repent now of the Holiness of their lives on earth or of their mortifying the flesh and denying themselves the delights of sin § 15. Direct 15. When you are tempted to turn back in the day of tryal and to forsake Christ or Direct 15. his cause when persecution ariseth then look to the blessed souls above and see what is the end of suffering for the sake of Christ and righteousness To foresee the great reward in Heaven will convince you that instead of being terrified by sufferings you should rejoyce and be exceeding glad Are you to lie Mat. 5. 11 12. in Prison or to burn in the Flames so did many thousands that are now in Heaven And do you think that they repent it now Ignatius Polycarp Cyprian and many such holy men were once used as hardly as you are now and put to death by cruel men Rogers Bradford Hooper Glover and multitudes with them were once in Prison and burnt in the Flames but where are they now and what is the end of all their pains Now whether do you think the case of Bonner or Bradford to be best Now had you rather be Gardiner or Philpot Now which think you doth most repent the poor Waldenses that were murdered by thousands or the Popes and Persecutors that murdered them § 16. Direct 16. When you are dismayed under the burden of your sins the greatness of your corruptions Direct 16. the weakness of your graces the imperfection of your duties look up to the blessed souls with Christ and remember that all those Glorified spirits were once in flesh as you now are and once they lay at the feet of God in tears and groans and cryes as you do They were once fain to cry out of the burden of their sins and mourn under the weakness of their graces as you now do They were once as much clog'd with flesh as you are and once as low in doubts and fears and bruised under the sense of Gods displeasure They once were as violently assaulted with temptations and had the same corruptions to lament and strive against as you have They were once as much afflicted by God and man But is there any of the smart of this remaining § 17. Direct 17. When you are deterred from the presence of the dreadful God and think he will not Direct 17. accept such worms as you look up to the blessed souls with Christ and remember how many millions of your brethren are there accepted to greater familiarity than that which you here desire Remember that those souls were once as dark and distant from God and unworthy of his acceptance as you now are A fearful Child receiveth boldness to see his Brethren in his Fathers arms § 18. Direct 18. When you are afraid of Satan lest he should prevail against you and devour you Direct 18. look up to the blessed souls with Christ and
Orbs besides what Scripture saith even reason will strongly perswade any rational man 1. When we consider that Sea and Land and Air and all places of this lower baser part of the world are replenished with inhabitants suitable to their natures And therefore that the incomparably more great and excellent Orbs and Regions should all be uninhabited is irrational to imagine 2. And as we see the Rational Creatures are made to govern the Brutes in this inferiour world so reason telleth us it is improbable that the higher Reason of the inhabitants of the higher Regions should have no hand in the government of man And yet God hath further condescended to satisfie us herein by some unquestionable apparitions of good Angels and many more of evil spirits which puâ—s the matter past all doubt that there are inhabitants of the unseen world And when we know that such there are it maketh it the more easie to us to believe that such we may be either numbered with the happy or unhappy Spirits considering the affinity which there is between the nature of our souls and them To conquer senseless Saducism is a good step to the conquest of irreligiousness He that is well perswaded that there are Angels and Spirits is much better prepared than a Sadducee to bâ—lieve the immortality of the soul And because the infinite distance between God and man is apt to make the thoughts of our approaching his Glory either dubious or very terrible the remembrance of those myriads of blessed Spirits that dwell now in the presence of that glory doth much embolden and confirm our thoughts As he that would be afraid whether he should have access to and acceptance with the King would be much encouraged if he saw a multituâ—e as mean as himself or not much unlike him to be familiar attendants on him I must confess such is my own weakness that I find a frequent need of remembring the holy Hosts of Saints and Angels that are with God to embolden my soul and make the thoughts of Heaven more familiar and sweet by abating my strangeness â—mazedness and fears And thus far to make them the Media that I say not the Mediators of my thoughts in their approaches to the Most High and Holy God Though the remembrance of Christ the true Mediator is my chief encouragement Especially when we consider how servently those holy Spirits do love every holy person upon earth and so that all those that dwell with God are dearer friends to us than our Fathers or Mothers here on earth are as is briefly proved before this will embolden us yet much more § 18. Direct 5. Make use of the thoughts of the Angelical Hosts when you would see the Glory and Direct 5. Majesty of Christ If you think it a small matter that he is the Head of the Church on earth a handful of people contemned by the Satanical party of the world yet think what it is to be Head over all things far above all principality and power and might and dominion and every name that is named not only in this world but also in that which is to come that is Gave him a power dignity and name greater than any power dignity or name of men or Angels and hath put all things under his feet Ephes. 1. 21 22 23. Being made so much better than the Angels as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they Of him it is said Let all the Angels of God worship him Heb. 1. 4 6. Read the whole Chapter Our Head is the Lord of all these Hosts § 19. Direct 6. Make use of the remembrance of the glorious Angels to acquaint you with the dignity Direct 6. of humane nature and the special dignity of the servants of God and so to raise up your hearts in Magna dignitas fidelium animarum ut unaquaeque habeat ab ortu nativitatis in custodiam sui Angelum depuâ—atum imo plures Hitro Luke 20. 36. thankfulness to your Creator and Redeemer who hath thus advanced you 1. What a dignity is it that thâ—se holy Angels should be all Ministring Spirits sâ—nt for our good that they should love us and concern themselves so much for us as to rejoyce in Heaven at our conversion Lord What is man that thou art mindful of him and the son of man that thou visitest him For thou hast made him a little lower than the Angels and hast crowned him with glory and honour Psal. 8. 4. 5. 2. But yet it is a higher declaration of our dignity that we should in Heaven be equal with them and so be numbered iâ—to their society and joyn with them everlastingly in the praise of our Creator 3. And it is yet a greater honour to us that our Natures are assumed into union of person with the Son of God and sâ— advanced above the Angels For he took not on him the nature of Angels but the seed of Abraham Nâ—r hath he put the world to come in subjection to the Angels Heb. 2. 5 16. This is the Lords doing and it is wonderous in our eyes § 20. Direct 7. When you would admire the works of God and his government look specially to the Direct 7. Angels part If God would be glorified in his works then especially in the most glorious parts If he take delight to work by Instruments and to communicate such excellency and honour to them as may conduce to the honour of the principal cause we must not overlook their excellency and honour unless we will deny God the honour which is due to him As he that will see the excellent workmanship of a Watch or any other Engine must not overlook the chiefest parts nor their operation on the rest So he that will see the excellent order of the works and Government of God must not over-look the Angels nor their Offices in the Government and preservation of the inferiour creatures so far as God hath revealed it unto us We spoil the Musick if we leave out these strings It is a great part of the glory of the works of God that all the parts in Heaven and Earth are so admirably conjoyned and joynted as they are and each in their places contribute to the beauty and harmony of the whole § 21. Direct 8. When you would be apprehensive of the excellency of Love and Humility and exact Direct 8. obedience tâ— the will of God look up to the Angels and see the lustre of all these vertues as they shine Heb. 1. 14. Psal. 103. 20 21 in them How perfectly do they Love God and all his Saints Even the weakest and meanest of the members of Christ With what humility do they condescend to minister for the heirs of salvation How readily and perfectly do they obey their Maker Though our chiefest pattern is Christ himself who came nearer to us and appeared in flesh to give us the example of all such duties yet under him the
