men we will not understand untill a Light from heaven as it happened to St. Paul though not in that outward and miraculous manner but by a certain tacite splendour and illumination all the recesses and dark corners of the soule are discovered and the foulnesse of them manifested in particular 5. For as it happens to the poor Cottager or simple carelesse Tenant while the Houswife is alone with her own plain companie only she sees little or nothing amisse in her House it is clean enough as it seems to her selfe and all things are set in order and place convenient enough to her liking but it chancing that she is surprised by some Great and delicate Person coming into her habitation or that her rich and fine Landlord comes into her House then presently she lookes about her every way then she sees nothing is clean enough handsome enough or in place and order good enough but complains how she is taken like a Slut So falls it out in Divine matters and with the carelesse and secure soule while she looks only on her selfe and compares her selfe with her selfe as St. Paul speaks or perhaps with other of the same rank with her selfe she discerns very little amisse within her selfe but Christ our Lord and the Holy Spirit the light of the minde and searcher of the heart coming into it then she begins to apprehend her own uncleanlinesse and defects then is she sensible of her disorders foulnesse and even Sluts corners and begins to lament her state and confesse her errours and beg pardon for her unfitnesse and unsutablenesse to the Divine presence A lively instance whereof holy Job may be in the Old Testament and Peter in the New both eminent Saints Job had discoursed freely and confidently of God and his wayes and justified himselfe to a high degree before him He asserted his own innocencie and cleannesse before him and men Yea God himselfe vindicated him from the calumnies of Satan saying Job 1. 8. Hast thou considered my servant Job that there is none like him in the earth a perfect and an upright man and one that feareth God and escheweth evill But notwithstanding all this God drawing yet nearer to him in a discoverie of himselfe and Job to himselfe we finde Jobs note changed to this saying Job 42. 5. I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear but now mine eye sees thee therefore I abhorre my selfe and repent in dust and ashes And in like manner St. Peter Christ manifesting himselfe at the miraculous draught of Fish cryed out suddenly at the apprehension of his own vilenesse and imperfections Luke 5. 8. Depart from me O Lord for I am a sinfull man not sustaining the presence of so holy a Master under the sense of his own unholinesse then chiefly appearing to him 5. And thus particularly informed and affected the soule not only judges sin in others to be sin but in it selfe exceeding sinfull not only believes that Anger and Malice and censuring and slandering others that unclean acts that light wanton and carnall thoughts are evill in others but in it selfe that immodest words and gestures unkinde sowr froward behaviour and looks doe ill become others professing the Gospell which sweetens sowr blood and carriage naturally so far as may consist with sobriety and gravitie but in its selfe too and disposes to a change of temper knowing what St. Paul saith Galat. 5. 22. That the fruit of the Spirit is love joy peace long-sufferance gentlenesse faith meeknesse temperance And that the Rule of Justice given by Christ Matth. 7. 12. Whatsoever ye would that men should doe unto you doe yee even so unto them extendeth to the regulating of outward looks and behaviour which should be no other towards others distance of Relations being observed as becometh than we expect from others towards us And so in all other vices flesh and blood is subject to even lesse observable the good man first condemns himselfe being more quick-sighted in perceiving and severe in censuring himselfe than others 6. And upon and together with the sight and sense of a mans imperfections and pravities doth the Day-star arising in the heart direct to the exercise of the contrary Vertues both Morall and Evangelicall and such a transformation by the renewing of the minde whereby as the Apostle speaks we may prove what is the will of God and that the will of God is our Sanctification as it is said 1 Thessal 4. 3. And that Sanctification consisteth in a conformity to the Image of his Son wherein the illuminated minde may perceive all the lines or Lineaments of the new man and the forme of true Godlinesse So that as he that copieth out an exquisite Picture or he that draweth to the life must have a clear eye and that eye must be constantly fixed on the Patern before it which is to be followed in like manner in the spirituall Fashioning of the Soul to the Grand Example Christ a perpetuall and strict eye must be had and fixed on him whereby it will appear what of the naturall stone is to be knocked or pared off by mortification what is to be done towards conformablenesse to the Image of Christ 7. And to this also conduceth much what is mentioned farther concerning our future state of happinesse or misery hereafter and the vanity and fallacies of present enjoyments and possessions which latter seem to an unenlightened eye great and corpulent being in truth but shadowes as the former to the eye of the understanding opened solid and weighty and to be considered above all things For we dye but once naturally and are not like the hearb or flower or plant which flourisheth in its season and in his season fades and dies with an aptnesse to return again to its former perfection even to many such vicissitudes the tall Cedar or fine Flower in his own estimation Man necessarily and naturally tending to decay and ruine Dies once and where is he saith Job Chap. 14. and by no sent of waters buddeth again or riseth from his cold bed of earth till the heavens be no more and ariseth by an Allmighty power but no more to return to his place and condition to amend what he before had done amisse or so much as to repent fruitfully of what he formerly offended in How then doth it concern every true Believer to be serious with himselfe and standing assured there is no Sabbath of pleasure here suddenly all our vaine imaginations of sensible delights here are surprised by the shadowes of our approaching death overtaking and extinguishing them and that being come there is no redemption of our mispent dayes no recovery of our voluntarie losses of the treasures of temperance sobrietie chastity modesty meeknesse charity good works and devotion towards God. Can any that hath his senses I say not that wit which such inconsiderate worldlings too often but vainly vaunt of run such a notorious hazard as this in pursuit as Children of Butter flies of
famous Emilius the Platonist by common understanding discerned a Great Mysterie of the Deitie to be intended thereby but that unnaturall Christian Socinus could not or would not apprehend so much the reason whereof may be that given by Christ himselfe John 9. 39. For judgement am I come into the world that they which see not might see and they which see might be made blinde They who have nothing to helpe themselves but mere naturall light may sooner come to the light of Religion industriously and modestly using that one Talent deliver'd to them but they who stand upon termes with God and refuse all other information besides naturall reason shall fall by the folly of their presumptuous knowledge This is the ordinary fate of such persons puffed up with their fleshly minde 3. So on the other extreme divers Christians having heard and read of extraordinarie Revelatious imparted by God and looking upon the Light without the Scriptures as a dark and dead letter in comparison of extraordinarie and Inward Light ambitiously aspire to that and credulously flatter themselves not without ostentations outwardly that they are priviledged thereby to their ruine answerably to the excessive curiosity of the Greatest of the Heathen Philosophers who having passed the bounds of vulgar capacities were pricked forward with immoderate studie of such secrets of Nature which they found they could not attain to but by commerce with Spirits and therefore with many vain and vile rites were tempted to combine with them in such pursuits of knowledge So that it is observed by Learned men very few there were of them who had not his familiar to assist him And I have often and much wonder'd with my selfe whence it should proceed that evill and naturall men should so easily and readily obtain the conversation and assistance of evill Spirits and good and spirituall men so rarely obtain without delusions the co-operations of Good Spirits or Angells for their more perfect Illumination and directions Yet at length I satisfied my selfe with such an account as this not knowing how it may satisfie others 4. The ground of all Divine Presence I take to be Puritie of heart and affection which is so rarely and hardly attained unto as to make the soule susceptible of such an Harbinger and therefore no wonder that Gods Spirit should estrange it selfe from such as are not purged according to the rate at least of humane frailty from their uncleannesse of flesh and spirit But wicked spirits stand not so much upon such preparations and predispositions as those though to conceale from men what their reason would teach them to lothe them for there constantly were used certain Ceremonies purgative as they supposed disposing to pretended purity as Poets have taught us And even in the Apothegmes of the Fathers in Olympius a devout Hermite we read of a certain Heathen Priest who entring into the Cell of a Christian Monk who lived in great austerity and Devotion demanded of him whether God did not in extraordinary manner reveal Mysteries to him who answered No. 'T is strange replyed he that so it should not be with you taking such pains whereas we seeking our God so finde answers and see mysteries therefore sure it must needs be said he that your hearts are not clean before him which the Christians wondering to hear from him confessed it to be so indeed But did that Heathen Priest perswade himselfe that their hearts were cleaner than the Christians It may be so but the truer reason was that their god so free of his Oracles and Revelations was not so clean himselfe as the Holy Spirit by whom Revelations are given unto men and therefore might be more forward to afford an impure heart his impure companie Their cleannesse consisted in carnall abstinences such as they write that great Magician Apollonius Tyaneus to have excelled in and to have had communication of Spirits But purity of minde and unroyled and undisturbed Passions are that wherein such Christian purity doth consist which disposeth to or at least goeth before Inspirations truly Divine and spirituall Illuminations 5. Another reason why evill Spirits are so officious to attend their Confederates and the Holy Spirit not so signally present with Holy Men may be the purity of intention required to the Spirit of God more than to deluding Spirits For no more or greater impediment needs there be to the entrance of the miraculous Spirit of God than a passionate thirst after Revelations and Visions which imply a mislead understanding not rightly judging wherein consists true Divinenesse but supposing that Gifts proceeding from unmortified curiositie and tending to vain glorie and elevation of a mans minde above others render a man spirituall which God who scattereth the proud in the imagination of his heart and exalteth them of low degree Luke 2. 51 52. most of all detesteth and will not be accessarie to but rather delivers him over to Spirits answerable to his appetite and humour which shall deceive and abuse him A famous instance whereof we have in this Nation in the last age of a man very Mathematically learned and not wanting in other Sciences very retired in his Life and exemplarie in his conversation with Devotion extraordinarie towards God but being ardently set on Revelations and seeking Oracles from Spirits obtained his end so far as to have Spectres presented to him through Glasses and certain answers humouring exactly his superstition and curiositie so that he could not consider that it is without precedent Divine and of God that female Spirits should appear as sent from him and that such theatricall gestures and speeches could not consist with the Majestie of God or the solemnitie of his Angells sent by him so that the large Volume of such like Impostures remain to this day as a monument of his infatuations and a Rock to such as shall sail by such Compasses It is above an hundred years since this Delusion disturbed England and other parts of Europe too especially Germanie But not many yeers are passed since a more prodigious one of this kinde was afforded us in Scotland by a phanaticall Major allmost Sainted by the vulgar Innovatours in Religion for his well-managed hypocrisie and stupendious gifts of Prayer extemporie so that no lesse than Simon Magus he of a long time had bewitched that unhappie people to an obduration in an inveterate Schisme and admiration of his Illuminations untill his iniquitie was found to be hatefull as it is Psalm 36. and such a discovery of his bestialities and damnable practices as are not to be uttered by chast mouths or heard by chast ears 6. These and such like specious pretences to spirituall Illuminations ending in such scandalous events have put wise and grave Heads upon the Doctrine of distinguishing of Spirits as they informe or possesse men having so just warrant as such sad experiments minister'd and the precept of Saint John 1 Epist 4. ver 1. Beloved believe not every Spirit but try the spirits whether
