my Soul the Lord and his Strength seek his Face evermore All other things when weigh'd in the Balance are found wanting God alone can be the Marrow and real Plenitude of a Spirit whose are infinite Worlds and all the Fulnesses of the same He and He alone can be an Enjoyment adaequate to a Will 3. O theresore Love the Lord who is the Heaven of Angels He is my stony Rock and my Defence my Saviour my God and my Might in whom I will trust my Buckler the Horn also of my Salvation I will call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised so wall I be safe from mine Enemies For whoso dwelleth under his Defence doth abide under the Shadow of the Almighty CLASS III. An Address to God for Spiritual Strength and Christian Violence in general GReat Creator of the Vniverse Benefactor of Angels Humbler of Devils and Restorer of Man Marvellous for Strength marvellous for Wisdom and marvellous for Goodness Thou hast promis'd to hear them that call upon thee faithfully in time of Trouble O do thou now say unto my Soul in this state of Difficulty I am thy Salvation Pity O Lord my darkned Mind cleanse a Heart stain'd with Sin Terrible Hosts thou seest O Lord do encompass my poor Soul Thousands fall beside me and thousands behind me and ten thousands round about me Thrones and Principalities plot against us and those whom we are too apt because of Sense to reckon our Best Friends do ensnare and betray us But alas tho' we are beleper'd with Guilt tho' we are near the Portals of Death and the Talons of Hell how apt are we to put the evil Day far from us Wherefore I beseech thee do thou by a Divine Power make me constantly sensible of Death and Judgment and the Tortures of the Damn'd invest my Soul with that Noble Violence wherewith the Kingdom of Heaven must be taken O my God I know thy Grace and that only is sufficient for me work in me therefore I beseech thee effectually in the inner Man by thy Spirit that I may habitually will and do according to thy gooâ— Pleasure so shall I be strong indeed even in the Lord and thâ— Power of his Might and be morâ— than Conqueror thro' Christ anâ— hold out to the end so shall I noâ— be dismay'd for any Terror by Night nor for the Pestilence thaâ— invisibly wounds at Noon so shalâ— I triumph the Triumphs of thy Saints and trample upon Dangers Death and Devils and keep a perpetual Jubilee with my God and his Christ CLASS IV. Prayers for particular Graces collected out of our Blessed Lord's Sermon on the Mount and St. Paul AND to the end O Lord I may be found in the Blessed Number of those who are Christ's Disciples indeed make me I beseech thee poor in Spirit a godly Mourner meek hungry and thirsty after Righteousness merciful pure in Heart dispos'd to promote Peace and Vnity ready to be persecuted for Righteousness sake and to rejoice when I am revil'd instead of reviling again O suffer no worldly Emulation to sway in my Heart and to taint my Fastings and Prayers Give me a Heavenly Prudence that my Light may shine before Men and I may nevertheless do many Good Works secretly looking for my Praise and Reward from thee Give me courage to pluck out my scandalous Eye and to cut off the scandalous Hand of my corrupt Nature and all Superfluity of Tongue and Thought for the mean Concerns of this Life O may thy Name never be utter'd without Reverence by me Suffer me not so to be angry with my Brother as to sin or to be a Judge but rather a Doer of thy Law Make me so mindful of my own Ingratitude and of that great Goodness which has nevertheless been continu'd by thee to me that in imitation of this thy great Perfection I may forgive bless and pray for mine Enemies Drive earthly Solicitude out of my Mind that my Distributions to the Necessities of the Saints laying up for me a Treasure in Heaven my Heart may be there also O illuminate my Mind that that Faculty which thou hast planted in me to be my Light may not by being dark it self overwhelm me all over with horrible Darkness I earnestly entreat thee to lay a deep Foundation of Faith within me that like a wise Builder I may build upon the Rock and be proof against Storms and Waves and Tempests always striving more and more earnestly to enter in at the strait Gate that I may bring forth the excellent Fruits of a Mind thoroughly chang'd and with diligence and trembling do those things which my Lord commands O that when my Lord comes when Death seizes me I may be found so doing O subject my Body to my Soul and my Soul entirely unto thee and erect and enlarge the Kingdom of God in it that it may be fill'd with an equitable Disposition of behaving it self so towards God and God Man Angels and Devils its Fellow Creatures and the whole subordinatâ— Creation as becomes a Christian and so be fill'd with Peace and Joy in the Holy Ghost Finally O Lord since thou hast promis'd it to those who ask it of thee with Faith and Purity Importunateness and Humility give me I beseech thee all Celestial Favours and truly valuable Bounties in that inestimable Gift of Gifts thy Holy Spirit Lord how shall our Souls be nurs'd for Heaven without the support of this Manna of the Seraphim Give me therefore thy Spirit I do again and again beseech thee else I perish to all Eternity Lord I trust in thee O let me not be confounded 2. O my God thy Mercies towards me are ineffable wherefore I present my Body which is daily fed and preserv'd by thy Bounty before thee O do thou so renew my Mind that it may be transform'd from the World to thy Likeness and make my Body and all my Actions in their Station wherein I am or hereafter may be plac'd by thy Providence a living Sacrifice holy acceptable unto thee and I may experimentally prove what is that good and acceptable Will of God 3. Awe me I beseech thee with a sense of thy Greatness and my own Meanness that I may not think of my self more highly than I ought to think supply me with Grace to have my Conversation in Heaven anâ— with all Men in all godly simplicity to love without dissimulation to abhor that which is evil and to stand fast in the Lord to prefer others in Honour before my self not to be slothful in Business to be fervent in Spirit to rejoice in the Hope to be patient in Tribulation and instant in Prayer to rejoice with them that rejoice to weep with them that weep in indifferent things to be of the same mind with others not to minâ— high things but to condescend not to be wise in my own Conceit not be overcome of evil but to overcome eviâ— with good For Christ his sake O my Father
