most sanctified Nature and some Venial Defects and Imperfections or other may still leave room for the greatest of Saints to extend his Conquest Besides 't is hard to determine or fix the Bounds of Knowledge and every new Degree of Light seems to make way for more So that after all nothing hinders but that the Path of the Perfect Man may as well with respect to his Righteousness as his Fortunes be like the shining Light which shineth more and more unto the Perfect day I mean the Day of a blessed Eternity The Motives to Perfection the Fruit of it the Means and Methods of attaining it laid down in the First Section will all serve here therefore I have nothing to offer of this sort only if I forgot to pay that Deference to the Institutions of our Church which they justly deserve I do it now and do earnestly perswade my Reader to a strict Observance of them I do not only think this necessary to maintain a Face of Religion amongst us but also highly conducive to true Perfection I am fully satisfied That there is a peculiar Presence of God in his publick Ordinances That the Devotion of good Men does mutually inflame and enkindle one another That there is a holy Awe and Reverence seizes the Minds of good Men when they draw near to God in publick Worship And finally That if the Offices of our Liturgy do not affect our Hearts 't is because they are very much indisposed and very poorly qualified for the true and spiritual Worship of God CHAP. X. Of Zeal as it consists in Good Works AND now let not any one think that I have taken Pains to advance the Illumination of a Sinner to knock off his Chains and Fetters to raise him as far as might be above the Corruption of Nature and the Defects and Infirmities of Life to scatter those lazy Fogs and Mists which hung upon his Spirits and to enrich him with Heroick Vertues let no Man I say fancy that I have laboured to do all this that after all my Perfect Man might sit down like an Epicurean God and enjoy himself might talk finely of Solitary Shades and Gardens and spend a precious Life fitted for the noblest Designs in a sluggish Retirement No no as Vertue is the Perfection of Human Life so is Action the Perfection of Vertue and Zeal is that Principle of Action which I require in a Saint of God Accordingly the Scriptures describe this great this happy Man as full of the Holy Ghost fervent in Spirit zealous of good Works Such a one was Moses mighty in Word and Deed as well as learned in all the Knowledge of the Egyptians Such a one was St. Stephen as full of a Divine Ardour and irresistible Fervency of Spirit as of an irresistible Wisdom And such a one was the excellent Cornelius a devout Man one that had transfus'd and deriv'd the fear of God from his own Bosom throughout his Family and Relations and Friends too one that gave much Alms and prayed to God always What need I multiply Instances this is that which distinguishes the Perfect Man from all others the Victories of Faith the Labours of Charity the Constancy and Patience of Hope and the Ardors of Devotion Need I here distinguish a Zeal of God from the Fierceness of Faction the Cruelty of Superstition from the wakeful and indefatigable Activity of Avarice and Ambition from the unruly Heats of Pride and Passion and from the implacable Fury of Revenge it needs not No foolish no false fantastick earthly or devilish Principle can counterfeit a Divine Zeal 'T is a Perfection that shines with such a peculiar Lustre with such an Heavenly Majesty and Sweetness that nothing else can imitate it 't is always pursuing Good the Honour of God and the Happiness of Man it contends earnestly for the Faith once delivered to the Saints but it contends as earnestly too to root out Wickedness and implant the Righteousness of the Gospel in the World It is not eager for the Articles of a Sect or Party and unconcern'd for Catholick ones When it presses for Reformation it begins at home and sets a bright Example of what it would recommend to others 'T is meek and gentle under its own Affronts but warm and bold against those which are offer'd to God In a word though Love fill its Sails Divine Wisdom and Prudence give it Ballast and it has no Heat but what is temper'd and refracted by Charity and Humility Need I in the next place fix or state the various Degrees of Zeal Alas it is not requisite Zeal being nothing else but an ardent Thirst of promoting the Divine Glory by the best Works 'T is plain the more excellent the Work and the more it cost the more Perfect the more exalted the Zeal that performs it When like Mary we quit the Cumber and Destraction of this World and chuse Religion for our Portion then do we love it in good earnest When with the Disciples we can say Lord we have forsaken all and followed thee or are ready to do so when we are continually blessing and praising God when if the Necessities of Christ's Church require it we are ready to call nothing our own when we are prepared if the Will of God be so to resist even unto Blood when nothing is dear nothing delightful to us but God and Holiness then have we reached the Height of Zeal In a word Zeal is nothing else but the Love of God made Perfect in us And if we would see it drawn to the Life we must contemplate it in the blessed Jesus who is the Perfect Pattern of Heroick Love How boundless was his Love when the whole World and how transcendent when a World of Enemies was the Object of it how indefatigable was his Zeal how wakeful how meek how humble how firm and resolv'd His Labours and Travels his Self-denial Prayers and Tears his Silence and Patience his Agony and Blood and charitable Prayers poured out with it for his Persecutors instruct us fully what Divine Love what Divine Zeal is And now even at this time Love reigns in him as he reigns in Heaven Love is still the Predominant the darling Passion of his Soul Worthy art thou O Jesus to receive Honour and Glory and Dominion worthy art thou to sit down with thy Father on his Throne worthy art thou to judge the World because thou hast loved because thou hast been zealous unto Death because thou hast overcome Some there are indeed who have followed thy bright Example though at a great Distance First Martyrs and Confessors Next those belov'd and admir'd Princes who have govern'd their Kingdoms in Righteousness to whom the Honour of God and the Good of the World has been far dearer than Pleasure than Empire than absolute Power or that ominous Blaze that is now called Glory And next follow hold this is the Work of Angels they must Marshal the Field of Glory in the End
all our sinful or vain desires devote our selves to the Service of Jesus and learn to expect Happiness from nothing else but the Merits and the Imitation of his Cross So profound is the Wisdom of this Institution that it evidently speaks God the Author of it and proclaims the too common neglect of it in most parts of this Nation an in-excusable Sin and Folly 3. A Third end of Instrumental Duties of Religion is the raising and keeping up Holy and Devout Affections I know not why Passion is so commonly undervalued and disparaged in Religion unless they who thus treat it mean nothing by it but a short-liv'd and superficial commotion of the Mind which leaves no print or relish behind it and is presently succeeded by Sin and Folly Holy Passion is the vigour and strength of the Soul 't is the state and frame of the Mind when it is throughly moved and affected And therefore to form to ones self Religion destitute of Passion is little better than to content ones self with one that is lazy lukewarm and lifeless And though there be some Tempers very unapt to be moved yet 't is hard to imagine how even these can be wrought up to a Resolution or that Resolution be supported and continued without their being affected so throughly as to feel either a real Passion or something very nearly approaching one 'T is an excellent Frame of Spirit when the Soul is easily elevated and transported into Holy Passion And I find that all those Vertues or rather Acts of Vertue which are described to the Life and which are by all judg'd most Perfect and Lovely have most of Passion in them How warm and Passionate was the Love of David for his God! What Flame what vehemence of Desire was he moved by when he cries out Psal 42.1 2. As the Heart panteth after the water-brooks so panteth my Soul after thee O God My Soul thirsteth for God for the living God What awful Concussions and Agitations of Spirit did he feel when he thus describes his Fear My Flesh trembleth for fear of thee and I am afraid of thy Judgments Psal 119.120 What afflictions of Soul what tenderness of Heart do we meet with in the Repentance of St. Peter when He went forth and wept bitterly Of Mary Magdalen or whoever that Woman in Luk. 7. was when she washed the Feet of our Saviour with her Tears and wiped them with the Hairs of her Head And of the Royal Psalmist when he watered his Couch with his Tears Psal 6.6 Nor were the Pleasures of Assurance less sensible and vehement then the sorrows of Repentance when the first Christians rejoyced with Joy unspeakable and Hopes full of Glory Shall I here add that Holy Indignation against Sin that vehement desire of making some Reparation for it which is the effect of Godly Sorrow that Zeal and Fervency of Spirit in the Service of God which is the highest Character of Perfection it self Shall I call these Passions I must not for though they have the heat and agitation of Passion they have in them the firmness and steadiness of an Habit. And I wish with all my Heart that all those other excellent Affections of Soul which I before named could be rendered Natural and Habitual The nearer we come to this undoubtedly the Perfecter I doubt Mortality is incapable of any such height But the more frequent as well as the more vehement and fervent the better certainly For great is the Force and Vertue of Holy Passion the flame of Love refines our Nature and Purifies it from all its Dross the Tears of a Godly Sorrow extinguish all our carnal and worldly Lusts and the Agitations of Fear