doctrine Have not you turned round as wheels with the times and places where you lived Have not you been up and down now of this mind then of that embracing and following those opinions and ways which the times have smiled upon Have not you been whirld about by the times as chaff by the wind Have not you been wavering Jam 1 6. as a wave of the Sea which is never standing still if there be any wind stirring Have not some of you been carried quite round about the Card and Compass as the Clouds of the Aire are from one quarter of the Heaven to another Hebr 13.9 Have not you been thus carried about with divers and strange Doctrines with Doctrines differing from the truth and strange to the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament Are not you yet unestablished yea are not you careless in seeking after establishment Are not you stil even indifferent whether you pray to God to establish you as David did yea or no Whether you enjoy the Sacrament of the Lords Supper that heart-establishing Ordinance duly administred yea or no Whether you continue fellowship with established Christians yea or no Do not you still stagger at the promises of God viz. that God will be a Sun and a Shield and no good thing will be with-hold from them that walk uprightly that Babylon is fallen is fallen i. e. shall as certainly fall and that utterly as if she were so fallen already that there shall be a resurrection of the dry bones c Do not you stil dispute the promises in your thoughts Do not you stil doubt whether God will be as good as his word and that because of the difficultie that lie in the way All staggering at the promises of God is from unbelief Rom 4 20 Brinsley c. p 98 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief Is not this also a matter of just and deep Lamentation to see so many Professors some of which were formerly looked upon as sober and stayed Christians now reeling and staggering like drunken Men to and fro carried this way and that way as the wind blows should any of you whilst your selves stand safe upon the shore see others though strangers much more if friends tossed upon the waves among rocks and quick sands ready to perish every moment might it not be presumed that it would affect the flintieâ— heart among you and can you see the souls of your brethren and sisters thus tossed to and fro without any trouble to your own souls But alas who stands fast and safe upon the shoar Are not all your hearts unsetled And what will yee not pity your own unstable souls Is it nothing to you to be under Reubens reproach Gen 49. 4 Jam 1 8 Vnstable as water thou shalt not excel A double minded Man is unstable in all his ways Are not you in danger of being utterly ruined in this hour of temptation that is come upon all the World Col. 2.8 Ne sit qui vos depraedetur Beza in loc mar 3 5 to try them that dwell upon the Earth Are not you in danger of being spoyled of being made a prey O! your unbelieving staggerings grieve the heart of your Lord. The Holy Ghost speaking of the unbelieving Jews tells us Jesus was grieved for the hardness of their hearts And shall they not grieve your hearts It is a wonder that God hath spared you so long O faithless and perverse Generation How long shall I be with you How long shall I suffer you O! sin no more in this kind O that henceforth yee be no more children tessed to and fro and carried about with every wind of Doctrine Eph. 4.14 Brinsley c. 206 c. Hebr. 13.9 1 Thes 1.5 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Col. 2.2 by the sleight of men and cunning craftiness whereby they lye in wait to deceive O! Be not carried about with divers and strange Doctrines for it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace Be restless till the Word come unto you in much assurance Be restless till you have attained unto all the riches of the full assurance of understanding to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God c. Seek heart-establishment from God for yourselves and others as Peter doth Now the God of all grace c. make you perfect 1 Peter 5 10â— Psa 51.12 stablish strengthen you And David Stablish me with thy free Spirit Neglect neither the Word nor Sacrament administred after the right order O! Hebr. 10.25 Forsake not the assembling of your selves together as the manner of some is Trees stand sâ—â—er in the Wood or Grove where they have company than in the Field where they stand alone 4. Resting in a Dead Faith Hath not this been your sin Against resting in a Dead Faith Manton on Jam. 2.17 Have not you satisfied your selves with a Faith that is but the carkass of saving believing The Apostle in making mention of a dead faith alludeth to a corps or a dead plant which have only an outward similitude and likeness to those which are living Saving belief is an assent wrought in the Soul by the sanctifying Spirit