occurrents obseruable with deuotion and reuerence for the good of the soule haue no great power to worke vpon them sacred times or daies of affliction are not wont to make any such impression or to breed extraordinary stirrings and motions in them Let iudgements blast or mercies blesse a kingdome let Gods word find smooth and euen way or rubs and opposition let prophanenesse be countenanced or sinceritie cherished he takes no thought so he may sleepe in a whole skinne and keepe entire his worldly comforts his thoughts continue heauie dull and formall Hee may conforme and consort with the times in his outward gestures words and actions but ordinarily his thoughts admit no change saue onely so farre as his priuate temporall felicitie is endangered by publicke iudgements or enlarged by showers of mercies and blessings from heauen I cannot enlarge this point at this time only I will giue one instance in their difference of thoughts vpon the Sabbath day The Sabbath day is as it were the faire day of the soule wherein it should not onely repaire and furnish it selfe with new spiritual streÌ„gth with greater store of knowledge grace and comfort but also feast with it heauenly friends the blessed Saints and Angels vpon those glorious ioies and happie rest which neuer shall haue end Euery child of God therefore which hath alreadie a reall interest in that eternall rest makes not only conscience of doing his owne waies seeking his owne will speaking a vaine word on that day but also in some good measure makes it the very delight of his heart the loue and comfort of his inward thoughts so that he may consecrate it as glorious to the Lord. He doth not onely giue quiet and cessation to his body from worldly businesse and works of his calling but also empties his head and disburdens his thoughts of al earthly cares that so they may wholly and entirely intend the holy motions of Gods Spirit and spend themselues in godly and extraordinarie meditations fitting the feast day of the soule and the Lords holy day This is the desire longing and endeuour of his heart thus to sanctifie the Sabbath and if at any time he be turned awrie from this vprightnesse by companie or his owne corruptions he is after much grieued and vext with it repents and praies for more zeale conscience and care for the time to come But the formall hypocrite howsoeuer he may on that day forbeare and abstaine from his ordinarie sinnes labours sports and idlenes howsoeuer he may outwardly exercise and execute all duties and seruices of religion though indeed more of custome and for fashion then with heartie and true deuotion nay he may haue other thoughts on that day but onely so farre as the bare solemnitie of the time and the greater Presence can alter them yet I dare boldly say it no formall hypocrite no kind of vnregenerate man can possibly make the Sabbath his delight as is required Isai. 58.13 And which is presupposed to make vs capable of the blessings following in the same place Then shalt thou delite in the Lord and I will make thee to mounâ— vpon the high places of the earth feed thee with the heritage of Iacob thy father for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it He cannot for his life sequester his thoughts at all not euen on that day from worldlinesse and earthly pleasures to diuine and sacred meditations Doe what hee can he cannot beate and keepe them off from worldly Obiects they will not leaue their former hants or be restrained from plotting or pleasing themselues with weeke-day businesses Lord it is strange that the soule of a man so noblely furnished with powers of highest contemplation being so strongly and sensiblie possest with consciousnesse and conceit of it owne immortality and hauing the restlesse and vnsatisfied desires of it wide capacity neuer fild but with the Maiestie of God himselfe and the glory of an immortall crowne should be such a stranger to heauen the place of it birth and euerlasting abode that vpon that day whereon as vpon the golden spot and pearle of the weeke the Lord hath stamped his owne sacred Seale of institution and solemne consecration for his owne particular seruice and speciall honour yet I say vpon that day it cannot settle and continue it owne thoughts and motions vpon those vnmixed and blessed ioyes and the way vnto them without which it shall bee euerlastingly miserable and burne hereafter in that fierie lake whose flames are fed with infinite riuers of Brimstone and the endlesse wrath of God for euer and euer Now I pray you tell mee when wee shall haue raigned hereafter many millions of yeeres in heauen what thoughts will remaine of this little inch of time vpon earth When we haue passed thorow a peece of eternitie where will appeare the minute of this miserable life and yet our thoughts and affections are so glued vnto the world as though eternitie were vpon earth and time only in heauen You are men capable of worthiest and highest eleuations of spirit I beseech you resume this meditation at your leisure methinks it should be able to breed thoughts of a far more noble and heauenly temper then ordinarilie arise and are nourished in the hearts of men But to follow my yurpose Certaine it is not the best vnâ—egenerate men can endure an entire and exact sanctification of the Sabbath it is not a Iubilie to their hearts and the ioy of their thoughts for they cannot abide to haue their minds stay long in a feeling meditation vpon spirituall affaires vpon the examination of their former life the state of the other world the sleights and tentations of Satan the day of death the tribunall of heauen and such like For though the best of them may haue a persuasion of their being in the state of grace as I haue largely proued heretofore yet sith it is wrongly and falsely grounded it cannot abide the search and touchstone Hence it is that of all things they loue not to bee alone They may please themselues well enough in solitarinesse vpon some priuate businesse for the more profound plotting and contriuing worldly matters for a more free but filthie exercise of the adulteries of the heart and contemplatiue fornication to feed vpon dull and fruitles melancholie to let their thoughts wildly range and runne riot into a world of imaginations to diue into the mysteries of nature or depths of State but to be alone onely for this purpose that the mind may more fully and immediately worke vpon the spirituall state of the soule and impartially inquire into the conscience they cannot they will not endure it and therefore commonly cast themselues into one knot of goodfellowship or other that they may merrily passe away that time for an houre of which the time of grace being once expired they would giue ten thousand worlds yet shall neuer bee able to purchase it againe But Gods children when they are alone haue inward
vnsearchable corners thereof Hath it humbled it with the sight of thy sinnes and sense of Gods iudgements Hath it filled it with fearefull terrours compunction remorse and true sorrow for thy life past Hath it after quieted and refreshed it with a sure faith in Christ Iesus and a delight in heauenly things Hath it mortified thy inward corruptions and broke the heart of thy sweet sinne Hath it planted a holy moderation in all thy affections that whereas heretofore they haue been enraged with lust with immoderate anger with ambition with insatiable desire for the enlargement of thy wealth possessions and greatnesse and with hatred of Gods dearest seruants and their holinesse are they now inflamed with zeale for Gods honour truth and seruice with a feruent loue vnto the Lord and his Saints with Christian courage to oppose against the sinnes of the time to defend goodnesse and good causes to contemne the lying slanders and prophane scoffes of worthlesse men Hath it begot in â—hy will an hunger and thirst after the spirituall food of thy soule the Word and Sacraments so that thou haddest rather part with any worldly good then not enioy the incomparable benefit of a conscionable and constant ministery Are thy thoughts of which heretofore thou hast made no great conscience but letten them wander vp and downe at rondom wickedly idely and wantonly are they now I say bounded within a sacred compasse and spent vpon holie things and the necessary affaires of thy honest and lawfull calling Is thy vnderstanding informed and acquainted with the mysterie of saluation which the world and the wise men thereof account nothing but madnesse and follie Is thy memorie which hath heretofore been stuffed with trash and toies vanities and follies now capable and greedy of diuine knowledge Are thy words which heretofore haue been full of prophanenesse and worldlinesse now directed to glorifie God and to giue grace vnto the hearers Nay yet further besides this inward renouation of the faculties of thy soule hath the power of grace sanctified all thy outward actions Dost thou now order in euery particular al the businesse of thy vocation religiously conscionably and by direction out of the word of God Art thou inwardly affected and faithfull in the performance of religious duties as in hearing the word of God in sanctifying the Sabbath in prayer and the rest Dost thou now heare the word of God not onely of course and custome but of zeale and conscience to reforme thy selfe by it and to liue after it Doe not the weeke daies duties and worldly cares drowne thy mind on the Sabbath but that thou dost the whole day entirely freely and cheerefully attend the worship of God Dost thou exercise daily with fruit and feeling prayer that precious comfort of the faithfull Christian Thou being conuerted dost thou labour the conuersion of others especially of those which are committed any way to thy charge and for whom thou must giue a more strict account as if thou be a master of a family dost thou pray with them and instruct them in the doctrine of saluation and waies of godlinesse Dost thou now not onely sticke at and forbeare great and grosse sinnes but dost thou euen hate the garment spotted of the flesh and al appearance of euill Doth the tendernes of thy conscience checke thee for the least sinnes and make thee fearefull to offend though it bee but in a wandring cogitation After euery fall into infirmities art thou carefull to renew thy repentance and learne wisedome and watchfulnesse to auoid them afterwards Doest thou feele thy selfe profit grow and encrease in these fruits and effects of grace And hast thou such a gratious tast of the glory of God and of eternall life that thou art euen willing and desirous to meet thy Sauiour in the clouds not so much for to be rid out of the miseries of this life as to be freed from the heauie burthen of sinne which hangs on so fast and to enioy his presence in the heauens for euer In a word as thy soule giues life spirit and motion to thy whole body and euery part thereof doth the spirit of God euen so inspire thy soule and body and all thy actions with the life of grace Why then thou hast past the perfections of the formal hypocrite and art possest of the state of true blessednesse thou art then happie that euer thou wast borne thy way is certainely the way of life And I can assure thee and I dare boldly pronounce it that thou art already vtterly out of the reach of all the powers of hell Satan is chained vp for euer doing thee any deadly hurt All the creatures are reconciled vnto thee and at league with thee Thou hast filled the Angels with joy at thy conuersion they will for euer guard thee Thou shalt neuer more be afraid for any euill tidings Though the earth be moued and though the mountaines fall into the midst of the sea thy heart shall abide strong vnshaken and comfortable When thou fallest downe vpon thy bed of sicknes thou shalt find no mortall poyson in thy flesh no sting in death no darkenes in the graue no amazement at that great and fearefull day For all the merits and sufferings of Christ are thine all the comforts of Gods children are thine all the blessings in the booke of God are thine all the ioyes of heauen are thine euen all things are thine and thou art Christs and Christ is Gods Onely stand fast in the faith quit thy selfe like a man and be strong gird thy sword vpon thy thigh buckle fast vnto thee the whole armour of God ride on because of the word of truth and the Lord thy God be with thee Breake thorow for a while with vndaunted courage the bitternesse of the worlds malice the keene razours of empoysoned tongues thâ— teares and tediousnesse of a few wretched daies for thou art nearer the price of the high calling then when thou first beleeuedst Shine more and more in faith in patience in loue in knowledge obedience and all other Christian graces vntill the perfect day vntill thou reach the height of heauen and the full glory of the Saints of God I now proceed more distinctly to other markes of difference betwixt the state of grace and formall hypocrisie Some notes of distinction for my purpose may be raised out of those places of Scripture which I proposed for to acquaint you with the kinds of perfection and degrees of goodnesse whereof a man as yet vnregenerate is capable and may bee partaker In the 8. of Luke the hearer resembled vnto the stonie ground is the formall hypocrite Hee receiues the word of God with ioy as doth the faithfull Christian though â—ot in the same measure But here is the speciall point and marke that differenceth the one from the other The word and faith in the formall hypocrite haue no roots They are not deepely and soundly rooted and planted in his vnderstanding conscience thoughts