that which is naturall to them there is but small hopes a man should be able or so much as willing to help himselfe out of that evill state The wisest Physicians admit of Counsell and assistance from others when they are in any languishing condition And some Sores or Wounds there may be of the Bodie which a mans one hand cannot come at to dresse or cleanse and therefore needeth the applications of others And this is the case of the corrupted Soule by Nature This is thy wickednesse saith the Prophet Jeremie Cap. 4. 18. because it is bitter because it reacheth unto thine heart It is every mans case Thou hast destroyed thy selfe but of me is thine help God must and doth prepare us to a new life and salvation by his own Counsell and Hand and a Laver of Regeneration a Sacrament of Baptisme hath he ordained to the cleansing of our originall defilement and purging our inward man which no outward ministry not ennobled with Divine Vertue can reach or remedie This was prophesied and promised by God in Ezekiel Chap. 13. 1. In that day there shall be a Fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Hierusalem for sin and uncleannesse And this we to our wonderfull satisfaction and comfort finde accomplished in the pure water of Baptisme the force and effect whereof we are well taught by our English Catechisme which sayes Being by nature borne in sin and the Children of wrath we are hereby made the Children of Grace And Children of Grace we are not made but by such purification which proceedeth from the blood of Christ shed for the expiation of our filthinesse and offences And the Blood of Christ is no otherwise effectuall to our cleansing than as applyed by that which represents it Baptisme So that the Apostle 1 Corinth 6. 10 11. having described the lamentable and foule state of the naturall man in Fornication Idolatrie Adulterie Effeminatenesse abusings of Mankinde Thefts Covetousnesse Drunkenesse Extortions whereof whoever is guilty shall not enter that spot and guilt remaining into the Kingdome of Heaven addes to our humiliation and comfort at the same time And such were some of you but ye are washed but ye are sanctified but ye are justified by the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God which plainly directs us to Baptisme Washing and Sanctifying from all uncleannesse of Nature And therefore none were ever admitted into the number of Christs flock or holy Fold the Church but such as were so sanctified contrarie to the frequent errours of the Moderne Divinity which denies the power of spirituall mundification to Baptisme and of pardoning sins restraining its vertue to significations only of remission of sins by Christ and the Incorporation of us into the Church which is the Body of Christ Which Doctrine as very new and contrary to the faith of the Ancient Church and so many clear and expresse places of Scripture ascribing a power of cleansing and pardoning unto that Sacrament I wonder how men of Learning and Conscience could readily maintain And that is all I shall at present say against that Dogme avoiding here all contentions and pursuing the plain trueths usefull for our edification 2. And this leads us to another effect of Baptisme upon the Soule which concernes actuall transgressions as well as originall sin removed thereby For not only is that sin actuall and originall which we bear about us purged away at the time of Baptisme but by vertue of the Covenant God makes with us then we are in a capacitie to purge our selves Gods grace alwayes supposed as concurring with us and to obtain remission of sins and reconciliation to Allmighty God by repentance whose efficacie to that purpose depends absolutely on preceding Baptisme so that Repentance inward attended by change of heart and life can ordinarily be of no power to reconcile us to God but as we are before baptized into Christ whatever God may doe by his extraordinary and unrevealed Will not to be relied upon without adding sin unto sin and that of presumption tending to a new provocation 3. And the manner of so expiating sin committed after Baptisme is yet farther improved from the Sinners serious reflection upon the solemne Vow made in Baptisme between God and himselfe of forsaking the World Flesh and Devill and all sinfulnesse occasioned by them For what ingenuous Christian calling to minde what God hath in that Holy Sacrament done for him or what he hath vowed to God but will farther bethink himselfe how to demean himselfe agreeable to such Covenants and consequently apply himselfe to those Duties incumbent upon him And to this St. Paul would argue us Galat. 3. from the established Custome among men saying Brethren I speak after the manner of men though it be but a mans Covenant yet if it be confirmed no man disannulleth or addeth thereto According to the generall Law of Nations it is base and dishonest and very dangerous to break the Agreement made or to invent and forge new termes never condescended to by the other Party And how can we thinke but God should make good what he threatens his own people viz. Avenge the quarrell of his Covenant Levit. 26. 25. So that God having thus freely premised his pardon of our sins and washed us with pure water and moreover furnished us with such a Fund of Grace then given us and following us with actuall Graces superadded to the generall what should more prevaile upon us than to improve them all as well to the clearing us from our former evills as resisting the manifold temptations occurring in our Christian warfare For by Baptisme and the Vow made therein hath God put a word into our Mouthes of trueth and holinesse whereby we may confound sin and Satan he hath put a Sword into our hands wherewith we may strike through the Loins of the Old Man he hath made us more than Conquerours and more than clean in that Naaman-like a Miracle is wrought upon us by the true Jordan-streams in renewing our leprous and foule flesh to its pristine puritie and granting unto us that we may so preserve our selves when we happen to fall into the mire of sin by vertue of an efficacious Repentance made so by Baptisme of which in the next place we are briefly to speak SECT V. Of the Grace and Power of Repentance in Cleansing the Soule 1. O Divine O Blessed Repentance How like our Blessed Saviour art thou despised indeed and rejected of men a Ladie of sorrowes and acquainted with griefs How doe we despise thee as one of no beautie that we should desire thee Isaiah 53. How beautifull art thou in the Eyes of God How powerfull in the presence of God For as God seeth not as man seeth so loveth he not as man loveth With vain man that person is lovely and enamourring which hath a well featur'd face a fresh look a ruddie Complexion bright and sprightly Eyes and such like
9. 23. the wise man glorie in his wisdome neither let the mighty man glorie in his might let not the rich man glorie in his riches which is an Inference following upon what is said ver 22. Even the Carcasses of men shall fall as dung upon the open field Is there any so wise that he can deliver his Soule from the hand of the grave The Psalmist saith no. Psalm 49. He seeth that wise men die as well as the ignorant and foolish Or can the Rich mans wealth defend him from the violence of death Of such in the same Psalm it is said None of them can redeem his brother by any means nor give to God a ransome for him And what is beautie more than strength Nay it is much lesse For generally it fades first and while it staies what is it but an apt contemperation of blood and choler and phlegme and that more earthy humour Melancholy which to be proud of is much the same as to be proud of fine Clothes and Fashions which suddenly alter into absurdities and every night as duely as they were put on are put off and laid aside Wherefore rather as the Prophet saith He that glorieth let him glory in the Lord that is account it his greatest honour and happinesse that he knowes God and is educated in the Doctrine of Salvation which principally instructeth all true Believers in the practice of humilitie 12. And Humilitie alone made glorious by the example of Christ and made easie by the Yoke of Christ perswading to it and wearing of it and lightening it to us is instead of a thousand directions to induce an ingenuous Christian to the studie of it and imitation and will wholly leavell the towering minde of man to due compliance with the simplicitie of the Gospell and purge out the sowre and ungratefull leaven of Pride Therefore Christ exhorteth Matth. 11. Learne of me for I am meek and lowly and ye shall finde rest for your Soules Stupendious was the humilitie of Christ in his severall condescensions but whether not equally stupendious it be that after an humble God as Austin speaks there should be found a proud man I think may be doubted It is written of Heraclius Emperour of Greece that having obtained a glorious Victorie over Cosdroes or Cosroes King of Persia he was so puffed up with that successe that he made all possible preparations to enter into the Gates of Hierusalem with greatest triumph and splendour having Christs Crosse carried before him but that an Angell of God opposed him and shut the Gates against him not suffering him to enter but rebuking him said The King of heaven entred in here in mean and low estate which so far affected him that laying away his Imperiall Robes and Trophies and blushing at his own errour he lighted off his Horse or Chariot and walked into the City barefoot Which made good what St. James speakes and St. Peter allso God resisteth the proud and giveth grace to the humble And from hence doth St. Peter exhort us to be clothed with humility which is the true Robe of Christ militant and ought to be of every one that will follow his example and obtain his Promises 13. Lastly Because I know the difficulty of Selfe-deniall in this case is no small impediment to the performance of this Dutie let the generous minde conceive from thence a resolutenesse to encounter such an Adversarie as is worthy of his Christian warfare here on earth and as that Conquest which must needs be great and in the conclusion of all glorious in the best sense because difficult but this difficultie well master'd wonderfully facilitates the Victorie we are to gain of the subordinate Vices introduced and acted principally by this leading only SECT XII Of Anger and its Concomitants the Second Deadly Sin and some Remedies thereof 1. IT is requisite for the better detecting and pursuing of this deadly Enemie that some description be premised thereof but more Divine than Philosophicall properer for other Treatises Anger therefore wrath displeasure revenge and violence in Spirit Word or Deed is a Passion properly belonging to evill Spirits and a resemblance of them furiously bent against God and all that are unlike themselves Beasts indeed have their rage and furie especially provoked but without transgressing any Rule of Reason prescribed them as angry Spirits and men doe Woe be to the earth saith the Angell in the Revelations Chap. 12. 12. For the Devill is come down unto you having great wrath because he knoweth his time is short Not for any just cause given him but because his perverted nature impells him to indignation and furie and by the just Sentence of God upon him he rages by his Office thus described by the Son of Sirach Ecclesiasticus 39. 28. There are Spirits that are created for vengeance which in their furie lay on sore strokes in time of destruction they poure out their force and appease the wrath of him that made them By which it seems there should be some colour and cause for the execution of the wrath of Evill Spirits but I know no ground for the immoderate wrath of men but their lust of tormenting others contrarie to Gods institution 2. And this Vesuvian flame worketh principally three severall wayes sometimes like that fierie Mountain it frets within and consumes its own bowells with madnesse wanting power and meanes to burst out upon others Sometimes it spits fire outwardly in horrible language casts the same in the face of such as it is incensed against calling them all to naught and that if they be not so they may be such by such violence offered And sometimes violent actions assault with what comes next to hand sparing neither limb nor life of such as stand in its way And men having done what Passion urged them to they make this cold defence of their woefull effects They were in a Passion making one sin to justifie another and voluntarie Drunkennesse of minde and phrenzie to apolologize for the worst of actions 3. It is true some men are by their naturall temper more cholerick than others and furious and much more to be excused than they whose nature is more governable and not unhappie but made so by affected and acquired Habits of this nature But God having blessed every man with Princely Reason and fortified the reason of every Christian with the wise and grave Precepts and Documents of Religion and the assistance of the Holy Spirit promised to all that ask it at Gods hands Luke 11. 13. No man can reasonably excuse himselfe from the guilt of such intemperances or say they are not voluntarie in him when as he is obliged so it is in his power to bring his Passions to a conformity to Reason and Gods Will rather than to his own turbulent humour But when frequented excesses in this kinde acted outwardly shall have added strength and improvement to naturall inclinations then is the Passion wholly owing to the will of