a Lent as he in twenty years Sure I am I know many such on both sides Some that eat but a small meal a day and never drink Wine at all and others that drink Wine daily and eat of many dishes at a meal and that to the full and of the sweetest as Fish Fruits c. yet rail at the former for not fasting as they do So delusory are the outward appearances and so â—alse the pretensions of the carnal sort 4. The antient Lent consisted first of one day Good-fryday alone and after that of three dayes and then of six and at last it came up to fourty Of which read Dallaeus ubi supra at large 5. None can question the lawfulness of an obedient keeping of such a Civil Lent fast as our Statutes command for the vending of Fish and for the breed of Cattle so be it no bodily necessity oâ— greater duty be against it 6. It is not unlawful for those that cannot totally fast yet to use more abstinence and a more mortifying sort of dyet than ordinary for the exercises of repentance and mortification in due time 7. If Authority shall appoint such a mortifying abstemious course upon lawful or tolerable grounds and ends I will obey them if they peremptorily require it when my health or some greater duty forbiddeth it not 8. As for the Commanding such an Abstinence as in Lent not in Imitation but bare Commemoration of Christs forty dayes fast I would not command it if it were in my power But being peremptorily commanded I cannot prove it unlawful to obey with the fore-mentioned exceptions 9. It was antiently held a crime to fast on the Lords dayes even in Lent And I take that day to be separated by Christ and the Holy Ghost for a Church Festival or day of Thanksgiving Therefore I will not keep it as a fast though I were commanded unless in such an extraordinary necessity as aforesaid OF Pilgrimages Saints Relicts and Shrines Temples of their Miracles of Pray 〈…〉 to Angels to Saints for the Dead of Purgatory of the Popes Pardons Indulgences Dispensations of the Power of true Pastors to forgive sins with a multitude of such cases which are commonly handled in our Controversal Writers against the Papists I must thither refer the Reader for a Solution because the handling of all such particular Cases would swell my Book to a magnitude beyond my intention and make this part unfuitable to the rest Quest. 102. May we continue in a Church where some one Ordinance of Christ is wanting as Discipline Prayer Preaching or Sacraments though we have all the rest Answ. DIstinguish 1. Of Ordinances 2. Of a stated want and a temporary want 3. Of one that may have better and one that cannot 1. Teaching Prayer and Praise are Ordinances of such necessity that Church Assemblies have not their proper use without them 2. The Lords Supper is of a secondary need and must be used when 〈…〉 but a Church-Assembly may attain its ends sometimes without it in a good degree 3. Discipline is implicitly exercised when none but the Baptized are Communicants and when professed Christians voluntarily assemble and the preaching of the Word doth distinguish the precious from the vile Much more when notorious scandalous sinners are by the Laws kept from the Sacrament As our Rubrick and Canons do require 4. But for the fuller explicite and exacter exercise of discipline it is very desirable for the well being of the Churches but it is but a stronger fence or hedge and preservative of Sacred Order And both the being of a Church and the profitable use of holy assemblies may subsist without it As in Helvetia and other Countreys it is found I conclude then 1. That he that consideratis considerandis is a free man should choose that place Acts 28. ult 11. 26. 20. 7 20 c. 1 Cor. 14. Acts 2. 42. 1 Tim. 4. 13 14 2 Tim. 4. 1 2. 2 Tim. 3. 16. Heb. 10. 25 26 Col 4. 16. Acts 13 27. 15 2â— â— Theâ—s 5 27. 1 Cor. 5. 3 4 c. where he hath the fullest opportunities of worshipping God and edifying his soul. 2. He is not to be accounted a free-man that cannot remove without a greater hurt than the good either to the Church or Countrey or to his family his neighbours or himself 3. Without Teaching Prayer and Divine Praises we are not to reckon that we have proper Church-Assemblies and Communion 4. We must do all that is in our power to procure the right use of Sacraments and Discipline 5. When we cannot procure it it is lawful and a duty to joyn in those Assemblies that are without it and rather to enjoy the rest than none Few Churches have the Lords Supper above once a moneth which in the Primitive Church was used every Lords day and ofter And yet they meet on other dayes 6. It is possible that Preaching Prayer and Praise may be so excellently performed in some Churches that want both Discipline and the Lords Supper and all so coldly and ignorantly managed in another Church that hath all the Ordinances that mens souls may much more flourish and prosper under the former than the later 7. If forbearing or wanting some Ordinances for a time be but in order to a probable procurement Matth. 26. 31. Acts 8. 1. of them we may the better forbear 8. The time is not to be judged of only by the length but by the probability of success For sometime Gods Providence and the disturbances of the times or the craft of men in power may keep men so long in the dark that a long expectation or waiting may become our duty Quest. 103. Must the Pastors remove from one Church to another when ever the Magistrate commandeth us though the Bishops contradict it and the Church consent not to dismiss us And so of other Cases of disagreement Answ. 1. AS in mans soul the Intellectual Guidance the Will and the executive power do concur so in Church Cases of this nature the Potestative Government of the Magistrate the Directive Guidance of the senior Pastors and the Attractive Love of the people who are the chief inferiour final Cause should all concur And when they do not it is confusion And when Gods order is broken which commandeth their concurrence it is hard to know what to do in such a division which God alloweth not As it is to know whether I should take part with the Heart against the Head or with the Head against the Stomach and Liver on supposition of cross inclinations or interests when as Nature supposeth either a concord of inclination and interests or else the ruine sickness or death of the person And the Cure must be by reconciling them rather than by knowing which to side with against the rest But seeing we must suppose such diseases frequently to happen they that cannot cure them must know how to behave themselves and to do their own duty For my
