Testament without which Knowledg the Heart cannot be good nor the Life purified or suitable to the Christian Profession wherefore we are directed to search the Scriptures S. John 5.39 To incline our Ears to Wisdom to apply our Hearts to Understanding to cry after Knowledg and lift up our Voice for Understanding to seek hit as Silver and search for her as for hid Treasures Prov. 2.2 3 4. And certainly the Wickedness of the most of Men among us is greatly imputable to their utter Ignorance of these things or a very slight and inconsiderable Knowledg of them For Ignorance of God Christ and his holy Spirit and of his Attributes and providence prevents all Inclination to Piety Ignorance of the Rules for managing our Lives prevents all that Regularity in Conversation that is required Ignorance of the Promises suppresses all the Incourgement to it and Ignorance of the Threatnings hides all that which should move that Fear that is necessary to engage us in it And all this Ignorance proceeds from Slothfulness and Unwillingness to use Diligence in scearching and understanding the Scriptures in which are the Treasures of all needful Knowledg And therefore the first thing in this Work of the Lord enjoyn'd us is an industrious Endeavour after Knowledg by being conversant in the Scriptures by reading or at least diligently hearing them 2. There is included in it all that belongs to Repentance towards God consisting in a deep Sense of our many Sins against God Christ his Holy Spirit our Neighbours and our own Souls by which God hath been dishonoured Christ slighted his Holy Spirit grieved our Neighbours injured and our own Souls polluted debased and exposed to the Wrath of God as also in confessing them with Shame and Grief offering the Sacrifice of a broken and contrite Heart and in an hatred of them all attended with sincere forsaking them denying Ungodlinss and worldly Lusts and suffering no Sin to reign in our mortal Bodies being able to attest that upon making a diligent search there is no known Sin of Omission or Commission allowed loved or favoured by us But that every such Sin is opposed by our Purposes Prayers and true Endeavours 3. To this must also be refer'd all that is included in Faith And that comprehends a settled Belief of the Being and All-Governing Providence of God and of the Truth or Divine Authority of the Scriptures A continual depending on the Power Wisdom and Goodness of God and the receiving his Son Jesus Christ in all his Offices as a Prophet Priest and King And as the Lord our Righteousness our Advocate with the Father the Propitiation for our Sins the End of the Law for Righteousness to them that believe and as made of God unto us Wisdom Righteousness Sanctification and Redemption And this we do when designing Salvation by Him we search the Scriptures considered as the Word of Christ with dependance on the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of the Son that we may understand the way of Salvation and know the things of our Peace and when apprehending our Guilt and Danger by Sin we seek the Pacification of our Consciences and the appeasing of God by believing meditating upon and applying his Death and Blood as a Sacrifice and Satisfaction for Sin and when we commend all our Requests to God with Dependance on his Intercession and when apprehending his Exaltation we become earnestly obedient to him and depend upon him for Grace and Strength against all our spiritual Enemies and hope to receive from him the Crown of a blessed Immortality and a miraculous glorious Resurrection 4. To this pertains all that the Scriptures intend by Holiness consisting in the Imitation of the Divine Imitable Perfection viz. the Wisdom Righteousness Purity Faithfulness Goodness and Mercy of our Creator in cleansing our Hands and purifying our Hearts in sincerely attending the Duties of both Tables of the Law with respect to God and our Neighbour and in mortifying all those Lusts that war against the Soul as the Lusts of the Flesh including Intemperance and Uncleanness The Lusts of the Eye which are Avarice and Covetousness and the Pride of Life i.e. The ambitious pursuit of Honour and Applause and the affecting the Pomp and Bravery of the World and in filling our Minds with all the Divine Graces and holy Affections of Fear Love Trust and Hope towards God and of Love Meekness Humility and Kindness towards Men And in obeying the Laws of Christ and following his Example in being in a great measure holy harmless undefiled and separated from Sinners In doing Good reproving Sin delighting to do our Father's Will and submitting to his holy Pleasure in all things willingly drinking the Cup he putteth into our hands and in glorifying him on Earth that he may glorify us in Heaven 5. To this belongs all that the Scripture chargeth upon us in those full and comprehensive Precepts of fearing God departing from Evil loving Him with all the Heart Mind and Might keeping his Charge doing his Will walking in his Counsel chusing the narrow Way and