Divine Not that all who are ardent pursuers of the world are proportionably industrious for Heaven but that they whose Genius indisposes them to the one seldome shew any spirit or livelinesse in the other For often it happens that immoderate care of Earth stupifies the sense a man ought to have of Heaven But if there be no fire on the Smiths Forge no work good or bad can be wrought there So that as Siracides saith Chap. 22. 1 2. A slothfull man is compared to a filthy stone and every one will hisse him out to his disgrace A slothfull man is compared to the filth of a Dunghill every man that taketh it up will shake his hand And moderner Doctours of the Jewes give this for a Rule Whosoever bringeth up his Son to no employment teaches him to turne Robber 6. But to come closer up to the description and cure of spirituall Sloth The generall ground of lazinesse laid where Nature admonishes to be stirring no wonder the Spirits faile a man in things above and sometimes against Nature For this indisposition to Good seizes first the minde sadding it at the approaching good Duties that they must rise from their seat or Bed that they must spend so much time about the dry service of their Souls And though in their own affairs perhaps sinfully slothfull yet when such expectation is of them that serve God they must and ought they will forget their lazinesse in worldly matters and be stirring then and there when for shame they must doe something Then shall Civility in visiting or entertaining a Friend be alledged against the tedious hour or two in Gods service Nay perhaps Charitie to visit the sick just at that time shall be pretended and Scripture sometimes shall be alledged as warranting not too rash and unprepar'd approach to sacred Offices when the reall reason is spirituall sloth detaining them from preparing themselves and aversenesse to Good. Which lothnesse to open the mouth or bend the knee or raise the bodie answerable to the exigence of the severall parts of Gods publique Worship amongst manie proceeds from dead-heartednesse in Religion and to hide or excuse that perhaps a reason taken from Religion shall be forged and Conscience shall be alledged and simplicitie of Evangelicall worship and the straitest way of going to Christ shall be offer'd contrarie to the generall practice of the Catholique Churches in the best Ages and all this while listlessnesse in the service of God is at the bottome of all though I know religious or more properly superstitious Paradoxes have of late obstructed divers in this way under whose protection slothfullnesse too often shelters it selfe 7. Neither doth the slothfull Soule carrie it selfe with so much ofcitancie in things made doubtfull by the cunning sleights of men whereby they lye in wait to disturb Religion and destroy Charity but in things out of dispute allso as when men read the Scriptures or hear godlie Doctrine and Precepts without attention pray without zeal and intension of spirit Sing without cheerfullnesse and elevation of minde live without circumspection confesse their sins without sorrow and contrition So that the hedge of vigilance being broken down all they that passe by all sorts of temptations as Psalme 80. hath it pluck her the Boar out of the wood wasts it and the wild Beast of the field devours it For hereby is it made as it were a thorow-fare for all sorts of tempting Spirits So that to this and not to ill-husbandry may we believe Solomon to have respect when he saith Proverbs 24. 30 31. I went by the field of the slothfull and by the Vineyard of the man void of understanding and it was all grown over with Thornes and Nettles had covered the face thereof and the Stone-wall thereof was broken down whereby is insinuated the desolations of the Soule occasioned by spirituall carelesnesse and sloth 8. Yet am I not so severe as to impute to this Vice all the defects we are subject to here in spirituall things For not without Gods speciall permission it happens divers times that faithfull and righteous Soules are surprised with dullnesse and aridities in Gods service But not in the like manner For in the Soule tainted with the vice of Sloth no great trouble or sollicitude befalls the same but it passes the thing over unconcerned implying strongly an affectednesse in the miscarriage whereas in the Spirit becalmed as it were for want of the Spirit of Grace great anxiety and discontent affect it like as the Ship having lost the Winde lyeth beating her selfe with her Sails But they who by generall Dutie or speciall Offices especially Ecclesiasticall and Sacred suspend themselves studiously from discharging them painfully and diligently because they can live at ease and sit still and perhaps have some other to toyl for them let them at least labour hard to bring themselves off from this imputation of sloth for I cannot neither must I accuse them according to their merits 9. And to the intent we may better quitt our selves of this burden let us see briefly what may be prescribed against it First then let us look up and lift up a Prayer unto the Authour of all Graces to send this Grace unto us For he hath promised what we ask in his Name and with great confidence we hope for his service he will grant us as he did unto Solomon requesting what might make him more serviceable in the place to which he was by God called 10. Another Remedie and more particular is the consideration of the unsatiable desire flesh and blood have of Ease and Libertie contrary to divine Exercises so that yield to them they become softer and softer duller and duller lother and lother to engage in religious actions untill easie things become difficult and difficult things left quite off and a desolation be made in the Soule so that a man may say with David Psal 119. My soule melteth away for very heavinesse 11. Nay Thirdly Contrarie Maladies will multiply and grow strong against the Soule answerable to the description given by some of spirituall sloth viz. A grief and sorrow of heart at the apprehension of heavenly Exercises approaching such as are Pusillanimity spirituall affraid of every inconvenience wearisomnesse under the accustomed and halfe-constrained perfourmances though not frequent despondencie and diffidence of any good to come of such things and thereupon arguing against the troublesomnesse of them somnolencie in them and gladnesse when delivered out of them after the manner of the corrupt Jewes Amos 8. 5. When will the new Moon and Sabbath be over 12. Furthermore it may avail much to consider seriously what Solomon saith Prov. 18. 9. He that is slothfull in his work is Brother to him that is a great waster For like a City without a Watch or Walls he lyeth exposed to all Invaders and spoilers And that good which he doth is thereby corrupted his time and pains little better than lost and God provoked to
proper Cause of Christian Illumination being taken for the things revealed whereof some principall Heads are here given 1. IT is a common and usefull distinction of Faith by the Learned not difficult to be understood by the unlearned into the matter or articles of our Faith propounded to our assent by God himselfe in his Word and the Gift and Grace of Faith enabling us to believe things so revealed and necessary to our Salvation It will be therefore very expedient for the better informing every plain and sincere capacity to make some recitall of those things our Faith Christian is founded upon and which we are to believe and that principally by Revelation and not wholly to be silent herein any more than St. Luke was in writing his Gospell Luke 1. 1. For as much as many have taken in hand to set forth in order those things which are most surely believed amongst us because severall formes and phrases may help towards the same sense and end of believing and illumination 2. And here first of all is to be considered and believed the great Prerogative of Christian Religion above all other discoveries made to Man when our Saviour Christ in St. Matthew saith Ch. 11. v. 25. I thank thee O Father Lord of heaven and earth because thou hast hid these things from the wise and revealed them to babes Not that Christ maligned the knowledge of these things to others but that he admired the priviledges conferred by God upon his mean flock And what these things are and how and to whom revealed St. Paul certifies us 1 Corinth 2. 6 7 8 saying Howbeit we speak wisdome among them that are perfect yet not the wisdome of this world which cometh to naught but we speak the wisdome of God in a mysterie even the hidden wisdome which God ordained before the world to our glory For God hath revealed them by his Spirit For the Spirit searcheth all things even the deep things of God. Meaning hereby to teach us that whatever knowledge man may attain to in the search of the mysteries of Nature Revelation is absolutely necessarie to the knowledge of the deep things of Gods counsell and pleasure concerning his own Nature and Being and our service of him and salvation by him discovery should be made unto us some other way than by our natural reason darkened by our own apostasie and infatuations So that the whole Bible may be called one entire book of divine Revelations the Jew having received many things from God which were denied unto the Gentiles and the Christian having received from God more clear dispensations and sublime than were granted unto the Jew for he beheld things as in a glasse darkly but the other face to face that is the very things themselves and not the darker shadowes which were to flee away at the rising of the Sun of righteousnesse which is by the Apostle called the Mysterie of Christ which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men as it is now revealed unto his holy Apostles and Prophets by the Spirit Whereupon St. Peter 1 Ep. 1. 5. tells us of Gods Elect that they are kept by the power of God through faith unto Salvation readie to be revealed in the last times which last times were the same of which the Apostle to the Hebrews speaks that in the last dayes God hath spoken unto us by his Son and those last dayes were the dayes of the Gospell revealing the mysteries of Godlinesse unto us and not these last dayes phansied by some 3. Now notwithstanding innumerable are the divine documents and notices extraordinarily deliver'd through the New Testament and more especially there be a fair Catalogue given us Heb. 11. of the singular vertues and uses of Faith in revealing divine things yet because we now speak chiefly to babes in Christ or St. Johns Little children it may not be amisse to assist the weaker without offence of the stronger in giving some speciall instances whereby the knowledge of a green Christian is either actually improved or improveable to a greater degree than can readily be found in aliens from Christ 4. There have been in former years some leading men in the Reformation and learned who have collected ten severall and considerable grounds in which all Religions concurre and this was the ingenious contrivance of Bibliander since which divers with tolerable designe but I fear with no good event at all but rather the contrary have in these very late years written about Naturall Religion and the Reasonablenesse of Christian Faith manifested by naturall Light hoping it may be to begett a better opinion in many rank Rationalists of Christian Religion but perhaps they considered not what evill consequence followes from hence viz. that the very first principle of our Christian faith is hereby weakened and more slighted as judged from hence not to be so necessary as commonly is received For Revelations divine and that these writings we call Scriptures are divinely revealed is the most fundamentall part of our Religion which to make credible by sundrie Topicks of reason have been alwaies the practice of the Ancients as it is still of the moderne not illaudable but to offer demonstrations and those such upon which they would constrain belief of that first principle is to cause the whole fabrick of Christian faith to rest on that tottering and unstable foundation and of divine to dilute our faith into humane perswasion all superiour articles of our faith having no stronger stay than such a bottome will allow them 5. And I must confesse for my part I am so far from being pleased with the pretended Golden sayings of Pythagoras or the divine sentences of Plato Seneca and especially that moderner vapourer or rather vapour it selfe Hierocles and such as Eunapius presents unto us that they rather turne my stomach at their aemulation of Christian perfection thereby to lessen the value of Christian Religion it selfe than draw me to affecting or admiring them For St. Paul 2 Corinth 1. 14. tells us 't is By faith we stand and again that our faith it selfe should not stand in the wisdome of men but in the power of God. And it will be found by experience that humane reason thus coming officiously to the aid of divine Faith unable to satisfie the doubting minde about the doctrine proper to Faith will in the end prove so sawcie and domineering as to give law to faith and like Ivie which clings to the tree for a subsistence will weaken it and suck out the heart of it in time Herein therefore consisteth the very soule or as scholasticall men speak the very formall reason of Christian faith illuminating otherwise than the humane Lights of this world that we believe what we have not seen by sence nor learned by experience viz. That the Scriptures we now are possessed of are the Revelations which God hath given us for our instruction and direction in the knowledge of him and holy conversation
obstinacie and obduratenesse in their naturall state according to Christs own judgement of the world John 5. v. 40. Ye will not come unto me that ye might have life So that as it is written by Sulpitius Severus in the life of St. Martine that being endued with a marvellous gift or faculty of curing sick and impotent persons The blinde and lame and decrepit who got their living by begging were affraid of him and would not come near him lest being cured of such their defects and impotencies they should lose their livelihood In like manner many getting a miserable and beggarly livelihood by serving and complying with the world and so being blinde and crippled in an heavenly sense refuse that light and life and renovation which Christ bringeth with him An instance whereof we have in the ministrie of St. Paul preaching to the Athenians prepossessed and captivated with worldly wisdome and thereupon saying Thou bringest strange things to our eares In their judgements more strange than true And though it be Mannah it selfe and that dropt down from heaven for their edification and comfort men out of their scepticalnesse and curiositie will question it and perhaps in time loath it as the Israelites that bread from heaven there being generally too little agreement between the notions of half-sighted naturall reason and delectations of our senses naturall and the divine Revelations and more spirituall prescriptions given us by Religion though naturall reason not counterfeited nor corrupted by baser allayes of vitious men may passe also as Gods true coyne But that pure Gold it is not which the Holy Ghost counselleth us to buy Revel 3 18. that we may be rich and wherewith we may get white raiment that we may be clothed that the shame of our nakednesse doe not appear and get that eye-salve that we may see which is the word of God. For the knowledge or illumination which we have from thence and that which we have from the Holy Spirit differ no otherwise than that money a man carries about him or that which the Tradesman hath present in his Bank and that which he hath in his Books which must put him sometimes to trouble to fetch in The manner of which fetching in is by the Holy Spirit also opening the heart that we may as the Disciples going to Emaus after Christs Resurrection understand the Scriptures untill which time that will be found too true which the Prophet Hosea Cap. 8. 