in the Assembly Answ. 1. We may use them in that measure of suitableness to our cases which they have You may joyn with a man in prayer who expresseth part of your wants though he express not all Else you must joyn with no man in the world 2. If ungodly men are present when the faithful speak to God must we not speak our proper case because they are present The Minister in Church-administrations speaketh principally in the name of the faithful and not of hypocrites Must he leave out of his prayers all that is proper to the Godly meerly because some wicked men are there No more must the Church do in singing unto God 3. They that cannot speak every word in a Psalm just as their own case may yet speak it as instructive Otherwise they might not read or say it James 5. 13. Ephes. 5. 19. Col. 3. 16. But the Sectarian Objections against singing Davids Psalms are so frivolous that I will not tire the Reader with any more Quest. 125. May Psalms be used as Prayers and Prayses and Thanksgivings or only as Instructive Even the Reading as well as the Singing of them Answ. THe sober Reader who knoweth not what errors others hold will marvel that I trouble men with such questions But I have oft been troubled with those that Psal. 72. 20. Psal. 90. Title Psal. 86. Title Psal. 17. Title c. having no other shift to deny the Lawfulness of written and set forms of prayer do affirm that Psalms are neither to be read or sung at all as Prayers but only as doctrinal Scriptures for Instruction But that this is false appeareth 1. In that those that are real material prayers and prayses and thanksgivings and were penned for that very use as the Titles shew and those that were so used by the Jewish Synagogues where Christ was ordinarily present may be so used by us But such are the Psalms both as said and sung 2. And those that we are commanded to sing as Psalms and have Christs example so to use who sung a Hymn or Psalm of Praise at his last Supper we also may so use But c. 3. And those that are by Gods Spirit fitted for our use in Prayer Praise and Thanksgiving and never forbidden so to be used may by us be so used But such are the Psalms c. I will weary you with no more Quest. 126. Are our Church-Tunes Lawful being of mans invention Answ. YEs They are a lawful invention allowed us by God and fitted to the General Rules of Edification Scripture is no particular Rule for such Modes and Circumstances Object They breed a carnal pleasure by the melody which is not fit for spiritual devotion Answ. It is a lawful sensitive pleasure sanctified to a holy use not hindering but greatly helping the soul in spiritual worship Either you call it carnal because it gratifieth the sinful corrupt inclinations of man or only because it is sensitive or a pleasure in the imagination and lower faculties If the former 1. There is nothing in it which is a necessary cause of any sinful pleasure nor an impediment to spiritual pleasure 2. But a lustful person will turn all sensitive pleasure into sin Our Meat 〈…〉 12. 17 〈…〉 16. 〈…〉 2â— and Drink and Clothes and Houses and Friends and Health The Bread and Wine in the Sacrament may be thus abused 2. But you must know that as our Bodies are here united to our souls so they act together and while the sensitive part is subordinate to the rational it is serviceable to it and not a hiâ—derance When you come to have souls that are separated from the body you shall use no bodâ—ly instruments And yet even then it is uncertain to us whether the sensitive powers of the soul do not accompany it and be not used by it But certainly in the mean time he that will not use sense shall not use reason And he that acteth not sensibly acteth not as a man It is not a sin to be a man And therefore not to see to hear to taste to smell c. Nor is it a sin to taste sweetness in our meat or drink nor is it a sinful pleasure for the eyes to behold the Light or the variety of the beauteous works of God or to take pleasure in them His works are great sought out of all them that have pleasure therein Psal. 111. 2. You know not what it is to be a man if you know not that God hath made all senses to be Rom. 8. 18 32. Tâ—tus 1. 15. Rom. 14. 20. 1 Cor. 3. 21. 2 Cor. 4. 15. the inlets of objects and so of holy pleasure into the soul. Would he have given us eyes and ears and appetites and made his creatures sweet and beauteous that all might either be sin or useless to us No all things are sanctified and pure to the pure The sense is the natural way to the Imagination and that to the Understanding And he that will have no sensible and natural pleasure shall have no spiritual pleasure And he that will have none but sensitive pleasure were better have none at all It is therefore a foolish pretence of spirituality to dream of acting without our senses or avoiding those delights which may and must be sanctified to us Harmony and Melody are so high a pleasure of the sense that they are nearest to Rational delights if not participating of them and exceedingly fitted to elevate the mind and affections unto God And as it is the very nature of true Holiness to be so suited to Holy things as that they may be our Delight and he is the genuine Saint and the best of Christians who most Delighteth in God and Holiness So that is the best means to make us the best Christians which helpeth us best to these Delights And if any thing on Earth be like to Heaven it is to have our Delight in God And therefore if any thing may make us Heavenly it is that which raiseth us to such delights And therefore a Chore of holy persons melodiously singing the Praises of Iehovah are likest to the Angelical Society Psal. 150. Quest. 127. Is Church-Musick by Organs or such Instruments lawful Answ. I Know that in the persecuted and poorer times of the Church none such were used when Rev. 14. â— 3. The voice of Harpers harping with their Harps is ordinarily expounded of publick Worship they had not Temples nor alwayes a fixed meeting place And that the Author of the Quest. Resp. in Iustin Martyr speaketh against it which Perkins and others cite to that purpose And I grant 1. That as it is in the power of weak diseased Christians to make many things unlawful to their brethren lest we be hurtful to them and to deprive us of much not only of our Liberties but our Helps so in abundance of Congregations Church-Musick is made unlawful by accident through their mistake For it is unlawful caeteris
paribus by an unnecessary thing to occasion divisions in the Churches But where one part judgeth Church Musick unlawful for another part to use it would occasion divisions in the Churches and drive away the other part Therefore I would wish Church-musick to be no where set up but where the Congregation can accord in the use of it or at least where they will not divide thereupon 2. And I think it unlawful to use such streins of Musick as are Light or as the Congregation cannot easily be brought to understand Much more on purpose to commit the whole work of singing to the Choristers and exclude the Congregation I am not willing to joyn in such a Church where I shall be shut out of this noble work of praise 3. But plain intelligible Church-musick which occasioneth not divisions but the Church agreeth in for my part I never doubted to be lawful For 1. God set it up long after Moses Ceremonial Law by David Solomon c. 2. It is not an instituted Ceremony meerly but a natural help to the minds alacrity And it is a 1 Sam. 18. 6. 1 Chron. 15. 16. 2 Chron. 5. 13. 7. 6. 23. 13. 34. 22. Psal. 98. 99. 149. 150. duty and not a sin to use the helps of nature and Lawful art though to institute Sacraments c. of our own As it is lawful to use the comfortable helps of spectacles in reading the Bible so is it of Musick to exhilerate the soul towards God 3. Jesus Christ joyned with the Jews that used it and never spake a word against it 4. No Scripture forbiddeth it therefore it is not unlawful 5. Nothing can be against it that I know of but what is said against Tunes and Melody of Voice For whereas they say that it is a humane invention so are our Tunes and Metre and Versions Yea it is not a humane invention As the last Psalm and many other shew which call us to praise the Lord with instruments of musick And whereas it is said to be a carnal kind of pleasure they may say as much of a Melodious harmonious confort of Voices which is more excellent Musick than any Instruments And whereas some say that they find it do them harm so others say of melodious singing But as wise men say they find it do them good And why should the experience of some prejudiced self-conceited person or of a half-man that knoweth not what melody is be set against the experience of all others and deprive them of all such helps and mercies as these people say they find no benefit by And as some deride Church-musick by many scornful names so others do by singing as some Congregations neer me testifie who these many years have forsaken it and will not endure it but their Pastor is fain to unite them by the constant and total omission of singing Psalms It is a great wrong that some do to ignorant Christians by putting such whimseyes and scruples into their heads which as soon as they enter turn that to a scorn and snare and trouble which might be a real help and comfort to them as well as it is to others Quest. 128. Is the Lords day a Sabbath and so to be called and kept and that of Divine institution And is the seventh day Sabbath abrogated c. Answ. ALL the Cases about the Lords day except those practical directions for keeping it in the Oeconomical part of this Book I have put into a peculiar Treatise on that subject by it self and therefore shall here pass them over referring the Reader to them in that discourse Quest. 