Covetous men have ever something to say for themselves so these you see they want no words desire of gain makes them very witty But turn we our ears from them to God and hear what he saith They that wrong Levi in his substance God shall smite through the Loyns of such Deut. 33.11 saith Moses Mal. 3 8. Will a man rob God Ye have robbed me in tythes and offerings therefore are ye cursed with a curse cries the Prophet Malachi Those that say Come let us take to our selves the houses of God in possession O my God make them like a wheel still running about as if they were mad As the fire burneth the wood and as the flame setteth the mountains on fire Psa 83.13 14. So persecute them with thy tempest and make them afraid with thy storm So David Thus the Penmen of Holy Writ sharpen their Stile denouncing heavier judgments against sacrilegious persons This is therefore the third and last Question If Ananias might not keep back part of that which was his own but it cost him his life How then dare men take away from the Church that which never was their own and not think themselves subject to the wrath of Almighty God Having thus laid open the several parts of this Text and shewed the nature of this sin of Ananias and Saphira let me desire thee Christian Reader to fix thy serious thoughts and meditations upon this general Conclusion very clearly arising from the premises That there are many who call Christ Master yet are the Worlds servants Or That it is possible for a man to go far in the way to heaven yet be at length overtaken with a whorish love of this World for thus was it with Ananias and Saphira Who would ever have thought that Saint Luke writing so many things in their praise in the former Chapter should here come in with such a tragical relation There they received the Word here give ear to Satan There they prayed here hold parley with the devil There with joyful hearts they praise God here they tempt him There you read of their charity now you have seen their hypocrisie There they joyned themselves with the Apostles 1 Tim. 6.10 here for detaining the price of their Land were cast out of the blessed society and fellowship of the Apostles Summos saepe viros transverses egit avâ—ritia Salust Hominum mentibus est inspersa cupiditas corum qui in pieâ—ate consâ—â—uti vidâ—â—â—uâ— Chrystoâ—… 5. p. 204. Well doth Saint Paul say that the love of money is the root of all evil It is the root of Apostacy and falling from God This sin creeps into the heart wâ—en other sins go out and this is the sin of many Professors men of eminent parts who for Piety and Religion seem to be set in a higher rank and form than other men Curtius writing the Life of Alexander praiseth him for many things as Wisdom Valour Industry reports him very hardy a man that when frost and snow lay upon the ground would climb up the Alps on his bare hands and feet then he gives a sudden dish with his Pen Caeteruming entia animi bona c. hand tolerabili vini cupidita of aedaviâ— Q Curt. p. 158. But he was intolerably given to the love of Wine and would be drunk and that was a blemish to all his other Virtues The like may be said of many Professors that make a glorious shew hear much read much do many excellent things But their hearts are overcharged with the love of earthly things and that deprives them of salvation for that * Plaagere cos praecipit non propter homicidia non propter fornicationes aut alia postremo vitia lethali gladio animos parenns occisione jugulantia sed propter solas tantummodo opes propter insanam cupiditatem propter auri atque argenti famem ut ostenderet scilicet sufficere haeâ— homini ad aeternam dâ—mnatioâ—â—â—… â—riâ—msâ—â—â—atus olii 〈◊〉 sâ—…â—ssent Sal p 357. alone may do it as well as murther or adultery The hearers resembled to thorny ground went they not further than the rest Did they not hear the Word Did they not beleeve it Did they not receive it with joy Yet after all this were choaked with cares and riches The young man in the Gospel did he not leave Christ because he would not leave his possessions and Ananias here because he would not let go the price of his Land Judas also and Demas they both suffered shipwrack upon the same rock When Naomi went out of Moab with her two daughters Ruth and Orpah towards the Land of Judah Ruth stuck to her and would by no means forsake her Orpah she also went a good way with her wept and took on but at length she kist her mother and departed She returned to idolatrous Moab to her People and to her Gods saith the Text So a hypocrite may make a fair progress in the way to heaven read pray converse with the Saints weep it may be at a Sermon yet for all this be deeply in love with the World and have his heart there amongst his Gods of Silver and Gold And these O ye men of might have been the Gods many of you have been fighting for so long Luk. 8 14. Mat. 19.22 2 Tim 4.10 Ruth â— 15 Psal 7â— 5 Mat. 21 38. that which you have chiefly sought hath been to seize upon the inheritance and to get into your hands the