Christ and Scripture no further than the Church discovers 〈◊〉 And so they overturne all For they believe God because men say so It is a dangerous errour that runneth into practise If the Church say treason must bee done wee must bee traytors It is no matter what the Scripture sayth the Pope hee is the head of the Church and hee can dispense with what he pleaseth But my sheep saith Christ heare my voyce And it is our duty to heare what the Lord of our â—aith saith which is onely Christ. If he be our Lord then let our wils bee brought into subjection to his will nothing is more out of order than this will of ours if that were once subiect to Christ all controversie betweene God and us were taken away All the stâ—ife is whether we shall have our wills or he his will The Spouse hath no will of her owne but it is resigned to her Husband So must wee submit our wills to Christs desire And then againe wee ought not in any thing to regard the humours of men Christ is Lord of our affections we must hate what hee will have us hate and love what hee loveth our whole soules must be conformable to Christ. And our bodies are wholly his too and therefore wee must be content that our bodies should bee used as they used his body He gave his body for us he tooke our nature and in that nature went about doing good suffering hardship hee was hungry and thirsty hee was crucified in our nature suffered in our nature and so should we be content our natures should be used as he would have them to take much pains in doing good to suffer hunger thirst restraint yea death it selfe for Christ because wee are Christs it is no more than hee did for us hee being our Lord was abased for us in his blessed body and flesh and therefore shall not wee suffer for him So our conditions are his suffer him therfore to cut us out a portion to allot us any condition The word implyeth more particularly an application to our selves wee are the Lords and the Lord is ours And likewise a renunciation and severing from all others we are the Lords and none else the Lords and none but the Lords if we are any bodies else it is in the Lord and for the Lord. Here is likewise a resignation wee are the Lords and therefore wee will give up our selves to him with a resting in him and high estimation of him and glorying in our condition through him And then heere is an improvement of this implyed wee are the Lords therefore we ought to improve it on our parts by serving him and on his part by believing that he will have care of us We are the Lords first by particular application which is wrought by degrees First God by his Spirit revealeth himselfe to be ours not fully but by letting in so much light into the soule as may carry the soule to him and makes us yeeld to him trust in him and cast our selves upon him and by doing so wee grow into farther acquaintance with him and hee honours our faith with a farther sence assurance that he is ours and we are his There is a great deale of distance and bredth betweene the first act of faith by which we cast our selves on Christ and a confident perswasion that Christ is ours and wee are his that is a fruit of faith and there needeth a great deale of growth before we come to that And therefore if you aske what doth the soule first to make Christ his owne It is this In the use of meanes wherewith God pleaseth to be effectuall a light is by the Spirit let into the soule wherby the heart is perswaded that hee hath a good meaning towards it that he is a gracious Lord and wil forgive the sinnes of all that relye upon him And with the acknowledging of these truths together with the offer of mercie in Christ there is so much sweetnesse let into the soule as carrieth the soule backe againe to Christ to rest upon him For unlesse Christ begin in some degree to make love to the soule and giveth a taste of his sweetnesse wee cannot relye upon him nor love him not onely because we are creatures and hee is first and must begin to us but because it is the nature of a guilty soul when it is under terrour and awakened to forecast such doubts that till Christ letteth in some glimpse of his love the soule dare not looke Christ in the face Now in the unfolding of these divine truths of the Gospell some intimations are given That Christ is mine and I am Christs which afterward becommeth the claime of an experienced Christian. This therefore directeth what course they shall take to get Christ that want him They must attend upon the blessed meanes of salvation and then consider how farre forth they may lay claime to Christ. For first all that live in the Church are Christs in some degree God hath prevented men with his love in admitting them to the visible Church and there is an obâ—igation on them to thinke well of Christ for that because hee had care of them before they had care of themselves by vouchsafing them the seale of Baptisme and making them members of the visible Church Secondly unlesse they labour being come to yeares of discretion to feele a farther assurance that Christ is theirs they disanull and deny their baptisme and therefore it is good for such soules as are touched with sight of sinne to gather upon Christ and to winde about all helps they can to worke on Christ as the vine gathereth on the tree it windeth about I am born in the Church I have been baptised lived in times of the Gospell have opportunities to heare the blessed truths and therefore I wil have good conceits oâ— Christ that