and Body in our Closets we make our Senses do Obeisance to Faith and give an irresistible Evidence of our sense of God's Omnipresence to our own Consciences By this we keep our Souls intent on the other World and we see how far the things of the World do and how far they do not make deep Impression on our Affections But because the happy Tryal of the constant Observance of this Religious Practice recommends it more than the Tongue even of an Angel can I resign those who neglect it to the Discipline of that Mighty Spirit of God whose methods of bringing Souls to God surpass our comprehension and will proceed to shew what method makes this Religious Exercise contribute most to a Soul's growth in Grace And since I have given a Specimen of the most advantagious daily Method of Ordinary Devotion that I know of this may be done as well as I can do it by a clear and brief Representation of the Reasonableness of this Method in general As for the Seasons of the Day the Three first of them were the set Seasons of those two great Masters of Address to God DAVID and DANIEL and the Fourth Season sometimes is mention'd by the former of them and was famous in the Infancy of the Christian Religion The different Natures of the several Parts of Addresses to God and those particular holy Tempers of Soul that are peculiarly ornamental of each Part and the Propriety of each Part to the Season herein allotted for it together with the Reasons of the different Structures of each Office shall God willing be laid open in the next Chapter Wherefore the only thing which remains to be accounted for in the defence of the General Structure of the whole Daily Office is our allotment of a distinct Season foâ— each principal different Part of Address to God It is agreed by all devout Persons be the Nature of our Address to God what it will That Humility an awful Sense of God and Faith are necessary Recommendations of it because these are general Essential Ingredients of all acceptable Address to God and therefore peculiar to none accordingly I took particular care to contrive that a Vein of these run thro' every one of the Offices 'T is I presume also agreed that Petitionary Penitential Eucharistical and Intercessive Addresses to God have each of them besides those already-mention'd Qualifications that are common to them all their certain peculiar ornamental holy Tempers of Spirit which differ very much with respect to the natural Modifications of Sense which attend them tho' as they are sanctify'd they all conspire to the same end as Grief for our Sins a sense of our Wants and a joyful sweet sense of God's Mercies and the like Consequently these different postures or Spirit with respect to the different Modifications of Soul wherewith they are necessarily attended in this state tho' they are very reconcilable at different times or at the same time in very low degrees since as they are sanctify'd they carry on the same end and are but the same universal holy Frame of Spirit differently modifying the Soul at different Seasons upon different Occasions cannot be all together at the same time each in their Zenith or immediately in succession so The consequence of which is that those different parts of pious Addresses to God which require the said different holy Tempers of Mind cannot be all so solemnly perform'â— together as at different Seasons oâ— the Day tho' every part may bâ— implicitely in each and yet each Office require the vigorous exertion of but one holy Modification of Soul Wherefore whereas the usual Method of using every sort of Devotion thrice a day distinctly and explicitely either makes the solemn use of each part of Address wholly impracticable which betrays into Lukewarmness or else makes it impracticable without a great deal of time and trouble to change so many different Postures of Soul immediately one after another which inconvenience induce Tediousness and often betrays in to frequent omission of Closet Devotion to God On the contrary the Method of Distinction iâ— this Book makes Devotion be more pleasantly and intently perform'd in all its parts and with less expence of Time and hinderance of our social Duties For the Soul by this means agit quod agit does what it does to the purpose because it has but one posture of Soul at a time to provide and yet by the use of the Lord's Prayer which of it self is a compleat Office of mix'd Devotion it uses all together every Season with due Reverence though not with the utmost heighth of every Passion Thus in all the inspir'd Psalms be they Penitential or Eucharistical or of any other kind 't is easie to observe that though here and there a sprinkling of some other part of Devotion be incidently inserted yet the solemn use of it require but one reigning Cardinal Posture of Soul CHAP. IV. A View of the particular Structure of every Office OUr Sprightliness after the Refreshment of sound and temperate Sleep being a lively Image of the future Resurrection of our Bodies and naturally disposing our Minds to be brisk and chearful I could not but think the Morning the properest time for the pleasant Exercise of Religious Gratitude This Office is divided into Five Classes The First is preparatory to the due Exercise of Gratitude