exceeding the Righteousness of Scribes and Pharises by being impartial in our Obedience and chiefly attending the weightier matters of the Law and by being sincere and humble not glorying in our pious Attainments and Actions but rather hiding them excepting those things which for Example's sake must be publick and such as the concealing them proceeds from Cowardise and fear of Reproach 6. There is included in it the faithful managing of our particular Callings as the Magistrates being just and ruling over Men in the Fear of God the Ministers Care of Souls praying for the People and shewing them the right way endeavouring to turn many to Righteousness The Peoples revering cheerfully attending and obeying them that watch for their Souls The Parents care and bringing up Children in the Nurture and Admonition of the Lord the Child's Obedience the Master's Justice and Kindness the Servant's Diligence and Faithfulness and the Subjects unspotted Allegiance and Obedience for Conscience sake And all other our Duties in our several Places Stations Employments and Relations 7. There must be added as pertaining to it all the most serious part of the Christian Life employed in fervent Prayers and Thanksgiving Self-Examination serious and Divine Meditations and solemn and fruitful attending the Publick Worship of God consisting chiefly in the Word preached and in Prayer and Sacraments Lastly To this must be joyned the most refined and spiritual part of Religion consisting in suppressing the most inward Motions of Vanity Pride Envy Malice Unbelief worldly inordinate Love carnal Affections and Desires in keeping the Mind as much as may be intent and without Wandrings in Prayer and other devout Exercises of Religion and in attending in them to more than a natural Fervour and Devotion in the Imagination only moved by well composed and fit Words even to a Devotion consisting in the real Exercise of Faith Humility holy Love and Fear and other Graces and in
more profitable and pleasant than their own Studies and that they themselves did learn as well as teach This perhaps may seem incredible to them that were not acquainted with her But something of the Wonder will be abated by shewing how she attained her Excellent Knowledg She was an Indefatigable Reader of Books of the Scriptures especially and various Commentators upon them the best that our Language affords which perhaps are not exceeded by any other She had turned over a Multitude not only of Practical Treatises but also of Learned Books and amongst many others some of those of the Antient Philosophers translated into English gathering much from those great Lights among the Heathens so that she could interpose wisely in a Discourse purely Philosophical She was also a most diligent Inquirer and made use of all Learned Men of her Acquaintance to increase her Knowledg by moving Questions concerning the most material things as Cases of Conscience and hard Texts of Scripture and the Accomplishment of the Divine Prophecies She generally also took Notes out of the many Books she read that she might with the less Labour recover the Notions again without reading them a second time And She used a mighty Industry to preserve what either instructed her Mind or affected her Heart in the Sermons she had heard To these she gave great Attention in the Assembly and heard them repeated in her Family After this she would discourse of them in the Evening And in the following Weeks she had them again repeated and discoursed the matter of them to some of her Family in her Chamber And besides all this she wrote the Substance of them and then digested many of them into Questions and Answers or under Heads of common Places and then they became to her Matter for repeated Meditation And by these Methods she was always increasing her Knowledg or confirming the things that were known And having a great Treasure of Knowledg she improved it through Divine Assistance which she was most ready to acknowledg into a suitable Practice working out her Salvation with Fear and Trembling and was zealous of good Works Her Piety was exact putting Rules upon her self in all things and universal having respect to all God's Commands equally regarding the two Tables of the Law It was also constant and affectionate her whole Heart was given up to it and a holy Zeal attended it which Zeal was guided by much Wisdom and Prudence the Prudence never degenerating into Craft nothing appearing in all her Converse contrary to Sincerity It was also serious solid and substantial not touched with Enthusiasm yet she had a great regard to the Spirit of God as speaking in the Scriptures and by them guiding the Understanding and operating upon the Heart And as her own Practice was holy so she endeavoured also that her Family might walk in the same Steps providing for them the daily help of Prayer Morning and Evening with the reading of the Scriptures and on the Lord's-day the Repetition of what was preached in the Publick Congregation And for their further