he meaneth well to my soule Indeed a company of wretches that rest in their baptisme being prophane swearers vile persons abusers of their calling or any thing can say are not wee baptized and doe not wee come to Church but they forget that this is an obligation on them to be good no excuse for them to be evil It tieth thee to renounce that thou livest in else thou deniest thy baptisme We must know beloved that Christ loved us not as we love a goodly Pillar or other curious piece of Art that cannot love us againe but the intercourse between God and man is mutuall If he say he is ours wee say againe I am thine Lord and give my selfe to thee and the claime is mutuall He claimeth us for his and we claime him for ours for he deales with reasonable creatures that can enter into covenant with him as friends Wee must therefore give up all to God If God bee God let us owne him And as wee cannot serve Christ and sinne Wee cannot serve Christ and Antichrist we cannot comply with Christ
wee had sanctified judgements and hearts set at liberty it were an easie thing if we had judgements to see that we are never more our selves than when wee are not our selves that wee have a better being in Christ than in our selves that our selves are our worst enemies If the judgement were thus posseâ—t and the will and affections made answerable to this judgement it were easie to deny ourselves But selfe hinders the knowledge of it selfe all it can Peccatum impedit sui cognitionem sinne naturally hinders the knowledge of its owne foulenesse That which should discerne sinne is clouded and that which should hate sinne is ingaged to sinne So that under the use of meanes we must labour to know our condition and the foulenesse and danger of that condition And that is the excellency of Gods ordinances and divine truthes that by them we come to know our selves But I will not inlarge my selfe in that What it is to live and diâ— to the Lord wee have declared That it is to make Christ his chiefe aime and end and doe all in vertue of that end Then is a Christian in his right temper when Gods end Christs end and his end have the same centre A qualification very excellent That that makes God delight in his children so much is that they have the same end the same God the same spirit with Christ. It is so excellent to prefixe a right end to ail our actions that it spirituallizeth common actions As Saint Paul saith of servants They serve the Lord in serving their masters Whatsoever the stuffe of our actions be yet in that aime and spirit in which they bee done they may be services of the Lord. Now life implyeth the whole course of our actions all our actions should be to the Lord immediately and directly or mediately and reductively as they are quickened by the Spirit of God And that is the excellency of a christian hee considers of every thing as it helpeth his last end As on the other side a base worldling considers Religion and all things else as they sute to his worldly aimes but to speake of the next point Whether wee live or dye wee are the Lords This is the inference drawne from the former two generals negative and affirmative None of us liveth to our selves or dyeth to our selves And from thence it is inferred whether we live or dye wee are the Lords And as it is an inference raised from the former So wee may consider it as a cause why we must live to the Lord and dye to the Lord for whether we live or dye we are the Lords The words are a certaine bottome and foundation for a christians comfort in the uncertainty of his condition here being between life death Sure he is of death as of life but when to dye and how long to live he is uncertaine But be that as it will be this is certaine living and dying he is the Lords So that take the whole condition of a christian take him in all estates of life or death which two divide the whole condition of man for all men may be ranked into these two orders of quick and dead I say consider a christian in either of them Christ is Lord of both take him in a condition of life while he liveth he is the Lords When hee giveth up his breath he is the Lords So that come of him what will in this uncertaine condition this is certaine and sure he is the Lords Now a Lord is he that hath Dominium in rem personam right to persons and things and the disposing of them pro arbitrio as it pleaseth himselfe and so Christ is Lord both of life and death First in generall as he is Lord of all creatures by Creation God having given all power into his hands both in heaven and in earth Secondly in a more particular manner and right Hee is Lord of all those that bee his by a peculiar gift from all eternity God hath given us to Christ in his eternall electing love Thine they were and thou gavest them me saith Christ. Thirdly and then we are Christs by his owne purchase we are the price of his bloud wee are bought with a price not of Gold or Silver but with his precious bloud by that price Gods justice is satisfied God so gave us to Christ that he gave him to redeem and shed his bloud for us that his iustice might be no looser Fourthly wee are his by Conquest For he being so excellent a person as God-man hath rescued us from all our enemies Sin Sathan Death Hell and whatsoever else what have they to doe with us when Gods iustice is once satisfied Fifthly those that are true believers are his in regard of a peculiar interest between him and them They give themselves over to him by a