curteouslie saluted and worthelie commended of a Gentlewoman who said she heard a very good report of him he answered her the like haue I heard of you but God make our after fruites of his spirite more effectuall thā the former or else we shal not answer the glory of God and good opinion of his Saintes conceiued of vs. 19 The wicked that dare not boldly professe iniquitie redeeme times secretlie to commit it so though we haue not the strength to professe Religion publictlie yet let vs redeeme times secretly to frequent the exercises of Religion 20 To a Courtier complaining of the occasions of evill he saide Though you haue occasions of sinne offered yet the cause of sinne is still in your selfe 21 Sometimes in a good action vsing good meanes with an vpright heart to a lawfull end yet our prayers be vnfrutefull and our labours want successe then let vs remember that in all these there were secret imperfections and that the Lords deferring is that wee being better prepared by humilitie to be thankfull he may grant our requests in richer manner and measure 22 Where there is an immoderate care of outward things there commonlie is little care of inwarde good things for if one haue inward good things they so content the persons that haue them that they labour not much for outwarde things if they want them desire them the carefull seeking of them bringeth a godlie neglect of outward things 23 Ministers shoulde most frequent those places where God hath made their ministerie most frutefull they shoulde heerein be like the covetous man that where they haue once found the sweetnesse of gaining of soules thither they should be most desirous to resort 24 Let their advice be a generall praescription of Phisick First the parties afflicted are to labor to haue peace of their consciences and joy of the holy Ghost through the assurance of their sinnes pardoned in Christ then carefull must they be to vse the meanes which may nourish their inward peace joy Thirdly they must rejoice and recreate themselues in wisdome and well doing with the Saints of God and holy company and lastly they must refresh themselues with Kitchin phisick and a thankfull vsing of the creatures of God 25 When one saide to him after long conference and praier Sir I haue troubled you oh my brother Not so said he I never felt it by well doing and if I may pleasure you it is as joyfull to me as ever it was to you to receiue money for for this cause I liue 26 His loue ever grewe to a man as he knewe the man to growe in godlines his loue decayed as the graces of God decayed first he was greeved and then his loue was flacked 27 Vnto one that was tempted with much vnbeliefe hee gaue this counsell When the temptation commeth either fall downe in praier and say Lord thou makest mee to possesse the sinnes of my youth and this temptation is very equitie howbeit oh Lord graunt I may by wisdome herein make this temptation an holy instruction and suffer me to possesse my soule in patience oh turne this to thy glory and my salvation I see and confesse what hath beene in mee a long time by that which now sheweth itselfe in me and that thy grace hath altogether hitherto kept vnder this corruption yet Lord I beleeue Lord yet I will beleeue helpe Lord my vnbeleefe thy name bee praised for this seale of thy loue and pledge of thy spirit that in this vnbeliefe I am grieved as in my beliefe I am wont to be comforted and though my former ould and secrete sinnes deserue that I should not onely be given over to infidelitie but also that it should be in mee without griefe remorse yet Lord forgiue my sinnes newe and ould forgiue my vnthankfulnes Lorde increase my faith and grant good Father when thou shalt restore to mee this guift of grace againe that I may vse it in feare and shew it by fruites Or if this doe not prevaile giue your selfe with all humblenes to reade the worde of God especially his promises and bee still attending vpon the meanes wayting when the Lord shall inlarge your heart Or if this do not help go to some faithfull brother confesse yourselfe to him acknowledge your weaknes to him be not ashamed to giue God the glory by shaming your selfe and opening your corruption to him that so hee may pray for you whose praier according to the promise of God made to his holy ordinance herein Iames 5. vndoubtedly shall be heard in the appointed time Thus having prayed by yourselfe and with another and vsed the meanes of reading for your recoverie though you haue not present reliefe yet in meeknes of mind and patience of your spirite go to your calling knowing that your praiers and the word of God being as seede must haue some time betweene the sowing of them and the reaping of the increase and fruite of them Aboue all reason not with your temptations dispute not with the Devill as though you could prevaile of yourselfe and as I would not you shoulde dispute with your temptation so I woulde not you shoulde despise it and make no