Vision which no mortal Eye ever was Spectator of but shall not be excluded if it don't obscurely lose it self on Inferiour Objects here Below No Ear did ever audibly hear its true Description but may be admitted to the divine Harmony and heavenly Halleluja's of it if it incline not to the Syrenical Charms of Sin and the bewitching Musick of sordid Carnality III. 'T is a Vision whose bright Idea cannot be delineated by the most elevating and contemplative Speculations of any Metaphysical Brain though never so Angelical 'T is not a sublime Fancy but true Sanctity that can reach it The Divine Apostolical Geographer St. Paul though lately there could not exactly give us a Description of it and Sacred Scripture divinly characters it out but in Parables and Simitudes to demonstrate how infinitely transcendent is that Glory which is so unexpressible and beyond all comprehension Were all the Pearls Rubies Saphires and Diamonds the Earth produces muster'd to a Splendour they would not equallize the diminitivest Glance of the radient Beams of Sol's bright Eye and yet that magnificent Luminary surrounded with so many attending Constellations that derive their Lustre from him is but a Spark to his shining Countenance VI. WHO then would offer up that Part an Oblation to the World which might be render'd the Instrument of so much Felicity and suffer the Profuseness of his wanton Blood to revel there where sublimer Passions and Flames should triumph He that would be an Inhabitant among the Spirits of the Just must discipline his own to the same Uniformity and convert his Body to a Temple where his Heart must be both Altar and Sacrifice or rather an Emblem of the Sanctum Sanctorum for those excellent Graces of the Spirit to inhabit in V. THE stately Mansion-House of Life must be converted into a Mansion of Divine Love and the magnificent Palace of Heroick Spirits into a Royal Court of peculiar Graces and then that Part which as Natural Philosophors observe which lives first and dies last shall become purely Vital and not be liable to Mortality Nothing but a thrice Glorious Trinity can satiate this Triangle which must be shaped to the purest Figure and taught in all its Pulses to palpitate nothing but Heaven and Eternity VI. OUR Bosoms must be converted to Closets of Devotion and our Hearts to Cabinets of immaculate Innocency and fervent Prayer embellish'd with that sparkling Diamond a lively Faith the Lamp at which all our minor Graces as Tapers light themselves and like Stars borrow their Lustre from this Luminary 'T is not a Heart that can chime to the airy Sound of any tinkling Religion and pretends a Sanctity fix'd in its Countenance that makes Affectation his Conscience and Moroseness of Humour Tenderness of Spirit VII NO 't is a Heart adorn'd with the White Robe of Humility crown'd with the Diadem of Love fumigated by Prayers the odoriferous Scent of Chastity and the Fragrancies of a Life of Sanctity that couches it self within the embracing Arms of our Saviour's Spouse and stiles himself a Mourner in her Persecutions that looks upon the VVorld as the Enemy of its Glory and had rather embrace Mortality than prove a Rebel against Heaven 'T is such a Celestial Heart that must be a Preparative for this transcendant Vision and happy is he that arrives to that Purity VIII Fortifie us therefore O Lord against the Pomps and Vanities of this wicked VVorld and elevate our Thoughts to the sublime Contemplations of Thy Glory Level in us every arrogant Thought that dares exalt it self against the Potency and Purity of Thy Law and sanctifie us for Thy Self and Service that the Practick Part of a Life of Sanctity may be our chiefest Employment that when we are summoned to depart hence we may be accepted of Thee and being fled from the Eye of this Lower Orb we may take a Prospect of Thy Heavenly Palace of what neither Eye hath seen Ear heard nor Heart can conceive the Glory Thou wilt impart in the Fruition of Thy Self MED XXII Against Covetousness Heb. xiii 7. Let your conversation be be without covetousness COVETOUSNESS is the Root of all Malignity and he that is a Slave to Riches his Mind is always indigent he is tugging continually at the Oar and accumulates worldly Dross but as the Psalmist says he knoweth not who shall gather it Psal. 39. 6. And as he is impoverished in his Mind so he is miserable in his Station for Bounty and Goodness are Strangers to himself and others and Charity with him is so frozen that the Poor instead of recompenceing him with their Prayers are more ready to attend him with their Imprecations Fix not thy Trust in uncertain Riches but place thy Mind on what is certain 'T is certain the Hour of Death will come and then what will all thy Wealth avail thee They cannot assist thee in a true Repentance nor plead thy Cause in the Court of Heaven They cannot procure thee an easie Passage hence nor give thee Assurance of Eternal Happiness II. THEREFORE lay aside this bitter Root and graft new Plants of Liberality and Charity Make haste with speed and undertake this Task lest thou offend the Almighty and endanger thy own Soul The covetous Person must needs allow this Maxim That he lives without God in the World And our Saviour informs us we cannot serve God and Mammon Luk. 16. 13. For he that wholly sets his Heart upon transitory Treasure must of necessity unfix it from God and Eternal Glory and is uncapable of performing that Duty which is required by the Almighty III. SEE with what eagerness the Covetous pursues Riches and is greedy as a Lion after his Prey All Opportunities of Gain are readily embraced Prayer and all Religious Duties are laid aside to accomplish and attend it So prone is frail Mortality to this Sin that he leaves nothing unattempted to answer his sordid Avarice nay it is often apparent that Unlawfulness and Fraudulency is used by the Covetous to that degree that many Families have suffered Destruction though it were to the utter Ruine of the Souls and Bodies of the Misers themselves And now what can these Men expect for the Cruelties they transact but to be excluded from Happiness and to receive that Reward of not inheriting the Kingdom of God 1 Cor. 6. 10. IV. THEY which hoard up Terrestrial Treasures resemble those that place their Fruits in low and moist places not considering they are incident to Putrefaction Oh how infatuated are they then which indulge themselves to that which is liable to Corruption For how can that which is Temporal satisfie the Soul which is Eternal The Animate Part comprehends all Corporal Things by virtue of its Spiritual Nature that it cannot be distended and filled by any Quantity All things the higher they soar towards Heaven the less they cark and care to hoard up This may be attested by the Fowls of the Air which neither sow nor reap Mat. 6. 26.