The two First Sections may be us'd before any Address to God it being only an Acknowledgment of the Apostacy of our Nature and our unworthiness to approach to God in order to engage us to Reverence and Humility in our Addresses and also a Remembrance of our Saviour's purchasing the Favour of Access and a Capableness of Regeneration in order to maintain within us a modest Faith and Confidence But the Third Section must be appropriated to this Office it being an express Resolution to praise God from the Consideration of our Liberty under the Gospel and Obligation thereto and especially upon the account of Christ's shedding his Blood for us which being here mention'd by the way of Eminence it is not mention'd in the next Class This Second Class begins with Glory therefore putting in execution what was resolv'd upon before By Recital is meant speaking of God in the Third Person HE and by address in the Second as THOV The former is almost as frequent in the Psalter as the latter The Second Section Commemorates God's Infinite and Incomprehensibleness in general the Third His Attributes and splendid Attendance the Fourth the Beauty and Order of the Inanimate Worlds the Fifth and Sixth the Works of Creation and Providence and particularly the Preservation of Human Nature by Birth which is a very Instructive Subject to the Thoughtful and excites wonderful Thoughts of God for our last Night's particular Preservation At last the Soul perceiving God's Mercies too many to be numbred concludes in an holy Amaze Therefore the Soul after oral Gratitude prostrates the Body to the Ground and uses
the Dedicatory of the Third Class and dedicates it self without the least reserve to God's Spirit whose Temples St. Paul hath told us good Christians are This Custom obliges us daily to remember our Baptismal Vow and 'till we have renounc'd this I do not see why this may not be an ordinary practise For our Baptismal Vow is not made the less Obligatory by our neglect of the laudable practise of the daily recognition of it Therefore I desire the Reader to say daily This Day I again dedicate c. This being done it immediately resigns it self to Providence which is another essential part of Gratitude to God And now it says I am thine O save me 't is but fitting that the Soul being wholly God's it should quite abandon the World the Flesh and the Devil as it does in the Second Section of this Class and long for the Victory over its predominant Constitution-Corruptions which is the main Victory of a Christian And because he is suppos'd the Night before to have made his Peace with God a prudent Glance upon this need not hinder but rather enhance its Gratitude by the consideration of his Compassion and Long-suffering with such noisom Creatures The third and last Section is a modest Dependance upon God for his Grace And indeed if we can rely on God for our Bodies much more should we for our Souls In the Fourth Class the Soul having discharg'd its part of Gratitude to God assumes the Boldness of Petition for spiritual Favours and vents its holy trembling and solicitude to perform its Vows The Fifth Class minds us that the Lord's Prayer is a sufficient joining of the Will with the Choir of Heaven in their Praises of the Divine Majesty and an expression of our sympathy with all who are yet left in a state of Trial and therefore 't is call'd a Catholick i. e. an universal Conclusion we do thereby extend our Benevolence to all Creatures that are actually happy or still capable of Happiness and make them Partners of our Petitionary Addresses II. Of the Noon-Office IN the midst of the Day the Soul is surrounded with Temptations and most in danger of being plung'd in the mean Solicitudes and Thoughts of this Life and therefore I cannot but think that at this time Exercises of Vigilance are a very necessary Antidote against the Infections of Darkness This first Part may be us'd before Dinner And lest the pleasing of Sense should abate our Expectation of the noble Enjoyment of Heaven we have allotted a Gratulatory Office to raise our Affections upwards and because the use of Food does naturally suggest to serious and wise Men the close social Dependence of all God's Works one upon the other which Consideration is a great Friend to Charity We have also allotted for after-Dinner an Office of Intercession for the Church Militant In the Office of Vigilance the Soul first complains of the unsatisfactoriness of all earthly Things and in the second Section strives to enlarge it self and reach after God Himself who is a real and really Noble Enjoyment and more than commensurate to the Capacity of a spiritual Nature after this in the other Class Sect. 1. to bring it self to a firm habit of Seriousness through the consideration of the difficulty of being sav'd and the greatness of natural Weakness and the vastness of the Strength and Number of its Enemies it earnestly prays for the Power of being acceptably obedient unto death And because our Saviour has assur'd us that if we seek the Kingdom of God and the Righteousness thereof all things shall be added to us and that God best knows whether Plenty or Poverty Honour or Dishonour in this World be best one for this another for that Person and one at one time and another at another time for the same Christian and therefore that we should equally be prepar'd for both the Soul does not trouble it self to make particular Prayers in the Dark for temporal Uncertainties but goes the next Class to acquaint God particularly with what it unfeignedly desires by turning the great Sermon on the Mount into a Prayer because it knows that Poverty of Spirit and Purity of Heart and the other Dispositions therein inculcated are absolutely necessary for a Man that would be eternally happy Different Circumstances of Life here may be of a very different Nature to different Persons but these are