129. Is it Lawful to appoint humane Holy dayes and observe them Answ. THis also I have spoke to in the foresaid Treatise and in my Disput. of Church-Govern and Cer. Briefly 1. It is not lawful to appoint another weekly sabbath or day wholly separated to the Commemoration of our redemption For that is to mend pretendedly the institutions of God Yea and to contradict him who hath judged one day only in seven to be the fittest weekly proportion 2. As part of some dayes may be weekly used in holy assemblies so may whole days on just extraordinary occasions of prayer preaching humiliation and thanksgiving 3. The holy doctrine lives and sufferings of the Martyrâ— and other holy men hath been so great a mercy to the Church that for any thing I know it is lawful to keep anniversary Thanksgivings in remembrance of them and to encourage the weak and prâ—voke them to constancy and imitation 4. But to dedicate dayes or Temples to them in any higher sence as the Heathens and Idolaters did to their Hero's is unlawful or any way to intimate an attribution of Divinity to them by word or Worship 5. And they that live among such Idolaters must take heed of giving them scandalous encouragement 6. And they that scrupulously fear such sin more than there is cause should not be forced to sin against their Consciences 7. But yet no Christians should causelesly refuse that which is lawful nor to joyn with the Churches in holy exercises on the dayes of thankful commemoration of the Apostles and Martyrs and excellent instruments in the Church Much less peâ—ulantly to work and set open Shops to the offence of others But rather to perswade all to imitate the holy lives of those Saints to whom they give such honours Quest. 130. How far is the holy Scriptures a Law and perfect Rule to us Answ. 1. FOr all thoughts words affections and actions of Divine faith and obedience supposing still Gods Law of Nature For it is no Believing God to believe what he never revealed nor no Trusting God to trust that he will certainly give us that which he never either directly nor indirectly promised Nor no obeying God to do that which he never commanded 2. The Contents will best shew the Extent Whatever is Revealed promised and commanded in it for that it is a perfect Rule For certainly it is perfect in its kind and to its proper use 3. It is a perfect Rule for all that is of Universal Moral necessity That is Whatever it is necessary that 1 Tim. 3. 16. 2 Pet. 1. 20. 2 Tim. â— 15. Rom. 15. 4. 16. 26. Joh. â— 3â— Act. 1â— 2. 11. Joh. 19. 24 28 36 37. man believe think or do in all ages and places of the World this is of Divine obligation Whatever the World is Universally bound to that is All men in it it is certain that Gods Law in Nature or Scripture or both bindeth them to it For the World hath no Universal King or Lawgiver but God 4. Gods own Laws in Nature and Scripture are a perfect Rule for all the duties of the understanding thoughts affections passions immediately to be exercised on God himself For no one else is a discerner or judge of such matters 5. It perfectly containeth all the Essential and Integral parts of the Christian Religion so
Father Word and Spirit are undivided But yet some things are more eminently attributed to one person in the Trinity and some to another 2. By the Law and Covenant of Innocency the Creator eminently ruled Omnipotently And the Joh. 5. 22 25. Prov. 1. 20 21 c. Son Ruled eminently sapientially initially under the Covenant of promise or grace from Adam till his Incarnation and the descent of the Holy Ghost and more fully and perfectly afterward by the Holy Ghost And the Holy Ghost ever since doth Rule in the Saints as the Paraclete Advocate or Agent of Christ and Christ by him eminently by holy Love which is yet but initially But the same Holy Ghost by perfect Love shall perfectly Rule in Glory for ever even as the spirit of the Father and the Son We have already the Initial Kingdom of Love by the spirit and shall have the perfect Kingdom in Heaven And besides the initial and the perfect there is no other Nor is the perfect Kingdom to be expected before the day of judgement or our removal unto Heaven For our Kingdom is not of this World And they that sell all and follow Christ do make the exchange for Mat. 5. 11 12. Luk. 18. 22 23. Mat. 10. 41 32. Luk. 6. 23. 16. 20. 1 Cor. 12. 2 3. 5. 1 3 8. Mat. 18. 10. 1 Thes. 4. 17 18. Mar. 12. 25. 2 Pet. 3. 11 12 13. 1 Pet. 1. 4. Heb. 10. 34. 12. 23. Col. 1. 5. Phil. 3. 20. 21. a Reward in Heaven And they that suffer persecution for his sake must rejoice because their reward in Heaven is great And they that relieve a prophet or righteous man for the sake of Christ and that lose any thing for him shall have indeed an hundred fold in value in this life but in the world to come eternal life We shall be taken up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and so shall we ever be with the Lord And those are the words with which we must comfort one another and not Jewishly with the hopes of an earthly Kingdom And yet we look for a new Heaven and a new Earth wherein dwelleth righteousness according to his promise But who shall be the inhabitants and how that Heaven and Earth shall diffâ—r and what we shall then have to do with Earth Whether to be Overseers of that Righteous Earth and so to judge or Rule the World as the Angels are now over us in this World are things which yet I understand not Quest. 162. May we not look for Miracles hereafter Answ. THe answer to Quest. 160. may serve to this 1. God may work Miracles if he please Lâ—ke 23. 8. and hath not told us that he never will 2. But he hath not promised us that he will and therefore we cannot believe such a promise not expect them as a certain thing Nor may any pray for the gift of miracles 3. But if there be any probability of them it will be to those that are converting Infidel Nations when they may be partly of such use as they were at first 4. Yet it is certain that sometimes God still worketh Miracles But arbitrarily and rarely which may not put any individual person in expectation of them Object Is not the promise the same to us as to the Apostles and primitive Christians if we could but believe as they did Answ. 1. The promise to be believed goeth before the faith that believeth it and not that faith before the promise 2. The promise of the Holy Ghost was for perpetuity to sanctifie all believers 1 Cor. 1â— 2â— 29. Heb. 2. 3 4. John 1â— 41. But the promise of that special gift of Miracles was for a time because it was for a special use that is to be a standing seal to the truth of the Gospel which all after ages may be convinced of in point of fact and so may still have the use and benefit of And providence ceasing Miracles thus expoundeth the promise And if Miracles must be common to all persons and ages they would be as no Miracles And we have seen those that most confidently believed they should work them all fail But I have written so largely of this point in a set Disputation in my Treatise called The Unreasonableness of Infidelity fully proving those first Miracles satisfactory and obligatory to all following ages that I must thither now refer the Reader Quest. 163. Is the Scripture to be tryed by the Spirit or the Spirit by the Scripture and which of them is to be preferred Answ. I Put the question thus confusedly for the sake of those that use to do so to shew them how to get out of their own Confusion You must distinguish 1. Between the Spirit in it self considered and the Scripture in it self 2. Between the several operations of the Spirit 3. Between the several persons that have the Spirit And so you must conclude 1. That the Spirit in it self is infinitely more excellent than the Scripture For the Spirit is God and the Scripture is but the work of God 2. The operation of the Spirit in the Apostles was more excellent than the operation of the same Spirit now in us As producing more excellent effects and more infallible 3. Therefore the holy Scriptures which were the infallible dictates of the Spirit in the Apostles 1 Joh. 4. 1 2 6. John 18. 37. 8. 47. are more perfect than any of our apprehensions which come by the same Spirit which we have not in so great a measure 4. Therefore we must not try the Scriptures by our most spiritual apprehensions but our apprehensions Acts 17. 11 12. Matth. 5. 18. Rom. 16. 26. by the Scriptures that is we must prefer the Spirits inspiring the Apostles to indite the Scripture before the Spirits illuminating of us to understand them or before any present inspirations the former being the more perfect Because Christ gave the Apostles the Spirit to deliver us infallibly Matth. 28. 20. Luke 10. 16. his own Commands and â—o indite a Rule for following ages But he giveth us the Spirit but to understand and use that Rule aright 5. This trying the Spirit by the Scriptures is not a setting of the Scripture above the Spirit it Rev. 2. 2. Jude 17. a Pet. 3. â— Ephes. 4. 11 12. 1 Cor. 12. 28 29. Ephes. 2. 20. self but is only a trying the Spirit by the Spirit that is the Spirits operations in our selves and his Revelations to any pretenders now by the Spirits operations in the Apostles and by their Revelations recorded for our use For they and not we are called Foundations of the Church Quest. 164. How is a pretended Prophet or Revelation to be tryed Answ. 1. IF it be contrary to the Scripture it is to be rejected as a deceit Acts 17. 11. 1 Cor. 15. 3 4 John 10. 35. John 19. 24 28 36 37. 2. If it be the same thing which is
