grace Lord increase my faith and make my love and obedience my joy and peace to abound more and more through the spirit of our God and the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ And thus have I now done with the Antecedent the present and consequent conditions of our reconciliation to God The next thing that I intend is to make Application It hath been hitherto mine endeavour to declare unto you the misterie of salvation and to imitate the skilfull Limbner to give unto every Limbe and part not onely his due proportion but also his due place and not to set the head where the foot should be or the foot where the head I may peradventure to many seem guilty of that crime which was laid against the Apostle to turne the world upside downe and to place that in the bottome which others make the top of the building and to set that upon the roofe which others lay for a foundation But I submit my selfe to the judgement of the word Consider we what hath been spoken of Gods reconciliation to us without all conditions of our reconciliation to God originall and actuall and now let us see if these dstinctions be founded as it is before proved upon the holy Scriptures of the Prophets and Apostles whether they bee not blame-worthy that make no difference at all between these two but confounding heaven and earth together the Creature with the Creator doe most absurdly apply those things which are antecedents or causes of our reconciliation unto God to be causes of Gods reconciliation unto us drawing a vaile before the free grace of God and keeping the soule from setling upon a sure foundation The Lord complained of the Prophets of old the false Prophets that they pudled the waters with their feet When water is pudled it is not water but water and dirt mingled together In a puddle no man can discern whether it be deep or shallow water is Doctrine pudling is confounding of things together without division or separation O that our dayes were free from this complaint O yee Pastours of the Lords flock that feed his heritage Be you contented to beare the word of admonition from the meanest of the servants of God Look back upon the waters that yee have made the heritage of the Lord to drink Consider the pastures which you have set before them have you not made the LORDS sheep become a prey sometimes to presumption sometimes to despaire by your Doctrine Have you not made the soules of the righteous sad and the soule of the wicked to rejoyce Consider your wayes I pray you Have you not many a time confounded the conditions of our reconciliation to God making that to be the case which is the effect and that to be the effect which is the cause Let me beseech you to weigh these things and to endeavour that your Doctrine may be the light of the World that it may be cleare as the Christall proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb Rev. 22.1 You sheep of the pasture of the Lord the God of his inheritance know it your duty aptly to distinguish these things in your owne Consciences that you may enjoy the brightnesse of the glory of the grace of God set up in your soules if you search into the reason of your many years bondage of your miserable doubting you shall finde your disease in that which hath been spoken and I hope the remedy also The Lord give you understanding The second Application may shew unto us the difference between the reconciled and the not reconciled Although both may bee objects of the grace of God both beloved of the everlasting Father yet shall you finde a vast difference if you look either upon their Conversations or their Consciences The difference of Conscience is the not reconciled have a defiled and polluted Conscience A Conscience that is either seared and fitted with Atheisticall carelesnesse or at the best sitting in darknesse and the shadow of death seeing no light Matth. 4.16 when as the consciences of the reconciled doe enjoy the light of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Secondly the conversation of the people not reconciled is either a conversation polluted with Pharisaicall righteousnesse and blind zeale for all zealous persons are not reconciled to God seeking to establish its owne righteousnesse in the sight of God or else a conversation according to the course of this world according to the Prince of the power of the ayre the spirit that worketh in the children of disobedience A conversation in the lusts of the flesh fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind Eph. 2.2 3. The third Application sheweth us an open doore for the easie understanding and plaine reconciliation of many places of Scripture which seem so exceeding different as if no way of reconciling could be found Let us learne to distinguish when God speaketh of his reconciliation to us and when hee speaketh of our reconciliation to him Let us learn to distinguish between the thing and the manifestation of the thing the want of which distinction breedeth an horrible confusion in the interpretation of holy Scripture To give an instance it is written Galat. 