Thy Heavenly Kingdom Amen MED XX. Of Chastity Rom. xii 1. I beseech you therefore brethren by the mercies of God that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice holy acceptable unto God which is your reasonable service HE that would be entertain'd a Disciple of Christ must wear his Livery of Sanctity and Chastity For God is a Spirit of that infinite Purity and Chastity that no unclean thing must presume to approach his Presence It was the Opinion and Saying of a wise Person That the Chastity of the Body and the Sanctity of the Soul are the two Keys of Religion and Felicity Now if the Body be not preserved pure and immaculare from all Sordidness the Soul cannot be ardent in Supplication Our Bodies are the Temples of the Holy Ghost 1 Cor. 6. 19. And therefore we must be very vigilant and sollicitous that we defile not this Body which is the Habitacle of so great a Comforter II. OUR Members are the Members of Christ Let us not then make 'em the Members of an Harlot but let us cleave unto the Lord with Fidelity and Continency that we may be one Spirit with him and be pure as he even is pure The swinish Sodomites were smitten with Spiritual and Corporal Blindness and their burning Lust was punish'd with an Element proper to their crying Sins and the Almighty will inflict the same Punishment on all obscene and incontinent Persons with a Fire not to be extinguished For the smoak of the torments ascendeth up for ever Rev. 14. 11. Nature hath taught us not to be guilty in the Eye of the World and shall not the Checks of our own Consciences impede us from committing Enormities iu the Eye of Heaven III. DENS Caves nor Corners can exclude ns from the Divine Omnipotence All Hearts are open to his Omnisciency all Desires are known and from him no Secrets can be concealed His Omnipresence is of that potency that the Voice within us upon the Grand Inquest will bear Testimony against us and our own Enormities being empannell'd will condemn us upon the Verity of the Verdict And who would not relinquish this momentary sensual Pleasure to evade everlasting Burnings If the Smoke of that concupiscible Fire ascends up to the Nostrils of the Almighty nothing can purge the Odiousness of it but infernal Flames IV. OH let then the Remembrance of a Crucified Saviour crucifie in thee all inordinate Affections and the Thoughts of a tormenting Hell quench in thee all the fiery Darts of the Wicked Let Fountains of Tears spring from a sincere Repentance extinguish in thee this conflagrating Carnality and let the fear and dread of the Almighty mortifie that concupiscible Enemy that the Allurements of it may not delude thee Consider with thy self the ill Consequents which are its Concomitants it is full of Anxiety and Folly Abomination and Ignominy and without Repentance must partake of everlasting Punishment V. LOOK not on the fawning outside of this Temptation but flie from it as you would from a Serpent Check the first Motions of it for if you once fall to reason aud article with it it will prove like the Element of Fire if not quench'd in due time grow too great to be conquer'd Next flie Idleness which is the native Soil for these abominable Weeds to grow in and be always employ'd in whatsoever lawful Vocation or Business God hath been pleas'd to allot thee that when the Tempter comes he may find thee fortify'd against Temptations 'T was Idleness allured David to Adultery Had he been busied as Ioseph was he had withstood the Temptation VI. THINK often of Death's Summons and that his cold Hand will one day chill that Blood which was so apt to be inflam'd and then tell me whether Mortification is not more suitable to Death-bed Thoughts than Sordidness and Obscenity Be frequent in Prayer and bring the Unclean Spirit to Christ that he may cast him out And to your Prayer add Fasting for this Kind goeth not forth but by Prayer and Fasting And indeed Temperance is a great Antidote against this Sin of Sodom for many times our Tables become a Snare to us for in pleasing our luxurious Palate we make Provision for the Flesh to fulfil the Lusts thereof And by Epicuring of it so here what can we expect when we depart hence but the rich Glutton's Fate even to want a drop of Water to cool our Tongues VII REMEMBER thou must give an account for every idle and unprofitable word Mat. 12. 36. And how much more then will thy Account extend to obscene Speeches and sordid Actions Of what Continuance thy Life hath been while brought to a Period and what multiplicity of Sins soever thou hast committed thy Accusers and Accusations will be equivalent Then those secret Thoughts which thou never resented'st will apparently prove thee obnoxious before the great Tribunal From thence thou can'st not flie nor deceive the Omnipotence with vain Excuses neither can'st thou appeal from that Sentence which will be pronounced against thee for there will be Verity in the Inquisition and Severity in the Execution VIII THEREFORE whil'st thou art on this side the Grave endeavour to adorn thy Immortal Part with the fragrant Rose of Charity the dulcified Violet of Humility and the innocent Lilly of Chastity When thou enter'st the List to conquer this formidable lustful Enemy if the Fight seem difficult animate thy self with this Assurance That the Conquest will be Glorious Thou must vanquish it as thou would'st a sturdy Beggar give it a positive Answer and it is vanish'd but shew it Encouragement and it will prove like the Snake in the Fable when warm by the Fire to fall a hissing If thou would'st not have this Enemy to rule over thee entertain it not in the least corner of thy Heart but earnestly beseech God to keep thee in Sanctity of Life and Chastity of Body MED XXI Of Purity of Heart Mat. v. 8. Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God IF Innocency be the Robe of Heaven who then would not diligently strive to be adorn'd with Purity It is no wonder the Kingly Prophet was so importunate for a clean Heart and a right Spirit If this be the Recompence of true Sanctity who would neglect Religious Duties Beatifical Spirits What Felicity and Purity do ye enjoy that behold the glorious Face of your Heavenly Creator Who would not indefatigably be industrious to imitate your Seraphick Example here that he might resemble you in your happy Station and possess Eternal Joys such as the Heart in all his Divine Raptures never knew Shall the imposterous and perfidious Vanities of this Transitory World allure our Hearts and divest us of the Hopes of this Celestial Glory the Fruition of this splendid Vision II. A Magnified Vision in Comparison whereof the Regalities of this Lower Orb the Trophies and dazling Splendors of the Optick Nerves and the Lustre of the whole Universe is not worth the gazing at A