account of it for in both are extremities If you take it toe much to heart or maruell howe you should overcome such a temptation it will make you dull or desperate If you account of it toe little and maruell howe such things should come into your head which was not woont to be so it will make you not to striue and you shall be swallowed vp before you be aware If you account of it toe fearfully Sathan will oppresse you before you beginne to fight If you account of it toe lightlie the devill needes not to wrestle with you you wil overcome yourselfe Fight boldly in Christ tremble at your owne corruption but rest and trust in Christ your salvation If stil you ar tempted and no bodye by you write your temptation and offer it to God by prayer and promise to him that you will ask counsell at his word at the mouth of his Minister when he shall giue you just occasion If all this help not comfort your selfe with this pledge of Election that you are joyed when you feele your beleefe and you are grieved lest you shuld displease God by your vnbeleefe and knowe that as there is a vicissitude of the meanes of salvation which you must vse so there is also a vicissitude of temptations whereof this is one against which you must striue 28 Vnto one that was tempted with worldly shame and thought the distemperature of his mind proceeded thereof hee saide on this sorte first knowe that Sathan hath no absolute power but a power by permission to trye vs against which we must arme our selues by faith which will assure vs that either the Lord will mitigate our temptation if our power and patience be not great or else if he enlarge the tryall hee will increase our strength
according to the portion of our temptation wee must also pray that the Lord giue not out that measure of leaue to the devill which we giue out to sinne to work rebellion in vs against his majestie but that hee would rather make Sathan a Surgeon to shewe vs our sinnes than Sergeant to confound vs for them It is the pollicie of the adversarie to perswade many that the weaknes of their bodie and feeblenes of their braine proceedeth of their temptations when indeed it commeth of their vnstaid minds wandering toe much after the motions of the devill in that they not resting on the word nor depending on Christ nor contenting themselues to be tryed nor comforting themselues by meditation attend toe much and conferre with the devils illusions and temptations being more greved for their present sufferings than for their sinnes past The roote of this wordly shame is pride and haughtines of minde which is a privie evill and hardly will be beaten into the heade of them that are infected with it but sure it is that we would neuer be so grieved for the losse of a thing if wee did not toe much desire it and toe immoderatlie vse it whilst wee had it Iohn 12. 42. Which sinne of haughtines the Lord seeing in his children that they are more humbled with the losse of worldly credit than with the sence of their sinnes and losse of his glory hee striketh them with the wante of that thing which is most pretious vnto them because they made no conscience of that honour which is most precious vnto him wherefore this is the best remedie rather to be greved that we feele not our sinnes to be pardoned with God than that we are knowne to be sinners amongst men and that we be readie to shame our selues that God may haue the glory acknowledging shame and confusion and the whole hell of temptations to be due vnto vs and glory praise and compassion to be the Lords for this is a speciall mark of the child of God by temptations rightly humbled when hee is ready to shame himselfe for his sinne and to glorifie God in his mercie 29 Vnto one that thought himselfe to haue sinned against the holy Ghost he said Sathans temptations followe our affections for if wee lightly account of sinne hee bleres our eies still with Gods mercies if we beginne to make a conscience of sin hee loadeth vs with the judgments of God being as ready now to aggravate the sin more than it is in it selfe as before he would extenuate it to make it seeme lesse than it was howbeit saide he to the man thus afflicted I wil say vnto you as Samuel said to the people after they had confessed themselues to haue sinned against God with a great sinne True it is said Samuel not flattering them in their iniquities Ye haue sinned greatlie notwithstanding if ye will feare the Lord and serue him and heare his voice and not disobey the worde of the Lord ye shall followe the Lord your God but if ye will not obey the voice of the Lord but disobey the Lords mouth then shall the hand of the Lord be vppon you 1. Sam. 12. 