THE SPIRIT CONVINCING OF SINNE OPENED In a Sermon before the Honorable HOUSE of COMMONS Assembled in Parliament upon the solemne day of their Monethly Fast Novemb. 26. 1645. By PETER STERRY sometimes Fellow of Emanuel Colledge in Cambridge AND NOW Preacher of the Gospel in LONDON Published by Order of the House of Commons LONDON Printed by Matth. Simmons for Henry Overton and Benjamin Allen and are to be sold at their shops in Popes-head Alley 1645. To THE HONOURABLE THE KNIGHTS BURGESSES OF THE HOUSE of COMMONS Assembled in PARLIAMENT GOD hath promised his people to carry them on the Eagles Wing The onely desire and humble endeavour of your lowest servant in Christ hath been to work with God in this Sermon that your Soules Counsels Warres may be carried on by the Spirit of God who in the language of the Scriptures is not onely the Dove for Purity and Peace but also the True Eagle for Wisdome and Power Worthy Senatours if you knew this Spirit you would ask Him of your Saviour and Hee would be in you a Fountain of Counsell and Strength springing up to Everlasting Peace and Glory But have you not known The Spirit His sound hath gone forth into all your Eares All the Scriptures speak of Him as they doe of Jesus Christ Daniel was chosen by the King of Assyria to sway the great affaires of that vast Empire because the Spirit of the immortall God was found in him David was a Statesman Wiser then his Teachers David was a Souldier His fingers were skil'd in fighting his hands train'd up to Victory over Wild Beasts Giants Armies of Men was not the Spirit the Lamp of God which shone thus gloriously on David's Court and Camp which made his Throne so great Thy Word saith he was a Light to my Feet The Word of God is the Spirit of God saith St. Paul The Sword of the Spirit a which Spirit not Sword is the Word of God This made David when hee had sin'd cry Take not thine Holy Spirit from me When the Spirit of God once left Saul an evill Spirit came upon him which vex't him which haunted him to the losse of his kingdome and life together Honourable Fathers of your Countries I humbly move to know By what Title you sit there and rule over us Is it not as Powers on Earth But All power on Earth as well as in Heaven is given to Iesus Christ You are Substitutes and Vice-gerents to the Lord Iesus Look then to Iesus the Beginning and End of your Authority God hath laid the Government on his Shoulder What is his sufficiency for it The Spirit of the Lord resteth on him and this is A Spirit of Counsell and Might in him You who sit at the right hand of the Lord Iesus in this Common-wealth as the Lord Iesus sits at the right hand of his Father in that Kingdome which is over all pray that the same Spirit which was powred forth on him may be by him powred forth on you So shall you be Messiahs anointed ones and Saviours to this people Can You be able to rule over any spot of this earth when Jesus Christ was not fit for the government of the whole without the Spirit Do you put your whole trust in the promises of God and expect by them to be made partakers of every blessing Do you believe the promises made in the Word of God I hope I may say at least with as good confidence as Paul said it to Agrippa I know you believe them This is the promise The Spirit shall lead you into all truth You are now searching into the deep things of God which concern Religion Live in the Spirit and the Spirit shall bring all into your minde and shew you the things of Iesus Christ It behoves you to know the method of Satan the stratagems and dark deeps of the Devill himself in mysteries of State and Religion Walk in the Spirit hee shall lead you into their chambers as hee did Ezekiel and let you see what mischiefes they are there contriving in secret This is the promise The Spirit of God and of glory shall rest on his servants in their conflicts and sufferings Sit still in all humble resignation of your selves to the working of this Spirit that hee may rest on you so shall hee manage your counsels finish your wars and end all your sufferings with glorie I shall conclude my Epistle with an humble Petition to your Honours an hearty Prayer for you My humble Petition is that You would ever remember to converse as Doves among Doves with this Dove He is a tender Spirit take heed of grieving this Spirit where ever hee dwels For by him alone can your hopes be sealed to a day of full accomplishment My hearty Prayer is that as you sit debating in Parliament the appearances of the Holy Ghost may be among you as hee was with the Apostles sitting over them in the form of fiery tongues that when you fight in the field the Holy Ghost may be as a two-edged sword going forth from the mouth of the Lord Iesus into your enemy's hearts that you may never see upon the walls of your house that hand-writing which made Bel-shazzer tremble Your kingdome is divided but in stead of this that uniting and building Principle Not by might nor by power but by my Spirit saith the Lord This is the fervent constant prayer of Your Honours humble servant in Christ Peter Sterry A SERMON PREACHED Before the honorable House of COMMONS Novemb. 26. 1645. being the publike Fast JOHN 16. 