certain and necessary for every wise Petitioner he that gets these and he only is a true Favourite of Heaven Tho' 't is unlawful to Worship Angels yet 't is a great part of Charity which teaches to Rejoice with them that Rejoice to gratulate them and their happy state and helps very much towards the sublimating the Affections In the Intercessive Part of Charity I have offer'd a very long Prayer for the Clergy being very well satisfy'd that if the Laity were mov'd by our great Defects to pray as affectionately and constantly for us as they slight and rail against us not considering that our Office is still as Venerable as ever God would restore Christian Discipline some way or other and raise up many Faithful Pastors amongst us tho' it were at the expence of a second miraculous effusion of his Spirit Good Lord encrease our Faith in the use of this Prayer Of the Structure of the Evening Office The End of the Day being ordinarily the time of the greatest leisure the good Christian takes an opportunity to converse with himself and to see whether he has kept himself unspotted from the World in the pursuit of his Business Perhaps it may be thought improper to use Prayer of such a length daily before this Exercise but if we consider that the Falshood or Soundness of Internal Peace depends upon the right management of this Exercise and what a Mystery of Treachery our Hearts are a Man can never too solemnly set about it or think himself above the need of a peculiar Assistance from God in it 'T is an easie thing to know whether we are externally innocent but not so easie to know according to the true Rules of daily Growth in Grace already laid down whether or no we are in a growing or improving state of Grace which is an internal Habit. The observance of the said Two Rules after we have compar'd our Carriage and examin'd from Hour to Hour with the Sermon on the Mount is the usefullest way of examining our selves that I can prescribe This Method will be tedious to those who are not us'd to abstract themselves but by use it will grow as familiar and compendious as 't is certain and safe The abuse of the same General or Particular Confession of Sins howsoever the Day has been spent is very obvious to Men of but very little Judgment it making Confession it self to be slightly us'd nay sometimes sinful when Men are taught to live always in a tepid state by making the same Confession to our Lives end which can be only proper in
Grace that I have not to my Knowledge boldly provok'd thee in any respect this day for to thy Grace alone is this Honour due I know nothing of my self yet am I not hereby justify'd 'T is thy Sentence must make or undo me for ever O God thou art greater than our Hearts and knowest all things if therefore my State is still dangerous if any pestilential Habit still cleaves to my Soul if any Mortal Act or Word or Thought hath escap'd my Memory in my Examination enlighten me I beseech thee and suggest it to my remembrance that I may mingle my Tears with thy Mercy and Christ his Blood before I dare to slumber O suffer me not to lean on a delusive Peace But if it be otherwise praised be thy Goodness as for all thy Mercies so especially for this Gift of Innocence Keep me from being high-minded on this or any other account and give me true Sobriety of Mind that I may not through Giddiness and future Neglects fall after all from Favour 3. Glory be to thy Grace and the Merits of Christ that those many latent Deficiencies from thy Law which cleave even to the sanctified in this state will not shut me out of thy Kingdom may by degrees be lessen'd more and more here and will be wholly remov'd hereafter O cleanse me from all my secret Faults be they blotted out by the Blood of thy Son and grant that by great Advances in Grace an entrance may be vouchsaf'd me into the glorious Kingdom of God 4. With this comfortable Faith I rely this Night on thy Providence for convenient Repose and Defence both of Mind and Body In the Name of Christ I beseech thee do thou accept this imperfect Sacrifice of Prayer and Praise in his comprehensive Form I also crave pardon for the Wandrings and Imperfections thereof and do testifie my Charity to thy Creation Our Father c. THE Midnight Office OF ABSTRACTION 1. O My Soul now thou art secret unto Men but thou art not so unto God nor for all that thou knowest unto many good and bad Angels who often behold thee as well as thy Creator when thou neither seest nor thinkest of them Now therefore that thy Eyes are bound by the Darkness of the Night let thy Mind also be turn'd inwards by the profound silence of thy internal Powers that the Darkness of external Sense may encrease the Vigour of my intellectual Sight 2. Commune now with thine own Spirit O search and see whether it be fit for Communion with God which may be easily known if thou know'st whether Light or Darkness be the predominant Principle therein Call to remembrance thy Sins call to remembrance the Mercies of God dive deep into thy self and then say if thou canst that there is not something in the centre of thy Frame which is not perishable like the Efforts of thy Blood Do not be like the captive Multitude of Sense who thro' neglect of Abstraction are a secret to themselves Turn thy Nature over and over in thy Thoughts and especially view the better part thereof and observe wherein thou hast defac'd or improv'd it 3. Think 'till thou art thoroughly convinc'd and when thou art so do thou frequently consider that thou carry'st Immortality in Embrio always within thee 'T is true the Soul rather believes than sees whilst 't is thus imprison'd in the Womb. But when its Mortal Part is ripe for the Grave which may be long before even the Autumn of Man's life 't will make its entrance upon the immortal Stage 4. Think therefore of thy great Change in time before thou art forc'd to launch into the