bestowed vpon vs with diuine incouragements that we may feele the finger of God to worke powerfully within vs. For besides the secret sinnes of prayerlesnes and a kind of indeuotion tending to Atheisme which wee commit this way our verie outward endeuor at publike prayer and at the hearing of the word is so prophane and so sleight as testifieth to our faces that we haue forgotten our selues and seeme to thinke that some lesser power will serue the turne to allure vs then the Lord himselfe For if we were otherwise minded in the truth of our hearts we wold most certainely inforce our selues to be holy as he is holy In the day of our visitation when our conscience will stand vpon strict tearms with vs whether we be indeed conuerted or no our copper conuersion will not go for currant And when it is detected vnto vs how impossible it is for vs to cōuert our selues or for any creature to conuert vs nay whē it is detected vnto vs what counterfeit conuerting there is in this world wherin lightly the conuerted are vnconuerted then wee will hold vp our hands to this truth take heede least too late Then we will crie Conuert Thou vs O Lord Lam. 5.21 and so shall wee be conuerted indeed Then discouragement will seize vpon vs in an vnseasonable time and our sure foundation will be to lay when the raine falleth and the flouds come and the windes blow Matt. 7.26.27 A great part of men when they fall sicke of their last sickenesse are like them which commit themselues to the raging seas in a riuen ship Their religion their faith is not the strong operation of the Lord within them but a bare conceit of faith a conceit of religion And many professours are like fresh-water souldiers which brawle in Tauernes and make frayes in Smithfield before they com◠to true employment but after in due season do shew neither courage nor hardinesse Much talking there is much disputation of religious matters but let vs take heed that our courage faile vs not then when we must either stand fast or sticke fast If the Lord haue wrought effectually in vs hee hath wrought it by the power of his might we haue the sense of his omnipotence in cōquering those temptations which none but the Spirit of God could haue conquered And if we find not this worke let vs not driue off til night for we will find it a long march for such a darke and durtie and tempestuous night Let vs crie strongly to the Lord to giue vs his Spirit and let vs beseech him to inlighten vs that we may discerne betweene our owne spirit and his Spirit For although there be a spirit in man yet it is the inspiration of the Almightie Iob. 32.3 it is the inspiration of the Almightie only that giueth vnderstanding Psal 3.8 And Dauid saith Saluation belongeth to the Lord. I demaund of thee art thou conuerted Thy answer likely will be that thou trustest so Let me aske thee againe hast thou felt the combate betwixt the flesh and the Spirit within thee It is likely that to this also thou wilt answer affirmatiuely For hee that feeleth not so much in case is of a palpable outcast But giue mee leaue to aske of thee a third question Did dest thou feele comfort in that combate by the victorie of the Spirit ouer the flesh If thou doest thou doest certainly acknowledge the truth of this point by experience that God himselfe was the man of warre and that it was the Sonne of God himselfe that by his Spirit destroyed the power of darknesse within thee Thou canst remember manie a secret and deepe sigh manie a feruent prayer For it is most certain that howsoeuer hypocrites doe abuse these things yet they are the musicke of this warre this warre I say wherein the holy Ghost striketh the stroke and doth all our things for vs. The free will which man hath without speciall grace extendeth no further then ciuill moralities or frustrate deuotion which yet hypocrites not being able to wade out of hell make account of according to the prouerb as if there were no other heauen But the free-will of a true Christian is another kinde of thing it is to partake in the diuine nature the diuinitie of true Christians is not after the vulgar sense of dogmatizing but there is besides another maner of diuinitie of preaching a diuinitie of hearing a diuinitie of praying euen to feele the diuine finger of God working in vs in these exercises without which the breath is but scattered into the aire This kind of diuinitie is the life of God in a man it is the lowest degree of grace that can be named if a man haue no true sense thereof to bewaile his senslesnesse It is certaine that he which is not stirred inwardly with religion as with a miraculous operatiue hath not the bowels of the child of God within him Coldnesse is a curse and to make no conscience of coldnesse is to haue Gods curse vnder seale This is indeed the freewill that wee professe when God giueth vs free harts to set manfully vpon our corruptions as Augustine faith Liberum arbitrium non euacuatur per gratiam August de spiritu litera cap. 30. sed statuitur quia gratia sanat voluntatem Freewill is not auoided by grace but established because grace healeth the will that is giueth vs a will to righteousnesse I do the rather insist vpon this point least any man should deceiue his owne heart in thinking