Son and Holy Ghost when they have in Baptism vowed themselves unto his service Of all men on earth these men will have least to say for their sin or against their condemnation § 22. 12. Lastly Remember that Christ taketh all that is done by persecutors against his servants for his cause to be done as to himself and will accordingly in judgement charge it on them So speaketh he to Saul Acts 9. 5 6. Saul Saul why persecutest thou me I am Iesus whom thou persecutest And Matth. 25. 41. to 46. Even to them that did not â—eed and clothe and visit and relieve them he saith Verily I say unto you in as much as ye did it not to one of the least of these ye did it not to me What then will he say to them that impoverished and imprisoned them Remember that it is Christ reputatively whom thou dost hate deride and persecute § 23. Direct 3. If you world escape the guilt of persecution the cause and interest of Christ in the Direct 3. world must be truly understood He that knoweth not that Holiness is Christs end and Scripture is his Word and Law and that the Preachers of the Gospel are his messengers and that preaching is his appointed means and that sanctified believers are his members and the whole number of them are his mystical body and all that profess to be such are his visible body or Kingdom in the world and that sin is the thing which he came to destroy and the Devil the world and the flesh are the enemies which he causeth us to conquer I say He that knoweth not this doth not know what Christianity or Godliness is and therefore may easily persecute it in his ignorance If you know not or believe not that serious Godliness in heart and life and serious preaching and discipline to promote it are Christs great cause and interest in the world you may fight against him in the dark whilst ignorantly you call your selves his followers If the Devil can but make you think that Ignorance is as good as Knowledge and Pharisaical formality and hypocritical shews are as good as spiritual worship and rational service of God and that seeming and lip-service is as good as seriousness in Religion and that the strict and serious obeying of God and living as we profess according to the principles of our Religion is but hypocrisie pride or faction that is that all are hypocrites who will not be hypocrites but seriously Religious I say if Satan can bring you once to such erroneous malignant thoughts as these no wonder if he make you persecutors O value the great blessing of a sound understanding For if Error blind you either impious error or factious error there is no wickedness so great but you may promote it and nothing so good and holy but you may persecute it and think all the while that you are doing well John 16. 2. They shall put you out of the Synagogues yea the time cometh that whosoever killeth you will think that he doth God service What Prophet so great or Saint so holy that did not suffer by such hands Yea Christ himself was persecuted as a sinner that never sinned § 24. Direct 4. And if you would escape the guilt of persecution the cause and interest of Christ Direct 4. must be highest in your esteem and preferred before all worldly carnal interests of your own Otherwise the Devil will be still perswading you that your own interest requireth you to suppress the interest of Christ For the truth is the Gospel of Christ is quite against the interest of carnality and concupiscence It doth condemn ambition covetousness and lust It forbiddeth those sins on pain of damnation which the proud and covetous and sensual love and will not part with And therefore it is no more wonder to have a proud man or a covetous man or a lustful voluptuous man to be a persecutor than for a Dog to fly in his face who takes his bone from him If you love your pride and lust and pleasures better than the Gospel and a holy life no marvel if you be persecutors For these will not well agree together And though sometimes the providence of God may so contrive things that an ambitious hypocrite may think that his worldly interest requireth him to seem religious and promote the preaching and practice of godliness this is but seldome and usually not long For he cannot choose but quickly find that Christ is no Patron of his sin and that Holiness is contrary to his worldly lusts Therefore if you cannot value the Cause of Godliness above your lusts and carnal interests I cannot tell you how to avoid the guilt of persecution nor the wrath and vengeance of Almighty God § 25. Direct 5. Yea though you do prefer Christs interest in the main You must carefully take Direct 5. beed of stepping into any forbidden way and espousing any interest of your own or others which is contrary to the Laws or interest of Christ. Otherwise in the defence or prosecution of your cause you will be carryed into a seeming Necessity of persecuting before you are aware This hath been the ruine of multitudes of great ones in the world When Ahab had set himself in a way of sin the Prophet 1 Kings 22. 8 27. 1 King 13. 2 4. must reprove him and then he hateth and persecuteth the Prophet because he prophesied not good of him but evil When Ieroboam thought that his interest required him to set up Calves at Dan and Bethel and to make Priests for them of the baâ—est of the people the Prophet must speak against his sin and then he stretcheth out his hand against him and saith Lay hold on him If Asa sin and 2 Chron. 16. 10. the Prophet tell him of it his rage may proceed to imprison his reprover If Amaziah sin with the Idolaters the Prophet must reprove him and he will silence him or smite him And silenced he is 2 Chron. 15. 16. and what must follow 2 Chron. 15 16. The King said to him Art thou made of the Kings counsel forbear why shouldst thou be smitten This seemeth to be gentle dealing Then the Prophet forbore and said I know that God hath determined to destroy thee because thou hast done this and hast not hearkned to my counsel It Pilate do but hear If thou let this man go thou art not Caesars friend he thinketh John 19. 12. it his interest to crucifie Christ As Herod thought it his interest to kill him and therefore to kill so many other Infâ—nts when he heard of the birth of a King of the Jews Because of an Herodias Matth. 2. 16 17 18. Matth. 14. 6 7 8 9. Mar. 6. 19. 21 22. Acts 12. 2 3 4. and the honour of his word Herod will not stick to behead Iohn Baptist And another Herod will kill Iames with the Sword and imprison Peter because he seeth that it pleaseth
