a man Now this is an impure heart an impure conscience And to the pure every thing is pure but to the impure every thing is defiled That is when a man hath an impure conscience that is not washed effectually by the bloud of Christ through the power of the holy Ghost then his meat and his drinke and his bed and his recreations every thing defiles him every lawfull thing defiles him as well as unlawfull Now then thou mayst reason thus if I have seene God I have a pure heart What is that I have no more conscience of sinne That is I finde an exceeding great power of the Spirit that makes my conscience cleane that notwithstanding my frailties there is no guilt lying or soaking in my Conscence That is one thing The second expression there you shall see afterwards verse 10. that they are said to be sanctified sanctification in this place is not meant as you usually take sanctification that is for mortification and vivification as we say the killing of sin and the quickning of grace though that may be called sanctification too But sanctification in this place is in the same sense as I said before when the conscience is washed and cleansed from the guilt of sin as it is interpreted in the third expression in verse 2â— Let us draw neare with a true heart in the full assurance of faith having our hearts sprinkled that is our consciences sprinkled having our hearts sprinkled from an evill conscience and our bodies washed with pure water An evill Conscience is an unbelieving Conscience for evill in the New Testament is ordinarily taken for unbeliefe Take heed saith the Apostle least there be in any of you an evill heart of unbeliefe to draw back from the living God That evill conscience Judas had and Saul had For sin did lye on their consciences and was not washed Now saith he Let us draw neare with full assurance Full assurance is opposed to an evill Conscience and that cannot be if you take sanctification in that sense that you use to take it Now that is one thing wherever God manifests himselfe and reveals his glory in his Son to the Soule he gives that man a pure heart a good conscience he washeth that mans conscience by the bloud of his Son that is his Spirit applies the vertue of the bloud of his Sonne to our Soules and Consciences to make them pure and peaceable 2ly a pure heart for there are but two ways in 2 Aheart cleansed from the power of sin generall that it is taken in Scripture a pure heart is a heart cleansed also from the power of sinne that is a pure heart And indeed both are comprehended here in one word because wheresoever the one is the other is also For it is impossible for a man to have his Conscience made truly peaceable by the bloud of Christ but it will be made pure and holy also Therefore in that place in Heb. 12. VVithout holinesse it is impossible to see God I suppose it is meant of Personall holinesse of Reformation and amendment of life and not of the imputed holinesse of Christ and the washing of the conscience as I said before But you will say if it be so then no man can see Object God till he go to Heaven for no man is free from sinne in this World There are many Answers that godly men give to this Objection that I cannot stand on It is ture there is sinne and corruption left in the Answ Saints yet they are said to be a pure People People Saints pure notwithstanding the remainder of corruptions 1 They grow purer every day Simile of a pure language to have pure hearts Why Because they are growing every day purer and purer that is the reason they are purified As a godly man compares them to a Well when you throw dirt or any thing into a standing poole it makes it fouler and fouler but throw it into a Well and it workes it out it bubbles and is never quiet till all be out So the Saints have pure hearts because however foule things are working and stirring in them yet they are still stirring against them and get ground of them though they be not pure that is quite free from sinne yet they are purer every day then other Then some say and they say truly that a man 2 The streame of the heart is pure hath a pure heart though there be corruption there when the streame of the heart the very streame of the heart is pure and holy Some conceive and those godly men as I told you before that there is a coare in the heart of a godly man that is pure and holy without sinne Which godly men take to be that that is meant by Spirit so frequently in Scripture saith the Apostle I serve God in my Spirit Rom. 1. And I pray God to preserve your soule and body and spirit 1 Thess 5. And that Spirit they take to be the quintessence of the soule somthing more inward then the Soule There is somthing in a pure heart that opposeth sinne and opposeth temptation there is some non ultra in the heart of a godly man Sinne gets the advantage over his eyes and over his hand and over his tongue but there is a baracado in his heart that it can goe no farther As you see betweene two Women chiding and striving who shall have the last word and one replyes and the other replyes and at last one hath the last word So there is somthing in the heart of a godly man that will have the last word As in a naturall man sinne hath the last word saith an Hypocrite I have a mind to over reach my Neighbour in such a bargaine thou wert not best to doe it saith enlightned conscience thou hearest the Preacher and hearest the Scripture say the contrary But I am resolved to doe it saith the Hypocrite then I will trouble thee saith the conscience Now there is no sinne that a Saint doth fall into but there is a coare in him that goes beyond As you see in an Onion you may pull off one scale and then another and another and at last you may come to the coare and can goe no farther Such a thing there is in a Saint this is that that is called the spirit the streame and quintessence of the Soule is holy and though there be corruption there yet there is something that is pure and holy and that coare will eat out the rest in time As to give you but one instance more looke upon your hearts as I speak and see how they agree with it take any corruption that a Saint falls into throughout the yeare there are many chidings and brawlings betweene grace and corruption I will have my will sayth corruption I will be vaine and fine and finer then my Neighbours saith grace I will not have it so But I will saith corruption I will have my will but if you
they are like fumes that come up into the braine and distract us A spirituall man is many times as it were a distracted man there are so many fumes such horrour and guilt that he is almost starck mad he can talke of naturall things but in spirituall things he is as it were mad the Chaine of spirituall reason is broken and now the spirit is the Comforter and he quiets the spirits and when a man is in a quiet temper the disease is gone and reason comes into the mind and as the Philosopher said ye know in naturall things a man can reason when he is not troubled so is it in the spirituall Another way is by sanctification by the spirit 7. By sanctification hee is the spirit of Sanctification it makes the soule holy it takes away lust and sin from the soule This I find in Mat. 6. 22. 23. I would open that place but cannot therefore pray consider it saith Christ the light of the body is the eye if therefore thy eye be single thy whole body shall be full of light He doth oppose singlenesse unto evill if thy eye be single that is if thy eye be purged from all guile that there is no sin there not when a man hath one eye to God and the other to sin to the World But if thy eye be evill that is sinfull then thy whole body is full of darknesse Therefore blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God Well Lastly there is another way there are 8. By excercising diverse more but I will name but one more And that is the spirit of God doth teach the Saints thus to reason by excercising that is helpeth them to excercise and improove that light that they have There is a little light naturall light and there is a kind of spirituall light that an Hypocrite hath but the spirit of God doth not helpe him to improove that light and therefore that light dyeth he blowes not up the sire you know men come to reason by reasoning and excercise of reason makes men rationall I mean makes them know how to reason Now Hypocrites doe not thus as you may see Rom. 1. There they knew God and because they glorified him not as God they became vaine in their imaginations or in their reasonings as it is in the Originall God gave them up to a reprobate mind because they glorified not God Beloved I have three or foure uses but I feare Use The Fountaine of all good and evill in the soule I shall not reach them all I am overloath to tire you and my selfe Therefore I will conclude with one word and that is this That from hence from this that hath been said you may see what is the Fountaine of all goodnesse and of all evill in the soule Of all good as I have at large lookt upon it but 1. Of good can but touch take any good and you shall see it is carried on by spirituall reasoning as take faith Abraham reasoned he that gave him a Sonne at a hundred yeares old could raise him up againe Take your consolation it comes out by spirituall reasoning take Paul and Silas they were in Prison and ready to be brought out the next day to die now one would thinke they were madd there to sing but they did it upon spirituall reasons for they accounted themselves blessed to suffer for Christ and if they die they shall then be with Christ for hating of evill you shall see whence is it as pulling out the right eye or cutting off the right hand that is one would thinke a most unreasonable thing but Christ giveth a reason for it It is better to goe into Heaven it is better to enter into life halt or maimed rather then having two hands or two feete to he cast into everlasting fire So a Saint can reason spiricually and thus he loves the Saints and hates sin and denieth himselfe and performeth every dutie he so reasoneth that it is the blessed will of God he should doe it 2. Evill And so for evill whence comes sin from the vanitie of the mind whence comes persecution they thinke they doe God good service There is reason it is a good thing to suppresse these Schismatiques say some and to have Conformitie and be all of one mind and to banish them and let them all goe whence is this it is either from corrupt or naturall reason And so when men heare the Word of God and forget it they like it well as a man doth that sees his face in a glass but they goe away and forget it and whence is it why James tells you Deceive not your selves Deceiving your selves the word in the Originall is by false reasonings A man heares the Word and thinks surely I am in this evill condition and I am out of the way and I must looke after Christ and the like But afterwards comes naturall reason saying these are but new denies and what is become of our Fathers and the like Beloved all good is carried into the soule upon the wings of spirituall reason and all evill upon naturall and corrupt reason and therefore I conclude all beseeching you that you would studie and endeavour to get up your soules To labour to be swayed by spirituall reasoning and your conversations accordingly to be swayed and carried on by a spirituall mind by spirituall reasoning for here we speake of your Consciences not of your lives so much as of your hearts and minds And that you may so doe take the motive which followes in the Text which I did purpose had God given me strength and time to open but take it in the gross For to be carnally minded is death but to be spiritually minded is life and peace Be perswaded to goe home and pray the Lord to create this in you yea and enlighten you For to be carnally minded is death but to be spiritually minded is life and peace Two things I have here to say To be carnally Carnall reasoning brings death minded is death you must expound it by the other that opposeth it its contrary to life and peace it is death and trouble and the other is life and peace Death and trouble if thou wilt be a carnal man and go on so there is nothing in all thy course but death and trouble that is there is death at the end of it Remember that the end of thy Journey is death Remember as the Apostle saith Phil. 3. they minde earthly things and I write weeping that there end is destruction It is a fine thing to be carried all our life long from one carnall thing to another and provide for my Honour and wealth and preferment and the like and doe this and that good action upon carnall reasons and with a carnall eye but God hath put a sad end to it it is Death Spirituall reasoning life And now the other it is life it is eternall life though
doe the worke of tame beasts So Adam's righteousnesse commends not to God we are only accepted in the beloved 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or ingratiated through that beloved The divine treasures of righteousnesse are first in Christ and by our union with him wee come to enjoy them by way of participation Fourthly Substantiall and reall holinesse set out to be farre more excellent then all empty formes or mere professions Holinesse is God stamped and printed upon the soule 't is Christ formed in the heart 't is the very image frame and disposition of the holy spirit within us The Philosopher could say 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that God was but an empty name without vertue so are all our professions of Christ without holinesse that being the very marrow and quintessence of all religion Holinesse is something of God in us it proceed from him it lives in him God can no more be separated from it then the beames from the Sunne Holinesse is happinesse and the more of it we have the more wee have of the life and image of God upon us Holinesse is nothing but our conformity to God and our being like him to be as he is Holinesse is the new frame the new creation the workmanship of the Lord in our hearts it is the Lord building and setting up his owne Temple Tabernacle and new Jerusalem within us filling of us with his owne glory writing his name in our fore heads by imprinting his owne divine image upon us Oh what happinesse what sweet delight and harmony of heart what soule-musicke and spirituall joy is there in having our soule wrapt up in the divine life light and beauty of the Lords holinesse Fifthly Thou hast a discovery of the inability of mans carnall principles or reason to judge of spirituall things or the things of God every truth is discovered by principles of light suitable to it selfe Hence it is that the Apostle tels us of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 an animate sensual or natural man and of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a spirituall man one enlightned by the spirit of God Now the naturall man is not able to judge of things above the principles of nature The Apostle tells us no man knowes the things of a man but the spirit of man which is in him 1 Cor. 2. 