that conuersion is either an easie matter or of easie meanes Good brethren for your liues think nor such a thought but remember that if Iapheth be to be allured the Lord must allure him The fall of man as it can be releeued by no mercie but the mercie of God so neither can it be relieued by any power but the power of God To despise the meanes is great presumption for the Gospell is the power of saluation that is the holy Ghost exerciseth his power by it But to ascribe to the means that that is due to the Lord must be far from vs. But thou wilt say vnto me that if the Gospell be but the instrument and the power be the Lords then all this contention of preachers to deliuer the Gospell powerfully is needlesse because the power is else where But marke the answer that the power of God is not reserued within God apart from the word but God is in the spirit of the Preacher to deliuer the word Gal. 2.8 as S. Paule saith the holie Ghost wrought in Peter and him towards their seuerall hearers and is in the Spirit of the hearer to receiue the word And againe the hearers shall fall on their faces and say of a truth God is in you indeed 1. Cor. 14.25 And therefore brethren though ye trie the spirits which spare not to do by the Scriptures let them not passe away vntried
though they seeme neuer so spirituall yet reiect not the spirits of the zealous because they are zealous For as there is a doctrine that is of God so there are spirits that are of God in whom the holy Ghost worketh mightily Now if thou say to me that then it will follow that where the preaching hath no good effect there the Preacher spake not from the Spirit of God Vnderstand for answer that no such thing will follow For the holy Ghost may worke in a man and yet not worke by him vpon others but his prayer and his preaching may returne into his owne bosome And Noahs meaning in this prophecie was that the conuersion of the Gentiles shold be wrought through the holy Ghost by the perswasiue spirit of the teachers and the perswasible spirit of the hearers The Lord therefore increase among you men of a gracious perswasion that may confirme you with the confirmations of God in the religion of God And the Lord reueale his arme so in the ministerie that wee may haue occasion to ascend into that same speech of Saint Paule O the deepenesse of the riches of God wherein Augustine saith is contained the solution of that question August deâ—… spiritu libera cap. 34. why some are conuerted rather then some The third conclusion out of this text is concerning the meanes which the Lord vseth in drawing men to his kingdome to wit that because hee will conuert them therefore hee will conuert them by allurements The Lord shall allure Iapheth signifying that the allurements of God are in the doctrine of the Gospell and in Euangelicall examples For although wee reade how that the Lord hath laid violent hands vpon some as vpon Saint Paul in the way to Damascus Act 9. yet we must make a difference between his consternation which tended to his conuersion and his conuersion it selfe which was wrought when Ananias came with the word of comfort in his mouth It is true indeed that our word ought not to stand in the entising speech of mans wisedome 1. Cor. 2.4 for the allurements are spirituall But in the meane while they are allurements still For as the Prophet Hosea saith Hos 11.4 The Lord leadeth vs with the cords of a man euen with the bands of loue and is to vs as hee that taketh off the yoke from our iawes and layeth meate vnto vs. How kindly alluring his Church to let him in is Christ induced by Salomon Cant. 5.2 Open vnto me my sister my loue my doue c How amiably doth Saint Paul quite himselfe in his embassage 2. Cor. 5.20 We are saith he Embassadours for Christ as though God did beseech you through vs wee pray you in Christs steede that you would be reconciled to God It doth then appeare that the true doctrine of Iesus Christ is alluring doctrine and replenished with sweete inducements But here likely some man bethinketh him vpon occasion of this speech of allurement that it is then a course to be taken with the Papists that they might heare of this alluring attractiue But as Saint Paule saith in a matter not much vnlike Rom. 10.18 I demand haue they not heard Haue they not beene mercifully dealt with by her Maiestie and louingly entreated by their brethren The Lord be iudge betweene them and vs concerning this thing Whatsoeuer good course hath yet beene vnassayed which tendeth to their allurement the Lord direct the hearts of his fathfull seruants to take it Alwayes prouided that their lenitie be not abused and that foolish pity marre not the citie I cannot come after with any supply of new allurements but I doe onely repeate these two motiues The first that the Papists of this land which are aforehand brought and sold like sheepe by their false brethren the Papists beyond sea shall escape the Butcher by running from the Drouer The second that they shall returne to a God which will in holy mercie do that to them which a man may not doe for his wife if when he hath put her away for her lewdnes for a time to humble her she disdaine him and become another mans Shall he returne vnto her should not then