thus oppression destroyeth Religion and the peoples souls as well as their estates § 14. 5. Oppression further endangereth both the souls of men and the publick peace and the safety of Princes by tempting the poor multitude into discontents sedition and insurrections Every man is naturally a lover of himself above others And the poor as well as the rich and Rulers have an interest of their own which ruleth them And they will hardly honour or love or think well of them by whom they suffer It is as natural almost for a man under oppression to be discontented and complain as for a man in a Feavor to complain of sickness heat and thirst No Kingdom on earth is so holy and happy as to have all or most of the subjects such confirmed eminent Saints as will be contented to be undone and will love and honour those that undo them Therefore men must be taken as they are If oppression maketh wise men mad Eccles. 7. 7. much more the multitude who are far from wisdom Misery maketh men desperate when they think that they cannot be much worse than they are How many Kingdoms have been thus fired as wooden wheels will be when one part rubbeth too hard and long upon the other Yea if the Prince be never so good and blameless the cruelty of the Nobles and the rich men of the Land may have the same effects And in these combustions the peace of the Kingdom the lives and souls of the seditious are made a sacrifice to the lusts of the Oppressors § 15. Direct 2. Consider with fear how Oppression turneth the groans and cryes of the poor to the Direct 2. God of revenge against the Oppressors And wo to that man that hath the tears and prayers of oppressed innocents sounding the alarm to vindictive Justice to awake for their relief And shall not God avenge his own elect which cry day and night to him though he bear long with them I tell you that he will avenge them speedily Luke 18. 7 8. The Lord will be a refuge to the oppressed Psal. 9. 9. To judge the fatherless and the oppressed that the man of the earth may no more oppress Psal. 10. 18. The Lord executeth righteousness and judgement for all that are oppressed Psal. 103. 6. 146. 7. Yea God is doubly engaged to be revenged upon oppressors and hath threatned a special execution of his judgement against them above most other sinners Partly as it is an act of mercy and relief to the oppressed So that the matter of threatning and vengeance to the oppressor is the matter of Gods promise and favour to the sufferers And partly as it is an act of his Vindictive Iustice against such as so heinously break his Laws The oppressor hath indeed his time of Power and in that time the oppressed seem to be forsaken and neglected of God as if he did not hear their cryes But when his patience hath endured the tyranny of the proud and his wisdom hath tryed the patience of the sufferers to the determined time how speedily and terribly then both vengeance overtake the oppressors and make them warnings to those that follow them In the hour of the wicked and of the power of darkness Christ himself was oppressed and afflicted Isa. 53. 7. and in his humiliation his judgement taken was away Acts 8. But how quickly did the destroying revenge overtake those bloody Zealots and how grievous is the ruine which they lye under to this day which they thought by that same murder to have scaped Solomon saith Eccles. 4. 1. he considered all the oppressions that are under the Sun and behold the tears of such as were oppressed and they had no comforter and on the side of the oppressors there was power but they had no comforter Which made him praise the dâ—ad and the unborn But yet he that goeth with David into the Sanctuary and seeth the end of the oppressors shall perceive them set in slippery places and tumbling down to destruction in a moment Psal. 37. 73. The Israelites in Aegypt seemed long to groan and cry in vain But when the determinate time of their deliverance came God saith I have surely seen the affliction of my people and have heard their cry by reason of their task-masters for I know their sorrows and I am come down to deliver them Behold the cry of the children of Israel is come up unto me and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Aegyptians oppress them Exod. 3. 7 8 9. Deut. 26. 6 7. The Aegyptians evil intreated us and afflicted us and laid upon us hard bondage and when we cryed to the Lord God of our Fathers the Lord heard our voice and looked on our affliction and our labour and our oppression See Psal. 107. 39 40 41 42. So Psal. 12. 5 6. For the oppression of the poor for the sighing of the needy now will I arise saith the Lord I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him or would ensnare him Thou shalt keep them O Lord thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever Trust not therefore in oppression Psal. 62. 10. for God is the avenger and his plagues shall revenge the injuries of the oppressed § 16. Direct 3. Remember what an odious name Oppressors commonly leave behind them upon earth Direct 3. No sort of men are mentioned by posterity with greater hatred and contempt For the interest of mankind directeth them hereunto and may prognosticate it as well as the Iustice of God However the power of proud oppressors may make men afraid of speaking to their faces what they think yet those that are out of their reach will pour out the bitterness of their souls against them And when once death hath tyed their cruel hands or any judgement of God hath cast them down and knockt out their teeth how freely will the distressed vent their grief and same will not be afraid to deliver their ugly picture to posterity according to their desert Methinks therefore that even Pride it self should be a great help to banish oppression from the world What an honourable name hath a Trajan a Titus an Antonine an Alexander Severus And what an odious name hath a Nero a Caligula a Commodus a D' Alva c. Most proud men affect to be extolled and to have a glorious name survive them when they are dead and yet they take the course to make their memory abominable So much doth sin contradict and disappoint the sinners hopes § 17. Direct 4. Be not strangers to the condition or complaints of any that are your inferiours It Direct 4. is the misery of many Princes and Nobles that they are guarded about with such as keep all the lamentations of their Subjects and Tenants from their cars or represent them only as the murmurings of unquiet discontented men So that Superiours shall know no more of their inferiours case than their attendants please nor no
to honour the names of Peter and Paul and Stephen and Iohn of Augustin Hierom Chrysostom and other such saints of God And yet wilt thou make a scorn of those that strive to imitate them Search and see if any of these men did after their conversion live in luxury carding dicing prophaneness and if any of them was against a Holy life against much Praying Hearing Reading the Scriptures meditating exact obedience to God then let not the shame be thine but mine He that is most unlike them let him have the scorn § 25. 19. Thou deridest men for Repenting of their former sins and for accepting that mercy which Christ hath purchased and God hath offered them and sent his messengers to intreat them to accept Can they Repent of their former ungodliness and not turn from it and amend If thou knewest what they know thou wouldst repent thy self and not deride men for repenting If thou knewest the gift of God thou wouldst beg it and gladly accept of it thy self and not deride them that accept it § 26. 20. Thou scornest men for keeping that Covenant which thou also madest with God in thy Baptism thy self At the same time thou speakest against the Anabaptists that will not have their children baptised and deridest those that keep their Covenant which in baptism they made What a monster of contradictions is an ungodly Hypocrite Didst thou not in Baptism renounce the flesh the world and the Devil and give up thy self in Covenant to God the Father Son and Holy-Ghost And dost thou not yet know what thou didst But scorn them that perform it What is it to be given up to God in Baptism but to take him for thy God thy Saviour and Sanctifier whom thou must Love and seek and obey in Holiness with all thy Heart and Soul and Might He is a Covenant-breaker indeed that hates the keeping of it I have hitherto been shewing thee what it is that thou opposest and deridest I shall now tell thee further what thou dost in shewing thee the Aggravations of thy sin and its importance § 27. 2. Consider in all this what an open enemy thou art to God and an open Souldier for the Devil What canst thou do more against God and do thy worst than make a scorn of all his work and sâ—â—vants He feareth not thy power or rage thou canst not hurt him How many millions of such woâ—ms as thou can he tread to Hell or destroy in a moment It is in his servants and service that he is honoured or opposed here and that mortals shew their Love or hatred to him And how canst thou devise if thou wouldst do thy worst to serve the Devil more notoriously than by opposing and deriding the service of God If such be not Satans Servants he hath none § 28. 