Benefit she many Years together procured a Grave Divine to perform the Office of a Catechist in her House who came constantly every Fortnight and expounded methodically the Principles of Religion and examined the Servants which was formerly done by her Chaplains till the Service of God in her Family and the Care of the Parish were committed to the same Person Thus with Joshua she resolved that She and her House should serve the Lord. With her Piety and Godliness there was joyned much Christian Love which was universal extending to all Mankind never suffering her self to hate or despise or over-look unless in the way of Censure for a Crime any Person in the World abhorring only what was vicious and evil in them But this Universal Charity admitted a Difference so as that the more Christian and Holy any were the more They had of Her Regard That Image of God that shined in a good Conversation she could not overlook in any though in some respects they were less acceptable to her valuing Grace above all the Accomplishments of Parts Breeding and Accord in lesser things And besides that all were dear to her in whom appeared the Fear of God she had also a most peculiar value for his Ambassadours and Ministers the Guides of Souls receiving them in their Ministrations as Angels of God fearing the Lord and obeying the Voice of his Servants esteeming what they delivered in consent with the holy Scriptures as his Message and Word She was very exact in matters of Justice and in rendring to all their Dues not suffering any Blot to cleave to her Hand and could not endure to have any thing without a Title in Conscience as well as in Law and was particularly tender in reference to Tithes and gave away all that she held by that * The Impropriations of Blithburgh and Walderswick in Sussex Title to him that took the Care of the Souls reserving only a little Portion yearly for repairing the ‖ The two great Chancels of the Churches there Edifices Her Charity and Alms-giving was very great and much admired by all that observed it though they knew only some part of it Every one that needed it had it in proportion to their Necessities and in the kind that was most suitable to their particular Wants She esteemed her self but as a Steward of her Estate and therefore gave away a great part of it to encourage the Ministry and to relieve the Indigent She dispersed abroad and gave to the Poor and Her Righteousness remains for ever She did most frequently cast her Bread upon the Waters and gave a Portion to seven and to eight and lent much to the Lord. And this she did willingly and chearfully and was ready to these good Works so that when there was any occasion that solicited her Charity it was never any Question with her whether she should give or not give but only in what Proportion she should extend her Bounty And for that she would many times most frankly refer her self to others saying I will give what ever you think is fit and meet in this Case having in this respect an Heart as large as the Sand on the Sea-shore and a most open Hand And as the Poor had her Charity in abundance so her Friends who needed not that kind of Bounty were yet Witnesses of her great Liberality and Generosity by which she adorned Religion and gained many to speak well of it Her Generosity was such That one would have imagined there was no room for Alms and her Charity such that it was wondered how she could so plentifully entertain her Friends But a provident Frugality and Management with the Divine Blessing enabled her to both to Admiration And her Charity was not only extended to the Bodies of others but she also most readily afforded Counsel and Comfort to them that repaired to her for Assistance in the
I glorify him by desiring and endeavouring to partake of his Grace and Happiness XVIII God's Being and Providence and Covenant are most agreeable things to purified Minds The Notion of God is most agreeable to my Mind I knew not how to live in the World if there were not a God to govern it His Being delights me his Providence supports me his Covenant and Love rejoyce me without these things I should not value my own Being and Life XIX Peace and Hope generally attend Sincerity I have Peace though not always Great Assurance my Hopes are such as keep me in the Way that leads to Heaven The Word delights me A proof of Sincerity God's Commands are not grievous to me I rejoice in the Promises his Ordinances are to me a Spiritual Feast The knowledge I have of God the notice I take of his Providence and meditation on his Word afford me no little pleasure XX. The Method of attaining Spiritual and Great Comfort Could I exercise Grace with greater strength and more fully mortifie Sin Could I believe more stedfastly pray more fervently walk more evenly and be more spiritual heavenly and humble I should have more strong and abiding Comforts But especially my Faith is weak and there is nothing I am more liable to than to distrust God and to be jealous of him and not to think my self secure without