and built upon a Divine Testimony But is not our belief the effect of natural reason White 's Directions p. 91 92 c. 1 John 5 1 further enlightned at most by the assistance of the Spirit Do not we remain unsanctified notwithstanding our believing Whosoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God Have we any further assurance of what we believe than that which Reason suggests Were ever the things believed evident to any spiritual sense within us Faith is the evidence of things not seen Hebr 11 1 Is not our belief grounded only upon an humane testimony We call that a Divine Testimony White c p. 95 96 c. saith one of the Western Worthies which is given by the Spirit of God to that Spirit which is within a regenerate person For saith he unto any testimony two things are required First The manifesting and presenting that which is to be credited or believed Secondly An ability in him to whom it is witnessed to understand it otherwise the proposing any thing by discourse to a beaâ— that wants reason to understand speech or the relating of any thing to a man that hath reason in the Greek tongue who understands no language but English is no testimony no more than it is to a deaf man that cannot hear Wherefore to make a Divine testimony there must be both Gods testifying unto man and also a mind in him able to understand that Revelation First The Spirit of God must reveal and manifest unto a man that Truth that is to be believed as the light discovers any visible object Next There must be in that man a light planted in his heart which the Apostle calls 1 Jo 5 20 An understanding to know him that is
getting Assurance Against want of Assurance which is called by some Divines Sensus Fidei the feeling or perceiving of Faith by others Flos Fidei the very lustre and eminency of Faith When God requires all the Act of Faith he doth not only require that we know him and believe him and consent to have him and relye upon him but he requires that we know that we do so It is true Assurance is not such a duty as concerns all men at all times and immediately it concerns only some and those in an order and mediately Though therefore it is not the sin of Vnbelievers not to know that God is their God for that cannot be known by them such are not bound immediately to be perswaded of an interest in God unless we will say that they are bound to be perswaded of a lye God being the God of Believers only yet it is the 〈◊〉 of Believers â—ickman's discourse concerning the spirits â—ealing up believers page 76 77. to let their interest in God to hang hovering and in dispute It must be confess'd that Gods not evidencing the direct Acts of Faith unto Believers is not their sin for God may refuse to evidence them out of Soveraignty or for the meer tryâ—l and exercise of grace and nor for the Believers sins but yet for a Believer to be regardless of getting Assurance is his sin yea if God refuse for any long time to evidence the direct Acts of Faith he may thank some sin or other He that bids us Work out your salvation and make your calling and election sure would not so let us be at uncertainties concerning our selves did not we sleight some Ordinance or omit some Duty or give way to some Lust And is not this your sin still Do not you still want that feeling or perceiving of Faith which is not meerly humane and subject to falshood and delusions but from Gods Spirit perswading the Soul that it doth know believe consent to and crust in God and therefore infallible for the Spirit can no more inwardly pâ—rswade a soul of then he can externally bear witness to any thing that is false It is a good rule laid down by a late worthy in our Israel Burges's Resâ—nings c. Part 1. fol. 20 21. 〈◊〉 in all the Acts of Faith whether they be direct or reflect the firmness and certainty doth more depend upon Gods spirit confirming us then upon the clearness of the Arguments But which of us can say that we know infallibly we are believers from Gods spirit perswading us of the truth of our faith It is true no Man hath such perfection of degrees of assurance in an ordinary way Doâ—little in Morning Exercise at Criple gate â—â—â—m 12. p. 3 â— 307. as that one degree more cannot be added to the former and yet as one well reasoneth there is not any repugnancy in asserting an infallible assurance and denying a perfect assurance for I infallibly know that there is a God and that this God is good and just and yet I have not a perfect knowledge of a Deity or of his goodnes and justice for in this life we know but in part Is not your want of assurance that God is your God evidenced still in your Not being â—et above the tormenting fear of death not yet despising the perishing viâ—ities of this World not yet slighting the censures of the ungodly Hickman in supra p. 135 to page 155. remaining still without an holy boldness in prayer not yet taking comfort in Word and Sacraments not yet abounding in praise and thanks giving not yet kindly mourning for your sins nor watching against them and not yet disregarding cavils against the Truth Is not God contending with you upon thiâ— account God hath often called upon you in the Ministry of the Word to give all diligence to make sâ—â—e thâ—â— you are believers and that God is your God upon your saith in him but though God hath spoken in your prosperity you have not heard Jer. 