3. Consider what a terrible badge of misery thou carriest about thee thou bearest the mark of Satan Death and Hell in thy forehead as it were If there were any doubt whether a Swearer or drunkard or Fornicator may be in a state of Grace yet it is past all doubt that a Scorner of Godliness is not It were strange indeed for that man to be Holy that derideth Holiness There is scarce any sort of men in the world that are more undoubtedly in a state of damnation than thou art It is dark to us what God will do with Infidels and Heathens that never had the means of salvation But what he will do with all the unbelieving and ungodly that have had the means we know past doubt much more what he will do with those that are not only void of Holiness but deride it I deny not but yet if thou be converted thou maist be saved And O that God would give the repentance to the acknowledging of the truth that thou mightest escape out of the Devils snares who leads thee captive at his will 2 Tim. 2. 25. 26. It is written of Basil that by his prayers he caused the Devil to give back a writing by which a wretched man had sold his soul to him that he might enjoy his Masters daughter and that the man repented and was delivered If thou maist be so recovered it will be a happy day for thee But till then it is as sure as the Scripture is sure that thou art a miserable creature and an undone â—â—â—â—iâ—â—us Arriaâ—â—â—â—um Episâ—â—â—â—uâ— Hâ—â—nâ—riâ—â—m Râ—gâ—m pâ—rsâ—â—sit non pâ—sâ—â— pacaâ—um atque longaevum obtinere regnum nisi nomen perderet innocentum Qui tamen Dei judicio post non mulâ—os dâ—es turpâ—ssâ—ma moâ—te prâ—ventus scateâ—s vermibus expiravit Victor Vâ—ic p. 369. man if thou die in that condition that thou art in O with what fear shouldst thou rise and lie down if thou hadst thy wiâ—s about thee lest thou shouldst die before thou art converted § 29. 4. To scorn at Holiness is a defiance of grace as if thou didst renounce Gods mercy Thou dost thy worst to drive away all hope and make thy case uncurable and desperate For if ever thou be saved it must be by this gâ—â—ce and Holy life which thou deridest And is scorning grace the way to get it And is it likely that the Holy-Ghost will come and dwell in the man that scorneth his sanctifying works § 30. 5. To scorn at Godliness is a daring of God to give over his patience and presently to execute his vengeance on thee Canst thou wonder if he should make thee a monument of his Justice and set thee up for all others to take warning by Who is fitter for this than the scornful opposers of his grace and service Hasten not vengeance man it will come time enough Will a worm defie the God of Heaven § 31. 6. How little dost thou understand of all that thou opposest Didst thou ever try a holy life If thou hadst thou wouldst not speak against it If thou hadst not art thou not ashamed to speak evil of that which thou dost not understand It is a thing that none can througly know without experience Try it a while and then speak thy mind § 32. 7. Didst thou ever consider how many judgements are against thee and whom thou dost contradict and scorn 1. If thou scorn at serious Godliness at Preaching hearing reading Praying Meditating and strict avoiding sin thou contradictest God himself for none in all the world is so Holy or so much for Holiness as he And therefore ultimately it is him that all thy malice is against even God the Father and the Redeemer and the Sanctifier 2. Thou settest thy self against all the evidence of Scripture 3. And against all the works of God For all conspire to call the world to Holiness and strict obedience to God 4. And thou contradictest all the Prophets and Apostles and all the ancient Fathers of the Church and all the Martyrs and Saints of God that ever were in the world and all the learned faithful Ministers and Pastors of the Church that are
the Enemies of Religion that forbad Christs Ministers to preach his Gospel and forbad Gods servants to meet in Church-assemblies for his Worship the support of Religion and the comfort and edification of believers would then lye almost all upon the right performance of family-duties There Masters might teach the same truth to their housholds which Ministers are forbid to preach in the Assemblies There you might pray together as fervently and spiritually as you can There you may keep up as holy converse and communion and as strict a discipline as you please There you may celebrate the praises of your blessed Creator Redeemer and Sanctifier and observe the Lords Day in as exact and spiritual a manner as you are able You may there provoke one another to Love and to good works and rebuke every sin and mind each other to prepare for death and live together as passengers to eternal life Thus holy families may keep up Religion and keep up the life and comfort of believers and supply the want of publick preaching in those Countreys where persecutors prohibit and restrain it or where unable or unfaithful Pastors do neglect it § 8. Motive 8. The duties of your families are such as you may perform with greatest peace and least exception Motive 8. or opposition from others When you go further and would be instructing others they will think you go beyond your Call and many will be suspicious that you take too much upon you And if you do but gently admonish a rowt of such as the Sodomites perhaps they will say This one fellow came in to sojourn and he will needs be a Iudge Gen. 19. 9. But your own house is your Castle Your family is your charge You may teach them as oft and as diligently as you will If the ungodly rabble scorn you for it yet no sober person will condemn you nor trouble you for it if you teach them no evil All men must confess that Nature and Scripture oblige you â—o it as your unquestionable work And therefore you may do it among sober people with approbation and quietness § 9. Motive 9. Well governed Families are honourable and exemplary unto others Even the worldly and Motive 9. ungodly use to bear a certain reverence to them For Holiness and Order have some witness that commendeth them in the consciences of many that never practised them A worldly ungodly disordered family is a Den of Snakes a place of hissing railing folly and confusion It is like a Wilderness overgrown with Bryars and Weeds But a holy family is a Garden of God It is beautified with his Graces and ordered by his Government and fruitful by the showres of his heavenly blessing And as the very sluggard that will not be at the cost and pains to make a Garden of his thorny Wilderness may yet confess that a Garden is more beautiful and fruitful and delightful and if wishing would do it his Wilderness should be such Even so the ungodly that will not be at the cost and pains to order their souls and families in holiness may yet see a beauty in those that are so ordered and wish for the happiness of such if they could have it without the labour and cost of self-denyal And no doubt the beauty of such holy and well governed families hath convinced many and drawn them to a great approbation of Religion and occasioned them at last to imitate them § 10. Motive 10. Lastly Consider That holy well governed families are blest with the special presence Motive 10. and favour of God They are his Churches where he is worshipped His houses where he dwelleth He is engaged both by Love and Promise to bless protect and prosper them Psal. 1. 3. 