any other by-respect plunge themselues into such companies where perhaps they may enioy many pleasant passages of wit set and artificiall disports and passing the time direction in their worldly affaires combination against the power of religion and the true professors thereof but where they shall find no furtherance in the way to heauen no comfort in heauenly things no encouragement to piety no counsell in tentations no consolation vpon their deaths-bed O how much better were it for these few and wretched daies to sort and solacâ— themselues amongst the Saints of God with whom they might shine as glorious lights together in the earth and hereafter in the heauens aboue the brightnesse of the sun for euermore rather then prophanely to sport themselues in Meshech and for a season proudly to ruffle it in the tents of Kedar where there is no light of grace no ioynt expectation of eternity but darkenesse of sinne and shadow of death Mistake me not in this point I would not haue men goe out of the world or become Separists I would rather haue them if they will vnderstand Paul aright be made all things to all men that they might by all meanes saue some That is I would haue the children of God not be wanting in any offices of kindnesse or pietie but to yeeld and communicate themselues so far as dutie charity humanitie necessitie of their generall or particular calling vpon good warrant and iust occasion mâ—y challenge and exact at their hands But as for a free and full communication of the secrets of their soule of their dearest affections of their spirituall estate of their ioyfullest and best expence of time I would haue that onely vouchsafed and conueied into the faithfull bosome of a true Christian and confined to grace as it peculiar and principall Object Let their goodnesse and good deeds spread without limit but their delight and intimatenes is to bee restrained and appropriated to the Saints that are on the earth and to the truely excellent which are onely the godly Hence it is that Gods children are many times censured for morositie vnsociablenes disdainefulnesse of spirit and opposition to good fellowship when God knowes they can find no taste in the white of an egge no strength in a broken staffe of reed no comfort in the men of the world who haue their portion in this life and therefore they would not part with their Paradise of communion of Saints or comfortable communication with God in their solitarines for the companie of kings and a world of carnall contentments Fourthly Satan doth sometime worke a soule decay of grace and exercise of godlinesse by putting into our heads some inordinate plot and forecast for preferment and greatnes For if he can once set our thoughts busily on foot for proiecting and contriuing with excessiue desire ambition and greedinesse some honour office or high place why then farwell zeale farwell taking part with Gods children farwell an vnshaken resolution in standing for the honour truth and seruice of God and a Christian courage in reprouing sins For then we must liue reseruedly we must be content to part with our libertie and be depriued of our selues We must labour to satisâ—ie and accommodate our selues to the humours pleasures and passions of men In a word our whole cariage must hold a necessarie and exact correspondence with the men and meanes that are able to promote vs for so vâ—certaine and irregular are the reuolutions of mens fauours that many times if a man but misse or mistime one ceremony or circumstantiall obseruance it is enough to cast him off and vtterly cashire him from his hopes ends Most miserable and seruile is their life that thus forsake the strong tower of their saluation and claspe their hand of faith about the arme of flesh For they do not onely bereaue themselues of that worthie freedome of spirit which an honest Heathen would not exchange for his life but also as they grow into a habit of seruitude and base engagements vnto men so they grow into a flauerie vnto sinne and bondage vnto the corruptions of the time And the higher they rise into fauor with prophane greatnes and policie the deeper they sinke into the miseries of basenes and flatterie and the high displeasure of almightie God And at length if they attaine their ends for sometimes they die in the tedious prosecution of some vndeserued dignitie they double their discomforts and encrease their account For commonly where the pursuit and purchase of any honour and preferment hath beene base and indirect there the discharge and execution is formall vaineglorious and vnconscionable Thus you see a second method of Satan whereby he goes about to kill the fruits of faith and to cause if not an vtter cessation yet much weakenes and interruptions in the operations of grace Many moe such depths and proceedings hee hath in his tentations As for example If he meet with notoriously wicked men as Drunkards Swearers vncleane persons and the like he tempts them to Atheisme a reprobate sense contempt of Gods worship and seruice and to the great offence To defend their leaud and gracelesse courses to glorie in their sinnes and in their dexterity of making others drunke with the same iniquitie He stickles strikes the bargaine betwixt them and death and hell and enters as it were bond for the performance of the couenant Hee tempts them to scorning and by their scoffings and railings in some fort to the despiting of the spirit of grace in the children of light which is a soule signe of a feared conscience and a fearefull preparatiue to sinne against the holy Ghost These are Satans standard-bearers and theâ—fore he inspires them with extraordinarie boldnes and desperatenesse in sinning and teacheth them to march furiouslie in variety of rebellions against the Maiestie of heauen If he meete with honest ciuill men heelabours to perswade them that iust and vpright dealing with their neighbours good meanings and intentions in matters of religion are the verie life of the seruice of God and a sufficient way to heauen And to conceiue sinne and sinceritie to be nothing else but morall vertues and vices the power of sanctification to be nothing but good education the practise of godlinesse to be nothing but sober and honest behauiour and the whole mysterie of Christianity to be onely a graue and stayed ciuilitie And the much adoe about faithfull and conscionable preaching to bee onely the humor of some odde fellowes that would be accounted singular and seraphicall If he meete with formall hypocrites who besides immunitie from grosse sinnes and their ciuill honestie are carefull and fashionable in the outward duties of religion yet short of a sound conuersion hee labours might and maine to settle in them an opinion that the state of regeneration is nothing but precisenesse and puritanisme that sauing sincerity and a true practise of holines is onely a transcendent Idea consisting in pure abstraction conceiued in the
A DISCOVRSE ABOVT THE STATE OF TRVE HAPPINESSE DELIVERED IN CERTAINE Sermons in Oxford and at Pauls Crosse By ROBERT BOLTON 2. CORINTH 13.5 Prooue your selues whether yee are in the faith examine your selues know yee not your owne selues how that Iesus Christ is in you except yee be reprobates AT LONDON Imprinted by Felix Kyngston for EDMVND WEAVER and are to be sold at his shop at the great North-gate of Pauls Church 1611. TO THE RIGHT WORSHIPFVLL HIS VERY GOOD PATRONE SIR AVGVSTIN NICOLS Knight Serieant at the Law the glorious comforts of Grace here and the blessednesse of immortalitie hereafter SIR I hauing been often and much solicited with varietie and iteration of strong importunitie to publish and let passe into the eie of this censorious world these thevery first fruites and essaies of mine imployment and businesse in the Ministerie did apprehend and embrace this season with better contentment and with more cheerefulnes addresse and compose my self thereunto because I did see opportunitie offered thereby to let appeare abroad my thankfull acknowledgement of your respectfull and more then ordinary fauour vnto me and a publike testimonie of your worthie and exemplarie integritie in discharging your hands and faithfully disposing that portion of the Church his patrimonie committed to your trust and conscience An affaire though in these desperately sinfull times fearfully and accursedly abused of high and waightie consequence and of great power as it shall be discharged with conscience or corruption either further to ruine our Church and bring it to more miserie and desolation or to repaire and aduance it to better state more happinesse For mine owne particular it hath so pleased God to guide your heart in this busines and to blesse me with his prouidence that wheras too many Patrones now adaies either by detaining sacrilegiouslie Gods portion agaiâ—â—â— all grounds of equitie both diuine humane or by furnishing Church-liuings simoniacally and corruptly do certainly pull vpon their own heads soules and bodies goods and posteritie an heauie and horrible curse and shall thereby make their account to be without fauour at the last day and whereas many worthie men after they haue wearied and wasted their bodies and mindes their spirits and patrimonie in studie and worne out their hopes with long and tedious expectation pursuit and dependance come at length with much adoe to no great matters and when all is done it is well if they escape all galling and gash of conscience such is the strange iniquitie of the times yet I say so worthily haue you dealt with me so vprightly in the Church his cause that vpon your owne first motion you sent vnto me to accept the place I now enioy from you and offered me a faire a free and comfortable passage to the exercise of my Ministerie abroad which next vnto the saluation of mine own soule I hold most deare and precious when I neither sought after nor thought vpon preferment This your rare and singular bountie did at the very first affect me with a secret sense of an extraordinary obligation for all inward affectionatnes and with a desire of representing it in some visible forme of outward testification But when I did after further consider first how that Sacriledge and Simonie that damned couple of crying sins like two rauenous Harpies and the two insatiable daughters of the Horsleech had seazd euen vpon the Heart of our Church readie to rent and teare in peeces her very heart-strings and to sucke out the inmost blood and last life of our dearest Mother when I looked aboue me in this famous Vniuersitie where I haue liued and saw many reuerend and learned men full of the light of diuine truth and of the water of life able gloriouslie and comfortablie to illighten many darke places and drie soules in this land readie to expire and powre out their soules in the bosome of this their famous Nurce not brought vp by her to die at her breasts but if they might haue honest and lawfull passage readie and resolute to enlarge Christs kingdome abroad and to oppose with all their power against the bloodie torrent of Poperie and rage of Antichrist lastly when I weighed with my selfe mine owne naturall declination and resolued vnfitnes to make a noise and stirre in the world for preferment I did finde that as these considerations did before giue small hope of changing my station so now they were of power yet further to double the impression of your worthie and extraordinarie goodnesse vnto mee and freshly to renew the thankfull deuotions and apprehensions of mine heart Out of which hath sprung in me a thirsting earnestnes and contention of spirit to returne vnto you for these temporall fauours so farre as the nature of that high Ministeriall function wherein I stand shall guide me and the power of my poore abilitie can reach the Blessings of Heauen and comforts of a better world To which end I here present vnto you this Treatise which I haue intended to be so farre as my gracious God hath giuen me vnderstanding in the point as it were a looking-Glasse or Touchstone to whomsoeuer it shall please to take thorow notice thereof for the discerning and trying in some good measure whether he alreadie bee of the number of those fewe which truly liue the life of God and vnder the Scepter of his Sonne or lie as yet enthralled in the inuisible chaines of damnation and death and vnder the large and powerfull raigne of Satan For I am perswaded that in this glorious noontide of the Gospell many thousands deceiue not only the world and others but euen themselues and their owne soules about their spirituall state thinking if they finde in themselues a freedome from grosse and notorious sinnes fairenes of conditions ciuil honestie a formall profession of Christianitie outward performances of religious seruices that then their case is good enough for heauen though there bee wanting the sauing power of inward sanctification and the truth of a sound conuersion though they bee strangers to the great mysterie of Godlinesse and disacquainted with a conscionable and constant course of Holinesse in their liues and actions But we must conceiue that ouer and besides these degrees of goodnesse with which millions of men content and deceiue themselues yea and quite beyond and vtterly without the compasse of all worldly glorie all visible pompe the most admited greatnesse and sufficiency vpon earth for which a great part of the world exchange the euerlasting happinesse of their soules there is a Paradise of Christian comforts a Royall Peculiar a victorious Simplicitie a neglected Innocencie a marueilous Light an inuisible Kingdome an Heauen vpon Earth which I call the state of Grace and labour in the ensuing Discourse to difference from al perfections and sufficiencies attaineable in the state of vnregeneration I meddle not purposely with the notorious sinner for me thinkes in these daies of light there should none so wilfully and deeply inwrap