3.26 Yee are all the Children of God by faith in Jesus Christ It is written again Gal. 4.6 Because yee are sonnes God hath sent forth the spirit of his sonne into your hearts crying Abba Father In this last place the Holy ghost declares son-ship to be the cause of giving the Spirit as also he declareth it to bee an eternall grace of God communicated unto his people Having predestinated us unto the Adoption of sonnes by Iesus Christ Eph. 1.5 But then if this be so how are we said to be sons of God by faith c I answer the one speaketh of the thing it selfe or of Gods reconciliation to us The other of the manifestation of the thing or our reconciliation to God Againe if the grace of adoption be an eternall grace how is it said wee are borne againe by the Word 1 Pet. 1.23 and begotten by the Word Iames 1.18 I answer these places are to be understood of the manifestation of Adoption not of the act of Adoption it selfe And that this is so is plaine God hath begotten us againe unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Iesus Christ from the dead 1 Pet. 1.3 A lively hope is the thing unto which we are begotten And that it is ordinary in Scripture to call the manifestation of things by the names of the things themselves will be plaine by two places I might bring two hundred the first is Ierem. 1.10 I have this day set thee over the nations and over the Kingdomes to root out to put downe and to destroy and to throw downe and to build and to plant How doth poore Jeremy destroy Nations Even by declaring the judgements of God in the overthrow of Nations And thus doth he plant by declaring the mercifull promises of God in the restauration of Nations The second place is Ioh. 20.23 Whose sins ye remit they are remitted and whose sins ye retaine they are retained How do the Apostles remit and retaine sinnes but by declaring Gods gracious remission to every one that beleeveth c. But some may object and say why doth not the Lord speak in plain terms I answer who art thou that wilt correct the Lord and teach him to speak I answer againe in our Saviours words when his Disciples ask the question Why speakest thou unto them in Parables Mat. 13.10 His answer is Because it is given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdome of God but to them it is not given As if he should have said in respect of you that are my people I need not to speak more plaine for you being taught of God are able to understand the misteries of the kingdom In respect of others I will not speak more plaine because to them it is not given to understand the mysteries of the kingdome Thus far for the application I now draw to an end only I will give you the Skeleto or Map of that which hath beene delivered in a few words Consider we the causes of Gods reconciliation as it stands manifested to us in Christ Secondly the causes of our reconciliation to God Gods reconciliation to us 1 Efficient Gods love 2 Materiall Christs righteousnesse 3 Formall Imputation of righteousnesse 4 Finall Gods glory mans salvation Our recodciliation to God Efficient Principall H. Ghost instrumen tall faith Materiall Christs righteousnesse Formal Apprehension of Christs righteousness by faith Finall Gods glory mans consolation Consider we the difference of these two in their causes The finall cause of Gods reconciliation to us is salvation the finall cause of our reconciliation to God is consolation The Lord fill you with his Spirit that the apprehension of Gods salvation may fill you with eternall consolation Amen FINIS
must know that it is meere necessity that drives us we are by nature haters of God and cannot be brought to come to God in love before we perceive God to love us such is the malignant nature of man that if he could make any shift in the world hee would not bee beholding to God for helpe The prodigall sonne will never returne to his father so long as he can get cloaths for his backe and meate for his belly elsewhere but when he is brought to that passe that he would fain have filled his belly with husks which the swine did eate and no man gave unto him Luke 15.16 Then he is contented to thinke of submitting to his father but not before if he could have got a living by keeping of Hogs hee would not have returned Thus is it with man so long as he is in any hope to escape misery any other way there is no hope of his returning to God They that be whole need not the Physitian but they that are sick Mat. 9.12 The Pharisee thinketh himself able to establish his owne righteousnesse and therefore he will not submit to the righteousnesse of God Rom. 10.4 He cares not a pinne for Christ he is whole he cares not for the Physitian If any man will come after me let him deny himselfe and take up his crosse daily and follow me Luke 9.23 No man can follow Christ except he deny himselfe his own Righteousnesse and holinesse would you know a reason under the determinate counsell of God why the Publicans and Harlots received Christ but the holy Pharisees rejected him a true paterne of our dayes the Pharisees thought themselves able to stand upon their owne legs they were alive in their conceits and for them to heare of righteousnesse in another was too great a disparagement unto them and their holinesse when the publicans and strumpets being convinced of sinne and having no righteousnesse of their owne they are contented to accept it upon any terms A rich man he sometimes scorneth a gift and saith nay but I will buy it I will give satisfaction for it but the poor naked man is glad to receive what he wanteth Thus before the soule of man be brought to be reconciled unto God it is necessary that it see it selfe a sinfull creature yea so sinfull That neither crying nor howling can wash it away yea so sinfull that no correction or amendment of life is able to make satisfaction Thus farre of the antecedent conditions which as I said before are proper to all but not onely to them that are reconciled to God for these that I have shewed hitherto may be found in the not reconciled even as in the reconciled yea in the reprobate even as in the elect The second sort of conditions are present which go before reconciliation as the cause before