contract of marriage and covenant and therefore hee is Lord of them by their yeelding of themselves to him as a Lord they take him for a Lord as well as for a Saviour and that is the foundation of the spirituall marriage and the covenant of grace on both sides Christ giveth himselfe to us and wee by the spirit of Christ have grace to give our selves back againe to him By our owne voluntary Contract wee have given up our selves to him in our effectuall calling which is our answer to Gods call when hee calleth on us to beâ—lieve to take him and the soule answers Lord I believe and accept thee This by S. Peter is termed the answer of a good conscience 1 Pet. 3. and is when we can say I am thine thou art mine and I yeeld my selfe to thee to be disposed of by thee No Christian can claime Christ hi Lord but this contract hath passed between his soule and Christ. So that if â—ou looke to God the Father we are Christs by donation if you reâ—gard Christ himselfe wee are his by purchase if wee regard the enemies we have we are Christs by conquest if wee regard our selves we are his by voluntary acceptance of the covenant of grace and by contract past between him and us yea and Christ is so our Lord as that hee is our Husband our Lord as our King our Lord as our Head We owe to him a subjection as subjects a subjection as his Spouse a subjection as his disciples to be taught by him our Lord and Master Now the tearm of Lord is usually given to Christ rather than to God the Father both in the new testament the old too And if there were no other reason for it it is enough that God so stileth him But secondly God in the second person hath done those things that make him our Lord more than the Father or holy Ghost For hee in the second person hath taken our nature and died and rose againe for us and hath conquered all our enemies Hee hath in the second person made us his Spouse
that is Lord of Lords King of Kings that is Lord Paramount who will not suffer any thing to befall his Church or any particular Christian that shall not bee for their good for he hath all power in heaven and earth for that purpose and for ever What a comfort is it in life and death in the middest of oppositions here or from the powers of hell that we have a Lord that is commander of all Lord of life or death He hath the keyes of hell and death Himselfe hath conquered all and hee will conquer all in us by little and little What happinesse is it Isay to be under such a Lord The end of the fourth Sermon THE FIFTH SERMON ROM 14. 7. 8. 7 For none of us liveth to himselfe and no man dieth to himselfe 8 For whether we live we live unto the Lord and whether we dye we dye unto the Lord whether we live therefore or dye we are the Lords THere is nothing more availeable to the living of a Christians life then to have the eye of the soule on his maine end and scope And then to be furnished with some maximes and principles to direct our lives to that scope Where the parts are most noble and large there the aime and scope is most excellent Now a true Christian being raised above others hath an end and scope above other men And that indeed maketh him a Christian in good earnest When God by his Spirit discovers an higher excellency then the world can affoord and setteth our hearts towards it Now the Apostle setteth downe the scope of out whole condition both of life and death First Negatively No man liveth to himselfe No man dieth to himselfe Then Affirmatively Wee live to the Lord and dye to the Lord. And hee giveth the ground of both Whether we live or dye we are the Lords If we live to the Lord we shall have a being after life A Christian is when hee is not when he is not here he hath a being in heaven and â—uitably to his severall conditions he hath a Lord to owne him in all Now hee liveth yet cannot build on life nor any thing below because life is short and uncertaine But this he may build on Whether he liveth or dyeth he is the Lords Now Christ is said in Scripture to bee Lord oftener then God because God in the second person hath appeared in our Nature overcome all our enemies hath triumphed and is now in heaven in our Nature and because Lord is a word of authority and soveraignty And God hath made him governour of quicke and dead He is a Lord in regard of God the father by Donation God hath given the elect to him before all worlds He is a Lord in regard of himselfe by conquest over the enemies of our salvation And then by Ransome He hath paid a price to divine justice for us For though God gave Christ to us from all eternity and us to Christ yet on these tearmes that he should ransome us God will not have his justice a looser therefore Christ must pay a price to divine justice such was his mercy and the glory of his mercy to find out such a way to satisfie justice that God should dye No attribute of God must be a looser he must have the honour of all his attributes and therefore of his justice and here is the glory of his wisedome in contriving a way that mercy may triumph and justice may be satisfied And then he is Lord by our voluntary submission to him for we set a crowne upon his head when wee subject our sâ—lves to him He is our Lord in all estates living or dying At all times without limitation In all conditions whether it bee a life of prosperity or adversity let us dy by what manner of death soever And so I shewed wee are the Lords in a double sence In regard of our carriage to him and in regard of his care over