〈…〉 And is not he â—â—ing his Rod to make way for his Word to enter into your hearts Is not he depâ—iving you of all your outward delights Causing all your desirable things to perish at his rebuke that they may not hinder you any longer from making suâ—e what cannot be taken away from you that your hearts may not be taken up any longer with other enjoyments and thereupon want either time or will to pursue the one thing necessary Are not the Childs Babies taken away to make it learn its Lesson Hath not God made a Thorn to grow up with every Flower the Star Wormwood to fall into every estate you are in that you may yet at length say it is not good to be so busie to secure these bitter-sweets and careless of securing an interest in the unmixed chief good Is not God bringing you into life-threatning dangers that you might not only hear with the hearing of the ear but see with your eyes the necessity of having your interest in God cleared up unto your souls 2 Carelesness of preserving assurance Against carelesness to keep Assurance Non minor est virtus quam quaerere paâ—ta â—ueri when gotten It was your duty to be as carefull to keep as to gain assurance When you had gained assurance you should have remembred that you took God to be your God to rule you and make you happy in the enjoyment of himself not to make you rich and great in this World and that therefore Gods people being in the hands of the Midiamites will not evidence that the Lord is not with them Judg. 6.13 Hâ—â—â—bman c. p. 183. to 193. Dâ—ut 26 10 11. though Gideon say If the Lord be with us why then is all this befallen us You should have remembred that sincere not perfect faith in God interests souls in him and that therefore frailties and infirmities do not dissolve the union you should have been very thankfull for the first fruits of the Heavenly Canaan Psal 85. 8. Eccl. 5. 4 5 6. you should have been very careful not to return unto folly you should not have deferd to pay your vows unto God yea you should have brought forth such fruit after assurance as you either did not or could not before assurance But have not you been careless of discharging your duty herein Have not you forgotten the termes of the Covenant you have entred into with God Have not you been unthankful even for an Heaven upon Earth Have not you been guilty of wilful Relapses Have not you refused or delayed to pay your vows Have not you done as little for God as you might have done had the light of his countenance been never lifted up upon your souls And is not God therefore angry with you Is not he greatly displeased with you That is his meaning when he saith he hath no pleasure in such fools Mat. 13.12 Hath not he taken away what you
out and roaring How can they do other whose wounds stink and are corrupt whose sores run all the night long But they must not spend all their time in roaring but get the broken bones set and make use of them so shall they recover strength and rejoyce Fifthly Take heed of neglecting any longer any one means of Gods appointment either for the getting or keeping Hickman c. page 167. to page 173. or recovering of Assurance The neglect of any one as one well observes may provoke God to reject your attendances on him in the other 't is also uncertain in which God will manifest himself and evidence to you the truth of your Faith in him Sometimes he doth it in prayer sometime in the reading or hearing of the Word of God sometimes in religious holy conference sometimes in receiving the Sacrament of the Lords Supper sometimes in singing of Psalms Sixthly Take heed of remaining any longer lazie and slothfulâ—n the use of the means O! 2 Pet. 1.10 yet at length give diligence to make your calling sure Culverwell's VVhite Stone page 150 c. 157 c. i. e. your effectual calling that your faith in God is a full answer thereunto Assurance both requires and deserves all diligence Such is the darkness deceitfulness and inconstancy of the heart such is the malice policy and diligence of Satan to improve it of so much consequence is this business and so dangerous is it to be deceived herein that all diligence is little enough So satisfactory also is this assurance that no labour will be grudg'd by those that do believe it Antipharmacum c. page 41. See many more pathetical considerations to humble for laziness and to stir up to diligence