11. The things of man are all created things man is therefore said to be as it were 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a little world or an Epitome or Compendium wherein all created things are described as in a mappe or short abridgement Now the principle of reason in mans heart is able to search out the hidden things of nature But this large principle of man is too narrow to search into the things of the spirit so saith the Apostle The things of God knoweth 1 Cor. 2. 11. 12. 14 15. no man but the spirit of God The spirit searches the deepe things of God And againe he saith The wisdome of the spirit is but foolishnesse to the naturall man And why so because saith hee spirituall things are spiritually discerned That is they are to be understood in a spirituall sense to which mans carnall reason cannot reach But now saith hee the spirituall man discerneth all things so that divine things are only known by the spirit 't is the spirit of all truth that leads into all truth Then 't is not all Maximes and rules 't is not syllogisticall reasonings and disputes 't is not Bookes and Treatises 't is not all Systems and Bodies of Divinity that can reveal the secret mysteries of truth but it is the work of the spirit for the mystery of Christ is not meerly letter and forme without us but a quickning spirit within us Yet Sixthly Wee are taught that there is a most profound spirituall reasoning in godlinesse and that it is the highest act of the minde which is the highest faculty of the soule The mind of a Saint is Gods Throne and the motions of the mind or the reasonings thereof is nothing but Christ swaying the soule according to his good pleasure It 's true that reason as t is in man is a most imperfect and weak light and fals short of the light of God being depraved and mixt with much darknesse and so is unsuitable to judge divine things but reason considered in it's height and excellency is no other then Jesus Christ and the spirit then so much as reason hath of the light of God so much it hath of Jesus Christ Then the most excellent the most supreame and the sublimest reason is in godlinesse because in it is the greatest clearenesse certainety and light The Apostle calls it demonstration now divine reason is demonstration which is an evidencing of things by the clearest surest and most irresistible light that can be Now Christ is this spirituall reason for saith the Apostle that which manifests is light Eph. 5. 13. And what is that light but Christ and his Spirit Thus I have given thee a tast of things to set an edge to thy appetite that thou mayest make a fuller meal of Divine Dainties by reading the ensuing Treatise where thou hast a Table richly spread Now if thou art one of CHRISTS Friends then come and eate of this honey and drinke of this wine yea eate and drinke abundantly O beloved Here thou maist eate and not surfet here thou maist drinke and not be drunken the more thou eatest the stronger will thy appetite be and the more thou drinkest the more thou wilt thirst and yet with the greatest saturation and consent To conclude Thou mayest find much of CHRIST in this Booke but see also whether thou canst finde much of him also in thine owne heart Now that these things which are here written with Paper and Inke may bee written upon the Table of thy soule by the finger of the Spirit is the prayer of him who is Thine in the service of Christ John Robotham Octob. 24. 1650. THE CONTENTS OF THE Former Nine SERMONS Serm. I. Doct. 1. THE peculiar priviledge of the Saints to see God page 3 Severall wayes of seeing God 4 Peculiar sight of God what 8 The manner of the Saints seeing God 15 Use I. To shew the happy estate of saints in this World 17 Use 2. The sight of God should humble Saints 21 Use 3. Highly to prize the Preaching of the Gospell 24 Serm. II. Saving sight of God known first by the apprehensions of God which are First cleare 31 Secondly precious 34 Thirdly joyfull 38 Fourthly perpetuall 40 Secondly the sight of God known by the impressions 41 First they are reall 43 Secondly through 44 Thirdly universall 45 Serm. III. Thirdly the saving sight of God known by the expressions of it 47 First purity of heart 48 Secondly changing us into Gods image 54 Thirdly love to the Brethren 56 Fourthly Fellowshipp with Saints 57 Fifthly desire to bring others to the light 59 Sixthly it enableth to suffering 60 In what order Saints come to see
So the reasonings of the soule are the chiefest weapons of the minde because I told you that these they doe come immediately from it The third thing was that the reasoning is the chief character of a man as reason in a man considered in a naturall way is the most proper way of distinguishing of him from other things because it is most essentiall to him for you cannot distinguish a man so properly from a horse because he hath two leggs and that a horse hath foure but by his essence he is a rationall creature and therefore I told you a man may know good excellently a man may love good and godlines and a man may do good and suffer for good and yet be an hypocrite yet be a carnall man Why Because he may doe good and love good and suffer for good and all out of carnall reasoning he may love the good because of some fine circumstantiall things And therefore I concluded last day with two words of use but I must endeavor to make good my promise Now the last thing is how it comes to passe for I have as in reference to the Doctrine you heard That spirituall men are swayed 3. How it comes that Saints are guided by spirituall reason with spirituall reasons How comes it to passe that they are enabled so to reason and to be so guided by such Reasons Beloved in generall certainly it is only by the same spirit of God for I must advance the spirit still Not in opposition to the Scriptures mistake me not for the spirit takes of the things of By the spirit Christ and in the Scriptures sheweth you them but it is the Spirits teaching you And therefore it is said they are after the spirit that doe mind spirituall things because it is the spirit that doth worke them to mind spirituall things yee would never mind spirituall things else All the Learning in the World and all the wit in the World will never teach a man to make one sincere argument to doe good or draw him from evill But you will say how doth the Spirit doe this Beloved I told you heretofore that I doe not approove of those that doe endeavour to shew you too particularly and disbiastly how the spirit of God works in the soule as many men have done and many a godly man but they have lost much time and have puzelled the soules of poore people for thou knowest not how a Child is formed in the VVombe how his eye is made and how his Nose is made And how are we able to discover how the Spirit of God works grace in the soule which ordinarily is done that he doth this first and then that and will not doe this untill he hath done that which hath brought forth a deale of curiositie and needlesse distinctions troubling the People of God But I will give you some particulars how he doth it The wayes whereby he doth it without curiositie not saying he doth this first or that first He doth it by a Creation by spirituall Creation 1. By a creation he doth make a Caeation in the soule which is called the new man Thou that art there now sitting in the Pew that creature that old creature cannot reach the spirit of God It cannot be mended for we have hearts of stone that will not be cobled nor mended but taken out wholly our natures are so naught that they cannot be mended but God comes and by his Holy spirit makes a new Creature in the soule As man is said to be a man and hath not his denomination from the grosser part as his Legs or the like but from the more noble part his soule and his mind for where as in one place it is said What will it availe a man to get the World and loose his soule in another it is loose himselfe So as my soule is my selfe So there is an old man not according to outward age but according to the inward Now he makes thee a new creature not New legs and hands but new mind new affections and new powers in thy soule Now most people say that the Lord doth infuse new qualities into the soule that whereas thou hast an under standing and it is rotten and all is full of bad qualities thou shalt have new qualities thou shalt have an under standing that will mind More then new qualities in Saints Heavenly things Beloved that is true but I very much doubt whiter there be not something more because the Lord calls it a man and we never Reade in the Scripture where he will worke new qualities but a new man We are created a new Creature Now that is the way and therefore if ever thou wilt be a spirituall man thou must have the Lord to make thee a new creature Now the Saints heretofore pray understand me did not looke upon things as we doe we have had so many false distinctions and subdistinctions we have not the same notions and distinctions they had They alwayes looked upon rhe inward man or the new craature Now we looke without saith Paul my inward man gaineth dayly If any man be in Christ he is a new Creature Beloved that ye may understand this beare with me a little I doe find in the Scripture that a man is made a Saint made spirituall and holy two wayes One is by renewing a man to that which he was in Old Adam Secondly by creating things in him that were never there before And we have these two expressions A Saint made spirituall how in Scripture Be renewed in the spirit of your mind and created unto good works So that a Saint he is made up unto that condition two wayes Either God hath renewed in him those things he had in Adam Or else God hath created in him that which was never there before As for instance God revealeth in him Sobrietie and continuance and the like These things were in Adam and now when a man is made a Saint they are renewed only upon a new Foundation And withall the Lord creates some things that were never in Adam as for instance he creates faith there that is the the faith of the Gospell There was a faith in Adam without doubt but that faith of the Gospell to beleive in another to renounce his owne righteousnesse this was not in Adam because it was point-blanke contrary to his owne condition for he was to have righteousnesse in himselfe and to renounce it was contrary to his condition Now God Creates such a faith in us And Beloved there is another thing and it may be there are many things more I have had many thoughts of it with submission to the godly and wise I thinke that Gospell-goodnesse is a peice of the new man which was not in Adam Some thing in Saints that was not in Adam as to doe good to Enemies to love them that hate us to give drinke to a thirstie Enemy When one is wicked and
Grave and the like but they doe not spiritually know them So also the other mysterie of that spiritual knowledge The Saints know that they know the things of God is in the knowing that they did know It is one thing to believe and another thing to know that I doe believe and it is one thing to know spirituall misteries and another thing to know that I doe know them Now when the Apostle had done with the former he comes to the latter and tels them that they had a light whereby they knew the things that were freely given them of God As he saith no man knoweth the things of a man but the spirit of a man that is in him So I have the Spirit of God that I know the things and I know that I know them So the mysterie of spirituall knowledg is to know heavenly things in a spirituall manner and then to know that I know them It is one thing to know spirituall things and it is another to know that I know them It is one thing for God to give heavenly things and it is another to know that God hath given them This is the meaing of it when I say that the people of God have a sight of God and it is a cleare sight that is it carries such a kind of evidence to the soule that thou knowest assuredly as thou knowest any thing in the world that thou seest God in Jesus Christ Therefore it was a knowne case among them in the old Testament and much more must it be in the new it was so certaine that if God were away but for a moment they presently missed him and they cryed Thou hast hid thy face and when wilt thou come againe and over night he would be gone and they were troubled and they knew him as soone as he came and they missed him when ever he went Now when thou hast but a blind confused apprehension of God and it is but thinking and hoping and thou missest God and thou knowest not what is become of him nor thou lookest not after him suspect thy apprehension of him that it is not right for if it be a right knowledge it is as cleare as the Sun though it be not fully cleare yet it is so cleare that thou knowest that thou hast God and thou doest misse him if he be gone but for a time That is one thing Secondly these apprehensions as they are cleare 2 Precious apprehensions so they are precious they are sweet apprehensions to thy soule Thou accountest one thought of God one right apprehension of God in Jesus Christ worth a whole world therefore we see in Psal 137. 17. The Prophet David who was well acquainted with God saith he how precious also are the thoughts of thee O God! how great is the summe of them if I account them they are more in number then the sands when I awake I am still with thee They are many then and that is a shame for us in the New Testament that they had such apprehensions and we should have so few And how precious are they saith he As if he had said I love my Wife well and my Husband well and I love to have things about me and to have health after sicknes But Lord how precious are the thoughts of thee O God! how rich is one thought of God! What a rich man am I when I have one thought of God Now these apprehensions are precious in these 3 respects First they are precious because every one of those 1 They satisfie the Soule thoughts fully satisfy the soule Take any thing in this world as it may be thou hast an estate or thou hast such friends or thou hast such comforts Take any thing whatever thou canst there is an emptines left still in some corner of the soule it is not filled A man may say when he is highest in the comforts of the world I am not fully satisfied there is some disquiet in my Spirit there is somwhat whatsoever it is behind the back of that comfort that I look for But when a man hath thoughts and apprehensions of God aright they satisfie the soule and fill it with such contentednesse that a man can say I have enough and he can say with Peter when he saw the glory of God It is good to be here though he had neither meat nor drink but were upon a mountaine only he saw the glory of God and saith he It is good to be here Therefore we might see in divers places that I could reckon in Scripture as in Psal 17. As for me I will behold thy face in righteousnesse I will behold thee in Christ and when I awake I shall be satisfied with thine Image I shall be satisfied saith he So also in Psal 63. 3 4 5. I shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatnesse and that is a choice thing in this world though it come farre short of this And so Paul Phil. 3. I account all Dung for the precious and excellent knowledge of Christ As if he had said I would be satisfied with this though I had not a penny in the world Now it is not so with an Hypocrite therefore examin your heart and look upon Apprehensions of Hypocrits satisfie not it an Hypocrite when he is enlightned he may have some sweetnes and there is some pleasure as when his gifts are enlarged or when spiritual things especially when new notions come in his minde for ever the knowledge of new things is pleasant both naturall and spirituall Yet notwithstanding an Hypocrite is not satisfied with the sight of God in Christ he cannot say I desire no more but he saith I will be Rich for all this I will cozen and cheat for all this Therefore I have alway observed that the best of wicked men those that we have reason to suspect that they are not right and they may have a great deale of joy and such like yet they are as greedy and griping after the world and as proud and vain as others and that is an argument that they are not satisfied Another poore Christian though he make not such a blaze with gifts and expressions yet he sees God now and then and he can tread and trample upon the world he can despise pleasures and friends and honours and riches and can look on them as crucified things as Paul did and can say I remember in such a Countrey in such a Chamber in such a place where God shew'd himself to me and I was satisfied I saw every thing vanish before me and I desired nothing but that and I could desire to change my wealth and all for that so that might be continued and enlarged That is one thing Secondly they are precious because he is not satisfied 2 There is a desire of more This is no contradiction though it seeme to be one My meaning is this that wherever there is this apprehension of God though it satisfie