this land be polluted But they haue played the harlot with manie louers yet turn again to me saith the Lord. But let vs come to the point It is confessed on both sides both by our aduersaries and by vs that the Gospell allureth But in the meane while the controuersie is growne on which side this alluring doctrine may be on their side or on ours It shal be therefore very pertinent both to the text and time if your attention will reuiue it selfe to discusse this point though not in such measure as it may indeede be discussed yet according to the measure of the gift of God The Papists haue alreadie furnished out maine confident allegations that their religion is most politicall going about by a long induction to conclude that it sorteth best with the good gouernment of the common wealth In which disputation as they do often goe beyond the profession of diuinitie so euen there where they keepe best compasse their diuinity is turned into humanitie For their verie arguments doe betoken but an earthly well being if they could haue hit that and they manifest themselues to haue forgotten that life is of the duall number In this point likewise they are verie out-bearing and the successe which they haue found in their allurements hath made them arrogant enticers For they are indeede though verie scorpions yet such as Saint Iohn saith whose faces are like the faces of men and they haue haire as the haire of women Reue. 9.7.8 And to confesse the truth what affliction soeuer they pretend to haue beene imposed vpon them yet they haue enioyed so much peace and pampering that they haue thriuen by it in eloquence and in the musicke of Marmaids euen like the Naphthalites with ease and prosperitie they haue learned â—o giue goodly words Gen. 49.21 But the question betweene them and vs is not who are â—he cunninger enticers or the better painters they or we but whose doctrin hath more reason to allure the child of God theirs or ours As let the conteÌ„tion first be whether a man being compos mentis as we say wil rather be allured to Gods free grace which the Spirit of truth teacheth by vs but of Gods holy word or to his owne merites which the spirit of errour teacheth by them out of their own braine They say that we sell Paradise good cheape because we hold it at the Lords expresse rate as it standeth in the Prophecie of Isaiah where we are called to buy indeed but to pay nothing hauing nothing to pay as he saith Isaiah 55.1 And we say that they sell hell verie deere when they make men to pay their merits for it which otherwise cost-free that is without that blasphemous arrogaÌ„cie should haue it ouer soone for their
be preferred to the grace of the holy Ghost For these wild men these Faunes and Satyrs as I may say are a kind of demo niacks and are not so much as capable of the Spirit of God til they haue submitted themselues to bee members of Gods Church And thirdly by tarying their turne they should be not only capable but it shold euen be vnto thē according to their faith And there would be a maruellous change worthy to be celebrated with a song of Angels Wheras now they are oftē incōbred with the horrors of conscience so that the sound of fear is euer in their eares Against this Satan cānot otherwise succour them then by teaching them to make out a power of blasphemies and derisions both of heauen and hell or to earth themselues in the caues of obliuion that the iudgemēt to come may not come into their mindes Then they should be able to pacifie their consciences with sound arguments of their saluation and the grace of God would perswade their consciences to take part on their side And when their heart was become their friend it would perswade their affection to dine and sup with their conscience Which would be a royall amends to the poorer sort for the hard fare they should find in the world by changing their course and a dish beyond all their dainties to the rich This second part was not vttered for lacke of time but was likewise by authoritie thought fit to be annexed in the print NOw followeth the second parte of the text of Iapheths participating with Shem or rather his succeeding of Shem in dominion ouer Canaan And Canaan shall be their seruant that is let Iapheth continue in the tents of Shem and then he shall hold Canaan in seruitude For the seruitude of Canaan vnder Iapheth is annexed to Iapheths dwelling in the tents of Shem. And so groweth the fift conclusion out of this text that the subduing of ours and Gods enemies is a benefit tyed to our constancy in true religion It is cleare enough that they which are helde in seruitude being of Canaans broode doe foster disdaine and enmity But in the meane while as Salomon sayeth When a mans wayes please God Prou. 16.7 his enemies shal bee contented to bee at peace with him Therefore the Psalmist sayeth O that my people had harkened vnto me and Israel had walked in my wayes Psal 81.13.14.15 I would soone haue humbled their enemies and turned my hand against their aduersaries The haters of the Lord should haue beene subiect vnto him though fainedly and their time of ruling should haue endured for euer On the other side the scripture sayeth Deut. 28.43.44 That when wee cease to walke in the wayes of the