kingdome of God and is called carnall and to be wise according to the flesh is death Therefore according to the rule of either of them the man obtaineth his name in Scripture according as the carnall man or the spirituall man speaketh But if the concupiscence with his strength be overcome it will be argument of the strength which the spirit hath in the inward man and if it faint it is a signe of the weaknesse of the faith and spirit because these two are one thing according to that of 2 Cor. 4. having the same spirit The spirit and faith are suteable of faith for which we speak Moreover when one hath himselfe and his proper lusts tamed and keepeth them in their duties he is stronger then he that overcometh a most strong Tower according to the holy Proverb Chap. 14. The patient man is better then a strong man and he that ruleth over The greatest victory to overcome himself his mind then he that gaineth a Citie If therefore thou hast a desire and settest thy heart upon the greatest victory and to obtain it then conquer thy selfe thy privat wrath pride covetousnesse and evill concupiscence What it is to overcom the kingdome of the Devlll and thou hast overturned the kingdome of the Devill which ruleth in the world by such things and means of which sort of victors and conquerers there be very few to be found and there be many The victory of the soul keepeth the whole man conquerers of Cities Here consult with me and advise if thou pamper the flesh overmuch thou slayest thy soul but it is better to overcome the soule that the body therewith may be preserved then that this overcomming it with the soule doth perish for our Saviour Christ once said John 12. He that loveth his own life loseth it and he that hateth his own life in this world keepeth it to eternall life But howsoever this strife may have in it sharp things to bee born yet it bringeth forth in the end a famous victory and most beautifull Crown Be thou faithfull unto death saith the Sonne of God Apoc. 2. and I will give thee a crown of life And 1 John 5. This is the victory which overcommeth the world even our What it is to overcom the world faith that is to say the world within us and in the inwards of our hearts which being overcome we become more stronger then our selves What if some should say unto me Shall I then be damned if sinne sometimes subject me unwilling to it therfore to be put out of the number of the sonnes of God according to that of 1 Joh. 3. He that sinneth is of the Devill God defend For if thou finde a conflict of the spirit and a strife with the flesh that thou dost those things that thou wouldst not which are the words of S. Paul it is a manifestation of a faithfull heart and that the faith or the spirit is averse to the flesh for St. Paul by his own example teacheth that this strife is to be found in good and faithfull The strife of faith souls when he professeth plainly that he perceived another law in his members resisting the law of his mind which is the new creature the new and inward man and taking him captive in the law of sinne causing him to do the things he would not and to will is present with him but to finish that which is good he could not for he could not do the good that he would but to do the evil he would not that was present Therefore most lamentably he exclaimeth Vnhappy man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death Like unto which is that which Christ pronounceth Matth. 14. The spirit truly is ready but the flesh is Sinne reigning not dwelling doth damne weak Therfore sinne doth not rule in man so long as this strife is perceived in him neither is it to be said that sinne exerciseth his dominion over him against which he daily fighteth and that which doth not rule the spirit resisting it that consequently cannot damne a man It is the equall condition of all Saints to have sinnes according to that of Paul I know because it dwelleth not in me that is in my flesh good dwelleth not Also that of blessed John Epist 1. Chap. 1. If we say wee have no sinne wee deceive our selves which vulgarly we call Sinne dwelling in us to distinguish it from sinne reigning whose property it is onely to condemne for that sinne we contend with and doe not consent unto that is not imputed unto us Paul speaking to the Rom. 8. Now then there is no condemnation to those which are in Christ Jesus who live not after the flesh that is they doe not suffer it to beare rule But as many as are not exercised in this daily strife these are not born again having sinne reigning and therefore overcome and servants of Sinne and Satan and damned so long as they suffer sinne to rule over them This strife is shadowed unto us in the type of the Canaanites Josh 13. 15. whose remainder in the promised rest was suffered to dwell amongst the children of Israel but Mystical Canaanite not to rule over them even so the holy men of God every one of them feele and suffer their imperfections remaining who in the mean time suffer them not to rule over them as becommeth the new man I say a true Israelite and Champion of God as contrariwise it is fitting the old Adam should be subdued and brought under Therefore the daily strife against the old man sheweth the new man and argueth it plainly strength and victory sheweth a true Israelite and a new born man Lastly the warfare approveth him to be a Christian for the Land of Canaan is conversant The spirit ought to look lest the flesh do rule long and occupied in warfare but if it happen sometimes the flesh or the Canaanites doe invade the territories it is the part of Israel and the new man not to suffer a tyrant long but having gathered his new strength and aid by the grace of God in Christ and by serious repentance and remission of sinnes to arise from his fall and implore and intreat the true Iosua to give him victory even that true Prince of his people to lend him aid to overcome the Canaanites which being done first the sinne is covered blotted out of mind and pardoned and the man is again renewed to life and transplanted into Christ Wherefore they who feele many imperfections in their flesh and cannot doe and perform all things according to their mind let me perswade them again and again as true converts and true repentants to impute them upon the merits of Jesus The imputation of the merits of Christ is onely belonging to the penitent Christ effectually and intreat him to hide their spots under his most perfect obedience This I say is the meanes and this
calleth Herod a Fox and the impure Dogges and Hogges Matth. 7. Furthermore whosoever amendeth not the corruptions of our generation and is not renewed in Christ but dieth such a beastly man as we have described this man shall everlastingly retain his Satanicall nature arrogant disdainfull proud and shall remain a cruell Lion an envious Dogge a ravenous Wolfe a venemous worm and a Basilisk never to be reformed he carrieth about with him alwayes the image of Satan in everlasting darknesse to beare witnesse he lived not in Christ nor was renewed according to the Image of God according to John Apoc. 21. Without be Dogges Idolaters and all Inchanters that love and tell lies CHAP. III. How the man is renewed in Christ to life eternall Galat 6. In Christ Jesus neither Circumcision availeth any thing nor uncircumcision but a new Creature REgeneration is the work of the holy Ghost by which the man the sonne of wrath and eternall condemnation is made the sonne of grace and salvation and of a sinner a just man through Faith the Word and the Sacraments by which our hearts both sense mind understanding will and affections are renewed illuluminated and sanctified in Christ and according to Christ unto a new creature Therefore regeneration is conceived chiefly in two benefits and graces I say in Justification and Sanctification or Renovation Cap. 3. ad Tit. Wherefore the originall of every Christian is two-fold his line or Twofold birth nativity and generation the one carnall defiled with sin damned and accursed descending from Adam by which the seed of the Serpent the image of the Devill and the earthly and beastly man is propagated The other spirituall holy heavenly happy and blessed new birth or regeneration through Christ doth plentifully grow forth by which the seed and image of God and the man of God so heavenly and like unto God is after a spirituall manner begotten produced for even as the stem of old Adam is in us so is it necessary also that the new stock progeny and kindred of Christ be truly in us And this is that old new man old and new birth old new Adam The word of God is the seed of the new birth the earthly and heavenly image the old and new Jerusalem the flesh and the spirit Adam and Christ in us lastly the outward and inward man Now goe to let us see how we are regenerated by Christ Even as the old birth is propagated carnally from Adam so regeneration is made spiritually from Christ through the word of God which is like unto a seed of a new creature born saith Peter Epist 1. cap. 1. not of a corruptible seed but of incorruptible by the word of God living and remaining for evermore And blesed John Cap. 1. For he begot us voluntarily by the word of his faith tbat we might be a certain beginning of his creatures Therefore this Word produceth Faith which apprehendeth in like manner the Word and in that Jesus Christ together with the holy Ghost and by that vertue force and efficacie the man is regenerated Briefly regeneration is made first by the holy Ghost John 3. and this doth Christ call or term to be born of the Spirit Secondly by faith John 5. He that beleeveth Jesus to be Christ is born of God Thirdly by Baptisme John 3. Vnlesse one be born again of water and the Spirit he cannot Faith is the means of the new birth enter into the Kingdome of heaven Of which things let us see further By Adam the man came by the greatest and chiefest of evils sinne abomination wrath death devill hell and damnation for these are the fruits of the old descent and originall but in Christ the man recovereth and receiveth the chiefest good as justice grace blessing The fruits of both births life and eternall salvation From Adam the man hath a carnall spirit and the ruâ—e and dominion of wicked spirits contrariwise from Christ he hath the holy Ghost with his gifts and a most quiet reigne and Kingdom for such as the spirit of man is such is his originall nativity and propriety You know not of what spirit you are of saith Christ Luke 9. From Adam the man hath an arrogant spirit swelling and proud who if he have a desire to be regenerate and born again and to be renewed then it will be necessary for him to receive an humble spirit plain and simple from Christ by A new spirit from Christ faith From Adam we receive an unbeleeving spirit blasphemous and ungratefull therefore it behoveth us by faith in Christ to attain to a beleeving spirit faithfull acceptable and well pleasing unto God From Adam a disobedient fierce and rash spirit is given unto us from Christ we must take the spirit of obedience meeknesse and modesty through faith in Christ From Adam we possesse the spirit of wrath hostility revenge and homicide but from Christ by faith in the place thereof is to be gotten the spirit of long-suffering love of man and goodnesse it selfe which is charity From Adam by our nativity and carnal off-spring the man hath a covetous heart and spirit churlish seeking onely his owne commodities and profits snatching and catching that which is another mans but from Christ by faith is to be obtained the spirit of mercy piety and liberality From Adam by carnall propagation doth proceed the spirit of shamelesnesse uncleannesse and intemperance against which it is meet to seek to obtain a chaste spirit clean and temperate From Adam is communicated to him a lying spirit speaking nothing but falsenesse and calumniation from Christ we ought to participate the spirit of truth integrity and constancy Last of all from Adam doth From Adam all evill from Christ all goodnesse passe the spirit of beasts terrene or earthly and meere brutish and contrariwise there is to be conceived from Christ a spirit from heaven celestiall and divine and for that cause it was behoovefull for Christ to take humanity upon him to be conceived by the holy Ghost and to abound with the same spirit above measure yea for this cause it was convenient that the Spirit of the Lord the Spirit of wisdome and understanding the Spirit of counsell and fortitude the Spirit of knowledge and the feare of God should rest upon him as saith Isaias Chap. 11. that the humane nature in him The human nature is renewed by Christ and his Spirit and by him should be renewed and that we in him and by him and through him should become a new off-spring and a new creature receiving from him the spirit of wisdome and understanding for the spirit of foolishnesse the spirit of knowledge in room of our naturall and inbred blindnesse the spirit of the feare of the Lord in stead of the spirit of impiety in which permutation consisteth the new life the fruit of the new creature or regeneration For as in Adam we were all spiritually dead neither could
we expect other then death and works of darknesse it selfe in Christ In Christ by faith we are restored to life again we must be raised again to the workes of light As by carnall generation we entred into the sinne of Adam so by faith through Christ we must attain unto righteousnesse As by the flesh of Adam pride covetousnesse lust and all kind of uncleannesse is begotten born and groweth old in us so by the holy Spirit our nature ought to be renewed sanctified and repurged from all pride covetousnesse lust and envie And it is needful that we from Christ should draw a new spirit a new heart sense and minde in the same manner as we drew from Adam our fleshly subject to sinne And as concerning regeneration Christ saith Isai 9. Our Al good works ought to proceed out of the new birth Father is eternall After this manner then are we renewed in Christ to life eternall regenerated by Christ and in Christ become a new creature by this regeneration by Christ and the holy Ghost and Faith it is necessary works must flow and proceed which we desire we should please God in so we live in the new birth and the new birth doth live in us so we in Christ and Christ in us so last of all we live in the The description of the new birth and the fruits thereof Spirit of Christ and the Spirit of Christ in us This regeneration and the fruits thereof Paul Ephes 4. calleth and termeth thus To be renewed in the spirit of our minde to put off the old man to be transformed into the Image of God 2 Cor. 3. To be renewed and known according to his Image that made you to the Coloss 3. Regeneration and renovation of the holy Ghost to Titus 3. Last of all to take away the stony heart and to give us a New birth is from Christ fleshy heart Ezek. 11. And by this appeareth how by the incarnation and humanity of Christ regeneration is raised or proceedeth that is to wit because man out of his ambition pride and disobedience offended and turned himself from God this Apostasie could not be amended or put away but by extream humility lowlinesse of will and obedience of the Sonne of God And as Christ in his conversation upon earth among men was most humble it is necessary that he should be the same in thee to live in thee and to renue the Image of God in thee See now and behold the most amiable the most lowly curteous the most The life of Christ in us The example of Christ is the rule of our life obedient and most patient Christ and learn of him or even as he is live in him For what was the cause sayest thou why he so lived Truly that he might be thy example looking-glasse and rule of life He I say and no St. Bennets rule nor of any other man commended unto thee but the example of Christ I say of Christ which his Apostles with one consent and direct finger did alone point at And this is the reason of his passion death and resurrection that is to say that thou with The new life is the fruit of the death passion of our Lord. him mayst die from thy sinnes and again in him with him and by him mayst rise spiritually walk in a new life of which argument thou mayst see more hereafter in the 11. and 31. Chapters therefore our regeneration ariseth out of and disperseth it selfe from the healthfull fountain of the passion death and resurrection of Christ whereupon S. Peter 1 Epist 1. saith God hath regenerated us to a lively hope through Jesus Christ and thereupon it commeth to passe that the Apostles every where do lay the foundation of penitence and the new life to be the passion of Christ as Rom. 6. 1 Pet. 1. Spend your time in reverent fear knowing that you are not redeemed with corruptible gold or silver but with the pretious bloud even the Lamb the Lord Jesus Where thou seest the most pretious ransom of our redemption to be the cause of our holy conversation The same Peter Epist 1. Cap. 3. writeth Christ bought our sinnes in his body upon the Crosse that being dead unto sinne we might live unto righteousnesse by whose stripes we are healed And Christ himselfe Luke 24. saith So it behooved Christ to suffer and rise again from the dead the third day and preach repentance and remission of sinnes in his name By which words it is manifest that from the fountain of the passion death and resurrection of Christ doth flow both preaching and repentance Therefore the passion of Christ is both satisfaction for our sinnes and the renewing of man by faith both which together and at once are required to the redemption and reparation of mankind because this is the fruit and this is the efficacie of the passion of Christ working in us renovation and sanctification 1 Cor. 1. This lastly is the means whereby we are born again and renewed in Christ neither is the laver of regneration any other thing wherein we are dipt to the death of Christ to wit to die with Christ from our sinnes by the help and efficacy of his death and arise from sin by the grace of his glorious resurrection CHAP. IV. What is true Repentance what also is the Crosse and Yoak of Christ Galat. 5. Those which are of Christ have crucified their own flesh with the vices and concupiscence thereof REpentance and true conversion is the work of the holy Ghost through which the man acknowledging his faults by the Law and together therewith the most just wrath of God against sin doth earnestly grieve for the same and would not have committed those things he hath done and through the Gospel understanding the grace of God by faith in Christ obtaineth the remission of his sins and by this penitency the mortification and crucifying The property of true repentance of the flesh and all carnall pleasures and concupiscences of the heart is accomplished and together with the same quickning of the spirit whereby it followeth that Adam with all his corruptions dieth in us and Christ contrarily liveth in us by faith because these two neceslarily do grow together so as the resurrection or renewing of the spirit doth follow the mortification The old mans death is the life of the new of the flesh at the heeles and the quickning of the new spirit followeth the abolishing of the old man although the outward man decay yet the inward man is renewed daily 2 Cor. 4. Mortifie your earthly members Coloss 3. and so think your selves dead in sinne but alive in God through Christ The flesh is mortified by true repentance Jesus our Lord Rom. 6. But let us consider why the flesh is to be mortified by true repentance We said even now by the fall of Adam that the man became even devillish earthy carnall without God and without love