us both must be included Wee are not the Lords onely for that hee taketh care of us and without our service nor that wee doe him service without his care of us but hee is so our Lord that wee have grace to acknowledge him and he hath grace and love and mercie to protect and acknowledge us both in life and death It is no prejudice to a Christians estate that hee is anothers it is the happinesse of the weake to be under a stronger of those that bee deficient to bee under fulnesse Now there is all-sufficiencie in Christ therefore to bee under him is our happinesse Give mee leave to illustrate this Every thing is beautifull in its owne place things that are highest it is fit they should bee highest things that are lowest it is fit they should bee lowest If the head were not in its owne place there would bee deformitie in the body And so it is fit Christ should be our Lord being God-man and the glory of our nature And it is our happines our beauty comelines our safety perfection to bee under Christ and to be onely under him Hee is onely larger than the soule he is of equall continuance with the soule hee is onely suitable to the soule being a Spirit he only is eternall and therefore being every way so aboundantly satisfactory to the soule it is the happinesse of the soule to have him for its Lord especially considering what a Lord he is a Lord independant Lord of Lords that hath all other Lords at command a bountifull and gracious Lord. And we are not onely the Lords while we live but when we come to dye therfore wee should bee willing to dye when our time cometh yea to dye any kinde of death because hee is Lord of quicke and dead We should be like David and Moses who were very fruitful towards their ends And as we are not ashamed to live so so good a Lord so we should not be afraid to dye to him as one sayd of himselfe This word Lord implyeth there bee some dutâ—â—s owing by us wee are the Lords in our soules in our bodies in our conditions and therefore wee should wholly give up our selves to him and 〈◊〉 no thoughts to dishonour him give way to no â—isings no desires which become not the subjects and servants of the Lord believe noâ—hing that wee â—ake up of our selves keepe the chastiâ—y of our â—aith and understâ—â—ding not to believe lies and untruths But submit our very understandings and faith to God Wee must not bee servants of men in our judgements or soules no maâ—cipium alien◠〈◊〉 as the Philosopher â—ayth But consider what Christ hath revealed and let us submit to that And therefore it is a grand errour in the Church of Rome who would have people to belieâ—e as â—he Church believeth which is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the first lye that leadeth them into all those erroâ—â—s â—o believe
his enemies Those that have the mark of the beast absolutely cannot bee Christs nor have communion with him but are enemies to Christ though under pretence of religion But where a man is truly Christs hee is none but Christs Satan is content with any part but Christ must have the whol heart Gods children have something in them that usurpeth some corruption in them which is not absolutely removed but it is but a rebell and they have an enemies minde to it all that is contrary to Christ is renounced whereas in them that bee carnall sin is as a Lord but in Gods children it is as a thiefe hee is there yet they owne him not but get strength against him he ruleth not there but as a Tyrant there is a renunciation of Lordship and dominion of sin though they have inclinations to this and that sin yet they have no liking to that liking no inclinations as spiritual to that inclination as carnall but make it an object of mortification They renounce all other Lords when all other men that have not the spirit of Christ are under the dominion of some reigning lusts And as it implyeth a possession so likewise an estimation as God esteemeth us so we esteem him above all And therfore God calleth his Church his Portion his Iewel and we call Christ our portion our treasure our pearle our all S. Paul counts all dung and drosse in comparison of the excellent knowledge of Christ. And all that belongeth to Christ he esteemeth And therefore the Church glorieth that God is their God and makes claime to him as S. Paul I live by the faith of the Sonne of God who loved mee and gave himselfe for mee And as Thomas My Lord my God This is the best evidence of a true Christian whose estate is no way knowne better than by his estimation Whom have I in heaven but thee or in â—arth in comparison of thee sayth David It implieth likewise a duty of resignation to Christ in life and death because we are not our owne and therefore are in all things to bee at his disposing to bee led what way hee pleaseth and to pursue his directions though to the crossing of our corrupt nature to be content to goe to heaven as he will lead us by faire wayes or foule wayes by faire death or bloudy death if by any meanes wee may attain to the resurrection of the dead as S. Paul sayth it Besides this wee must have a care to implead this and to improve it as the Apostle doth here Whether wee live or dye we are the Lords He will have care of us and therefore we ought to serve him It is a speciall after-part to bee able to make it good to God in all troubles and conditions whatsoever I am thine Lord save me I am thine Lord teach mee I am thine Lord protect me Avouch and make it good against the temptations of Satan