herein in Morn Exer. at Criple-gate page 141.315 316. Iisdem alitur quibus dignitur O! the rather now give all diligence to put your faith in God out of doubt because a Day of great trouble is approaching yea already begun What have you beside this to oppose to all your troubles here When it comes to resisting to blood and giving up all can you fadge with such work while your spirits are dubious cloudy in this point O my friends Believe it 't is nothing but this that can make a Saint tryumph glory in abasures tribulations And little do you imagine how insupportable troubles are when the spirit is low and dubious in point of interest In particular Take heed of being lazie or any other ways miscarrying in self examination Assurance consists in a ressex Act and by such workings it is gotten maintained and recovered The main reason why some never had Assurance why others do not keep assurance and why others do not recover assurance is because they are not often enough nor diligent enough in reflecting upon the deift course of their hearts lives they do not often enough rightly throughly compare themselves with the sure marks of true faith in God laid down in the Word of God Many will take some little pains to â—inde out the marks of true faith in God and some little time they will spend in comparing their hearts with those marks but they will not continue diligent in this great duty of self-examination till the matter be brought to some issue they will not behold their faces in the Glass long enough to beget in themselves a true notion or Idea of themselves but go away and presently forget what manner of persons they were But let it not be so with you any more Do you make it your business to go through with this work and therefore take heed of being mistaken as to what faith in God and what assurance of faith is Neither make more Hickman c. page 120 121 122. nor fewer essentials of faith in God neither more nor less necessary to interest in God than God hath made Expect not ordinarily to have assurance of faith wrought preserved or recovered by some vocal or as it were vocal testimony of the spirit or as soon as you be assured to be void of all fears and filled with all joy in believing Set not about this work unseasonably but when you finde your hearts in the most serious and quiet frame He that will see his Face in a Glass must be fixed and not in motion Be still Psal 4.4 and so commune with your own hearts When you are full of dark and black temptations you are in a mist and not able to see things aright The muddied Water is not fit to give the true shape of the Face Hearken not to what carnal reason and Satan say for or against your interest in God Before faith in God T. Goodwin's child of light c. page 26.27 28. caâ—â—al reason and Satan use their utmost strength to perswade Souls of the goodness of their condition without Faith thereby to prevent the entrance of Faith and their seeking after it at all as not needfull to interest them in God After saith in God is wrought Hickman c. page 127 128 129. and erected upon the ruines of all Satans strong holds and the Souls carnal reasonings Satan and carnal reason in revenge of such an overthrow muster up new Forces to perswade the Believer by all the Objections they can raise that it doth not believe aright that its faith is not saving Take heed therefore of self-love and sinful jealousie and prejudice upon either account when you set about this work As self-love and self-flattery bribreth and setteth carnal reason to plead for the interest of Unbelievers in God so when once faith is wrought sinfull jealousie doth edge and sharpen the wit of carnal reason to argue and rangle against the work of Faith and all such Objections as carnal reason doth finde out against it are pleasing to this corrupt principle when you try your selves Burges's Refinings part 1 page 57 58. you will but deceive your selves if you do not cast out these two cursed corrupt Principles out of your souls if your hearts be prepossest with either your judgments will be blinded and become partial in passing sentence upon your estate Take heed of trying your selves by false marks of faith in God of weighing with false weights Hereby you may miscarry both on the right hand and on the left on the right hand if you try your selves by marks of perfect faith in God on the left hand if you try your selves by such things as are not indeed Scripture-marks of true faith in God for as God is the Principium essendi the beginning or cause of the being of any grace so Gods Word is the Principium cognoscendi the Principle by which we know what is true grace I cannot but mind you of three Rules of Direction Ob. Sedgw. of Faith chap. 13. sect 1. which a worthy now with God hath left you in this case 1 There are some things without which faith cannot be in the heart and yet