8. When he shall come he shall convince the world of sin c. I Will at once open to you the publike scope of this place and the private sense of my Text as it lies imbodied in the Context Our tender-hearted Saviour is now cheering the hearts of his Disciples drooping with the sad presages of their dear Master's death The Lord Jesus sweetly gives them for a revivall of their fainting spirits a gracious promise of his own Spirit This Promise is threefold The Spirit 's 1. Personall Comming 2. Particular Comforts 3. Universall Convictions Pardon me if I be somewhat larger in the Explication of these For this also will serve my purpose which is to set before you the Spirit of the Lord Jesus that Spirit by which we know those things which Reason cannot reach and live not a as Men {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} but as b Partakers of the Divine Nature The first Promise is the Personall comming This hath two parts The Person comming Comming of that Person Part 1st The first part is the Person comming It appears to be a Person of whom our Saviour speaks by those demonstrative particles Hee Him It appeares to be some great One a Divine Person by those workes which are to be done by him To comfort hearts To convince a world To be in stead of Christ nay to be a better Comforter then
brought us into his his own {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} marvelous Light Hee that sees Christ sees him in a strange wonderfull in a divine Light in God's own Light To believe is thus to see Christ and to live continually by this sight of Christ The life I live is by the faith of the Son of God Gal. 2. chap. ver. ult. Paul was convinc'd by this sight of Christ and of this sin that he had ever liv'd on any other sight Gal. 1. chap. 16. vers. When it pleased the Father to reveale his Son in mee I consulted not with flesh and blood You may see by Paul's Conversion what his Conviction was He had consulted with flesh and blood that is with Principles of Reason with the Spirit of man what should hee have consulted with or whom with the Word the immortall Word with the Wisdome of God with the discoveries of Jesus Christ in him Is this the Sin you chiefly mourn for this day By this judge of your convictions Do you grieve to think that the glory of God hath shined so long so sweetly from the face of Christ filling all things round about you while you have been sitting under the shadow of humane wit and reason as in the shadow of death That so bright a Day hath dawn'd from the Person of the Lord Jesus and yet you sit spinning out your Counsels and Course by the candle-light of man's spirit and policy as in the night Do your hearts sigh-forth this sense Lord we have sate in counsell concerning the great affairs of many Kingdomes Churches Common-wealths but not by thy Wisdome by the shining forth of thy Son in us Many Principles of State Reason Policy have raigned over us but the sight of thee O Jesus in our hearts hath not ruled us When the Spirit convinceth of sin hee makes this the great sin and folly that the appearances of Christ have not been our Sun and shield No such shield is there to defend us from the strifes contentions conspiracies of men and things as to be hid in the light of our Saviour's looks No such advantage is there as to gain this Sun to have the beamings forth of our Husband-king on our side How do the glorious dartings of his presence from among us dazle the spirits of our enemies trouble their order and make them unable to fight against us or hurt us When the Spirit convinceth of sin hee shews us that the story of things in the Wildernesse was a Figure for us under the Gospel 1 Cor. 10. c. 4. ver. When the Jews were to passe over the river Jordan the Ark went before them so they passed through dry-shod When they travelled through the Desart the Cloud the Glory went before them as that moved they marched on when that rested they stood still Your Ark now is the spirituall presence of Jesus Christ in your hearts the Cloud the Glory now is the appearance of your Saviour resting upon your spirits You have waded through many rivers of blood have you seen the discoveries of your Jesus going before you and followed these You have made many Marches many Rests hath the wel-pleased face of your Jesus as your Leading-starre been still in your eye Have you march't as this hath moved Where this hath stood still have you stay'd The Jews sung of old What ailed you ye waters that ye fled ye seas that ye were driven backwards The waters saw thee O God and fled before thee If these things be thus with you you may go forth and say in your songs What ailed you ye mighty armies at Keinton Newbury York Naseby that ye fled and were driven backwards What ailed you ye strong treasons close conspiracies that ye trembled and fell and your foundations were discovered before you could take effect They saw thee O Jesus they saw thee appearing in the midst of us so they fled so they fell before thee If things have not been thus with you behold the sin over which you are principally to powre out your tears Behold the sin which troubles you Assure your selves all your acts in Counsell and Camp will be Null till the Lord Jesus be as the shout of a King in the midst of you Vain are all our hopes sweet dreams of Peace till our Deare Saviour shew himself among you as once among his Disciples Saying Peace be with you Breathing Peace upon you These are the Perswasives in which Rationall and Spirituall convictions for sin differ not all but some few which I have chosen for you from among the rest Now remains the difference between these Convictions in the Principles themselves Principles The Principles themselves are the Spirit of Man or Reason the Spirit of God But I can no more convey a sense of this difference into any soule that hath not seen these two Lights shining in it self