are perpetuall and constant in a sense Therefore it is said Joh. 14. 21. If you keep my Commandements saith Christ I will manifest my self to you Saith Judas not Iscariot Lord how is it that thou wilt manifest thy self unto us and not unto the VVorld Saith he I and my Father will come and wil dwell with you and abide with you As for the world God passeth by as a wayfairing man that tarries but for a night but I and my Father will come and dwel with you Therefore in 1. Joh. 4. Seeing of God dwelling in God are Sinonomies one and the same thing God dwelling in us or we in God or seeing of God they are the same Because wheresoever God is seen rightly and truly it brings God by his Spirit to dwell in the Soule That is one thing you may know it by by your apprehensions Secondly you may know it by the impressions 2 By the impressions these apprehensions worke that those apprehensions have upon your hearts there will be a twofold impression upon thy soule when thou dost see God aright First as I told you before when a Saint seeth 1 Suitable to that they see in God God you are to understand that he seeth al in God with redundance he sees his love his goodnesse his power his faithfulnesse his mercy his justice Now the same apprehension of these things have such impressions upon thy heart that thou mayest clearely discerne if thy sight be right that is if every one of these doe worke upon thy heart a proportionable fitnesse or suitablenesse to that that is in God As for instance when thou lookest on God and thou seest his goodnes there is a sweet impression of love Thou seest the Justice and Righteousnesse of God it works an impression not a blaze that goes out but an habituall impression of pleasing God and of fearing God And so when thou seest his faithfulnesse it works an impression of trust that thou wilt trust him though he kill thee and so all that is in God will sinck into thy heart and worke suitable to that that is in God As to give you one instance for as it will doe by one so it will doe by all In Heb. 11. 27. It is said By faith Moses forsook Aegypt not fearing the wrath of the King For he endured as seeing him who is invisible Moses had a sight of him who is invisible Therefore he forsook Aegypt and feared not the wrath of the King What is the meaning of that The meaning of it is this he saw the King of Aegypt to be a great King a powerfull King But because he had seene God who is invisible that is he had seene the Power of God and the Greatnesse of God and that put such an impression on him that he did not feare Pharaoh And God had promised to doe him good and having seene the faithfulnesse of God he forsooke Aegypt So it will be with thee if thou see the Grace of God in Christ there will be an impression of love upon thy Soule If thou see the Greatnesse of God there will be Reverence imprinted upon thy heart or if thou see the Faithfulnesse of God there will be an impression of Trust upon thy heart But now if thou see God in Christ and see his goodnesse and mercy and grace and there be no such impression no love to God no delight in God no care to please him or to attend upon him thou hast not seene God aright Beloved these impressions you shall know them by these things in three words from any thing that is like the impressions of God upon you First they are reall Secondly they are through Impressions of seeing God upon Saints are Thirdly they are universall First they are reall By reall I meane this they 1. Reall are not idle speculations of God as a bare seeing of God and no more but only a meere contemplation but they are such reall impressions upon the heart as that they can bare up the Soule in any outward reall miserie As for instance you know the miseries of the world are reall When a man comes to Prison there is reall trouble and reall losse and Miseries of this life reall reall hunger and he is a Reall man that is the Keeper of the Prison Now an Hypocrite with all his speculations when he comes to a reall night of miserie for God all his knowledge of God proves a meere speculation and vanisheth into Ayre and there is no reality in it Now the other which is a true Saint let him be put into the worst condition let it be Reall put Bolts on his heeles let there be VVounds and Sores and Hunger and Thirst that he feeles beholds with his eyes yet he hath a thing in his Soule that is as real as the things that he feeles Therefore it is said in 1. John 1. where he speaks of Fellowship with God and walking in the light and seeing of God saith he Those things that wee have seene and heard and felt He makes the apprehension of God in Christ as reall as things that are subject to sense as the things that we see and heare and smell and feele Therefore see whether these impressions of God on thy soule be reall or no Doest thou finde when thou commest to reall miserie that there is reall comfort to hold thee up and not only imagination and vaine Speculations As you may observe many brave glorious Professors in the time of Peace that out strip all their Brethren and their expressions Why many Professors shrinke in Trouble are better then others they carry it gloriously and yet you shall have some poor creatures that can hardly speake to God in Prayer and can hardly remember any thing of the VVord and yet when they come to suffer there is a reall thing that holds them up though it may be it be but a poore little Boy or a VVench when you shall see those Brave glorious Professors that because they have no Reality they flee away and turne to the World Therefore pray to the Lord that these impressions may be reall That as the miseries wee meet withall are reall so the impressions of his blessed Majesty may be be reall Saith God to the Hypocrites Mal. 1. If I be a Father where is my Honour If I be a Master where is my feare You talke that I am your Father and your Master but there is no deepe impression of it upon your Soules Secondly as they are reall So they are thorow 2 They are thorow they fall not upon the heart of a Saint as they doe upon an Hypocrite The apprehensions of God fall upon an Hypocrite just like a little shower of raine upon the sandy ground there is some little impression but in two or three houres all is gone it never soaks to the root of the grasse An Hypocrite hath a root of bitternesse in his heart and all the
have partly heard it before therefore I will be the briefer The Question will be in case that any by Quest what hath been spoken doe see that he hath not seene God aright How shall I come to attaine it Beloved when I speak to you of meanes how Answ The order how Saints come to see God to come to any thing you must understand one thing we prescribe not meanes as Phisitians do to a sick man as Rew or Camomite or Orgaine and the like that are in his power he can goe to a Neighbours or to an Apothicaries shopp and buy them So when I speak of meanes it is not in your power to have them as a Ladder to get up and see God by but when I say the meanes I lay downe the series and order whereby God is manifested to the Soule though all bee his free grace Now that order or Series you have in Scripture If thou want this sight of God thou must first be 1 To be convinced that all meanes in the world will not make known God Simile convinced that all the meanes in the World will not make known God to thee unlesse he manifest himselfe That is one thing As the Sun when it is under a cloud all the Candles and Torches in the world cannot discover it till it come out it selfe and then you may see it if it hide it selfe you cannot So saith Christ Joh. â—4 I and my Father will manifest our selves to him As if he had said it is our prerogative we do it when and where we please all the world cannot help to it when we doe it not therefore say Lord it is thy priviledge I have not eyes to see thee it is not all that I can doe and that all the World can doe I cannot reach thee Lord manifest thy selfe to me That is the first thing A second thing that I finde in this series or order 2 A man must be borne againe that God takes to manifest himselfe is that he usually begets men againe or causeth them to be borne againe before they can see him These Phrases are oft joyned in Scripture of being borne again and seeing of God Joh. 3. Verily verily except a man be borne from above he cannot see the Kingdome of God And in the Kingdome of God God and Christ is the chiefe thing without this thou can'st not see it So in Joh. 6. 45. It is written they shall all be taught of God every man therefore that hath heard and learned of the Father commeth to me Not that any man hath seene the Father except or save he that is of God he hath seene the Father To be of God and to be borne of God are promiscuous in the Epistle of John somtimes a man is said to be of God and somtimes to be borne of God No man hath seen God but he that is of God or that is born of God compare that with 1 John 3. VVhosoever committeth sin he hath not seen God nor known him little children let no man deceive you whosoever is borne of God committeth not sin Therefore whosoever seeth God must needs be born of God What is that to be borne of God Briefly for I cannot now open it at large to To be borne of God what be borne of God is when there are other pronciples put in you by the Spirit of God that are not in flesh and bloud When there is a new creature put in you That is when there is a heavenly wisedome and knowledge heavenly faculties heavenly principles when there is a new creature in the soule of a man by which he sees and knowes and apprehends and loves and doth things utterly beyond flesh and bloud Therefore to be borne of God and to be borne of flesh and bloud are contrary one to another Therefore if thou wilt see God thou must not thinke to doe it as to finde out a controversie in Divinity or to to know a mystery in a Trade it is not thy studie and straining of thy witt thou mayest doe that if thou wilt But desire of God to frame the new creature in thee thou must not only have other things presented before these eyes but thou must have another paire of eyes to see things another understanding other principles a new creature framed in thy heart that is the force of the argument of Christ to Nicodemus Joh. 3. Except a man be borne againe he cannot see the Kingdome of God As if he had said I know thou art a great student and thou takest paines to goe to Heaven but I will deale plainly with thee thou must be borne of God thou must be a new creature or else thou mayst study all thy life thou mayst study thy heart out and it will not doe therefore beg of God to make thee a new creature He is the Sun of righteousnesse that can shine where he pleaseth the blessed Spirit is that wind that bloweth where it listeth He must make thee a new creature or else thou hast no faculty to behold him For if God should shine upon the old creature thou hast no more eyes to see him then a blind man to behold the light Thirdly in this order of seeing God which is 3 God must deliver us from Satans Kingdome all of his free grace to doe this I only shew you the author of it it is none of it in thy power get the Lord to deliver thee from the Kingdome of Satan or else thou canst never see him The Kingdome of the Devill is a Kingdome of darknesse so darke that as long as a man lives in that Kingdome Satans Kingdome darknesse he is never like to see any thing of God Therefore if thou wilt see God or spirituall things labour to come into that Kingdom where light shines There are some Nations in the North that they have halfe the yeare night it is almost a Kingdome of darknesse a man though he have eyes cannot see there So the Devils Kingdome is a Kingdome of darknesse and marke it as farre as there is darknesse in any soule so farre the Devils Kingdome is there For the Devill hath no bodily outward Kingdome of Lands and estates and revenues but darknesse is his Kingdome and so much darknesse so much inheritance the Devill hath That is the reason that where there is none of the Gospell the Devill hath a great Kingdome he hath a great Kingdome in VVales and in the north of England and in Ireland because there is a great deale of darknesse there therefore doe thou desire the Lord to translate thee out of the Kingdome of darknesse to the Kingdome of his deare Sonne See this in 2. Cor. 4. saith the Apostle If our Gospell be hid it is hid to them that are lost He speaks of unfruitfull hearing of the word there is no fault in the Gospell but it is a signe that they are a People that must perish that the Gospell can doe