Citie And Micah compareth it to a cluster of grapes which grapes the gatherers left by negligence in the vineyard saying cap. 8. Woe is me because I am become as one that gathereth grapes to make wine in Autumne And blessed David likeneth it to a solitary Turtle to a little Sparrow hiding it selfe under the eves of the house and to a night-crow in the desert and to one remaining amongst the rubbish of a destroyed Citie but where where they are the most high knoweth Certainly Christ is and will be with them even unto the end of the world neither will he leave them without succour or desolate For the Lord knoweth his and those that be his Christs Amongst whom whosoever is to be reckoned the Apostle declares Let all depart from their iniquity which usurp the name of Christ and they that are not so minded let them get unto themselves another name CHAP. XI He that doth not imitate the life of Christ and doth not repent is neither Christian nor the Son of God then what the second or new birth is and what the yoak of Christ is 1 Pet. 1. Christ left us an example that we may follow his footsteps OUr great God gave unto us his Son to be our Prophet Doctor and our Master whom in like manner he commanded us to heare him by a voyce from heaven which office the Sonne of God did execute not in words onely but in examples also of a most innocent life valiantly and boldly and as it was worthy such a true teacher Whereupon Saint Luke Acts 1. The former Treatise have I made O Theophilus of all things which Jesus began to doe and to teach even unto the day he was taken up where it is to be observed that the blessed Evangelist joyneth the deeds and doctrine together by a most certain counsell that cannot be separated for it behoveth a true Teacher which would teach others first to doe the things himself and such a teacher Christ shewed himselfe to be by his example whose life is the true doctrine and booke of life And for that Christ is the light of our life cause the Sonne of God became Man and was conversant amongst men on earth that he might shew unto us a living example of a heavenly life divine innocent and perfect that we might follow him as a light in the dark for which cause he calleth himselfe the Light of the world which if we follow we doe not walk in darknesse as witnesseth John Chap. 8. Whereby it evidently appeareth that all those doe remain in the darke and will never attaine to the light of life who doe not follow Christ in faith and life And what this darknesse is St. Paul teacheth us Rom. 12. commanding to lay down the works of darknesse and to put on the Armour of light as if the Mysticall darknes should say Repent But we have sufficiently declared before that true and divine repentance together with true faith doth utterly change the man crucifie the flesh and impose and beget a new way of life through the Holy Ghost Therefore lest wee being seduced by error should believe Christianity to be words only and not a reality or reall being and that there should be a living example of the quickened Spirit or new man God Christ is the shape of the new man set before our eyes his own Sonne not only as a ransome and Mediatour but as a glasse of true piety and shape of the regeneration or new man in whom not the fleshly Adam through sin but God himself did raign that we might daily be renewed in him according to his own Image of which many things remain to be spoken We know every one of us and find by daily experience our nature offending that is to say our blood our flesh body and mind to be polluted with all kinde of uncleannesse malice sin and wickednesse all which are both the works of the Devill working powerfully in the carnall and naturall man The originall of all sins as also more especially the wicked and depraved will because the depraved will is the root of all sins which being taken away there would be no sin for the evill will is it which turneth him from God and his will for whatsoever differeth from God or the chief good that cannot but be evill And this aversion or falling away of both was I say of the Devill and the fall of man and thereby sin came into the world which we deliver one unto another by carnall propagation whereby it appeareth that our flesh and blood by nature and off-spring doth nourish our aptnesse to evill and the seed of the Devill and our flesh will be infected with the venime of Satan as indeed pride is lying lust and every wicked work condemned of God And for this inclination so wicked Christ calleth the Pharisees sons of the Devill Joh. 8. and many other their disciples by the name of Satan no otherwise then as if covetousnesse lying pride and all wicked concupiscence were the Devill wherewith the naturall and carnall man is infected whereupon it followeth further that as many as lead their life without repentance full of pride covetousnesse lust and envie all those do live in the Devill and do participate of the inclination and nature of the Devill In which number all those which take upon them any work having an outward shew of integrity or honesty of their own inducements or bringing up and yet are in their heart and inwardly full of the Devill or that the Devill remaineth within according to the saying of Christ to the Jews which although it be a terrible thing to speak yet it is really so no conjecture Our extreme wickednesse to be amended by the chiefest good Why Christ was incarnate wherefore seeing as it is confessed our nature is so extremely miserably depraved it is behoofefull without doubt that it should be corrected and amended which by no means could be obtained or effected but by this that is to wit that the chief good should destroy the chief evill and that God himself should become man Now then the Son of God became man not for his own cause but for ours that he might reconcile us by himself unto God and make us partakers of the soveraign good and being purged sanctifie us for what is to be sanctified that of necessity is to be sanctified through God with God and as God is personally in Christ so we w th God by faith must be united that we may live in him and he in us Christ in us and we in Christ Wee must be united to Christ by faith Lastly the divine will in us and we in it which is the only means by which Christ Jesus becometh our medicine to our most corrupted nature of which so much as is in man so much is his depraved inclination His nobility in whom Christ liveth Christ is the new life of the new man amended Happy
the same as other mens goods with feare and trembling not to his private pleasure or instruments of his private Comparison between a carnall and a spirituall man profits praise and estimation Goe to then let us compare together a Christian in deed and selfe-lover as also a genuine man and one answering to his name and one desirous of this deniall of which we speak If you offer the one a contumelious affront presently you shall see him wax hot to be grieved with anger to reprove him to brawle and play the mad-man in words deeds to be revenged and to bind his allegation with an oath all which are the old man to whom it is proper and easie to be angry to practise hatred and revenge On the contrary he that hath denied himselfe is courteous well-pleased patient thinking nothing of revenge confessing himselfe to be worthy of all these and much more because all these are contained under the name of self-deniall of which patience humility and lowlinesse Christ denied himself we have an absolute example Christ Jesus who sooner would deny himselfe when he said Matth. 20. The Sonue of man came not to be ministred unto but to minister unto others And Luke 22. I am in the midst of you as one that ministreth And Cap. 9. The Son of man hath not where to rest his head And Psalm 22. I am a worm and no man In like manner blessed David when Shimei reviled him denied himselfe saying The Lord hath commanded him for I am a worm in the sight of the Lord I am worthy farre worse All the Saints have denied themselves things Briefly all the Saints of God and the Prophets have denied themselves holding themselves unworthy of any good thing hereupon they did beare all things patiently they cursed no man giving thanks for their injuries they blessed their persecuters and prayed for them that slew What it is to deny our selves them and so by many tribulations have entred the Kingdome of heaven Thou hast now what it is to deny their selves That is to acknowledge themselves unworthy of any good thing and worthy of all evils that might befall And this is the Crosse of Christ which he commanded us to carry Luke 9. He that will be my Disciple let him deny himselfe and take up my Crosse and follow me For this life of Christ is a crosse to the old man and to the flesh and bloud a punishment The works of Christ yea death it self because he had rather lead an unbridled life after his own wil in this kind of pleasure then in humility lowlines patience and lastly to assume the life of Christ entirely Which nevertheless is to be done necessarily whatsoever is The decay of the old man is the beginning of the new the old man ought to die in a Christian for thou shalt never put on the humility of Christ unlesse thou put off the pride of the old man nor his poverty unlesse thou cut off avarice by the root nor the contempt of glory and reproaches unlesse thou pull up ambition by the root Lastly nor the lowlinesse and patience of Christ unlesse thou correct thy desire of revenge and thy wrath All which things the Scripture calleth the deniall of himselfe the bearing of the Crosse of Christ and the following of Christ and that for no hope of profit merit reward praise or glory but only for the love of Christ because he hath done this first because this is his life and lastly because he hath left this in cōmand Furthermore seeing this is the Image of God in Christ and us a greater honor then this none can happen to man it were a thing very unworthy to expect other reward The Image of God the greatest dignity of man of our work and daīly labour for those that define all things by the honour of this world and attend this onely by which onely part they are made better then others when by their own judgement Fortune hath bestowed all things upon them The beginning and end of all men is one No man better then others neither is one better then another nor one entreth this life or goeth forth with better conditions then others and yet what madnesse is this of ours we vex our selves willingly and to other crosses we adde a wheele of ambition to the vice of selfe-love Selfe-love forbidden from whence that mad giddy hunting after honour doth spring or flow forth Which whosever loveth and applaudeth and flattereth himselfe in and serveth both pomps honours and praises it is certain that he averteth his minde from God and Christ to the world and himselfe And to such as this appertaineth that of our Saviour If thou wilt keep thy self thy soul and thy life thou must hate all these things but if thou intend to love them truly thou art in the way of perishing Which paradoxicall sentence old Adam to whom it is alwayes pleasing to be accounted some body out of his own image or inward man refuseth and is adversary to it Thereupon it is that there be few which know this genius of Adam or being known dare meet and encounter it specially when we must needs extirpate both this and all other things that have their beginning with us and their continuance and die with Christ as is pride covetousness ambition pleasures wrath which we must kill and bury in the humility of Christ poverty contumely suffering and lowlinesse of Christ But whosoever is dead after this fashion to himselfe he easily thenceforth contemneth the world God maketh glad the heart of him that is dead to the world with all the pomps thereof wealth honours and pleasures comprizing all these in one Christ a true stranger to this world new born but a continual guest and table-friend of Christ who by and by will fill his heart with joy exceeding and in this life wil keep a daily jubilee with him and in the other and in the other an eternall jubilee with all the Saintss CHAP. XVI In a true Christian the strife of the Flesh and Spirit never ceaseth Rom. 7. I see another Law in my members resisting the Law of my mind IN a true Christian the man is two-fold Man is twofold in use Exterior and Interior which two although they be conjoyned yet they doe daily differ by turnes ruling and dying according to that of S. Paul 2 Cor. 4. If our outward man be corrupted yet the inward is daily renewed The same Paul calleth Rom. 7. The law of the mind and of the flesh to the Gal. 5. the Flesh and the Spirit The flesh he saith coveteth against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh Therefore when the spirit overcommeth the man liveth in a new nativity and a new creature and in God and in Christ But the flesh reigning the same man liveth in the Devill and in the old nativity The carnall and spiritual man without the
Himselfe From divine patience and long-suffering ariseth a wonderfull patience towards his neighbour and that so great that if it were possible for a Christian to die seven times yet he would forgive his enemy that cruelty being mindfull of the great mercies of God first shewed unto him From divine righteousnesse floweth the acknowledgement of his sinnes whereupon he prayeth with the Prophet To thee O Lord belongeth justice but to us confusion of our faces Dan. 9. Enter not into judgement with thy servant because no flesh is justified in thy sight Psal 130. Lord if thou regardest our iniquities who can stand before thee Psal 143. Out of the knowledgement of the divine truth doth flow faith and integrity towards our neighbour whereby frauds do cease falshood and lying and a true Christian with such thoughts fortifieth his heart doth not circumvent his neighbour for by this means thou shalt offend the verity of God which is God himselfe who when he dealeth so faithfully truly with me it were very unworthy for me to carry my self otherwise towards my neighbour Out of the knowledge of the eternall wisdome of God floweth forth the feare of God whom it is manifest to be the searcher of the hearts to see into the inward of man whereby deservedly we reverence the eyes of the divine Majesty He that planted the eare shall he not hear or he which made the eye shall he not see Psalm 94. Woe unto you that are of a deep heart that you might hide your counsell from the Lord whose works are in the dark and say Who seeth us and who doth know us Perverse is this your thought as if the clay should rise against the Potter and the work should say to the maker Thou didst not make me and the workmanship should say to his maker Thou understandest not And thus farre of the true knowledge of God wherein consisteth repentance and repentance in the renovation of the mind and these things concerning the amendment of life that which concerneth the other part of divine worship and is that holy fire appointed by God for offering the sacrifice lest he wax hot in his wrath and send revenge A type of this repentance was the forbidding-drinking The type of repentance of wine by divine commandement to the Priest when he entred the Tabernacle of the Testimony which spiritually belongeth to all Christians for if we will enter into the Tabernacle of eternall life it is necessary that we abstain from concupiscence of the world and of the flesh also from all things by which the flesh may subjugate the spirit for the love of the Pleasure is like unto wine world pride and other vices as sweet and strong wine doe cloud the soule and the spirit whereby they are brought under the power and servitude of the flesh For even as Noah and Lot being overtaken with wine left themselves uncloathed so honour pleasures and riches after the manner of strong wine doe invade try and disturb the soule and the spirit whereby a man may be prohibited entrance into the Tabernacle of the Lord that is from his knowledge and driven from his sanctification losing the difference of holy things and prophane clean and uncleane so that he understandeth nothing in divine things and therefore neither can instruct the people left in his charge with wholsome doctrine which is a just judgment of all those that mad themselves with the wine of concupiscence so that their own thoughts and intellect are not conversant in the true light and at the last doe rush into everlasting darknesse Moreover this repentance or sorrow and griefe for sinnes and also effectuall faith in Christ Jesus before remission of sinnes which as it doth consist onely in the sole merit of Christ so no man can challenge to himselfe this merit of Christ without repentance whereupon remember the Thiefe upon the Crosse who repented before his forgivenesse and Christ admitted him to Paradise and that was not a slight or superficiall repentance but a hearty and true as appeared by the chiding of his fellow Thiefe And dost not thou feare God For us we receive punishment due for our deeds but this man hath done none evill And moreover he praied unto Christ Lord have me in remembrance when thou comest into thy Kingdome which certainly were most sure arguments of a faithfull and contrite heart And that free pardon of his sinnes which a repentant heart in true faith apprehendeth and requesteth is Christ supplieth all things for us of such force as God excuseth all things which was impossible for us to expiate and that for the death and bloud of Christ wherewith he purgeth all things blotting out all our offences as if they never had been done and his abundance of satisfaction not now equalling but exceeding the heavinesse of our offences and sinnes Whereupon blessed David crieth out Psalm 51. I shall be made clean from my offences and I shall be whiter then the snow Now seeing the condition of our pardon is such and our payment so good as the Creditor can make no more demands nor the debter hath not any thing to pay Hereupon it is said that God forgetteth them and never Why God forgets sinnes more will call our sinnes to mind so that the sinner turns to him as witnesses Esa 18. chap. 1. This conversion or condition not without which he commending specially to the people under the person of God saith Wash you be you clean â—ease to doe perversly and after that come and argue with me If your sinnes were as red as Skâ—rlet they shall be made as white as snow As if he should say You which require your sinnes to be pardoned by compact and promise go to if you will and call me to account Truly I deny not that I promised you to pardon your sinnes but it was no otherwise but you must first repent which if you prove together with a true and lively faith you overcome and then there shall be no delay in mee but your sinnes how many and how great soever they shall be put out of my memory with one blot Repentance therefore repentance I say is true confession that contrition I say of the spirit in faith which whosoever findeth in his heart this man our Bishop Christ Jesus by his death and bloud doth absolve from all his sinnes I say with that bloud True absolution which crieth to God in heaven for us Deut. 4. we read that Moses set apart Cities Bezer Ramoth and Golon to which one might flie if hee had killed his neighbour Spirituall homicide by chance by which most beautifull type we are taught so often as we kill our neighbour by our tongue thoughts hatred envie anger revenge and unmercifulnesse we are to run by flight of faith and repentance to the throne of Grace and Mercie which is the Merit and Crosse of Christ which being taken hold on we are in safe keeping nor with
him hee is transformed into his Image and is united by an everlasting conspiration The seventh fruit of love is Not to seek that which is his own nor to have nothing more acceptable or pleasing then gratis or without expectation to serve others and as much as he can to be helpfull to others that which onely God most abundantly performeth giving all things to us freely and commanding his worship and feare unto us not for his own sake but that we might receive the fruit of his divine love and carry away the blessing thereby So Christ had no recompence but onely the cause of our salvation neither did he come to be ministred unto but to minister unto us and like unto the tree which without envie or respect of persons doth give his fruits such as he hath received of God first to all men indifferently doth wholly spend himselfe unpon us yea God himselfe in Christ hath reacht himself with all his gifts to humane kind and delivered it by a right of property to have and possesse them in this thing openly making himself to be the chief good which needs must be most specially in communicating himselfe he who studieth to make himselfe like unto him he shall be a plantation of the Lord to his glory Esay 61. and Christ shall bud and flourish in him a living vine and a Palm alwayes flourishing or waxing green The eighth fruit of love is not to be provoked to anger not to be inflamed with anger nor that which maketh man no man to utter wrath conceived by cursing railing speeches but to imitate Christ Jesus which did not cry out or open his mouth witnesse Esay cha 42. nor any kind of bitternesse but spake meer benediction and life And although hee did denounce threats against Chorazin Capernaum and Bethsaida and against the Pharirisees themselves uttering many woes against them yet it came not from a cruell or vengeative mind it was a serious and severe exhortation to repentance Therefore let us be wary lest any root of bitternesse springing again doe hinder our charitie and many bee offended thereby Heb. 12. The ninth fruit of charity is Not to think any evill which is the property of Almighty God as hee testifieth Jeremy 39. I know the thoughts which I think of you or concerning you the thoughts of peace and not of affliction that I may give an end and have patience Seek me and you shall find me when you shall seeke me with your whole hearts Whereupon it followeth He that hath the thoughts of peace towards his neighbour hath the heart of God and the understanding of Christ and as a living member knit unto his head is inspired of him Tenthly It rejoyceth not in iniquity nor in the injury or oppression of injustice as wicked Shimei did when David fled from Absolom but it imitates Christ Jesus who with most tender compassion beholding Peters perjury did with his most benigne aspect rectifie him according to the Psalm 146. God doth raise them that â—â—e fallen who deplored the evill that was to befall the men of Judea and the destruction of the Jewes lastly who with all his heart desired to bring his wandring and lost sheep into their way and that which was in him with a sweet and most gentle voyce did allure them home Let us imitate this so great a Master of love and if any bee fallen from his love let us deplore him after this manner Let us instruct him in the spirit of love and lenity and help to beare his burden that we may fulfill the Law of Christ Gal. 6. His law I say that first did beare the burden of our sinnes and let him be in us as in true members of our head life sense and spirit The eleventh fruit Doth rejoyee together with the truth and where all things are done rightly and decently after the example of Christ who at the return of his seventie disciples at their well doing rejoyced very heartily and confessed himselfe to his heavenly Father and also the Angels in heaven doe rejoyce as Christ teacheth at the return of a sinner which if we do the like then truly we have the understanding of God and Angels The twelfth fruit of charity is to suffer all thiâ—gs as may appeare by this bond of peace after the example of blessed Paul I am made weak with the weak that I might profit the weak I am made all things with all men that I may save all men The same beleeveth all things suspecting no evill of his neighbour hopeth all things praying that nothing may fall amisse to his neighbour lastly It sustaineth all things that it may goe so much the better with his neighbour and more profitable All which our Saviour by a lively example of his life did teach us by bearing most heavie injuries and reproaches for our sins as also most inhumane scourgings and extream poverty and hunger that we in him and by him might obtain joy and honour The thirteenth fruit of love is Not Gods love is eternal to be weary nor to cease Like unto God whose mercy from eternity to eternity is upon those that feare him Psalm 103. who respecteth not that he may have mercy on us and rose up to spare us Esay 30. whose love is strong as death Cant. 4. which many waters cannot extinguish Cant. 8. Lastly from which nothing can separate us Rom. 8. who hath mercy on us with everlasting mercies Isa 54. And although Jer. 15. he denieth that henceforth he can have mercy to those onely it pertaineth who repell obstinately the divine mercies contemne his grace and abuse them with high contempt but not to those that feare him according to that of Esa 54. The mountaines shall be moved and the little hills shall tremble but my mercy shall not depart from thee and the covenant of my peace shall not be moved Thy mercifull Lord hath spoken it To which example also we must comply our love that it bee never weary no not towards our enemy but even as Christ praieth in us Christ did live and prayed let Christ in us say Father forgive them Last of all love is the Head and Queen of all vertues because God himselfe is love and because it is the end of the commandments and summe or collection of the Law and because it is eternall neither will it vanish with faith hope tongues and so forth our happinesse appearing which is the end of faith because it worketh all things and all vertues without it are as nothing and last of all because it will give us testimony through faith in Christ that we shall have eternall happinesse Whereupon it followeth that Christian charity must needs excell all Gifts and Arts whatsoever according to that of the Ephesians chap. 3. To know the supereminent love of the knowledge of Christ that you may bee filled in all fulnesse of Christ CHAP. XXXI Self-love and Arrogancie is as Ink upon white Ivory spotting and