such Demonstrations of his Love as are not to be had and would take away Faith XXI A good Name is a great Blessing which God only can preserve to us A good Name ought to be valued It is better than precious Ointment a real and a promised Blessing is valuable next to Life if not equal to it It is an Honour to God and our Profession Heaven makes us capable of doing good and gives Strength to our Instructions and Reproofs and without it we become useless in the World But it is hard to keep a Good Name it requireth much Innocence Prudence and Watchfulness And when all is done unless God restrain the Spirits of Men every lying Tongue or malicious or unkind Spirit may blot our Name It is hard to preserve a good Name considering our own liableness to Miscarriages and the Enmity of the World against Holiness XXII The Certainty of a Future Glorious Life It is most certain there is a Life of Glory Not only the Scriptures assert it but it is also one of the Principles of Natural Divinity We have these things in the Heathens Creed That there is a God That the Soul of Man is Immortal and that there will be Rewards and Punishments in a Life to come But notwithstanding the Certainty of it it doth too little affect my Soul partly because there is some vail yet upon the great things of Heaven And as my Knowledge is little so my Faith is weak XXIII God must not only be known but also acknowledged God may in some sort be known and not acknowledged The one is rational and the other practical This is fruit and substance the other leaves and shadows To acknowledge God is to converse with him to have a lively sense of his Being All-governing Providence and of his Presence every-where to consider his Majesty Greatness and Glory with due Reverence his Wisdom with Esteem and Admiration his Power with Fear lest it should be improved against us and with Trust Pleasure and hope that it shall be imploy'd for us his Holiness with deep Reflection on our own Sinfulness and with desire to imitate such an excellent Patern XXIV Death is a Christian's Passage to Heaven To consider Death as a Passage to Heaven and the way to the Father will help a Christian chearfully to pass through the World and willingly to leave it XXV The necessity of having the Assistance of the Holy Ghost I find it hard to preserve entire my Communion with the Holy Spirit though I perceive my dependance upon him is very great He is the Original and Printiple of all Spiritual Life and Motion and without his continual breathing I am as a disjoynted weak Member which hath neither Consistency nor Uniformity in its Motions or Actions XXVI Conscience must not be offended by allowing any Sin I find it better to offend a World of Men than to offend my own Conscience Conscience is quickly offended but not so soon pacified Conscience hath a good Memory and will keep the Remembrance of Offences along time and give many a secret Wound and make Faith and Confidence in God weak and hinder the Vigor of Prayer and Freedom hi our Converse with him XXVII It is not good to pass immediately from much Business to Prayer I find it best to go from no kind of Employment that busieth my Head and scattereth my Thoughts immediately to Prayer it I may avoid it XXXVIII Christian Watchfulness is very necessary It is sadly experienced how Freedom from the Power of Sin may be impaired for want of Care and Watchfulness XXIX They that know God's Law and will consider and reflect will discern much Sin in themselves If we are not sensible of Sin in our Souls it proceeds either from Ignorance of what is Sin or from not reflecting on our selves They who know the strictness of God's Law and the degrees of Sin and are Observers of themselves will find many workings and motions of Pride vain Glory Love of the World Selfishness Envy and other evil Affections and that they cannot keep themselves clean without a continual Care of their Hearts XXX It is the spiritual part of Religion that is hard the outward part is easie XXXI The Remain of Sin with us is very active Sin within always works and labours to bring forth the deeds of the Flesh It is alway either enclining to Evil or hindring from Good or disframing the Soul and making it less meet for converse with God It deceives seduces and tempts and in some measure corrupts and pollutes all that we perform to God or do for him XXXII Sin cannot be mortified by our own Strength I find an Aptness when Sin afflicts me presently to promise to my self and God that I will do so no more and do resolve by Watchfulness and Prayer to prevent it And this will do something for a season till my Heat abates and my Sense of Sin wears off and then my Mortification vanishes also Therefore I resolve never to think of mortifying Sin by my own Strength but humbly to look up to God for the help of his Holy Spirit XXXIII There arises a great Pleasure from having resisted Temptations There will never be found so much Satisfaction in gratifying a Temptation as in a noble generous refusing of it The more I resist the more I find of Peace and the most pleasing Temptation denied brings with it the sweetest Consolation XXXIV It is better to prevent Sin than to admit it and then mortify it If Sin enters it must be dislodged again And it is far easier to prevent than to