divers Gestures and Expressions which are not requisite or necessary for any but God and the Soul to be privy to Now what Place soever you find to be necessary for this important Duty be sollicitous to make choiee of II. As for the Time the best Opportunity is in the Morning for the First Fruits of the Day being Holy all the rest are Sanctified Moreover our Thoughts being then not polluted with worldly Affairs they are not so liable to distraction and the Body it self is more serene than after Meals and this Duty requires a vacuity in the Stomach not only because the Head will be more perspicuous and apt for Meditation but also because many Passages of Meditation require so much Attention of the Mind and Fervency of Affection that they do hinder Digestion And this Duty being performed in the Morning it will have an influence upon the whole Day But this Rule is not universal for we read that Isaac went forth in the Evening to medirate Gen. 24. 63. And if the Subject of your Meditation be a Sermon then perhaps the properest time is immediately after the hearing of it before your Affections cool or your Memory fail you III. FOR the Duration considering the Parts of Meditation are so many as Preparation Considerations Affections Resolutions and the like And not one of these are to be past slightly over for Affections are not quickly raised nor are we to cease blowing the fire if it flame until it be well kindled Half an Hour may be reckon'd to be the least for Beginners and an Hour for those that are Proficients in this Duty IV. But in this Particular there is Two Rules especially to be observed First That as we ought not to desist from our Prayers before that temper and frame or heart is wrought which is suitable to the Requests of our Petitions so we should not desist in our Confession of Sin till our Hearts are truly sensible and humbled for Sin neither should we slacken our Praises until our Hearts are filled with holy Admirings and inflamed with the Love of the Almighty Now the End of Meditation are Affections and Resolutions therefore we should not desist till those are effected V. SO in Private Prayer when we find our Hearts enlarged by the Effusion of the Spirit of Supplication upon us we are not to desist unless by our persisting in that Duty we omit another to which we are more particularly obliged at that juncture so in Meditation when we perceive the Heart affected we are to continue it But this Caution must be observ'd That in our Enlargements we must not continue them longer than while they flow freely without much Straining and Compulsion for Honey which comes freely from the Comb is pure but forced by Heat and Pressure is not so well relish'd Now if the Heart is dead we must use our utmost diligence to awaken it and when once our Hearts are inflamed and enlarged by holy Affections in an extraordinary manner 't is but an impediment to our Affections to return to the Meditation of those Points that raised them SECT IV. Of the Subject and Method of Meditation FIRST Avoid Controversie for that will convert Meditation into Study and nice Speculations for they are sapless without Nutriment besides being so light they fluctuate in the Brain and want ponderosity to sink them down into the Heart and inddeed were they admitted they are so insignificant as the Heart by its reception could acquire no Affectation But let the Subject of your Meditation be the plainest powerfullest and usefullest Verities of the Almighty as Death Iudgment Hell and Heaven the Mercies of God our own Sins and the Love and Sufferings of a crucified Saviour Contemplate on that which is most suitable to your Spiritual Wants as in the time of Desertion meditate most of the Love and Mercies of God and thy own Unworthiness c. II. NOW the Rules for Meditation are these Three 1st Preparatory 2dly For the Body of the Duty And 3dly The Conclusion In our Duty of Preparation besides the choice of the Subject we are to be convinced and affected with the Presence of the Deity and to use fervent Prayer for the Divine Assistance Secondly For the Body of Meditation it consists of Three Parts The First is Consideration which is the convincing our Hearts of several Verities appertaining to that Subject whereof we meditate III. IF the Subject of our Meditation be Death the Considerations may run thus Alas O my Immmortal Soul the Manner Time and Place where we shall expire we are ignoraut of generally Mens Lives come to a period sooner than they expect and certain it is whensoever that Hour or Minute approaches we must bid adieu to Honours Pleasures Riches Friends and at last our own frail Bodies c. The Second Part is Affections whether it be Love of God Christ or Spiritual Things despising of the World admiring of the Omnipotency or any other Spiritual Affection The Third Part are Resolutions to perform that which is agreeable to God's Command and to desist from all manner of Evil. IV. NOW that this is the most proper and genuine way of Meditation evidently appears First Because it is not Artificial and such as requires Learning as those Instructions are which advise us to consider the Efficient Final Formal Material Cause of Defunction with the Adjuncts Concomitants and Concatenations c. which though they perhaps may please the Learned yet such difficult words astonish the Ignorant Now this is the Method by which every one that is brought home to God is converted V. AND the first thing in Coversion is our being convinced of some Truths which Conviction raiseth Affections For if the Verities of the Divine Omnipotence end in Conviction and go no further nay if they end in Aflections only and never arrive to Resolutions of shunning Evil and performing of Good Conversion can never be perfected As for Example One is convinced that he is a miserable undone Wretch by reason of Original and Actual Abomination Upon this Conviction Fear and Sorrow are excited yet if these do not operate in us a fixed Resolution of forsaking those Sins we are yet in our Sins and unconverted Thirdly There are several things for the concluding of Meditation which I shall treat of in its proper order SECT V. Of being affected with the Divine Presence WE are to consider God is present in all places as really and Essentially as he is in Heaven For Omnipotency did not create Heaven for his Confinement but to manifest his Glory for the Heaven of Heavens are not able to contain him neither is the Almighty included by nor excluded from any place And though Iacob said Surely the Lord was in this place and I knew it not Gen. 28. 16. yet we must not imagine that Iacob was ignorant of the Verity of it but did not actually consider it but the the Psalmist in the 139th Psalm is perspicuous in explaining and