can a man as the Apostle saith to the Ephesians chap. 2. which was dead in sin help himself Also even as we did not bring so much as a haire to our creation so neither to our redemption or regeneration and sanctification which are much greater and more noble then our creation it selfe Wherefore The cause of the incarnation of the Son of God it was necessary that the Sonne of God should take humane nature upon him to recover that which was lost in Adam to revive that which was dead in him which that it may be brought to effect accordingly we must imitate the Traveller which is cruelly handled and wounded and laid upon the ground and could not help himselfe him therefore the mercifull Samaritan taketh up and bindeth up his soares and then laieth him upon a horse leadeth him into the Stable and after that omitteth nothing which an industrious and faithfull Physitian can administer to a sick person And as the Traveller also sheweth himselfe observant to his Physitian and Christ iâ— our Physitian not we our selves observeth his beck and command so let us remember to doe the like if we desire to be healed Let us doe our full diligence and power to our Physitian Christ let us resigne our selves wholly unto him let us trust in his faith that he will bind up and cure our wounds also let him powre in Wine and Oyle into them neither will hee be wanting or faile to restore us to our former health that is so soon as a sinner repeÌ„teth converteth himselfe by heavenly grace to God is grieved from his heart for his sinnes and resisteth not that his wounds should be washed in the sharp wine of contrition and lastly to be anointed with the Oyle of Consolation then presently Christ by his grace doth work and bring forth faith in him and the fruits of faith as life peace joy consolation and happinesse renewing him after his own image and working in him to will and finish according to his good will Phil. 2. For seeing that the abundance of sinnes are greater then humane nature can beare as witnesseth the Scripture which John 8. pronounceth the naturall man the servant of sin and Rom. 7. sold under sinne and can doe nothing but sinne according to that of Jeremy 13. If the Aethiopian can change his hue or the The naturall man neither can nor will doe doe any good Leopard his spots and you can doe well and forget to doe evill therefore the singular grace of God appeared to all men by his Gospel teaching us by the words of Paul to Tit. 2. that denying all impiety and worldly desires wee may live a just and sober life in this present world As if hee should say by the The grace of God doth all things in us word of God grace is offered unto us and doth instruct inlighten allure and teach us heartily to move and provoke us to desist from sinne which teaching of the divine grace or joynt warning by the Word consenteth with the inward testimony of the conscience whereby the man both from without and within is convicted that he doth evill and of leading a life against the way of God and his conscience he ought to change it to better let him know this if he would bee saved Furthermore if hee will bend his eares and mind and being full of good hope denounce warre against vice then the grace of God Man is meere darknes Christ is meere light worketh all things in man as faith charity and all the fruits of faith For as darknesse cannot lighten it selfe and the Sunne not shining we doe in vain open our eyes so neither can man inlighten himselfe according to that in Psalm 13. O Lord thou givest light unto my Lanthorn and my darknesse But the divine Grace or Christ himselfe is the cleare light which is risen to all men sitting in darknesse and in the shadow of death How the true light lightâ—â—s all men which inlightneth all men or every man that cometh into this world that is by manifesting himselfe and offering his grace He I say is the light of the world shewing to all men the way of life and like a good Shepheard guiding his Flock into the right way he sought us as his lost sheep daily even now seeketh us and allureth us nay more followeth us embraceth us after the manner of a bride or spouse that he loveth whose grace I would to god most men did Christ as a Bridegroome imbraceth our souls not refuse give repulse to his love prefer the darknes of vice before his light And even as a Physitian saith to his sick Patient Beware of this if you will not dye for you hinder the efficacie and force of the medicine that you cannot bee made whole so Jesus Christ the true Physitian of our souls saith My sonne I pray thee incline thy mind to repentance and leave thy sinnes Impeninitence hindereth the efficacie of Christs merits that pride covetousnesse concupiscence of the flesh wrath revenge and forsake them or most certainly the honour of my merit shall profit thee nothing when thou art a hinderance that my grace cannot be sown in thee that it cannot increase in strength bring forth fruit Truly for this very cause I give my Apostles in charge before all things to preach repentance and I called Why repentance is to be preached before all things sinners to repentance because an impenitent heart cannot participate of my merits Which speech when a sick man heareth the Physitian of our soules as to abstaine from sinne or else he must utterly perish the word of God coming expresly to his mind let him know this that it is most certain that God hath promised remission of sinnes to all men gratis but under this law and condition if they will convert themselves to God according to that of Ezekiel 33. If the wicked shall repent him of his sinnes hee shall live the life and not die all the offences which hee hath done shall not bee True faith imputed unto him Wherein truly the repentance of sinnes is joyned to remission neither doth Christ the sonne of God in any other sense promise life eternall to those that beleeve in him For faith doth alwayes oppose it selfe to the Old Man tameth the flesh and subjecteth it to the spirit that is converteth the man rooteth up and amendeth sinnes and cleareth and purgeth the heart it being the fountain of all evill Truly this is true faith that I say that turneth it selfe from the world from sinnes and from the Devill to Christ and seeketh solace and rest for his soule against the grieving debt of his sinnes in the onely blood death and merit of Christ without the works of any man whatsoever What man is so foolish to beleeve that his sinnes are pardoned of God although hee doe not desist from his sinnes this man hath a false faith neither ever
all things having promise both of this life and the life to come IN this admonition is contained a briefe description of a Christian life by which wee are taught that a Christian ought to spend all his time in the study of piety which is the compendium of all Christian virtues first because it is profitable for all things in all our words and deeds blessing them if so be we use it in them Secondly because God doth reward it both in this life and the life to come where wee shall receive the everlasting harvest of our labours Rule I. First although thou canst not live so perfectly as the word of God commandeth and as thy spirit would yet thou God alloweth the good will for the deed must never but wish ardently the same For after this manner the holy desires of the Saints were acceptable unto God who also alloweth them because he is the beholder of the hearts not the works In the mean time having a special care of one thing to crucifie thy flesh and not to suffer it to rule II. In all things that thou thinkest or The concupiscence of the flesh is the dore of the Devil doest study to preserve thy heart lest thou be defiled with proud thoughts words and works or lastly by wrath and such like Devillish actions For by this meanes thy heart is open to the Divel and shut up from God III. Strive for it lest it happen that thou lose the liberty of thy mind through evil concupiscences of earthly things making thy selfe a servant and slave of the creatures For seeing thy soule is more noble then all the world it were a very unworthy thing to put it under and sell it to the world and addict thy heart to frail and frivolous things of the world IV. Avoid studiously the sorrow of this world that bringeth and worketh death and by covetousnesse envie and too Dâ—vine and worldly sorrow much care of a family and also by incredulity and impatience is begotten But on the contrary embrace divine heavinesse which proceedeth from the meditation of his sinnes and infernal punishment and thereby worketh a stable salvation and also peace and joy in God 2 Corinth 7. Indeed man ought to beare the losse of no worldly goods so heavily as his owne sinnes V. If thou canst not bear thy crosse with such joy as is meet yet at least take it with The crosse how to be boâ—n patience and humility resting upon the divine wil and pleasure of God For this is alway good neither doth it respect or intend other things then our profit and salvation Therefore whatsoever God shal appoint or determine for thee in making thee merry or sad poore or rich in spirit exalted high or low and humble and lastly vile or excellent think alway this It seemed good to him and expedient for thee therefore that which pleaseth him let it not displease thee but rather rejoyce if hee carry all things according to his wil and thy salvation All the workes of God are good saith Sirac chap. 39. And Psalm 144. The Lord is just in all his wayes and holy in all his works Wherefore it is more excellent The wil of God alwayes good never evill that God in thee doe his wil that never swarveth from good or his own end which thou oughtest to suffer willingly who art by nature alwayes inclineable to evil VI. Consolations and heavenly visits are to bee received with humble thankes Contrariwise if they doe not move thee then know that the mortification of the flesh is more profit for thee then the joyes of the Spirit For unto us that bee subject to sinne and dwelling in flesh and blood griefe is farre better then joy and delight For many by reason of plenty of spiritual Sorrow and drinesse of the spirit how it is to be born consolation fall into spiritual pride But the Lord knoweth who are fit to bee led by a pleasant and lightsome way to eternal life and who are fit to be led by a crooked sharp sorrowful fearful and stony way Alway think it fit for thee that thou mayst come to life by that way the divine wisdome hath chosen although it differ from thy opinion and desire Better is sorrow then laughter saith Solomon Eccles 7. Because by sorrow the mind of the offender is corrected The heart of a wise man is where sorrow is and the heart of a foole where joyfulnesse and mirth is VII If thou canst not bring great offerings of devotion prayer and thanksgiving to God offer to him that thou hast and canst commending and adorning thy smal sacrifices with good wil and holy desires that thy religion and devotion may become acceptable before God because to have even that pious desire or be willing to have is no smal grace and most acceptable sacrifice to God because so much as we wish to perform before him of devotion prayer praises and desire of heavenly things even so much it is before God For he requireth nothing of thee but that his grace and favour may worke in thee neither canst thou return him any more then he hath first bestowed on thee In the mean time desire this of Jesus Christ with humble prayer Our perfection is in Christ that he would supply thy sacrifices with his most perfect sacrifice because he is our perfection ours on the contrary all of them are lame and unperfect Wherefore say my God and Father let my devotion be acceptable unto thee my faith my prayers my thanksgivings in thy most beloved Sonne and those not for their own worth but esteem them for the merit of Christ and it cannot be but that his most perfect works be and shall be pleasing unto thee For he he shall copiously supply what is wanting in me And by this means our piety prayer and thanksgiving how unperfect soever obscure and small it be the greatest weight of glory and dignity is given in exchange In faith Christ all our things are perfect for the merit of Christ As an infant if it be naked and defiled is not seemly nor amiable but if it be honestly clothed and adorned is pleasing to all so all thy works are of themselves and their own nature nothing which yet if they bee adorned with the perfection of Christ they are most acceptable to God the Father Even as Apples otherwise of no great value or price if they bee placed in golden Scutcheons or Sockets are more excellent and beautifull then themselves so our prayers our piety and thanksgiving in Christ is more worthy more pretious and more noble made according to that of the Ephesians chap. 1. He hath gratified us in his beloved Son VIII When sins and manifold imperfections doe make thee sad let them not A Christian may sorrow but not despair make thee to despaire Although they bee many think this There is mercy with the Lord and plenteous redemption with him Psa
it sufficient to be the Sonne of God that he was the fairest of all creatures in body and mind without fault and lastly that he was in the favour and love of God unlesse he should be God himselfe hereupon he conceived hostile hatred against God being ready as farre as in him lay utterly to deface and extirpate God A more detestable sinne then this can no man think Then afterwards it followed Adam and the Devill Lucifer committed one fault that the man concerning his heart and minde became like unto the Devil because they both committed one fault and now was no more the sonne of God nor the Image of God but of the Devil and the instrument of the Devill capable of all Devillish malice to this adde that he became of a divine celestiall and spiritual Image altogether earthly and carnall and a beastly creature for the Devill that he might erect his own Image in man durst first by inticing deceitfull and crafty speeches sow his seed in man that is to say selfe-love ambition selfe-will and affectation of the Divinity whereupon the Scripture calleth all selfe-lovers a Generation of vipers Matth. 3. and those that be of a Devillish nature The seed of the Serpent I will put enmity between the seed of the Serpent and the seed of the woman Gen. 3. And from this seed of the Serpent or seed of Vipers nothing or no off-spring can come but terrible fruit as the Image of Satan the off-spring of Belial the children of the Devil for as even as in any other seed be it never so small yet after a wonderfull and hidden manner all the qualities and properties stature thicknesse length bredth with boughes leaves flowers and fruits and so the whole tree with innumerable fruits of the whole stock and plants is contained so in this pestilent and The pestilent seed of Adam fatall seed of the Serpent I say in the self-love of Adam and his disobediences so oft as we delivered it by carnall generation there lieth the death deadly bearing tree the innumerable fruits of malice and lastly the image of Satan with all his markes and properties For shew me any child and behold even from his mothers womb first swadling cloaths this native Scandal called an action originally sinne corruption and especially disobedience and selfe-love doe grafie or sow it selfe and so soon as it groweth up regard and you shall see a violent naturall self-love ambition a desire of glory covetous of revenge lying and by and by as an Army marching commeth on disdain arrogancy pride blasphemy oathes fearfull dire imprecations deceits contempts of God and his Word contempts of his parents Magistrates to these adde wrath brawlings hatreds envie dissimulations revenge homicide and all kind of cruelty especially when scandals and occasions doe happen therewith which as Midwives doe help to bring forth the off-spring of Adams and the Devils corruption for you shall see break forth impudencie shamelesnesse lust venereall cogitations whoredoms obscene and filthy speeches shamelesse behaviour both in words and deeds drunkennesses gluttony intemperance in food and apparell levity effeminacie Besides all these covetousnesse usury deceits frauds fallacies craftinesse impostures and juglings and to speak all at once all kind of wickednesse and naughtinesse and so various and abounding that cannot be declared Scandals of doctrine according to that of Jeremy 17. The heart of man is wicked and inscrutable who shall find it out But if you adde thereunto the seducing and hereticall spirit then you shall heare renouncing of God forsaking of him idolatry hatred of the truth and persecution the sinnes against the holy Ghost faith-breakings corruptions of the faith depraving of Scriptures and terrible seducings All which are no other then the fruits of the Serpent and the image of Satan in the man And who could even suspect in the beginning in so weake and feeble an Malice is hidden in man infant such a heap of wicked deeds or a heart so pestililent and that such a Basilisk did therein lurk and hide it selfe thereunder but he that is in life and conversation worst of all and in the cogitation of his heart intentive to evill at all times even from his tender infancy as it is Gen. 6. written who could have produced these things to light and expressed them if triall had not manifested it therfore wicked and extream evill is that root from whence so deadly and pestiferous a tree doth grow O terrible seed of the Serpent and of vipers from whom so deformed and stinking an image doth arise and increase for within all evils are fomented and from thence doe arise and grow provoked nourished set forward by externall provocations for what cause it is to Why offences were for bidden by Christ be thâ—ught Christ Jesus did so seriously prohibit that children should be provoked by evil example for in whom this seed of the serpent lurketh and the beginning of all wickednesse and flagitious acts their beginning and entrances are closely hidden and are deceiveable no otherwise then cruell poyson in a pestilent worm Learn therefore O man of me that the sins of Adam and originall corruption of Originall sin unexpressible our kind is not lightly to be regarded or slighted because this infection and depravation is greater then any words can expresse or human intellect can search into know thy selfe and what thou becamest to be after the fall of Adam consider how thou from the Image of God became the Image of the Devill a compendium I say and an epitome or an abridgement to receive all Devillish nature malice and wickednesse into a little roome for even as in the Image of God all vertues and divine The Image heavenly and earthly properties were contained and as before the fall man did carry the celestial Image that is to say he was all heavenly spirituall Angelical and divine so now after his apostasie he carrieth about with him the image of The man is a beast the earthly and is become altogether and fundamentally earthly carnall and beastly And why so This thy fierce wrath is it thine Is it proper to a Lion or to a Man Thy envie and covetousnesse insatiable do not Dogges and Wolves the same Thy intemperance and shamelesnesse is hoggish yea if thou look rightly into thy selfe thou shalt find within even in thy heart a certain world of beasts yea even in thy tongue alone in that least of thy members as St. James saith Chapt. 3. a lake and a sea of venemous worms a harbour of unclean spirits a biding place or cage of unclean birds as witnesse Isa 3. Apoc. 18. but we often increase so much in malice that in wrath we exceed all kind of beasts the Dogges in envie the Wolves in covetous ravening the Foxes in craftinesse the Basilisk in poyson of the eye and last of all the very Hogges in filthinesse And from this beastly nature Christ Mat. 3.