urging thee to distrust I am not my owne I am Gods and Christs and therefore if thou hast any thing to say to mee goe to him that hath paid my debt Thus plead the goodnesse and graciousnesse of God Plead it against temptation to sin I am not mine owne I am bought with a price My body is not for uncleannesse but for the Lord. Plead it against our own Consciences in times of desertion search narrowly whaâ— we have of Christs in us and doe not cavill against our selves too much in times of temptation If wee have but desires of the soule to God lose not any thing that is good if I renounce my interest in Christ I am where the Divell would have me then hee can doe any thing with us And therefore plead it against our owne distastfull hearts in times of darknesse I give my selfe to him and my desires are to him my faith is little but yet something my love is litle but yet I love the Lord I believe help my unbeliâ—f We must take notice of any thing Christ hath wrought in our spirits that we may implead our interest on all occasions for if wee yeeld to despairing hearts in times of temptations we are gone Therefore say with Ioh If thou kill me I wil trust thee Lye at Christs feet if thou wilt damne me so it is I will lye here and wait here For if I have not present audience I shall have it God waiâ—eth to doe them good that wait for him Hee will try our spirits whether wee will take a seeming repulse therfore we must as the woman of Samaria grow on Christ and catch at his words And as the servants of Benhadad who retorted on Ahab presently Thy servant Benhadad And as we must implead our interest so we must improve it in the whole course of our life and in all conditions what soever if we have any losse or crosses yet the soul can say Christ is mine and I am Christs Though a man taking a journey lose things of lesse value yet if he hath a pearl left him he is content for hee hath that that will make him a man And therefore be not much disconsolate for any crosses They cannot take away my Christ my promises the comforts of the Spirit I have a Christ and in him all that shall be for my good Improve it in all opposition of flesh and bloud hell and the instruments of hell Satan and wicked men they are mine eâ—nemies but it Christ be my friend it matters not Christ can make our enemies our friends And all things are ours if we be Christs we have a general charter things to come are ours life ours death ours and therefore if wee be Christs make use of him As it is basenesse of spirit to rest in any thing in the world but Christ so it is basenesse of spirit for us that are Christs to bee dejected for any thing in the world wee have the treasure wee have the Mine wee have the Sunne what if we lose a beame we have a spring what if the streame bee dried up It Christ giveth us himselfe it is no matter what we lose But we are sure of him For in life and death wee are the Lords And therefore let us hence answere all objections Oh that we should have such grounds of comfort and stabilitie and yet make no more use of them Iâ— these things were fresh in our thoughts nothing would â—iscourage us If you askâ— how shal we know in particular that it is so indeed that wee are Châ—â—stâ— I answer if we have given our selves to him by a contract of our owne if wee bee married to him you know mariage must have consent of both parties Those that give not themselves up to Christ to bee his they are not his They that live under the power of any sin against conscience as their Lord that love any thing better than Christ and will not part with it for Christs sake Christ is not theirs
it is a phrase imporâ—ing a direction to a duty And likewise to confirme and comfort us in this that we do our duty VVee doe not serve a dead Master but one that taketh notice of us living and dying So to die to the Lord is to acknowledge Christ to be the Lord of life and the Lord of death of death as well as of life Hee hath the keyes of Hell and of Death and the disposing of both Therefore wee must resigne up our selves to him in death And then study to honour him by death in any kinde yea by Martyrdome if he shal cal us to seale the truth of Religion with bloud And then to acknowledge him to be owner of us and one that wil receive us dying As he took notice of us living And so the words are a privilege as well as a duty As it is sealed up in the last words Whether wee live or die wee are the Lords Thus I have unfolded the text Hee first promiseth the general negative No man liveth to himself no man dieth to himselfe You must apply this to Christians onely that are true Professors and members of Christ. For other men that are not in Christ have not the spirit of Christ they live to themselves and die to themselves and ayme at themselves in all things and therefore they are not the Lords Therfore it is a fearful condition to live and die to our selves Yet you have some kinde of men not onely in their particular persons but in their callings are all for themselves but why should I call it calling for there is no calling but it is for publike good As an Vsurer for whose good is he Let all sink or swim what careth hee so times hold and moneths and yeeres continue hee wil have his returns And such are they that live in a coursâ— of oppression that live by the ruine and spoyle of others But there is a more subtile living to a mans selfe as all men doe that have not the spirit of Christ they live within that circle selfe the