eject it It is not easy to bring the Soul back again into the State in which it was before it contracted Guilt XXXV Anger is seldom innocent I have no reason to trust my Anger it is not so just and righteous as it sometimes seems to be Anger is apt to blind my Mind and then Tyrannize over it There is in it something of Rage and Violence It stirs me up to act but takes away my Rule by which I should act I find an Aptness to credit my Passion and that foments it And when I am under the Power of Passion I have cause to suspect my own Apprehensions For Passion is blind and cannot judg it is furious and hath no leisure to debate and consider Giving way to it makes me unfit to act or receive Grace Though Anger should serve the Interest of Religion and so be good yet it being a strong and fierce Motion of the Spirit it must be used with great Advice and Caution XXXVI It is very hard and difficult to give God his due Glory under cross Providences XXXVII There is a Chain of Graces It is most certain there is a Chain of Graces inseparably link'd together and they who have one have all in some good measure They who have a lively Hope have fervent Love to God and they who love God love their Neighbours and they who love God and their Neighbours hate Sin and they who hate Sin sorrow for it and they who sorrow for Sin will avoid the Occasions of it and they that are thus watchful will pray fervently and they who pray will meditate and they who pray and meditate at home will joyn seriously in the Publick Worship of God Thus Graces are combined and holy Duties link'd together and no Grace is alone It is not with Graces as with Gifts to one is given this and to another that XXXVIII To be impartial in Piety and Mortification is very difficult It is a most difficult thing to withdraw Love from every Sin To proceed a little way in Religion is not hard But it is really so to go to the Extent of Mortification and Piety something of Religion may be embraced and our own Hearts Satan and the World not offended Some Morality and an outside-Devotion is not tedious to Flesh and Blood neither doth it shake Satan's Kingdom nor trouble the most of them we converse with But when we come once to engage in a close walking with God and to live by Rule in every part of Life resolving seriously to indulge no Sin whatever we pull the Kingdom of Darkness upon our Heads Then Corruption will strive Satan will rage the World will scoff watch for our halting and glory in our Miscarriages and we shall find it difficult to run against the course of Nature oppose Satan and go contrary to Men But of necessity this all this must be for any Sin indulged will divorce us from Christ XXXIX To trust in God is a Christian 's necessary Duty I find trusting in God my most necessary Duty My Condition is such that I cannot see before me I know not what a day may bring forth I find my self weak and impotent unable to do or suffer as I ought I cannot preserve my Soul Life Health or any thing dear to me And without trusting in God I cannot expect God should fulfil any Promise it being the Condition of the Promise XL. Trusting in God produces real Comfort I find it comfortable to trust in God it raises my Hope and gives me present Rest and Quiet and holy Contentation Trusting in God like many other Duties is my Work and my Ways XLI To trust in God is one of our most difficult Duties I find it difficult to trust in God at all times When Providences cross my Expectation they discourage me and prove a Temptation through my Weakness I have but feeble Apprehensions of the Power and Goodnese of God when I come to make use of them for my particular Security and Benefit I think I may say it is easier to obey and act for God than to trust in him XLII Faith is the Root of other Graces Faith is the Principle of Spiritual Life and Motion every true good Work and Exercise of Grace take their Rise and Vigor from Faith A Christian prays reads and meditates hears hopes loves is zealous for God and doth good to others Why because he believes What is Repentance and godly Sorrow but the Soul acted by Faith upon the Belief of the Sinfulness of Sin its Opposition and Contradiction to God and of the high Obligations we are under to avoid it and of the Misery we run into by venturing upon it and of the Madness and Folly of ruining our selves by it I find Faith most necessary and that I cannot be without it Where can I go or what can I undertake wherein Faith will not be necessary If I pray or meditate it will be a strange Exercise if Faith be wanting If I read or hear the Word it will not profit me unless I mix it with Faith would I hope in any Promise I must call forth my Faith Would I be heavenly-minded it is Faith must raise me above the World Would I be zealous