justification onely proceedeth from faith in Christ And faith is like But in Christ a new-born babe newly come into the world weake and naked set before the eyes of his Saviour from whom as from his parent hee receiveth justice honesty holinesse grace and the holy Ghost And after this manner is the naked child by the mercy of God cloathed and both his bracelets being taken away he receiveth of God grace health and holinesse This alone therefore this only receiving maketh him godly holy and happy and our true justification onely through faith and not What our justification is through works I say by faith which apprehending Christ be it what it may be with all his goodnesse he challengeth and maketh it his own properly then of necessity sinne death Devill and hell must Sin and death hell are subiect to faith give back and vanish away and so powerfully lively and effectually doth the merit of Christ through faith work and abound that even the sinnes of the whole world cannot hurt them Now seeing that Christ by faith liveth and dwelleth in thee let us never think or beleeve that this his habitation is a dead work but rather a certain living thing not idle powerfull working or as I may say in one word a renewing for faith performeth two things first it transplanteth thee into Christ and giveth him freely unto thee with all that he hath secondly it reneweth thee in Christ that thou mayst grow green and flourish and live in him neither is the graffe brought into the stock for other purpose but that it should flourish and bring forth fruit in it And even as by the Apostasie of Adam and by the deceit and seducing of the Devill the seed of the Serpent and the Diabolicall corruption of his nature is sown in man growing up into a tree bearing the fruits of death so by the word of God and the holy Ghost the faith is sown in our hearts as the seed of Faith is the seed of God God in which after a wonderfull manner are shut up all divine vertues and properties from whence in a like manner doth flow forth a most glorious and new Image of God and bringeth forth a new tree whose fruits are obedience and patience humility courtesie peace charity justice a new and another man and so the whole Kingdome of God for true and saving faith reneweth the whole man maketh clean the heart joyneth and uniteth it to God purged anew and set free from earthly things it hungreth and thirsteth after righteousnesse it worketh love it bringeth peace joy patience strength moderation in adversity it overcommeth the world it maketh us the sonnes of God and heirs of all celestiall goodnesse and co-heirs with Christ If it happen any to be without or to be ignorant of this joy which is by faith acknowledging himselfe to be of little faith let him beware he distrust not therefore but rather let him trust in grace Consolation of those that have little Faith promised by Christ which promise remaineth certain immoveable and everlasting And although we through humane infirmities doe often fall and goe backwards let us in the mean while alwayes account it sure and certain that the grace of God remaineth solid and firm whensoever by true and serious repentance we arise from our fall for Christ is and will be Christ and Saviour although you take hold of him by a firm or weak faith for he imbraceth both alike and Christ is alike to all Moreover the promise of grace is universall and perpetuall upon which it is necessary our faith be founded without difference firme or weak and in the mean time erect and fill thy heart with hope God will in his good time in his own season bring that sincere and sensible joy unto thee although he hide himselfe a while in the inwards of thy heart Psal 37. 77. Of which Argument I shall say more Lib. 2. CHAP. VI. How the word of God by faith in man ought to spread forth live Luke 17. For behold the kingdom of God is within you BEcause in Regeneration and Renovation of the man all things are in us therefore our great Gods will was that those things which by faith in man ought All the new man is set forth in the Scripture to be done spiritually fulfilled should be outwardly set forth in writing and the whole new man painted and fully set forth in his word for seeing that his word is the seed of God in us certainly it is necessary that it should bring forth fruit and out of that seed to grow by faith which the Scripture outwardly doth teach and beare witnesse of or certain it is that the seed and embryon is dead I say in faith and spirit I ought to tast prove and joyfully in the inward sense perceive heare see and touch even those things the Scripture doth dictate The word of God is to quicken in us and declare most truly neither did God the Father in his counsell manifest the Scripture that as a dead letter it should lie hid in paper ink but that it should receive life in faith and Spirit or as we vulgarly say be turned into our juyce and bloud spring up and grow young in us to another new and inward man because I say all things ought and it is meet so to be to be fulfilled and performed in faith and spirit through Christ whatsoever the Scripture doth outwardly teach Let us shew it in the example of Cain and Abel whose natures manners and actions if you call to mind you cannot but understand that History If you suppose in the place of Cain and Abel the names of the old and new Man to be in the like manner to be done and iterated for what is the displeasure of both what is that lying in wait that Cain laid against Abel What others are all those then the daily strife of the flesh and the spirit what other enmity then the seed of the new man and the seed of the Serpent Neither is there other reason in common sense for by the food from heaven the corruption of the flesh is to be drowned and washed but just and faithfull Noe is to be preserved in the Ark and a new Covenant is to be made between thee and thy great God Moreover the Tower of Babel or Confusion ought not to be built in thee Thou must with Abraham goe forth of thine own Countrey or knowledge and all things are to be left even thy life it selfe that thou mayst walk perfectly before God carry out the victory and goe into the land of promise and Kingdome of God And Christ meaneth no other thing Matth. 10. Luk. 14. If any come unto me and hateth not his father and mother his wife and children his brothers and sisters yea and further his own life he cannot be my Disciple that is to wit he must bid all these adieu The
strife of the flesh spirit is the mystical faith of Abraham Mystical Sodome rather then Christ Furthermore with Abraham as Abraham did thou must fight against five Kings which are within thee I say the Flesh the World Death Devill and Sinne. And with Lot tâ—ou must goe out of Sodom and Gomorrah that is thou must renounce thy wicked and worldly life neither must thou with Lots wife look back as Christ commandeth Luke 12. Briefly our great God hath composed all the holy Scriptures for faith and the Spirits sake And it all ought to be fulfilled in thee spiritually And to this belongeth all the warres and battels of Israel against the The type of the old Testament is to be fulfillled by faith Infidels and Heathen people And no other thing covered under the bark of the letter and the history then the continuall strife between the flesh and the spirit Of this place and to this purpose is whatsoever is extant of the Mosaicall Priesthood the Tabernacle the Ark of Covenant and Propitiatory all which doe pertain unto thee to whom it belongeth to pray in faith and spirit to burn incense and to kill the Sin-offering Christ Jesus will have all these to be done and performed in thee who hath contracted these in the new Man and Spirit as an epitome and words abbreviated to be fulfilled in thee by faith and sometimes in one sigh for the man is a breviary of all natures is the Center and little world so is it a compendium of the sacred All the new testament is to be fulfilled in man Scripiure and abridgement of the Word And to come to the new Testament what other thing is it according to the letter theÌ„ an externall testimony and pattern because all things in like maner are to be iterated fulfilled by faith in man I say all even all the new testament so much as it is ought to be in us this one thing it doth require look for at our hands because the kingdom of God is in us Therfore even as Christ by the holy Ghost in the faith of Mary was conceived and brought forth so ought the Sonne in me likewise be conceived after a spirituall manner and begotten increase and grow up Furthermore because I am become a new creature in Christ it remaineth The life of Christ in us and it followeth that I should live and walk in it in it and with it to flie into exile with it to exercise humility contempt of the world patience loving kindnesse and charity and to pardon or forgive our enemies their injuries to use mercy to love our enemies to doe the will of the Father being tempted of Satan to carry away the victory from him by reason of the truth that is in me derided despised and contemned and if necessity require to die for and with him after the example of all the Saints to beare witnesse before him and all the elect that he is in me and I in him was joyned by faith and so lived And this is that which is spoken saying To be conformed to the image of Christ for example to be born with and in Christ to The death and resurrection of Christ in us put on Christ to grow up and wax strong in him to live in exile to be dipped in his baptisme with him to be derided to die together and to be crucified together to arise together from the dead and reigne together and not that alone by the crosse and patience and suffering adversity together but by daily repentance and inward contrition and griefe for his sinnes committed I say after this manner to die daily with Christ and by crucifying our flesh if we be minded to be joined w th him as with our Christ ought to be in us head and to be united therewith if it be otherwise done then is it not in thee but without thee far from faith heart spirit otherwise it will profit thee nothing for he would have thee to be inwardly retained so to live to bee inwardly consolated All things ought to be fulfilled in faith and kept safe All which faith in Christ performed whilst the word of God doth live within us and it is as it were a living witnesse in us of those things which are spoken of in the holy Scripture And after this manner faith is called Hypostasis or a Substance Heb. 11. And out of this which we have said it doth appeare manifestly all the Sermons and Epistles of Christ the Prophets and the Apostles and the Scriptures so generall doe belong to one man The whole Scripture belongeth to man yea to us all with all the Parables and Miracles the history of Christ is replenished therefore neither was it necessary those things should be appointed to come to passe written to the knowledge of all people unlesse they were spiritually in us to be fulfilled Therfore when I read that Christ cured others I doe promise to my self the same because we live one with another when he cured the blind I am in good hope that he will give unto me being spiritually blinded by his grace and blessing a spirituall sight I mean other miracles seeing there is the same reason of all and then being blind lame palsie leprous and dead in sinne doe thou understand it by The letter of the Scriptures by faith is to be fulfilled thy selfe acknowledge it and confesse and he will make thee whole in him that thou maist have part in the first resurrection the summe is the Scripture doth bear witnes outwardly to those things which inwardly by faith the man should fulfill So it painteth out the image of God outwardly according to which inwardly within thee by faith thou oughtest to be so So is the Kingdome of God according to the letter Christ according to the spirit as speaketh the Apostle 2 Cor 5. So Adam his apostasie and redemption the new Jerusalem regeneration finally another creature he describeth outwardly all within thee by faith yea thou thy selfe ought to be so or the Scripture profiteth thee nothing And thus much of faith the work of it in us yea of God himselfe and the reigne of Christ in our heart CHAP. VII How the Law of God is written in the hearts of all men that they be inexcusable at the day of Judgement Rom. 2. When the Gentiles that have not the Law doe naturally the things of the Law shening the work of the Law written in their hearts VVHen God made man after his Image in perfect justice and holinesse he adorned him with divine vertues of all kinds as some pattern of Art and an unimitable work and most accurately set it forth three things he infixed in his conscience so firmly and imprinted them that Three things notable implanted in the soul they could never be put out or defaced The first is the naturall testimony of God the second is an inbred knowledge of the last
most noble is that man in whom Christ is all and doth all whose noble thoughts mind words are the will of Christ the thoughts of Christ and the mind of Christ according to that of Paul * 1 Cor. 2. We have the mind of Christ Lastly whose words are Christs And so it needs to be indeed because the life of Christ is that new and another life in man neither is the new man any other thing then he who liveth in Christ according to the Spirit whose life I say courtesie patience and humility is no other then that of Christ And this the new creature and the life of Christ in us according to that of Paul to the Galatians Gâ—l 2. I live but not I but Christ in me liveth this also is to follow Christ truly and truly to repent for by this method the old man is destroyed and the carnall life declineth the new spirituall and heavenly life ariseth and breaketh out of the clouds This who ever doth he truly is a Christian not in title only but in work and truth a true son of God begotten of God and Christ renewed in Christ and quickened by faith and so long as the inward man dwelleth in flesh and blood we may wish so much perfection rather then attain unto it but it is as meet and necessary to indeavour and to aspire thereunto and study the same and to wish it from our inward minde and to strive that the life and kingdom The strife daily fighting with corrupt nature of Christ may be in us and not the life of Satan let all our counsels respect this all our cares and inward groans be sent this way and let this be our only strife and warfare that we may mortifie the old man by daily repentance For how much every one dieth to himself so much doth Christ live in him how much corruption How the man is daily renewed departeth from our nature by the Holy Ghost so much divine grace cometh in how much the flesh is crucified so much is the spirit quickened so much of the work of darknesse as is destroyed so much is the man illuminated by how much the exterior man is lessened and wasted so much the inward is renewed 2 Cor. 4. so much as you lose of your vaine affections and carnall life and are wasted as self-love ambition wrâ—th covetousnesse and voluptuousnesse so much Christ liveth in you the further a mans heart is set from the world from concupiscence of the eyes flesh and pride of life so much more of God Christ and the Holy Spirit doth flow into him Last of all the more nature flesh darknesse and the world do bear rule in man so much lesse grace spirit of light God and Christ is found in him Moreover this new kind of living is to the flesh The new life is the crosse of the flesh an enemy and bitter crosse because it is that by which it is subjugated and brought under and crucified with all the desires and concupiscences thereof but yet is that wherein the whole power and fruit of penitency consisteth This is the inward desire of the flesh and blood that it had rather lead a free life dissolute according to its own will and among pleasures and all kind of voluptuousnesse for it only knows this to be sweet and pleasant as contrariwise the life of Christ to the flesh and the old man is a heavie crosse but to the new man and him that is spirituall it is an easie yoak a light burden and a most quiet Sabbath truly the true rest is sought for in vain else were they in the faiâ—h of Christ and in his sweetness humility patience and love of Christ whereupon it is said Mat. 11. You shall find rest for your souls Truly he that loveth Christ will not think it bitter to suffer death it self for him This therefore is that sweet yoak of Christ which we are commanded to take upon us that our soules might be refreshed and come into his rest which command if we determine to obey and mean to put on Christ his life and yoak then we must shake off the yoak of the Devill our way of carnall life wicked and dissolute nor must we suffer the flesh as a Lady to insult and disquiet the spirit but all things are to be brought under the Law obedience and yoak of Christ will I say reason understanding and all carnall What the yoak of Christ is appetites which the concupiscence of Adam and this flesh of ours is well pleased to be honoured worshipped and to be praised of men to abound in riches and pleasures to bring all which on the other side under the yoak of Christ and his discipline nothing regarding his ignominy contempt and poverty to think himself unworthy all things that the world gapeth What the life of Christ is after and for which other men do contend that truth is the crosse of Christ wherewith the flesh is delighted I say that extreme humility of Christ and his most noble life which to the spirit is a most easie yoak and a most easie burden for what other was the whole life of Christ then holy poverty extreme contempt and vile persecution who came not into the world to be attended on but to serve us himself and spend his life and shed his dearest blood to redeem our offences It is the property of The naturall man the spirituall the naturall man to seek after honours and hunt after great things The spirituall on the other side loved the humility of Christ and desireth to become nothing And whereas most men do desire to go before or excell others scarce one coveteth to be reputed as nothing of whom the one belongeth to the square or rule of life of the old Adam the other to the rule of Christ The carnall man and he who hath not yet learned what Christ is that is to say meer humility courtesie and love accounteth it folly to live as Christ liveth and thinketh those onely wise that live after their owne The false true light will delicately and easily not knowing that then he chiefly liveth in the Devill when most foolishly he applaudeth himselfe and esteemeth his own life as the best and most pleasing which most miserable men being fast bound in the lust of their own carnall wisdome doe inforce others to follow the like errours contrariwise those whom the true and eternall light hath inlightned those are touched at the heart when they doe see the pomp and disdaine pride pleasure wrath revenge and such kind of fruit of the carnall life which causeth them to sigh from the bottome of their hearts saying How farre is this from Christ and his knowledge from true repentance from genuine Christianity and lastly from the fruits of the new birth of the sonnes of God for he liveth yet in Adam in the old creature and in the Devill himselfe for to offend