our first loue Would to God that we would keepe fresh in our minds but this one consideration That the same God which against the expectation both of heauen and earth of Rome and hell of diuels and Papists turned our feares and amazements at the death of that glorious Saint the late Queene into safetie and a sure foundation by the most happie succession of our gracious Soueraigne and his roiall seed can out of his iust iudgements for our vnthankefulnesse and securitie in the very turning of an hand and closing of an eie dash all our hopes and shut vp the whole Body of this flourishing kingdom in the pit of irrecouerable destruction It had bin done had Fauks fired the powder and who knowes what those busie and bloody heads are euen now hammering in the same kind Besides these two now mentioned there is another capitall cause of Gods heauie displeasure which though iâ— make no great noise nor be much taken notice of vpon earth yet â—t is much lothed of God almighty and cries loud in heauen for vengeance vpon vs It is a Lukewarmenesse and vnzealousnesse a cold and carelesse mediocritie in spirituall matters and as it were a neutralitie betwixt notorious sinfulnes and sauing sinceritie When men perhaps with diligence willingnesse and forwardnesse submit themselues to the hearing of the word but subordinate the power and practise thereof to their â—ase honours and worldly contentments When they wil needs hold an outward correspondence with the world and yet inwardly maintaine and nourish hope of saluation in themselues When they straine their wits and striue to partake both of the comfortable fauour of God and corrupt fashions of the times both of the pleasures of their sweet sinne and the sweetnesse of the true peace of conscience which are as inconcurrent as two parallel lines and as incompatible as light and darkenesse These men though in the worlds opinion they be of ciuill honest cariage of moderate spirits and of a stated temper in religion and in their owne conceits rich and enriched and want nothing yet indeed they are meere staruelings and starke beggers in respect of the true riches and lasting treasures of sauing grace and in the very case of those except in the meane time they buy of him gold garments and oile which shall neuer see Christ Iesus in his Kingdome to their comfort for Amen the faithfull and true witnesse hath vowed it that he will spue such out of his mouth and wishes much rather that they were key-cold then such formall Christians His speech imports thus much I had rather you were Pagans and Infidels then professors without zeale Now my chiefe and speciall aime is with all humble submission to beâ—ter iudgements and the censure of the Prophets to lay open the state of thâ—se men because besides their fearefull deceiuing their owne soules and particular certaine damnation if they so continue they mightily inceâ—se the Lords wrath against this laâ—d with an insensible and vnacknowledgde prouocation and mainly hazard the continuance of his glorious Gospell amongst vs. It is commonly conceiued indeed both of themselues and of the world that if they bee morally honest and outwardly conformable to the ministery of the word so that they bee hurtlesse and innocent in respect of humane iustice that they are also I know not how harmelesse and guiltlesse before the Tribunall of God But the Euangelist telles vs That that which is highlie esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God And God himselfe by Isaiah That his thoughts are not our thoughts neither are his waies our waies For certainely the state of Lukewarmnesse and formalitiâ— in religion howsoeuer it may be full of worldly applause and happinesse and beare away the bell vpon earth yet it is as burdensome and hatefull vnto God as luke-warme water or the most lothsome potion to the nicest stomacke And doth with a more naturall importunitie then other sinnes knock at the gates of diuine iustice for the remooueall of our candlesticke and the glory of his Gospell from amongst vs. All kinds of sinnes according to their nature measure and ripenesse haue proportionally a part and hand in drawing downe all manner of plagues vpon the sonnes of men but this hath a peculiar and predominant power in hastening that particular and greatest of all iudgements the famine of the word For God cannot endure without speciall indignation that his word which is his power vnto saluation should recâ—iue such limitation and prescription from mens wisdome that it should worke no further vpon them nor beget more change and holinesse then may consist with the enioyment of their worldly contentments reputation and the pleasures of their beloued sinne He cannot abide that men discontented with the straâ—tnesse of the gate of grace and impatient of a strict course of godlinesse should labor to find out and follow another way to heauen then that which is sanctified by his word and which hath and must be troden by all those that will euer see the Lord. Knowledge and profession of Gods truth without sanctification and zeale are but meanes in the meane time to put out the glory of Israel and will hereafter but encrease the number of stripes and adde waight vnto endlesse torment In the name of God therefore let all luke-warme and formall Christians be contented to take notice of their state and before the Sun goe downâ— ouer the Prophets suffer their hearts to be thorowly heated with true zeale and besides their outward reformation and generall lightnings of the Spirit to entertaine that speciall sauing and sanctifying grace which onely can saue their soules and prepare them for the glory that is to be reuealed Lest now at length for he hath borne with vs miraculously our iust God cause our Sunne to goe downe at noone and darkenesse to surprize vs in the cleare day Lâ—st he roote vs out of this good land as a fruitlesse and faithles nation turne vs out of our houses of peace as the vnworthiest and vnthankefullest people vnder heauen and let out his vineyard to other husbandmen which will deliuer him the fruites in their seasons And the more secure and fearelesse wee bee as wee were neuer more the more sudden and ineuitable is like to bee our surprizall and destruction For as Gods mercies are then most magnified when they relieue the extremest miserie and shine into the depth of discomfort and darkenesse when all other helpe is vtterly despaired of so his iudgements are most glorious when they strike at the height and top of pride and impenitencie while they thinke themselues most sure and with greatest confidence repose vpon the arme of flesh and policie of man The third reason and motiue why I insist so long in the point of formal hypocrisie was taken from the condition of mine auditors who being of deepest vnderstanding are naturally aptest and stroÌ„gliest tempted to mistake vnderualue the mystery of godlines and to deceiue their owne
and falshood whose fâ—et are not swift to run after mischiefe vanitie and leaud companions That â—itteth not in the seate of the scornefull That is that confineth not himselfe to the chaire of iniquitie that confirmeth not himselfe in his malice and hardnesse of heart that doth not make a mooke of sinne and iest with the sacred word of God that doth not direct the poisonous arrow of a spiâ—â—full tongue euen at the apple of Gods own cie his dearest Saints and seruants That with the scorner doth not dare the highest maiestie of the Almightie to whet his glittering sword and take hold on iudgement to put on his habergeon of righteousnesse and the garments of vengeance for clothing saying as it is Isai. 5.19 Let him make speed let him hasten his worke that we may see it and let the counsell of the holy one of Israel draw neere come that we may know it Thus farre his forbearance of sinfull actions Now followes his practise in actions of pietie But his delight is in the Law of the Lord. That is the whole doctrine diuinely inspired is the very ioy of his heart and delight of his soule It is sweeter vnto him then hony the hony combe It is more pretious vnto him theÌ„ gold yea then much fine gold It is more worth vnto him then heauen and earth And when the heart is once enkindled with loue there the imagination embraceth with dearest apprehension the thoughts are impatient of any other obiect all the powers of the soule are vnited in a strong endeauour for the attainment The whole mind must needs be possest with meditation If he delight in the Law of the Lord hee must needs meditate therein And this feruencie of the heart cannot possible be enclosed within the compasse of the breast it will spread it selfe in speech and actions As is plaine Psalm 37.30 The mouth of the righteous will speake of wisedome and his tongue will talke of iudgement The reason followes For the Law of his God is in his heart And Psalm 119 167. My soule hath kept thy testimonies for I loue them exceedingly And this loue delight meditation and exercise in the Law of God of this happie man is not as a morning cloud and as the morning dew before the Sunne but like the light of the Sunne that shineth more and more vnto the perfect day It is not for a start for feare for restraint for reputation for aduantage or to couer the terrors of conscience for a while with a few flashes of deceiueable comforts out of some misapplied promises in the word of God but it is out of a free resolution and with vndaunted constancie day and night But giue me leaue I beseech you before I proceed to the explication of the rest or deduction of Doctrines from these particulars to propose vnto you this generall Doctrine which hath his strength from the body of the Psalme and the maine scope of the spirit of God There is in the booke of God proposed and offored vnto vs an happinesse standing in opposition to all the vaine felicities which ancieÌ„t Philosophers deuisde out of their deep speculations or prophane men frame out of their corrupt affections not consisting in pleasures riches honours greatnes in ciuill honesty formall hypocrisie or the whole possibility of nature but in supernaturall grace and the blessed consequents The whole book of Ecclesiastes Salomons sacred retractations is a large and sound demonstration of this Doctrine Salomon was sonne vnto the worthiest king that euer swayed scepter vpon earth and he was predecessor in the royall line vnto the Sonne of God and so matchlesse for nobility if true happinesse had consisted therein He was king of Ierusalem the lady of the world the perfection of beauty and the ioy of the whole earth Hee gaue siluer as stones and gaue cedars as the wild figtrees that grow abundantly in the plaine He built him houses and planted Vineyards He prouided him men fingers and women fingers and the delights of the sonnes of men Whatsoeuer his eyes desired he with held it not from them and withdrew not his heart from any ioy For wisedome and vnderstanding hee had a large heart euen as the sand that is on the sea shore It speculatiue knowledge hee excelled the wisedome of all the children of the East and all the wisedome of Egypt Hee was able to discourse from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon euen vnto the Hyssope that springeth out of the wall In wisedome of politie and gouernment there was none like vnto him before him neither after him shall arise the like vnto him So that Salomon was the most fit and absolute man that euer liued both for ability in vnderstanding abundance in possession and desire in searching to take an exact measure and the â—tmost extent of the worth and sufficiencie of all creatures and to raise from them the best contentments they could possiblie afford Yet when he had wearied himselfe in the variety of passages of this life and in the book of Eâ—clesiastes becomes a publick penitentiary to the whole Church and to all posterity see his iudgement he vtterly disauowes and disclaimes them all as miserable comforters as meere shadowes and dreames wherin there is no more matter of sound comfort then there is light in the greatest darknesse or taste in the white of an egge He saies of laughter thou art mad and of ioy haâ— is this that thou doest And whereas wisedome and knowledge are the most incomparable treasures this transitorie world hath he saith that in the multitude of wisedome is much griefe and hee that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow And of these and all other things vnder the sunne yea and if to the glory of all created natures were an addition of ten thousand excellencies that neuer man saw or enioyed hee hath pronounced of them all in respect of true happinesse and diuided from the grace and feare of God and a sanctified heart that they are all vanity And if he had staied there it had beene well that argues but a passiue imperfection and a weakenesse of being in the things themselues but they are vexation of spirit Nothing in themselues yet full of power and actiuity to inflict vengeance and vexaâ—ion vpon the spirit of a man The spirit of a man being sound in sincerity and seconded with a good conscience is able to beare out his infirmities and all the miseries incident to his nature It is able to passe by with a resolute and contented patience the lying imputations of the prophanest malice It is able by the grace of God to encounter with the terrors of death and the fearefulnesse of the graue yea to endure with a gratious humility euen the prâ—sence of God and Angels at that great day But a wounded and an afflicted spirit who can beare If the eye bee darke how great is that darkenâ—sse If the spirit of a man which should refresh all the faculties of