14. So I will not lessen your sin but I say you haue sinned with a greate sinne before the Lord in that you made a mock of the worde which you knewe yet if you turne to the Lord in feare and serue him your sinne is remissable howsoever Sathan charges your conscience in that you haue done evill against your owne knowledge and in that you are affraide lest that sinne be in you and wold rejoyce in God if it were not in you If you purpose to leaue your former sinns and in trueth to turne vnto the Lord I dare assure you that as yet you are free from that sinne 30 When a gentlewoman asked him if hee were not sometimes merrie Yes saith he wee are often merry and sometimes we are afraide of our mirth 31 When we distrust of Gods promises let vs set before vs the example of his mercie done to others that wee may be the more assured to obtaine faith and when we begin to presume let vs set before vs the examples of Gods judgmēts that we may pray for humilitie 32 Being desired to giue his judgement of a waightie matter he answered Sir neither am I able to speak nor you to heare for that wee haue not praied indeed I may talk and you answer as naturall men but wee are not now prepared to conferre as the children of God 33 Wee may thus trie our mourning for the sinne of others First this sorrowe for sinne must be bred for our own sins and from our selues proceede to the sins of others Secondly the measure of our mourning must be agreable and proportionable to the sinnes Lastly our griefe must to be for the person that we be moued rather to pittie and praye for him than to hate or despise him 34 Vnto one that with many words disabled himselfe hee saide meekly oh why doe you seeke so much your owne praise for by this ye bewraie the privie corruption of nature that by toe open a dispraise desireth toe privie praise 35 It is not good to vse that for a dyet which is prescribed for Phisick for that will not work in the extraordinarie neede of the body which is vsed in the ordinarie cause of health 36 Seeing a godly man having his sonne in his armes whome hee loued tenderlie he said to him Sir there is the matter of your rejoycing God make it the matter of your thanks-giving 37 After one had asked his advise for sitting or kneeling at the Lords Table he said as for such things let vs doe asmuch as wee can for the peace of the Church lest wee make the remedie of the evill worse than the evill it selfe 38 To one that said he was possessed of a devill he answered as hoping that he was the child of God and rather deluded than afflicted True it is that in asmuch as lieth in you you haue given your selfe over to the devill but it is not in your power to giue over your selfe to him neither is it in his jurisdiction to possesse you 39 Hee rebuked publicklie a publick offence of a private man in this manner My brethren such a sinne hath passed from this place the guiltles neede not to be offended the person guiltie is to repent of it 40 Because God worketh the sence of sinne by degrees in his children hee suspected them who at every sinne named would shew themselues forthwith troubled 41 Many having escaped out of the gulfe of superstitions are toe deep plunged in prophanesse 42 Being asked howe a man might reprehend he answered First looke that you haue a ground out of the worde for reproving then look if it stand with your calling to reproue afterward consider if some other man may doe it more profitably than you then look before whome you reproue lest yee hinder the credit of
PROPOSITIONS CONTAINING ANSWERS TO CERTAINE demaunds in divers spirituall matters specially concerning the Conscience oppressed with the griefe of sinne WITH AN EPISTLE AGAINST hardnes of heart made by that woorthie Preacher of the Gospell of Christ M. R. GREENHAM Pastor of Drayton MATTH 11. 28. Come vnto mee all ye that labour and are loaded and I will ease you c. EDINBVRGH PRINTED BY ROBERT Waldegraue Printer to the Kings Majestie ANNO 1597. Cum Privilegio Regio CERTAINE DEMAVNDS answered by M. GREENHAM a learned man 1 IT is harder to beleeue in the abundance of worldly meanes than it is in the wante of them for they as it were are vailes set betwixt God and vs they stay our sight in them that it cannot pearce to God 2 Heathen men were humbled by their dreames wee are not humbled by the worde they that will not profite by Gods judgments in other shal feel themselues we haue no claime to Gods mercie offered in the Gospell vntill wee be humbled by his threatning in the Lawe 3 If wee go on still in sinne God will go on still in judgment but if our hearts relent from sinne God will release his sentence of punishment 4 As the Gospell first began by simple Fisher-men to bee preached but afterward being received in loue grewe to the other more learned sorte so for not receiving the worde in loue but hauing our eares tickling to newe doctrine heresies and sects beginning now amongst vs but in the simpler sort and ignorant men of the cuntrie are like to invade the best learned And God purposing to punish the coldnes of our age can aswell now send an hereticall spirite not onelie into the common people but into 400. learned Preachers as he did in times past send a lying spirit into 400. Prophets 5 If we think wee may