them no good In whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them that believe not least the light of the glorious Gospell of Christ who is the image of God should shine upon them How came it to passe that the Gospell that Paul preached did the Soules of the People no more good Paul saith the fault was not in the Gospell the Gospell was pleasing to God however but the God of this world that is the Devill the Devill of Why the Devil is called the God of this world Hell as you call him God calls him the God of this world not because he is absolute and may doe what he will but he is under Gods power and God gives him such a stroake and power as if he were a God in the world he hath so many Subjects and such pollicie and spirits The God of this world hath blinded the minds of them that believe not that is they were blind before but he hath made them more blind O consider this thou wert blind before thou didst heare the Gospell but when a man heares the Gospell that Prince of darknesse that is the Devill the God of the world he blinds thy minde more and more he draws a new vaile over thy eyes Why so That the light of the glorious Gospell of Christ who is the image of God should not shine on them He drawes the Curtaine that the Sun may not come on them that the light of the knowledge of God in Christ may not come on them Therefore consider what a Monarch the Devill is and how great the Kingdom of the Devill is in thee And if ever thou come to the light desire God to translate thee into the Kingdome of his deare sonne that Kingdome is all light As far as there is a cleare light in my Soule so far Christ hath his Kingdome in me Then if thou wilt see God thou must labour 4 Purity of heart to be pure in heart as I told you for without holinesse no man shall see God Let a prophane man use all the meanes in the world as long as he is so he shall never see God Lastly thou must looke for the shining of this glorious Sun through the Word and by the spirit It must come through the VVord and expect the Spirit to bring it or else it will never shine upon thy Soule This in few words is the series or order in which God manifests himselfe to his people I will now conclude only with this word It may be thou wilt say I hope I have seene God and I remember the Lord did manifest himself to me but truly it is but a little I will speake but a word to you that have seene Use Those that have seen God should walke holily God I beseech you walk like People that are before God Gods eye is upon you and you have seene him walke uprightly walk not like the people of the world for ye are lyars if you doe if you say that you have seene God and walke in darknesse and walke in sinne you are lyars and there is no truth in you O! walke holily and labour more and more to see God as Paul did he forgate that which was behind and would see more of God more of his glory that is the meaning of that word in Joh. 14. saith Christ to his Disciples for he spake not to wicked People at that time He that hath my Commandements and keepeth them loveth me and he shall be loved of my Father and I will love him and manifest my selfe to him Without doubt God had manifested himselfe to these before they were Saints before but he meanes I will manifest my selfe more and more but they must love him and keepe his commandements The meaning is not that you shall finde the Commandements of God and the things of God are as a bottome of Thred that is all shufled together that you can finde no end of it you thinke to have an end and yet you cannot and you thinke to finde a place where to get all grace whereas notwithstanding if you had all the gifts in this world you cannot keepe the Commandements but the meaning is you shall finde in the things of God that God hath made one thing the condition of another if you love God you will keepe his Commandements and if you keepe his Commandements you love God I say God hath made one thing the condition of another to whet us on if you keep my Commandements you love me and if you love me I will manifest my selfe to you So I know by experience though all be by free grace yet the People of God by making one thing the condition of another it hath made their Journey that they have not been weary Though Heaven be the reward of all yet God hath made little baits for us The great reward is He that holds out to the end shall be saved but that is a great way off and we are weake and cannot see a farre off therefore God hath made little baits and little rewards He that loves me I will manifest my selfe to him A weake Saint may doe that so that is the meaning though God doth all by his free grace yet God doth use meanes to get us on Therefore that God may manifest himselfe more and more to thee labour to keepe his commandements labour to be more holy this weeke then the last Add to faith virtue to virtue patience to patience temperance c. God teacheth us as we teach our Children one letter after another add such a grace and such a grace If these things be in you and abound ye shall not be barren and unfruitfull but shall be able to see a farre off What a farre off Things that are farre off are hardly seene and of all things the glory of God in Christ is the hardest Now if you add one grace to another by the assistance of God and endeavouring to keepe his Commandements and to walke in your callings as you are Husband or VVife or Master or Servant or Tradesman c. if you endeavour to do that which is pleasing in Gods eye God will reveale himselfe more and more clearly and fully to your soules SERMON 4. Isaiah 6. 5. For mine eyes have seen the King the Lord of Hosts TWo lessons I observed from these words The first was that Every true Saint hath a peculiar sight of God even in this VVorld Secondly that A true saving sight of God is the way to true Humiliation Concerning the first I opened it and proved it to you and have already made severall uses of it The last use was to examine your selves whether God have bestowed this priviledge upon you or no. And that I shewed you is to be known By your apprehensions of it By the impressions it hath on you By the expressions of it as it shewes it selfe in your lives I have but two words of uses farther of that Doctrine and so I
the proud happy yea they that Worke wickednesse are set up yea they that tempt God are even delivered Here is the temper of proud spirits and hearts of wicked men they are all for Honour and wealth what profit shall we have by humbling our soules and keeping Gods Ordinances O! these were stout words and stout hearts and spirits to envy the prosperity of other people while they were corrected And in Job 2â— You shall read that Job did almost fall in that poynt also but it was because he was not throughly humbled as in the end he was for then he abhorred himselfe The Fift thing is this that a soul that is truely 5. Humble hearts repent not of receiving Christ humbled in his afflictions as he doth not envie the prosperity of others the while so he doth not repent of his bargaine that he hath made in receiving of Jesus Christ though all his afflictions and miseries it may be fall on him for his sake or the most of them he never repents that he hath been so holy but that he is not more holy A proud heart repents of what it hath done for God O saith a proud heart If I had not heard Puritans and followed their Sermons and gone their wayes and lived in their Conventicles I had not been noted and hated and afflicted It is a proud heart that repents of any jot of good it hath done for God or that repents of his receiving of Christ for any affliction or misery that may befall him it is a signe of a base heart There is a blessed expression Psal 44. 9. Of David and the people of God I have oft thought of the great sufferings of the Saints there spoken of Thou hast cast us off and put us to shame and goest not forth with our Armies Thou makest us to turne back from the Enemy and those that hate us spoyle for themselves Thou hast given us like Sheepe appointed for meat and hast scattered us among the Heathen Thou sellest thy people for nought and doest not increase thy wealth by their price A strange thing thou sellest them and takest no money for them Thou makest us a reproach to our Neighbours a scorne and derision to them that are round about us c. Here is as it were an inventorie of all the troubles of the Church and wherefore doth he speake all this you shall see after For all this is come upon us yet have we not forgotten thee neyther have we dealt falsely in thy Covenant Our heart is not turned back neyther have our steps declined from thy way Though thou hast sore broken us in the place of Dragons yet we have not stretched forth our hands to a strange God He reckons up all these troubles and yet sayth he notwithstanding all this though God have brought all these miseries upon us yet We have not been false in the Covenant nor stretched out our hands to a strange God we doe not repent that we have received thee and are married to thee and have chosen thee for our God I remember the practice of a godly Minister many yeares agoe who speaking of the manner how God useth to bring in sinners to Christ though there were a great deale of curiositie in those dayes more if I may speak with reverence to the worthy men that then lived then should have been as if a man should go about to describe the forming of a child in the wombe which it were better leave to God then studie too much how it is framed But I remember his expression sayth he God takes a sinner the first time and shewes him his miserie and shuts him up that he sees no way of deliverance at all and then after a little while he opens a little crevice that he may see deliverance and Salvation but he gives him not the least occasion of hope that he shall have deliverance but in the meane while what doth the sinner He leaves his sins as fast as he can and turnes them off and throwes them away He sees Salvation and he sayth yonder is Salvation but I have no reason to hope to have it but whether I have it or no I will never goe back to sin I am resolved whether Christ will give me pardon and Salvation or not I will not take sin any more I applie it to this when afflictions and miseries come in stormes on a poore soule shower after shower that there is no end the soule sayth I know not how I shall be delivered from these troubles here is death and misery and sicknesse upon me and I know not what the issue will be but be the end what it will by the helpe of God I will not goe back to sin I will not repent that I have received Christ but will keepe close to the Lord. This is the meaning of that phrase Mat. 13. Where Christ saith when the sun is up upon the corne it scorcheth it that is when there is Persecution for every Persecution is an affliction though every affliction be not a Persecution now when the sun of Persecution is up men are offended What is the meaning of that Men repent of their bargaine they begin to be sorrie that ever they were Professors of Religion Therefore the Lord Christ would have a man cast up the cost For when a man enters into Religion it is as if he were to fight a Field there will be losse and trouble and danger there will be tribulation and hot Persecution consider if thou be able to goe through it thou must have the shell as well as the kernell it is a decree of Heaven Therefore consider before hand that thou mayest not repent when troubles come There may be base times worse then yet if worse may be and if when tribulations come thou shalt repent that thou hast gone so farr in Religion and that thou hast been acquainted with the Saints and that thou hast been so oft in their companie thou hast to speake the least and the best of thee an unhumbled heart Sixtly a Saint that hath a humbled heart you 6. He is more carefull to carry himselfe aright then to be delivered may know it by his carriage in afflictions by this he is more carefull by far of his right carriage in it then of deliverance out of it That is alway in a humble heart he studies more how to behave himselfe like a Saint under the rod then how to get away and be delivered from it You may read in Acts 4. There was very hot persecution and great affliction upon the Saints and yet there they are blessing God notwithstanding all their Persecution to see the Scripture fullfilled that which was spoken in Psal 2. The Kings of the Earth stand up and the Rulers take counsell together against the Lord and against his anoynted they rejoyced to see that fullfilled as if they had said they killed Christ the other day and now they Persecute us Now what would
us that it may be are emynent in the eye of the World before men yet when all coms to all their fasting and praying and preaching and repeating c. will be found to be nothing in the World but a walking according to the Flesh that is according to the refined well educated principles of old Adam But I shall goe on a little further Therfore in the next place the Question will be how shall I know whether I walk according Use 2. How to know whether we walk according to the spirit to the flesh or according to the spirit How shall I know whether I be one of those that walk according to the spirit I will only give you a few expressions of it I will not say signes for it may be you could not all beare that word and these expressions are most of them layd downe in this Chapter and hereabout whereby you may have a guess of it whether you be men that walk according to the spirit or no. First you shall find in Rom. 6. that those that 1. Such are dead to sin are under grace or that walk according to the spirit sin is destroyed in them they are dead to sin and alive to righteousnesse And there are many expressions of the same thing in diverse phrases As in Vers 6. Knowing this that our old man is crucified that the bodie of sin might be destroyed that henceforth we should not serve sin If thou be a man that walkest according to the spirit thou canst say the body of sin is destroyed and thou doest not serve sin Then it is sayd in Vers 11. That those that are under grace they are dead indeed to sin and alive to God that is another expression And in Vers 12. Sin shall not raigne in their Mortall bodies that they should obey it in the lusts thereof And in Vers 13. Yeild not your members as instruments of unrighteousnesse And in Vers 14. Sin shall not have dominion over them So there are diverse expressions of one and the same thing Now from all for I cannot open them particularly how much is held forth in each of these expressions but to help thee to see a little the State of thy soule I would gather these three things from all these expressions there is I say meant by them these three things The first thing is this that those that walk according 1. Sin is dead in respect of guilt to grace and according to the spirit sin is dead in them That is they are dead in respect of the guilt of sin they doe see and understand in some measure that Jesus Christ by his death hath abolished and destroyed and done away all their sins in respect of the guilt of them they are not under the law in that respect They see that there is a full righteousnesse in Jesus Christ that hath satisfied the law and so their sins are done away that they shall never condemne them This is one thing Now a man that walks according to the flesh he sees not that neyther can see it for these things are spirituall Now take a man that walks according to the flesh that is according to the most refined principles of old Adam and he alway carries guilt upon his Conscience he will alway be as a man that is rouling of a Snow-ball the more he goes on in his Service the more guilt and horrour But a man that walks according to the spirit let him be weake or strong he sees this in some measure and probably for the most part that his sins are done away and that there is no condemnation to him because he is in Christ and beleives in him therfore as it is Rom. 5. 