preserve the chastity and purity of the Soul 'T is plain then that our Religion ought to be animated by Holy Passions that the more frequent and natural these grow the more Perfect we are that being the most excellent frame of Spirit when we are most apt to be sensibly and throughly affected by Divine Truths By what Means we may attain to this is now briefly to be considered 'T is certain that great and Important wonderful and glorious Truths will not fail to affect us and that throughly unless Lust or Infidelity have render'd us stupid and impenetrable And that Gospel Truths are such is no doubt at all let the Conviction be full the Representation lively and the Truth will do its work 'T is for want of such circumstances and such sensible Notions of an Object as may strike the Imagination for want of close and particular Applications when Divine Truths do not move us This now does not only call us to the frequent Meditation of the most Affecting Subjects the Majesty and Omnipresence of God the Sufferings of Christ Death and Judgment Heaven and Hell but it shews also how to model and form our Meditations that they prove not cold and sluggish Let the Object of our Thoughts be described by the most sensible Images or Resemblances let it be clad with the most natural circumstances let it be made as particular as it can by fixing its Eye upon us and pointing its Motion towards us but above all and in the first place let the Proof of it be clear and strong Prayer is an Exercise very apt to move the Passion The Mind having disengaged it self from all Earthly and Bodily Affections is prepared for the impression of Truth and the Spirit of God it draws nearer into the Presence of God and the sense of this sheds an awful Reverence upon it it has a clearer calmer and more serious View of Divine Things then when it is obscured and disturbed by worldly Objects In a word Meditation is in this Exercise render'd more solemn and more particular and when the Holy Fire is kindled in the Soul it dilates and diffuses it self more and more till the strength of Desire the vehemence of Holy Love transcending the weakness of this Mortal Nature we faint under the Passions that we cannot bear The Lord's Supper is an Holy Rite wonderfully adapted to raise excellent Passions Here Christ is as it were set forth Crucified amongst us we see His Body broken and His Blood poured forth here with a devout Joy we receive and embrace Him by Faith and Love in those Symbols of His Body and Blood and Pledges of His Love The Soul must be very ill prepared it must have very imperfect Notions of Sin and Damnation the Cross of Christ Grace and Salvation which is not sensible of a Crow'd of Holy Passions springing up in it at this Sacrament Hymns and Psalms have by I know not what Natural Magick a peculiar Force and Operation upon a pious Mind Divine Poetry has a noble elevation of Thoughts it does not devise and counterfeit Passions but only vents those which it feels and these are pure and lovely kindled from above Therefore are all its Characters natural its Descriptions lively its Language moving and powerful and all is
never to be enjoyed by any but some few rare and happy Creatures the Favourites of God and Nature Pleasures that have Matter and Substance in them for such as I can no more grasp and relish than I can Dreams and Visions But to this I answer this pretty talk is all but stupid Ignorance and gross Mistakes For 1. As to innocent and vertuous Pleasure no Man needs part with it I endeavour not to deprive Man of this but to refine and purifie it And he that prefers either silly or vicious Pleasure before Religion is wretchedly mistaken For 2. Perfect Religion is full of Pleasure Had we but once arrived at true Purity of Heart what could be so full of Pleasure as the Business of Religion what can be more delightful than blessing and praising God to a grateful Soul Allelujahs to a Soul snatched from the brink of Destruction into the Bosom of its Master what can be more Transporting than the melting Tendernesses of a holy Contrition made up like Mary Magdalen's of Tears and Kisses Sorrow and Love Humility and Glory Confusion and Confidence Shame and Joy what can be more transporting than Love the Love of a Christian when he is all Love as God is Love when he desires nothing in Heaven nor on Earth but God when all things are dung and dross to him in Comparison of Jesus 4. If the Pleasures of the World be more transporting than those of Religion 't is because our Faith is weak our Love imperfect and our Life unsteady A constant and exalted Pleasure is I grant it the Fruit of Perfection alone The Peace and Joy of the Holy Ghost reigns no where but where that Zeal and Love which is an Effect of the Fulness of the Spirit reigns too I had once proposed to have insisted on the Reasons of this here but this Labour is prevented for they are very obvious to any one who hath read the Chapter of Zeal with Seriousness and Attention Lastly what is insinuated in the Objection that the Pleasures of the World are more numerous or obvious than those of Religion is altogether a false and groundless Fancy In every Place and in every State do the Pleasures of Vertue wait upon the Perfect Man They depend not like those of the Body on a thousand things that are not in our power but only on God and our own Integrity But this part of the Objection I have I think for ever baffled Sect. 1. Chap. 4. These Obstacles of Perfection being thus removed and the Mind of Man being fully convinced of the Happiness that results from a State of Perfection and of his Obligation to surmount the Difficulties which obstruct his way to it there seems to be nothing now left to disappoint the Success of this Discourse but somewhat too much Fondness for the World or somewhat too much Indulgence to the Body which I am next though but very briefly to consider § 4. There is a Love of the World which though it be not either for the Matter or Degree of it Criminal enough to destroy our Sincerity and our Hopes of Salvation yet is it strong enough to abate our Vigour hinder our Perfection and bereave us of many Degrees of Pleasure at present and Glory hereafter The Indications of this kind of Love of the World are too much concern for the Pomp and Shew of Life too much Exactness in the Modes and Customs of it too quick a Sense of Honour and Reputation Pre-eminence and Praise too much Hast and too much Industry to grow rich to add House to House Land to Land and to cloath our Selves with thick and heavy Clay too brisk a Relish of the Pleasures of the World too great a Gaiety of Mind upon the Successes too much Dejection upon the Disasters and Disappointments of it too much Care and too much Diligence an encumbring and embroiling ones self too far in worldly Affairs too much Diversion too much Ease These I say are the Symptoms of a Mind tainted with a Love of the World though not so far as to Sickness and Death However it will be enough to check the Vigour and dilute the Relish of the Mind Now the only way to overcome this Defect and to captivate the Mind entirely to the Love and Service of Religion and Vertue is to consider frequently and seriously the Rewards of Perfection the Pleasure that will attend it in another Life Had the young Man in the Gospel done this had he had as lively a Notion and as true an Estimate of the Riches of Eternity as he had of Temporal ones he would never have gone away sorrowful when he was advised to have exchanged the Treasures of Earth for those of Heaven Had the Soul of Martha been as much taken up with the Thoughts of Eternity as that of Mary she would have made the same Choice as she did They who often think how soon the Fashion the Pomp and Grandeur of this World passes away and how much better their Heavenly Country is than their Earthly how much more lasting and how much more glorious the New Jerusalem that City that has Foundations whose builder and maker is God than this City of ours which may be over-thrown in a moment will neither weep nor rejoyce with too much Passion neither buy nor possess with too much Application of Mind In one word he that so often and devoutly thinks of that day wherein Christ who is our Life shall appear and we also appear with him in Glory that he comes to love and long for it such a one will have no great Taste of the Honours or the Pleasures or the Interests of Life nor will he be slothfull or remiss but fervent in Spirit serving the Lord Whatever Degrees of Affection he had for any thing of that Nature they will all vanish he will have no Emulation but for good Works no Ambition but for Glory I mean that which is Eternal In the pursuit of this will he lay out the Strength and Vigour of his Mind for this he will retrench his Profit for this he will deny his Pleasure for this he will be content to be obscure mean and laborious for if the World be once crucified to him he will the more easily bear the being crucified to it § 5. After all there is an Infirmity in the Flesh against which if we do not guard our selves if we do not struggle heartily we shall miscarry The Spirit is willing said our Saviour but the Flesh is weak Without much Care and much Watchfulness the Vigour of our Minds will be relax'd the Exultation of our Spirits will flag and droop and we shall soon loose the Relish there is in Religion The most effectual Remedies against this Frailty and Fickleness of our Nature are two First Godly Fear and this the Purity and Presence of God the Strictness and the Impartiality of a Judgment to come the Loss of an Eternal Crown the Terrors of Eternal Punishment the