Devil keepeth them that they goe not out of it so that sâ—lfe doth run through all their actions their civill a ions yea their religious actions which are all tainted with self-respects Ever since the fall it is so Man withdraweth himself from Gods government and setteth up himselfe instead of God thought to have a secured happines from God in eating the forbidden fruit and therfore would not depend upon God to be happy He saw another way to be like God God hath highest place in our heart by order of Creation and according to the degrees of excellency in things should our esteeme of them be every thing being beautifull in his place But where God is put down as he is in all men till they be in Christ something self-love sets up in the heart above God Hence commeth the necessity of this method of taking us off from our selves before wee can live to Christ because self-love is an impediment and blocke in the way betweene us and Christ heaven end happines And therfore Christ begins the Gospel with self-denial Whosoever will be my Disciple let him take up his Crosse and follow mee Now there be foure degrees of selfe There is 1. Naturall 2. Civill 3. Sinfull 4. Religious Selfe First naturall selfe is the state wee are in as men Secondly Civill as we are poor or rich or honourable according to our severall places in the Common-wealth Thirdly sinfull selfe is as we are carried to sinfull lusts and the Crâ—ature Fourthly Religious self is our Condition in Christ when we are ingreaffed into him and made new Creatures Now we must not live to our selves First not to our naturall selfe VVe must not live onely to live For as all other Creatures are to serve us so wee are to serve something else that is better For that that is not of it selfe cannot be for it self Now we have not beings from our selves but from God he giveth us beings and a being in that ranke of Creatures wherin we are Therfore our naturall self must be to a higher end A man is not the end of things there is another end then he and that is God who is of himselfe hath made all other things for himselfe And therfore riches and honours and the like wee should not live to our civill selfe Nature teacheth us that having spirits we are not for any thing meaner then our selves We do not live here to be rich to be great to command others for these things do not answer the soule of man First Nothing that hath an end can be a chief end That that hath â—inem consummatum cannot be finis consummans That that hath an end consuming it self caÌ„not be an end perfecting it self We have a journy beyond all things and that cannot be our end that leaveth us in the way Riches and honour are determined in death Let our preferments be never so great thogh to the Monarchy of the whole World yet we have a being beyond them They have consumptions in themselves And then they be inferiour No truth in them can fill up the understanding no good in them can fill up the will But the understanding can pierce through them And the will in rellishing and tasting the good of them can looke on them as cast commodities It can quickly suck out all the sweet that is in them Therfore they cannot be a mans end because hee hath larger parts then they can fill That that must be mans end must be larger then the soule and that wherin hee can rest it must be some universall good fit for all turns and purposes Now there is nothing in the VVorld that hath more then a particular service for mens particular service for mens particular ends Honour can doe something but not all things Riches cannot command health they cannot cure a fit of an ague they be for a particular good onely They can command many things but not al things Men consider what they can do therfore desire them But they consider not what they cannot do and therefore they rest in them That which is a mans last end must be a satisfying general universal good an immortal good of equal coâ—tinuâ—ance with hiâ— as nothing in the world is It must be such a good as hee cannot offend or be defiled with all Such as hee cannot misuse And what is there in the World but Christ and the best things but a man is prone to defile himselfe in Knowledge is the best thing but that worketh like leaven it swels as the Apostle saith Knowledge puffeth up Therfore wee must live to no worldly thing And much lesse must we live to sinfull selfe Some things are to be denied in way of competition and in opposition but somthings are to be denied absolutly Absolutely a man must not owne or live to a base lust pride or sensuality Hee owâ—th nothing to these
for they bee ingaged another away Againe if we live to Christ we are sure wee are his if wee â—oe not live to Christ we are not his If Christ be ours as the life which we live is his so our course of living will bee to him wee shall direct all our courses to him making him our last end and therefore if we will know whether we be Christs what is the scope of our lives what is our aim if so be that Christ may be glorified by me I am content to part with any thing with life it selfe I may know that I am Christs He that will not deny all that hateth not father and mother for my sake is not worthy of mee sayth Christ. Self-deniall and haâ—red of all things in coÌ„parison of Christ argueth an interest in him Therfore it is a great deale of grace and the soule is much subdued before it can say I am Christs and Christ is mine For when sin and other withdrawings from Christ are to be