that it is a Burthen but a Mercy and Privilege that Omnipotence hath necessitated and commanded thee always to extract Strength from Him SECT VII Of Consideration FIRST Our Considerations must be plain not intricate and abstruse for the main Scope of Meditation being the affecting of our Heart and reforming of our Lives Next they must be certain and evident not controversial and dubious for the Effect of Meditation is not peculiarly to encrease our Knowledge but to improve it Neither let Considerations be curious and nice Speculations Neither make choise of those Books to assist thee in this Duty which are embellish'd with Rhetorical and Eloquent Expressions which appear in the eye of the World to be witty but are indeed very empty for Verity indeed is many times lost in those Allurements and entangles the Mind by disingaging of it from serious Consideration As many Dishes become unsavoury by having too much Cost bestowed and so lose their Vertue before they reach the Stomach II. THE Bee fixes not upon the freshest coloured Rose or fragrant's Smell but on the Herb Thime which is of slender beauty Besides Eloquence in this Duty may please some Persons as Pictures in Books please Children who while they gaze upon them neglect their Learning even so while we are affected with Elegancy of Speech we stray from the performance of conveying the Verity of what we ponder of to our Hearts As in the Disease of the Bladder the skilful Physician to perform a Cure administers those Remedies which may soonest reach the Part affected for if they meet with any Obstruction they lose their vertue and are insignificant so if our Understanding should explicate the Eloquence or search out the Meaning or Certainty of the Verity it considers any long season the Heart will prove cool and unaffected and be under the same Circumstance with those Musicianers that were to play ther Consort before a great Emperour but were so long a Tuning their Instruments that he would not stay to hear ' em III. THE next Rule is If any doubt ariseth upon an evident Truth in which the Devil is apt to cast in Scruples then act as the Arch-Angel did with him enter the Lists and perhaps when you have examined the Matter the Cloud may vanish and the Sun shine in its full Meridian by which resistance Satan will take flight but if he still persist and your Blasphemies are not removed then dispute no more but use the Arch-Angel's words The Lord rebuke thee Satan To this purpose 't is requisite to be well grounded in the Verity of God's Word which is the Sword of the Spirit by which our Saviour silenced Satan in all his Temptations We must not dispute with that Enemy by Humane Reason but we must put on the whole Armour of God if we will be able to stand in the Day of Temptation and when all is done to stand IV. OUR next Rule is Not to over-multiply our Considerations but when by considering the Truths of God we find our Hearts ardently affected then we are to make a Progression But this Caution is observable That when we find our Hearts never so little affected we must desist in our Considerations The Bee will not leave the Flower while any Honey is to be extracted And it is a Temptation which Christians ought to take notice of That Satan is ready to make us hastily pass over Duties before we have extracted half the strength of 'em For when we are confessing our Sins and our Hearts begin in the least measure to be humbled they are often filled with such Joy as may be suspected to proceed from him or our corrupted Hearts V. CORN when it springs too fast and grows rank the Husbandman cuts it down A Corrosive applied to eat dead Flesh must not be removed when it begins to smart And Wheat in stony Ground soonest springs up Our Considerations must take deep root and not entertain Affections and Resolutions when the Heart has newly received any Impression But this we must remember that if our Affections be much inflam'd when we begin our Considerations we are to yield to the Inspirations of God and be guided by it for this Method here proposed is not to limit the extraordinary Operations of God's Spirit but if our Hearts be only a little excited we must not leave blowing the fire so soon as it begins to kindle for green Wood will suddenly extinguish unless it be throughly kindled SECT VIII Affections and Resolutions WITHOUT Knowledge we cannot consider and Consideration raises Affections and Affections produces Resolutions and the Effect of Resolution is Action and a through Reformation of our Lives and Manners Now our Affections may vary according to the Subject of our Meditation for sometimes we admire the Goodness Majesty and Wisdom of the Almighty another time we are amazed at our own Folly and Madness in living so contrary to our own Principles and that those sacred Truths revealed in God's Word which we might improve to our Eternal Salvation should be laid by as useless as if one should have in his possession an excellent and effectual Receipt for the Stone and yet lock it up and make no use of it II. SOMETIMES we despise the World and with Iob abhorr our selves in Dust and Ashes sometimes we affect Sorrow Joy Love Fear c. of which we may be furnish'd out of the Book of Psalms which were indeed but David's Meditations though not in this Method Now when our Affections are much excited we may make a progress to Resolution III. NOW your Resolutions must be fixed not vain and frivolous but serious and resolved Purposes Say not with thy self I am assured the Wrath of God comes upon the Children of Disobedience and I must embrace Hell or forsake taking of the Name of God in vain the Offence is great which I commit in Swearing and I could heartily wish I could omit it but instead of this argue thus with thy self I am solemnly resolv'd by the Blessing of the Almighty to forsake all Sin especially what I am most guilty of for God will not be mocked neither must I give a faint denial to Sin IV. WHATEVER thy Resolutions are put them presently in practise and drive them not off to futurity Art thou addicted to Drinking Do not resolve and say This Sin I intend to forsake but for the present I am engag'd to meet Company where I must appear sociable but that being finish'd I design to prosecute my Resolution This is one of Satan's Devices and is cast in thy way as a Stumbling-block which if not removed will prove pernicious V. NEXT Let not thy Resolutions be only against Sin but against the Temptations and Allurements to it Solomon doth not say to the Adulterer Thou may'st discourse a Harlot but Be not enticed by her words to uncleanness He will not permit thee to go into her House or by her Door Prov. 5. 8. And when he disswadeth the Drunkard from