7. He that is dead is freed from sin or justified from sin That is one thing Secondly in all these phrases this is held forth 2. Sin is dead in respect of the power to us as I understand that a beleiver being planted into Christ for so he looks upon himselfe and ingrafted and united to Christ in respect of the power of sin he accounts it as dead that is when he sees any sin stirring in him he considers I am one with Christ I am planted with him in his death and resurrection and this sin was condemned when Christ was condemned and as sure as Christ did die this sin must die therfore he looks upon all his sins and lusts as things that are gasping for life as things that are ready to die and that will surely die as surely as Christ did die Another man that walks according to the law when he sees sin in him and finds lusts to rise in his soul he sayth as David in another case Surely I shall one day fall by the hands of Saul Surely I shall prove an Hypocrite one time or other this sin will break my neck and so he is discouraged and his heart is hardened But a man that is under grace that walks according to the Gospell let sin be never so strong and prevalent he looks on it as a condemned thing he can triumph over it when it is strongest and can say I know thou must be layd in the Grave with Jesus Christ he reckons himselfe dead to sin That is another thing Thirdly and lastly from all these expressions 3. They are more holy then others here in Rom. 6. We gather this that surely all those that are under grace or that walk according to the spirit in some eminent way are more holy and more freed from sin then once they were and then all those are that walk under the law in some eminent way I say they are more holy though I doe not say there is no sin in them for then we should lye as John sayth but certainly there is a power in their soules against sin that is exceedingly transcendent in respect of the best morall men in respect of the exactest men in the World that walk according to the law what else is the meaning of all this Yee are dead to sin and sin shall not reigne and have dominion over you and you shall not yeild your members as instruments to sin Shall we turne all this into speculation No certainly there is some eminent reall holynesse and power against sin that they had not before Therfore saith he VVhat pleasure had you in those things whereof ye are now ashamed those sins that you committed before you are now ashamed of them And let me looke a little upon my owne soule or appeale to you take any man or woman that understands what it is to be under the law what it is to walke according to the Covenant of works and according to the flesh and what covenants and resolutions and promises and fastings he had and let him looke upon himselfe what he is now since he hath knowen a little of Christ and hath knowen that he is a justified Person and that he is dead to the law and the like I appeale
to you whether you doe not feele a strange power in your soules killing and subduing sin that you never imagined before or almost hoped to have There are some Saints that I know that when they came to know a little of Jesus Christ they have found a power to subdue their sins that they did not hope for in their other condition they were so strong it is an emynent power A poore Saint that sees another tugging and striveing and wrastling and bustling with his corruptions he knowes that there is a sweet power in his soule that pulls downe the highest and proudest imaginations As a godly man sayth there is as much difference between a man that walks after the flesh according to the law and he that walks according to the spirit as betweene a man that is in a great Lyter or in a great Boat that is fast upon the sand and there are it may be a dozen or twenty men tugging and striving to get it off and yet it sticks and another man that is in a Boat upon the water and needs onely to hoist sayle and sit downe and it is gone he goes with winde and tide So a man that walks according to grace he can go as a child and speake loving and plaine words to his Father and get power over his sins that all the bowling and roaring and crying of another a whole Yeare together cannot doe It is so and all you that know what grace is know it That is one thing therefore consider this if thou walke according to the spirit thou art dead to sin That is in respect of the condemnation and guilt of it thou hearest that Christ hath fulfilled the law and that sin is done away And secondly in respect of the power of it thou canst looke upon it as a dying gasping thing that must die and thou canst tread on it through the death of Christ. Thirdly thou findest no lust so strong in thy soul but thou canst ordinarily bring it downe thou canst bring it to the obedience of Jesus Christ another man may throw his cap at his sins and be wishing and woulding all the year long but there are strong lusts in his soule that will not out Therefore sayth the Apostle when you walked according to the law the motions of sin brought forth fruit unto death inevitably it will be so Then further you shall finde the fruits of walking Fruits of walking according to the spirit according to the spirit I will but name them to you and wish you to consider of them You have many set downe in this Eighth to the Romanes When a man walks according to the spirit you shall see this is one fruit of it a spirit of adoption whereby we crie abba Father As many as A spirit of adoption are led by the spirit of God they are the Sons of God for ye have not received the spirit of bondage againe to feare but ye have received the spirit of adoption wherby we crie abba Father That is one fruit of it as soone as a man comes to walk according to the spirit he hath not a spirit of bondage any more What is that It is nothing but this a temper of soule like a slave just as you may conceive of a Spirit of bondage what man that is taken Prisoner in Turkie what temper he is of he is glad of a crust of bread and he feares whipping and beating and it may be killing such is the temper of a mans soule in a spirit of bondage when one is in such a temper that he is alway in feare of being whipped and scourged and he hath hard thoughts of God and he feares that he shall proove an hypocrite and the like Now sayth the Apostle we have not that spirit but we have the spirit of adoption whereby we crie abba Father That is there is a sweet temper such as is in a loving Child to his deare Father there is a boldnesse a love and delight and rejoycing and a sweetnesse c. This is one fruit of it therefore as far as thou art under horrour and mopeing and howling and crying thou commest short of walking according to the spirit for thy soule would be alway full of sweetnesse in the greatest affliction if there were a spirit of adoption and under the worst sins thou doest commit though their would be sorrow yet thou wouldest be full of sweetnesse and joy That is one thing Againe another fruit and consequent of it is Raysing up of the spirit that the spirit of God beares witnesse with our spirits that we are the Children of God If thou wilt be lead by the spirit and walk after the spirit the spirit of God will witnesse with thy spirit that thou art the Child of God What is that the meaning of it is this as I understand the spirit of God will rayse up my spirit to be able to see and know that I am the Child of God for the spirit of a man knowes the naturall things of a man and no more But the spirit of God witnesseth with my spirit that I am the Childe of God that is hee rayseth up my spirit whereby I may see and know that I am the Childe of God that as before by my owne spirit I was able to know whether I were poore or rich whether I were sick or well whether I were beloved or hated So now my spirit is raysed by the spirit of God I am able to reflect upon my selfe spiritually and look upon my selfe as beloved and chosen and holy and called and justified and this in a spirituall way Thirdly here is another expression of it and An earnest hope that is an earnest hope or expectation of the glory that is to be revealed I find and observe little of that to be in Professors and I have oft marvailed at it and the reason is because they have not the spirit of adoption and walk not fully according to the spirit therfore they are not filled with those expectations and those earnest desires that the Saints were ordinarily in the primitive times Sayth the Apostle in this Chapter The creature groaneth and desires to be delivered and not only they but we our selves which have the first fruits of the spirit we groane within our selves waiting for the adoption to wit the redemption of our bodie The meaning is there is no man knowes what that glory is that is to be revealed nor no man what it is to looke for it and expect it The word in the Originall is as one sayth as a woman looks for deliverance when her paines are on her O! she would faine be delivered or as a man in Prison that looks for his freind out of a window he puts out his head and looks but he cannot get out though he faine would Such an earnest hope and expectation and desire there is in the Saints that walke according to the spirit to see Jesus
Christ come and to enjoy that glory that is to be revealed There are many more expressions there that are the fruits of it as the spirit of supplication Vers 26. And there is also a triumphing over all our spirituall enemies Vers 31. What shall we say then if God be for us who can be against us c. And then there is an absolute dependance upon God for all things He that spared not his owne Son but delivered him up for us all how shall he not with him give us all things And then there is also a patient suffering of all afflictions Sayth the Apostle Vers 18. I neckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed And then there is lastly an absolute eternal union with Christ Jesus in respect of his love I am perswaded that neither death nor life nor Angels nor principalities nor any thing shall ever be able to seperate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our lord these are the expressions of the fruits of the spirit of God in the soule when men walk according to the spirit when they walk according to grace Take a man that walks according to the flesh or according to the law you shall find none of these kind of things in his soule So much concerning that Use In the next place as this Doctrine is a Touchstone Vse 3. Tryall of our actions whereby you may trie and judg of mens persons so hereby also you may trie your services and actions I say this is a rule whereby you may come to know what your services are what worth is in them For as they only are Saints who walk according to the spirit let the World judg how they will and those that walk carnally according to the flesh according to the law are not Saints so I say those actions or services of ours that proceed from the spirit of God they are only pleasing to God and those that proceed from the flesh from Old Adam those are not pleasing to him Now I say by this we may trie our services and actions as well as our persons for there is the same reason for both in all my actions all that I expect from them is that they be pleasing to God that is the end of all that we doe for they cannot justifie us that is done already or if it be not they cannot doe it but all is to be pleasing to God Now then the maine rule by which I am to judg of my actions it is this not to judg of them according as they are plausible to men or according as they have affection or enlargment in them as we call it but we are to judg of our actions cheifly if not principally by the principle that they flow from if it be the weakest and meanest action if it be the least sigh or prayer if it proceed from the new Adam the Lord Jesus it is sweet and pleasing to God it is an acceptable Sacrifice But if it be the most glorious thing in the World if it proceed from old Adam not only from sinfull Adam but from naturall Adam as he is called the naturall man 1. Cor. 15. I say that that riseth from naturall wisdome and invention and understanding and memory c. it is but flesh and Whatsoever is borne of flesh is flesh and as we say Pepper is Pepper that is it is deare so flesh is flesh that is it is a filthy abominable thing to God As it is in this Chapter they that walk according to the flesh cannot please God So that that is borne of the flesh that service that ariseth from the flesh that is done from the flesh cannot please God But you will say cannot the actions that proceed Quest from the principles of naturall Adam be pleasing to God Every man knowes that of corrupt Adam cannot but cannot that of naturall Adam as a man may pray meerly by a naturall wit and bravely to please man and to please himself and he may preach by a naturall wit and doe other Excercises and doe them finely cannot they be pleasing to God No this is a certaine rule that there is nothing Answ Nothing that comes from naturall Adam pleaseth God that comes from flesh from a principle of old Adam whither it be naturally good or evill there is nothing whether from pure Adam or corrupt Adam that is pleasing to God The reason is this because as it is Gen. 3. 5. That when Adam sinned against God you know his punishment was that he should die he was not to eat or touch the forbidden fruit least he should die Now when Adam eat of that fruit you know the curse came upon him And in reference to this you shall find those phrases in this Epistle whosoever walks according to the flesh shall die whosoever walks as old Adam is in the State of the old curse he shall die and O miserable man who shall deliver me from this body of death He calls it a body of death alluding to the maine curse of old Adam which was that he should die Now when the Lord sayd that Adam should Adam to dye as a publick person die for sin conceive not that the meaning is only that he should die personally that his person now should be subject to the wrath of God to damnation of soule and body for ever in Hell that is not the only meaning of it it is true he fell under that but the meaning is this also that whole Adam Adam as thou art a publike person thou shalt die that whereas I made and appoynted thee to be the spring and Foundation of all mankind and every man in the World is to have thy Image on him and I have filled thee with righteousnesse and wisdome and good things that may tend much to thy happinesse and thy posteritie that thou mayest derive a principle to them to be like thee in good and to be pleasing to me But when Adam sinned now sayth God thou shalt die I made thee a happie creature and put abundance of excellencies in thee for thy selfe and thy posterity as a publike person but now thou hast sinned and extinguished all that good Now I will blast them all thy wisdome and thy righteousnesse thy soule and thy body thy very being Adam shall die Thy person as thou art a private man and as thou art a publike man soule and body flesh and bone all that is in the and all that comes from thee shall die this is that great curse that God laid on him a curse of a great extent Therefore I say whatsoever now ariseth from All that springs from old Adam condemned the Sons of Adam that springs from old Adam be it good or evill it is condemned to die it must die it cannot please God As Adam when he had eaten the forbidden fruit the Lord set an Angell with a Sword