impossible for him to taste and receive Christ into his heart Herod being dead Christ returned into Judea Matth. 2. The document is plain so long as the mind doth play the Fox with the World Christ cannot enter into it and therefore thou must die to the Fox First die unto Adam that Christ may live in thee Herod that the child Christ may live in thee All which returnes to this that you must die unto Adam or the old man before Christ can live in thee Paul to the Galat 2. saith I live yet not I but Christ liveth in me And to the Coloss 2. You are dead yet he writes to the living and your life is hid in Christ for then every one is truly dead when he ceaseth to be that he was before Those which are of the spirit doe understand the things of the spirit saith St. Paul Rom. 8. and to the Galat. 5. If we live in the spirit we walk also in the spirit Neither is it sufficient to boast of the faith and the spirit in words but words are to be approved by the fruits and works for it is spoken to all men by the Apostle If you live after the flesh you shall die but if you mortifie the works of the flesh by the spirit you shall live wherein very many are like unto Saul who did not slay Agag the King of the Amalekites Concupiscences are to be morâ—ified not hidden as God commanded him but put him into prison so these men doe nourish and hide closely their concupiscence when they should be eradicated utterly and not any part of the root left behind let us doe this unlesse with Saul we lose our Kingdome The scope of the whole Scripture requireth the new man that is lest we be deprived of our eternall life In briefe the whole Scriptures with the consent of all Histories Types and Figures doe point out Christ whose life we ought to imitate and doe set out the scope thereof neither doe I speak here of the great world and of his exceeding testimonies of God and divine love There is a sort of men that not unfitly may be compared to Winter trees for as they receive easily their leaves which were cast off the yeare changing and becomming favourable so many in adversity doe retaine their pleasures within and hide them which yet doe forthwith in prosperity having as it were gathered a troop breake out on a sudden A true Christian is most unlike to those hypocrites who in prosperity and adversity liveth according to piety equally just and faithfull to his Christ and taketh all things indifferently his lot doth cast upon him When our great God did grant to Achab victory over the King of Syria upon that condition that being taken he should hold him in prison that he should remain an example to shew that God was stronger then all his enemies and did require just punishment against those that did blaspheme his Name he despising the Name of God and his Commandements having taken his enemy in battell saluted him as his brother and let him goe for which disobedience and giving life to a man deserving to die the Prophet pronounceth the pain of death to Achab by Gods appointment To whom these are most like who nourish and feed their own concupiscences when they should pull them up by the roots therefore willingly without mortification of the flesh there is no good in man do draw eternall death upon themselves And therefore it is most true that without mortification of the flesh no prayer nor piety Lastly without mortification no work of spirituall devotion can abound in the soule which was the cause God Almighty Exod. 19. appointed all those beasts to die that should approach unto the mount Sinai and by how much more ought we to kill our beastly concupiscences if we ascend to the holy mount of God and offer our prayers to God and if we meditate on the word of God lest if we do otherwise we die the death Gen. 32. we Iacob thou must be before thou be Israel read that a new name was given unto Jacob to wit Israel which signifieth a Champion or a Prince of God because in wrastling with the Angell of God he beheld his face But before this Jacob which signifieth a Supplanter or Vnderminer for so he was not onely in name but in deed after whose example unlesse thou first through the holy Ghost doe tread down thy concupiscences to become Israel or the Prince or Captain of God thou shalt never attain Man must displease himselfe to please God the place of a Captaine or see the face of God The same Jacob that he might enjoy the beautifull maid Rachâ—l he was constrained to take Lea with bleared eyes doe thou such a thing and if thou art in love with Rachel that is if thou darest marry with Christ the true Jacob first doe not despise Lea that is despise thy self as a beast-like and sinfull man displease thy selfe and force it to death But there be very many who like unto Jacob are deceived of their owne life thinking verily he had met with Rachel that is that he had led a Christian life pleasing to God inwardly declared in truth afterward then see that they live with Lea that is they have not yet learned Christ and therefore not in the favour but in the hatred of God and that most deservedly Therefore let us doe this Before all let us displease our selves and as Lea in the house of her father be counted unworthy so let us contemne our selves taking to us humility lowlinesse and patience that at the last we may obtain faire Rachel for whom as Jacob served constantly the whole seven yeares her love The service of mystical Iacob mitigating the hardnesse of his labour and wearing out the time without tediousnesse so the most faithfull spouse of our soules Christ Jesus served full thirty three yeares in this world a most hard service or servitude for our cause according to that of Matth. 20. The Sonne of man came not to be ministred unto but to serve others and give his life a redemption for many And according to that of Jacob which he indured after a sharper manner for our love This twenty yeares saith he I served thee in thy house abiding both heat and cold and frost and I watched both day and night And shall we doubt yet to love Christ again and make warre all our life against his capitall enemy the world CHAP. XIII For Christ and eternall salvation to which we were created and redeemed every Christian ought willingly to die to themselves and the world 2 Corinth 8. You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ because for you he was made poore being rich that by his poverty yee might be made rich FOr thy Christ thou must die to thy selfe thy sinnes and the world thou must doe good and live a holy and innocent life not that thou canst
merit any for Christ did that for all but out of thy sincere love towards him and because he To love Christ is to live in him the love of Christ overcometh the world death willingly died for thee for neither in thy tongue or words lest thou bee deceived must thou love him but in deed and work and in vertue and truth and in keeping his commandements as thou art taught by himselfe John 14. If any man love me he will keep my words and my Father loveth him and we shall goe unto him and have a mansion with him For this is the love of God That we keep his commandements and his commandements are not heavie St. John 1 Epist Cap. 5. and our Saviour himselfe Matth. 11. doth affirm My yoak is pleasant and my burden is light And to those that love Christ fervently it cannot but be easy and pleasant to want the sweetnesse of worldly trifles and to live in Christ mitigating all sense of difficulty through the vehemency of love but to those that doe not embrace Christs love with sincere affection doing all things ingratefully and with an evill will all things must needs be found sharp and difficult in the study of an holy life when contrariwise to a true friend of Christ not death it selfe if it be required for him is in any wise terrible For unto us it is given saith St. Paul to Phil. 1. for Christ not onely that we might beleeve in him but also that we might suffer and die for him Behold Moses with me of whom honorable mention is made in most ample words in the Epistle to the Hebrewes Chap. 11. By faith Moses denied to be made great and denied himselfe to be the sonne of the daughter of Pharaoh rather chusing to be afflicted with the sonnes of God then to have the pleasantnesse of a temporall office esteeming the opprobry of Christ to be greater riches then the treasures of Egypt The love of wisdom doth cause the contempt of pleasure Consider with me Daniel Chap. 1. set apart by the King of Babylon with a certain number of his fellowes in captivity and reserved by the King and nourished with meat and drink from the Kings Table untill he should be fit to execute the offices appointed by the King and forth with he was brought up yet he and his fellowes despised those dainties and desired the Prince of the Eunuches that they might rather be fed with Lentiles and drink water for so much could the love of divine wisdome work in their young and tender minds with which to be divinely indued they onely desired Therefore take thou heed and doe not think thou mayst doe otherwise but if thou wish that Christ who is the eternall wisdome of the Father should come into thy mind perswade thy selfe again and again that thou must abstain from carnall pleasures as from the delicate dishes of the Babylonians Court. And as those children by themselves were made more beautifull when they lived soberly and temperatly satisfying nature with Lentiles and water so be thou assuredly perswaded in thy mind that it will be before God the best of all and most excellent and so become partaker of his divine nature as saith Saint Peter 2 Epist chap. 1. if thou detest worldly pleasures and sinne The words of S. Paul are to Gal. 6. The world is crucified to me and I to the world that is I am dead to the world and the world to me In example of this all true Christians are in the world truly but not of the world and although they live in it no part of the love of it cleaveth unto them accounting it for shadowes and as nothing worldly pomps dignities concupiscence of the eyes and the flesh with the pride of life how the world is dead to them and is crucified and they Christians account al worldly things but shadows to the world likewise are dead and crucied because they esteeme little of honours wealth and pleasures and account them as dung to obtain Christ or in respect of Christ But happy and thrice and foure times happy is that heart who is so divinely indued and in whose heart such graces are infused that it is withdrawn with no desire of worldly honours wealth and pleasure which to obtain it is needfull and very behoovefull for a true Christian to pray daily to God for the same Solomon the wisest of all Kings by this meanes obtained his desire of God Prov. 30. Two things I desire of thee deny them not unto me That thou neither give me Riches nor Poverty but give me so much as is necessary for my life Let a true Christian in like manner so pray Two things are necessary for a Christian Two things I desire of thee O Lord two things That I may die to my selfe and the world without these two things it is unpossible to be a true Christian And if thou thinkest otherwise thou art deceived and thou shalt heare this I know you not Although to flesh and bloud it be a grievous crosse to die to himselfe and the world that is to set by no worldly thing in respect of heaven yet the spirit overcommeth and breaketh through all these difficulties so A spiritual life is a cross to the flesh great is the force so great is the love of Christ that they passe through all these things as a sweet yoak and easie buâ—den And although those which are so are hated of the world yet they are beloved of God For the enmity of this world is the friendship and love of God And in like manner the enmity of God is the friendship of the world Whosoever therefore would be a friend of the world is sure to be the enemy of God witnesse James chap. 4. and Christ himselfe John 15. plainly professeth If you were of this world the world would love that which were its own but because you are not of the world for I have chosen you out of the world therefore the world doth hate you For as the Sea receiveth and will beare quick men and casteth out dead men so the world is adversary to those that are dead to the world and so esteemeth them and is otherwise to those that live in pomp and splendor it commendeth them Finally to speak briefly he who so liveth that in his heart pride covetousnesse pleasure wrath revenge the desire thereof mortified are to him indeed the world What it is to die to the world is dead and he to the world this man liveth in Christ and Christ in him And those that are so these Christ doth acknowledge for his to others it is said I know you not who in like manner knew him not and were ashamed of his life I say his meeknesse humility and patience In brief he who refuseth to live with Christ here in time how should he live with Christ in eternity For how should he live in thee after this life who
eternity the visible world with the invisible the earthly habitation with the heavenly mortall with immortall things frail with eternall things The meditation of eternall and temporall things doth introduce wisdom In which comparison or meditation of contrary things our soule is enlightned and by faith we behold many things to the knowledge whereof they are not admitted those which to this contemplation are not at leasure and therefore like a Sow in the mire so they wallow in earthly matters drowned in covetousnesse fixed to the cares and study of earthly things given to usury and as concerning the soule blind howsoever otherwise they have a quick sight and have Lynxes eyes Because such as these thereby have addicted themselves to this fraile and worldly life and thinke this alone most pleasant the best and most To Christians the world is a crosse and exile noble when true Christians esteeming all things with a sound judgement and right estimation accounteth it an exile a valley of teares a den of misery a prison of griefe and sorrow Therefore those which love the world do not exceed brute beasts in prudence and die like a beast as saith the Psalmist they think not on heavenly things they rejoyce not in God they are pleased onely in earthly things in these things they take sweet delight and rest and having obtained these things doe thinke they are exceeding well Men in deed and truth wretched all manner of wayes blind and meere animals sitting here in the darkness of ignorance and hence removing to that of death and eternall damnation Christians are strangers in the world But we must firmly imprint this in our mindes that we are strangers and Pilgrims in this world after the example of Christ whose doctrine and life wee we ought alike to love and to him as an Image and pattern for all true Christians to follow and set before them to conform our manners thoughts and the whole course of our lives conversations Who when he was the most noble of all men he chose voluntarily that life in which nothing is notable as for himselfe besides extream poverty and contempt of honour wealth and pleasure which three the world hath for their three Gods Therefore thereupon Matth. 8. he confesseth that the Sonne of man hath not whereon to rest his head David before he was called to the Kingdome was poore vile and contemned and being made King esteemed all Kingly splendor as nothing in comparison of life eternall whereupon the Psalmist singeth Psal 84. How delightfull are thy Tabernacles O God of power my soul fainted and failed me in the Courts of the Lord my heart and my flesh were exalted in the living God Better is one day in thy house then a thousand elswhere I have indeed a Kingdome I have subjects and people subdued unto me I have Kingly Palaces and the Tower of Sion but these are nothing in respect of thy Tabernacle O Lord. Neither was blessed Job of another mind when he rejoyced in his Redeemer nor Peter nor Paul nor the other The Saints live in Christ Apostles which intended not the riches of this world but sought after the riches of another world took upon them the life of Christ walking in his charity lowlinesse and patience they contemned the world they prayed for them that cursed them they thanked them that reproached them in persecutions they praised The Saints were dead to themselves and the world God by many tribulations it behoveth us to enter into the Kingdome of heaven And last of all when they were slain they with Christ prayed Father forgive them And what is it to die to wrath revenge bitternesse of mind ambition pride the love of the world and himselfe also what is it to live in Christ and in his charity lowlinesse humility and patience Lastly what is it to be made alive in Christ by faith if this be not it Which most noble way of living to the lover of this world is altogether unknown Therefore because they live not in Christ being ignorant that the true life is in him Eph. 4. it commeth to passe that they are dead in their sinnes wrath hatred envie covetousnesse usury pride and covetousnesse of revenge in which so many as are drowned therein those for that cause are without true repentance neither live in Christ by faith whatsoever they perswade and boast of themselves Contrariwise true Christians doe understand that it is their duty to follow the steps of Christ to conform their lives to the life of Christ and to take from him as from a book and an authentick author the Rule of life and doctrine And these are found to be such that none but this is the onely true life which is in Christ Jesus according to that saying The life of Christ can teach us all things these say with the Apostles 2 Corinth 4. We doe not contemplate those things which are seen but those things which are not seen For those things which are seen are temporall but those things that are not seen are eternall And Hebrews 6. 13. We have no abiding Citie here but seek after one to come Which if it bee true that we be strangers and have not any abiding place in this world it followeth that we were not created for the cause of this world and it followeth then that there remaineth for us another world another countrey other dwellings for which we shall think it gain to lay down hundred worlds yea our life it selfe which a true Christian well knowing he rejoyceth in his inwards that he was ordained to eternall life and attending this one thing that he may grow rich in God he laugheth at the madnesse of those that are made blind with the love of the world who feareth not miserably to afflict their souls for these brickle and frail things and so unhappily to lose them CHAP. XVIII That God is grievously angry with those that prefer frail things before eternall also why and how farre we ought not to set our heart on creatures Behold burning among them in wrath the fire of the Lord hath devoured the extream part of the Tents Numb 11. THe people of Israel that murmured against Moses saying Who shall give us flesh to eat We doe remember the Fishes The type of the true false Christian and Cucumbers which wee did eat in Egypt is a type of men of this time who under the pretext of the Gospel and title thereof seek after nothing but earthly and carnall things as honours wealth and pleasures they use more diligence to be sumptuous then to become blessed and happy they study to please men more then God And lastly attribute more to the concupiscence of the flesh then to the poverty of the spirit Contrariwise the Character of a true Christian is to have more care of eternal honour and glory then this momentary to thirst after heavenly and let earthly goe to seek after invisible and neglect