extracted Nay they may properly be called Good because they are God's Messengers and proceed from him who is the Fountain of all Goodness Moreover they lead us unto the chiefest Good even Life Everlasting Christ by his Passion entered into his Glory Luk. 24. 26. And Christians by Tribulations enter into Life Eternal Act. 14. 22. And consequently Sin is the chiefest Evil because it draws us from the chiefest Good VI. THE Sinner is accused by his Conscience which he hath defiled by his Creator whom he hath offended by the Sins he hath committed by the Creatures he hath abused and by the Devil who hath seduced him How saving then is Repentance which frees us from such Accusations Let us haste then with speed to such a soveraign Catholicon If thou deferr thy Repentance till Death thou do'st not forsake thy Sins but they forsake thee and it is very difficult to trace out an Example of sincere Repentance at the Hour of Death except that of the Thief upon the Cross. VII FOVRTEEN years have I served thee said Iacob to Laban it is time now that I should provide for my own house Gen. 31. 41. And if thou hast pursued the World and chased after the Vanities of it so many Years it is now high time to provide for thy Soul Every Day nay every Hour and Minute we accumulate Sin Oh let the Spirit every Moment wash it away with Tears of Repentance The Almighty infuses not the Oyl of Mercy but into the Vessel of a contrite Heart He first mortifies us by Contrition and then quickens us by his Spirit of Consolation He leads us into a deep abyss of Grief and brings us back by his Restraining Grace VIII Elias first heard a vehement Wind overturning Mountains and cleaving Rocks and after the Wind an Earthquake and after the Earthquake Fire 1 King 19. 11. At length there followed a still small Voice ver 12. From whence we may inferr That Terrour is the precursor of the Love of Omnipotency and Sorrow precedes Comfort God binds not up any Wounds that are laid open by Confession He Pardons and Justifies none except they Acknowledge and Condemn themselves He Comforts not unless they first Despond And this is the sincere Repentance which God by his Holy Spirit operates in us MED IV. Of Man's Salvation Tit. ii 11. For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared unto all men WHY art thou perplexed O my Soul and why art thou dubious of the Mercy of God Remember thy Creator who created thee without thy Assistance who formed thee in secret in the lower parts of the earth Psal. 139. 15. He who took care of thee before thou wer 't born Will his Providence neglect thee now thou art fashioned after his own Image To Thee the Great Creator does thy unworthy Creature address himself Though my Nature is infected by Satan and wounded by Thieves which are my sinful Corruptions yet my Creator liveth II. HE which made me can renew me He that created me without any Evil can chase all Evil from me whatsoever hath gain'd admittance by the Devil's Suggestions Adam's Prevarication or my own Actions yea though it hath over-spread my whole Substance The Almighty never hated his own Workmanship We are before him like Clay in the Hands of the Potter Had he hated me certainly he would never have created me when I was nothing He is the Saviour of all men but especially of them that believe 1 Tim. 3. 10. He created me wonderfully and redeemed me miraculously but his Love was never so highly expressed than in his Wounds and Passion III. SURELY we were indulgently belov'd for whose sakes the only begotten Son of God is sent from the Bosom of his Father Dear was the Price of our Redemption and great was the Mercy of our Redeemer To make us Rich he embraced Poverty for he had not where to lay his head Mat. 8. 20. To make us the Sons of the Most High he condescends to become Man and doth not after he had accomplish'd our Redemption neglect us but still intercedeth for us Rom. 8. 34. IV. LET my Sins Satan and all the Powers of Darkness accuse me in Jesus my Mediator will I trust who is Greater than my Accusers Let my Weakness affright me yet in his Strength will I glory For the Sufficiency of my Merit I am familiarly acquainted my Merits is not sufficient it suffices me that he is propitious against whom I have sinned and whatsoever he hath decreed not to impute will be perform'd and all Guilt with the Price of his most precious Blood shall be done away V. LET it not then perplex me that my Sins though many and of such a magnitudâ— discomfort me For were I not oppress'd and heavy laden with Sins what need I earnestly request Christ's Righteousness Had I no Distemper I had no necessity to implore the Physician 's Help but I am spiritually sick and He who is the Lord our Righteousness is both our Saviour and Physician Lord I am Sick a Sinner and Condemned and upon the Grand Inquest of my Conscience pronounce my self Guilty but have Mercy on me O my Physician my Saviour and my Righteousness MED V. The Youth's Memento Eccles. xii 6. Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth IT was both seasonable and profitable Advice and one of the elegantest and choicest Expressions in the Royal Preacher's Sermon For who is he which is now Young and Vigorous that is certain he shall live to be Old And yet that potent Voice which loudly proclaims to all the World and whose Sound will remain till Death shall be expired is scarce aucible in the Ears of thousands II. 'T IS one of this divine Chanters harmonious Lessons and yet the World thinks it too harsh a Note and is very much displeased with the Tune 'T is strange and an amazing Wonder That the Sweetest and Wisest of Preachers should have so slender a Train of Followers being his Oratory is so Rhetorical and Divine And yet it is so weighty a Text which though they shun to hear understand or read they cannot evade the seeing for the whole Universe is but a Comment on it every Creature we behold preaches this useful Doctrine which we so supinely sleep out with our Eyes open III. NATURE her self carries this Memento in her Forehead and the very Bruit Beasts in this Philosophy can reason with us And it is strange madness that Man should forget his Maker did he but remember himself But alas blooming Youth affects not to be put in mind of Heaven which he is not acquainted with 't would impair his Memory and make him think of his Prayers too often Piety will but chill his Blood Religion makes him look wither'd the Thoughts of Heaven and a Future-State will make him sager than his years requires his Blood informs him he is not yet qualified to turn Divine he may serve his Creator time enough when he is more at