Ocean of Eternity lest the unexpected and unprepar'd-for sight of the invisible World surprize thee with another-guess Dread than that which the Faithful do find then Remember that the State of Man here on Earth is like the old Probationary State of Fallen Angels before they degenerated into Devils and like the State which all the Impenitent who are gone before thee once enjoy'd a State of Time and Opportunity a State of Work and Preparation for that State which is unalterable But the State of Saints and Fiends the State of Loyal and Apostate Angels the State of Angels and Men who have been acquitted and condemn'd before the last Tribunal is a State of exact Judgment Reward and Eternity 5. Then be thy Recompence Glory or Vengeance it will never expire there will be no escape from the one or loss of the other it will indeed have a beginning but its end will never be found Since therefore Eternity will find and keep thee such as Time leaves thee and Eternity is inestimable how canst thou value Time at too high a Rate Let the Time past suffice thee to have serv'd Pride Envy and Concupiscence Now be thou entirely a Servant of Christ and a Subject of Divine Zeal and Charity that an ample Prospect of Heaven may ennoble and enlarge thee 6. Make the Agonies of the Tormented in Hell and the Joys of the Bless'd above familiar to the Mind by Meditation that it may supplant the inchanting intimacy which sense will otherwise find in thy Soul as it does mostly in the Souls of the MANY Fancy thy Spirit to be taking leave of this Cottage of Flesh for this Custom tends greatly to the purgation of the Heart and the weaning of thy Affections from all its darling Idols It makes bare the Vanity of the World stabs the Love of an Earthly Life to the Heart and cherishes divine Love in the Soul Awake therefore O my Soul strive to be cloath'd with new Strength and to regain Paradise Meditate and abstract thy self whilst Sense is tame and quiet and does not hinder the orderly Peace of the Mind check every wanton Sally of Imagination be-aw'd with a sense of the Divine Omnipresence prostrate thy Thoughts of thy self and consider and say Great was the Rebellion and the Overthrow of the Apostate Inhabitants of Heaven Great was and is their Envy against us and the Fall of all Mankind in Adam Great is the Mercy of our affronted God and the Redemption that is tender'd by the Lord Jesus Great is our Blindness and Obstinacy deep and strong are our ill Habits mighty indeed are our Ghostly Enemies Mightier and more are the Angels that are for us wonderful is the Courtesie powerful are the strivings of the supreme Spirit with Man Sharp is the Edge of Conscience even sharper than a Two edged Sword and so great is the Peace of a good Man that it alone might satisfie and every one but himself is a stranger to his Joy Amazingly great is the change of Death so terrible also is the Day of the Lord and the Universal Judgment of Angels and Men. Who can dwell in Everlasting Burnings Are we stronger than God Who can conceive the Pleasures of Heaven What Mortal hath ever feasted upon God 7. And cannot all this provoke that aspiring Principle within me which was made
for the Enjoyment of a God to discipline its Thoughts To be choice in the Motions of my Will To make the Body know its original distance from the Soul To resist the Faction of Hell To be always on its Guard when it converses with its frail and treacherous Fellow-creatures To be a wise Steward of Time To have a mean Opinion of my self and this flowing State To keep close and constant correspondence with Heaven by frequent Prayer and Praise and holy Hungrings and Thirstings after the Beatifick Vision And in a word to use its utmost skill and all possible care to file and burnish and enrobe my Soul with all those beauteous Fruits of the Spirit which are the ground-work of the Happiness of a Man That so it may be conquer'd throughout endless Ages by the Brightness and Love of God and obtain a Place among the innumerable the eternal and inconceivably glorious Conquerors and Kings and Priests of God With this Hope return to thy Rest O my Soul The Lord guide the Lord strengthen thee and bring thee to the Haven where thou would'st be Amen for Christ his Sake A Practical Directory CHAP. I. Modestly defending clearly explaining and affectionately pressing the regular use of this New Method of Daily Devotion IT being very fitting that the Reasonableness of a Daily Method of Devotion which professes to be entirely new after so many Volumes of this Nature should be demonstrated It being likewise as fitting that those who mean well tho' they know little should not only be furnished with suitable helps to Devotion but also with a clear Explanation of pious helps by any person who offers them such Assistance that they may not pray only with Chearfulness and Affection but also with that clear Understanding which is a valuable Gift of the Spirit and recommendation of our Addresses to God as well as the other two And lastly it being very fitting that the faint hands and hearts should be animated and lifted up which the best dispos'd persons may sometimes stand in need of I have thought fit by the Adviee of some good Christians and my own Commiseration of the Ignorance of some illiterate and mine own and others Sluggishness now I have by God's Blessing finished this small part of a large Body of Devotions to add a practical Directory wherein by God's help I shall I. Give a short and clear Account concerning daily growth in Grace II. I shall consider how Closet-Devotion contributes to it III. What Method of daily Closet-Devotion contributes most liberally to it therein shewing the Reasonableness of this new Method of Devotion in general IV. I shall lay open the Structure of each particular Office and the Reasonableness of it V. I shall add two or three necessary Cautions