for God Zeal will not gather Heat unless Faith blows the Fire Would I have Peace and Joy they must be had by believing Nay I can do nothing in my more ordinary Affairs without Faith I must know and believe my Design is good and centers in my great Design which is the Glory of God And the means I employ must be known and believed to be regular and holy or I dare not make use of them And then I must be able to cast my Care upon God and to commit the Event and Issue to him or else my Business becomes burdensom to me and I have no Rest in my self XLIII The Devil is a mighty but not an invincible Enemy I have a powerfull subtile watchful and malicious Enemy to encounter with But he is a known Enemy the Word hath discovered him and his Power is limited God hath promised me Victory over him nay my Lord hath already conquered him And I am not alone in this Warfare against Satan I fight not against him singly there is a whole Army engaged in the Quarrel The whole Church prayes and fights against him the Saints collectively make War upon him All the Prayers of the Church go up to Heaven for my Assistance so that I have help against Temptation from every Corner all strike this Dart into his Side Lord lead us not into Temptation And we all fight under our Victorious Captain Christ Jesus The Honour of God and of Christ my Head is bound up in my Safety and therefore I shall conquer nay his very Temptations shall turn to my good All these Considerations are my Encouragement XLIV The Things which the Holy Ghost teacheth The Holy Spirit teacheth every gracious Soul to regard the Immortal Spirit above the Body
to observe God rather than Man and to provide for Eternity rather than Time And all their circumspect walking their redeeming their Time their daily Devotion their Self-denial Consciencious Carriage and what-ever provokes prophane Mouths to reproach them are but the necessary Effects of these three Principles of Wisdome And all the Wickedness of Ungodly Men proceeds from the want of this Wisdom XLV Holiness is a Privilege I look upon Holiness as none of the least of a Christian's Privilege But we are apt to consider it more as Necessary than as Glorious as our Duty rather than our Ornament Acceptance with God is a Privilege And is likeness to Him inferiour to it Is freedom from Satan's Malice a Privilege and is not the destroying his Image in us the same To be turned from Carnal to Spiritual from Earthly to Heavenly from Pride to Humility from Peevish to Kind from Sinners to Saints Are not these things Privileges Let this Truth be entertain'd And when we shall see the beauty of Holiness and desire it because we love and esteem it then God will open the Treasures of his Grace and give us more plentifully of the pouring forth of his Spirit XLVI The necessity of having and living by some stated Rules To the shaking off the Tyrannical Government of Passion Ambition and Self-will and that we may not be hurried by every Motion of our Minds it is necessary to have some fixed and stated Rules of Good and Evil without this we shall never live as becomes Reasonable Creatures Such is our Ignorance as we shall not know how to govern our selves unless we apply to some Rule for Information And so many and great are our Temptations that they will prevail unless we keep some fixed Rule for our Actions He that acteth always according to present Thoughts and Inclinations shall never be able to resist the offers of Sin when Temptations are present Such also is our Incogitancy and Forgetfulness that it is needful to fix some Rules for our Actions to which we bind our selves not to depart from them for this will allarm and inlighten Conscience and Conscience is the surest help to Memory Our Inconstancy also to our selves makes it needful to keep some Rules of Life that so every Thought every Company every Accident of Life may not alter our Minds and Actions XLVII We converse with God in his holy Ordinances when our Minds are sutably affected under them The way and means by which God conveys himself is by the Ordinances of his publick Worship and private Duties of Religion These are like the Tabernacle and Ark of old As they were filled and covered sometimes with the Cloud so these with Spiritual and Invisible Glory But a bare attending on these is not our Communion with God Our Communion is to have our Souls suitably affected with the matter of them When the Heart is hot the Affections moving Grace exercised when a Threatning awes us a Command delights and a Promise enters the Ear like good News in a perilous time when a Discourse of Christ inflames the Soul with Love and Desire when a Discourse of Heaven raises the Mind above the World when Truths are accompanied with Light and Love so that the Soul cleaves to them and hangs upon them this is Communion with God and then are Ordinances and Duties filled with the Holy Spirit XLVIII To govern the Tongue is one of the difficult parts of Religion 'T is hard to govern the Tongue aright much of Mortification lieth in the