which is a horrible and feareful curse euen esteeme them foolishnes The third reason shall be taken from the example of Nicodemus Iohn 3. Nicodemus I am perswaded was an honest and an ingenuous man I am sure he was a great man and a teacher of Israel yet when he comes out of his ciuill honestie and naturall wisdome to reason and confer with Christ about the saluation of his soule and eternall happinesse hee is strangely childish and a meere infant For when Christ tels him Except a man be borne againe he cannot see the kingdome of God he replies How can a man be borne which is old can he enter into his mothers wombe againe and be borne A replie which may breed an astonishment in all that shall euer reade this story vnderstandingly vnto the worlds end nay it seemes to seeme strange to Christ himselfe by his interrogatiue admiration afterward Art thou a teacher of Israel and knowest not these things And no maruell for who would think that one of the best of the Pharises a ruler of the Iews a profest Doctor in the Law and the Prophets and one carefull to saue his soule should be so grossely and palpably ignorant in a most materiall and necessarie point of saluation especially hauing many times no doubt read it in Moses and the Prophts Amongst many places he might see Ezech. 36.26.27 most cleerely laid downe the great and glorious worke of our new birth A new heart also will I giue you and a new spirit will I put within you and I will take the stony hart out of your body and I will giue you a heart of flesh c. But when he comes from teaching and reading of this and the like places to be examined in the practise and experimentall feeling of these graces of regeneration vpon his owne soule why hee talkes of a man that is old entring againe into his mothers wombe from whence he should certainely returne with a doubled pollution and corruption of nature and once more the child of Satan then he was before But so it is where the hart is not seasoned with sauing grace let the vnderstanding be neuer so great with swelling knowledge the practicall powers of the soule neuer so pregnant with wisdome and policie and perfected with morall vertues yet there is nothing to be expected from that man in matters and mysteries of saluation but darkenes and blindnesse childishnesse and stupiditie Fourthly the young man in the Gospell may be a fit instance for our present purpose He was vnreprooueable in the externall iustice and outward obseruances of the second table wherein ciuill honesty doth principally consist but how farre hee was from inward sanctification the state of grace and happinesse of Gods children appeares in the story For when the sacred and powerfull words of our blessed Sauior had insinuated into the secrets of his soule and strucke at his sweet sinne of couetousnesse the young man is presently cast into a fit of melancholie Christ is too precise a preacher for him he cannot digest such a strict and seuere course he will not abandon his pleasures of worldlinesse his palaces his possessions to follow Christ the Lord of heauen and earth in this life though he assure him of the rich treasures of eternall blessednes in the life to come When the young man heard that saying he went away sorrowfull for he had great possessions Whereby we may see that a man may be ciuilly honest and vncensurable in outward workes of iustice and yet harbour and nourish some close corruptions and sweet sinne in his heart from which rather then he will part he will lose his part in Christ the bottomlesse fountaine of endlesse ioies and comforts and his portion of vnualuable glory in the new Ierusalem This point being thus manifest for conclusion I will lay downe certaine differences betwixt the righteousnesse of faith and sanctification and the righteousnesse of ciuil honestie that a man may haue some directions to examine his soule and conscience in this respect First the fountaine and originall of righteousnesse of faith is the sanctifying Spirit of God I call it the sanctifying spirit because the spirit of God may by a generall influence concur to the illumination of the vnderstanding with knowledge and a ciuill reformation of the wil euen in the vnregenerate but the sanctifying spirit by the miraculous operatiue of sauing grace doth purge and mortifie the inmost affections plant iustifying faith in the heart renew al the powers of the soule and reinuest them in some good measure with the blessed image of holinesse and integritie which they lost in Adam But the cause and fountaine of righteousnesse of ciuill honesty may bee goodnesse of constitution and ingenuousnesse whereby a man may not be so apt and inclinable to notorious sinnes or want of trials and prouocations or feare of lawes and temporall punishments or desire of reputation and rising or a vaine hope to stay Gods iudgements for inward corruptions by ciuill outwardnesse or at best the restraining Spirit of God by which hee doth onely represse the furies and outrages of the wicked and reduce them to some moderation and honestie for the quiet of his Elect and conseruation of Kingdomes For if God did not put his hooke into the nostrils of prophane men and his bridle into their lippes euery one of them sith euery man hath in his corrupt nature the seedes of all sinnes that euer haue are or may be committed I say euery one of them might become a cruell Senacherib a railing Shemei a traiterous Iudas a bloodie Bonner an hellish Fawkes fierce Woolues and Lions against the sillie and innocent Lambes of Christs fold Secondly righteousnesse of ciuill honestie in outward actions may make a colourable pretence of pietie and vprightnes but indeed hath many secret relations to pleasures to friends to profit to preferments to reuengement to passions partialities and euents and such like by-respects not easilie discernable but by him whose eies are tenne thousand times brighter then the Sunne But righteousnesse of faith hath in all actions for the maine scope and principall end the glory and honour of God and if infirmitie doe sometimes distaine them with some mixture and adherence of respects for who can say my heart is cleane euen the purest actions are mixt with some spice of corruptions it workes in the faithfull soule much griefe sorrow striuing against repentance and humiliation Thirdly righteousnesse of faith doth labour watchfully religiously and conscionably in that particular calling wherein Gods prouidence hath placed a man and in all the parts and speciall duties of godlinesse and obedience But ciuill honesty wanders in the generalities of religion and many times in impertinent vnsetled and vnlimited courses Fourthly righteousnesse of faith doth striue with greatest earnestnesse and contention of spirit for spirituall comfort and a good conscience before God But ciuill honestie is fully and finally satisfied with credit and plausiblenesse amongst men Fifthly
ciuill honestie makes no great conscience of smaller sinnes as lying lesser oathes gaming prophane iesting idlenesse and pastime on the Sabbath day and the like But righteousnesse of faith hauing a sensible feeling of the heauie weight of sinne from those anguishes which the conscience felt before the infusion of faith and being still stung with a checke and smart for all kind of transgressions doth seasonably and proportionablie hate and make resistance to all knowne sinnes Sixthly ciuill honestie doth not vse to make opposition against the sinnes of the time but is euen willing to be caried with the streame onely vpon more faire and probable tearmes then notorious sinfulnesse and therefore will goe on and encourage a man in godly courses and good causes vntill he meet with either a wound to his state a disgrace to his person a disturbance to his pleasures an imputation to his forwardnesse a stop to his preferments losse of friends imminencie of danger or any such crosse and discouragement and then it teacheth him to step backe as a man ready to tread vpon a serpent and to start aside like a broken â—ow But righteousnesse of faith doth stand out for the honour of God and ordinarily goes thorow stitch in good causes come what come can crosses or calumniations good report or euill report men or diuels For it is compleatly armed with confidence of future happinesse and hath sixt the eye vpon the crowne of immortality which if heauen and earth conspired they were not able to pull it out of his hand that reserues it in the heauens for all those that sight a good fight that keepe the faith and run with constancie the race of sanctification The next point of the negatiue part of my doctrine is formall hypocrisie Which that you may more cleerely vnderstand consider with me three kinds of hypocrisie priuy hypocrisie grosse hypocrisie formal hypocrisie Priuie hypocrisie is that by which a man makes profession of more then is in his hart And this somtimes doth mixe it self euen with the fairest and most sanctified actions of Gods dearest children and doth soonest insinuate into a hart stored with the rich treasures of true godlines For Satan if he cannot detain a mans soule in notorious sinfulnes in meere ciuil honestie or formality but that by the sacred inspirations of Gods good spirit it is pulled out of the mouth of hell from the slauery of sin and courses of darkenes into the glorious light liberty of Christs kingdom he is inraged with fierce and implacable furie doth euer certainly with eager pursuit persecute that soule both by his owne immediate malice and by the cruell agencie of prophane men And if so be he cannot procure a scandalous relapse into grâ—sse sins yet that he may in some measure worke the dishonour of God and the discomfort of his noblest creature the two maine ends of all the policies of hell hee doth labour to distaine the pure streames of diuine grace in the soule puddle of our corrupted nature and at least to fasten the spots of priuie hypocrisie vpon the best actions and the very face of innocency This hypocrisie as I take it ariseth from spirituall pride For when a godly man by the great worke of regeneration is become more excellent then his neighbour as indeed he incomparablie is howsoeuer the worlds estimation be otherwise Because the one is as yet a limme of Satan receiuing from him the cursed influence of scule pollutions of vncleannes and lying of malice and reuenge of pride and prophanenes c The other is already a blessed member of Christs mysticall body continually inspired with holy motions and the life of grace The one lies polluted in his owne blood encompassed with the menstruous clouts of loathsome corruptions of all natures except onely the diuell and his angels the most wretched and woefull of the familie of hell heire of horrour and desolation The other by the immortall seed of the pure and powerfull word of God is made partaker of the diuine nature clothed with the rich and vnualuable robe of Christs iustice guarded with an inuincible troope of heauenly Angels iustly intituled to a kingdome of vnconceiueable glory and pleasures moe then the starres of the firmament in number The one is a wrongfull vsurper of the riches honours and preferments of this life for which hereafter hee must be condemned to chaines of eternall darkenes and a dungeon of endlesse miserie and confusion the other while he continues in this world is a rightfull owner and possessor of the earth and all the creatures and blessings of God and when hee departs hence he shall bee made a glorious inhabitant of those sacred mansions where constant peace vnmixed ioyes and blessed immortality euen for euer and euer doe dwell Which great difference when the godly man perceiues and his owne prerogatiues he is filled with a strange and ioyfull amazement and admiration at his owne happinesse which Satan seeing who is perfectly experienced in all aduantages and opportunities for spirituall assaults and working vpon the reliques of mans proud nature doth cunningly draw him to aduance aboue that which is meet within himselfe in his owne opinion the worth of his owne graces and vertues Which that he may conuey and reprâ—sent to the view of the world with an excellencie proportionable to his owne ouerweening conceite he is forced to admit the secret and insensible poyson of priuie hypocrisie which he doth more easily at the first entertaine because the pestilencie and bitternesse thereof is not discernable by reason of the predominancie and sweetnesse of the fresh present graces of Gods spirit in his soule But when by afflictions or disgraces by some extraordinary temptation or particular checkes from the Ministery of the word the vglinesse of it is discouered to his conscience hee for euer abhorres it as a consuming canker that would fret out the very heart of grace and extinguish the life of sincerity and therefore with much humiliation and feruencie doth pray against it striue against it and by the mercies of God preuaile against it This kind of Hypocrisie belongs not to my present purpose onely by the way let mee giue aduertisement to the child of God for to him onely I speake in this point to the end he may keepe his heart vnblameable in holinesse and preserue the true relish and sound ioy of good actions entire and vndistempered that he would strongly fence his heart with a gracious and vnfained humility against priuie pride the mother of this hypocrisie as against a close vndermining and a most dangerous enemie and the more seriously and watchfully for these reasons partly drawne from the nature of the sinne and partly from the state of his soule From the nature of the sinne First other sinnes grow from poysonous and pestilent roots as Adulterie from idlenesse Faction from discontent Murder from malice Iesting out of the word of God from a a prophane heart the