VI. I shall conlude with some suitable Practical Exhortations CHAP. II. Of Daily Growth in Grace SInce the Real Christian 's daily Religion of the end is to grow in Grace 't is necessary in the first place to speak something concerning Growth in Grace I will therefore first shew what Growth in Grace is and secondly how a Man may know whether he grows in Grace Grace is any Degree of Beauty and Strength of Soul which is more than natural There are Degrees of Knowledge and Liberty of Will which we enjoy by Nature and are essential to the bare existence of a Nature which is partly spiritual These Degrees are the Gift of God and such as our Souls cannot lose unless they cease to be In short they are such Degrees of Light and Liberty which are consistent with a spiritual Nature's being in a state of Vncreatur'dness tho' not of Vncreatedness Now the Death of Adam and Devils not consisting in a cessation from being but a deprivation of so much Light and vigorous Rectitude of Will as is necessary to make a spiritual Creature happy Man may be and is born with certain Portions of Light and Vigour of Will which we call natural and are the issue of God's bare willing our Existence and yet nevertheless be in a state of Damnation Consequently this being consistent with the Enmity of God who will'd by an eternal Decree whether we will or no our Existence and the Existence of all spiritual Natures to be eternal but not to be eternally happy by an unconditional Decree of the same extent that which is eminently call'd the Grace of God is his Tender to us by and thro' Christ of that more than natural Degree of Light and Rectitude of Will whereby a Man is plac'd in a state of Evangelical Fitness for the eternal Complacency of God in the said Nature improv'd This Complacency of God in the said Nature improv'd arising from the said Degrees of Knowledge and Rectitude of Will is that real Immortality which Lucifer lost in Heaven and Adam forfeited in Paradise Hence 't is that both the General Capableness of human Nature's receiving this degree of Light and Liberty by Christ and also the more wise and industrious individual Partakers of the said redeemable Nature their Acquisition thereof are both call'd Grace because 't is extraordinary Compassion and Gift a greater than the Gift of a Creator only the Gift of such a degree of Light is call'd Illumination because the former degree of Light is Darkness in comparison with this and the latter degree of Scope of Will is call'd the Liberty of the Sons of God because the narrow degree of its natural Scope is a Prison when compar'd with supernatural Scope For a Devil and a meer natural Man have both of them some degrees of Knowledge and Scope and consequently of Light and Liberty otherwise they would cease to be susceptible of a Hell for 't is Heaven discern'd in themselves according to their primitive Capacity that causes that Anguish and Envy which arises from their Reflection on their foolish and ungrateful abuse of Opportunity So then a state of Grace as 't is us'd in the New Testament is a state of supernatural Light in the Soul of Man together with at least as much Rectitude of Will as is necessary to recover the Favour of God Now growth in this Grace is as essential to the flourishing Condition of the Divine supernatural Life of a Christian Soul during its continuance here it being an Human Soul's state of Adolescence as growth in heighth and bulk of Body is essential to the thriving Condition of the Animal Life till the Body has commenc'd Manhood And this growth in Grace is the Soul 's encreasing in Faith Magnanimity Heavenly-mindedness Humility Purity Charity and all such-like Divine Principles and internal Habits that are proper to regenerate Souls and are exerted in the external Exercises of forgiving Injuries prudent Provision for our Bodies and Dependents oral Prayer and Praise and the like external Subjects of the Gospel-Precepts From this account of Growth in Grace we may easily know secondly when we grow in Grace For since Grace is a state of universal Rectitude of Soul
our selves and loath and despise our selves more as we deserve The First Evening Office of Repentance for deliberate Sins may clasp with their case If we are of the Third we are wary Christians only let us be thankful and be kept humble and watchful by our secret Faults and it shall be well with us indeed 5. But tho' in the Embryo of Repentance the Penitent may close the Day with the First Evening Office yet something more solemnly if Life last must be perform'd with speed for which purpose there is a large distinct Penitential Office design'd 'Till that is publish'd I shall content my self with this Address to the Impenitent Why will ye trample on Opportunity and fight with wonderful Mercy Are ye stronger than God Is his Hand shortned that he cannot punish because his Compassion has hitherto been prolong'd to you Wherefore do ye spend your Money for that which is not Bread and your Labour for that which satisfies not Encline your Ears and bow your necks to Christ and your Souls shall live Then there will be no need as now to skip from Attempt to Attempt for the Grace of God compleated in the Soul will give satisfaction that wants no change nor new uncertain Trials O seek the Lord while he may be found call upon him while he is near forsake all your wicked Ways and unrighteous Thoughts return unto the Lord and he shall return unto you for such he will abundantly pardon for his Thoughts are not as the Thoughts of Men nor his Ways as our Ways for as the Rain comes down and the Snow from the Clouds and returns not thither but watereth the Earth and wakes it bud and bring forth so that it gives Seed to the Sower and that Bread to the Eater so shall his Word that goes forth concerning a tender contrite lowly hungry relenting Soul not return unto him void but shall