with Boils and and in a naked and dejected Deformity so I may but conceal my Leopard's Spots and place a Beauty in my Soul which may invite that All-seeing Eye whose radient Beams can comfort all Mankind V. TAKE heed thou Sensualist that now revellest and riottest in the World's Theatre and counter-charms Damnation Wer 't thou but sensible of the terrible Agonies of Guilt the Horrours of a murdering Sin and the cursed Stings thy Pleasures leave behind them how speedily would'st thou list thy self in nobler Services and employ thy Time in better Thoughts Wer 't thou now to expire thy Breath how would the Guilt of an evil Life appale thee when every Sin would represent it self a Messenger of Horrour and the deluding World prove but an infernal Comforter VI. SHEW me in a Glass that Champion Conscience that will not undertake at length to conquer that frozen Soul whose Flashes will not liquefie and blast again that Atlas-Sinner whom gentle Burdens will not at last numerously depress The VVorld is unquainted with a Misery equivolent the Terrours of the unwelcom Grave are inconsiderate to it which could it but relieve the guilty Soul and its tenebrous and silent Regions promise an Immunity from future Miseries how readily would it purchase its Peace with Death and implore its keenest Dart for a swifter Passage Loss of Friends Fortune or Reputation nay Crosses which penetrate the Bone are but slight Scratches to these gaping VVounds Procure me a Schedule of the deepest Afflictions and there is none I imagine except this which is not tolerable to be dispensed with But a wounded Spirit who can bear VII O LORD how Ponderous is the Load of a VVounded Spirit How Formidable are the Stings of a Guilty Conscience and the Apprehensions of Thy Fiery VVrath And how Deplorable is he that involves himself in Sin and becomes insensible of his Guilt till the Memento of his heinous Crimes display it And when Mortality remembers him of a Future-State nothing is his Concomitant but his erroneous Life Oh Omnipotency Thou hast fixed an impartial Register in our Breasts which no fawning Practice can bribe nor Fountain of vulgar Tears silence from recollecting us of Thy Justice and yet what numbers are there whose Consciences like the great Leviathan snap in sunder the Silver Cords of thy Divine Law like Threads of Flax and are so backward from Confessing their Crimes that they are become obdurate in their Impenitence But Lord do Thou teach me as I commit Sin so inspire me with Thy Grace daily that whenever I shall approach Thy Presence I may have no other Sins to testifie against me than those which I possess which if not throughly crucified yet at least sincerely repented of with hearty Contrition MED XII Of Humility 1 Pet. v. 5. Be ye cloathed with humility for God resisteth the proud and giveth grace to the humble IF thou do'st but seriously consider the miserable State of Mankind thou wilt easily shun the Temptations of an arrogant Spirit Man the Lord of all Below though he assumes to himself that Pride of Heart yet he is Vile in his Ingress Miserable in his Progress and Lamentable in his Egress He is often assaulted and provoked by Satan's Temptations He is allured by Delights and Pleasures cast down by Tribulations entangl'd by Accusations disrobed of Vertues and ensnar'd into evil Habits and Customs Why then art thou proud O Earth and Ashes Eccles. 10. 9. VVhat wast thou in thy Conception but sinful Corruption VVhat in thy Life but a Lump of Flesh And what after Death but Food for VVorms If there be any spark of Goodness in thee it is not thy own but the Almighty's who is the only Donor of it II. THOU can'st claim nothing peculiar to thy self but Sin which accompany'd thee into the VVorld and therefore if Divine Omnipotence hath inspired into thee any measure of His heavenly Grace give Him the Glory to whom it is most due If thou wilt be Christ's Disciple observe His Doctrine Learn of me for I am meek and lowly of heart Mat. 11. 29. And he that observes this Lesson will at length attain to be a Proficient in the School of Humility Our Saviour the Pattern of Humility stiles Himself the Lilly of the Vallies Cant. 2. 1. Inferring That He is the most imbellish'd of all Flowers and springs forth not in the mountainous and lofty proud Hearts but in the low Vallies of the contrite and humble Spirits III. AND the Royal Psalmist tells ye God dwelleth on high and yet he beholdeth the things that are humble both in heaven and earth Psal. 113. 5. If we contemplate with our selves we may soon come to this result That we cannot approach unto that Great Being unless we tread in the Paths of Humility for he that appears vile in his own Eyes is valuable in the Eyes of the Almighty VVeakness and Frailty is entail'd upon Humanity and none can pretend to boast of such an Imbecillity The twenty four Elders Rev. 4. 4. cast down their Crowns before the Throne ver 10. and render unto God all praise and glory And the Seraphims cover their faces before the face of the most Highest Isa. 6. 2. VVhat then should Man do who is the vilest of all Creatures the worst of Sinners and so unthankful to his Creator IV. CHRIST the Everlasting Son of God the Father wonderfully descended from Heaven in great Humility and miraculously condescended to take our frail Nature upon Him and stooped so low as to be crucified for us And what should poor Mortality answer for so high an Indulgence who is gone so far astray from his Maker Behold thou aspiring Soul with what wonderful Humility thy Saviour hath allayed thy Pride And do'st thou still swell with Ambition By the Path of Humility and his bitter Death and Passion Christ entered into his Glory Luk. 24. 26. And dost thou imagine ever to reach Heaven-Gates by wallowing in the haughty way of Pride Lucifer for his Ambition was expell'd Heaven and our First Parents for Diabolical Pride was cast out of Paradise And dost thou think to arrive at Eternal Happiness through a Sea of Pride V. OH let us rather demean our selves with an humble jesus to wash the Feet of others than to seek ambitiously with Satan for the highest Place Let us humble our selves under the Mighty Hand of God in this Life present that we may be exalted in due time in the Life to come Fix not thy Heart upon what thou hast but consider seriously what thou wantest Mourn for those Graces that are absent rather than extoll those Vertues thou hast acquired Conceal with all humility what good Qualifications thou do'st enjoy but confess those Sins thou daily committest VI. AS Fire is preserv'd by covering with Ashes so Charity is secur'd under the Guard of Humility Pride is the Seminary Parent and Nurse to all Sins Exercise therefore thy Vigilance and Care against any Elevation lest by the precipice of