diâ—â—erted first there is much adoe in the understanding with reason Have I reason to doe this well if my judgement say it is good yet my wil saith it is better to have my will than to yeeld to God though I hazard the ruine of my selfe Oh this is a fatall naughty disposition and a signe of ruine yet the reputed happinesse of many men consisteth in their chiefe misery Again good things first coming to the judgement are there repulsed But if they come to the will there they be more opposed And then the affections make a stirre and buâ—sle love and hatred and ingagements to worldly things and all to hinder our claime and interest to Câ—rist But hee must bee set up in place of selfe-love before hee can say Christ is mine and I am Christs and that is an hard matter Therefore let us consider what our aime and scope is In a word if we be Christs undoubtedly we will side with Christ Who is on my side who sayth Iehu In ill and doubtfull times Christs calls are for a partie and calleth our where is my party who standeth for me who owneth Christ and his truth and doctrine and good wayes honesty and religion who is on my side sayth Christ Why I am for the Lord as in the Prophet Isaiaâ— sayth the soule that can owne Christ. It Christ will owne us we shall own him if we be ashamed of him he will bee ashamed of us at the day of judgement They that for hope of preferment and to be some body in the world can crosse their own consciences Christ in their consciences by doing that which by his spirit he telleth them is naught are they Christs when they set up selfe as an Idoll above Christ and side with the world and the flesh against Christ Againe he that can say in truth of heart Christ is his and he is Christs he will solace himselfe delight himself and live upon this comfort it is a rich claime and there will bee spirituall wisedome where there is this interest to implead and improve it it is not given to lye dormant but grace is given with it to improve it and live upon it All that is Christs will please him that hath Christ his truth is sweet to him the Lords day the Lords work the Lords servants the Lords ordinances whatsoever hath the stampe of the Lord it is sweet to him because he is the Lords and the Lord is his This is contrary to the disposition of that generation that can cunningly despiâ—e persons and causes if they see any thing in them opposite to their own base courses and lusts But above all where Christ is any mans in truth the Spirit of Christ is in that mans heart a witnessing Spirit and a sanctiâ—ying Spirit The Spirit will witnesse an interest and fit and sanctifie the soule as a gracious vessell for Christs service here and for glory hereafter And though the Spirit witnesse not so lowd that hee is Christs yet he may know by the worke of the Spirit that Christ is his for the spirit frameth him 〈◊〉 a connaturall disposition to Christ and all that is Christs They love his wayes and government A gracious man would not bee under another government than Christs if hee were to choose He hath made his choyce indecd but if hee were to choose hee would have Christs government because he findeth a sweetnes in it and a suitablenesse to the dignitie of it A man never findeth himselâ—e more himselfe than when he is most gracious Carnall men though they submit to ourward meanes yet they cast away the bond of Christ they cannot endure the yoke but they that are Christs have a connaturall disposition to the government of Christ. And they complaine to Christ of other Lords Other Lords rule me this lust reignes in me Lord subdue it claime thine owne interest let nothing rule in me but thy Spirit I am weary of my inclinations to this and that lust And so there is a conflict ever maintained To stirre us up in a word to labour to be more under the government of Christ and to get assurance of it let us consider if we be not Christs whoâ—e are we There is but two kingdomes if Christ rules us not the Divel and the world must rule us And what kinde of subjection is it to bee subject to our owne lusts to a damned world and to Satan is it not to bee ruled by our enemies and base enemies Our lusts are baser than the divel himselâ— For the Divel is a substance and ruleth by them Now who would bee willing to serve an enemy nay to bee aservant of servants to bee under these tyrannicall enemies restlesse enemies that do incroach upon us more and more and all the fruits wee have by their service is shame and griefe at the best and shall wee serve those that will pay no better wages yet this is the condition of all that have not Christ for their Lord they serve some base lust and Satan a tyrannicall Lord that in stead of better rewards punisheth them with eternall destruction so that they serve him with the price of their owne soules I beseech you seriously consider of it and put this quâ—re to your soules I have lived in such and such a sin but what is the fruit of it The best is shame if I am not ashamed here it will end in eternall shame So that it is a sweet thing to be under the government of Christ. It is utile dominium a dominion for our good And lest we should be discouraged take heed of all tempâ—ations that withdraw us from the love of Christs government because our nature is opposite to this yoke If they seaze upon us wee shall be great losers by them in our reputation and in much of that comfort which otherwise we might have gotten Beloved you shall lose nothing by Christ. What we