accomplish that Paradise of Graces which was intended Instead of a Curse and that flaming Sword of a terrible Cherub within an horrible Expectation of Vengeance there shall arise a prospect of an eternal Kingdom Instead of the Thorns shall the Firr-tree come forth and instead of Briars the Myrtle Where Scepticism and Infidelity where Doubts and Darkness had tyranniz'd before Light and Alacrity Faith and Hope Charity and Purity shall banquet the Soul with Divine Refreshments Be wise therefore ye thoughtless be chang'd ye impenitent let the time past suffice every one of you to have spoke and thought and understood and acted as a Child Why will ye die O Children of Men and not try to become the Children of God How is it that ye can thus sottishly be contented to hug Ruine and to sprawl in your Blood Or can you conceive nothing beyond this state Nay my Brethren if God and a future Judgment be quite out of your Thoughts or Damnation tho' in your Thoughts can't wake you 't is not for me to pretend to raise the Dead you are past the help of the hands of Man and therefore I surrender you into the hands of God whose ways are unsearchable and like the great Deep He is the Lord of Possibility and spans Eternity with a Glance He of old said Hosts of Angels exist and behold they were Let there be Light and there was Light and who will say Come forth ye Dead at the signal Catastrophe of Time and Opportunity and they shall arise This same God of Might let him but say to a hardned Soul Receive the original Sensations of a Soul be alive once more as holy Angels and Saints are alive and instead of a Temple in heaps the Divine Spirit of the Man in less than three moments shall be rebuilt and become a Palace fit for the Spirit to reside in and Angels to gaze on with wonder and delight All this may be done and at the last Gasp too and perhaps has been done for a Confessor of Christ after he was forsook by Disciples when ridicul'd by Multitudes on a Cross and before the suppos'd Imposture rose from the dead all this I say may be done for the first strictly speaking Disciple of the Crucify'd Jesus and may perhaps still be done for some Persons in peculiar Circumstances foreseen only by God But is this thy case Is it likely to be such Hast thou not the general Rule This do and live before thee and wilt thou presume to deferr thy Repentance presumptuously relying on a Miracle of Grace which is not certain to thee tho' possible to God What God may do for any daring Sinner who may read this I know not but this I know and dare affirm That setting aside miraculous Changes of Soul Abuse of Opportunity continu'd to a dying Hour is sowing the Wind and will reap the Whirlwind of the everlasting Vengeance of the Almighty 6. And now true and faithful Disciples of Christ those little ones whom Angels honour Devils envy and a perverse Generation opposes and derides I cannot conclude till I have said I gratulate your Souls those Edens of God yea from my Heart I gratulate their Conversion their Passage from Darkness and Bondage to the marvellous Light and Liberty of the Sons of God And do ye gratulate and emulate each others Vertues Be courteous to all Men excel your selves and consort much together unite your Love and Force against united Malice Dangers and Temptations Be patient and watchful if it be possible allowing the Polity of Darkness no advantage by thoughtlessness or immoderate thoughts of your selves or contempt of others Let no Terror no Flattery cause you to do that which will disturb your Peace and grieve â—hat great Spirit whose select Vessels ye â—re Remember the Promises of God are â—ot Yea and Nay Quit your selves Manâ—ully in the Day of Battel die Conqueâ—ors and enter into your Great Masters's â—oy when he shall come in his Fathers and â—he Glory of his Holy Angels And since he is the Author of all Reâ—onciliation Affiance Perseverance and Plerophory in Man since by no other Name lost Man is become capable of Salvation since without him no Design can prosper I commit you with my self to his Conduct and my poor Endeavour to promote Souls to his Acceptance and Blessing In him let us trust to him with holy Triumph of Soul ascribe we O let us be glad and rejoice and give Honour unto him and say Thou art worthy O Lord to receive Glory and Honour and Power for thou hast created aâ—â— things and for thy pleasure they arâ— and were created Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive Power and Riches and Wisdom and Strength and Honour and Glory and Blessing For thou wast slain and hast redeemeâ— us unto God by thy Blood out of everâ— Kindred and Tongue and People anâ— Nation Blessing Honour Glory and Power be unto him that sitteth on the Throne and to the Lamb for ever and ever Glory be to the Father and to tâ—â— Son and to the Holy Ghost As it was in the beginning is noâ— and ever shall be World withoâ—â— end Amen FINIS
and is divided into several Parts of Purity Charity and the like according to the different Relations wherein we stand plac'd with respect ro the Creator and his Creation and which do severally display themselves in our Lives at those Seasons which Divine Providence allows for each 'T is not a Christian's business to be solicitous as to his particular external Exercises provided they be lawful and laudable in the Judgment of the Gospel and those be preferr'd if two or more such stand in competition which Providence and the Gospel prefer but his solicitude must be vigorously to exercise and improve within himself during every exercise of Vertue the particular part of universal Grace which is the Blood and Life of a renew'd Soul that is peculiar to and mostly ornamental of every present external Exercise Hence it is that a poor honest Mechanick Christian may thrive as much in Grace in his Shop as a Priest by the daily use of the Altar provided he prefers his honest