present things and lastly to crucifie the flesh that the spirit may live in him Truly in this is both the foredeck and the poop of Christianity to imitate our Saviour or as Augustine saith The chiefest Christ is the rule of our life of religion is to imitate him whom thou lovest from which opinion differeth not much that saying of Plato drawn from the law of Nature The perfection of men consisteth in the imitation of God whereupon nothing else is left unto us then that Christ ought to be the example and square of our life and that all our counsels studies and cogitations should respect that one thing how we should come to him by him be saved and live with him eternally All things are to be done in faith expecting with joy the dissolution of our prison And that we shall attain if we direct all our labours actions businesse and vocations by faith and goe on with desire and hope of eternall life or to speak more significantly if we never lay aside the memory The love of the world is extinguished by faith of eternall happinesse in all our actions because through this feare of God is begotten in man a certain holy desire of eternal things and withall the desire coveting of earthly things insatiable in its own nature is restrained according to that saying of St Paul to the Coloss 3. Whatsoever you doe in word or deed doe all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ giving thankes to God the Father through him And the name of God is nothing but the honour praise and glory of God According to thy Name let it be O God and thy praise to the ends of the world saith David Psal 48. Which Whâ—â— the name of God iâ— scope if all our works and life doe chiefly respect then we think of eternity and our works are done in God and consequently our selves are in God Briefly God our chiefe good and the eternall life of all our thoughts works and words should be the first mover if we will not faile of eternall salvation That which Paul most elegantly expresseth to 1 Tim. chap. 6 But thou O man Who iâ— the man of God or the man of the world of God flie these things to wit covetousnes He calleth a Christian a man of God because borne of God and living in God hee is the sonne and heir of God Even as contrariwise a man of the world is he who liveth after a worldly life whose inheritance is the world and whose belly is filled with the goods of the earth as it is in Psalm 17. Which way the Christian is farre from seeking after faith and love and unsatiably covetous of eternall life to which he was created alone which if it come not to passe then the man linketh himselfe to enormous sins which our just God doth punish with eternall fire prefigured by the burning of the Tents sent from heaven and from an angry God to punish and revenge the excesses of the Israelites The wrath of God from whence Wherefore so often as such like plagues are sent upon the wicked as inundation fire warre hunger pestilence let us alwayes call to mind and remember that these are the most just punishments of a moved and angry God because the people of Israel unmindfull of heavenly things did follow after transitory things did prefer present things before future and had more care of the body then of the soule which things let us not erre in It is an extream point of ingratitude and contempt A great contempt ingratitude to God of God both here and hereafter to be punished to wit to contemne God for whom we beare about both body and soule and from whom we received them and instead thereof to worship Idols of the creatures the work of mens hands to esteem eternall things after transitory For these creatures Why creatures are given to us are given to us for necessity and not to set our hearts and minds after them that which God alone deservedly challengeth to himself and that they might be as prints and testimonies of God whereby we come neerer to the knowledge and love of God the author of them all which divine institution when the love of the world dare abrogate it then the same by the most just vengeance of God together with the proper Idolaters are turned into the fire The love of the world Is converted into the fire of Sodom and infernall flood of which Sodom and Gomorrah is a type and this burning of the Tents of which we speak Truly all creatures are of themselves good but when men set their hearts upon them and that not after a lawfull manner but doth worship them as Idols then they become abomination How the creature becometh abomination before God Almighty no otherwise then the detestable and execrable Images of gold and silver and therefore matters of eternall fire although gold and silver of themselves are good creatures In brief the love of Christians joy wealth and honour are circumscribed in eternity whereupon there followeth even life eternall for where thy treasure is there is thy heart Luke 1â— On the contrary from the concupiscence The fruit of worldly love and love of the world nothing can follow but eternall damnation for the world passeth away with all the pomp thereof but he that doth the will of God continueth for ever whereupon B. John 1. Epist chap. 2. beseecheth the faithfull saying Little sonnes doe not love the world nor those things that be in the world which being so manifestly shewed thee that God would not have us love any creature first Why the creatures are not loved because love is the heart of man and the most noble of all affections which therefore is due to God alone as to the chiefest and onely good Secondly because it is a great folly to love that which cannot love us again whereupon in vain are frail and transitory things beloved by good right is God alone to beloved above all creatures who out of his exceeding love created us to eternall life redeemed and sanctified us Thirdly because naturally like things are Why man was created after Gods Image loved therefore God made thee after his own image and likenesse that thou mightest love him and thy neighbour Fourthly although our soule be like to wax ready The soule is the lookingglasse of God to take any impression put upon it rather like a glasse representing all objects set before it whether of heaven or earth yet it is born onely to set God before it Fifthly as the Patriarch Jacob when he lived in Mesopotamia amongst strangers and after twenty yeares service demanded his two What our mind ought alwayes to respect wives and his wages and being provoked with the sweet memory of his country did think and desire to return to the same so our soule among worldly occupations and businesses of our
is to be done to us and no other matter more heavie and more worthy of tears then the sinnes and impenitencie of men If it came to mind so often unto a man that he should die and that he was to plead his cause before God as often as he in a pensive manner Cause of mourning discusses the matter with himselfe of the helps of this life surely he would be more sad and more diligent in the amendment of his life and of repentance And if the same man should call to mind the eternall torments he could not but despise the world and in comparison of them think all the afflictions of this world pleasant From which opinion and fervency of devotion we are the more distant because we are so much inveagled with the inticements of the flesh In brief it behoveth The life of the flesh is the death of the spirit a Christian most firmly to perswade himselfe that if it goe well with his body and that he flow in pleasures of this world that his spirit is dead but that hee liveth if hee crucifie his flesh with his desires and concupiscences for the one is the death of the other if the spirit live it must needs be the body shall spiritually die and be offered a living sacrifice Rom. 12. Which way of life all the Saints from the beginning of the world did observe eating and drinking with thanksgiving the bread and cup of The bread of tears tears according to that of David Psalm 80. Thou shalt feed us with the bread of tears and thou shalt give us drink of teares by measure And Psalm 41. My teares were unto me my bread both day and night And this bread of teares faith by a wonderfull sweetnes doth mix and temper and the drink of teares is pressed from the tender grapes of devout hearts by true repentance and sorrow which worketh to stedfast salvation As The fruit of worldly sorrow contrariwise the sorrow of this world bringeth forth death witnesse St. Paul the losse of honour temporall and frail goods and it is often so sharp and bitter and impatient that men catch themselves in a net or bring themselves to their own death by divers wayes of which there be many examples in the histories of the Ethnicks for which it were better to be more moderate and shew themselves better Christians who know it to be far unworthy their profession for the loss of frail goods to lose their souls which the whole world will not recompence Far be it from us that for temporall goods we should not mourn or thirst after eternall seeing the use of them is most short ends with death When a man departeth saith the Psalm 49. he taketh not all neither doth his glory descend with him which law is equally spoken to all no lesse to the King then to the meanest Begger the dead body putrifieth and so a living Dogge is better then a dead Lion as saith Solomon Eccles 9. yet the Lord will set the death at all times and the face of them that are in bonds among all people and he wipeth the the teares from every face as it is written Isa 25. Therefore remember to carry moderatly the losse of earthly things and that the whole world is not worth one soul for The love of the world bringeth sorrow which Christ vouchsafed to die But if thou prosecutest not these frail things with so unruly a love thou shalt be lesse troubled with the losse of them seeing this that it is the condition of things beloved that things lost are more desired and so the labour of fools afflicteth them which are the From whence the pertur bations of the mind words of Eccles 10. The sons of this age doe gather goods with great labour with no lesse fear doe they possesse them and with greatest griefe forgoe them which is the sorrow of the world begetting death Apoc. 10. we read of those that followed adored the Beast had no rest to whom all these are like that adore the goodly Beast of earthly wealth and avaritious desires thereof a kind of men most wretched unquiet and full of sorrows whom perhaps we shall shall not evilly compare to Camels or Mules for as they by rockes and steep hils carrying Silken Garments Pearls Aromatick Spices and generous Wines on their backs doe draw many servants with them for security sake and so at evening coming to their stables their pretious ornaments and painted cloathes and garments are taken from them and now being weary and stripped nothing but the prints of stripes foul marks of blows are to be seen So those which in this world did shine in Gold and Silkes the day of their death being come have nothing but the prints and skars of sinnes through the abuse of riches committed unto them Learn then O learn to leave the world The world in the world iâ— to be left before it leave thee with most bitter pains which he who doth and first separateth his soul from the world to this man it is easie to be separate in body from it neither doth he grieve for the losse of it For as the Israelites even now being about to leave Egypt were daily pressed with greater burdens by Pharaoh going about utterly to overthrow their whole progeny or stock so We carry nothing out of the world the infernall Pharaoh envying our eternall salvation when we are neer to death so much greater care and rapacious desire of earthly things is hee wont to infest our soules withall which blindnesse is the more remarkable because we cannot carry the least dust with us of all those heaps of mony which we have gotten into the Kingdome of heaven because that way is so strait as all earthly things and of the body doe exceedingly hinder the passage of the soule The way is strait which leadeth to heaven and few there be that find it Matth. 7. As the Husband-man on the Barn-floore separateth the Wheat from the Chaffe so death setteth free the seed of the faithfull souls from the chaffe of the world neither are they any other thing else indeed but chaffe carried hither and thither with the wind Psalm 1. Therefore do that with all thy might and let not that depart out of thy mind which we brought before out of St. Paul The sorrow which is according to God worketh repentance to a firm salvation but the sorrow of the world bringeth death CHAP. XXI What is true divine Worship Levit. 10. The sonnes of Aaron did offer to the Lord strange fire and there went fire from the Lord and devoured them THis fire is said to be strange fire because it was other then that which burned perpetually on the Altar and which by the commaandement of God did burn the Offering and it is a type of the false divine The false worship of God worship The sonnes of Aaron did deserve to be burned with the
what measure we measure to our neighbour with the same measure shall it be meted unto us For those three Cities should effectually represent Christ who is the sole merit as Bezer soundeth that by interpretation is a Tower of Defence according to the Proverb 18. The Name of the Lord is a most strong Tower Jesus Christ to that runneth the just and shall be exalted the same is true Ramoth which Christ our refuge voyce signifieth Exalted to whose Name every knee shall bow in heaven in earth or in hell Phil. 2. Neither is there for us another Golan besides him which according to the etymology of the name is nothing but a heap of thankesgiving or graces and gifts celestiall as a certain overflowing vessell Whereupon Psal 29. we read With the Lord there is mercy and with him is abundance of redemption And Rom. 10. The Lord is rich to all those that call upon him And thus much of the third part of the internall spirituall and true divine worship flowing from the knowledge of God which is likewise the fountain of repentance as this is of remission of sinnes which three indeed are one and set forth and declare the solid knowledge of God And God did shadow unto us this third part by the Priest which was to eat of the oblation of God which what other thing did it imply then the application of the merits of Christ by faith in the holy place wherein is signified repentance For the faith by the vertue and merit of Christ and his bloud doth make the man before the just God as if he had never been defiled with any sinne according to that of Ezekiel 18. If the wicked shall repent him of all his iniquities that he hath committed I will not remember them And after this manner the Law of Moses is changed into the spirit Moses Lawes holy things are chāged into spirit or life internall holy and another life and his sacrifices into repentance by which we offer our bodies and souls a living sacrifice and give thanks unto him because hee hath manifested unto us what is the true conversion acceptable unto him which is the justification and remission of sinnes that God alone be all things his grace as it is meet should be acknowledged and with gratefull minds and tongues be praised for ever and ever This then as we have often said heretofore is the true divine worship of which Mich. chap. 6. speaketh I will shew thee O man what the Lord requireth of thee that thou execute judgement and love mercy and walk carefully before the Lord thy God Because therefore O mortals doe we repent to get remission of sinnes seeing but by this alone we cannot come to remission of sinnes for neither can those sins bee remitted whose sense and griefe the mind never yet found by grace divine and consequently never to grieve for them nor hee which never had it in his mind to change The true worship of God consisteth in the heart is not external his life and mend his manners Which true and safe-making conversion that God for his Christs sake would bestow it upon us I humbly pray whose favour also it is that now it appeareth that his true worship consisteth in the soule and mind in the knowledge of God in true repentance by which the flesh is mortified and the man renewed after the image of God whereby he is made the Temple of God wherein by the holy Ghost the true and divine worship of the holy Trinity is exercised I say Faith Love and Hope Humility Patience Prayer giving of thankes and praises to God And although this worship respecteth God himselfe and is performed to him alone let us not think or beleeve Why called the worship of God that God for his own cause and because it joyneth with his profit that he inviteth us unto him but rather let us be so assured that he is willing through his boundlesse mercy to bestow and communicate all himselfe to us with all his benefits and to live work and dwell in us if so be we be ready through his true Knowledge Faith and Repentance to receive him For no work is gracious and acceptable to God of which hee was not the authour of in us What kind of works are pleasing to God therefore he commandeth us to repent to beleeve to pray to fast not as to him but that the fruit thereof might be ours No man can give or take any thing from God nor hurt nor profit him for we sow and we mow to our selves if we be good but we create evill to our selves if we be evill And what dammage hath God if thou wilt not doe well therefore he commandeth thee to serve him not for his owne cause but for thine who seeing he is Charity it selfe therefore amongst things acceptable and deare and so fit accounteth it that there be many be who participate of his charity yea of himselfe that is to wit as a mother loveth her Infant cannot but rejoyce that it sucketh her milk from her so God is to be thought of out of his most loving communicating of himself after his manner to receive singular delight CHAP. XXII As we know a tree by the fruit so a true Christian by no other token is known then by love and amendment of life daily Psalm 92. The just man flourisheth as a Palm Tree as a Cedar of Lebanon he shall multiply being planted in the House of the Lord They shall flourish in the entrance of the House of God they shall flourish Moreover they shall be multiplied in a fruitfull old age and they shall be very patient that they may shew it forth because just is our Lord God and there is no iniquity in him IT is not the name but the life of a Christian that maketh a true Christian whose daily and onely study ought to be that in him Christ might be manifested and be made conspicuous by love humility and humanity In whom therefore Christ liveth not it followeth that this man cannot be a Christian Furthermore it behoveth this life to be from the bottome of the heart and spirit even as the Apple is derived and commeth from the naturall branch of the Tree faculties and vegetable power yea it is necessary that our life be informed by the Spirit of Christ and fashioned after his life according to that of Paul Rom. 8. Those which are carried by the Spirit of God those are the sonnes of God But if any have not the Spirit of Christ he is none of his or belongeth not to him to wit every life cometh of the Spirit which even as the All life is from the Spirit inward man moveth driveth and is carried so in like manner the outward man fareth or is carried whereby it is manifested how much it availeth to a Christian life to have the grace of the Holy Ghost which therefore Christ did command us to seek