price of the Land Who seeâ—h not at this day a great measure of Ananias's hypocritical covetousness and covetous hypocrisie to have been reigning in your hearts Seeming Saints you have been and servants of God but the World hath been your Master You have used Religion but as a ladder to climb up to wealth and worldly preferment which being had the ladder hath been thrown aside no matter what became of it Saint John saith 1 Joh. 5.4 This is the victory that overcometh the World even our faith to you it may be said This is the victory that hath overcome your faith even the World and your worldly hearts look into them and you will find this to have been the root of your late so foul miscarriages but manum de tabula oculos ad coelum The Lord showr down his blessings upon the head of our Soveraign Lord King Charles and so replenish him with the grace of thy Holy Spirit that he may alwaies incline to thy will and walk in thy way Bless the Great Council of the Realm assembled together in the High Court of Parliament grant that with a single eye they may look at thy glory ever preferring the publick good before their private interests Job 29.17 strengthen their hands that they may pluck out of the throats of those Cormorants the spoyl which they have so greedily devoured Rebuke the madness of those false Prophets 2 Pet. 2.3 who through Covetousness with fained words make marchandize of thy people Lord bless Levi's substance and accept the work of his hands and suffer not the means of thy Worship to come into the hands of those who count all gain godliness This heavy judgment on Ananias struck fear into all that heard it The Lord grant it may have the same effect in all that shall read these lines Act. 5.5.11 that all Israel may hear and fear and do no more presumptuously Deut. 17.13 Seeing few have conceived this sin of Sacriledge in their hearts who have not felt the judgement of God upon their backs Deut. 21.21 may therefore the example of his heavy judgments deter and keep back all men from this sin 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉
and hateth iniquity Psal 5 6. he will destroy them that speak lies and how will he destroy them St. John faith it shall be with an everlasting destruction Rev. 21.8.22.15 he will shut them out of the heavenly Hierusalem Let every one of us therefore labour for truth in our speeches and for truth in our actions ever saying with David Lord Psal 119.29 remove from me the way of Lying Thirdly You have seen what was the second ingredient the sin of lying they counterfeited the Holy Ghost Tempting of the Holy Ghost and they lyed to the Holy Ghost In the ninth verse it is called a Tempting of God How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord This then is to be taken in as a third branch of their sin and a devillish sin it is Mat. 4 6. because when the devil tempted Christ in the Wilderness he tempted him to tempt God saying Cast thy self down headlong This sin left the remembrance of it in giving a name to a place where the people of Israel tempted God at Rephidim for it is not only called Meâ—ibah of their contending and striving against Moses but also Massah of their tempting of God therefore Moses doth admonish them that they should not tempt God as they tempted him at Massah saying Deut. 6.16 Is the Lord amongst us or not Exod. 17 7. The Psalmist also testifieth that they tempted him in the Wilderness and required meat for their lust saying Behold he smote the Rock that the waters gushed out Psal 78.20 and the streams overflowed can he give bread also Can he provide flesh for his people As if it were not as easie for God to give bread as well as water but they would needs tempt him and try what he could do So here Ananias and Saphira are said to tempt the Spirit of the Lord because they meant to try conclusions and prove whether or no the Holy Ghost could espy and find out their jugling and whether he could punish it being found out This then being so great a sin to tempt God let us take the more heed of it let us take heed of presuming upon the mercy of God let us not venture to commit any sin entertaining such a thought as this into our hearts Why What if we do God is not able or he is not willing to punish us Do we provoke the Lord to anger are we stronger than he 2 Cor. 20.22 Oh let us do nothing with an evill conscience nor against the knowledge of a good conscience praying still with David Lord keep thy servants from presumptuous sins Psal 19.13 and let them not have dominion over us Their sin then for the nature of it was like Cerberus a beast as the Poets feign having three heads or like a poyson mixt and made up of three ingredients Hypocrisie Lying and Tempting of God I have done with the fourth particular the matter of their sin and proceed to the fifth and last 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Keeping back part of the price of the Land which is the Quomodo or manner of it they made a lye to God they tempted God but how Saint Luke saith it was by