Work before the Sacrament because Providence has so preferr'd it in him Tho receiving the Sacrament as to the external Solemnity of it and the intrinsick Worth of the Exercise it self is more preferrible to him and all pious Souls in it self when it does not stand in competition with that degree of secular Industry which Justice and moderate Care for a Family requires Hence also it comes to pass that as the thriving Mechanick Christian is better every Sunday or Sacrament-Day than he was the Day before because that intentness of Spirit which is the peculiar ornamental internal Exercise of the conjoin'd Worship both of Soul and Body especially when offer'd with the Memorials of the Mediator's Passion exceeds the degree of his contented submission and heavenly-mindedness which is the greatest internal Ornament of a Christian then during his last external Exercise of his secular Calling So also the next Day after the said Sunday or last Sacrament-Day if he thrives he is better than he was then because his Heavenly-mindedness during the Exercise of his secular Calling exceeds the intent Fervour of his Spirit during his last Exercise of the most solemn Worship on the last Lord's Day if Allowances in the Examination be made for the different Natures of both the external Exercises For though one external Exercise has more Religious Splendour in it self than another yet the Religious internal Splendour of the Spirit of a Christian may be diffusing it self with a daily encrease both of extent and power under both alike in case they are all us'd in their Seasons and those that are the more immediately Charitable and Religious are heartily preferr'd all Opportunities Wherefore a Christian that would daily know whether or no he grows in Grace either first considers daily the Chain of his lawful external Exercises the day past and then considers what particular Concomitant Divine Tempers of Mind are the peculiar ornamental Tempers of a Christian during each Exercise and after that takes the height of its advance in each Divine Temper during each Exercise and so by deep abstraction of Thought sees whether the progress of the Soul in the different Divine Temper which is ornamental of each subsequent Exercise exceeded its progress in the particular internal Divine Temper of each foregoing different Exercise In which procedure of practical Abstraction it always also compares the proportionable or disproportionable Advantages and Disadvantages of Divine Assistance Temptations Place Time State of Body and the different Natures of the external Exercises and the like Or secondly the Soul takes an account of its Carriage at different times during similar Exercises and compares the different Improvements of the similar Tempers of each similar or like Exercises at different times with the Circumstances of Assistance and Temptation and the like during each time of Exercise This in short seems to me to be what St. Peter exhorts us to when he exhorts the Christians to grow in Grace and to give all diligence to add to our Faith Vertue c. for if these things be in you and abound they make you that ye shall neither be barnen nor unfruitful in the Knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ But he that lacketh these things is blind From which latter Words 't is evident the Apostle does not suppose any Man in a State of Grace who has not all these Vertues always ready within him to be elicited and vigorously exerted at different Times A Man must have the Seeds of Grace within him to be in an infant-state of Grace and must be growing in all if he is a real thriving adult Christian But the Contents of this Chapter may he clearly discuss'd if God grant me Life in a particular Discourse concerning Birth May this suffice for the present purpose CHAP. III. Of Closet-Devotion's furtherance of daily Growth in Grace and the Reasonableness of the Method of this New daily Method of Devotion in general WHatever external Exercises of Religion may be only Providentially or tho' constantly yet but at some set Times necessary I presume 't is agreed by all That the Exercises of the United Devotion of our Hearts and Tongues with reverent Postures of Body in our Closets if Health and opportunity of Retirement will allow it is constantly the daily Duty of a Christian be he in the state of Infancy or Perfection He that wholly omits the Duty of Prayer and Piety lives without God He that omits it in secret is a Pharisee perhaps worse in a Congregation He that performs but always performs it only in his Mind is to be commended so far for doing that which in a lower or higher Degree is the perpetual Duty and Employ of a wakeful Christian whose continual sense of God's Presence and Goodness join'd with God's Grace and Spirit is the very Sôul of a supernatural Life But nevertheless he cannot be commended for forgetting that he is a compounded Creature and I cannot but think it my Duty Friendly to inform him That as humble Gestures of Body without a sprightly Awe of God in the Mind are the Skeleton of not real Worship since 't is not only imperfect but lifeless So the bare elation of the Soul to God if it be never accompany'd with Reverence of Body is not the compleat Worship of a Man Why should we part the Body and Spirit which God has join'd together Dost thou not believe the Resurrection of the Body If God designs to glorifie thy Body to all eternity i. e in case thou hallow it by the Purity of thy Soul why shouldst thou deny it the Honour of joining sometimes with thy Soul to do all the Honour it can to thy God Or dost thou think that thy solitary mental Homage is equal to the Homage of a simple Spirit who darest to refuse solemnly sometimes according to St. Paul's Exhortation to present and bow thy Body before God whilst thou canst present it a living Sacrifice on Earth By this united Devotion of Spirit Soul