and holy Ghost and without God himselfe Contrariwise a true Christian and he which is anointed with the spirit of Christ doth beare with all men in condoling commiserating and loving him after the example of Christ And this is the Touch-stone whereby every one is to be tried whether Where charity is not there God is not he be of God or not But if he find he hath no love of his neighbour in him let him assuredly perswade himselfe he hath not the charity of God in him rather let him feare God himselfe hath forsaken him wherewith he ought to be afraid and be sory from his heart and seek to return into his neighbours favour Which being done God through his love will marry himselfe unto him and whatsoever thereafter he shall doe in faith and charity is and will be accounted for good holy and divine Moreover by reason of the inherent love of God of his free will he embraceth all with his mercy and love neither is any thing more acceptable then to doe good or as Jeremy speaketh He rejoyceth in them he will doe good unto them Without charity in man all things are altogether evil and Devillish neither is there Why all things that the devill doth are evill other cause why the Devil can do no good but because he is destitute of the love of God and his neighbour and thereupon what he doth is altogether evill neither doth his workes and counsels whatsoever tend to other end then the reproach of God and damage of mankind and that he may satisfie his malicious mind and rancor against God and man For which cause he useth such cruell and vengeable mindes to execute and bring to passe the counsels and contrivement of his wrath envy And this is the mark of the sonnes of Satan whereby they are discerned from the sonnes of God Charity proceedeth from faith not fained which cleaveth and adhereth to God equally in prosperity and adversity Whosoever loveth a man heartily he cannot be ungratefull because what God He that loveth God all his works he loveth all his punishments hath appointed against him he doth after the example of Christ who with a cheerfull mind tooke up his Crosse which he knew to be put upon him by his Fathers will whereupon Luke saith chap. 12. I have a baptisme to be baptized with and how grieved am I untill it be finished which all the Martyrs of the Church did imitate bearing his Crosse with joy And for a truth whosoever loveth God heartily he cannot but beare his Crosse easily which he knoweth to be the yoak of Christ And if a Load-stone can lift up a weight of Iron and draw it unto it selfe what cannot that celestiall Load-stone of love divine do Shal not it take up the worst weight of our Crosse and mitigate the feeling of it Also why doth Sugar rather correct the bitternesse of the hearb and medicine then the sweetnesse of love take away the ungratefull and inhumane savour of our crosse whose force is such as the holy Martyrs had no other where that strength of their incredible and cheerfull constancy but they did draw it out of this fountain of Love wherewith being most sweetly intoxicated they did not feele the paines of their torments CHAP. XXV Of love to our Neighbour in speciall 2 Peter 2. Of whom any man is overcome he is that mans servant AMongst all kinds of servitude none is The servitude of the affections is most heavie more hard and sharp then to be under the subjection of affections neither of these is any more cruell then hostility or inhumanity because that wearieth and bindeth all the powers and strength of the body and soul and so leaveth to a man not the least thought free but he that exerciseth or remaineth in charity he is free in his minde neither is he the servant or captive to wrath envie covetousnesse usury pride lying and slander from all which being free by charity he suffereth not himselfe to be brought into slavery by his evill concupiscences but remaineth a freeman of Christ through the spirit of liberty 2 Cor. 3. For where the spirit is there is liberty whosoever therefore walketh in the charity of Christ he ceaseth to be the slave of sinne and servant to affections and carnall lusts For by the spirit of divine charity we are purged and set free And The universality of divine Charity charity divine is equally reached and extended to all men so that not onely out of the word of God but by nature universall also it is made known for we are all equally and alike covered with the heavens and we have the use of the Sunne Aire Earth Water both high and low degree alike Moreover with what mind God Almighty is towards all mankind so ought our mind to be affected towards our neighbour seeing what things even now we shewed thou dost not say it happened for that cause God would have it so but that by his example he might teach us and make it manifest that he loveth all with like equall affection and that it is without reâ—pect of persons and prerogative of dignity or merit in Christ to love every one alike so that as hee sheweth himselfe towards us such ught we to be and to carry our selves toowards our neighbour whom after the same manner as wee shall deal with God will deale with us Which Law God writ in our hearts that evidently he might convince and teach us with what mind he was affected to us lest we should be mistaken and overtaken unawares we ought to carry the same mind towards our neighbour every one of us Wherefore he that would know what respect hee is in with God it is sufficient to ask his conscience for that thing will tell him presently as his mind is towards his neighbour whereby he The triall of divine love may gather how God is affected towards him For like as we have done to our neighbour so it is meet God should doe to us And in this sense the great God is good to the good and averse to the averse neither doth hee deserve to have God his friend that is an enemy to his neighbour Now seeing that God hath no need of our works as our neighbour hath it appeareth by this counsell that the charity towards our neighbour gives us in charge that it should be as a Load-stone a most certain argument of our charity towards God For if these things were otherwise he would not have directed these things to our neighbor so exactly as to a certain sope nor bound us to this as a law but that we might know his affection to us thereby and we should approve the same mind every houre and moment to our neighbour Wherefore though Christ Jesus by his death once sufficiently made satisfaction for the sinnes of the whole world and all men therein for which all men are to give thanks no man can warrant him who
sinne selfe-love arrogancy and ambition New-birth is found in Christ so from Christ by faith and the holy Ghost our nature is to be renewed and sanctified all selfe-love arrogancy and ambitition to die in it and it behoveth us to get a new heart and spirit from Christ as we have from Adam flesh subject to sin And of this new birth Christ is called Father eternall or of the future Age Isa chap. 9. The works of Christians ought to proceed from the new birth Whereupon it followeth consequently that all the works of Christians and gifts which shall be acceptable to God ought to proceed from the new creature that is from faith in Christ and the holy Ghost which if it be not so done whatsoever things although they be most excellent gifts and even miracles themselves before God they are void and to no purpose And towards our neighbour all things ought to be done in charity 1 Cor. 14. and without hope of proper gain or honour For example of which and a most excellent pattern God Almighty offered and gave us his Sonne in whom there was no selfe-love no arrogance lastly no desire of private profit or praise or glory and nothing but sincere and meere love and humility neither also as other Saints was hee proposed to us to imitate because their example was from without and so to behold or renew but that hee might by faith live and breath in us which when it cometh to passe even then all our works words and so our knowledge doe proceed from Christ as from a living foundation and originall if otherwise then all our works and gifts if they be Angelicall or of what kind soever they are neverthelesse nothing worth For where selfe-love is there the hatred of God is where arrogancy there the contempt of God where by no reason it can come to passe that works springing from thence should be acceptable to God Let us therefore doe this let us beseech Almighty God from the bottomes of our hearts to give us faith and sincere love contaminated with no desire of honour profit or glory but proceeding from a pure heart which being obtained not onely illustrious gifts and works but the least also even a cup of cold water will be most deare and acceptable to God For a small worke that proceedeth Charity maketh the least work great from sincere charity and humility is most excellent and better then all great ones that have their original from the desire of pride and glory CHAP. XXXII Not great gifts but faith that worketh by charity doth shew a man a Christian and acceptable to God 1 Cor. 4. The Kingdome of God is not in talke but in vertue BLessed Paul going about to describe a Christian man in briefe finishing the thing saith 1 Tim. 1. The end of the law is charity God doth not require great knowledge from a pure heart and a good conscience and faith unfained as if he should say That any man may bee made a Christian and â—cceptable to GOD are not required hard and lofty matters no worldly wisdome no humane learning no gifts no eloquence no knowledge of tongues lastly no miracles but that hee have faith in charity to doe all things resigned to God devout and well addicted and not carelesse of the motions and rule of the holy Ghost Wherefore let us not much regard that What it is to mortifie the flesh any one is expert in the tongues and how eloquent he is but how he shewes forth his faith by love and mortifying of the flesh For they that be Christs doe mortifie the flesh with the concupiscence thereof that is to say arrogancy selfe-love covetousnesse of glory proper gain hunting after praise whereupon blessed Paul denieth the Kingdome of God to consist in words or gifts and Arts but in vertue or living exercise of vertue in faith as charity lowlinesse and humility Therefore Before God nothing availeth but a new creature no man I say no man is in greater grace with God or blessed because he is indued with great gifts but because hee is found in Christ by faith and liveth in him as a new creature And if any man have Great gifts od not make a man happy attained unto so great and such gifts as no man else neglecting daily repentance he is not renewed in Christ and if he deny not the world although hee have never so many gifts if he despise not himselfe nor hate himselfe last of all doe depend upon the pure and sole grace of God no otherwise then an infant dependeth of the pap he with all his Arts and Gifts shall be damned it is a thing most manifest For neither are those given us of God that by them before God wee should bee great or blessed but for the edification of the To what end gifts are given of God Church Therefore when Luke 10. the seventy Disciples returned with joy saying Lord even the Devils are subject unto us in thy name Christ answereth Doe not rejoyce in this for neither miracles nor gifts shall save us but rejoyce that your names are written in the book of life that is because you beleeve and acknowledge me By faith Moses was saved not by hiâ— miracles and Miriam the sister of Moses being indued with â—he gift of prophesie and by whom the Spirit of the Lord did speak was punished with Leprosie Finally the Apostles not because of their miracles or tongues sake but for their faith were made Citizens of Heaven Let us remain I say let the least and the greatest remain in faith humility â—epentance in crucifying and mortifying of the flesh and in the new creature which as in Christ in faith and charity it liveth so in like manner Christ liveth in it So let us be found that Christ may acknowledge us for his Let Christian Charity remain to be that new life of the new man yea the life of Christ in the faithfull and that efficacious and working power of the holy Ghost by which Saint Paul Ephes 3. wisheth us to bee filled in all fulnesse of God Like unto that of Saint John God is Love and he that remaineth in love remaineth in God Whereupon it followeth that hee that feeleth love in his heart feeleth God himselfe Where as a certaine fore-runner or leading-starre it is present therefore Saint Paul as a tree from the root whereof with all the fruits thereof describeth it in 1 Corinth chap. 13. Charity saith hee is patient c. All which are the properties of Christians and consequently the life of the new man And to speak in a word God the Father is Love God the Sonne is Love God the holy Ghost is Love the whole mysticall body who is Christ or the Christian Church is bound together in the bond of Love So there is but one God one Christ one Spirit one Baptisme one Faith and lastly the happy and sempiternall life shall bee nothing but
way of the Devil when true faith and the works thereof doe not leave us empty or void of knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ 2 Pet. 1. Now seeing that a man having the Light and Life of Christ dwelleth in him for all these things hee is himselfe therefore according to the saying of the Prophet Esay chap. 11. upon such and no otherwise then upon Christ himselfe do rest the gifts of the holy Ghost that is to say the Spirit of wisdome and understanding the Spirit of counsell and fortitude the Spirit of knowledge piety and the feare of the Lord. Wherefore Saint Peter in the second of the Acts speaketh thus to the Jewes Repent and you shall receive the gifts of the holy Ghost as if he should say The Spirit of God of which you have had experience and which is the Illuminator of the heart sendeth not it self into other minds then those that are faithful and repent Goe to then O mortals which desire to bee freed from the blindnesse of heart and everlasting darknesse and lastly from the Devil himselfe imitate Christ in faith and true conversation and amendment being sure that the neerer you are to Christ the neerer you are to Eternall Light and by how much morâ— unfaithful you are so much neerer you aâ—â— to Darknesse and the Devill For as Faith Christ and all vertues are knit together so in like manner incredulity the Devil and all vices doe cleave together Behold with me the Apostles imitating Christ in faith contemning the world denying themselves renouncing their possessions and living in eternity by which things they attained to this that they might be heavenly illuminated and might bee indued with the holy Ghost To whom was most unlike the young man that was so rich whilst hee studied himselfe and thought himselfe something Luke 18. Therefore hee remained in the darknesse of the world neither was he inlightned to eternall life For hee that loveth the world the love of the Father is not in him And blessed John professeth plainly That he which loveth not remaineth in darknesse and knoweth not whither hee goeth because darknesse hath blinded his eyes To whom agreeth Taulerus who in all his Sermons every where sheweth and admonisheth without serious exercise of faith without mortification and selfe-denial without inward turning himselfe to his heart and lastly without the inward Sabbath of the soule no man can receive the divine Light or perceive it in himselfe In brief as much as in the condition after conversion the works of darknes by the spirit of God in man are destroied so much is he illuminated and by how much more more powerfully on the other side our corrupt nature as the flesh the world in man do beare rule so much lesse Grace Light Spirit of God and Christ is in him Therefore it remaineth without daily coÌ„tinual repentance no man can be illuminated when as he hath not resisted one â—ice nor The further froÌ„ the life of Christ the further from the true light rooted out one and exerciseth innumerable others bringeth forth out of himselfe continually with more increase then people are wont to doe And as darknesse is thicker in it selfe and more cloudy by how much the Sunne goeth back from us by so much we are unlike to the life of Christ so much more plentiful are wee in sinne and darknesse groweth the thicker in us till they become eternal night On the contrary hee which by the grace of God entereth the Chariot of virtue with a good courage and firm hope this man cannot but profit in them daily one following another as rings be linked one to another in a golden chain Which connexion blessed Peter expresseth The knowledge of Christ in love faith and the fruits thereof is to grow in Christ profit in him writing in the second Epistle cha 1. And you ought to have care and to use diligence ministring in your faith virtue and in your virtue knowledge in knowledge abstinence in abstinence patience in patience piety in piety brotherly love in brotherly love charity And if yee doe these things and abound therein you shall not be found empty nor without fruit in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ As if he should say he that shall not addict himselfe wholly to the study and exercise of these virtues he knoweth not Christ but he that by faith profiteth in them he groweth in Christ all other as proud ones wrathfull ones covetous ones impatient ones profit not in Christ but in the Devil And it is left us Christians in precept that as a child by little and little and in time is made a man so we may grow in faith and in the study of virtue to perfect The fruit of the death of Christ in us men to the measure of full age in Christ Ephes 4. Coloss 1. But to whom these things are not ready or at hand saith Saint Peter 2. Epist 1. he is blind and hand-bound forgetfull of the purging of his old sinnes As if he should say It is for certain that Christ by his death and bloud took and did beare all our sinnes but in the mean time we must beware that we addict not our selves to sin hereafter but rather the death of Christ fructifying in us we die to the world and live in Christ which whosoever doth not care to doe to this man it is plain that the purging of his old sins profiteth nothing Whereupon it followeth if wee desire to have the sinnes of our former life remitted and pardoned we must forbeare â—â— sin we must repent and beleeve in Christ which if we doe not then we retain all those sinnes of our former life and they are to be lamented by us to all eternity without all hope of expiation or forgivenesse so that it is possible that even for wrath alone a man may be damned which if he had by Christian lowliness corrected then in truth he had obtained pardon for all his other sins which because he neglected to do therfore according to the words of Saint Peter He is blind being forgetfull of the purging of his old sinnes Whereby it is given to understand The necessity of repentance how necessary a thing repentance is and the changing to a betternesse For although Christ died for our sins blotting them out and abolishing them with the incomparable price of his bloud yet we doe not participate of that merit unlesse we repent it profiteth nothing And howsoever every man is promised pardon for his sins for the merit of Christ yet that promise pertaineth nothing to thee to the unbeleever nor the impenitent but to those alone which doe amend their lives when it is most meet that those sinnes be remitted which we goe not about to remember but those onely which we were heartily grieved for And to this pertaineth that which is spoken Matth. 11. The poore receive the Gospel that is obtain the remission of sinnes Now