turning aside part of the price of the Land here was to use the School term Formale the very formality of it The devil that old Serpent had compounded and infused a new poyson into their hearts consisting of three ingredients they were the matter of their sin now the manner of acting and working and what operation this poyson had appears by their actions too open and known the first and the third selling of their Land and bringing part of the price to the Apostles feet but the second was secret and unknown viz. keeping back part of the price They began no doubt by the motion of the Holy Ghost to sell their possession and in selling of it aimed at a good and holy end that it might be distributed to the several necessities of the Church therefore they bring it and lay it at the Apostles feet A good beginning and a good end intended but Satan creeps in between them sets his foot in the midst and mars all like the envious thief in the Gospel he sows tares amongst the good seed yea so far he bewitcheth them that they presume through their hypocrisie to beguile and deceive the Holy Ghost in concealing part of the price Their sin then was a secret and voluntary withholding and keeping back some part of that which they began to give openly and in conclusion a shew of performing the whole when indeed they did but perform only some part They gave all to God they stole some of it again and would have the rest to stand for the whole Their own being given to God was no longer their own but Gods therefore their secret keeping back part was Sacriledge that is stealing of a holy and consecrated thing Now this was a sly kind of Sacriledge and hard to be exemplified out of Gods Word and it seems but a small matter for them to take some of that which so lately was their own yet seeing they were led to it by the instigation of Satan he was the Parent and that in travelling to bring it forth they grew very big being full of Distrust Presumption Covetousness Vainglory and having brought it forth it appears in the light to be a monstrous birth a hell-hound with three heads Hypocrisie Lying and Tempting of God as you have already heard And lastly seeing as the Story shews it was punisht with a sudden and fearful death as it were the ireful breath of the Holy Ghost blasting and smiting them both to death by the mouth of the Apostle therefore it is apparent from hence that this their Sacriledge suppose the lowest degree of Sacriledge this their stealing of part of their own gifts from God was a most fearful and grievous sin And from hence I propound these Queries following I. If to take it away Secretly were such a sin what is it to do it Openly II. If to take away Part what is it to take away All III. If to take away a mans Own gift were so great a sin what is it then to take away Another mans gift But these things require a fuller debate therefore let us consider of them severally I say therefore First If to steal Secretly that which hath been given and Dedicated to God were such a sin what is it to do it Openly Doth not this argue greater contempt of God greater boldness in sinning and consequently greater disobedience Therefore as it is an aggravation of the drunkenness of our times that whereas this sin was heretofore committed in the night 1 Thes 5.7 it is now committed in the light and is become as it were Psal 91.6 a noon-day devil So it is not likewise an aggravation of the Sacriledge of our daies that whereas Ananias and Saphira hid their sin
of his evill angels came upon Saul Saul throws his spear at David thinking to nail him to the wall 1 Sam. 18.11 When Satan stood up against Israel 2 Sam. 19.10 and provoked David to number the people it put him into a great straight 1 Chron. 21. and there fell of Israel 70000 men And when Satan after the Sop 1. 14. entred into Judas he most unnaturally betrayed his Master Joh. 13.2.27 and most ungratiously sold him for thirty peeces that was presently to redeem us with the ransome of his most precious bloud So here when Satan that old Serpent crept into the hearts of Ananias and Saphirae he filled them full of all mischief and brought them to destruction Why hath Satan That sin cannot be small that proceeds from such an author All men indeed are sinners the best that are do sin through the proneness of natural corruption but when men sin through the motion and instigation of Satan then their sin becomes more devillish and haynous now some men in sinning do more immediatly joyn hand in hand with the devil entertaining his motions and consenting to his suggestions they joyn with him and he with them They as his Vassals he as their Lord thus combining together and uniting their strengths they become the more strong according to that Vis unita fortior Satan indeed both by long experience and by nature is far more wicked than man therefore when he infuseth wickedness into man and imparteth to him that hellish quality of his then man committeth sin like the devil himself When he moveth counselleth perswadeth filleth