Lord whereof a principal part is to vphold his religion our enemies shall bee the head and wee shal be the tayle And such likewise are the examples of the word When Eli suffered Gods seruice to be corrupted by his sonnes ◠Sam. 2.30.32 the Lord remooued him you know howe and saide vnto him Them that honour me will I honor and they that despise me shal be despised And further he sayeth to him And thou shalt see anguish in the habitation of the Lord in stead of al those things wherwith God would haue blessed Israel And of the children of Israel the scripture sayeth Iudg. 2 13.14 They for sooke the Lord and serued Baal and Ashtaroth and the wrath of the Lord was hotte against Israel And he deliuered thē into the hands of spoilers and solde them into the handes of their enemies round about them so that they could no longer stand before their enemies So we read of Salomon 1. King 11.14.23.26 how he went to wreck when he had once yeelded to the corruption of religion at the instigation of his wiues The Lord stirred vp enemie vpon enemie against him euen those which before serued him In the recitall of these scriptures we haue neede to make vse of two worthie sayings of S. Paul The first Rom. 15.4 That Whatsoeuer things are written are written for our learning to comfort and animate vs to holde our religion The second that these examples of Gods vengeance on them that forsooke it are ensamples to vs to terrifie vs from once meditating of such a sinne 1. Cor. 10.6 Let it not come into our mindes that there is any wisedome in yeelding any thing from the truth of God Let vs not think that others will thinke that wee deale wisely if wee take that course For the scripture affirmeth that our strict holding of our religion is our wisedome Deut. 4 6. and our vnderstanding in the sight of the people Great is the praise of Queene Elizabeth for holding her owne or rather Gods owne in this behalfe especially when we consider how she hath beene vrged The lawes which haue beene made for the repressing of idolatry are all still in force and we doe yet abide in the tents of Shem. And assure your selues brethrē that as the thoughts of God are tender towardes vs if wee will serue him so the thoughtes of Queene Elizabeth his seruant and daughter our Queene and mother are tender towardes vs in this matter of preseruation of religion If we will be quietly zealous and charitably tractable we shall see that as her entrance was graced with the restoring so her proceeding shal be honoured with the constant conseruing of religion So long as weekeepe vs within the limits of wise zeale and descend not to the heady courses of the vast vulgar but do maintaine the true seruice of God as followers and not forerunners of wise gouernment not preuenting it by headinesse wee shal be able to keepe these Canaanites in subiection though they did exceede vs in number neuer so much If any say that our holding religion will not holde downe our enemies because the most religious at some times are oppressed I answere that martyrdome is but in particular places or of particular persons But the like cannot be made to appeare of a whole land by any story It Iapheth dwell in Shems tents Canaan shall surely serue him The word of God ought to suffice to confirme vs in the truth of this point But let vs wade into the matter by reason because reason as they say impugneth it seeing the Papists are so many Our entrance into the first reason is out of an vsuall saying that wee haue amongst vs that one true man is too hard for two theeues by reason of his confidence This certainly is most true in the matter of religion that confidence giueth courage This is an only grace to daunt these theenish Canaanites Iosh 1.7 as the Lord said to Ioshua Onely be thou strong and of a most valiant courage According to the promise in the Law Deut. 28.7 The Lord shall cause thine enemies that rise against thee to fall before thy face Iosh 23.10 They shall come out against thee one
vnderstanding Poperie hath no new arguments but the olde colworts in a new dish but infatuate flesh wormes cannot iudge of false dice they haue drunke of the whores wine and haue lost their wits But alas how many are there which answer to the name of Iapheth as Abshalom answered to the name of Abshalom which signifieth the fathers peace which bring as much tractablenes to the Church as he brought peace and comfort to his father Dauid and Noah when they gaue those names spake as they would haue it but the wicked will do as they lust Yet the lord hath said enough to melt the obstinate though they were rocks because he knoweth that they are obstinate Isaiah 48.3.4 and their necke is an yron sinew and their brow brasse And therefore who can come after him to say any more All that we can do is to repeat his sayings If there be any consolation in Christ if any comfort of loue Phil. 2.12 if any fellowship of the spirit if any compassion mercie let vs be like minded hauing the same loue beeing of one accord and of one iudgement Let Iapheth come to Shem for Shem may not come to Iapheth no the Lord hath forbidden it by Ieremie Ier. 15.19 Isaiah 11.6.7 It is a prophecie of the fiercest if they be not reprobates that the Wolfe Leoparde Lion and Beare