12. complains of in Gods behalf I have written to him the great things of my Law but they were counted as a strange thing 4. But if we should enquire faithfully into the grounds of such incredulitie and prejudice against Religion we may finde them too often in the corrupt manners of men influencing the understanding with mistakes and grosse errours which yet some to cover with shew of greatest candour in judging and ingenuity have wished they could believe the things Christianity requires of them But if reality and common integritie be not also laid aside here how easie a thing is it to reconcile them to the truth For does not their own prime reason and of all civilized People tell them that nothing truely humane is more naturall to Man than to be of some Religion And yet if they be men but of indifferent reading and observation they shall finde that there is no Religion nor ever like to be all whose Principles are obvious to all competent understandings And so consequently that men to avoid the barbaritie of Atheisme must believe more than nature can compell them unto by her philosophicall demonstrations or fall into an absurditie little inferiour to Atheisme That every man should frame his own Religion and be so far religious as he thinks fit and no farther and which must necessarily follow call his freak and humour his reason and judgement So that it is scarce so true that a man cannot believe the mysteries of Religion as that he will not and he will not because he dares not for fear of the worst Or let it be that he cannot when St. Paul if he be but so far believed saith of some 2 Corinth 4. 4. The God of this world who that is I suppose is well known hath blinded the mindes of them that believe not lest the light of the glorious Gospell of Christ who is the image of God should shine unto them vain and vitious men having by their presumed wit and evill lives tempted evill Spirits themselves and drawn them to be accessaries to their infatuations For as every good and perfect gift cometh from above from the Father of lights as St. James tells us Chap. 1. 17. So doth everie notorious errour and wickednesse proceed from the Prince of darknesse who ruleth in the Childeren of Disobedience they being called children of Disobedience in Scripture who obey not the Gospell nor believe it reasonably propounded 5. But it may seem strange and worth our wondering How the same effect of blindnesse of minde should be ascribed to God and also to the Devill in Scripture as John 12. 4. speaking of God out of the Prophet Isaias He hath blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts that they should not see with their eyes nor understand with their hearts c. This is in truth a Scholasticall difficultie which belongs to another place to which I may referre it but here I would have it observed that as Judges or Princes are said to put Malefactours to death when they doe it not themselves but deliver them over to the Executioner whose office it is so God upon just provocation delivering great Sinners to the Devill may be said to be a cause of their hardnesse and blindnesse when it is caused directly by Satan only and themselves But the true light of Faith and life of Grace doth most properly appertain to God as it is said 2 Corinth 4. 7. By grace ye are saved through faith it is the gift of God. The reason whereof is That the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us And this key of knowledge which is also of the Kingdome of God did Christ deliver to his Apostles by vertue of which God assisting Lydia's heart was opened as we read Acts 16. 14. And so necessary is the assistance of God in this case that he seems to keep this key by his own side and not at all times to lend it to his Ministers no not the Apostles Nor did Christ himselfe who as God had the command of mens mindes allwayes succeed in his teaching and exhortation but by I know not what deep providence suffered his labours to be frustrated by the incredulity of men But this we may say falls out by divine dispensation that God may be all in all in the beginning continuing and consummation of every good work and to repell that spirit of presumption whereby too prosperous Labourers in Gods Harvest or Vineyard might be prone to attribute much more to themselves than
Christ continueth his wonted method to reveal such things to the ignorant and Babes which is commonly denied to the wise noble and Great ones in the world untill such time as the simple and unlearned shall proceed so far as to forget whence themselves derive that understanding they have for then suddainly it degenerates into folly and men priding themselves and transgressing the limits of modesty humility and subjection to which they are called become insolent and contumacious towards them that are over them in the Lord. For scarce can it be imagined that God like the foolish workman should pull down with one hand what he buildeth with another or as the wise Man saith Ecclesiasticus 15. 20. give any man licence to sin which he should doe if he allowed fruitfull Hagar to contemne her Mistresse Sarah not losing her dominion for want of what was given and that by God himselfe to Hagar And it is but too common to all presumers of gifts exempting themselves from the ordinarie method of Commander and Souldier Leader and Follower Teacher and Schollar what was mutinously uttered and murmuringly against Moses by Mirian and Aaron Hath the Lord indeed spoken only by Moses hath he not also spoken by us Numbers 12. 2. Revelations may be and are given unto men but not to such as are the worse for them nor to them through whom the Church of God fares the worse But most probably such egregious abilities are given by the subtil and Evill Spirit who if men that are evill may give Good gifts unto their Children as Christ implyeth Matth. 7. 11. may also doe the same to his Children Children of pride of minde and disobedience of life being of the same nature and complexion with himselfe 2. S. Paul therefore sayes 1 Cor. 12. 7. The Spirit that is the truly divine is given to every man to profit withall And this profit is manifestly the profiting of the whole bodie of the Church of Christ the advancing of that and the thriving in Faith and Charity So that whatever knowledge as singular and admirable as it may seem to short-sighted Christians who cannot see afar off may be pretended prejudiciall to the Body of Christ largely taken and to the glory of God in generall but swelling the mindes of some particular persons is far from an edifying faith or knowledge whatever specious effect may be offer'd to the world thereby causing admiration 3. But notwithstanding such frequent mistakes scandalous to the prudent as insnaring to the simple such a Faith there is and such an inward Light many times is given and added by God unto the naturall perspicacity of man that the effect is wonderfull upon the minde and life of the simple above the Learned For the naturall man believes because he knows but the truely spirituall knowes because he believes and his belief is directed by a superiour power agreeably to that saying of the Auncient supposed to be in the Prophet Isaiah Vnlesse ye believe ye shall not understand For seeing a promptitude and preparednesse in the minde to receive all impresses from him without disputings or suspicions of errour he will not suffer such honest and devout simplicitie to want his influence disposing thereunto so that there should be no room or ground left for the faith of God to stand on the wisdome of men and subtile ratiocinations of sophisticall heads For many are the Mysteries of faith not intelligible and yet Credible divinely which may be compared to well composed and well performed Musick which as the common observation teacheth us is most sweet and pleasing in the next room or at a competent distance and yet we see few can content themselves so but must needs be pressing contrary to their own interest into the companie of them who make it and be viewing curiously and perhaps touching the Instruments which yield it though they have no skill in them But the honest and faithfull spirit perswaded of the necessity of things to be believed and conscious of its own infirmitie in making out the intrigues of Religion acquiesces with Humility and Charitie in the things propounded without endlesse discussions which render them lesse credible many times and bring lesse satisfaction than before For the more a man argues the more he may 4. I have not a little wonder'd at the expression and comparison apt enough to signifie the vertue of an easie Faith and the unhappinesse of curious enquirers into matters of Religion without faith It was of one who had the least measure of Christian faith of any of his age as his works declare intending to give a new scheme or modell of Philosophie and Religion both infinitely ambitious of applause and disciples to whom he promised great notions and them more rationall than former Ages or any Country but England had been acquainted with but with so foul failleur in his first principles which he begged and would with no patience suffer to be questioned as scarce any unlucky Sophister was subject to And surely suspecting that what he taught might be as coursely handled as he doth Scripture and the very Creeds of the Church i. e. with monstrous boldnesse he would divert men from such attempts by such a fine similitude as is very serviceable in other Cases As it is with him that is to take physicall Pills for the health of his body if he takes them into his mouth and considering of them will needs chew them before he swallowes them he will rather spit them out of his mouth as vehemently disagreeing to his palate than use them to his health In like manner he who having delivered to him by good and skilfull instructers the wholesome principles of spirituall life and salvation shall as it were grinde and chew them by his natural Reason to prove what manner of things they are before he will receive them by Faith will perhaps never take them down but cast them out again and with them more than them the greatest part of all Religion which before he disliked not If this comparison ever fitted any man it did the Authour 5. But Reason as the Renowned Romane Lawyer of old told us The greatest in the world is that which makes for Religion and if men would but reflect upon their ever doubting Wit and whither it at length hurries them they would never trust it so far nor give it so much rope and such loose reins as they doe For as is said there being nothing more agreeable to Reason than to acknowledge a Deitie it more strongly followes he should be worshipped And if a man should be free to take his choice amongst the great variety offering it selfe to a man methinks out of naturall reason he should preferre the Christian Religion with all its circumstances and difficulties before any other in like manner considered and examined And so I should think if by education having only common reason to guide him he were indifferent he should choose that which was revealed
Possessions And I can think little more reverently of the frequentation of Visions and Revelations celebrated in the Lives of those three famous Women published together viz. Hildegardis Elizabeth Micthildis which afford us such instances by bushells as it were I will not instance in Jacobus de Voragine his Golden Legend nor Caesarius Heiberstachius as I could to the great disadvantage of that Cause which was intended to be advanced thereby as such at which the modester and graver of the Roman Communion need not any other to put them upon blushing at they doe it of themselves But when I read in the Visions of Katharine of Sienna sainted a perpetuall storie of God himselfe appearing to her and preaching in person to her almost through the whole book though I like the Sermon very well and must needs acknowledge the Documents deliver'd to be many of them very Divine and usefull I cannot assent unto the Scene there given us If these Revelations as we say of Phanaticall and pretended Inspirations and gifts of Prayer in Publick were so Divine as reputed and affirmed why doe they not become Canonicall Why are they not equallized to the Holy Scriptures But things are not come to that height thankes be to God unlesse with them who glorying immodestly of a Light within them and the Word and Will and Wisdome of God given into them contemne the written Word themselves for this very reason becoming suspected convicted and detestable 10. But those Visions which are so practicall and grosse as that they end as in their consummation in the gratifying of our senses outward and them the grossest overthrow in my opinion the spiritualnesse and even the honesty of Revelations and notably shake the reputation of that Religion which countenances them If it were recorded only in an unapproved Author what I finde in the Sermon of an eminent Preacher Granatensis Vol. 5. pag. 387. concerning the same Katharine of Sienna Granatens Vol. 5. Conc. 3. in Cathar pag. 387. it might have been lesse scandalous to read of the great and frequent familiarity between Christ and her so that termes of wooing passed between them for a long time till at length she was sensibly espoused to him but what were the consequences of that Wedding I know not This to my apprehension is a true consequence of such Revelations that it must be the Devill rather than Christ that so appeared and led away a silly Woman laden with sinne in the midst of her profession of Sanctity or that these Talemongers have shamefully belied that reputed Saint And on the other side the like instances might be given of such who were so vehemently devoted to the Virgin Mary as to win her love so far as to condescend to suffer her breasts to be handled by her Saints A little more cleanly and credible is that story in the Remains of Gregorie Thaumaturgus Bishop of Neocaesarea of an Exposition of the Faith which he received from Saint John the Evangelist by the meanes of Mary the Mother of God. But the Romanists themselves are so modest we thank them as not to hold it to be the same we now have under that name And we are so bold to tell them that their Visions Miracles and Revelations so much sometimes with the ignorant sort boasted of have done them more discredit with the wiser than good or honour 11. And to these another note of true and false Illuminations and Alluminations which I may call all outward Discoveries made to the senses may be that made by the observation of the Masters of such Learning That in the true and near approach of God and his Holy Spirit to the sense outward or minde inward first great trouble surprisement consternation and deep humiliation are wrought upon the spirit of him the Lord vouchsafes so to honour with his presence as it appears by Ezechiell the Prophet Daniell and before them by Manoah who were struck with dread and confusion at the Revelations made unto them as likewise was the Blessed Virgin at the aspect and Annunciation of the Angell Gabriell but in the winding up and conclusion they were all refreshed and comforted aboundantly On the contrary the specious Pageantry and Insinuations of Evill Angells are begun with great delight of the deluded minde and in the conclusion bring shame sorrow and confusion answerable indeed to the method of