speak wee will speak toe soone if we may keep silence wee will hold our peace toe long when we much loue the persons to whome we speake wee flack our zeale in rebuking of sinne if we be zealous against sinne we flack our loue to the person 6 As in marriage though the parties met in the flesh without any sanctified means to assure themselues to be joyned of the Lord yet if God afterwarde giue them grace to liue holilie in their meetings he sheweth not only that their corrupt meeting is pardoned but that nowe their meeting is blessed So if entring into a calling for want of guifts and affections we haue no assurance at the first of a warrantable calling yet if GOD afterwards furnish vs with able gifts and sanctifie vs with pure mindes hee doth not onely shewe vs that our former sinne is pardoned but also that he is well pleased with this calling wherevnto he hath blessed vs. 7 Sathan vnder the colour of repentance bringeth many into an extreame sadnes and stricktnes in vsing the creatures of God againe vnder pretence of Christian libertie and delivering of men from extreme griefes hee allureth them to an vnmoderate and an vnsanctified mirth and intemperate vse of the creatures of God so blinding judgment hee after corrupteth affection 8 The best art of memorie is to bee humbled at Gods threatning and comforted at his promises for sure it is that exceeding griefes or exceeding joyes leaue great impressions in vs. 9 The best art of Logick is to reason E converso out of that saying of PAVL There is no Temptation hath overtaken you but it hath overtaken others And to say thus There hath no temptation overtaken others but the same may overtake vs This will teach vs to speak charitablie and profitably of other mens infirmities 10 We may not go to see vngodlines to breed a greater detestation of it in vs for first in respect of our selues for presuming oâ— a thing not warranted it is the just judgment of God that wee should learne to fall into that sinne whereof before we were ignorant Secondly in respect of our brethren it is vnlawfull for if they be strong we offend them if they be weake we mis-lead them Thirdly in regard of Gods glorie it is vnlawfull for such should be our zeale therevnto if not having hereticall spirits by the motions of Gods spirit to speak against it yet that we should not once see such a thing 11 As natural men vse Gods creatures to stirre vp a naturall comfort so spiritual men should vse them to stir vp some spiritual comfort and to stir vp godly joyes in themselues for as Sathan seeing men of a sanguine complexion and sanctified laboureth to mix with their spirituall joy a carnall joy so seeing some of a malancholick complexion sanctified to haue spirituall sorrowes hee striveth to bring vpon them carnall sorrowes 12 If you desire to heare the worde with profit obserue these things before you go to the Church humble your selfe in praier to God that hee may prepare your vnderstanding affection and memorie to receiue and that the Preacher may speake to your conscience 13 After in hearing with some short praier apply the severall thretnings promises and instructions to your owne estate when you are come home from hearing change all that you remember into a praier and desire God that you may remember it most when you shuld practise it and vse to teach others and to conferre of all things remembred It is a good thing to remember a thing diligently and the reason of it 14 Let vs not complaine of the want of Discipline but be thankful for the discipline we haue it is the Lords wil even in this want of Discipline to advance his owne glory in taking that to himselfe which otherwise we would attribute to Discipline for besides that he doth that by his word and praier which may bee done by Discipline it may be discipline wold hide many hypocrites which now are discovered and cover many christian true hearts which now are knowne for they that are godly nowe are godly of a conscience being a discipline to themselues but many may seeme godly in discipline which doe it of feare and not of loue 15 No trouble shoulde hinder vs in our calling vnlesse it be in cace of meare vngodlines for if for every troble or for many troubles a man may forsake his calling he should be out of any calling forasmuch as every calling hath his lettes and troubles 16 Though all exercises of pure Religion purelie vsed doe strengthen judgment and whet vp affection yet reading hearing and conferring do most strengthen judgment and in part whet on affection But praying singing and meditation do most chiefly whet vp affection but in part strengthen judgment and vnderstanding 17 As a loving husband will not take away his loue from his wife for some particular wants so long as shee keepeth her loue wholly and truly vnto him So the Lord will not cast off his loving kindnes to vs for speciall wants or frailtie in particular commandements so long as we generally labour to please him 18 One being