Killing of soules from nonresidency Enuie and flatterie from a base and vnmanly weakenes of minde Violent ambition from a distrustfull independency vpon God Scorning of godlinesse from a reprobate sense but this sinne springetâ— from a faire and vnsuspected fountaine euen from zeale godly duties and good actions Secondly other grosse sinnes spread themselues vniuersally ouer the whole corrupt masse of all the sons of men but this doth single out the chosen of God and takes vp his seate in the sanctified soule Thirdly this sinne doth vnauoidably wind it selfe into the heart of a man with a slie and peculiar kind of insinuation For when a godly man for a good action or inward grace doth seeme to disclaime pride in his conscience hee may be proud that he is not proud euen of his humilitie and that he is able to descrie his pride and corruptions more then others can doe So endlesse are the mazes of Satans circular temptations Fourthlie there is no depth of knowledge no measure of grace no eminencie of zeale can bee exempted from hazard of surprisal by this last and most cunning encounter of Satan by priuie pride Paul that great instrument of Gods greatest glorie in whom there was a matchlesse concurrence of diuine graces and varietie of all manner of afflictions notable meanes to keepe the heart of man in humilitie yet lest hee should be exalted out of measure through the abundance of reuelations there was giuen vnto him a pricke in the flesh the messenger of Satan to buffet him Reasons taken from the state of the regenerate soule are these First let the best and most mortified man turne the eie of his conscience from the fruitlesse and dangerous speculations of his owne worthinesse and fasten it a while vpon his corruptions and infirmities vpon his many deficiences in religious duties and executions of his calling wants and weaknesses in prayer and inward deuotion his dulnesse and vncheerefulnes in religious exercises his omissions of seruices and occasions for the enlarging of the Kingdome of Christ his cold and sometimes cowardly prosecution of good causes his now and then slinking from a bold profession of sinceritie for feare of the vaine and wretched imputations of worldlings c. and out of this consideration he will be so farre from selfe-conceitednesse and a partiall ouerualuing of his owne gifts and vertues that hee will find much matter and iust cause to renew his repentance to stand vpon his guard against spirituall pride to continue and encrease his humiliation to double his zeale and resolution for the glorifying of God and subduing his owne secret corruptions Secondly let him consider how before his calling hee marched furiously and desperately vnder Satans colours in the pursuite of pleasures vanities and worldly honours with how resolute hatred and contempt he opposed against sinceritie and sauing grace as against needlesse precisenesse and folly how fearelesly and how farre he ran in the paths of iniquitie and the sinful passages of the kingdome of darkenes where no reward was to be expected but shame and miserie But after it pleased the Lord to place his Angell in the way to stop the torrent of his impieties and to set his sacred word before his eies as a glorious light to direct him in the waies of righteousnesse let him remember how often hee hath started aside for false and imaginarie feares how often hee hath stumbled euen in the euen path through his own heedlesnesse how often hee hath stood still in his way either gazing on the painted and lying glory of the world or listening to the allurements and deceitfull charmes of his owne flesh Nay how sometimes he hath bin inforced to retire by some cunning traine and malicious stratageme of Satan So that since his conuersion hee hath but run faintly and slowly and won little ground in the race of godlinesse although there be set before him the price of â— â— high calling the highest aduancement of the soule fulnesse of ioy and the pretious treasures of immortalitie And if he demurre a while soundly vpon this point he may for euer feare lest a selfe-liking of his owne excellencie be iustly plagued with a scandalous fall into some grosse sinne which besides it owne particular sting will vnto his great discomfort awake the old sinnes of his vnregeneration like so many sleeping Lions with open mouthes to charge afresh vpon the conscience with new terrors and fearefull vexations Thirdly let the godly Christian looke vp at the liberall and mercifull hand of God which out of the bottomlesse depth of his owne bountie hath reached vnto him whatsoeuer gifts he hath whether of bodie or mind of honours or outward possessions of nature or grace and he shall find far greater reason to be continually grieued and humbled that the bright and vnspotted beames of Gods sanctifying Spirit are soulely darkened and lessened in his body of death then to be exalted in his owne conceit in that it hath pleased God of his meere and free mercie to illighten the darkenes of his heart without which supernaturall illumination he should haue liued in blindnesse and miserably vntil death and after this life bin cast out into vtter darkenesse and remedilesse desolation Fourthly let him take heed how he harbors and nourishes this viper of spirituall pride in the bosome of his soule lest it taking vnseasonable heate and warmth from his zeale endanger the whole frame of his new man Either by perswading him to embrace some groundlesse singularitie of vnwarrantable opinions which by reason of his vertues will spread more plausibly and by consequent more dangerously For a perswasion of integritie is not onely a motiue to roote an opinion deepely in a mans owne apprehension but also a meanes to make it more currant and passable with the admirers of his graces Or else this spirituall pride may by Gods iust iudgement draw vpon him a deadnesse of heart a dulnes of zeale an intermission of operations of grace which the child of God doth infinitly more feare then any affliction or crosse that can possibly befall him from prophane men either vpon his body or state or good name These reasons may iustly mooue euery faithfull Christian with much earnestnesse and prayer to labour after and settle surely in his heart a true and vndissembled humilitie as the onely soueraigne meanes to preserue the life and vigour of his graces in his owne soule their fruit and benefit to others their blessing and acceptation with God and with the watchfullest eie of his spirituall wisdome to hold in perpetuall iealousie the cunning sleights and windings of this insinuatiue sinne of priuie pride that both so pestilent a canker may be kept out of the soule and the passage may be stopt to priuie hypocrisie with which I told you before Satan doth endeauor with might and maine to discomfort and disgrace the actions and exercises euen of the child of God The second kind of hypocrisie is grosse hypocrisie by which a
that brings him a message of ioy and comfort He may esteeme the negligent or no hearers of the word of God as prophane and of feared consciences which do not onely abandon the necessary meanes of saluation but that they may with more securitie and absolutenesse reape in this life what sensuall profit or pleasure soeuer the world yeeldeth endeuour to banish and extinguish all thought and notice of heauen or holinesse The word of God by this temporary faith and other graces may worke such a change in him as is called the vncleane spirits going out of a man Matth. 12.43 A flying from the pollutions of the world 2. Pet. 2.20 A washing 2. Pet. 2.32 And may haue such power vpon him that he may doe many things therafter Herod is said to haue reuerenced Iohn to haue heard him gladly and to haue done many things Marke 6.20 To these for illustration and because we are hereafter to consider their differences from a true entire and vniuersall sanctification we may adde those fiue degrees incident to the reprobate Heb. 6. First hee may bee illightened in his vnderstanding with some glimpses of heauenly light Secondly he may haue some taste in his heart of the heauenly gift Thirdly he may be made partaker of the holy Ghost the authour and fountaine of all graces He may in some measure enioy the good word of God the glorious instrument of the conuersion of soules He may haue some taste and feeling euen of the powers of the world to come Nay and besides all these that which nailes him fast vnto formalitie and makes him with contentment to walke in a plodding course of outward profession is a perswasion that he is already in the way of life when as yet hee neuer entred no not the very first step vnto it For indeed he may be perswaded though from false and mistaken grounds that he is rich in heauenly things and hath need of nothing and that he is already possessed of the kingdome of grace intituled to the kingdome of glory and yet bee most wretched and miserable and poore and blind and naked His state in this case being not vnlike the dreame of a poore or hungry man which in his sleepe filleth himselfe with varietie of dainties or tumbles himselfe amid his rich treasures and heapes of gold but when he awaketh behold he is faint his soule longeth and he embraceth nothing but emptines and aire yea and besides the very imaginary fruition of his supposed happinesse when he is awaked encreaseth his languishing and doubles the sense of his necessities Euen so the formall hypocrite in this life dreames of much comfort to come makes sure of heauen thinkes himselfe the onely man his 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as the Apostles calles it his forme of godlinesse in his conceit is the onely true state of saluation whatsoeuer is short of him is prophanenesse whatsoeuer is aboue him is precisenesse But when vpon his deaths bed hee awaketh and hath his conscience illightned and his particular sinnes reuealed vnto him in stead of catching a crowne of glorie which he hath vainely possest in his hopefull securitie he graspeth nothing but feare and amazement anguish and sorrow Yea and now his former false perswasion of his happie state enlargeth the gulfe of his despaire and makes him more sensible of his present and vnexpected miseries Giue me leaue I beseech you to enlarge this point and to acquaint you with some reasons of this perswasion For a false perswasion of alreadie being in the state of grace is a barre that keeps thousands from the state of grace indeed The good spirit of God you know doth perswade euerie regenerate man by a sweet and silent inspiration out of a consideration of an vniuersall change and sanctification and present sinceritie in all the powers and parts of his soule and body calling that he is most certainly in the state of grace and heire of heauen Whence spring perpetually whole riuers of vnspeakeable comfort that most then refresh his soule when hee is neerest to bee ouerwhelmed of the maine Ocean of the worlds bitternesse and pressures In a lying resemblance to this sacred worke of the holie Ghost in the hearts of Gods children Satan lest he be wanting to his puts on the glory of an angell of light and insinuateth into the imagination of the formall hypocrite some flashes of comfort and conceites that he is in state of grace and shall be saued Whence issues a cursed security a wretched opposition to more sinceritie then he finds in himselfe a slumber and benummednes of conscience an impatiencie of hauing his formalitie censured by the ministerie of the word a neglect of a more sound search into the state of his soule For Satan in his Angelicall forme tels him that more strictnesse and purity is but onely a proud hypocrisie and pretence of such as affect a transcendencie aboue the ordinarie degrees of holines and bids him take heed of being too busie and pragmaticall in taking notice of euery small corruption and infirmitie for tendernes of conscience and a too nice apprehensiuenes of euery little sinne will vncomfortablie enchaine him to Melancholy Vnsociablenes and some degrees of despaire And howsoeuer saith Satan some Preachers of preciser humour out of their vnhallowed zeale and censorious austerity breath out nothing against thee but fire and brimstone indignation and wrath damnation and horrour yet take not these things to heart but let such peremptorie comminations passe as malicious thunderbolts discharged from too fierie spirits begot by indiscreet heate and directed to priuate ends Thus this wilie serpent cries peace peace vnto his soule when God knowes there is no peace towards but noise and tumbling of garments in blood and burning and deuouring of fire The conscience indeed may bee asleepe for a while like a fierce wild beast gathering vigour and puissance that being awaked by the hand of God at the approch of sicknesse or death may more implacably rent deuoure and torment for euer But I come to the grounds of this persuasion I told yee before that the spirit of God assures his children that they are in state of grace out of a consideration of an vniuersall sincerity in all their waies But Satan for his children hath other reasons which I conceiue to be such as these First the formall hypocrite is notablie confirmed that his state is good when he compares himselfe with those which are more sinfull as Murderers Adulterers Drunkards Prophaners of the Sabbath Vsurers Swearers Liers Iesters out of the word of God and fellowes of such notorious ranke But if besides the disclaiming of these his conscience bee able to informe him of his ciuill honesty externall iustice some workes of charity c. why then the matter is put out of all controuersie and he presently canonized a saint in his owne conceite You may see his picture in the 18. of Luke O God I thanke thee that I am not as