the tempter in all other Cases in which the good Wine is brought forth first of which when men have well drunk followes the bad but Christ first sets before his faithfull servants the bad and keepeth the best to the last of all that he might humble thee and that he might prove thee to doe thee Good at the latter end as it is said Deuteron 8. ver 16. Brisk Pert and vaunting are the gifted by Evill Spirits reflecting upon such their perfections above others but modest humble and grave are they who are indeed taught of God. 12. And thus having briefly prepared the true Christian with a prospect given him of the nature use and necessitie of true Spirituall Illuminations translating him out of the Kingdome of darknesse into the marvellous light of saving Knowledge and Faith before due progresse can be made to the life and power of Faith in holy Conversation and likewise shewed the hazards of miscarrying through mistaken Light I proceed to the Second Part of Christian walking with God by walking according to that Light consisting principally in Spirituall Purgation or Sanctification A Prayer for Spirituall Illumination O Allmighty God and Heavenly Father the Light and life of the world lying in darknesse Who by thy Son Jesus Christ coming into the world enlightenest every one that cometh into the world and whome to know is eternall Life But who can know thee the Father but the Son and he to whome he shall reveale him and yet none can come unto the Son unlesse the Father draw him and none doth the Father draw unto him but by his holy Spirit teaching all things Send down I beseech thee that Spirit of light life and truth into my minde and heart that they may preserve me prevent and informe me and rule me that by that key of knowledge the door of my heart may be opened and the eyes of my understanding to perceive the things of God which are only spiritually discerned and that I may not love darknesse rather than light because my deeds are evill But grant that in thy light I may see Light and know how to choose the good and refuse the Evill not calling darknesse light nor light darknesse nor bitter sweet nor sweet bitter nor good evill nor evill good Various are the Mazes and Labyrinths of this World and many are lost in them Difficult is the road and strait is the way that leadeth unto trueth and life and few there be that find them Dangerous it is to lean to mine own understanding or wisdome who am but of yesterday and know nothing as I ought
to know To whome therefore should I betake my selfe for help and succour but to thee O Lord who alone canst open the eyes of him that is borne blinde and who art the Father of Lights from whome cometh every good and perfect gift and givest to all men liberally and upbraidest not And how should we come unto thee but through Jesus Christ who is made unto us of God Wisdome Righteousnesse Sanctification and Redemption In him therefore coming unto thee I pray thee to give me wisdome that sitteth by thy Throne and reject me not from thy Children For I thy servant and son of thy handmaid am a feeble person and of short time and too young and weak for the understanding of judgement and thy Lawes O send her out of thy holy heavens and from the throne of thy glorie that being present she may labour with me that I may know what is pleasing unto thee and what is that good and acceptable will of God. For hardly do we guesse aright of the things that are upon earth and with labour doe we finde the things that are before us but the things that are in heaven who hath searched out but by thy Spirit which searcheth all things even the hidden things of God. I am a stranger and a Pilgrim upon earth O hide not thy Commandments from me that so having a sound and saving knowledge of thee and of my selfe and mine own wayes of my errours and my negligences and ignorances of mine infirmities and emptinesses and so diffident in and disliking my selfe I may apply my selfe to thee lay hold on thy strength partake of thy fullnesse and freenesse and have a sincere faith in thee a fervent love of thee and holy life before thee and professing thee outwardly may believe thee inwardly and serve thee in all good works in all godly conversation and honesty and persevere therein through Jesus Christ our Lord Amen The Second Part. OF THE PURGATIVE PART OF RELIGION SECT 1. That Action and good Works must be added to true Knowledge and Believing And of the distinction of Sins to be purged 1. AS Light was at the first Creation produced by God as an Introduction to his Six-dayes workes so hath he continued that light to all his Creatures but especially Man the greatest Artist of all other to the better discharge of those Acts and Offices assigned him in the few dayes of his labour in this World. And according to his gift in workes of Nature hath he provided a proportionable light of Understanding and Faith to give him Means Rule and Opportunity to work the work of God and that especially upon his own soule to the end it may draw near unto God both in likenesse of perfection and fruition of blessednesse For the Image of God defaced by our Apostacie having contracted many and monstrous deformities the great businesse we are to be imployed about is how to refashion our selves to that Grand Patern which became visible to us by the Incarnation of Christ the brightnesse of Gods glorie and the expresse Image of his Father So that as we see it is with Statuaries who are to make an accurate Image out of a rude and naturall stone taken out of the Quarrie what light is necessarie what judgement what diligence by little and little to chip and hew away all irregular parts and roughnesse till the intended forme riseth out of it so must it be with every good Christian to whom God hath given his Light to work by and Instruments to work with and matter to work upon his own soule over-grown and mishapen and wholly out of order and rule as taken out of the common rock of Nature 2. God therefore hath set up his Holy Word amongst us as the Greater Light to rule the Day according to whose Illumination we should direct and rule all our actions and not contrary to our Saviours advice put it under a Bed or under a Bushell that is not under the bed of slothfulnesse and lazinesse nor under the bushell of worldlinesse and secular businesses and traffickings whereby men are wont to make use of the Scripture the better to advance worldly profits as hypocrites doe or sweetly to flatter themselves that they know much as if the gifts of God to us were service done to him and he were so well satisfied with the talents committed to our trust that he would never require any thing from us or perhaps some lipp-service whereby with religious Discourse we move others to think well of us were to be good and faithfull servants to him though we remained unfruitfull as if he that gives aym to another should perswade himselfe that he had hit the mark himselfe But the Holy Scriptures quite contradict this and that often as St. James 1. 22. Not the hearers of the Law are justified before God but the doers And St. Paul Rom. 2. 13. speaking the same thing Which we must not so understand as if the Law of Moses were here only commended but the Law of Christ obedience to whom is no lesse necessary to our justification and salvation than the workes of Moses his Law were once necessary to him that would live by them For this is the Doctrine of Christ himselfe Luke 12. 47. He that knoweth his Masters will and doth it not shall be beaten with many stripes And so where he saith John 8. 19. If ye had not known me ye had had no sin comparatively but now ye say We know therefore your sin remaineth For at the day of Judgement as Gerson observeth it shall not so much be demanded of us how much we know how well skill'd we are in the Scriptures what notable Disputers and Arguers we have been out of them nor how many good Sermons we have heard nor how many Chapters we have read or how often but as the forme of proceeding in that Great Day contained in the Scriptures assures us Matt. 25. 34 36 c. what good workes we have done in the true faith we professe and what good fruits the tree of knowledge of Good and Evill hath produced And in our spirituall warfare it will not suffice to beat the Drum or sound as it were the Trumpet to stir up others to fight that good fight appointed by Christ against flesh and blood and spirituall wickednesses unless as St. Paul exhorteth we quit our selves likemen in Christs Camp. 3. Applying then our selves to so Divine and necessary a work before we can doe what is required we must judge what is amisse and being now about to purge our selves from filthinesse of flesh and spirit as St. Paul speaks 2 Corin. 7. 1. we are first of all to be throughly perswaded of those spots and blemishes which are to be cleansed from the soule and those scales which are to be taken off our Eyes and those infirmities and distempers our souls naturally labour under For we see not if we lament not our rude and polluted naturall state our defects
corrupt or sound principles of Reason and Faith and the sober affections of the heart purified by Faith. For untill the Spirit of Sanctification and mortification and renovation hath wrought our corrupt nature to a blessed and thorow change little may be expected from us outwardly either acceptable to God who looks more upon the manner and forme of the Deed than the Deed it selfe or profitable to our selves For to continue a little farther our similitude as we see men having bad Watches will with their Finger or Thumb place the Hand aright to give some credit to them which presently according to their ill frame returne to their wonted errour So Hypocrites to appear fair and good to men push themselves on sometimes to regular and laudable acts and sometimes restrain and set back their rank course of sin for some imperfect if not evill end but soon relapse to their accustomed excesses for want of the principle of holinesse and a constitution heavenly inclined the only true Spring of good and laudable actions 5. Again The inward man may well be compared to the Market-place of a strong Citie The Enemie may surprise or by some suddain violence may possesse himselfe of the out-workes and yet be repelled again and the Citie stand firme and safe and faithfull to its Soveraign but if the Enemie once possesses himselfe of the Market-place there is no hopes of standing true to the Owner or withstanding the Adversarie So is it with them who have suffered the Legions of foul Spirits to enter into their hearts and there to nestle and triumph All attempts are but feeble and insufficient to exhibit just and reasonable service to God. For no sooner doe some good inclinations arise no sooner doe we offer at good but a partie of vain thoughts dishonest motions are sent forth to suppresse all good but weak purposes of returning to our allegiance to God and the doing of his Will. Great circumspection therefore must be used strong resolutions must be taken and many difficulties of hunger thirst and hot service must first be passed through before our Redemption draweth nigh and we be restored to the Masterie of our selves and the ministrie we owe to God. 6. But adde hereunto fourthly a more intrinsick argument to the stirring us up to the cleansing our hearts the great benefit redounding to a mans selfe who shall so acquitt himselfe For however this conflict with the powers of flesh and blood and this Conquest is very difficult and tedious and therefore is called in Scripture Mortification and crucifying the Old man with the affections and lusts yet the work once done and the victory obtained brings wonderfull ease quiet satisfaction and cheerfulnesse unto the Spirit rendering it much more expedite and lightsome than it was before strugling against a contrarie Principle which evermore clogged it obstructed and either wholly impeded or grievously retarded the performance of Divine Services For men being scarce able to extinguish the cleer notice of a Deity in them and little lesse able to deny wholly such a service as is due to God doe with an unwilling will divers times submit to Religious acts but wearisome and tedious are they to them through the prevalencie of unsubdued lusts which by this necessary Discipline being master'd and expelled a great change is made in the Soule and then with lightnesse and readinesse is that done which before was irksome and grievous As David himselfe found it in himselfe when he said Psal 119. 32. I will run the way of thy Commandements when thou hast set my heart at liberty And then are our hearts at liberty when the Bond-servant Hagar with her off-spring which would domineer are cast out Then are we free indeed when the Son shall make us free then doth the Son make us free when he delivers us fo far as St. Peter speaks 2 Epist 1. 4. as by a Divine nature given unto us we escape the corruption that is in the world through lust Then shall we not fear the Law of the Land constraining us to Gods service more than God then shall we not shrinke and murmure at Fasting-dayes nor repine when on dayes of publique Thanksgiving to him that is glorious in all his Saints it is expected we should suspend and intermitt our lawfull labours and wholly cut off and denie our unlawfull pleasures We shall not need then as Beasts under the Leviticall Law one or more to drive us to the House of God nor drag us with violence to the Altar of God to offer an holy living and acceptable sacrifice to him which is our reasonable service But with Davids Spirit we shall say I was glad when they said unto me Let us goe up unto the House of the Lord. And how much better is it we should doe a thing with Alacritie and great content than with constraint But this we may doe if we can but free our selves from that load of corruption we are apt to lye under And what effect in this kinde and progresse a man hath made in himselfe may be competently discerned from the sense a man hath in himselfe of the fear of God and love to his service and worship which though the most pure and perfect in this life is not without some tepiditie of spirit sometimes yet the seed of God sown in the heart will generally spring up with gladnesse 7. This therefore should be our great and chiefe endeavour which is the Counsell of Solomon Prov. 4. 23. Keep thy heart with all diligence for out of it are the issues of life And if as Solomon saith Prov. Chap. 18. 21. Death and life are in the power of the tongue much more true is it that both of them are in the power of the Heart as it stands affected or disaffected to God seeing the Poison or Balsome which distilleth from the Tongue is originally owing to the Heart as the Heart doth comprehensively signifie the entire bodie of affections which must be dedicated to God. But given to God it cannot be without a mock or derision but as it is whole and sound clear and clean according to the ballance of the Sanctuarie of the Gospell which consists much of Christian Equitie We never heard of any that liv'd a life of nature with halfe an heart only neither of any that was sick on one side of his heart and well on the other no more is it possible to please God with one part of our heart and to please the world with the other or at the same time to live the life of this sinfull world and of Christ My son saith God give me thy heart and not a piece of it for that must needs be dead flesh odious to man and much more to God. SECT IV. Of the proper Means and Methode of cleansing the Soule and first of Baptisme 1. SUCH is the contagion of sin naturally infecting the very Soule as inheriting our Forefathers corruption that being in love with it as all men love