proud that you cannot rule your hearts but you are lifted up with pride when you have done duties it is because every fine thing you doe from old Adam makes you proud you take all in the bulke and consider not whence you doe things you consider not how much of the old Adam or of the new there is in your Prayers and Duties Therfore let this be an universall eternall rule to know the worth of all your services and actions by whatsoever is of the flesh is flesh and whatsoever of my Preaching and of your praying and lending and giving and of your publike actions if it be not from a spirituall principle from Jesus Christ according to the Gospell planted in you it is of old Adam and it is condemned labour to leave that I shall conclude with one Word more and Vse 4. To expect the fulfilling of Prophesies and promises that is this that this beeing so that this is to walk according to the spirit Then we should long very much for the fulfilling of those Prophesies and Promises that God hath made unto us concerning the latter times There is no Saint almost now that I know but expects glorious times only one Saint thinks that the glory of the Saints shall be in this thing and another in that thing but every Saint expects continually the fulfilling of those Prophesies and promises set downe in the latter end of the Revelations and they are glorious ones whatsoever the meaning of them is and I think the cheife thing there promised which shall be the height of our happinesse that the new Jerusalem shall come downe from Heaven mistake me not though it be a consequent yet it is not cheifly and properly such a way of government this or that or the other way though it be true that Government will follow upon it yet if the meaning of it were only to reforme our Churches though that were a blessing or that Christ should come and reigne here temporally and give us Inheritances and riches and the like truly a Saint would not long much for these things But the New Jerusalem shall come downe from Heaven and abundance of blessings that shall goe along with it What is that The meaning of New Jerusalem comming downe from Heaven what it is we shall have the light of the Gospell clearly revealed unto us and we shall have Gospell principles fully put into our soules which by Antichrist by Babilon we have been seduced of these thirteene or fourteene hundred yeares For that was the mischeife of Antichrist he hath kept us all his reigne under the old Testament with Altars and Sacrifices and Preists and I know not what every thing just as they used under Moses and we are not wholly gone out of Antichrist yet But the Lord will send a light into our hearts to know the truth in the power and spirit and to square our hearts to it For that is new Jerusalem if you compare it with Heb. 12. where the holy Jerusalem the heavenly Jerusalem is clearly opposite to Mount Sinai So compare it with Gal. 4. he tells us that Jerusalem which is above us is Mother of us all that is the Covenant of grace and the principles thereof in the soules of men Therefore I wish that the Lord would set your hearts and mine a longing after that that we may have more of the spirit of the Gospel and of the Principles of the New Testament in us and then for matter of Government of Churches those things would follow For to set up Government and Discipline before this comes into the soule truely it is to build Castles in the ayre for let a man take us and frame us in the Independent or Presbyterian way in what way he will unlesse the Principles of Jesus Christ in the Gospel be spiritually planted it will be a fleshly Independent and a fleshly Presbyterian service Therefore labour chiefly for that and pray the Lord to fulfill that and then your Government whatsoever it shall be God will reveale it more fully People are now generally going to build and order Churches and I know not what unlesse the spirit of the New Testament governe in the New Testament it is a vaine thing thing for if wee have our former fleshly hearts that walke according to the Law and according to the flesh all the Government in the World will never doe us good because God hath cursed Flesh and it will never be regulated and brought to good And this also should move us exceedingly to Upon what ground to long for the comming of Christ long for the comming of Jesus Christ to glory for his comming to us or our comming to him and the reason of that you shall have in 1 Cor. 15. 49. a glorious word that hath dwelt much in my thoughts I told you the reason why every man must dye a naturall death because of that absolute grand curse that Adam did fall in as a publick person and we being from him we must dye Now here is the comfort of it a blessed word it is As we have borne the Image of the earthly so we shall beare also the Image of the heavenly that is when the redemption of our bodies comes at the day of Christ then as we have borne the Image of the earthly so we shall beare the Image of the heavenly We have borne hitherto and doe beare the Image of naturall Adam we are all his Sons and Daughters just like him in our wisedome and understandings and bodies and soules poore earthly creatures naturall fraile creatures we are and by that curse that was layd upon him we must all dye and lay downe these earthly Tabernacles these earthly creatures must be dissolved As we have borne the Image of the earthly not onely as we have borne the Image of old Adam sin and wickednesse and pride and frowardnesse so now we shall beare the Image of the new not onely in respect of grace and holinesse and righteousnesse that if I be in him all those corruptions of nature shall out and I shall have a new nature That is true but that is not all but as I wholly beare the Image and shape of old Adam his body and soule and senses and all those must dye so when these bodies shall be raised we shall as absolutely and largely beare the Image of the new Adam the Lord Jesus in our body and senses and all our whole man soule and body in respect of substance as well as quality we shall beare the Image of the second dam as lively and in as large an extent as ever wee bore the Image of the earthly Adam Therefore that is a Not onely sinfulnesse but earthynesse troubles a Christian great comfort I will tell you why because it is not onely the sinfulnesse of a Christian that troubles him but his earthinesse so many distempers and troubles that it is a misery the spirit is willing but the flesh
is weake there is so much weaknesse and earthinesse and frailty sometimes a mans heart is right for God yet his head akes or his stomack is full of wind or he is weary and wants sleep there is some frailty or other This is all earthly Adam all this shall be gone and this kind of body and soule shall be altered and changed to the Image of the blessed second Adam we shall put off our earthynesse as well as our sinfulnesse and have his blessed compleat Image Now how glorious that shall be as you never The glory of Saints in Heaven unspeakable saw the first Adam but onely by hear-say and by reading of the Word of God so you have not seen the second Adam but you may partly know by the manifestation of his glory on earth you have heard much of his glory We saw his glory as of the onely begotten Son of God we shall then see him Phil. 3. 19. Our conversation is in Heaven from whence we look for the Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ who shall change our vile bodies He meanes vile not onely in respect of sinfulnesse but of dustinesse of earthynesse and weaknesse that they may be like his glorious body according to his mighty working whereby he is able to subdue all things to himselfe that is according to his usuall manner of working he can doe what he will in Heaven and Earth We cannot conceive what an Imnge we shall have upon our bodies and soules but according to his wisedome and mighty power whereby he is able to subdue all things he will doe it Therefore let me tell you this I finde few or Saints formerly had more lively expectations of glory by Christ none that have those live by expectations in these times of that glory that is to be revealed that the Saints of old had See how they speake of it What manner of love is this that we should be called the Sons of God But yet it doth not appeare what we shall be for we shall be like him And gird up the loynes of your minds be sober and watch for the glory that shall be revealed The Saints heretofore more then halfe their hearts were in Heaven before hand That is the meaning of that Our conversation is in Heaven Just as you see men that goe a long journey or as you see people that have been plundered that are returning to their owne homes their conversation is there halfe a yeare before their hearts and their thoughts are there and they wish they were there and think the time long and are thinking what they will doe and what they will be when they come there So our conversation is in Heaven the Saints doe so long after the glory that is to be revealed in the day of adoption and redemption of our bodies that the most part of them is there already Now we doe not consider of this because the new Jerusalem is not yet come into our hearts We have not that Gospel-temper and frame of spirit that the Saints had before That which remaines is a little to shew you what your duty is that the Lord hath brought up to walk according to the spirit And two or three words I have to shew you how you should every one endeavour to attaine to it or to attaine it more and more But I shall leave that till the after-noone SERMON V. Rom. 8. 4. Who walke not after the flesh but after the spirit IT is the Foundation of all our happinesse to have the righteousnesse The foundation of a Christians happinesse of the law fulfilled in us for thereby we are exempted from all misery freed from all our enemies and therby we are made capable to enjoy all happinesse and blessednesse For all the misery that man suffers here and hereafter is because he hath not a righteousnesse to fulfill the law And therefore whatsoever man or woman it is that the Lord hath bestowed this great priviledge upon they must needs be in a blessed condition Now that we may know whether we are of that number the Apostle tells us that they that have this priviledge they walk not according to the Flesh but according to the spirit which was the last thing I was upon I told you what was meant by walking after the flesh and what by walking after the spirit I gave the Reasons of it and made two or three Uses There are two things remaine which I shall endeavour to speake of at this time First you that have received the spirit of God Vse 4. Exhortation to those that have the spirit how to walke and in some measure doe walk according to the spirit and not according to the flesh that the new-Jerusalem from Heaven is in some measure come into your hearts I will give you a few Exhortations from the Lord how you should carry your selves That is the first thing I shall doe and that shall be in four or five short words The first is this that the Lord having called 1. Not to abuse this liberty you to this glorious free estate to this free condition that you would take heed of abusing your liberty that you would take heed of turning the grace of God into wantonnesse as many doe And by that I meane but two things That you would take heed of using your liberty as an occasion for the flesh And Secondly of using your liberty so as to give offence to your Brethren or indeed to any I say first beware of using your liberty for an occasion 1. Not to use it as an occasion to the flesh to the flesh That you shall have Gall. 5. 13. For Brethren sayth the Apostle you have been called to liberty only use not your liberty for an occasion to the flesh but by love serve one another The Apostle shewes them in that Epistle the glorious condition and estate that they were in through grace And here in this Verse there are two things that he tells them the one is implied it is worth observing yee are called to liberty That The Gospell brings liberty is there is a freedome there is a liberty in the Gospell in diverse things that did seeme to be sinfull when ye were under the law for else what sence can you make of this ye are called to liberty onely use not your liberty for an occasion to the flesh For we find that the people under the law eyther they made the law stricter or looser then it was And there is no man in the World that walks according to the law but he makes many lawes to himselfe that Christ hath not made Now when the Gospell coms in clearly all those lawes that you made of your owne head vanish Ye are called to liberty that is you see more freedome you are not bound to every thing that before you were Before you must not smile it was a sin if you seemed to laugh or smile and a hundred such things Now