with some extraordinarie terror Let those then examine themselues at this marke who howsoeuer shame keepe them from vncleane practises and grosser acts of filthines yet inwardly boyle in speculatiue wantonnesse and adulteries of the heart Those who howsoeuer their indirect meanes speed not for mounting themselues to high estate yet spend their best thoughts all their life long in proiecting and contriuing as though they were borne to aduance themselues and not to honour God in their â—allings Those who though they doe not enclose oppresse and grind the faces of the poore yet haue their hearts exercised in couetousnes Those who though they haue forsakeÌ„ some sins yet maintain in themselues one known sweet sinne Those who though lawes and feare of danger restraine from railing with open mouthes against our State yet harbour secret repinings murmurings vnthankfulnesse and discontentments Euen a contemptuous thought of a king or lawfull authority is a sinne of high nature and me thinkes for the miraculousnesse of the discouerie is paralleld in Ecclesiastes to the bloodinesse of actuall murther That which hath wings saith the Preacher shall declare the matter Lastly let those examine themselues at this marke who offer themselues to those sinfull occasions breeders of many strange and fearefull mischiefes I meane prophane and obscene Playes Pardon me beloued I cannot passe by those abominable spectacles without particular indignation For I did euer esteeme them since I had any vnderstanding in the waies of God the Grand empoysoners of grace ingenuousnes and all manly resolution Greater plagues and infections to your soules then the contagious pestilence to your bodies The inexpiable staine and dishonour to this famous City The noisome wormes that canker and blast the generous and noble buds of this land and doe by a slie and bewitching insinuation so empoyson all seeds of vertue and so weaken and emasculate all the operations of the soule with a prophane if not vnnaturall dissolutenes that whereas they are planted in these worthie houses of Law to be fitted and enabled for great and honourable actions for the publicke good and the continuance of the glory and happinesse of this kingdome they licentiously dissolue into wicked vanities and pleasures and all hope of their euer doing good either vnto God the Church their Countrie or owne soules melteth as the winter ice and floweth away as vnprofitable waters These infamous spectacles are condemned by all kind of sound learning both diuine and humane Distinctions deuised for their vpholding and defence may giue some shallow and weake contentment to partiall and sensuall affections possest with preiudice but how shall they be able to satisfie and secure a conscience sensible of all appearance of euill How can they preserue the inclinablenesse of our corrupt nature from infection at those Schooles of leaudnes and Sâ—nkes of all sins as to omit Diuines Councels Fathers Moralists because the point is not directly incident euen a Polititian calleth them Alas are not our wretched corruptions raging and fierie enough being left to themselues dispersed at their naturall liberty but they must be vnited at these accursed Theaters as in a hollow glasse to set on flame the whole body of our natural vitiousnesse at once and to enrage it further with lust fiercenesse and effeminatenes beyond the compasse of nature Doth any man thinke it possible that the power of sauing grace or the pure spirit of God can reside in his hart that willingly with ful consent seeds his inward concupiscence with such variety of sinfulll vanities and leaud occasions which the Lord himselfe hath pronounced to be an abomination vnto him How can any man that euer felt in his hart either true loue or feare of so dreadfull a Maiestie as the Lord of heauen and earth endure to be present especially with delight and contentment at Oathes Blasphemies Obscenities and the abusing sometimes of the most pretious things in the booke of God whereat wee should tremble to most base and scurrill iests Certainely euery child of God is of a right noble and heroicall spirit and therfore is most impatient in hearing any wrong indignitie or dishonour offered to the word name or glory of his Almightie Father A second marke of difference may be this The power of sauing grace doth subdue and sanctifie our affections with a conscionable and holy moderation so that they become seruiceable to the glory of God and for a more resolute cariage of good causes and zealous discharge of all Christian duties But the bridling of passions in the formall hypocrite is not so much of conscience as artificiall politique for aduantage and by the guidance of morall discretion so that if they be tempted by strong occasions and violent obiects they many times breake out to the dishonour of God the disgrace of a Christian profession and the discouery of their hypocrisie Let euery man then examine himselfe at this marke and with a single eye and vpright heart take a view of his affections whether his ioy be inward and spirituall that is in the assurance of Gods fauour in his word in his children in prayer and a continuall practise of godlinesse or outward and caâ—uall that is in the attainement of greatnesse and woâ—dly pleasures in the increase of his corne and wine and oile Whether he loue the peace of conscience farre more deâ—rely then the fauour of men or his owne life Whether hee bee more zealous for the honour and praise of God then his owne Whether he be more affraid of secret sinnes then open shame of offending God then outward afflictions Whether he be more angry in the cause of religion and concerning Gods glory or for his owne priuat wrongs And so thorow out the rest of his affections Let the fierce and desperate gallants consider this point which vpon euery light occasion and termes of disgrace are ready out of a graceles vngrounded opinion of declining cowardize to sheath their swords in the bodie of their brother And let them assure themselues that the meeke and mercifull spirit of God will neuer consist with such bloodie and vntamed affections his holy motions will not come into their secret neither will his sauing grace be ioyned with their assembly For in their wrath they will kill a man and in their selfe-will they will destroy the image of God Cursed bee their wrath for it is fierce and their rage for it is cruell Oh that they would but marke and foresee into what an ineuitable and endlesse maze of certaine misery and vengeance they enter when they enter into the field vpon either offer or acceptance of challenge If they be slaine they are accessaries to their owne vntimely murder They violentlie and wilfully pull themselues from the land of the liuing to the abhorred regions of death They cruelly and irrecouerably rent their owne poore soules from time of grace and repentance They extinguish all hope of posteritie and perhaps their house and family determines in
of sinner but fully as soule and abominable For if we could look into his heart though his outward life be ordered smoothly and ciuilly yet we should see within a bloody slaughter-house of malice crueltie and reuenge an hateful stewes of impure imaginations and adulteries of the heart a forge of much mischiefe of furious and fierie rage against the power of grace an insatiable gulfe of greedie desires for wealth and riches for vndeserued respect and reuerence in the world indeed a cage of all vncleane and rauenous birds Here is only the differeÌ„ce the notorious sinner dares act and execute the abominations of his hart in the sight of the Sun but the grosse hypocrite would gladly sinne vnseene and go to hell with as little noise and notice of the world as may be and therefore he drawes a curtaine of cosenage and hypocrisie betwixt the sight of the world and foulenesse of his sinne In the hearts of Ahab and Iezebel was nothing but blood and murder couetousnesse oppression and mercilesse enclosure onely vpon the vgly visages of these soule fiends they put a vizard of a fast formall witnesses and legall proceeding The ordinarie thoughts then of the grosse hypocrite are the same as vile and hellish as those of the notorious sinner Nay he doubles his iniquitie and addes waight â—o the vengeance preparing for him in that he straines the vtmost veine of his wit and founds the depth of his damned policie to clothe them with faire pretences and colourable shifts as they passe and present themselues vnto the world in words and actions and in that he labours to seeme a Saint while he is in truth an incarnat diuell But the thoughts of the formall hypocrite for with him I am specially to deale I haue onely added in this point the notorious sinner and grosse hypocrite for further distinction and illustration I say his thoughts as they come certainly short of true sanctification so they are farre better then these now mentioned For we suppose his heart to be seasoned with goodnesse of nature and ciuill honesty to haue tasted of the generall graces of Gods spirit and in some sort of the powers of the world to come and therefore his thoughts are more faire ingenuous sober and moderate then those soule and hateful ones of the notorious sinner and grosse hypocrite His heart will rise and be affrighted with suggestions of infamous consequence and markeable horror as those of Atheisme Crueltie Drunkennesse Adulterie Herâ—sie and such like but notwithstanding because it is not softned and sanctified by speciall grace without much scruple or conscience it will let the imaginations loose to much idlenesse and vanitie to many fruitlesse conceits impertinencies and prophane wandrings but especially into the endlesse maze of worldly cares earthlymindednes For he doth in some sort in his practise approue and iustifie that wicked and pestilent prouerb Thoughts are free They are free indeed in respect of obnoxiousnes to humane iustice in respect of discouerie and danger from any creature but the eie and vengeance of heauen takes first and speciall notice of them and holds them punishable as the principals and chiefe plotters of al transgressions Words and actions are as it were sinnes at second hand the very first life and freshest vigour of all ill is immediately receiued and inspired into the thoughts Hence it is that Peter aduiseth Simon Magus to pray God if it were possible that the thought of his heart might be forgiuen him as though there lay the greatest guilt and deepest staine before God By the way before I passe to the thoughts of Gods child obserue one speciall marke of difference in this point betwixt the true Christian and formall hypocrite The formall hypocrite doth euer harbour and maintaine in himselfe one sweet pleasing bosome sinne or other as voluptuousnes worldlinesse a greedy pursuit of temporall felicitie an excessiue desire of greatnesse and note in the world an opposition to sinceritie a delight in good fellowship or some such like carnall contentment or secret sinne on which his mind most runs whereupon the best and the flower the feruency and dearenes of his thoughts are spent Gods word honor and seruice checkes of conscience motions of the spirit ministrie of the word admonition of friends saluation of soule by an vnreasonable and inconsequent discourse of his sensuall reason are all made subordinate and seruiceable to this Idoll To which with much delight he daily sacrificeth the noblest and immediate workes and issues of his soule As for the state of his conscience spirituall affaires care of heauen that One necessarie thing these things take vp his thoughts but at reuersion by starts by accident and when they come into the heart their entertainement is very cold and strange their abode short and while they stay they are apprehended and enioyed with much wearinesse and weaknesse I conceiue this to be the reason Hee hath a full taste and present feeling of the pleasures of his sweet sinne hee hath sensible and certaine possession of worldly contentments but no reall and sound assurance by sauing faith and his forsaking all sinne of the ioyes and comforts aboue and therefore doth greedily follow and feed vpon the present with consent of his erring iudgement delight of heart the best of his affections and most of his thoughts And as for hereafter sith he is conscious to himselfe of an honest ciuill life of a sober formall cariage in the affaires of religion and that he is not infamous with any notoriousnesse in the world but as good as the best a few precise fellowes of purer straine onely excepted whose pretence and profession of extraordinary sanctity is nothing in his conceit but humour and hypocrisie he therefore I say for hereafter referres himselfe at all aduentures vnto the mercy of God and to the lot and condition of many thousands which are in the same case and state with himselfe But it is otherwise with Gods child For by the power of sanctifying grace as hee hath also mortified all other so specially he hath broke the very heart of the sweete sinne of his vnregeneration And as in a besieged citie where the greatest and most dangerous breach is made there the inhabitants concurre with chiefest care and highest resolution to fortifie and make resistance euen so sith he knowes and feeles that before his calling his delightfull and darling sinne most fearefully wasted his soule and wounded his conscience hee makes sure to imploy his thoughts with speciall edge and indignation to countermine preuent resist abominate and abandon all thought of that sinne And now by the grace of God sitâ— the heart the fountaine is purged and sanctified the streame and heate of their intention and delight is caried another way For he hath found that rich and inestimable Treasure in the Gospell and therfore he sels all that he hath he parts with euery pleasure he casts out of his conceit whatsoeuer hath beene formerly deare