perpetuall A man must never have any kinde thought of that sin whereof he pretends to have repented He must have a perpetuall displeasure against himselfe for having so offended he must have an immortall enmitie against it And though perhaps he be not actually warring against it by open violence used against himselfe for it and against it for his own sake he must never hang up his Armes so as never more to pursue it as occasion shall require We are to imitate upon our selves Gods Justice against sin which never ceases where pardon doth not prevent it God punishes the impenitent Sinner with everlasting torments and therefore man should so judge himselfe that he be not condemned of the Lord And therefore though a man ought not allwayes to be in teares penances and lamentations for sins passed yet allwayes must he bear an habituall grudge against it an ill will and enmifie which intermitted by sutable actions for seasons extraordinary upon fresh returnes of the same into his minde and memorie he must exercise fresh acts of detestation and humiliation for such his failings and miscarriages Some men have ceased from the sin they have been formerly overtaken with but upon occasion can with some degree of content relate the same amongst them who will make merrie with it Such we may be sure are not cleansed throughly from that sin though they have laid it aside and that so that they never committ it over again For were their soules but so much estranged from it as they ought as they never committed such a sin but with pleasure such as it may be so they should never think of it but with displeasure and detestation and with an hidden smiting of the brest with the Publican say Lord be mercifull to me a sinner 6. This I say ought to be done in some degree occasionally though not in the intensest as when at the time of illumination and conversion the soule repenting travaileth under the weight and sense of sin especially by them who are not by office occupation profession wholly sequestred from the world For Monasticall and Heremeticall lives are described to be nothing else but a state of repentance Repentance being so called from that which is most eminent in that state Fastings hardships watchings solitarinesse but when the worship of God requires communion with others 7. But the degree required of all is not inconsistent with the due Alternations and vicissitudes of Consolations and spirituall Cheerfulnesse before God and others For upon repentance prescribed and sincerely perfourmed it pleaseth God in Scripture to declare himselfe reconciled to the broken spirit so that when God is said to repent of the evill suffered by others for their offences the offender may be sure to his great satisfaction that his repentance is accepted As when upon Moses his intercession in behalfe of the Idolatrizing Israelites it is said Exod. 32. 14. The Lord repented of the evill which he thought to doe unto his people And Judges 2. It repented the Lord because of the groanings of his people Therefore in the like cases he saith Isaiah 40. 1. Comfort ye Comfort ye my people speake comfortably unto Jerusalem Which God saith unto particular persons upon their sharp sufferings and deep humiliations upon the reason rendered for the mitigation of the punishment of the incestuous Corinthian 2 Corin. 2. 7. Lest such an one should be swallowed up of too much sorrow 8. And besides this Cheerfulnesse and Gratitude towards God may be esteemed a part of true Repentance taken in its latitude for such a generall change of heart and minde which giveth that affection to God which before was bestowed on the world Too much lightnesse and jollity and vanity having transported a man into evill before transportation towards God well becometh the true Convert David may be an instance and a Rule to us in this kinde Who had fallen more fowly than he And who repented more thorowly than he So that he saith My sins are ever before me Psalm 51. The act of sin was over the repentance was not so but frequent representations thereof were made to him which abashed and confounded him Yet found he such Lucid intervalls and seasons of recreation and joy in God that he took to him his Harp and celebrated the praises of Gods mercies to him And no doubt but he administer'd the Nation under him with proportionable sweetnesse of behaviour and severity of Justice Which should be the care and prudence of all true penitents least instead of humbling themselves under their sins they mortifie others by their froward and sowr behaviour towards them who are about them For unlesse some custodie in such cases be had over a mans passions spirituall against himselfe for his sins those which should wholly terminate in himselfe and against himselfe will steal out and be troublesome to others allso which is a great errour and scandalous as it is often seen that a man being vehemently set against his Enemie doth strike them allso that are next to him and would part them 9. But now let us see wherein consisteth this conflict between the flesh and the Spirit and by what meanes the Soule is sanctified and secured from such relapses as are incident to our infirme nature allwayes remembring this that no good Christian can indulge to himselfe any such sins as are commonly called Failings of our corrupt flesh or sins of infirmitie For no sin connived at and willingly suffered to abide with us can be properly called a sin of Infirmitie but comes under the notion and nature of presumptuous sin For as much as God the all seeing Judge doth principally look upon the temper and disposition of the will and heart according to whose alienation from him or opposition to him or affectation of an evill committed against him is an estimate set upon that sin though very tolerable and minute yea perhaps having somewhat of gracefulnesse in the eye of the world This will therefore comes here to be considered SECT VII Of Selfe-deniall required to true Reformation and that both of Vnderstanding and Will. 1 NO doubt but all things that God made as he made them were at first good and so continue but all things continue not in that first and perfect state wherein they were as well depending on God in their doing as in their being God gave man the most excellent gift of Reason and under that Appetites and affections which are the inward motions of the Soule either to or from God. So long as we walk by his light we cannot erre in knowledge so long as we desire by his Will we cannot erre in desiring Subordination to the Supream is no bondage and confinement to him that is infinite is no losse of libertie or freedome 'T is ignorance therefore which impells men no illimited knowledge and servitude to study and endeavour to be absolute and commanders of our selves without exception 'T is not to know that God prohibits but to know
others In doing evill men are generally to feare evill but men are to feare Pride most of all when they doe well When men preach eloquently and powerfully when others pray fluently and giftedly as they suppose to the admiration and applause of others the vain spirit of man licketh up as it were and draweth greedily to it selfe the fumes of praises offered so to him as the Gentile Philosophers taught the paltrie Spirits of the air for they made severall orders of Spirits too attended the Altars at the time of Sacrificing to them and with great pleasure drew to themselves the fat vapour that ascended from thence and were nourished by the same as they tell us And if men be so wanting that they of themselves refuse to offer a sacrifice of praise answerable to the appetites of the vain expecter prettie sly artifices are invented to ensnare as it were men to ascribe something to them of which that is none of the least or rarest To cast out some light disparagement of themselves that the Friend or flatterer may catch that occasion to confute what was said and amplifie his deserts on the contrarie and extoll him as it is often seen in young Children who discerning their Parents fondnesse towards them will sometimes cast themselves down upon the ground that they may be taken up into their armes dandled and kissed 6. But so much as to point at the severall sorts of this Vice might require a greater latitude of Discourse than is proper for this place Ambition or affectation of great Power or Honours or Place is that which can hardly consist with a sincere minde or spirit truely apprehensive of the vanitie of the world or the unsociablenesse I doe not say of the things themselves for such orders and subordinations God would have in the world but of the Affectation and appetite of them so far as least of all to desire that Good work the Apostle mentions in Dignities but wholly or chiefly to desire grandeur profits and perhaps ease from inferiour labours and lesse advantageous becoming so much the lesse sollicitous and industrious as the reward requires and deserves greater Here must necessarily be either Vain-glorie or Covetousnesse or both too prevalent 7. But Saint Chrysostome gives us an Instance of vaingloriousnesse and pride of minde even after men are dead and turned to corruption an exorbitancie Great men are subject to in this sin more then in any other For other sins commonly end their dayes with the Sinner but Pride divers times manifesteth it selfe after death and Drunkennesse and Uncleannesse and Gluttony and Covetousnesse fall away with the guilty person but he that is ambitious and vainglorious provides for the continuation of his blindnesse and errour by appointing lasting and magnificent Monuments to that purpose stately devices and Edifices must declare to Posteritie that such an one was once great and renowned whether he were so or not ay and as now the wicked world goes men shall be Sainted by an Inscription who have been prophane to a great degree in their lifes-time and by stately Tombes proudly after their death cease not to prophane the Church or Chancell by usurping that part of Gods Soile dedicated to Holinesse to the celebration of rotten flesh and drie bones and it may be to the bringing down the judgement of God upon that Church which tolerates such abuses when it is in its power to hinder it which often it is not through the power and Lordlinesse of Great Persons too resolute to be diverted and too strong to be resisted in their unrighteous actions especially when it so happens that men of such advantages over poor Ministers of Christ and their Superiours too shall take a kinde of Antichristian pride in shewing how they can exalt themselves above all that is called God or reputed holy and especially in following the Fashion and that when they are dead 8. Wherefore the mischief of this Deadly evill being duly considered and observed it will concerne every true Christian truely and impartially to make enquirie into the depths of his own heart and so judge his Spirit as to deliver himselfe from the same Many for kinde are the sorts thereof and some very monstrous for nature all delusive of the affected therewith procuring him Hatred instead of Love contempt instead of esteem and honour and restlessenesse of minde ever more thirsting for that with which he can never be satisfied Let us therefore take the Apostles advice Galat. 4. and not be desirous of vainglory provoking one another envying one another And if such mutuall Emulation were all it were more to be endured but by such vainglorious provocations of God and Man we stirr them both up to the ruine and dejecting of our selves exalting our selves some Philosophers being so wise as well as some Christian contemplatours of the wayes and workes of God to see and say that God sitteth above in the highest Heaven observing who by humility is capable of Exaltation and who by exalting himselfe deserves to be crushed and confounded 9. And this is it which the wise Man Ecclesiasticus Chap. 10. v. 9. teaches us when he seem'd to be alltogether ignorant of the ground of Pride in Man. Why saith he is earth and ashes proud For asking why it is certain he knew not Why. Yea rather asking Why he knew why not Which appeareth from what he had said formerly ver 7. Pride is hatefull before God. And so ver 13. Pride is the beginning of sin and the parting from God is the beginning of it Pride and Apostacie from God are mutuall causes one of another by a kind of monstrous incest begetting one another but having for their common Father the Devill himselfe that Apostate Spirit Lucifer who first committing that sin and suffering condigne punishment for the same has made it his Office to draw men into the same offence and condemnation and losse too by aspiring as Holy and humble Job informes us Chap. 41. 34. thus speaking of him He beholdeth i. e. according to the language of the Scripture he loves and admireth all high things he is the King of all the Children of pride that is his own children made so by pride 10. And who is not ignorant of the reason why Flesh and blood should be proud which Ecclesiasticus resolves into Earth and Ashes And why so but because Ashes are barren of good and Earth is base ordained to be trampled on not lifted up but in such cases as great calamities seize on a man and then it was wont to be heap'd on the head to augment his vilenesse and misery that brought it upon him by his folly and vanity Man having by pride advanced himselfe above his originall Earth by as unnaturall a course as if the stream should rise higher than the Fountain-head reason good that Earth should recover its dignity and place by becoming higher than the calamitous proud man. 11. Let not therefore saith God by the Prophet Jeremie Chap.