who disputed vehemently against the Pharisees and Scribes after the example of John the Evangelist who wrote his Gospel against Ebion and Cerinth and the Apocalypse against the false Church of the Nicolaitans and others after the example of Saint Paul who defended most strongly the doctrine of justification by faith of good works of the resurrection of the dead of Christian liberty and such like against false Apostles after the example of the holy Bishops and Fathers of the Primitive Church which wrote most strongly against the Pagan superstitions and Heretickes and in the Oecumenical Councels gathered by the Christian Emperours did condemne the chiefe Heretickes and Patriarchs Arrians Macedonians Nestorians and Eutychians lastly by the example of the incomparable Heroe Martin Luther by whose excellent and grave writings the Papality and other Hereticks were much weakened it is as cleare as the noon-day Therefore it remaineth as a thing most fit and requisite to preach write and dispute that the purity of the doctrine and the verity of religion might bee manifest according to the Apostle who in the first chapter to Titus will have a Bishop to be powerfull to exhort in doctrine that is sound and to argue with those that contradict it The The abuse of Thenlogicall disputation which although it be a lawful and a laudable way it is so faln out by the abuse of it that amongst all their bitter Disputations and Sermons of controversies and the infinite heaps of writing and counterwriting the memory of Christian life of true repentance devotion and charity is almost abolished with their names no otherwise then if the summe of Christian Religion consisted in disputation and writing books of cōtroversies not in the practice of the Gospel and Christian learning For if we behold the examples of the holy Prophets and Apostles as also of the Sonne of God it is manifest that they did sharply dispute not onely against false Prophets and Apostles but also against the superstitions of the Gentiles but with no lesse fervency did exhort to repentance Christian life and moreover did shew in most grave Sermons that by their impenitency and wicked life the divine Worship and Religion did goe backwards and decay the Church was wasted that Kingdome and people were afflicted with hunger warre and plague all which came to passe as true as they said it Of this kind is that Sermon of Esay Impiery destroyeth the worship of God true religion chap. 5. where he denounceth to the people of the Jewes because the vineyard of the Lord did not bring forth clusters of grapes but wild grapes therefore Almighty God had decreed to lay it wast Whereby it plainly appeareth that impiety is the cause why God useth to take his word from us To the same sense is that which Christ said John 12. Walk in the light whilst you have it lest darknesse overtake you For what other thing is it to walk in the light then to imitate Christ Or what other thing is it to be overtaken with darknesse then to lose the purity of the Gospel Whereby it appeareth without true repentāce none is enlightned that none can without true repentance and a holy life enjoy the light the holy Ghost which is the true enlightner of our hearts flying the ungodly and chusing holy soules onely to make friends and Prophets of God as it is written Wisdom 7. whose beginning sith the fear of God is as it is in Psa 111. who likewise doubteth impiety to be the beginning of folly ignorance and blindnesse Moreover the true knowledge of Christ and pure doctrine and the profession thereof doth not consist in words onely but in deed and holy life according The knowledge of Christ consists not in words to that of Titus chap. 1. They confesse they know God but deny him in their deeds when they are abominable and unbeleevers and reprobates to every good work And Titus 3. They have the shew of godlinesse but deny the virtue thereof Whereby it is given to understand that Christ and his Word is denied by a wicked life as wel as words neither hath he the true knowledge of Christ which never putteth it into action Wherefore he that never feeleth or tasteth the humility lowlinesse It is lame without a holy life patience and the love of Christ inwardly in his heart hee knoweth not Christ and therefore where use and necessity requireth they cannot confesse him For to professe preach the doctrine of Christ onely is truly to divide Christ and to lame him if you do not professe and preach It is not words but life that makes a Christian his life And we have abundance of books of his doctrine of his life almost none every where bookes of controversies concerning doctrine but very little time spent about true repentance and a Christian life For what is doctrine without life but a tree without fruit Or how should he follow the doctrine of Christ who imitateth not his life For the head or chiefe of the doctrine of Christ is charity from a pure heart and a good conscience and an unfained faith But we live in that age wherein there is a great number of those whom if wee heare them disputing so acutely and well of the doctrine of Christian religion you would think them to be men of great worth but if you behold them narrowly and touch them neerly you shall then know them to bee inwardly and in their hearts full of pride envie and covetousnesse that no Basilisk can be more venemous Against whom therefore wee must beware observe what Paul saith 1 Tim. 1. he doth not rashly or suddenly joyn Love and Faith that hee may shew that these two do or would conspire and consent together And although wee cannot arrogate so much to our strength and piety that wee make it the price of our happinesse knowing also with Saint Peter Epist 1. chap. 1. that wee are kept in the virtue of God by faith to salvation yet we professe this that by an Antichristian life the Spirit of God will avoyd us with all The wicked are not enlightned his gifts amongst which faith knowledge understanding and wisdome are not the least Whereby it followeth again without a holy life the purity of doctrine cannot be preserved and the wicked which will not imitate Christ are not enlightned with the true light On the contrary those that walk in the light that is which doe insist and persevere in the footsteps of Christ are drenched and bathed in the true light which is Christ and divinely preserved from all errors Therefore it is true which that ancient Writer Taulerus saith So soon as a man dedicateth himselfe to God and suffereth him and denieth his own will and flesh then truly the Spirit of God doth begin to make beginning of illumination and endowing with true and solid knowledge because indeed this man doth celebrate the true Sabbath of the heart
130. If thy imperfections be great again and again remember Christs merits are far greater and say with David Psalm 11. Have A repentanr soul is at peace with God mercy upon mee according to thy great mercies And when by the grace of God thou art penitent for thy sinnes and dost behold Christ in faith then in like manner God is grieved at thy punishment and pardon and remission followeth this thy divine and wholsome contrition by and by and so oft as thou becomest an offender and returnest again to him by sorrowfull sighes For even as the Leper was healed in a moment when he said to Christ Lord if thou wilt thou canst make me whole and he answered I will be thou clean So Almighty God inwardly and in the Spirit maketh thee clean saying Be confident my sonne thy sins are forgiven thee Which great mercy of God in cleansing and pardoning our sins prefigured in that Lepers example ought not to give us occasion to sin again but more and more to glorifie God whereupon thou mayst say My soule praise the Lord. IX Outward injuries reproaches and How iniuries are to be born upbraids beware they doe not provoke thee to wrath indignation or revenge but rather think them to be certain trials of thy heart by which God would prove thee what is in thee and in thy heart doth lie hid I say whether meeknesse and humility or pride and wrath For whatsoever lieth hid in a man or concealed provocated contumelies do make triall of him Therefore if thy heart bee indued with humility and lowlinesse thou wilt easily beare all contempts nay whatsoever shal happen to thee of that kind thou wilt accept it as a punishment of God for thy just desert and sinne after the example of David who being reproached to his face by Shimei said 2 Sam. 16. God commanded him to revile David Moreover thou shouldst think the contempt of us to be a great part of the contumely of Christ which a living and a true member of him ought to participate according to that saying Heb. 13. Let us goe to him bearing our infirmities Not being unmindfull with what heart with what lowlinesse hee did beare his reproach then conclude for him in like manner thou art to bear thy reproaches and private injuries with an equal mind Do not thou say Shall I suffer these things at his hands For by reason of the lowlinesse and most patient heart of Christ all things should bee moderately born by thee I conceale the benignity of Christ to be so great that for one contumely that an innocent doth suffer he is ready to reward it with many honours and gifts That David knew when hee received the reproach of Shimei as a pledge and token of honour to come saying Suffer him to revile as the Lord hath commanded him If the Lord shall respect my affliction and the Lord shall return me good for his cursing this very day Wherefore let not the fables of men perturb thee but rather rejoyce because the glory of Gods Spirit resteth in vile things 1 Pet. 4. Victory consists in patience X. Study to overcome and pacifie thy enemies and detractors with benefits and goodnesse not in wrath nor in revenge nor in returning answer for no man will be reconciled to thee by this means seeing that victory consisteth in virtue not in vice For as Devils doe not drive one another out or away so revenges and maledictions doe not pacifie but provoke thy calumniators For as no man goeth about to heale a frantick man or a wretched person or a wounded man afflicted with soares with beating or club-law so a man evil affected to you is to be handled with lenity and not with cruelty and by sweet and gentle means pacified That which God himself to overcome us doth think he must observe pacifying our malice with his goodnes and our wrath with his love and inviting us with this such and so great benignity to repentance And Paul hath commended the same Art unto us Rom. 12. Bee not overcome of evill but overcome evill with goodnesse For this is our victory XI If in thy neighbour thou observest Wee ought not to envie good in others a gift which God hath adorned him with before thee and others take heed thou dost not envie this in him rather rejoyce give God thanks for seeing all the chosen and faithfull are one body it followeth that the beauty of every member doe ennoble the whole body On the contrary if thou perceive The sin of our neighbour is to be condoled any misery in thy neighbour lament it as thine own thinking the condition of all men to be equall and the weaknesse of the flesh to bee alike and hee that cannot take compassion nor condole he is no member of Christ For hee thought ours his own by compassion hee delivered us from all our miseries To which belongeth that of Saint Paul to the Galatians chap. 6. Bear one anothers burdens and so you shall fulfill the law of Christ XII The vices and sins of our neighbour are to be hated even as the works of Hate the vice not the mâ—n the Devil and if he should be no otherwise lest thou become more wicked then the man himselfe but rather bewaile his lot because he is subdued with such sinnes and commend his cause to God as Christ prayed for his enemies upon the Crosse Father forgive them And contrariwise whosoever hateth man cannot please God seeing it is his property to desire to rectify all men according to that of Luke 9. The Son of Man came not to destroy but to save mens souls XIII Think all men frail but thy self A Christian thinks himselfâ— the greatest sinner most frail for before God all men are of equal condition and alike condemnable because we have all sinned neither have we any thing whereon wee may boast before God Then how great a sinner soever thy neighbour be take heed thou beleeve not therefore thou art the better before God Let him that standeth take heed that hee fall not Yea he that maketh himself the lowest of all men this man keepeth the grace and favour of God It is sure that thou no lesse standest need of the grace and mercy of God then the greatest sinner which is the greater to thee the more humble thou art Wherefore blessed Paul accounted himselfe the greatest sinner 1 Tim. 1. And therefore saith That he obtained mercy Christ shewing his patience in him To which alike is that which he saith 2 Cor. 12. As concerning my selfe I will boast of nothing but my infirmities XIV That true illumination doth follow The contempt of the world is from illumination contempt of worldly things For even as the sonnes of this world have their inheritance upon earth as temporall honours fraile wealth vain splendor and beauty which they love and keep as treasures so the treasures of the sons of God are poverty
holy life is righteousnesse before God and so to be interpreted and it is as sure that all that thou dost is unperfect lame and defective Moreover that thou beware of the Devils Cobwebs and his devices whose properties and custome is to sow Popple amongst the Wheat to whom therefore thou art not to give place but how much more is in the new gifts the more do thou beware thou abuse it not to thine honour but in humble fear of God ascribe whatsoever it be to the great and eternal author of them Remedies against spiritual pride and to thy selfe on the contrary thou shalt deny all things lest perhaps thou mayst say sometimes in thine heart O great faith of mine great knowledge great gifts for lest thou deceive thy selfe none of these are thine but Gods without whose illumination thou remainest a dead filthy and vile sheafe Therefore these gifts are none of thine no more then the glistering of a gem or pretious stone wherein as a Jeweller hee putteth his treasure so God placeth in thee his goods but without them thou art empty and void And it were great dotage and foolery to take occasion to boast thy self of another mans goods as I shall speak more in the second book For even as a Jeweller when as so oft as he pleaseth hath power to put his treasure or Jewels into another box to carry where hee pleases or keep about him so God every moment may take his gifts from thee whom therefore thou oughtst to feare and with all diligence eschew spiritual arrogancy Moreover thou must think that Almighty God will require an exact account of those things of thee And how great soever those things be which our heavenly Father hath lent thee through Christ they are onely beginnings and first fruits of solid graces Furthermore it is thy part to know that there is no perfect gifts obtained but by prayer from God without which whatsoever they be that thou hast those truly are but shadowes and unprofitable dead seeds bearing no ripe fruits as thou mayst understand by my little book of prayers No profitable gifts are obtained without prayer whereby examples we teach that without prayer no heavenly gifts doe descend into the heart of man Of which little book that thou mayst have some taste I invite thee to read those things which I have written in the second booke of prayers There be two things in speciall which all our prayers ought to respect one is the destruction of the Devils image which commeth in power of incredulity pride covetousnesse lust wrath and such like The other is the restauration of the divine Image in which is contained faith hope charity humility patience lowlinesse the fear of the Lord which two things are by The sum of the Lords prayer divine workmanship briefly contracted in the Lords prayer as I may so say that it maketh part for us and part against us For if the power of God be to be sanctified then it behoveth thee to kill thine owne power with all the pride of old Adam If thâ— kingdome of God be to be built in thee the Devils must be overthrown if the will of God be to be fulfilled in thee thine must needs be contemned and denied And these two heads in the book of prayer are required if thou wilt have it profitable unto thee are shadowed as I said even now in the Lords Prayer which is a certain breviary of heavenly and temporall gifts which because the Son of God commanded us to pray therefore those things his heavenly Father will give us much more willingly it is more sure then needs be called in question or any doubt made thereof Of which in another place Finis Glory to God alone The Contents of the Chapters of this Book CHap. 1. Of the Image of God pag. 1 2 Of the Fall and Apostasie of Adam 9 3 How Man is renewed in Christ to life eternall 18 4 What true repentance is and what the Crosse 28 5 What true faith is 36 6 How the word of God ought to live in man 44 7 How the Law of God is written in the heart 52 8 Without true repentance man cannot challenge Christs merit 60 9 The Antichristian life of men deny Christ and true faith 71 10 Worldly men by their lives deny Christianity 75 11 Those that imitate not Christ are none of his 78 12 A Christian must die to himself live to Christ 91 13 A Christian must die to the world himself 100 14 A Christian ought to despise his own life 110 15 The old mâ—n should die the new man revive 122 16 The combat of the Flesh and Spirit 129 17 A Christians inheritance is not of this world 136 18 Eternal things to be preferred before temporal 146 19 Most miserable to himself most dear to God 154 20 By contrition our life is to be amended 163 21 What true divine worship is 176 22 Amendment of life a mark of a Christian 193 23 The friendship of the world is to be avoyded 199 24 Of love towards God and our Neighbour 206 25 Of love to our Neighbour in speciall 221 26 Wherefore our Neighbour is to be loved 227 27 Wherefore our enemies are to be loved 238 28 The Creator to be loved before the Creatures 245 29 Of the reconciliation of our Neighbour 251 30 Of the fruits of love 261 31 Self-love and arrogancy defile the best gifts 273 32 Good works without charity not acceptable 281 33 God accepteth works according to the heart 286 34 God alone the author of our salvation 291 35 Without a holy life all things are unprofitable 302 36 Who tast the virtue of the hidden Manna 308 37 Their loss who follow not Christ in their lives 324 38 The fruit of an Antichristian life 341 39 How the purity of doctrine is to be obtained 350 40 Certain Rules conducing to a devout life 362 41 Christian Religion wherein it â—onsisteth 375 42 Spirituall pride is to be eschewed 400 FINIS