if such an one as these should bee chosen by my default and faintheartednesse I should in some sort and measure be iustly guiltie and answerable before that high and euerlasting Iudge of the many miseries and mischiefes which ordinarily ensue vpon so vnhappie a choice Hereupon after a mature and impartiall suruay of all circumstances considerable in the partie the statute and whole businesse he singles out him with sinceritie and singlenesse of heart whom in conscience he thinks most sufficient and there hee stickes with a truely Christian and vnshaken resolution pitcht by the verie power and strength of heauen and come what come will tempests or faire weather preferment or pouertie threatnings or flatterie policie or persuasion priuate importunities or frownings of Greatnesse he is at a point infinitely rather to keepe a good conscience and saue his soule then to enioy the present and gaine the whole world For hee well knowes that the day is at hand euen that great and fearefull Day when the consciousnesse of one gratious action performed with vprightnesse of heart will breed more comfort then the glory riches and soueraignty of the whole earth To conclude this point As vnregenerate and sanctified thoughts differ much in their workings euen about the same Obiects so there are some which are Gods childs peculiar with which the state of vnregeneration is vtterly vnacquainted They are such as these First thoughts full of scare and astonishment all hell and horrour which rise out of the heart when it is first stricken with sense of Gods wrath at the sight of his sinnes These are scorched in verie manie euen with the flames of hell in their conuersion They burne sometimes the verie marrow out of their bones and turne the best moysture in them into the drought of Summer No print or skarre of these wofull and wounded thoughts appeare in the heart of the formall hypocrite This hell vpon earth is onely passed thorow by the heires of heauen while the children of hell haue commonlie their heauen vpon earth 2 Secondly thoughts composed al of pure comfort ioy heauen immortalitie the sweet and louely issues of the spirit of adoption These flow onely from the fountaine of grace and spring vp in that soule alone which hauing newly passed the strange agonies and sore pangs of the new-birth is presently bathed in the blood of Christ lulled in the bosome of Gods dearest mercies and secured with the seale and secret impression of his eternall loue and sacred spirit not only from the rage of hell but also of an euerlasting and roiall inheritance aboue Oâ— the heart of the vnregenerate man is farre too narrow base and earthy to comprehend the vnmixed pleasureâ— the glorious Sunshine of those blessed and ioyfull thoughts which immediatelie follow vpon the stormes of feares and terrour ordinarily incident to a sound conuersion 3 Thirdly thoughts of spirituall rauishment and vnutterable rapture slashes of eternall light raised sometimes in the hearts of the Saints and occasionally inspired by the Spirit of all endlesse comfort which with vnconceiueable amazement and admiration feed vpon and fill themselues with the ioies of the second life in such an vncouth extasie and excesse as is farre aboue and without the compasse and concâ—it of all worldly comforts the tongue of Angels or heart of man In this point I appeale to the conscience of the true Christian for I know full well that all my Discourse is a parable and paradoxe to the prophane whether hee hath not sometimes as it were a sea of comfort rained vpon his heart in a sweet shower from heauen and such a sensible taste of the euerlasting pleasures by the glorious presence of inward ioy and peace as if he had the one foot in heauen alreadie and with the one hand had laid hold vpon the crown of life especially after a zealous heate feeling feruencie in praier after an entire gracious and profitable sanctifictation of the Sabbath at the time of some great and extraordinarie humiliation entertaind and exercised with fruit and sinceritie when he hath freshly with deepest groanes and sighes and new struglings of spirit renewed his repentance vpon occasion of relapse into some old or fall into some new sin when the empoisoned arrowes of cruell and fierie tongues pointed with malice policy and prophanenesse come thickest vpon him and yet retyring into his owne innocent heart he finds no cause of such mercilesse vexation but defence of Gods truth and profession of holinesse Nay sometimes vpon on the deaths-bed to a soule conscious of an vpright and vnspotted life the ioies of heauen present themselues before the time so longing a sympathy is there betwixt the life of grace and endles glory Such like ioyfull springings and heauenly eleuations of hart as these which I haue now mentioned are the true Christians peculiar no stranger can meddle with them no heart can conceiue them but that which is the Temple of Gods pure and blessed Spirit Thus farre of the difference of their thoughts in respect of their nature and manner of working Now in a second place Gods child is notably differenced from the formall hypocrite by the seasonablenesse of his thoughts and their holy seruing the time In a body of best and exactest constitution the senses are quicke and nimble and sharpliest discerne with greatest life and vigour apprehend their obiects and are most sensibly affected or displeased with their conuenience or antipathy Euen so in a hart of a true spiritual temper seasoned and softned with the dew of grace the thoughts are actiue readie and addrest with zeale contentment to encline and apply themselues to the condition of the times and varietie of occasions offered for some holy vse to the bettering of the soule and the enlarging of Gods glory In the time of fasts sackcloth if Gods iudgements be threatned out of the Pulpit or executed from heauen when the Church weares her mourning weed sincerity droupes and the godly hang down their heades in such blacke and dismall daies they are impatient of all temporall comfort they willingly put on sadnesse to entertaine penitencie humiliation and sorrow but they are clothed with ioy and lightsomnesse when mercie and saluation are wisely and seasonably proclaimed out of the booke of life when religion spreads and prospers and diuine truth hath free passage when whole States haue escaped the bloodie Papists Gunpowder and the roiall breasts of Kings their empoisoned kniues and in such like ioyful and happy times Thus the thoughts and inmost affections of Gods child haue their changes their seueral seasons and successions as it pleaseth the Lord to offer or execute mercie or iudgement out of his word or in the world abroad But the thoughts of the formall hypocrite though they suffer indeed many alterations and distractions about earthly obiects they ebbe and flow with discontent or comfort as his outward state is fauoured or frowned vpon by the world yet spirituall
the soule with comfortable cheerefulnesse and fill the whole body with a liuely vigour bee it selfe wounded with vexation and terâ—or how comfortlesse is that man Iâ— his strength were the strength of stones and his flesh of brasse yet would the torment of a bitter afflicted soule grinde him to powder and melt as the dew before the sunne whatsoeuer hee accounteth strongest and most powerfull to relieue his heauinesse it would turne all his choisest and dearest pleasures into worme wood and bitternesse And this vâ—xation with which riches honours or what other vanitie desirable in this life doth afflict the vnregenerate heart is twofold In the verie pursuit of them is much anguish many greeuances feares iâ—alousies disgraces interruptions discontentments But after the vnsanctified enioying of them followes the sting of conscience that will euerlastingly vâ—xe the soule which is the very earnest of the fire of hell by which a man doth expect with vnconceiueable horrour the consummation of the wrath of God which burneth farre hotter and more vnquenchably then any fire though augmented with infinite riuers of brimstone to be powred vpon his body and soule for euermore in the world to come How then possibly can there be any happinesse in these vexations Wherefore Salomon hauing proued the negatiue part of my doctrine concludes the positiue in the last chapter That to feare God with reuerent regard to keepe his commandements is the onely way to be possest of true happinesse to find peace of conscience and assurance of the fauor of God For let a man while he will in this world of vanity either sport himselfe in the soft and greene way of fading pleasures or please himselfe in the glorious miseries of honours and high places or tire himselfe in the toyles of vnsatiable greedinesse or braue it in his othes blasphemies and strength of powring in strong drinke or tread the fearefull and desperate path of contempt of the power of religion the truth of God and sincerity of his saints all the while when he is at the best hee is but as the raging sea that cannot rest For so Isaiah compares the wicked Chap. 57.20 The sea you know is not onely many times tossed and tumbled vp and downe with windes and tempests but euer inwardly disquieted euen with her owne motions casting vp continually mire and dirt vpon the shore and breaking into some her proudest waues against the rockes Euen so the heart of that man which hath reposed his affections vpon the glory of this life is not onely many times disquieted and cast downe with outward crosses and occurrents as with losse of friends discountenance of great ones disappointment of his hopes and preferments with wrongfull railings and disgraces with looking vpon the day of his death and vengeance vpon the wicked with all disturbers of his security in his pleasures and dignities but is also besides the restlesse torture of his conscience euer from within foaming out his owne shame the dishonour of God and the vexation of his brethren But it is not so with him that holds the feare of God for his surest sanctuarie that hath resolued to resigne vp himselfe in holy obedience to the will of God His heart is like the vpper part of the world which is euer full of serenitie constancie and brightnesse be the aire below neuer so troubled with stormes and thunders or the earth with commotions and tumults For let there be about him the deuouring sword of the Tyrant the consuming flames of persecution the keene razours of lying tongues the mouthes of Lions the cruell combinations of his enemies nay let the earth be moued and let the mountaines fall into the middest of the sea yet his heart is ioyfull patient resolute and contented But to descend more specially to the particulars of the negatiue part of my Doctrine let me adde to the many and strong reasons of the ancient Philosophers and late Schoolmen against pleasures riches and honours these three which will for euer vtterly disable them for claiming any shew of interest in mans happinesse First they cannot possibly fill the vnlimited desire of the soule For although the treasures the greatnes the delights of all men liuing were in the present possession of one yet somewhat besides and aboue all this there would still bee sought and earnestly thirsted for Nay it is certaine if one man were not onely crowned with the soueraignty of all the kingdomes of the earth but besides were made commander of the motions of the sunne and the glory of the starres yet the restlesse eye of his vnsatisfied vnderstanding would peepe and prie beyond the heauens for some hidden excellencie and supposed felicity which the whole compasse of this created world cannot yeeld So vnquenchable is the thirst of mans soule vntill it bathe it selfe in the riuer of life and in the immeasurable Ocean of goodnesse and wisedome So impossible is it that this materiall world with all her perfections should be a proportionable obiect to so pretious a nature or that so diuine a sparkle should cease rising and aspiring vntill it ioyne it selfe to that infinite flame of glory and maiesty from whence it first issued Secondly they cannot secure the conscience distressed with the apprehension of the wrath of God or preuent his iudgements Memorable is that horrible amazement that surprised the heart of Belshazzar 〈◊〉 his greatest iollities Melting hee was in pleasures and deliciousnesse solacing himselfe amongst his wiues and concubines carousing in the golden and siluer vessels of the Temple But when there appeared fingers of a mans hand which wrote ouer against the Candlesticke vpon the plaister of the wall a remembrancer vnto his conscience how contemptuously and sacrilegiously he had dishonoured the highest Maiestie and that the vials of Gods heauie vengeance were ready to bee powred vpon his head all the ioyes of his royall pompe vanished as the smoke For then the Kings countenance was changed and his thoughts troubled him so that the ioynts of his Ioynes were loosed and his knees smote one against the other And now one pang of his wounded conscience did much more torment him then the kingdome maiestie glory and honour which he receiued from his father Nabuchadnezzar could euer comfort him So I doubt not but many times the hearts of many glorious Ones in this life that are not in trouble like other men but spread themselues as greene bay-trees when they heare the certaine iudgements of God denounced out of his booke by his Ministers against those sinnes to which by long custome and vowed resolution they haue fastned their affections because thereon depend their pleasures honours states reputations contented passing the time or the like I say that many times except their consciences be feared vp with an hote iron against the day of vengeance and then their case is vnspeakably wofull their hearts tremble euen as the trees of the forrest that are shaken with the wind Amid their laughing their hearts are