the Country nor Pietie in Church nor Learning in both nor beautie especially amongst Women nor Riches amongst any defend men from this evill Spirit possessing men when emulation hath first leavened the minde of the envious For even for his honestie and unblameable integritie did Aristides of Athens finde his name enter'd into the list of them who were to be banished for ten yeers and demanding a reason thereof from the Writer He answered I cannot tell who this Aristides is but this I like not that he should be so esteemed for Justice And a more horrible instance than that is given in Church-history of the mischief of Maliciousnesse in Nicephorus an Old Monk and Sapritius a young Professour who being had in greater esteem than the other gave unwillingly such great offence to him that he could not endure him and would admitt of no humiliation or reconciliation till the Spirit of Grace wholly deserting him when both were called to martyrdome the young man suffered cheerfully and constantly but the Old envious Father denied Christ So that most truely as well as Divinely said Solomon Proverbs 27. 4. Wrath is cruell and Anger is outragious but whoe is able to stand before envie A reason whereof may be that complaint of holy David Psalm 55. If it had been an open Enemy that had done this I could have borne it c. Anger and wrath are acts of open hostilitie and may better be either opposed or declined than the dark Plotts and privie wounds which Envie giveth to its Enemie and which declares its monstrousnesse and unnaturallnesse to its Friend who indulging to himselfe that Vice like the Vulture in the Fable preyeth upon the Liver and nothing commendable in it is to be found but what Saint Basil acutely observeth saying Envye is good for nothing but to mischief the owner 5. Against this Evill the remedie may be First to consider the absolute Master God All-mighty is of his own and that all things we enjoy are more properly Gods than ours who have the use of them And that to repine at the happinesse or prosperitie of another is to call in question Gods Wisdome and Justice in ordering his Familie and setting some of his Servants in higher places and giving them greater Offices than to others without which the world could not be well administer'd or subsist And the envious Spirit should consider that if the quite contrary were appointed and thou who enviest anothers greatnesse in Riches Honour or Prosperity in the world wert such the envious eye might as justly dart its spitefull arrow against thee as thou doest against him and so never would there be quiet and content in the world Let that righteous Document therefore here take place Doe as thou wouldst be done to and envie no more than thou wouldst be envied in the like cases 6. Secondly Learne to seek the honour of God and to preferre that above all things in the world and become like to that communicative nature of God who giveth to all men yea to all things liberally and grudgeth not If that which is bestowed upon another went out of thy store and thou wert lesse great because another was greater than thee or thou loosedst so much of thy beautie as another is fairer than thou art or thou wert the leaner because another was fatt and fairer If there were fear that Gods Fountain would be so exhausted by the affluence another enjoyeth from him that there remained not sufficient for thee then like hungrie Currs feeding greedily at the same Carcase men might worrey one another or if what was given to any but our selves were lost to God then murmuring and envying might be more tolerable but 't is far otherwise the Universall Good and Giver is not diminished or impoverished by the plentie of another more than of thee And so the Nation is no lesse Learned when another excells than when thou And the Kingdome is as honourable and strong and prosperous and happie when another is in place and power and flourishes as much and possibly more than when thou excepting personall imperfections and infirmities to which thou art as subject as another and much more art to be suspected of future personall failings and errours as thou more vehemently aymest at great things and covetest an evill covetousnesse to thy selfe For seldome is it seen that he who most passionately strives for great Places Commands Dignities or Riches uses them as he ought to doe when he attains them But as it happened to the lusting Israelites Psal 106. 15. He gave them their request but sent leannesse into their soules God filleth some mens Bellies and Purses but leannesse and emptinesse afflicteth their Soules And what a bad exchange is that and how much more to be pittied than envied 7. On the other side Thirdly consider we what benefits in singular manner matter and measure God may have dealt to us which he denies to others objects of our envie and a stay and stop will necessarily be put to that Distemper Are not trueth humilitie quiet and tranquillitie allmost proper to Persons of low Spheres and mean Fortunes and Innocencie much better observ'd in contemning than courting the world to be preferred before those tempting opportunities of transgressing by fullnesse and Power While the weak eyes of the envious are dazled at the lustre of others if they could reflect upon themselves and duely weigh all circumstances they may finde cause to blesse themselves in the solider part of happinesse above the envied and therein to acquiesce cashiering such an ignoble Passion 8. Fourthly If men thorowly consider'd the chief Authour of Envie in a man and that the Devill is he who both gives force and findes materialls for this Sin to work by he would hate it as the pit of Hell and the Prince of darknesse himselfe For St. Basil that great Philosopher as well as Divine supposing what Poets and naturall Philosophers deliver of the malice or mischievousnesse of an envious Eye doubteth not to affirme that it proceeds from the influence of the Devill who tempereth his Poison with the raies of the eye of the Spirit embittered with Envie shot at the envied Person to his ruine divers times Unlesse therefore men resolve to preferre the Devill before Christ as he that is more serviceable to the lusts of men dreadfull should this notorious Vice appear to all good Christians 9. But we not having so learn'd Christ nor Christ having so taught us but rather often inclucated by Precept and by Example led us to that heavenly Vertue Charitie let that as comprehending many if not all meanes of purging out this old Leaven of Malice as the Apostle speakes be the last argument now to be used to that end Charitie saith St. Paul is the very bond of perfection Coloss 3. 14. Charitie or love fulfilleth the Law. Rom. 13. 8. and ver 10. Love worketh no evill to his Neighbour And to the Corinthians 1 Epist Chap. 13. 4 5 6. Charitie
or deserve amputation from the Body of Christ of which such perfection and conjunction make us members 2. Thus far onely if the phanaticall strains found in Mysticall Theologie of contrarie Extremes had proceeded not onely innocencie but honour allso had been due unto it But we finde the Moderne advancers of it to have scandalously corrupted it by affectation of excesses in Stile and big Language and facts agreeable to them whereas Bonaventure writing on that Subject thus simply describes it in his Prologue to it It is the extension of love towards God by the desire of love And a little after he saith It is such whereby the religious Soule leaving humane Wisdome the curiousnesse of unprofitable knowledge and the sophistry of argumentations and Opinions by the Ascent of love rises up to the Fountain of all by desiring in which onely she finds trueth insomuch that the simple Laick being in the School of God may receive this wisdome from God himselfe immediately by the affection of love which no naturall Philosopher nor secular Master nor humane Intelligence can attain to Neither is the description of this Unitive Way given by Gerson in his Mysticall Theologie to be rejected where more soberly than divers of late dayes affect to speak He saith Mysticall Divinitie is an experimentall Knowledge had of God by the conjunction with God by spirituall affection But we cannot allow of such great swelling words and ecstaticall practices answerable thereunto wrapping mens Soules in a Cloud of reall Ignorance in the midst of their pursuit of supreame Knowledge and suffering them to fall into direct profanenesse of words and deeds while they have a strong and vain emulation and affectation of sublimest Devotion and Pietie which to passe over the many exorbitancies in this kinde found amongst such as are known by the name of Phanatiques a great pretender to Devotion Horstius in a Latine Book which he calls The Paradise of the Soule hath fallen into there speaking in this manner pag. 59. Trulie Lord if what is not possible I were owner of any thing which thou wantedst I would willingly yield all to thee and give it thee Yea if I could be God I would not for this onely that thou mightest be God and have no Peer Which with us is no better than a piece of fond Devotion and implicite Blasphemie proceeding from an illimited affectation of strange and monstrous expressions familiar with such like Mysticall Divines carefully to be avoided and shunned as the bane of true and favourie Religion towards God whereby the Devill sets Christians as once he did Christ on the Pinacle as it were of the Temple that he may the more easily cast them down headlong But the heart of a true Believer being well-grounded in Faith and setled in love to God is capable of some singular and extraordinarie sense of Gods goodnesse and the wisdome which cometh from above with a true spirituall ardour towards God and desire of Union with him which may be said to consist in these three things First A Cleerenesse then Soundnesse lastly Acquiescence in the Will and Wayes of God. Whereby the Soule having in some competent manner escaped the pollutions of the world 2 Pet. 2. cleaveth so stedfastly to the Lord or is joyned to him as it is 1 Corin 6. 17. that it becomes one Spirit not by transmutation of nature or substance but by assimilation in Holinesse and plenarie subjection of the will of Man to the Will of God that so God may be all in all Which is more corporally expressed by Saint Paul Ephes 5. where he saith of true Believers We are members of his Bodie of his Flesh and of his Bones Not by transubstantiation of Natures but transformation and renewing of the minde as is said Rom. 12. 2. So that as Saint Paul speaks Galat. 2. 20. The life which a Christian so transformed out of himselfe and conformed unto Christ liveth he liveth not but Christ liveth in him by the faith and love of Christ a state of Grace bordering nere upon Glory it selfe In which Mysticall Language great care is to be used least a Believer be so far drawn away from the solid foundation and edifying knowledge that his Religion should end in aery speculations and notions and these in bold denominations given himselfe And lastly Spirituall life or walking with God as did Enoch untill a translation be made from hence nerer to the presence and fruition of God. 3. Therefore to prevent Delusions incident to high flyers in Divinitie in this kinde Our speculations must be measured by our love to God reciprocated upon the sense of Gods love wherewith he first loved us And lest even this love should prove a fondnesse the sincerity of it is to be proved by the practice of a mans life answering in Puritie and degree the fervour pretended of love Not denying that where such intimate conjunction there is between God and the Soule certain tacite and inward signatures thereof are made to it invisible to the world and sensible only to its selfe but not so as therein to acquiesce without all sollicitude as if such were allreadie in Heaven but with constant contentions about these two principall Points 4. First How they should continue in that good state to which they have allreadie attained which is no otherwise brought to passe than by the meanes whereby it was attained as naturall Bodies subsist by the same Elements of which they doe consist And secondly because to rest satisfied with what a man hath without designe held up of proceeding is the next way to lose what he hath and to fall backward and to decay It is necessary ever to be pressing forward that the Tide may allwayes be rising in grace least upon willfull remission and slacknesse the Soule be by degrees left emptie and dry For it is the Character of Heaven given by Saint John Revelat. 14. That they rest from their labours which belongs not to any not the highest in this life that they should cease to doe good untill that Sabbath above shall be enter'd into and celebrated And yet even of the blessed there we read Revelat. 4. 8. That they rest not day and night to act according to that state where there is Union with God indissoluble and Communion to satiety without surfeit on one hand or wearinesse on the other A resemblance whereof is to be obtained even in this life by those who by diligent attendance on spirituall Duties here and denying the world doe as Gregory saith Hom. 34. on the Gospells burne with the flames of lofty Contemplation breathing onely with desire of their Creatour and coveting nothing farther in this world are nourished with the sole love of Eternitie They contemne all earthly things and in their mindes transcend all temporary things They love and burne and in that heat they rest quiet they burne by loving and by their speech inflame others allso and whome by their words they touch they instantly