the effect but is never separated from it as being the thing I say whereby the holy Spirit of God doth actually reconcile the soule to God Of this sort I finde but one only condition namely of faith or beleeving Here are two things to be pondered The first That without beleeving the soule remaining in the body cannot be reconciled unto God The second That by beleeving the soule is actually reconciled unto God For the first it is proved He that beleeveth not the Sonne shall not see life but the wrath of God abideth on him Iohn 3.36 To be reconciled to God is to see life therefore he that beleeveth not shall not be reconciled to God but the apprehension of the wrath of God shall torment his wakened conscience He that beleeveth not shall not see life he shall see nothing but wrath Secondly He that beleeveth not God hath made him a lyar 1 Iohn 5.10 That is hath accounted him a lyar Now who can finde in his heart to be reconciled to a lyar Wherby it is plain that without or before faith man cannot be reconciled unto God For the second that by beleeving the soule becomes to be reconsiled unto God is proved He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seale that God is true John 3.33 As many as received him to them he gave power to become the sonnes of God even to them that beleeve on his name Iohn 1.12 Whosoever beleeveth hath power to cry Abba Father And to this place we refer that knowne text Rom. 5.1 Therefore being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Iesus Christ And this is the proper office of faith as it justifieth to reconcile the soule and conscience unto God and to make us at peace with him by assuring us of his favour and good will towards us in Jesus Christ manifested in that God gave his only Sonne to be a propitiation for our sinnes and to satisfie whatsoever the justice of God required at his hands And this is our receiving of Christ our putting on of Christ and our living by faith if we take faith for beleeving And thus much of the second condition which is present Now followes the third sort of conditions which are consequent unto our reconciliation and things that accompany our salvation These conditions are first Ioy in the Holy Ghost Secondly Love to God and his Church Thirdly New obedience in newnesse of spirit and not in oldnesse of the letter First Ioy in the Holy Ghost is a necessary consequent and an inseparble companion to our reconciliation by faith as appears by that which hath been spoken before touching joying in beleeving with joy unspeakable and full of glory And indeed how can it be that it should be otherwise can the men of this world hear of great possessions fallen unto them without joyfulnesse How then is it possible that the children of the living God can come to the apprehension of the fatherly love of God in Christ but they must needs sing a new song yea break forth into singing and cry aloud with the blessed Virgin saying My soule doth magnifie the Lord and my spirit hath rejoyced in God my Saviour Luke 1.46 If I could this day bring you happy tydings of reconciliation betweene King and Parliament which the God of heaven effect what joy would this work in the hearts of every man here present How much more shall the tydings of eternall peace by Jesus Christ affect the soule with extraordinary comfort Here what the Lord speaks concerning the new Jerusalem God shal wipe away all teares from their eyes and there shall be no more death neither sorrow nor crying c. Rev. 21.4 Let others think what they will I firmely beleeve the new Ierusalem to be the glorious kingdome of Iesus Christ which is righteousnesse and peace and joy in the holy Ghost advanced in the conscience and hither also are to be referred those glorious things that are spoken of the City of our God by the Gospell Prophet in these words The ransomed of the Lord shall returne and come to Sion with songs and everlasting joy upon
their heads they shall obtaine joy and gladnesse and sorrow and sighing shall flye away Isay 35.10 This is the promise of our Saviour Your sorrow shall be turned into joy Iohn 16.20 This is the office of the Holy Ghost To be the Comforter to speak peace and joy unto his people And therefore amongst the sundry precious gifts which are declared to be the fruits of Gods Spirit joy is not the least Gal. 5.22 This also is the lot and inheritance of the Saints of God for wee reade not of any converts in the Scripture but we also read of the joy of Gods Spirit replenishing their soules They even they who were pricked in their hearts and knew not what to doe doe not eat their meat with gladnesse and singlenesse of heart Acts 2.46 The Eunuch returneth rejoycing Acts 8.39 Samarias conversion causeth great joy in that City Acts 8.8 But why do I stay on particulars let us heare the Apostle for all We also joy in God through our Lord Iesus Christ by whom we have now received the attonement Rom. 5.11 We rejoyce in the hope of the glory of God And more we glory in tribulation also Verse 2.3 Can the Sun be without her light can the fire bee without heat Then also may the called of God the reconciled to the Father be without joy and peace in beleeving Can a man stop the ebbing or flowing of the water then may the soules of the reconciled to God be deprived of those flouds of comforts which flow from fountaines of comforts into the subject of comforts the soules of the people reconciled to God This is the first effect of reconciliation joy and peace The second followes which is Love to God Love is also an inseparable consequent of mans reconciliation can man behold the beauty of God and the glory of