if any of you have a mind to learning goe on I discourage you not from it learning is a thing in another Element take paines and dilligence to be learned it is good to doe so But if thou wilt be a Gospell Christian thou must thank the spirit of God for all Sayth Paul for all his learning I am not sufficient to speake a good word and he was a learned man that Festus sayd Much learning had made him mad Beza in his Comment upon 2 Cor. 11. Where the Apostle sayth Are they Hebrews so am I. Are they Jewes so am I. Sayth he I never read in any Latine or Greek Author so much eloquence and elegancie of speech as Paul hath there and yet he Professeth he could not think a good thought for all he was learned so much much lesse doe a good worke The will of God not knowne till we extoll the spirit As long as thou keepest the spirit an underling as a Cypher as many of the clergie and learned men they extoll learning to the Heavens and many of them upon purpose to despight the spirit of God as long as they doe so they shall never know the will of God We are not debtors to the flesh but we must be debtors to the spirit if we will have one true thought of Jesus Christ O prayse the spirit and prize the spirit If you have any thought of Christ thank the spirit if you have any glimps of him in your soules worth any thing prayse the Spirit That is the reason that the Saints in the Booke How Saints of Old spake of the spirit of God speake not of the spirit of God without some speciall epithite of commendation Guid me by thy HOLY spirit and sayth another thy BLESSED spirit and thy GRACIOVS spirit and the spirit of GRACE sayth another They never speake of it without some word that shewed their love to it and their high esteeme of it When the Lord shall come and his spirit shall be advanced in the hearts of men we shall have glorious times and never before that and those times will come I remember Calvin on those Prophesies in I say and Joell The SVN shall be darkned and the MOONE shall be turned into blood in that day Sayth he the meaning is all the excellencie that a man naturally hath his learning and endowments in the dayes of the Gospell when the spirit shall come with his light when God shall exalt the spirit The Sun shall be turned into darkenesse and the Moone into blood Men shal not so much esteem learning from Books but learned and great men and Schollers shall come to one classis and one rank and forme with simple people all waiting on God by his VVord through the spirit A man can take his Boy from Schoole that hath his Lattine and Greeke and send him to the Universitie and he assures himselfe that he shall be as good a Minister as his other Sonne that it may be hath served the spirit seaven yeares this is our way and a hundred more whereby we basely slight and disdaine the spirit of God and doe not honour him and therefore he will not honour us Thirdly if ever you will be true Gospell Saints 3. To be led by the spirit you must suffer your selves to be lead by the spirit of God That phrase you find oft in Rom. 8. Gal. 5. If you live in the spirit walk in the spirit be lead by the spirit We are not complementary to commend the spirit of God c. But give it scope to lead us You must heed more what the spirit of God saith unto you and what he works on you If there come a place of Scripture in your mind heare and consider whether the spirit of God hath not put it in thy mind and would have thee studie it and would have thee compare Scriptures And when thou commest to doe any action whatsoever not so much to advice with this man or that man but what sayth the spirit I meane according to the light of the Scripturs harken to that more then what all the World faith Therefore I have knowne some men that in their whole lives have often mist the will of God in circumstantiall things usually it may be for a yeare or two or three and they have mist it againe in another thing and in another thing And when they have examined how this comes about they can say if they had hearkned to the spirit of God they had not done so but they hearkned to men and so went against the dictates of the spirit in their conscience they would heare what this man said and what the other man did But now the spirit will say to them you see I would have shewed you the right way but you would not give me scope but made a Cypher of me And for my one particular I doe not yet see how I should ever have mist the will of God since I knew him if I had hearkned to the spirit of God if I had but observed so much light as the spirit had put into my heart Now we Ballance the spirit with this mans example and with the other mans opinion and so come home by Weeping Cross Therefore give scope to the spirit I meane not against the word or above the word but still I meane the spirit of God working according to the Scriptures and no otherwise Another thing and a speciall one is I wish you for the mysteries of the Gospell to study the 4. To studie Scriptures without mens glosses Scriptures in the simplicity of them without the glosses of Men For a man in extremity must doe that that a man that is not in extremity would not doe We have brought our selves in such slavery to Men that we must take that course that another sober man should not I meane thus when ever we goe to look for any truth of God for the will of God we have notions in our minds before hand according to the times and places we live in As concerning Baptisme what need I goe to the Scriptures saith one we have it in such and such Mens Writings And so we forestall the will of God that we are blinded and cannot see it Therefore if you will see the wil of God I wish you for a while at least to look on the naked Three uses of other Books besides the Scriptures Scriptures And for my part I know but three uses to be made of other Books As first there is this use of Books you have 1. To set forth Scripture in diverse languages Books that will read the Scriptures in diverse languages and shew the Originall and open the tongues now when I see a word in English and doubt of the meaning of it then I will goe to the Greek or Hebrew as God hath endowed me with knowledge Then there is another use of Books when I 2. To open one Scripture by another
read one single Scripture it may be I have a book that will point out halfe a dozen Scriptures to open one Scripture by And it may be I have some books that take 3. To presse Scriptures on the soule some Scripture and presse it upon my soule as Doctor Prestons and other godly books But to take books and say Jerome thinks this and Austin that and fill our heads with notions they blind us that we cannot see the will of God Therefore in reading of Scriptures there should Difference in the learning of Christians and others be this difference from our reading of other Books I meane in respect of age When we are Children and young we use not Spectacles it may be at twenty or thirty or fourty yeares old we can read without Spectacles but when we come to fifty or sixty then we can see nothing but through Spectacles It should be just contrary with us when we are Christians When we are young we usually never read the Word of God but through the Spectacles of mens glosses but when we are older Christians and stronger Saints we should learne to read better without Spectacles wee should daily make lesse use of Mens Books and more of Gods Book That whereas before a man turned over twenty Authors upon a point Now he can goe humbly to God with his Bible and without Spectacles he can see what the will of God is Therefore lay aside Spectacles sometimes and onely take the spirit of God and compare Scipture with Scripture that you may come to know the mind of Christ Shall I name one thing more If you would 5. To be borne againe come to be spirituall Gospel-Saints you must be borne againe you must be borne from above A Gospell-profession is Jerusalem from above and there are none that can come into Jerusalem that is from above but those that are borne from above Therefore marke our Saviours reasoning John 3. Nicodemus asks Christ which was the way to Heaven And he tells him Verily thou must be borne againe or thou must be borne from above or else thou canst not see it Nichodemus wonders why hee must be borne from above saith he Shall I goe into my Mothers belly c. Saith Christ marvell not wonder not why should he not wonder at such a strange speech Here is the reason That which is borne of flesh is flesh therefore think it not strange that I say thou must be borne againe So I say whatsoever you do by the power of nature by your owne wisedome by your owne righteousnesse or your owne strength all comes but to this but to flesh and whatsoever comes of flesh is flesh Flesh cannot bring out the spirit no more then a thorne can bring out Grapes as Christ speak Therefore wonder not that thou must be borne from above that is thou must have the Lord from above to beget thee againe You have every one been borne once you must be borne once more you must have a new creation in you the Lord must create new strange properties and dispositions that no flesh and blood is able to comprehend Lastly take the councell of the Holy Ghost 6. To pray for the spirit of wisedome and revelation and that is in Ephes 1. 16 As Paul prayed for them so doe thou pray for thy selfe and there is all the reason in the World that thou shouldest I cease not sayth he to give thanks for you making mention of you in my Prayers that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ the Father of glory would give to you the spirit of wisedome and revelation in the knowledge of him Pray for the spirit of wisedome and revelation in the knowledge of Christ Sleight not these words because some wicked men abuse them and others reproach them but because Paul saith so pray that the Lord would give thee the spirit of wisedome and revelation So much concerning the directions I had to give you There is one word of Information and with Vse 6. The true ground of persecutions and divisions that I will conclude From what I have said before concerning the flesh and the spirit learne this instruction more hence to see what is the true ground of all persecution nay even of all the divisions that are among us Men may pretend what they will and deceive themselves but all the strife and persecution in the World is meerly between the flesh and the spirit between the old and the new Adam There are two Princes in this World and these are contrary the one to the other The flesh lusteth against the spirit Old Adam seeks to get up and the new Adam will have him downe Therefore you shall have these two in every Towne in one Church in one Family in one soule and wheresoever they are the flesh lusteth against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh and these two are contrary Are contrary what is that That is there is no true contrariety between any things in the World but between the old Adam and the new between the flesh and the spirit Now by Flesh I meane not onely corruption but whole flesh fleshly wisedome The wisedome of old Adam is enmity against the wisedome of the new the righteousnesse of old Adam is quite contrary to the righteousnesse of the new this is the cause of persecution Let people pretend what they will you shall see godly men persecuted you may see Christ in their soules as clearly as the Sun and people keep a coile about Independency and Presbytery but the truth is it is old Adam in those that persecute and the new Adam in the other a man with one eye may see it There are many pretences but all the strife is between the old Adam and the new For to give a little illustration take Gospell godly Saints that have the spirit of God in them they agree well enough they will not strive sometimes they may differ a little but for the generality they live well enough together nay take some Gospell Saints that are filled with the spirit of God and the knowledge of Jesus Christ in these times and in this City which is the center of all division and they cannot attest divisions they cannot make a partie and give rayling for rayling and strife for strife they cannot but love their enemies and bless them that blaspheme them As James sayth Whence come all wars You think they come from your zeale for your way and yours for your way but it is from your lusts The flesh lusteth against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh It is from old Adam And I was going to say but I will but name it Cause of Saints weakness This is the cause also of the weaknesse generally that is among you It is not wickednesse that troubles a Saint but weaknesse it is not positive ills but weaknesse And whence is this weaknesse Because he walks after the flesh The spirit is powerfull but the
my spirit Rom. 1. And in 1 Thes 5. That ye may be sanctified in your spirit That is in the very Coare and quintessence of the soule Now a godly man may have many hurries of VVordly things and lusts cross and come through but the coare of his heart is for God and for holines Therefore saith Paul Rom. 7. I serve the law of the flesh with my members and the law of Christ with my mind That is inwardly with the care of my heart I shewed the meaning of that word before I shall not now goe on further in that Secondly a man is sayd to mind worldly things 2. VVhen a man savours fleshly things when a man not only thinks of Worldly and fleshly things but savours of worldly and Fleshly things Therefore the same word Frounena that is here minding is oft read to savour As in the Speech of Christ to Peter Thou savourest the things of the VVorld thou hast a smack of it thou hast a relish of carnall things So then to mind Fleshly things is when a man not only thinks of them and considers them but when a man finds most joy and tast and delight in such kind of things Put a Fleshly man about Worldly or carnall or if you will about sinful businesse O there he is as a fish in the VVater there he is his owne man he is well but put him about any spirituall thing let him come to learne a little for his soule or let his Neighbour come to teach him and admonish and reproove him he is upon thornes then he hath no tast of it at all now if thou be a Fleshly man thou mindest Fleshly things that is thou doest not onely in thy understanding consider of them but thy soule relisheth them there thou art thy owne man when thou art in the middest of the VVorld and the Flesh and earth and hell therefore looke to thy selfe Thirdly to mind Fleshly things is when the 3. When the streame of the soule goes that way streame the maine of the soule goes upon Fleshly earthly carnall things when the things of God are but by businesse to a man It is not so in a spirituall man 1 Cor. 7. He useth the world as if he used it not he minds little of the World as little as may be but the maine streame of his soule is upon Jesus Christ there he excerciseth himselfe day and night as David speaks Fourthly when a man doth studie and plod continually 4. To studie and plod for fleshly things upon Worldly things upon Fleshly carnall things When a man takes care for so the word is used oft in Scripture as it is used Rom. 14. 6. If any man doth observe a day or care for a day Curare diem as we read it in the Latine if one observe it and another will not or will not regard it When a man observes and regards and takes care and studies and plods for earthly Fleshly things this is to mind Fleshly things Therefore in Phil. 4. 