they presently feel most grievous torments And this I rehearse verily believing that God by his holy Spirit doth elevate some men so extraordinarily as that they exceed humane order in contemplations and sensations heavenly and that evill Spirits may counterfeit notably the same effects in their Servants And hereupon I leave these few Rules to all sober faithfull and devout Christians tending to the discerning of Spirits good and evill 5. First they who pursue the great meanes ordained of God to arrive at the heighth of the Love of God uniting them to God and causing an acquiescence and rest in him so that in effect their reasons and senses naturall inconsisting with such perfection should be lost in God and in Christ and they live in the world undisturbed by it are laudably and safely extaticall 6. Secondly That they who may have surpassed others in the exercise of Christian Vertues and the Unitive Way with God and no wayes aim at such Perfections or desire them as at the best not making the Soule more good but more great rather and not more dear or acceptable to him which should be every prime Christians studie and endeavour may have exaltations of this nature which importunately coveted may provoke God to deliver them over to delusions of evill Spirits 7. Thirdly Seeing counterfeit Ware comes too often under the countenance and resemblance of what is pure and passing good the soundnesse of the faith professed by such is not proved by such excesses but such excesses must be rather judged by the Law and Testimonie of God as Isaiah speakes Chap. 8. upon which Faith is grounded and by which it is directed For no otherwise true is that description of Extasies given by that auncient Authour called Dionysius the Areopagite That Extasies are a wisdome putting a man besides himselfe than that suspension or absorption of naturall knowledge and understanding is occasioned by the dominion of divine Irradiations truely so called So that this excesse of Light and Love must be it selfe subject to tryall and that twofold principally the one taken from the Antecedent and the other from the Consequent Circumstances For if sobernesse of believing and divinenesse of behaving our selves lead not to these Extasies they are spurious and dangerous Again if such transported mindes thereupon fall into unreasonable unjust or ridiculous actions inconsistent with the gravitie and puritie of the divine Presence there supposed it is but reasonable to suspect the Scene to be managed by idle Spirits For Rapts of a Royall stamp are such as Gerson describes An experimentall knowledge of God obtained by a conjunction of spirituall affection Which Unitive and experimentall knowledge may be had without the disorder of the naturall understanding and may allso dissetle it so as to depend for some time wholly upon Gods supportation and transportation and that especially in the estimation of the world and common judgements For thus was Christ judged to be Mark 3. 21. and that by his own Friends besides himselfe and Saint Paul allso by Festus and by some other Believers as may be gathered from 2 Corinth 5. 13. SECT IV. Of the Vnion of the Soule with God by Divine Contemplation and Meditation with some instances of particular Subjects of this latter 1. WHEN Meditation and Contemplation are distinguished as sometimes they are Contemplation may be said to be directed immediately to God and the fixing of the minde and heart on him and from and through him to cast an eye on the Creatures and the various acts of his Providence in which he is seen allso with an Evening Light and Knowledge as he is with a Morning Light as Saint Austin was wont to speak by that immediate Intuition which yet properly is to be attained onely in Heaven But Meditation is the consideration of created things not so much as they are in themselves which is the employment of naturall Philosophers but as they are effects of a Divine and supernaturall Power and designed to the assistance of duller and weaker Eyes which are not able to behold the Glorie of God but as men doe the beauty of the Sun in Water And yet from hence ascent is made to a faithfull and fruitfull apprehension of God himselfe where the Soule mounted as was Peter James and John at the transfiguration of Christ desireth to abide and have its residence for ever 2. But Grace and Goodnesse here being in their minoritie yea and under Tutours and Governours as the Apostle speakes Galat 4. 2. We are not to take possession of the promised and expected Inheritance in this life But the Methode hereunto is this which we finde exemplified in David speaking thus Psalm 17. I will behold thy face in righteousnesse here when I awake I shall be satisfied with thy likenesse For as Saint Paul allso saith 1 Corinth 13. 12. 2 Corinth 3. 18. We all with open face beholding as in a glasse the glorie of the Lord are changed as into the same Image from glorie to glorie even as by the Spirit of the Lord meaning hereby that the Spirit of God concurring with the Glasse of Gods Creatures and his revealed Word gives us a true but a distant and so dimme representation of God as through Perspectives And these to improve to the best degree and advantage is the great businesse of our present state here as whereby we are dayly wrought to a conformity to the Image of Christ and God defaced in us and returne unto his likenesse and a liking of him which two are both Unitive of us to God and actuall Union with him according to our present capacity For it is true in Religion what Philosophie in her Sphere teaches that the Understanding is made all things answerable to its Object the minde of man wonderfully conforming it selfe to such things as are brought unto it by the Ear or Eye and is in a manner figured by them as we see that Water admitting any Body more solid than it selfe into it selfe gives way to it and receives the shape thereof within it selfe as doth the Air allso though not so visibly to our sense So the minde of man contemplating and conceiving God and Divine matters is formed or conformed to the same morally loosing its naturall shape and posture and propensities which is thus expressed by Saint Paul Rom. 12. 2. And be not conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your minde that ye may prove what is that good that acceptable and perfect will of God. For instance a man hearing and taking pleasure in absurd riotous and obscene Discourses or Books as is in part noted before is conformed thereunto and corrupted therewith the Images of things so imbibed or impressed being with great difficulty to be removed and with great facility and promptitude stirring up or at least yielding to sinfull temptations as occasion shall be offered agreeably And so in mens reading of the Histories of far and unknown Countries and the strange fruits of
methodically yet could never be so really perswaded but that holy Men of old speaking and writing as they were moved by the Spirit contemned all order and Methods but what naturally arose from the bowells of the Subject they treated of and the occasion given them not contradicting or denying liberty to men to forme their matter by outward Methods as may agree best with the learning retaining and digesting what they finde there delivered 2. And answerable to this the more Mentall a mans Contemplations are the lesse methodicall are they wont to be So that if there be such a thing as may be called properly Prayer Supramentall as Authours speak it must be more strange to Order and Methode than either of the two other degrees of Prayer and be of the nature of Rapts and Extasies of which we have spoken For by such puritie of intention and such vehemencie of intension and ardour in directing a mans minde and heart to God and as it were delivering up his spirit into his hands the intellectuall facultie may cease which is that Absorption spoken of allso and such that can be approved onely from the goodnesse and Divinenesse so pored on and with its lustre confounding them carried away with it For it is apparent that Evill Spirits doe in like manner oppresse the mindes of the Persons devoted to them And therefore as I cannot condemne all such excesses mentall or supramentall rather so can I approve them no farther than they are consonant to the Law and the Testimonie and the Spirit of the Living Prophets I mean the Church truely so called and the peace and Charitie of the same So that as I cannot but think favourably of those extravagant passages and rulelesse while the Authours of them keep the peace of the Church and known principles of Christianity innovating nothing in the Faith but onely in their own supramentall Facts as we may terme them so can I no wayes justifie those presumptuous Spirits who not having attained to the true mentall Prayer dare obtrude their vocall and sensible Prayer upon the spirits of an whole Congregation and that without any good Autority so to doe 3. After the extraordinary gift of unprepared Prayer ceased in the Church of God together with unprepared preaching of the Gospell it lay upon the Governours of the Church to supplie that defect in the best manner they could by composing and prescribing formes for Publique Worship lest any scandall or indecencie should disaffect soberer and more prudent Christians And when the Bishop presiding in the Church committed any part of his wide charge to his Presbyter we never finde that he departed in the Publique Worship from what was in use in the Mother-Church either as to matter or forme Nay the principall Pastour of any Diocese never was himselfe so imperious over his Flock as vain men of late dayes to offer a new and unknown Office to Believers every day or to God as more spirituall or acceptable to him but aymed at nothing more than a Common plain well-known well-approved and constant forme of sound words to which all intelligent Christians might safely and cheerfully give their concurrence and sett to their Seal of Amen And to denie liberty to Ministers to offer the Will-worship of their own inventions in Publique was never lookt upon as they say as Lycurgus-like to cut up all the Vines in the Country lest men should be drunk but rather cutting down the wild Vines whose fruit is ungratefull to judicious Palates and pernicious to the community of Christians Wherein the gift of Prayer consisteth we have touched before but sure we are it consisteth not in the volubility of the Tongue readinesse of Invention fluencie of Speech choice of Divine Phrases but in the grace of Prayer which the same men unhappily would distinguish from the Gift which is a certain pure intention and fervent intension of Spirit lifted up to God which may consist with a Prayer used ten thousand times Not but that it is very lawfull usefull and allmost necessary in some cases to utter the fullnesse of the minde by unprepared words in private Addresses but to lay the weight and worth of a Prayer upon the wording of it is a foul absurdity When sudden surprizing and extraordinary occasions are offer'd to blame is that man who will not strive to use proportionable Addresses to God neither staying for a Book nor the licence of his Ordinary But plying his heart while it is hot and full the best manner he can for his ease and comfort 4. And not onely in such extraordinary cases as may even extort an Ejaculation sutable but out of that common Habit of grace a man may have attained unto by Christian diligence it is most reasonable and pious he should lift up his minde frequently unto God in divine Contemplation Admiration of his Power and Wisdome thankfullnesse for deliverances and benefits bestowed imploration of his mercie and pardon for dayly Trespasses he is liable to and exercising that Communion that every Good Christian should have with God and all this not onely in usuall and constant Phrases and Formes though that be commendable but as the Spirit shall give him utterance All which notwithstanding ought to be regulated by the rule of Christian modestie justice and Charitie so as not to indulge to private satisfactions herein to the prejudice of others nor to phansie such an Edification to himselfe which should tend to the dissipation of the Church of God that Rule of Saint Paul binding incessantly such as otherwise would be boundlesse Let no man seek his own but every man anothers wealth 1 Corinth 10. 24. meaning rather spirituall than temporall wellfare And again the same Apostle 1 Corinth 14. 12. adviseth For as much as ye are zealous of spirituall gifts seek that ye may excell to the edification of the Church which whosoever violateth by private affectations in Religion may be said to indulge rather to his own carnall humour how divine soever it may appear to weaker judgements than to the edification of himselfe or others For as he that sings with the Congregation ought to lay aside his private Tunes though possibly far more excellent than that which is set for all to follow so must the singular Devotion of a higher strain than ordinarie complie with the meaner to avoid scandall and confusion as that which may better agree with the whole Bodie than sublimer strains or Tunes And this is the Case of that plain and easie recitative way of using the Psalmes in our Church which requires a cheerfull Spirit without difficulty or tediousnesse of modulating the Voice which for that reason might have been preferred before the more Artificiall and hard of private mens Invention had it not pleased men of designe and unquiet Spirits to bring it into disgrace for no other faults but which are found to be more notorious in that they have introduced in its stead From which frowardnesse of Spirit and