128. It is safe to sail in that Ship which is bound for Heaven and where Christ is the Pilot. But when you reject his Government you refuse his company and contemn his favour and forfeit his blessing by despising his presence his interest and his commands § 11. So that it is an evident truth that most of the mischiefs that now infest or seize upon mankind throughout the earth consist in or are caused by the disorders and ill-governedness of families These are the Schools and Shops of Satan from whence proceed the beastly ignorance lust and sensuality the devilish pride malignity and cruelty against the holy wayes of God which have so unman'd the progeny of Adam These are the Nests in which the Serpent doth hatch the Eggs of Covetousness Envy Strife Revenge of Tyranny Disobedience Wars and Bloodshed and all the Leprosie of sin that hath so odiously contaminated humane nature and all the miseries by which they make the world calamitous Do you wonder that there can be persons and Nations so blind and barbarous as we read of the Turks Tartarians Indians and most of the inhabitants of the earth A wicked education is the cause of all which finding nature depraved doth sublimate and increase the venome which should by education have been cured And from the wickedness of families doth National wickedness arise Do you wonder that so much ignorance and voluntary deceit and obstinacy in errors contrary to all mens common senses can be found among professed Christians as Great and small High and low through all the Papal Kingdom do discover Though the Pride and Covetousness and Wickedness of a worldly carnal Clergie is a very great cause yet the sinful negligence of Parents and Masters in their families is as great if not much greater than that Do you wonder that even in the Reformed Churches there can be so many unreformed sinners of beastly lives that hate the serious practice of the Religion which themselves profess It is ill education in ungodly families that is the cause of all this O therefore how great and necessary a work is it to cast Salt into these corrupted fountains Cleanse and cure these vitiated Families and you may cure almost all the calamities of the earth To tell what the Emperours and Princes of the earth might do if they were wise and good to the remedy of this common misery is the idle talk of those negligent persons who condemn themselves in condemning others Even those Rulers and Princes that are the Pillars and Patrons of Heathenisme Mahometanisme Popery and Ungodliness in the world did themselves receive that venome from their Parents in their birth and education which inclineth them to all this mischief Family-reformation is the easiest and the most likely way to a common Reformation At least to send many souls to Heaven and train up multitudes for God if it reach not to National reformation CHAP. VI. More special Motives for a holy and careful Education of Children BEcause the chief part of Family-Care and Government consisteth in the right Education of Children I shall adjoyn here some more special Motives to quicken considerate Parents to this duty And though most that I have to say for it be already said
in my Saints Rest Part 3. Chap. 14. Sect. 11. c. and therefore shall be here omitted yet something shall be inserted lest the want here should appear too great § 1. Motive 1. Consider how deeply Nature it self doth engage you to the greatest care and diligence Motive 1. for the holy education of your children They are as it were parts of your selves and those that Nature teacheth you to Love and provide for and take most care for next your selves And will you be regardless of their chief concernments and neglective of their souls Will you no other way shew your love to your children than every Beast or Bird will to their young to cherish them till they can go abroad and shift for themselves for corporal sustenance It is not Dogs or Beasts that you bring into the world but Children that have immortal souls And therefore it is a care and education suitable to their natures which you owe them Even such as conduceth most effectually to the happiness of their souls Nature teacheth them some natural things without you as it doth the Bird to flye But it hath committed it to your trust and care to teach them the greatest and most necessary things If you should think that you have nothing to do but feed them and leave all the rest to Nature then they would not learn to speak And if Nature it self would condemn you if you teach them not to speak it will much more condemn you if you teach them not to understand both what they ought to speak and do They have an everlasting inheritance of happiness to attain and it is that which you must bring them up for They have an endless misery to escape and it is that which you must diligently teach them If you teach them not to escape the flames of Hell what thanks do they owe you for teaching them to speak and go If you teach them not the way to Heaven and how they may make sure of their salvation what thanks do they owe you for teaching them how to get their livings a little while in a miserable world If you teach them not to know God and how to serve him and be saved you teach them nothing or worse than nothing It is in your hands to do them the greatest kindness or cruelty in all the world Help them to know God and to be saved and you do more for them than if you helped them to be Lords or Princes If you neglect their souls and breed them in ignorance worldliness ungodliness and sin you betray them to the Devil the enemy of souls even as truly as if you sold them to him You sell them to be slaves to Satan you betray them to him that will deceive them and abuse them in this life and torment them in the next If you saw but a burning Fornace much more the flames of Hell would you not think that man or woman more fit to be called a Devil than a Parent that could find in their hearts to cast their Child into it or to put him into the hands of one that would do it What Monsters then of inhumanity are you that read in Scripture which is the way to Hell and who they be that God will deliver up to Satan to be tormented by him and yet will bring up your children in that very way and will not take pains to save them from it What a stir do you make to provide them food and rayment and a competent maintenance in the world when you are dead And how little pains take you to prepare their souls for the heavenly inheritance If you seriously believe that there are such Ioyes or Torments for your children and your selves as soon as death removeth you hence is it possible that you should take this for the least of their concernments or make it the least and last of your cares to assure them of an endless happiness If you Love them shew it in those things on which their everlasting welfare doth depend Do not say you Love them and yet lead them unto Hell If you love them not yet be not so unmerciful to them as to damn them It is not your saying God forbid and we hope better that will make it better or be any excuse to you What can you do more to damn them if you studied to do it as maliciously as the Devil himself You cannot possibly do more than to bring them up in ignorance carelessness worldliness sensuality and ungodliness The Devil can do nothing else to damn either them or you but by tempting to sin and drawing you from Godliness There is no other way to Hell No man is damned for any thing but this And yet will you bring them up in such a life and say God forbid we do not desire to damn them But it is no wonder when you do by your children but as you do by your selves Who can look that a man should be reasonable for his child that is so unreasonable for himself Or that those Parents should have any mercy on their childrens souls that have no mercy on their own You desire not to damn your selves but yet you do it if you live ungodly lives And so you will do by your children if you train them up in ignorance of God and in the service of the flesh and world You do like one that should set fire on his house and say God forbid I intend not to burn it or like one that casteth his child into the Sea and saith he intendeth not to drown him or traineth him up in robbing and thievery and saith he intendeth not to have him hanged But if you intend to make a Thief of him it is all one in effect as if you intended his hanging for the Law determineth it and the Iudge will intend it So if you intend to train up your children in ungodliness as if they had no God nor souls to mind you may as well say you intend to have them damned And were not an enemy yea is not the Devil more excusable for dealing thus cruelly by your children than you that are their Parents that are bound by Nature to love them and prevent their misery It is odious in Ministers that take the charge of souls to betray them by negligence and be guilty of their everlasting misery but in Parents it is more unnatural and therefore more unexcusable § 2. Motive 2. Consider that God is the Lord and Owner of your children both by the title of Creation and Motive 2. Redemption Therefore in justice you must resign them to him and educate them for him Otherwise you rob God of his own Creatures and rob Christ of those for whom he dyed and this to give them to the Devil the enemy of God and them It was not the world or the flesh or the Devil that created them or redeemed them but God And it is not possible for any Right to be built upon a