or possesseth any mans heart as here he did the hearts of Ananias and Saphira he then bringeth some notorious iniquity to pass and their sin becomes no small sin Therefore above all things take we heed of devillish motions and suggestions the devil is oft exceeding sudden in his assaults Inference a spirit and very quick oh that we could be as quick when he sets upon us in flying unto God by prayer saying as the Psalmist Send help O Lord from thy Sanctuary Psal 20.2.70.1 Lord make haste to help me When the devil seeks to throw his wild-fire into our hearts let us presently take to us the shield of faith whereby we may quench those fiery darts of his and being strong in the Lord and in the power of his might let us fight the good fight When the enemy suggests any wicked thought let us rise up against it with a holy indignation and presently smite it down send it as low as hell Ruth 1.16 from whence it came and as Ruth to Naomi Intreat me not for I am stedfastly minded to go with thee so let us say to the adversary Away cursed fiend thou losest thy labour never go about to perswade me intreat me not for I am stedfastly resolved with purpose of heart to cleave unto the Lord. Thus resisting we shall not be overcome but shall even force Satan himself to flight for resist the devil saith the Apostle and he will flee from you Jam. 4.7 Secondly From the author let us go on to the quantity and measure of their sin in that word Filled Filled It is said in the former Chapter they were all filled with the Holy Ghost Acts 4.31 here 's now another manner of filling they are filled with the wicked ghost or spirit full of Satan but how did Satan fill them is a point worthy our enquiry First You see they consent together to practice that wickedness which the devil put into their hearts and herein they shew their great folly in this that they had rather at last have part of the price wrongfully and unlawfully than at the first the whole lawfully and justly and what greater folly could there be than this But how doth Satan draw them to this folly I answer by his two Counsellors Covetousness and Vain-glory Covetousness saith yet at least keep somewhat to your selves Vain-glory saith nay but give all at least in shew So then if to their folly we add Covetousness and Vainglory we shall see the measure already beginning to fill very fast Quest But with what reasons do these two Counsellors perswade the embracing of their contrary directions Answ I answer To urge contrary conclusions they draw their Arguments from contrary topicks that is from Despair and Presumption Covetousness from despair that is from want of faith and from distrust in Gods goodness reasons thus What will ye indeed give all away and leave nothing to your selves How will ye do then when old age comes upon you and you shall not be able to take pains What if you fall sick and keep your beds will these new Deacons and Overseers then provide for you Or will they not rather sleight you and not regard you Therefore keep something in store for fear of the worst you know not what may happen Vain-glory likewise from Presumption draws her Arguments thus If you give not all I assure you you shall want a great part of your praise you shall be less esteemed and regarded than such and such Joses the Levite shall be better thought of and have more repute amongst the Brethren for he hath given all Acts 4 34-37 wherefore if you will needs keep back part be it so yet seem to give all who knows that ye do keep any thing back make shew therefore of giving all so shall you provide for your selves seem as liberal as the best yet lose no part of your commendation These then are the two Counsellors Covetousness and Vain-glory the one looking at their profit the other at their credit Vain-glory draweth on Presumption Covetousness Despair Vain-glory bears them in hand that they shall be commended though they deal corruptly And Covetousness would have them think that if they sincerely yield to the motion of the Holy Ghost and strictly follow the example of the Godly then they shall be like to starve for want of things necessary See and observe from this Inference that as there is a concatenation of Vertues so also of Vices one seldom goes alone but draws and hales on another into the heart till it be filled therewith therefore saith the Prophet They draw iniquity with cords of vanity Isa 5.18 and sin as it were with a Cart-rope hence it is that wicked men are said to add sin to sin as Ananias and Saphira here did 30.1 they added one sin to another till at last they were filled with sin a whole band of the devils souldiers Folly Despair Presumption Covetousness Vain-glory these five are broke into their hearts to which if you shall add two more that is their lying and tempting of God you will easily perceive that the unclean spirit which was gone out of them at their first conversion to the faith of Christ is now returned and finding the room swept and trimmed Luk. 11.26 hath taken seven other spirits more wicked