another since otherwise the Notion of Perfection would be extreamly maimed and incompleat I 'll insist therefore no longer on the use of the Words Perfect and Perfection in Scripture But as a further Proof that my Notion of Perfection is truly Scriptural I will shew 2. That the utmost Height to which the Scripture exhorts us is nothing more then a Steady Habit of Holiness that the brightest Characters it gives of the Perfect Man the loveliest Descriptions it makes us of the Perfectest State are all made up of the Natural and confessed Properties of a Ripe Habit. There is no Controversie that I know of about the Nature of a Habit every Man's Experience instructs him in the whole Philosophy of it We are all agreed that it is a kind of Second Nature that it makes us exert our selves with Desire and Earnestness with Satisfaction and Pleasure that it renders us fix'd in our Choice and constant in our Actions and almost as averse to those things which are repugnant to it as we are to those which are distasteful and disagreeable to our Nature And that in a word it so entirely and absolutely possesses the Man that the Power of it is not to be resisted nor the Empire of it to be shaken off nor can it be removed and extirpated without the greatest Labour and Difficulty imaginable All this is a confess'd and almost palpable Truth in Habits of Sin And there is no Reason why we should not ascribe the same Force and Efficacy to Habits of Virtue Especially if we consider that the Strength Easiness and Pleasure which belong naturally to these Habits receive no small Accession from the Supernatural Energy and Vigour of the Holy Spirit I will therefore in few words shew how that State of Righteousness which the Scripture invites us to as our Perfection directly answers this account I have given of an Habit. Is Habit in General a second Nature This State of Righteousness is in Scripture called the New Man Eph. 4.24 the New Creature 2 Cor. 5.17 the Divine Nature 2 Pet. 1.4 Does it consequently Rule and Govern Man Hear how St. Paul expresses this Power of the Habit of Holiness in himself Gal. 2.20 I am Crucified with Christ nevertheless I live yet not I but Christ liveth in me and the Life which I now live in the Flesh I live by the Faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me This is a constant Effect of Habits and is equally discernable in Those of Vice and Virtue that they sway and govern the Man they possess Rom. 6.16 know ye not that to whom ye yield your selves Servants to obey his Servants ye are to whom ye obey whether of Sin unto Death or of Obedience unto Righteousness Shall I go on to a more distinct and particular Consideration of the Properties of an Habit The first is a great Aversion for those things which are contrary to it or obstruct us in the Exercise of it And this is directly the Disposition of the Perfect Man towards Temptations and Sins he is now ashamed of those things which before he gloried in he is filled with an Holy Indignation against those things which before he took Pleasure in and what before he courted with Fondness and Passion he now shuns with Fear and Vigilance In brief the Scripture describes such an one as possessed with an utter Hatred and Abhorrence of every Evil way and as an irreconcileable Enemy to every thing that is an Enemy to his Virtue and his God Thus Psal 119.163 I hate and abhor lying but thy law do I love and verse 128. Therefore I esteem all thy Precepts concerning all things to be right and I hate every false way And this is a genuine and Natural Effect of Integrity or uprightness of Heart whence 't is the Observation of our Saviour Math. 6.24 No man can serve two Masters for either he will hate the one and love the other or else he will hold to the one and despise the other And indeed every where a Hatred a Perfect Hatred of Evil is accounted as a necessary Consequence of the Love of God Psal 37.10 ye that love the Lord hate Evil and therefore the Psalmist resolves to Practise himself what he prescribes to others Psal 101.2.3 I will behave my self wisely in a perfect way O when wilt thou come unto me I will walk within my House with a perfect Heart I will set no wicked thing before mine Eyes I hate the work of them that turn aside it shall not cleave to me And how can this be otherwise The Love of God must necessarily imply an Abhorrence of Evil and that Habit which confirms and increases the one must confirm and increase the other too 2. The Next Property of an Habit is that the Actions which flow from it are if we meet not with violent opposition performed with Ease and Pleasure what is Natural is pleasant and easie and Habit is a Second Nature When the love of Virtue and the hatred of Vice have once rooted themselves in the Soul what can be more natural then to follow after the one and shun the other Since this is no more then embracing and enjoying what we love and turning our backs on what we detest This therefore is one constant Character of Perfection in Scripture Delight and Pleasure are every where said to accompany the Practice of Virtue when it is once grown up to Strength and Maturity The ways of Wisdom are ways of Pleasantness and all her Paths are Peace Prov. 3.17 Perfect Love casteth out Fear 1 Joh. 4.18 and to him that Loves the Commandments of God are not grievous 1 Joh. 5.3 Hence it is that the good Man's delight is in the Law of the Lord and that he meditates therein day and night Psal 1.2 Nor does he delight less in Action then Meditation but grows in Grace as much as Knowledge and abounds daily more and more in good works as he increases in the Comfort of the Holy Ghost Consonant to this Property of Perfection it is that in Psalm 19 and 119. and elsewhere frequently we hear the Psalmist expressing a kind of inconceiveable Joy and Transport in the Meditation and Practise of the Commands of God So the first Christians who spent their Lives in Devotion Faith and Charity are said Act. 2.46 to have eaten their Meat with Gladness and Singleness of Heart And 't is a delightful Description we have of the Apostles 2 Cor. 6.10 as sorrowful yet alway rejoycing as poor yet making many rich as having nothing yet possessing all things 3. Vigour and Activity or much Earnestness and Application of Mind is a third Property of an Habit. 'T is impossible not to be intent upon those things for which we have even an Habitual Passion if this Expression may be allowed me an inclination which has gathered Strength and Authority from Custom will exert it self with some warmth and briskness Now certainly there is nothing
with the other One would think now that there should be nothing further needful to establish the Consolation of a Christian and yet God out of regard no doubt to the vast Importance and happy Influence of Assurance has furnished us with another ground of it which is The Third and Last namely the Testimony of the Spirit This Spirit as it assists us in our Examination so it ratifies and confirms our Sentence by its suffrage fortifying our assurance and increasing our Joy All this the Scripture expresly teaches us for the Spirit is called The earnest of our Inheritance the Seal of our Redemption Eph. 1.13 14. Eph. 4.30 31. 2 Cor. 2.10 2 Cor. 5. And though it be not improbable but that these and such like Places may relate more immediately to that Spirit of Promise which was conspicuous in Miracles and seems to have accompanied all that believed in the Infancy of the Church according to those Words of our Saviour And these signs shall follow them that believe in my Name shall they cast out Devils c. Mark 16 17. Yet are there Texts enough which assure us that the Spirit of God should be imparted to believers through all succeeding Ages and that this should be one effect of it to comfort us and be a pledge to us of the Divine Favour thus Rom. 15.13 Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing that ye may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost and Rom. 8.15 16. For ye have not received the Spirit of bondage again to fear but ye have received the Spirit of adoption whereby we cry Abba Father the Spirit it self beareth witness with our Spirit that we are the Children of God and if Children then heirs heirs of God and joynt heirs with Christ If it be here demanded what this Testimony of the Spirit is I answer 't is a Powerful Energy of the blessed Spirit shedding abroad and encreasing the Love of God in our Hearts Rom. 5. Tribulation worketh Patience Patience Experience and Experience Hope and Hope makes not ashamed because the love of God is shed abroad in our Hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us This is the Spirit of Adoption the Spirit of Obsignation the Spirit of Glory and the Spirit of Love happy is he who is partaker of it he has attained the Maturity of Perfection and Pleasure I can scarce forbear going in with some of the Fathers who thought that such as these could never finally fall I can scarce forbear applying to such those words Rev. 20.6 Blessed and Holy is he that hath part in the first Resurrection on such the second Death hath no power Thus far have I considered Assurance as it relates to the present time But 2. Assurance may regard the Time to come and it conduces very little less to the Peace and Pleasure of a Christian to be assured that he shall persevere in a good State then that he is now in one Let us therefore in the next place examine what grounds the Perfect Man may have for such a perswasion Now these are likewise three First The Propension and Favour of God for the Perfect Man Secondly The Sufficiency of Divine Assistance And Thirdly The Conscience of his own Integrity 1. The Favour of God I need not go about to prove that God will be ever ready to assist the Perfect Man I need not prove that his Eyes are always upon the Righteous and that his Ears are always open to their Prayers that they are the dear Objects of his Delight and Love Reason and Scripture both do abundantly attest this and the repeated Promises of God to good Men incourage them to hope from God whatever beloved Children may from a tender and kind Father Is not this enough then to inspire the Perfect Man with great and confident Hopes He knows not only that God is an immutable God free from all Levity and Inconstancy and therefore that nothing less then Presumptino and Obstinacy Habitual Neglect or Wickedness can Tempt him to recal his Gifts or repent him of his Favours He knows not only that God is faithful and will not suffer him