accomplish their Designs were driven out of Paradise Gen. 3. 6. So may we expect it that Immortal Part our Souls should forsake him who hath so dearly purchas'd 'em and cleave unto the World but that we must undergo the same if not a worse Punishment V. THEY which neglect our Saviour's candid Invitation of Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden shall not avoid hearing of him pronounce that Sentence of Go ye cursed into everlasting fire Mat. 25. 41. The Sodomites were consumed with fire Gen. 19. 24. for refusing to hear Lot's Doctrine and without a speedy Repentance the Fire of God's Anger will consume them which have despised his Gospel and rejected all Reproof The five Foolish Virgins who neglected trimming their Lamps were excluded the Bridegrooms Presence so those whose Hearts are not inspired with Celestial Oyl must expect to be debarr'd the Participation of Eternal Joy and Comfort VI. CHRIST internally calls to us by his Holy Spirit and secretly affords us Motives to holy Desires devout Affections and pious Cogitations and happy is he whose Soul is invested with these Ornaments When thou perceivest the least spark of the Divine Goodness in thee which doth excite thee to the performance of any good Duty then labour to cherish it that it may break out into a flame and take heed that thou quench not the Spirit and by that means extinguish the Operation And the Apostle affirms If any man defile the Temple of God him shall God destroy 1 Cor. 3. 17. VII THE Heart of a Man is the living Temple of the Lord and he is guilty of the Destruction of it who refuseth to give place to his Holy Spirit The Prophets in the Old Testament diligently hearkned unto the Word of the Lord and were prophetically inspired as a Reward for their-Obedience And in the New-Testament the Disciples and Apostles were punctual in preaching the Gospel and they were inspired by the Holy Ghost and were at last Crown'd by the Merits of Christ as a Recompence for their Labours and to those which shall imitate such good Examples blessed are they which shall hear and persevere in such good Performances MED XV. True Contentment Phil. iv 12. I know both how to be abased and I know how to abound every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry both to abound and to suffer need NONE but this happy Apostle such a divine Saint as St. Paul was could become a Proficient in this Lesson How few is there that have desired to learn it 'T is a Lecture the World hath long ago been weary of not so much because 't is so hard a Task but because 't is so unpleasant a Theme Were the Way to Everlasting Happiness strewed with Roses of Pleasure for our sensual Appetites to range and revel in 't would quickly become a frequented and an easie Walk Were there no Difficulties no skilful Trials to be past through who of a Mortal would not become a Saint The Crown of Eternal Glory would be as common as a Garland of Flowers did not that of Thorns carry the precedence II. THE World values not a Religion which disanuls all Splendour whose strict Discipline abrogates all Pomp and Pleasure and instead of all Temporal Delights which affects the Senses preaches Temperance Patience and the Judgement to come This Doctrine possesses us with an aguish Fit and then we like Felix fall a trembling and desire to be excused from so piercing a Duty He that invites us to see Heaven first informs us That to desire Temporal Enjoyments is the Wish of an Ethnick For after all these things do the Gentiles seek Mat. 6. 32. And shall Christians follow the Examples of Heathens and aim not at sublimer Things than what this sublunary World can afford Shall they who can by the Eye of Faith take a prospect of Eternity look down upon this Lower World with Affectation III. AND was that the Occasion of this Invitation we gave the Most Highest Did He which made the Heavens bow them come down and unthrone himself to convey us thither and do we lie wallowing in our Sins for ever How Vile Base Vain and Senseless a Creature is that Person that winds up his Felicity in the fruitless Enjoyments of this Life and eagerly resigns himself to sordid Sense But tell me O Thou that reignest in Plenty and obscurest Heaven in Oblivion should the two bright Luminaries be invested in their Purple Robes and transforming their Lustres like bleeding Meteors change their Rays into Crimson Streams were the Air now crouded with Sounds of the last Trumpets ecchoing audibly in our Ears an approaching Judgment How prodigious would that Mutation appear What vast and horrid Consternations would the remembrance of thy Profane and Atheistical Plenitude then strike and amaze thee with IV. INDEED these Mundane Enjoyments are so trivially poor empty that he which fixes his Hopes in their Fruition will speedily find himself but an eternal Mendicant a wretched miserable and deplorable Dives And yet such is the apparent Sanctity of the whole Universe to scoff at Religious Poverty and deride the Exigencies of a Devout Life as an Adversary to Nature He is ignorant of the Joys of a Future State and of an Expected Eternity that thinks there 's no Felicity beyond this Hands Breadth no Happiness beyond this slender Span. V. WERE we but sensible of the glorious Reward which shall Crown the World for that which she terms Misery that Felicity that attends on the most suffering and dejected Devotion we should glory in our Wants be affected with Hardship and inure our selves to Poverty with Delight we should be willing not only to depart but to live Martyrs rejoyce even in the lowest State to purchase Heaven and chearfully learn that Art with the holy Apostle to suffer Want here and to labour how to abound in that Plenitude which is infinite VI. AND yet how hard a Task is it for us to endure even the pettiest Affliction for Thy sake O Lord So senseless are we of Thine abundant Goodness so wilfully forgetful of Thy Omnipotency that we not only in our greatest Necessities arraign and condemn thy vigilant Providence but are ready even to turn Pagans in our unhappy Misfortunes Open Thou our Eyes O Lord that we may behold the Vanity of this transitory World and the Deceitfulness of our own Hearts that the alluring Pleasures of it may neither swallow us up nor the Losses of it overthrow our Hope or discourage our Obedience Let that illuminated Glory which Thou hast freely promised to those that vanquish the World for Thy sake be ever in our sight that in whatsoever State we are in we may still be found triumphing in Faith and at last receive as a Recompence of Reward a Crown of Righteousness MED XVI Of Divine Faith Heb. xi i. Now faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen LET us