than I can convey the difference between Salt and Sugar to him who hath never tasted Sweet or Sharp These things are discerned only by exercise of senses and are too hard for those who have not their own senses exercised in them as St. Paul speaks Hebr. 5. chap. 14. ver. When you shall see the Sea of Truth the Spirit then you will know that the Great River of Reason was not the Sea I can tell you that as much as the complexion of a face the colour of a cloth or lace seen by Moon-light and Sun-shine differ So and farre more do the convictions or discoveries by Reason and the Spirit But still this is the difference in the Effects not in the Principles themselves To give you as I may some shadowie description of this I will commend to your most constant and serious meditations that place 1 Cor. 15. chap. 45. v. The first man was a living soule the last man a quickening spirit Vers. 46. The naturall is first and then the spirituall Vers. 48. As the earthy so are they that are earthy as is the heavenly so are they that are heavenly Vers. 49. As we have born the Image of the earthly man so shall we beare the Image of the heavenly From these places you may draw these Architectonick or commanding Conclusions 1. A Living soule in her full glory as she was in the first man in innocencie in Paradise is not the Principle of the second man the new birth but the All-quickening the Eternall Spirit 2. A Living soule with the highest improvements raised to the noblest actings of Wit Reason Worth is naturall not spirituall the Image of the first Adam not the Image of the Lord Jesus 3. The naturall and spirituall man differ as much as earth and heaven corruption and immortality flesh and spirit You see the difference between these two sorts of convictions as I have been able to set it before you I will now conclude this Use with an Admonition as I begun it An earthly Root may bring forth earthly fruit nothing can reach up to Heaven and immortalitie but that which
could fix upon your spirits the constant sound of two onely Sentences as two blasts of the last Trumpet The Sentences are Esa. 2. vers. ult. Cease from man whose breath is in his nostrils wherein is he to be esteemed of VERS 17. The Lord alone shall be exalted in that day The great God make That day This day to every one of your soules Thus much to Private Christians Secondly As Publick Persons Christ tells the Jewes If any one sin against the Son of Man it shall be forgiven him But if any one sin against the holy Ghost it never shall bee forgiven him You will allow it if I shall make a little change in these words and so return them to you If a State sin against the Sonne of Man it shall he forgiven But if a State sin against the holy Ghost it shall never be forgiven Remember Hierusalem Christ came in the flesh and was crucified yet Hierusalem stood The Spirit of Christ came in the persons of the Disciples in the power of the Gospel and was cast out then Hierusalem fell Divided into three Factions within beleaguer'd with a fourth enemy without Hierusalem miserably fell O England London Remember Hierusalem You have had the first day of your Peace and passed it Christ hath been preach'd among you but as in the Flesh clouded with carnall rites and ceremonies Christ hath been pierc'd among us that is not beleeved on yet we live though we bleed You have had the first day of your Peace and pass'd it Be carefull Be carefull to know the last day of your Peace the comming of the Spirit among you You have set me on your Watch-Tower and made me your Watchman for the few sands of these glasses If you ask mee now Watchman what of the Night My humble answer is The Nights is almost past the Day is at hand if you will receive the Spirit when he comes If you shall refuse to heare you will look for day but I feare I feare it will be Blacknesse of Darknesse and Desolation But I bend my Knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus who hath hitherto made you tender in a very great measure that he would send the Spirit of his Son into your hearts that you may know him that he may be in you that all this people may honour the Spirits as they honour Jesus Christ A Vindication of the Spirit from those Who 1. Pretend it to Profanenesse 2. Profane it under Pretentes 1. From those who Pretend the Spirit to Profanenesse Can any think they have the Spirit of Grace in them and yet sin and yet not mourn for sin Can any man make that Spirit whose work is to Convince of sin a Colour for sin Can any man paint his foule lusts with the specious name of this holy Spirit whose property it is to paint out lusts in their True deformities their Hellish shapes I read in Ecclesiastick Writers that in the Primitive times there were those that deserv'd the name of Borboristae or Coenosi The Dirty Sect and yet a Branch of the Gnostiques But I might perhaps feare this to be the Malice or Mistake of some in those ages if I did not read in the holy Scriptures of a Filthy-Dreamers Spirituall Discoveries are either Waking Sights or Dreames Dreames are False Visions of sleeping men without connexion full of absurdities inconsistencies It is not strange for a filthy vile Person to have fair Glorious Dreames It is monstrous that Glorious Discourses Notions and Apprehensions should be set upon vile Affections Actions and conversations as the Head of an Angel upon the body of a Beast But All is a Dream If any man indeed have the Spirit he hath a True Dove in his Breast The Dove's eyes are the Emblem of Chastity The Dove's song