to be Tempted above what he is able but he knows also that he has a powerful Intercessor at the Right-hand of God an Advocate with the Father who cannot but prevail Nor is this all yet he has a great many things that plead for him with God There are his Tears which are Botled up there are his Prayers and Alms which are gone up for a Memorial before God there is a Book of Remembrance written wherein all his pious Discourses are Registred and God is Faithful and cannot forget his Works and Labour of Love The Spirit of God will not soon quit the Bosom that it so long resided in it will not suffer it self to be divided from that Person with whom it had entered into so close an Vnion that it seemed as it were inanimated or incorporated with him and become essential to his Being Whence it is that the Spirit is said to be grieved when he is forced and compelled to retire 2. The Second Ground of Aslurance for the time to come is the sufficiency of Divine Assistance The good Man is well assured that God will never refuse the Protection of his Providence or the Aid of his Spirit And what can be too difficult for these Providence can prevent a Temptation or remove it the Spirit can support him under it and enable him to vanquish it nay it can enable him to extract new strength and vigour from it my Grace is sufficient for thee 2 Cor. 12.9 the Truth of which Assertion has been Illustriously proved by the victories of Martyrs and Confessors who have triumphed over United Force of Men and Devils Though then the Conscience of Human Frailty may awaken in the best of Men Fear and Caution the Assurance of Divine Assistance cannot but beget in them an Holy Confidence the Snares and Temptations of the World the subtilty and vigilance of the Devil may justly create a Sollicitude in the best of Men but when they consider themselves encompassed with the Divine Favour they can have no reason to despond 3. The Conscience of his own Integrity is a Third Ground of a good Man's Confidence he knows that nothing but crying Provocations can quench the Spirit and oblige God to desert him and he has reason to hope that this is that he cannot be guilty of He is sure that presumptuous Wickedness is not only repugnant to his Principles but to the very bent of his Nature to all the Inclinations and Passions of his Soul I speak here of the Perfect Man can he ever wilfully dishonour and disobey God who loves him above all things and has done so long Can he forsake and betray his Saviour who has long rejoyced and gloried in him who has been long accustomed to look upon all the Glories and Satisfactions of this Life as
our Thoughts and Hearts too earnestly upon the truths of it We must imitate the Thessalonians in behalf of whom St. Paul thanks God because when they received the Word of God which they heard of him they received it not as the Word of Men but as it is in Truth the Word of God 1 Thes 2.13 that is we must entertain the Gospel as that which has Infallible Truth in all its Doctrines uncontroulable Authority in all its Precepts a Divine Certainty in all its Promises and Threats and a Divine Wisdom in all its Counsels and Directions And he that thus believes will certainly find the Gospel to work effectually in him as it did in the Thessalonians What Light and Beauty will he discern in all its Descriptions of our Duty What force in all its perswasions what Majesty what Dignity what Life what Power what Consolation what Support In one word what Heavenly Vertue will he discern in each part of it and what vast and unfathomable Wisdom in the whole Composure and Contrivance of it How will he then admire it how will he love it how will he study it how will he delight in it How will he be transported by the Promises and awed by the Threats of it How will he be pierced and struck through by those Exaggerations of Sin and Captiv'd and Enamour'd by those lively and Divine Descriptions of Vertue he meets in it How will he adore the Goodness of God conspicuous in our Redemption How will he be inflam'd with the love of Jesus and be amaz'd at his Condescension and Humility This and much more is the natural effect of our receiving the Gospel as we ought and pondering the truths of it with devout and incessant Meditation This the Royal Psalmist was abundantly sensible of Thy word have I hid in my Heart that I might not sin against thee Psal 119.11 Thou through thy Commandments has made me wiser then mine Enemies for they are ever with me I have more understanding then all my teachers for thy Testimonies are my Meditation ver 98. To which I might add many other verses out of that Psalm containing the various and mighty Effects of the Word of God Nor will any one think that I attribute too much to the study of this Word of Life who shall consider that it is one of the great Works of the Holy Spirit to incline our Hearts to the Testimonies of God to write his Laws in our Hearts to dispose us to attend to revealed Truths and in one word to fix our Minds and Thoughts upon them 2. Since the Spirit together with the Gospel is a joynt Principle of Regeneration and Perfection 't is manifest That we ought to live in a continual dependance upon God He must be our Hope and Confidence in the Day of Tryal He must be our Praise and Boast in the Day of Victory and in the Day of Peace when we lie down and when we rise up we must say with the Psalmist 't is thou Lord that makest me dwell in safety Psal 1.4 We must look upon our selves as surrounded by Enemies and besieged by Spiritual Dangers as David was by Temporal And as he in the one so must we in the other expect Strength and Salvation from Him Through God we shall do valiantly for he it is that shall tread down our Enemies Psal 60.12 Many Nations compass me round about but in the name of the Lord I will destroy them And when we have conquer'd Temptations and routed the Powers of Darkness we must ascribe all not to our own strength nor to our own watchfulness but to the Grace and the Power of God If the Lord himself had not been on our side Now may Israel say if the Lord himself had not been on our side when the Legions of Hell combined with the World and Flesh against us they had swallowed us up alive Psal 124.1 2 3. Now many will be the happy effects of this dependance upon God we shall be passionately desirous of his Presence of his Grace and Favour we shall dress and prepare our Souls we shall awaken and dispose all our Faculties to receive him we shall ever do the things that may invite and prevail with him to abide with us we shall be apprehensive of his forsaking us as the greatest Evil that can befall us Lift up your Heads O ye Gates and be ye lift up ye everlasting Doors and the King of Glory shall come in awake O my Soul raise thy self above this World and Flesh that thou mayest be fit for the King of Glory to dwell in thee who is the King of Glory The Lord strong and mighty the Lord mighty in Battel that Holy Spirit that subdues our Enemies that strengthens us with might and fills us with Courage and Holy Alacrity Psal 24.7 8. Nor does the Psalmist prepare his Soul for God by Meditation only and Spiritual Recollection and Soliloquies but by a careful and circumspect Regulation of all his Actions Psal 101.2 3. I will behave my self wisely in a perfect way O when wilt thou come unto me I will walk within my House with a perfect Heart I will set no wicked thing before mine Eyes I hate the work of them that turn aside it shall not cleave to me And how earnestly does he pray against God's forsaking him Psal 51.11 Cast me not away from thy Presence and take not thy Holy Spirit from me The Result of all this must needs be Steadfastness and Growth in Holiness and Goodness For first This is the natural influence of such a dependance upon God it places us as always before Him and makes us walk humbly and circumspectly as becomes those that are awed by the Presence of so Holy a Majesty I have set the Lord always before me because he is at my right-hand I shall not be moved Psal 16.1 Secondly we cannot doubt but that God will plentifully bestow his Grace on those who thus rely upon him For where can He bestow it with more Advantage to his Glory or to the Propagation of Holiness both which are so dear to him Who is a Subject more capable of it or who can be better entitled to it then he who thus depends upon God As he begs it Humbly and receives it Thankfully so he will Husband it Carefully and employ it Zealously § 3. In Prayer Meditation and other Instrumental duties of Religion we are to aim at one or all of these three things 1. The Quickning and Enlivening the Conscience 2. The Confirming and Strengthning our Resolutions of obedience 3. The Raising and Keeping up Holy and Devout Affections Great is the benefit of each of these Tenderness of Conscience will keep us not only from Evil but every appearance of it increase of Spiritual Strength will render us steadfast and unmoveable in all the Works of God and Holy Passion will make us abound in them To spiritual Passion we owe the Zeal and Pleasure to spiritual Strength or