now consider the Efficacy of Faith and offer up an Oblation of Praise and Thanksgiving unto him who is the only Giver of it It is that alone which ingrafts us into the Body of Christ and as Branches extract their Sap from the Vine so from him proceeds Life Righteousness and Salvation Adam in his pristine State fell and lost his Divine Image by his Incredulity but we are restor'd again by Grace and the Image of the Almighty by Faith is renewed in us By this Faith Christ dwells in our Hearts and where He inhabits there His Grace resides and an Assurance of an Inheritance of Eternal Life II. AND as the Effects of Faith are Wonderful in their Operation so they are Exemplary in their Demonstrations For By Faith Abel offered unto God a greater sacrifice than Cain Heb. 11. 4. So by Faith we are enabled to offer Omnipotency spiritual Sacrifices that is the Fruit of our Lips Heb. 13. 15. And by Faith Enoch was translated Heb. 11. 5. So that Vertue withdraws us from the Society of the World and invites us to place our Conversation in Heaven Phil. 3. 20. By Faith Noah prepared an Ark Heb. 11. 7. So we by that Theological Virtue are received into that Church wherein our Souls are preserved amidst all the Storms and Tempests which happen in the World III. BY Faith Abraham left an idolatrous Land and went into a strange Countrey in Expectation of the Promised Land Heb. 11. 8 9. So by the Energy of that Vertue we depart this World forsaking all that is near and dear to us expecting to arrive at that Celestial Ierusalem which God hath prepared in the Heavens Rev. 21. 2. We are Strangers and Pilgrims on this side Heaven and travel by Faith unto a heavenly Countrey By Faith Moses chose rather to suffer Affliction with the People of God than to enjoy the Pleasures of Sin for a season Heb. 11. 25. So Faith animates us to contemn the World and to despise the Glory Honour Riches and Pleasures of it and excites our Minds to Eternal Felicities VI. BY Faith Israel kept the Passover Heb. 11. 28. So we by the Eye of Faith celebrate the Lord's Supper where Christ is the Paschal Lamb whose Flesh is meat indeed and whose Blood is drink indeed Joh. 6. 55. By Faith Rahab was saved Heb. 11. 31. So in the universal Conflagration of this World we shall be saved from Destruction By Faith the Fathers overcame Kingdoms stopt the Mouths of Lions and quenched the force of fire Heb. 11. 33. So we by Faith destroy the Kingdom of the Prince of Darkness escape the Treacheries and Rage of the infernal Lion and are deliver'd from Hell's implacable Malice and everlasting Burnings V. NOW Faith is not a naked Opinion and slender Profession but a true and lively Apprehension of Christ propounded to us in the Gospel a full Assurance of his Grace residing in us the Tranquillity of our Souls which relies only upon Christ's Merits This Faith is fructified of the Seed of the Sacred Word whereby the Holy Spirit and this Vertue is united Now Faith resembles a spiritual Illumination for our Hearts are illustrated by its Splendor and the Rays of a Life of Sanctity shines forth Evil Actions are the Works of Darkness and What communion saith the Apostle is there between light and darkness 2 Cor. 6. 14. Deeds of Darkness are the Seeds of Satan but a lively Faith proceeds from Christ and What communion is there between Christ and Satan 2 Cor. 6. 5. VI. LASTLY By Faith our Hearts are purified but no Internal Purity can center where the Words and External Actions are defiled St. Iohn tells ye That Faith is the victory which overcometh the world 1 Joh. 5. 4. Now there cannot be a true Faith fixed where the Flesh vanquisheth the Spirit and leadeth it away Captive into the Law of Sin No impenitent Sinner that persevereth in his Sins can be Partaker of Life Eternal neither can he without true Repentance claim any Privilege or Share in the Merits of Christ Jesus Kindle in us O God the Light of True Faith that by the Vertue of it and Thy alone Merits we may obtain Eternal Salvation and reign with Thee for evermore in Thy Kingdom of Glory World without end Amen MED XVII The Canaanitish Woman's Faith Mat. xV. 28. And Iesus answered and said unto her O woman great is thy faith be it unto thee even as thou wilt BEHOLD this Canaanitish Woman how fortunate and happy she was to be found worthy of so great an Expression Her Female Weapon compensated for the Guilt of its past Follies having now by its seasonable Answers merited so Divine an Eulogy Poor Female how enrich'd was she in whose Bosom was concealed a Treasure which Emperors Kings and Princes compared to her are Indigent All the Holy Land with its precious Balm and odoriferous Spices could not furnish her with a sufficient Antidote to revive her Darling and charm away the Infernal Spirit from tormenting her Behold these Miracles of Faith that at once could save two Souls the Mother's and her Daughter's II. SO miraculous and potent is solid Faith that even the least grain of it can remove lofty Mountains level steep Hills and smooth the most aspert and ambitious Soul into a meek and fructifying Valley 'T was this that calmed the Surface of the foaming Ocean that made the boisterous Waves an easie Path and turn'd their furious Rage into a pleasant Walk for St. Peter's Feet 'T was the Centurion's Faith that gave his Servant a Respite from the Hands of Death which all his Guards could never have prevented 'T was by Faith that the Blind Man was restored to his Sight which was beyond the Skill of Art and Nature to perform III. ALL the Admirations of the Gospel were always concluded with Thy Faith hath saved thee And yet that Faith which then operated so many Miracles is now grown the greatest Miracle it self Whil'st some take the Symbol for the Thing they fix the Magnitude of their Faith on the Greatness of their Works and have so candid an Opinion of themselves that they imagine it Faith enough only to do well Others expect to be Canoniz'd for their Doctrines though not for their irregular Lives they scoff at all Religious Duties and imagine to tread the Path to Heaven only by their Faith IV. OBEDIENCE hearty Contrition for Sin that amiable Robe of a perplexed Soul and the Royal Ornaments of our Spiritual Warfare are but vacant Ceremonies and both these Parties Belief are of their own forming But Heaven is not purchas'd only by Speculation He that fixeth his Faith in his empty Skull and imagines Religion hath not its Attendant may like Moses view and discourse of the Promised Land at a distance but never approach to it Our Obedience must cry out louder than our Pretensions 'T is not our Noise and Nonsence that will create us Saints 't is not our external Shew of