is in Grones Who so mourn for sin who so moane day and night after their God as those who live with this Spirit This is the first Part of the Vindication Secondly from those that Profane the Spirit under Pretences of Fancy Profanenesse 1. Under Pretences of Fancy Why should Joseph be despised as a Dreamer among his brethren Paul as a Babler among the Athenians The Spirit as a Fancy by men onely Rationall That scurrilous Comoedian in his Greek play call'd the Frogs reproach'd Socrates as a Worshipper of Clouds and the Aire because he neglected their Idols and convers'd with the Invisible-God So the workings and Discoveries of the Spirit often seem to Men of Mighty Reason Cloudy Airy Yet the Spirit is Truth the onely Solid and Weighty Truth carrying the power of God for a demonstration along with it Some learned men beare such a modest respect to Nature that they affirm it Probable Some Beasts may have a Sense more then we have which wee can neither judge of or guesse at because we have it not O! that the most Rationall Men were so modest towards their Maker as to suspect that there may be in him a Divine Sense a Spirit of Light above the Compasse and Conjectures of their Reason which he may communicate to whom he pleaseth 2. Under Pretences of Profanenesse The Heathens mingled with Christians of old charg'd their secret Meetings with the Beds of Oedipus unnaturall Incests the Feasts of Thyestes monstrous cruelties The Late Protestants at large cloath'd the best men with the name of Puritan as with a Cap of Paper then they painted that Cap with Devils they loaded that name with all the foule things of all Sects or Persons as before them the Papist did the Protestant God grant that the Father of lies may not still live between the Lips of Men by the same Art of Names representing the most spirituall men like Christ on the Crosse under the most carnall Titles of Ambition Lust Falshood The Spirit is Holy so are they that are His This Spirit cannot encourage to sin comfort in sin for his work is to convince sin Beleeve it 'T is true as Gospel No man that is led by the law of the Spirit of Life can walk contrary to any Law of Nature Common Honesty Civill Policy or whatsoever is of good Report Praise-worthy If any man walk by any other rule an evill Spirit hath deceived him only let not the reproach of such fall upon them who with humble and panting hearts call upon the Name of this Holy Spirit A Consolation This Spirit which convinceth of sin is the Comforter If you have this day receiv'd his conviction you shall now go away full of his comforts with bosomes full of All comforts of peace and joy in your selves of peace and love one towards another Where the Spirit convinceth of sin he communicates all contents in these two bundles of comforts Righteousnesse and Peace 1. Righteousnesse Have you seen your sins by the light of the Spirit by the same light you shall see your righteousnesse Humble your selves before this Spirit let him cover your faces with shame and he shall cloath your persons with glory He shall make you precious in the eyes of your God honourable in all the world Nations round about shall say This is a wise and righteous people for the Spirit of the Eternall God is come down among them 2. Peace Naturalists say A wound is a separation of parts in the whole How full are all of wounds Alas do we not begin to have wounds upon our breasts neer our hearts And still we strive to make that good in Civilitie which is true only in Nature that the best Balsome for a wound is its own blood We would make up our divisions by making them more Who now shall restore Peace to our mourners This Spirit will restore peace to his mourners This Dove though he come groaning yet he brings an Olive branch in his mouth O ye every one of you in particular give this Spirit your single hearts to breake in pieces and he will make them all one heart How happy should we live if God would do this If the Lord would powre forth his Spirit upon our souls and melt them how sweetly would they run all into one piece like gold Then should Righteousnesse and Peace kisse each other in these Lands and these three kingdomes should mutually kisse and imbrace in this union The Lambs England and Scotland Presbyterians and Independents shall feed together in fat pastures The Lambs and the Lion shall live lovingly and converse one with another Then shall your Cattell go forth again in Herds and Flocks Your children in dances Your Saints in their assemblies and the Lord Jesus shall be known for a God in the midst of them Then shall after-ages call this Age this Parliament The blessed of the Lord and make it your Motto for ever Blessed are the Peace-makers in divided Common-wealths Blessed are the Peace-makers in divided Consciences Thus if the Holy Spirit set a crown of thorns by conviction on your hearts he shall crown you with Righteousnesse and Peace For The Kingdome of God is Righteousnesse Peace and Joy in the Holy Ghost FINIS a {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} as relating to {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} not {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} as relating to {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} a 1 Cor. 3. 3. b 2 Pet. 1. 4. Pro. 1. Prom. 2. Prom. 3. a John 6. 62. b John 3. 13. Doctr. Proof Reason 1. Distin. I. a Eccles. 6. 10. b Eccles. 3. 1â— c Rom. 8. 1. 1 Cor. 3. 18. Reason 2. Vse 1. Pers. Rat Perswa Spir. Vse 2. 1 Cor. 2. 13. Vse 3. a Jude 8. 1 Cor. 2. 4. Use 4. Rom. 14. 17.