well prepared for it How should these Men form any Notion of a perfect and exalted Vertue of devout and Heavenly Passion What Conceptions can they have of the Power and Joy of the Holy Ghost of Poverty of Spirit or Purity of Heart or the Diffusion of the Love of God in our Souls What Idea's can they entertain of an Heaven or of Angelical Pleasure and Beatitude In a word the Religion of Men intent upon this World when they pretend to any which too often they do not consist especially in two things in Abstaining from Wickedness and doing the Works of their civil Caling and how far they may be sensible of higher Obligations I determine not Good God! What a Mercy it is to these poor Creatures that 't is the Fashion of their Country as well as a Precept of our Religion to Dedicate one Day in seven to the Service of God and their Souls But have I not often taught that Purity of Intention Converts the Works of a secular Calling into the Works of God I have so 't is Universally taught 't is the Doctrine of the Gospel and therefore I shall never retract it but ah How hard a thing is it for a Worldly Man to maintain this Purity of Intention How hard a thing is it for a Mind eaten up by the Love and Cares of this World to do all to the Honour of God! Though therefore I cannot retract this Doctrine yet the longer I live the more reason do I see for qualifying and guarding it with this Caution Let no Man that desires to be Saved much less that desires to be Perfect take Sanctuary in Purity of Intention while he suffers the Works of his secular Calling to ingross his Soul and entirely Usurp his Time If secular Works exclude and thrust out of doors such as are properly Religious it will not be easie to conceive how the Power of Godliness should be maintained how any wise Thoughts or Heavenly Desires should be preserved in such Men or how finally those who have utterly given up themselves to the wisdom of this World should retain any true value for those Maxims of the Gospel wherein consists the true Wisdom that is from above All that I have said against a Life of Business may with equal or greater force be urged against a Life of Pleasure I mean that which they call Innocent Pleasure The one and the other entangle and ensnare the Mind the one and the other leave in it a peculiar relish which continues long after the hurry both of Pleasure and Business is over But all this while I would not have what I have said be extended further then I design it to raise scruples in Vertuous and Good Men instead of reforming the too eager Applications of the Earthy to the things of this World CHAP. VII Of Motives to Perfection INnumerable are the Motives to Perfection which offer themselves to any one that reflects seriously on this Argument An hearty endeavour after Perfection is the best proof of sincerity the nearest approach to Perfection is the nearest approach to the utmost security this Life is capable of Great is the beauty and loveliness of an exalted Vertue great the Honour and Authority of it and a very happy Influence it has even upon our Temporal Affairs And to this may be added the Peace and Tranquility of a wise Mind sanctified Affections and a Regular Life Besides the Love of God is boundless and the Love of Jesus is so too and therefore I demand not a lazy feeble or unsteady Vertue but a strong and vigorous one a warm and active such as a true Faith great Hopes and a passionate Love do naturally excite us to To all this I might add that the Spirit of God is always pressing on and advancing desirous to communicate himself to us more and more plentifully if we be not backward or negligent our selves But these and many other Enforcements to the duty of Perfection should I enlarge on them would swell this Treatise to an intolerable bulk Nor indeed is it necessary for the 4th Chapter where I treat of the Fruits of Perfection does contain such Motives to it as are sufficient to excite in any one that reads them a most vehement desire and thirst after it Here therefore all that I think fit to do is to put my Reader in mind of another Life In the Glories and Pleasures of which I need not prove that the Perfect Man will have the greatest share This is a Motive that must never be out of the thoughts of the Man that will be Perfect and that for three Reasons which I will but just mention 1. Without another Life we can never form any true Notion of a Perfect Vertue Sociable and Civil Vertues may be supported by Temporal Motives and fram'd and model'd by Worldly Conveniencies but a Divine Vertue must be built upon a Divine Life upon a Heavenly Kingdom The Reason of this Assertion is plain the Means must always bear Proportion to the End where therefore the end is an Imperfect Temporal Good there needs no more then imperfect unfinished Vertue to attain it but where the the end is Heavenly and Immortal the Vertue ought to be so too Were there no other Life the Standard and Measure of the Good or Evil to be found in Actions would be their subserviency to the temporal Good or Evil of this World and by a necessary consequence it would be impossible to prove any higher degrees of Poverty of Spirit Purity of Heart Charity and the like to be truly Vertue then what we could prove truly necessary to procure the Good or guard us against the Evil of this Life And if so 't is easie to conclude what mean and beggarly kind of Vertues would be produc'd from this ground 2. Without another Life all other Motives to Perfection will be insufficient For though generally speaking such is the Contrivance of Human Nature that neither the common Good of civil Society nor the more particular Good of private Men can be provided for or secured without the practice of sociable and political Vertues yet 't is certain that not only in many extraordinary Cases there would be no Reward at all for Vertue if there were not one reserved for it in another World but also in most Cases if there were not a future Pleasure that did infinitely out-weigh the enjoyments of this Life Men would see no Obligation to Perfection For what should raise them above the love of this World if there were no other Or above the love of the Body if when they died they should be no more for ever And certainly our Minds would never be able to soar very high nor should we ever arrive at any Excellence or Perfection in any Action if we were always under the influence of the love of the World and the Body 3. A Life to come is alone a sufficient Motive to Perfection Who will refuse to endure hardship as a
clearer does the Vnderstanding grow and the more absolute its Authority The Grace of God if it be complied with and obeyed while it renders us more like God renders us more dear to him too and one Favour if it be not our own fault qualifies us for another Whoever shall observe the Scriptures will find that Holiness and Illumination advance with equal steps and grow up by the same degrees of Maturity That as we pass on from the Infancy to the Manhood of Vertue so do we from the first Rudiments of Wisdom to the Heights and Mysteries of it But on the other hand Lust obscures and eclipses the Light within Sin depraves and corrupts our Principles and while we renounce our Vertue we quench or chase away the Spirit Into a malicious Soul Wisdom shall not enter nor dwell in the Body that is subject unto Sin For the holy Spirit of discipline will flee deceit and remove from thoughts that are without understanding and will not abide when unrighteousness cometh in Wisd 1.4 5. 4. We must frequently and constantly address our selves to God by Prayer for the Illumination of his Grace There is nothing that we do not receive from above and if the most inconsiderable things be the Gift of God from what Fountain but from him can we expect Illumination The Raptures of Poets the Wisdom of Law-givers the noblest Pieces of Philosophy and indeed all Heroick and Extraordinary Performances were by the Pagans themselves generally attributed to a Divine Inspiration And the Old Testament ascribes a transcendant skill even in Arts and Trades to the Spirit of God It is not therefore to be wondered at if Illumination be attributed to Him in the New Wisdom and Vnderstanding are essential Parts of Sanctity and therefore must proceed from the sanctifying Spirit We must therefore constantly look up to God and depend upon Him for Illumination we must earnestly Pray in the Words of St. Paul That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ the Father of Glory would give unto us the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation Eph. 1.17 This Dependance upon God in Expectation of his Blessing on our search after Knowledge puts the Mind into the best Disposition and Frame to attain it because it naturally frees and disengages it from those Passions Prejudices and Distractions which otherwise entangle and disturb it and render it uncapable of raised sedate and coherent Thoughts But what is more than this there are repeated and express Promises made it so that it can never fail of Success Ask and it shall be given you seek and ye shall find knock and it shall be opened to you The Reason of which is added If ye then being evil know how to give good Gifts unto your Children how much more shall your Father which is in Heaven give good things or as it is Luk. 11. the Holy Spirit to them that ask him Mat. 7.7 11. If any of you lack Wisdom let him ask of God that giveth to all Men liberally and upbraideth not and it shall be given him Jam. 1.5 nor do I doubt but every good Man has these Promises verified to him There are suddain Suggestions unexpected Manifestations extraordinary Elevations of Mind which are never to be accounted for but by a Divine Principle Nor does this Doctrine of Spiritual Illumination or Irradiation in the least diminish the Power and Excellence of the Gospel of Christ no more than the Instruction of the Gospel does supersede that of the Spirit For we must not think that the Spirit does now Reveal any new Truth of general Use or Importance since the Canon of Scripture would on this supposal be but a defective Rule of Faith and Manners But first the Spirit may assist us in making a fuller Discovery of the Sense of Scripture Secondly the Spirit may help us to form clearer and distincter Notions of those things we have yet but an imperfect and general Knowledge of and to fix and imprint them in more lasting as well as more legible Characters in our Minds or it may recal to our Remembrance such things as are obliterated and forgotten Or finally it may produce in us a more earnest and steady Application to the Truth of God Thirdly I see no Reason why the Spirit may not vouchsafe us particular Impulses Directions and Intimations upon extraordinary Occasions and suddain Emergencies where Holy Writ affords us no Light and Human Prudence is at a Loss Nor does any thing that I attribute to the Spirit in all this detract or derogate from the Dignity or the Efficacy of the Scripture This then I conceive is what the Spirit does in the Work of Illumination But