restraining of it much positive Sanctification in the right use of it It requites much Knowledg Wisdom Faithfulness Courage Watchfulness Deliberation Examination of our selves much Prayer yea much and strong Grace to govern it well The right governing of it is also a glorious part of our Christian Profession and mightily commends it to others XLIX He that governs his Tongue aright the same is a perfect Man The due governing of the Tongue implies and supposes whatever else goes to the making up of Evangelical Perfection Where the Tongue is governed the whole Life also is ordered by Rule And it will be found that whoever wants Grace faileth much in this Particular and discovers the want of it either by his Speech or by his Silence For the same Light which directs the Government of the Tongue the same Arguments that move to it and the same Power that assists it will enlighten us to see other Duties move as strongly to undertake them and as effectually help us to perform them L. A due Care of our Thoughts is a great Evidence of Uprightness It shews that Religion hath indeed possessed our Minds when we are careful so to mangage our Thoughts as that they be not only innocent but most frequently very serious and holy LI. Meekness produces Peace and Joy The Exercise of that Meekness which is a supernatural Grace a Disposition wrought in the Soul by the Holy Ghost which aims at God Glory and the Honour of Religion makes Conscience serene and joyful When I can reflect upon Passions restrained Injuries forgiven an Enemy loved Contentment in every Condition ready submission to every Providence and much Self-denial that God may be pleased how pleasantly doth Conscience look upon it LII Meekness gives us the possession of our selves Meekness giveth us the entire possession of our selves and the use of our Faculties But Anger and Impatience causeth that we cannot enjoy our selves nor apply to any Affair making every thing tedious and troublesom to us LIII Meekness preserves our Peace with our Neighbours As Meekness procures Peace in our own Souls so it also procures Peace and Quiet amongst Neighbours Few will strive with them that will not contend and are so far from injuring others that they readily forgive such as injure them LIV. The expectation of Death is profitable to a Christian The serious Expectation of Death not forgetting Judgment freeth us from the afflicting discomposing Apprehensions thereof It doth the Christian great Service it takes off from Carnal Pleasures Covetous Desires and Ambitious Pursuits and administers to Patience and Contentment It assists his redeeming his Time prompts him to settle the Affairs of his Soul to put his Heart and House in Order to leave nothing to be done to morrow that may be done to day It excites to frequent Examination quickens Repentance and suffers him not to continue in Sin It assists Fervency in Prayer as it drives away Worldly Cares and helps against Distraction for Death is a solemn thing and the thoughts of it breed a Passion in the Mind and all soft Passions help Devotion It sweetens all Labour Work and Duty because of the Everlasting Rest it leads unto It moves us to pray for others to counsel them and do what we can for them Thus Death in the Expectation of it is a Blessing if we expect it as certain and yet uncertain when it shall come as attended with Judgment and as putting a full End
to our Probation State And thus Death is ours LV. Formality in Holy Things must be avoided Every Real Christian hates to act in Divine Things out of Custom and Formality and the least mixture of a By-end is to him troublesome and afflicting His Actions are with Consideration and good Design He will not only pray but consider to whom and why And doth it either in obedience to a Command or as the paying of Homage to God or as an Instance of Trust Dependance and Love or as a Means of obtaining some Blessing or as an Ordinance that brings him near into the Presence of God And when he waits upon the Publick Worship it is that thereby he may make open Profession of Faith and Holiness and that he may draw nigh to God LVI The Government of our Thoughts is necessary It is no little Self-denial to manage our Thoughts strictly yet it is the most reasonable part of Religion and not properly the Heighth of Piety but the Foundation of it without which it cannot stand He that can blush at his Thoughts and endeavours to suppress them who dares not entertain the least Sin no not so much as in his Imagination looking upon God and Conscience as more than a thousand Witnesses This Man is Religious indeed This manage of the Thoughts is of great Service to a Christian it is a vast Security against many Temptations For Thoughts breed Desires and Desires increase into Passion and Passions will grow strong and being grown strong they abuse Reason and throw the Soul headlong and render it exposed to divers Temptations LVII The End of our Actions must be good Great Care must be had concerning the End of our Actions for this like the