his face in Jesus Christ And the soule not be ravished with love See the love of the reconciled to God in that garden of sweet expressions the Book of Canticles Stay me with flagons comfort me with apples for I am sick with love Cant. 2.5 The love of the reconciled to God it is a great love Many sins are forgiven her for she loved much Luke 7. A love taking great delight and contentment in the object beloved My beloved is white and ruddy the chiefest among ten thousand His head is as the most fine gold his locks are bushy and black as a Raven his mouth is most sweet he is altogether lovely ' Cant. 5.10 c. Againe it is a restlesse love that canfind no content can take no rest nonot in her bed if shee may not enjoy the presence of her beloved By night on my bed I sought him whom my soule loved I sought him but I found him not I will rise now and goe about the City c. Cant. 3.1.2 That this love is an inseperable consequent a daily companion of mans reconciliation to God will bee plaine when wee shall see how the Holy Ghost describing unto us the called of God setteth them forth by this token of love unto Almighty God Eye hath not seen nor eare hath not heard c. the things which God hath prepared for them that love him 1 Cor. 2.9 We know that all things work together for good to them that love God Rom. 8.28 This ornament of love is like the garment of divers colours with which all the Kings daughters which were Virgins were apparrelled 2 Sam. 13.18 If a Woman bee seen in the streets without a party coloured garment it is concluded that she is either none of the Kings daughters or at least no Virgin so is this ornament of love I say that thing wherewith all the people of God reconciled to him are adorned if wee see a soule altogether stript of this ornament we conclude They are not in the number of Gods people or at least not reconciled Therefore the Holy ghost concludes He that loveth not knoweth not God 1 Ioh. 4.8 And as on the affirmative pronounceth Grace be on all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity Eph. 6.24 So also on the negative If any man love not the Lord Iesus Christ let him be Anathema Maranatha 1 Cor. 16.22 Thus you see the consequents of our reconciliation inseparably conjoyned together so that no creature shall be able to put them asunder you have seene Peace to the brethren and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ Eph. 6.23 The third consquent is new obedience in newnes of the spirit As peace and joy and love follow and attend upon faith so is new obedience an attendant of love This is the love of God that wee keep his Commondements 1 Joh. 5.3 If you love me keep my Commandements Ioh. 14.15 If a man love me he will keep my words verse 23. This is that which I had occasion to speake of before that the holy Spirit of God doth not onely cleanse the conscience but in some measure the conversation also This is that which I said before Without holinesse no man shall see God and drunkards shall not inherit the Kingdome of God I say again that Christ entring into the soule shall drive out whatsoever is prophane and draw up the soule by the cords of love unto new obedience And to this place we refer hatred of sinne love of vertue a godly sorrow for transgression committed revenge upon our selves for the things that are past and a jealous care for that which is to come But of these particularly I cannot speake for as Rome was not built on a day so neither can it be puld down in an houre I mean the Doctrine of Rome And here I would have made an end of speaking of the consequents of our Reconciliation but that I fear the timorous soule will be ready to say In thus saying you have filled my heart with sorrow The consequents of our reconciliation being layd downe I confesse they are true but alas when I cast an eye back upon mine owne soule I find my joy comfort little my love to be lesse than my joy and my obedience to be least of all This this puts my heart in feare and makes my soule to tremble I answer what is it that thou fearest O thou of little faith Thou answerest thou art afraid that God is not thy God that hee is not reconciled unto thee See thy errour these things cannot be signes that God is not reconciled unto thee but they are signes that thou art not fully reconciled unto God but that thy faith is weake like the bulrush that thy joy is as little as thy faith and that thy love and obedience is as imperfect as thy joy Measure not the reconciliation of God to thy soule by the perfection of thy obedience for in so doing thou plungest thy soule into miferable doubts But seeing the imperfection not of Gods reconciliation to thee but of thy reconciliation to God cry thou unto the Throne of
Christ in the second I say he speaketh of our Actuall reconciliation wherein our consciences become reconciled to God through the apprehension of the reconciliation which Christ hath wrought for us First of all I must speak of our Originall reconciliation And there I lay downe this proposition that we were reconciled to God by the death of his Sonne without any previous conditions in us or performed by us You see it is the act of Christ upon the Crosse it was done by his death The Lord Christ being a common person taking our nature upon him we are said to doe that which he did and to have that done upon us which was done upon him As in the first Adam we all sinned before we were or bad committed any Actuall transgression so in the second Adam we were reconciled As by one mans disobedience many were made sinners so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous Rom. 5.19 I say we are said