how it does it is not necessary nor I doubt possible to be determined Nor ought our Ignorance of this to be objected against the Truth of Divine Illumination We are sure we understand and remember and exercise a Freedom or Liberty of Will in our Choices Resolutions and Actions but the Manner how we do this is an Enquiry that does hitherto for ought I can see wholly surpass and transcend our Philosophy I will here close this Chapter with a Prayer of Fulgentius Lib. 1. cap. 4. After he has in the beginning of the Chapter disclaimed all Pretences to the fetting up himself a Master Doctor or Dictator to his Brethren he breaks out into these devout and pious Words I will not cease to Pray that our true Master and Doctor Christ Jesus either by the Oracles of his Gospel or by the Conversation of my Brethren or Joint-disciples or else by the secret and delightful Instruction of Divine Inspiration in which without the Elements of Letters or the sound of Speech Truth speaks with so much the sweeter as the stiller and softer Voice would vouchsafe to teach me those things which I may so propose and so assert that in all my Expositions and Assertions I may be ever found conformable and Obedient and firm to that Truth which can neither Deceive nor be Deceived For it is Truth it self that enlightens confirms and aids me that I may always obey and assent to the Truth By Truth I desire to be informed of those many more things which I am ignorant of from whom I have received the few I know Of Truth I beg through preventing and assisting Grace to be instructed in what ever I yet know not which conduces to the Interest of my Vertue and Happiness to be preserved and kept steadfast in those Truths which I know to be reformed and rectified in those points in which as is common to Man I am mistaken to be confirmed and established in those Truths wherein I waver and to be delivered from those Opinions that are erroneous or hurtful I beg lastly that Truth may ever find both in my Thoughts and Speeches all that sound and wholesome Doctrine I have received from its Gift and that it would always cause me to utter those things which are agreeable to it self in the first place and
while enslaved and defiled in their Affections and the very Liberty they boast of in their Conduct and Management of themselves openly springs from their secret Servitude to some vile Passion or other Nor yet can I be so soft and easie as to grant that such Men as these either do or can arrive at the Liberty they pretend to I mean that of Regulating and Governing all their outward Actions by the Rules of Vertue They too often throw off the Disguise which either Hypocrisie or Enmity to Religion makes them put on and prove too plainly to the World that when they lay Restraints on themselves in this or that Sin 't is only to indulge themselves the more freely and securely in others Secondly My next Remark is That it is gross Stupidity or Impudence to deny a Providence and another World when the Belief of both is so indispensably necessary to the well-being of this The Frame and Nature of Man and the necessities of this World require both Without these selfishness must undoubtedly be the predominant Principle This would breed unreasonable Desires and these would fill us with Fears and Jealousies so that a State of Nature would indeed be a State of War and our Enmity against one another would not be extinguished by Civil Society but only concealed and restrained till a fit Occasion for its breaking out should present it self Laws would want that Force Common-wealths that Bond or Cement Conversation that Confidence and our Possessions that security which is necessary to render them Blessings to us § 3. A Third Fruit of Christian Liberty is that Relation which it creates between God and us We are no longer of the World but are separated and sanctified devoted and dedicated to God Thus St. Peter 1 Epist 2.9 Ye are a Chosen Generation a Royal Priesthood an holy Nation a peculiar People And thus St. Paul Rom. 8.15 16. ye have not received the Spirit of Bondage again to fear but ye have received the Spirit of Adoption whereby we cry Abba Father The Spirit it self beareth witness with our Spirit that we are the Children of God and if Children then Heirs Heirs of God and Joint-Heirs with Christ God is our God we are his People He is our Father and we are his Children we are ingraffed into his Family The Consequence of this is his Dearly Beloved and Only Begotten Son is our Advocate at his right Hand the Propitiation for our Sins and Intercessour for us His Spirit resides with us to comfort and assist us his Angels guard us and minister to us for we are no longer the Object of his Wrath but of his Love and Care How does the Apostle triumph on this Argument Heb. 12.18 19 c. For ye are not come unto the Mount that might be touched and that burned with Fire nor unto blackness and darkness and tempest and the sound of a Trumpet and the Voice of Words which voice they who heard entreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more For they could not endure that which was commanded and if so much as a Beast touch the Mountain it shall be stoned or thrust thorow with a Dart And so terrible was the sight that Moses said I exceedingly fear and quake But ye are come unto Mount Sion and unto the City of the living God the heavenly Jerusalem and to an innumerable Company of Angels To the general Assembly and Church of the First Born which are written in Heaven and to God the Judge of all and to the Spirits of just Men made perfect and to Jesus the Mediatour of the new Covenant and to the Blood of sprinkling that speaketh better things then that of Abel And thus again 1 Cor. 3.2 Therefore let no Man glory in Men for all things are yours whether Paul or Apollo or Cephus or the World or Life or Death or things present or things to come all are yours and ye are Christs and Christ is Gods These are great and glorious things What Dignity and Eminence does this Adoption raise us to what Blessedness flow from Communion and Fellowship with God what can we want or what can we fear when we have so mighty an Interest in the Soveraign of Heaven and Earth when all his Divine Perfections are employed to promote and secure our Happiness Now sure we may rejoyce now we may glory and triumph for certainly all things must work together for our good But as fallen Angels envied the Happiness of New Created Man so do Apostate and Debauched Men envy that of the Godly And one of these will be apt to say hold Sir you run too fast these glorious Priviledges are yet but in the Embrio and all your Happiness is yet but in the Reversion Notwithstanding all these big words you must grant me that you are yet but in a State of Probation that you are to undergo Hardships and Difficulties and to live upon the thin Diet of Hope and Expectation and so I think I might take you down from Heirs of God to Servants at the best Well I will grant that we yet live by Faith and wait for the Hope of Glory Nor will I at present contend about those Pleasures that are but in the bud I will for once quit all that Preference both as to Nobility and Pleasure which Adoption and the full Assurance of Hope gives a Godly Man above a Sinner and I will take the State of a Child of God to be as the Objector would have it I will suppose him to be under Age till he come to another Life and to differ nothing from a Servant whilst he is so though he be Heir of all Yet after all if I can prove that 't is our Duty to serve God it will be no contemptible Fruit no small Commendation of Liberty that it enables us to do our Duty And that it is our Duty to serve God is plain For is it not fit that He who made and still upholds the World should govern it ought we not to pay Obedience to His Laws whose Infinite Perfections and Immence Beneficence invest Him with an absolute and uncontroulable Sovereignty over us whom should we honour with our Soul and Body but Him who is the Author of both to whom should we devote and Sacrifice what we have but to Him from whom we received all whose Praise should we shew forth but His who has called us out of Darkness into his marvelous Light whom should we obey and adore but Him who has translated us out of Bondage into Liberty out of the servitude of Satan into the Kingdom of his dear Son having redeemed us by the Blood of his Son from that Wrath to which our Sins had deservedly subjected us But this is not all I shall prove it not only to be our Duty but our Honour and our Happiness to serve God even on the supposition on which the Objection proceeds and which I at present grant 1. 'T is our Honour to