shall be made innocent and sociable to the most harmelesse and helplesse creatures The second conclusion out of this text is thus framed that because the conuersion of Iapheth is determined to be by the onely power of God it is therefore required of necessitie that the Lord himselfe by his spirit performe it The Lord who onely can shall entise Iapheth For although this text doth expresly containe neither the addition of necessitie that it must needes bee the Lord that must doe it nor the exclusiue that none other can do it yet vnder this zealous contemplation of Gods mercy and power in this affectionate speech The Lord it hath them both by implication by presupposing that seeing the Lord will needes haue it done hee must need doe it himselfe because none others can If anie doe still obiect that this point that it is Gods onely work to conuert cannot bee concluded out of this Text without adding the word onely vnto it let him againe vnderstand that it is not added presumptuously but only in sense supplied where otherwise it is vnderstood meant alreadie And this supply is after the exaÌ„ple of Christs collection out of those words of Moses that we must serue God from whence he gathereth that we must serue god alone Deut. 6.13 Math. 4.10 teaching vs to conclude in like case that if the scriptures doe shew that there is not any other power of conuersion besides the spirit of God as we shall see they doe then where it is said that the Lord conuerteth it is there meant that he onely conuerteth and none other So then this text teacheth vs that true conuersion is not the worke of any inferior power but is one of the peculiar works of the holy omnipotent spirit of God And if the question should be to whom it did appertaine to preuaile by perswading would we not haue recourse and refuge to this scripture for solution The Lord shall perswade Iapheth This likewise appeareth vnto vs by the euidence of other scriptures First the exclusiue is plaine 1. Câ—â— â— 7 that he that planteth is not anie thing at all that is to say in the worke of true conuersion And the necessity is as plaine where Christ saith no man caÌ„ come to me except the father which hath sent me draw him Iohn 6.44 he himselfe must of necessitie draw him For this is true of euerie perfect gift that it commeth downe from the father of lights I am 1.17 and he reserueth the donation to himselfe And therefore the Prophet saith Lord thou hast wrought all our works for vs. Isai 26.12 The scriptures before the Lord reuiueth vs call vs dead Ephes 2.1 yea dead in trespasses and sinnes And the sonne of God saith that our reuiuing from this death Iohn 5.25 must be by hearing the voice of the sonne of God And Saint Paul saith that our quickning meaning this first quickning must be by no lesse then by the spirit of him that raised vp Iesus Rom. 8.11 And he likewise otherwhere ascribeth faith to the working of Gods mightie power Ephes 1.19 So that if there follow eyther will or deed in vs God worketh that also of his good pleasure and will Phil. 2.13 As Fulgentius more largely expresseth it Fulgen. lib. 1 ad MonimuÌ„ Dei est vt bonum facere velimus vt bonum facere valeamus Our will and our power of doing well are both to be ascribed to God And Augustine saith Quos spiritus sanctus intus non docet indoctirede unt August in Epost Ichan tract 3. whom the holy ghost teacheth not inwardly they depart vnlearned There are two principall causes why we should lay this to heart The first that we may not erre in the truth of religion in ascribing any thing to our selues as if we were able to stirre vp our selues For as Saint Paul saith We are not sufficient of our selues so much as to think any thing as of our selues 2 Cor. 3.5 but our suffciencie is of God And perpetuall experience reuealeth it that they which continue in this opinion of free will are egregious inueterate hypocrites dying eyther desperate or senselesse The other cause is least we should erre in the truth of affection that is to say in thinking that a lesser measure of affectioÌ„ wil serue in applying our selues to our conuersion then will For when we heare tell that what other power soeuer of the keyes is in the Church Christ himself carieth that key of Dauid Rauel 3.7 that shutteth and no man can open it will make vs to lift vp our hearts aboue all that is called the world And certainely the Spirit of God himselfe by this holy meditation lifteth vs vp to such a zealousnesse in prayer and such a contention of Spirit in making towards God in all kind of duties as they that are informed that none can conuert vs so as we shall be conuerted that is so as our conuersion shall stand good but only he We may be well assured that the Spirit of God worketh not effectually in vs if our affections be cold in turning vnto him And therefore we had need to arise make toward him Men pride themselues in a few remorsfull thoughts break the back of Gods mercie with wilful wickednes they offer sacrifice to their own hypocrisie think highly of themselues for a thing of nothing Wee had more neede to diuide our prayers and one while to supplicate seriously vnto him for stronger affections and another while to desire him to blesse those affections which hee hath