7. Saith the Apostle I am glad that your care is renewed towards me saith B E Z A it is more then care there is a kind of sollicitude it is addicere animam it is a word that signifies when a man addicts himselfe when he is given wholly to a thing when a man is addicted and gives his mind wholly to the World to fulfill his lusts or to enjoy his pleasures this is to mind Fleshly things Then fiftly and lastly it is when a man doth judg of things according to the Flesh Non est Cogitare c. To mind is not only to think of it but to judge of things As you have it 2 Cor. 5. I judge no man according to the flesh If Christ Jesus were here againe I would not looke on him according to the Flesh Now when he saith they mind the things of the flesh this is the meaning of it that is they judge of things in an earthly fleshly way they judge of the worth of things by the fleshlinesse not by the spirituallnesse of them A godly How godly men judge of things man doth not so all that he accounts of in the World are the things of God and of the spirit were it not for that this World would be a Hell to him and he judgeth of every man as he hath the spirit of God he accounts of him as without that not worth any thing a carnall man judgeth of things carnally as they are fleshly and carnall and as old Adam is set up so he judgeth by carnall arguments of spirituall things Thus I have as breifly as I could opened the meaning of it I will only at this time name one Use and leave the rest till God give another opportunitie You have heard what it is to be after the flesh and what the things of the flesh and the things of the spirit are and what it is to mind the things of the flesh and the things of the spirit for we may judge of the one by the other Now the Lesson or the Use as we call it is use 1. VVhy most people understand not spirituall things this Hence we may learne and see what the reason is why diverse people notwithstanding all the meanes used even among us in this place and in other places why they cannot come to understand any thing of Heavenly things of spirituall things What is the reason Because they mind them not and why doe they not mind them Because they are fleshly I have wondred oft times and I doe beleive in my Conscience that had I been here but a twelve month and had taken any naturall thing under Heaven had I read a Lecture of Philosophie or of Logick or any thing in your Trades or State businesse there are none eyther great or small but could have given some account what the man had sayd and yet there are some among you that though we have been speaking to you as the Lord hath enabled us almost these two yeares yet you are as ignorant and as unknowing in any thing that hath been said as if you had been a sleepe or had been in your Graves all the while It is a wonderfull thing that no word should stick nothing in the world of all that hath been said If we should ask some among us doe you remember any one passage or any one thing that the Preacher hath spoken of these two yeares they remember not one word What is the reason You did not mind it that is the meaning of that word Seeing they see not and hearing they heare not that was the plague upon that people in Isaiah When a mans mind is taken up with other things a man may ride by the doore and one may say did you see such a man he came by your eye I saw him not sayth he seeing he saw not his eye was on him but his mind was not he was thinking seriously of something else so hearing they
ungodly and doth deale despightfully with us as Christ saith then to doe him good and blesse when he curseth and pray for him that injureth us Beloved this is Gospell goodnesse I have had many thoughts of it had I time to proove that this Gospell goodnesse is a peice of the new Creature that was not in old Adam There was goodnesse in Adam but not this as for instance there are diverse things we find among Professors that in the last day will be found to be nothing but the Old Adam but Ishmaells that are humbled to the height and ye shall see in them a great deale of diligence in Gods service but where will you finde a Professor one of 500. and I speake with the least that you may clearly reade Gospell goodnesse in him that you may say younder is a man that if you curse him he will love you and if you doe him hurt and that despitefully he will pray for you It is an easie thing to kindle a brand that hath been once lighted to doe that which Adam did but to doe this is a higher matter As man was created after the Image of God so the Creatures in a sort were created after the Image of man Now as in Creatures in a Dogg there is love and the like But where is there a Creature that if you doe him mischiefe will not endeavour to doe you the like againe or at least wise runne away But where is a piece in the Old creation that doth lâ—ve his enemies And whereas it is said Adam was created after the image of God and God loves his enmies I answer God then in that Covenant was not in a disposition to love his enemies but to hate his enemies and sinners and curse them and damne them but now in Jesus Christ he loves his Enemies and therefore according to his minde he revealed to Adam it was not so and many other reasons I had but this I present to you with submission I doe not speake curiosities but I finde and see very little of this scarcely any there was a candid goodnesse in the primitive Church which is not now to be which is not now to be found now nothing but biting and teareing and devouring one another well there is one word he doth it by a spirituall Creation 2. By spirituall illumination Then Secondly he brings the soule to this way of spirituall reasoning by spirituall illumination he created faculties before and now he casteth in light as he did in the old creation you know he made Heaven and Earth in the lumpe and then said let there be light Now that is the reason when the Gospell is Preched and there is the spirit of God going with the Word and thou are darke and canst not receive this light the new creature is not framed in thee if thou hast no eyes thou canst not see and if a man have eyes he cannot see in a darke roome Now when the new man is made then the Lord sends in light and it is not every light for there are many lights a blind man as it were hath an Hypocrite hath them but it is a powerfull light that God Saints have a powerfull light puts in for we doe finde that there is a kinde of light in Hypocrites but yet there is not power in them there is not light to bring them to such kinde of reasoning as will bring them to any good or from any evill they will talke of drunknesse and Whoredome and the like but have not power to bring them off from any of these things Indeed a Saint may be overcome of his lusts that warre in his Members but there is a law in his mindâ— that is there is a light that is like unto a Law that hath power in it that he seeth Christ doing them away I am sorry I have not time to open this unto you farther but remember it Thirdly the Lord will doe it by suggestion that is the spirit of God puts light into the soule he puts a measure of light to dwell in every new creature and that powerfully But because the way of of the Saints are so darke in this World and thorow so much difficulty the spirit of God prompts a Saint allwayes when he is at a loss As among Schollers we shall see somtimes a man is almost borne downe and then another giveth him an Argument or distinction to helpe him and then he carries it and so the flesh hath reasons and arguments as we are going along and now though there be a measure of light a stock of light dwelling in us yet we are nonplussed by the flesh and then the spirit of God suggesteth somwhat to us and we are carried thorow as you have it in Mat. 20. When you are brought before Governours it is not you that speake but the spirit of God that prompteth you Fourthly the spirit doth it by Conviction that 4. By conviction is another way we have it Joh. 16. Saith Christ when I goe I will send my spirit and my spirit shall convince the World of sin reproove you have it he shall convince the World of sin of righteousnesse judgement The word signifies when he saith the spirit will convince that is by way of Argument the meaning is that in every carnall mans heart there are arguments against faith and for his owne destruction and strong ones too And when we Preach to you ye bring reason against reason and so goe away unconvinced unconverted but the spirit will ronvince you that is he will bring such strong arguments as Doctor PRESTON saith from Heaven that will convince you As when a stronger man commeth he disarmeth the other as before we thought godlinesse nothing but Heresie and Puritansme and the like but now the spirit convinceth you you see this is the only way and out of this way I shall never see God and the like Another way I find the spirit doth it by is by 5. By commemoration commemoration by minding us of what we have heard or somthing we have knowne before it is our remembrance Therefore saith Christ I will send my spirit and he shall bring to your remembrance what you have heard not that you shall remember a whole Sermon and Repeate it every word but thus it is he will either suggest thoughts Nenever had before or bring to our remembrance a word we have heard of such a Preacher in such a place or Read in such a place or thought in such a walke or the like and so setteth on and carrieth on the worke And he doth it by consolation he is the Comforter 6. By consolation the consolation of the spirit Beloved this is certaine that ye know trouble of mind exceedingly hinders the acts of reason That 's the reason men are madd because some fumes rise up in the braine and trouble the mind that they cannot reason but are madd Beloved our troubles of mind and soule
called the things of 2 Carnall priviledges the flesh it is carnall priviledges either men that are Fleshly mind their justification out of Christ or else their carnall priviledges I told you before that those are called Flesh saith the Apostle if any might I may glory in the Flesh What is that I am an Hebrew of the Hebrews c. and so the Jews in Mat. 3. Joh. 8. and 2. Cor. 11. They were apt as to stablish their own righteousnes so to glory in their priviledges we are the children of Abraham we were never slaves nor Servants We have not their priviledges to glory in yet this is a maine piece of old Adam a great part of the things of the Flesh outward priviledges let them be Church-priviledges or what you will when people rejoyce and mind and contemplate outward priviledges and doe not regard the inward power nor what is in and through and by them this is but flesh I feare you will not beare with me you will account me your enemy for telling you the truth but I am perswaded there are many among us that talke of churches and government and ordinances and priviledges and yet all is but flesh and you cannot well judge of them by their strictnesse in it for flesh will goe as strictly in its way as the Spirit but it is to be feared that diverse build of it and glory in it and it is a great part of their religion I warne you in love to looke to it and if those priviledges were taken away as Christ takes away the priviledge of being the Children of Abraham from the Jewes such people would be poore carnall people Take heed of it and let him that glories glory in the Lord. Thirdly and lastly the things of the flesh for 3 To fulfill sinfull lusts all old Adam is included in these three things that fleshly men mind is to fulfill their lusts which are many To make provision for the flesh Rom. 13. that is to be casting how to feed one lust or other Now if you would know what those lusts are in particular though in a sort it be generall you have it in 1 Joh. 16. saith he all that is in the world is the lust of the flesh the lust of the eye and the pride of life These are the lusts of the world all the lusts in the world may be reduced it seemes to those 3. heads so I say these are the fleshly things that al Carnall people mind all their thoughts throughout the yeare every one runns either in stablishing their own righteousnes or in glorying and contemplating their outward priviledges or in projecting for the fulfilling of some lust or other thus they spend their whole life these are the things of the flesh that carnall men mind Now the other the things of the Spirit that are contrary to these you may comprehend them all Things of the spirit in three words That is They are either the things of faith Or else their hope and happinesse in Jesus Christ Or else their Obedience to the will of Christ All the things of the Spirit are comprehended in these three Either the things of faith They mind the 1 The things of faith things of the Spirit that is they alway mind and study how to believe in Jesus Christ and how to lay firmer and righter hold on him how they may know him more distinctly and hold him more firmly and get fuller assurance this is their worke Or they are excercised about the things of hope 2. The things they hope for by Christ that is they are contemplating and rejoycing in their happinesse by Christ how their persons are justified and their sins pardoned and the righteousnesse of the law fulfilled in them and all in Heaven and earth bestowed on them As Paul sayth Phil. 3. This is our Religion we glory in the flesh as if not but we reioyce in Jesus we have no confidence in the flesh but we rejoyce in Jesus that is in all the happinesse we have in Jesus Christ Or thirdly and lastly the things of the spirit 3 Obedience to the wil of Christ are the will of God or the commands of Jesus Christ they alway studie how they may obey and fulfill the good and acceptable and perfect will of God So that a Saint if he be spirituall he is alway either acting his faith and increasing and strengthening that or he is contemplating his happinesse in Jesus Christ Or studying which way to glorifie God to know what part of the will of God he knowes not and to studie what part of the will of God he knowes and remembers this is his excercise And let this suffice to shew what the things of the Flesh and what the things of the spirit are Now the third question breifly is what is meant Quest 3. VVhat meant by minding the things of the flesh and of the spirit by the minding of the things of the Flesh and the things of the spirit You must understand first that the meaning is not as though a man might not think upon Fleshly 1. Not but that a Saint may provide outward things things For a spirituall Saint oft thinks upon Fleshly things in a spirituall manner as to consider his sins to bewayle and to mourne for them and he may mind Earthly Worldly things to provide things honest to provide for his Familie as the Apostle saith he may think of his businesse Therfore the holy Ghost here doth not use the word Frounesis but Frounena Frounesis signifies prudence or discretion or providence in businesse He doth not use that least we should think that the holy Ghost forbids to provide to be mindfull and carefull of Worldly businesse but Frounena that signifies a further thing as I shall shew presently Now then you must understand this also 2. The understanding is not only meant that when the Apostle sayth they mind the things of the Flesh The word doth not onely signifie the understanding but it signifies all the affections also I could give you divers places of Scripture where this word is set downe to expresse the working of any affection in the soule Therefore the meaning is not only of the mind that studies but his affections his will the way of his delight his joy is in earthly things his care is after fleshly things But in particuler there are these four or five Five things meant by minding of fleshly things things implied in the word when they are said to mind the things of the Flesh The first is that the very care of his heart as 1. The caâ—e of the heart is fleshly I told you before is Fleshly and carnall A Christian hath outward VVorldly things in an outward Roome and Jesus Christ next his heart There is sayth one godly man a closet in the heart of a Saint onely to entertaine Jesus Christ. Which the Scripture calls the spirit frequently I worship God in