Things appear to us and the more the Mind rejoyces in the Lord the oftner 'tis rapt up into Heaven and as it were transfigured into a more glorious Being by the Joy of the Spirit and the Ardours of Divine Love the more flat and insipid are all earthly and carnal Satisfactions to it Another Effect that attends our shaking off the Dominion of Sin and our devoting our selves to the Service of God is our being purified from Guilt The Stains of the past Life are washed off by Repentance and the Blood of Jesus and the Servant of God contracts no new ones by wilful and presumptuous Sin Now therefore he can enter into himself and commune with his own Heart without any Vneasiness he can reflect upon his Actions and review each day when it is past without inward Regret or Shame To break off a vicious Course to vanquish both Terrours and Allurements when they perswade to that which is mean and base to be Master of ones self and entertain no Affections but what are wise and regular and such as one has Reason to wish should daily increase and grow stronger these are things so far from meriting Reproach and Reproof from ones own Mind that they are sufficient to support it against all Reproaches from without Such is the Beauty such the Pleasure of a well established Habit of Righteousness that it does more than compensate the Difficulties to which either the Attainment or the Practice of it can expose a Man Lastly He that is free from Guilt is free from Fear too And indeed this is the only way to get rid of all our Fears not by denying or renouncing God with Atheists but by doing the things that please Him He that is truly Religious is the only Man who upon rational Ground is raised above Melancholy and Fear For what should he fear God is his Glory his Boast his Joy his Strength and if God be for him who can be against him neither things present nor to come neither Life nor Death can separate him from the Love of God in Christ Jesus There is nothing within the Bounds of Time or Eternity that he needs fear Man cannot hurt him he is incompassed with the favour and loving kindness of God as with a Shield But if God permit him to suffer for Righteousness sake happy is he This does but increase his present Joy and future Glory But what is most considerable Death it self cannot hurt him Devils cannot hurt him the sting of Death is Sin and the strength of Sin is the Law but thanks be to God who giveth us the Victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. For there is no Condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus who walk not after the Flesh but after the Spirit These Considerations prove the present Condition of a Servant of God happy Happy in Comparison of the Loose and Wicked but in Comparison with what he shall be hereafter he is infinitely short of the Joy and Glory of his End In this respect indeed he is yet in a state of Tryal and Trouble of Discipline and Probation in this respect his Perfection and Happiness do but just peep up above the Ground the Fulness and Maturity of both he cannot enjoy till he come to Heaven And this is § 4. The Last Fruit of Christian Liberty That Heaven will consist of all the Blessings of all the Enjoyments that Human Nature when raised to an Equality with Angels is capable of that Beauties and Glories Joys and Pleasures will as it were like a fruitful and ripe Harvest here grow up there in all the utmost Plenty and Perfection that Omnipotence it self will e're produce is not at all to be controverted Heaven is the Master-piece of God the Accomplishment and Consummation of all his wonderful Designs the last and most endearing Expression of boundless Love And hence it is that the Holy Spirit in Scripture describes it by the most taking and the most admired things upon Earth and yet we cannot but think that this Image though drawn by a Divine Pencil must fall infinitely short of it For what temporal things can yield Colours or Metaphors strong and rich enough to paint Heaven to the Life One thing there is indeed which seems to point us to a just and adequate Notion of an Heaven it seems to excite us to strive and attempt for Conceptions of what we cannot grasp we cannot comprehend and the labouring Mind the more it discovers concludes still the more behind and that is the Beatifick Vision This is that which as Divines generally teach does constitute Heaven and Scripture seems to teach so too I confess I have often doubted whether our seeing God in the Life to come did necessarily imply that God should be the immediate Object of our Fruition or only that we should there as it were drink at the Fountain Head and being near and dear to Him in the highest Degree should ever flourish in his Favour and enjoy all Good heap'd up press'd down and running over I thought the Scriptures might be easily reconciled to this sense and the Incomprehensible Glory of the Divine Majesty inclin'd me to believe it the most reasonable and most easily accountable Injoyment and especially where an Intelligent Being is the Object of it seem'd to imply something of Proportion something of Equality something of Familiarity But ah what Proportion thought I can there ever be between Finite and Infinite what Equality between a poor Creature and his incomprehensible Creatour what Eye shall gave on the splendours of his essential Beauty when the very Light He dwells in is inaccessible and even the Brightness he vailes himself in is too dazling even for Cherub and Seraphs for ought I know to behold Ah! what Familiarity can there be between this Eternal and inconceiveable Majesty and Beings which He has formed out of nothing And when on this occasion I reflected on the Effects which the Presence of Angels had upon the Prophets and saw Human Nature in Man Sinking and dying away because unable to sustain the Glory of one of their Fellow-Creatures I thought my self in a manner obliged to yield and stand out no longer against a Notion which though differing from what was generally received seemed to have more Reason on its side and to be more intelligible But when I called to mind that God does not disdain even while we are in a state of Probation and Humility of Infirmity and Mortality to account us not only his Servants and his People but his Friends and his Children I began to question the former Opinion and when I had survey'd the Nature of Fruition and the various Ways of it a little more attentively I wholly quitted it For I observed that the Enjoyment is most transporting where Admiration mingles with our Passion where the beloved Object stands not upon the same Level with us but condescends to meet a Vertuous and aspiring and ambitious Affection Thus the happy Favourite enjoys
this Chapter is grown much too big already And to the consideration of the Fruit of this Liberty which I have so long insisted on nothing more needs to be added but the Observation of those Rules which I shall lay down in the following Chapters For whatever Advice will secure the several Parts of our Liberty will consequently secure the whole I will therefore close this Chapter here with a brief Exhortation to endeavour after Deliverance from Sin How many and powerful Motives have we to it Would we free our selves from the Evils of this Life let us dam up the Source of them which is Sin Would we surmount the Fear of Death let us disarm it of its Sting and this is Sin Would we perfect and accomplish our Natures with all excellent Qualities 't is Righteousness wherein consists the Image of God and Participation of the Divine Nature 't is the cleansing our selves from all Filthiness of the Flesh and Spirit and the perfecting Holiness in the fear of God that must transform us from Glory to Glory Would we be Masters of the most glorious Fortunes 't is Righteousness that will make us Heirs of God and Joynt-Heirs with Christ 't is the Conquest of our Sins and the abounding in good Works that will make us rich towards God and lay up for us a good Foundation for the Life to come Are we ambitious of Honour let us free our selves from the servitude of Sin 'T is Vertue only that is truly honourable and Praise-worthy and nothing surely can entitle us to so noble a Relation for this allies us to God For as our Saviour speaks they only are the Children of Abraham who do the Works of Abraham the Children of God who do the Works of God These are they who are born again not of the Will of the Flesh or of the Will of Man but of God These are they who are incorporated into the Body of Christ and being ruled and animated by his Spirit are entitled to all the blessed Effects of his Merit and Intercession These are they in a word who have overcome and will one day sit down with Christ in his Throne even as He also overcame and is set down with his Father in his Throne Rev. 3.21 Good God! how absurd and perverse all our Desires and Projects are We complain of the Evils of the World and yet we hugg the Causes of them and cherish those Vices whose fatal Wounds are ever big with numerous and intollerable Plagues We fear Death and would get rid of this Fear not by disarming but sharpning its Sting not by subduing but forgetting it We love Wealth and Treasure but 't is that which is Temporal not Eternal We receive Honour one of another but we seek not that which comes from God only We are fond of Ease and Pleasure and at the same time we wander from those Paths of Wisdom which alone can bring us to it For in a word 't is this Christian Liberty that makes Men truly free not the being in bondage to no Man but to no Sin not the doing what we list but what we ought 'T is Christian Liberty that makes us truly great and truly glorious for this alone renders us Serviceable to others and Easie to our selves Benefactors to the World and delightsome at home 't is Christian Liberty makes us truly prosperous truly fortunate because it makes us truly happy filling us with Joy and Peace and making us abound in hope through the Power of the Holy Ghost CHAP. IV. Of Liberty as it relates to Original Sin WHatever Difficulties the Doctrine of Original Sin really be involved in or seem at least to some to be so they will not concern me who am no further obliged to consider it than as it is an Impediment of Perfection For though there be much Disputes about Original Sin there is little or none about Original Corruption the Reality of this is generally acknowledged though the Guilt the Sinfulness or Immorality of it be controverted And though there be Diversity of Opinions concerning the Effects of Original Corruption in Eternity yet there is no Doubt at all made but that it incites and instigates us to actual Sin and is the Seed-plot of Human Folly and Wickedness All Men I think are agreed that there is a Byass and strong Propension in our Nature towards the Things of the World and the Body That the subordination of the Body to the Soul and of the Soul to God wherein consists Righteousness is subverted and overthrown That we have Appetites which clash with and oppose the Commands of God not only when they threaten Violence to our Nature as in the Cases of Confession and Martyrdom but also when they only prune its Luxuriancy and Extravagance That we do not only desire sensitive Pleasure but even to that Degree that it hurries and transports us beyond the Bounds that Reason and Religion set us We have not only an Aversion for Pain and Toil and Death but to that Excess that it tempts us to renounce God and our Duty for the sake of Carnal Ease