other men are extortioners vniust adulterers or as this Publican There is his exemption from common prophanenes I fast twice in the weeke I giue tithe of all that I possesse There is his outward iustice and religious solennities But you must not conceiue that the formall hypocrite doth proclaime this in publicke with such grosse and palpable ostentation Nay perhaps when it arises hee lets it not rest long in his owne thoughts left by this vanity his vertues lose their grace and he his comfort But certaine it is a consciousnes of his being free from infamous impieties of his morall honestie performance of outward duties of religion and some inward in some measure though not vniuersally nor to the degree of the children of God is one of the best grounds he hath for his assurance of being in state of saluation Parallel to this of Luke is that Prou. 30. vers 12. There is a generation that are pure in their owne conceit and yet are not washed from their filthinesse That is they imagine their temper of religion their pitch of holinesse their formall Christianity to bee the very right path to heauen when indeed they were neuer truely humbled with a sense and sight of their sinnes out of the law and iudgements of God They were neuer acquainted with the pangs of conscience in a new birth or the mysteries of saluation But within are full of hollowheartednesse lukewarmenesse and much bitternes against true godlinesse and the power thereof The second reason whereby the formall hypocrite is moued to thinke his state to be good and the way of his life to be right is a preiudice which he conceiues from the imputations which the world layeth vpon the children of God such as are Pride Hypocrisie Singularity Melancholie Simplicitie and the like But before I descend to these particulars giue me leaue to propose vnto you the fountaine and ground of them which I take to bee that great and eternall opposition which is naturally betwixt light and darkenesse the life of grace and a death in sinne sincerity and prophanenesse the children of God and the wicked Gods children you know in this world liue as sheepe amongst wolues In the stormie times of the Church their persecutors are indeed euen wolues in the euening for their insatiable crueltie and vnquenchable thirst in drinking vp the blood of the Saints And in the Halcyon daies and fairest times of the Church yet they haue those which will bee pricks in their eyes and thornes in their sides If they cannot vexe them in a higher degree yet they will bee sure to lay on loade with base indignities disgraces slanders and lying imputations And their hatred is of that strange nature and quality that it is discharged euen against the goodnesse of the godly their zeale their forwardnesse in religion their faithfulnesse in their calling and the like as against it proper obiect This is plaine in Ieremie Ieremie neither borrowed on vsurie nor lent on vsurie hee was free from all colour of giuing offence or doing wrong Nay his gratious heart was so wholly melted in compassion that he wished that his head were full of water and his eyes a fountaine of teares that he might weepe day and night for the destructions of his people And yet of that people euery one contended against him there was not a man but hee cursed him The onely reason was because whatsoeuer the Lord said that he faithfully spoke and kept nothing backe but shewed them all the counsell of God It is yet more plaine in Dauid Psal. 38.20 They also that reward euill for Good are mine aduersaries because I follow goodnesse The word there in the originall insinuateth such an extreme and deadly hatred that from thence comes the diuels name Satan So that howsoeuer this enmitie betwixt the world and the children of light be many times bridled by the restraining spirit of God sometimes by the ingenuousnesse of the wicked or their morall vertue or policie or some by-respect or by accident bee turned into loue because by the presence and praiers of the godly they many times escape iudgements and receiue blessings Yet I say howsoeuer it be thus bridled in it selfe it is more then ordinary or naturall and hath in it some degree and mixture of hellish virulencie Ordinarie hatred expires in the downe-fall of his aduersarie Nay any one of generous mind out of the interest he challengeth in the common state of humanitie will commiserate the distresse and affliction euen of his greatest and basest enemie but much more of one of noble spirit and eminent worth and more then that of one that hath followed him with all offices of kindnes and loue yet the flame of this hatred is so fiâ—rce so set on fire by hell that it is not extinguished euen with the blood of his supposed Opposite but barbarously sports in his miseries with insoleÌ„cy tramples vpon his desolations This appeareth clearely in the example of Dauid Psal. 35.15 But in mine aduersity they reioyced and gathered themselues together the abiects assembled themselues against me and I knew not they tare mee and ceased not Who without indignation can thinke vpon these leaud companions and base drunkards that with the false scoffers at bankets gnashed their teeth and cruelly insulted ouer the miserie and disgrace of that man that was a man after Gods owne heart of incomparable excellency and so kindly affected towards them that when they were sicke he clothed himselfe with a sacke he humbled his soule with fasting and mourned as one that mourneth for his mother You see then the fountaine both of the greater stoods of bloodie persecutions and the lesser streames of inferiour vexations as slanders railings and false imputations To some particulars whereof I now come First for Pride It is most certaine that Pride truely so called is the most pesâ—lent and incompatible Opposite that Grace hath and therefore hee that is most sanctified most fights against it For besides that this fiery dart is deepely impoysoned in our corrupted nature Satan knowes out of his owne experience how to manage it with notable cunning and he followes this weapon with such eagernesse and confidence that after it is broken vpon the shield of faith yet he labours with might and maine to fasten some splinter or other euen in the soule humbled for sinne and vowed vnto the seruice of God as I told you in the first part of priuie hypocrisie But I appeale vnto the consciences of the children of God whether many times the world doth not interpret that to be pride in their actions and cariage which is nothing else but a gracious freedome of spirit arising from a consciousnesse of their innocencie and independancy whereby they are inabled to stand with courage against corruptions and the sinnes of the time to follow good causes with boldnesse and with resolution to defend a knowne and warrantable truth and indeed to prefer the saluation of
their soules before the gaining of the whole world Innocencie makes them as bold as Lions The wicked flee when none pursueth but the righteous are bold as a Lion And their warrant is out of Isai. 51. vers 7.8 Hearken vnto me ye that know righteousnesse the people in whose heart is my Law Feare ye not the reproch of men neither be ye afraid of their rebukes For the moath shall eate them vp like a garment and the worme shall eate them like wooll but my righteousnesse shall be for euer and my saluation from generation to generation Independancie holds their hearts vpright in all their actions that they are neither swaid awrie by partialities or secret relations to wrong ends I meane not independancie in respect of lawes gouernment authoritie charitie vnitie with the Church or the like I meane no such independancie but in respect of basenesse flatterie corruption temporizing indirect prosecution of their honours and preferments c. which are setters of Satan by which he confines many to a wretched slauery euen in this life and without repentance to endlesse miserie hereafter Secondly hypocrisie is many times by the world vniustlie laid vnto the charge of the children of God Dauid had his ful portion in this imputation as appeareth in many Psalmes The causes for this time I conceiue to be two The first may bee suspiciousnesse an argument euer of worthlesnesse and impotencie For insufficiencie is most apprehensiue and suspicious I know there is a godly iealousie and a iealousie of state but I meane that suspition which is opposed as an extreame to that imperfect vertue the Moralists cal immunitiâ— from suspicion by which a man doth cast the worth actions and affections of another in his owne mould and thinks euery man obnoxious to al the infirmities he finds in himselfe Hence it is that he which indeed is truly an hypocrite and neuer passed the perfection of the Pharisee doth most confidently brand the child of God with that name hoping therby to giue some poore satisfaction to his own thoughts that would gladly rest in a formality and notice to the world that howsoeuer there may be pretences yet indeed there is none better then himselfe The second cause is a disabilitie and blindnesse in the naturall man of discerning and acknowledging the operations of grace For let a man be otherwise neuer so eminently or vniuersally qualified yet without the experience of the power of godlinesse vpon his owne soule he cannot see hee will not bee perswaded of the actions of grace in another man and therefore interprets them to be nothing but hypocrisie and onely pretended vainegloriouslie to gainean opinion of more then ordinarie pietie What the conceit of an vnregenerate man is of the state of grace is plaine out of the conference of our blessed Sauiour and Nicodemus Nicodemus was a great Rabbi in Israel a famous Doctor in the Law and the Prophets in which no doubt hee had many times read the doctrine of regeneration yet when he comes to be examined of the power and practise of it he holds the new birth without which no man can euer see God to be as impossible as for an old man to returne into his mothers wombe and be borne againe Euen such is the iudgement of others in his state of the fruits effects and course of sanctification And therefore I maruel that any child of God wil afflict his soule hang downe the head or remit one iot of his zeale in goodnesse for vniust censures in this kind sith hee knowes that naturall men though neuer so wise so learned or glorious in the world want spirituall taste and therefore cannot rellish the fruits of the spirit are blind and cannot see or iudge of the light of grace are in darkenesse and cannot comprehend it Thirdly the formall hypocrite doth settle himselfe with more resoluednesse in his opinion of being in state of grace when he sees the world account the children of God but a company of fellowes who out of a proud singularitie diuide themselues from the common fashions and customes of the world not considering that if euer he meane to saue his soule he must be singular too in holinesse and sanctification for I meane not in vnwarrantable opinion or separation from the Church Except his righteousnesse exceede the righteousnesse of the Scribes and Pharisees what singugular thing doth he that is except to his ciuill honesty and outward performance of religious duties there bee added a singularitie of sauing grace and except besides all other ornaments of mind if it were possible possest in full perfection there be yet moreouer inspired that blessed and pretious vigor that quickens him to eternall life he cannot enter into the kingdome of heauen This note of singularitie hath in all ages bin imputed to those that with a good conscience haue laboured to keepe themselues blamelesse and pure in the midst of a naughtie and crooked generation Behold saith Isaiah chap. 8. vers 18. I and the children whom the Lord hath giuen me are as signes and wonders in Israel by the Lord of Hosts which dwelleth in mount Sion It had bin no wonder had they bin onely as signes and wonders amongst the enemies of God and nations of vncircumcision but that they should be signes and wonders in Israel God had chosen him but one little vineyard amongst all the spatious forests of the earth out of the glory of all the Kingdomes of the world he had chosen him but one handfull of people and yet in that vineyard his faithfull Ones are but as the berries after the shaking of an Oliue tree two or three in the top of the vâ—most boughs and foure or fiue in the high branches In that little people his children are but as the first fruits so that euen in Israel they are become as monsters and spectacles of amazement Then so it is indeed that a man drawne out of the darknesse of this world and illightned with grace is like a starre new created in the skie that drawes all the world to gaze vpon it Nay and he drawes not onely the eies of men vpon him but is an eie-sore vnto theÌ„ For thus speaketh the wicked of the righteous man Wisd. 2.15.16 It grieueth vs also to looke vpon him for his life is not like other moâ—s his waies are of another fashion He counteth vs as bastards and he withdraweth himselfe from our wâ—ies as from filthinesse he commendeth greatlie the latter end of the iust and boasteth that God is his father Fourthly the formall hypocrite is well pleased with his present state and very vnwilling to embrace more forwardnesse because it is commonly thought that the state of a true Christian indeed is a life full of vncomfortablenesse melancholy austeritie and sadnesse The heart of man is naturally greedie of ioy and contentment and is either weakely or strongly refreshed according to the vanity or soundnes of the comfort in which it reposeth but it