Altar sanctifies the Gift A Man's End hath a mighty Influence upon him as is the End such is the Man He whose End is worldly is himself earthly But if God be a Man's End it makes him God-like LVIII We must beware of Spiritual Sloth Spiritual Sloth brings Spiritual Poverty To have Affections in Holy Duties requires much force to which Nature is averse Corrupt Nature doth not always discover its opposition to that which is good by passionate contradicting but oftentimes effectually enough by Sloth and sluggishness LIX Detraction must be avoided We are naturally prone to speak evil of others with delight and to aggravate their Faults This Sin persisted in will shut out of Heaven as well as Murder or Theft And there is a secret Plague attending it in this Life for the way of Divine Providence is frequently Retaliation LX. The Promises are full of Support and Comfort but God must illuminate our Minds to discern what is treasured up in them The Promises which are the Covenant of Grace display'd are most precious in the matter of them and most necessary and useful to the Christian's Spiritual Life they help and support when all other things fail The Satisfaction they bring is a real true Pleasure yet their Glory and Excellency is not to be seen till God opens the Christian's Eyes and gives him a new Light There is a Vail upon the Promises or rather a Film upon the Eye of the Soul and until that is removed the Promises are dark and they have no Form or Comliness in them And though they be great and precious in themselves yet they cannot be so to us unless God and the Promise come in together The Spirit must move upon the face of the Waters before they become refreshing Streams to make glad the Heart The Christian's own Arm will not reach Comfort from them For this God must be sought and the Promise must be our Meditation LXI The Holy Ghost proceeds in his Operations gradually The Spirit of God operates gradually He teaches first one Truth and then another He brings us first to make Conscience of a Duty and then of the manner of performing it The Holy Spirit lays a Foundation in the Heart for the whole of Religion and then draws us on gradually to more and more Rules for Practice I. LET Love and Charity be Universal For no pretence whatever no not of Religion and Zeal for God can justifie your not loving any Person in the World Treat all Men with Kindness and wish them well Do them good according to their Necessity and your Power and Opportunity If Persons be above you express your Love to them by paying them the Honour and Observance their Place and Authority call for If they are in Worldly Respects beneath you manifest your Love by Kindness Affability and vouchsafing an easy Address to you If they excel in Natural or Acquired Endowments of Mind express your Love to them by a due esteem of them If they be rather wanting than excelling shew your Love by pitying them and despise not their weakness If any be in Misery compassionate them pray for them comfort them with your Presence if you can reach them relieve them according to your power If any be defamed shew your Love by stopping and rebuking the Defamation II. Be very careful not to harbour any evil Affection in your Heart against any one what-ever For though you are far from intending any actual Mischief yet you tempt God to let loose your Corruption and his Providence to permit you an Opportunity and so before you are aware you may be drawn to an Act you never thought of before Moreover by an evil Affection harboured in your Mind you will prevent the blessed Illapses of the Spirit of God and open a wide Door for the Devil to enter into you And indeed an unkind disposition towards any Man is so much akin to Satan that if you admit the one you cannot exclude the other III. Despise none for Love never rides in Triumph over Inferiours IV. Look upon all unavoidable Temptations as Opportunities for an high exercise of Grace Are you injured be sorry for him that hath done it and bless God for the opportunity of shewing your self hereby a Christian by patient bearing forgiving doing Good against Evil treating him with Meekness and breaking his Heart with Love Every Provocation is a Price in your Hand get an Heart to improve it V. Put a due value upon your Name and Reputation But be not over solicitous about it for that discovers some unmortified Lust at the bottom VI. Pursue Piety under the notion of an Imitation of God and then so great a Pleasure will result from it that neither Men nor Devils shall be able to make you question God's Being and Attributes This will raise an Esteem of it and render it lovely and make the several Duties of Religion more facile and easie and it will gradually wear out the Remains of Unbelief and unkind Jealousies of God VII Let Humility be the constant covering of your Soul and let Repentance follow all your Performances This will demonstrate your Religion is inward For if Religion be suffered to enter deep into the Heart it will always find Work for Repentance