to doe that which he did as to be buried with Christ by baptisme into death Rom. 6.4 We are said to be crucified with Christ as our old man is crucified with him Rom. 6.6 to be dead and alive with him Reckon yee also your selves to be dead indeed unto sinne but alive unto God through Iesus Christ our Lord Rom. 6.11 We are said to be risen with him Coloss 3.1 which is elegantly set forth by the Prophet Hosea speaking of the resurrection of Christ He speaketh on this wise After two dayes he will revive us and the third day he will raise us up and we shall live in his sight Hose 6.2 Yet more we are said to be placed together in heavenly places with him Eph. 2.5.6 This is that which I call Originall reconciliation Whereby we see that not onely God was reconciled unto us but also that our nature was reconciled unto God by the death of his Sonne without any condition or qualification wrought in us Thus much for our Originall reconciliation Now followes our Actuall reconciliation to wit the manifestation of Gods reconciliation to us and of the reconciliation of our nature to God in Jesus Christ Here I lay downe this proposition Mans Actuall reconciliation to God requireth previous conditions and qualifications to be wrought in man by the spirit of God before man can be Actually reconciled to God or Gods reconciliation manifested unto him Althogh this proposition need no proofe in regard that the world so far doteth on conditions that they will hardly admit God to be reconciled to man without performances in man Surely much lesse will they thinke it possible that Man should be reconciled unto God without something wrought in man yet for our better understanding I will shew you the proofe of this by certaine texts As Except a man be borne of water and of the spirit he cannot enter into the kingdome of God Iohn 3.5 Except a man be borne againe he cannot see the kingdome of God vers 3. To enter into and to see the kingdome of God is that which I call reconciliation to God to know the favour and love of God towards us in Christ requires you see the condition of being borne againe of water and of the spirit which is not to be baptized as the Papists would have it but to have such fruits and effects of Gods spirit wrought in us as purifie the heart as water doth the body Secondly except yee eate the flesh of the Sonne of man and drinke his bloud you have no life in you Iohn 6.53 Marke I pray you he doth not say that except yee eate the flesh of the Sonne of man and drinke his bloud yee have no life in God or in Christ but yee have no life in you Now you see we must eat the flesh of Christ and drinke his bloud or else we can have no life in us To eate his flesh and to drink his bloud is to beleeve in him to have life in you is to know Gods favour in Iesus Christ as much as if he should say except yee beleeve yee cannot know Gods favour to you in Iesus Christ Vnto this we may adde in the third place Except yee repent yee shall all likewise perish Luke 13.3 And to this place we may also referre that place of which we had occasion to speake somewhat before without holinesse no man shall see God Heb. 12.14 not onely that holinesse is concomitant or companion of our seeing of God but that faith being a part of yea the first fruits of holines is that whereby the soule is brought to the sight of God in Jesus Christ But I am not willing to spend time in larger proofe though you cannot but perceive I might be very large herein but I will for your better understanding confine my selfe and goe on to shew you in particular what Conditions are required in us before we can be reconciled to God And here I have occasion for the better explaining of this to commend unto you three sorts of conditions 1. Antecedent 2. Present 3. Consequent Antecedent Conditions I call those which are necessarily presupposed in us before we can submit unto God or be reconciled unto him They are such conditions as may be seperated from reconciliation in time yea they are such conditions as are and may be in them which are not reconciled nor yet ever shall be so that they are proper Omnibus sed non solis electis to all the elect but not onely to the elect 2. Present conditions I call them that goe before reconciliation as the cause before the effect yet are never seperated from reconciliation in time but are indeed the very thing whereby the holy spirit of God doth reconcile man to God 3. Consequent conditions I call them which doe alwayes follow reconciliation as the effect the cause although they are inseperable in respect of time And I therefore undertake to speake of these although the curious may thinke me blame-worthy for transgressing the rules of method that we might be warned of a rock and shelfe namely that we doe not confound these conditions together and to take those for antecedent which are onely consequent which to my knowledge hath made some souls to make shipwrack for a time when as they would have in them before they beleeve such conditions as are onely consequents and not antecedents of faith First to speake of Antecedent conditions which necessarily goe before our reconciliation to God They shall be referred unto two heads the first is the knowledge of sinne with whatsoever is requisite unto the knoweledge of sinne The second is the knowledge of the depth of misery by sinne to be such as we can neither help our selves neither is it in the power of any other creature for to helpe us but that we are undone for ever in respect of whatsoever we can doe or any other for us for untill the soule be brought to this there is no hope of reconciling it unto God for you