and Temporal safety And finally that we are so backward to entertain the Belief of revealed Truths so prone to terminate our Thoughts on and confine our Desires within this visible World as our Portion and to look upon our selves no other than the mortal and corruptible Inhabitants of it that this makes us selfish and sordid proud and ambitious false subtle and contentious to the endless Disturbance of Mankind and our selves That this I say is the state of Nature that this is the Corruption we Labour under all Men I think are agreed And no wonder for did a Controversie arise about this there would be no need to appeal any further for the Decision of it than to ones own Experience this would tell every one that thus it is in Fact and Reason if we will consult it will tell us why it is so for what other than this can be the Condition of Man who enters the World with a Soul so dark and destitute of Divine Light so deeply immerced and plung'd into Flesh and Blood so tenderly and intimately affected by Bodily Sensations and with a Body so adapted and suited to the Things of this World and fastened to it by the Charms of Pleasure and the Bonds of Interest Convenience and Necessity This Account of Original Corruption agrees very well with that St. Paul gives us of it Rom. 7. and elsewhere And with that Assertion of our Lord and Master on which he builds the necessity of Regeneration by Water and the Holy Spirit Joh. 3.6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit Having thus briefly explained what I mean in this Chapter by Original Sin I am next to consider these two Things 1. How far this Distemper of Nature is curable 2. Which way this Cure is to be effected As to the first Enquiry I would
not be understood to proceed in it with a regard to all the Regenerate in General but only to the Perfect for the strength of Original Sin cannot but be very different in new Converts or Babes in Grace and in such as are advanced to an Habit of Righteousness This being premised I think I may on good Ground resolve That Original Sin in the Perfect Man may be so far reduced and master'd as to give him but very rare and slight Disturbance This seems to me evident from the great Change that must be wrought in him who is converted from a Sinner into a Saint If any Man be in Christ he is a new Creature old things are past away behold all things are become new 2 Cor. 5.17 and it is hard to conceive this new Nature without new Propensions and Inclinations not only different from but repugnant to our former Original and Corrupt ones or at least we must suppose this new Creation so far to have reformed and corrected the Man that Original Corruption has lost the Strength and Force which before it had This will be more clear yet if we observe never so slightly the several Parts of this great Change First the Soul of an excellent Person is filled with an unfeigned and habitual Sorrow for and Detestation of all Sin I hate saith the Psalmist every false way And how inconsistent is the strength and Heat of corrupt Propensions with the Tears and Aversions of a true Penitent how tame is the Body how pure the Mind when the Man is possess'd with a firm and holy Indignation against Sin when he dissolves in the pious Tenderness of a contrite Spirit Next the Soul of a good Man is possessed with an ardent Love of God and of Jesus with a firm Belief and a steady Hope of a blessed Eternity with enlightened Eyes he beholds the Vanity of all earthly Things and admires the Solidity the Weight and Duration of Heavenly Glory he is risen with Christ and therefore seeks those things that are above where Christ sits on the right hand of God He has set his Affection on things above and not on things on the Earth for he is dead and his Life is hid with Christ in God And must we not now suppose such a one cleansed and purified from all corrupt Affections when the very Bent of his Soul is quite another way must we not suppose the Force and Strength of depraved Nature overpowred and subdued by these heavenly Affections How mortified must such a Man be to the World and to the Body how feeble is the Opposition that inferiour Nature can raise against a Mind invested with so absolute and soveraign Authority and endowed with Light and Strength from above Lastly the Perfect Man has not only crucified the Inordinate and sinful Lusts and Affections of the Body but has also obtained a great Mastery even over the natural Appetites of it how else can it be that his Desires and Hopes are in Heaven that he waits for the Lord from thence that he desires to be dissolved and to be with Christ and groans to be rid of the corruptible Tabernacle of the Body He that is thus above the Body may certainly be concluded to be in some degree above even the most natural Appetites He that has set himself free in a great Measure even from his Aversion to Death and in his Affection at least very much loosen'd the bond the knot that unties Soul and Body may certainly very reasonably be presumed to be much more above all covetous ambitious or wanton Inclinations These are the Grounds on which I attribute to the Perfect Man so high a Degree of Freedom from Original Sin as I do in the Proposition laid down 2ly But yet I do not in the least think that the most Perfect Man upon Earth can so extinguish the sparks of Original Corruption but that if he do not keep a Watch and Guard upon himself they will gather Strength and revive again And the Reason of this is plain because it has a Foundation in our very Nature The Dispute concerning the Existence of Original Corruption in us after Baptism or Regeneration is methinks a very needless one For if it be about the Notion we ought to entertain of it that is whether it be properly Sin or not this is a Contention about Words for what signifies it by what Name we call this Remainder of Original Pravity when all grant that the Stain and Guilt of it is washed off and pardoned But if it be about the Force and Efficacy of it this indeed is a Controversie of some Moment but a very foolish one on one side for to what purpose can it be to say a great many subtil and puzling Things against a Truth that every Man feels and experiments at one time or other Upon the whole then I may thus describe the Liberty of the Perfect Man with respect to Original Sin He has mortified it though not utterly extirpated it he has subdued it though not exterminated it and therefore he is not only free from sinful and inordinate Lusts and Affections but also in a far greater measure than other Men from those Infirmities and Irregularities which are as it were the struglings and Ebullitions of Original Sin not yet sufficiently tam'd He has advanced his Victory very far even over his natural Appetites he has no stronger Inclination for the Body or for the World and the Things of it than such as becomes a Man that is possessed with a deep sense of the Vanity of this World and the Blessedness of another The World is in a high Degree crucified to him and he counts all things but dung and dross in comparison with the Excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus his Lord. His Sorrows and his Joys his Desires and his Fears be the occasion never so just or lawful pass not the modest Bounds of a wise Moderation He desires without Impatience cares and contrives hopes and pursues without Anxiety or Sollicitude he is cautious without Fear and Pusillanimity he is sad without Dejection or Despondency and Pleasant without Vanity All this indeed shews him not only to have conquered Sin and Folly but in a great Measure also his natural Propension to them But after all this happy Creature must remember that he is still in the Body in the Body whose Appetites will soon pass beyond their due Bounds if he be indulgent or careless he must remember that he is not immutably holy his Understanding is not so clear and bright but that it may be deceived nor the Bent of his Affections so strongly set upon good but that they may be perverted and therefore he must be sober and vigilant and fear always Thus have I stated the Cureableness of our Original Corruption And as I think I have plainly the Countenance of Scripture so I do not see that I in the least clash with that Clause in the Ninth Article of our Church
which affirms concerning Original Sin thus And this Infection of Nature doth remain yea in them that are regenerated whereby the Lust of the Flesh called in Greek 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which some do expound the Wisdom some sensuality some the Affection some the Desire of the Flesh is not subject to the Law of God For this must not be understood surely as if the Flesh did always Lust against the Spirit in the Regenerate but only that the Regenerate themselves are liable and obnoxious to these Lustings which on supposal that the Perfect Man were here thought upon by the Compilers of this Article imports no Contradiction to any thing I have delivered The Truth is I have asserted no more concerning the Cureableness of Original Corruption than what is necessary to secure the Interest of Holiness as well as the Honour of the Word and Spirit I have too often had occasion to observe that the stating our Obligation to reduce Original Corruption too laxly ministers not a little to the Carnal Confidence of supine and careless Persons How greedily do some imbibe and how fond are they of this Notion that the Flesh even in the Regenerate does always Lust against the Spirit and the next thing is to look upon their darling Errors as unavoidable Infirmities flowing from the uncurable Distemper of Original Sin To the end therefore that under Colour and Pretence of the Impossibility of a perfect Cure and Restitution of our Nature to perfect Innocence and unspotted Purity we may not sit down contented in an impure State and never advance to those Degrees of Health and Innocence which we may and ought actually arrive at I think fit here to guard the Doctrine of Original Sin with this one general Caution That we be very careful not to mistake Contracted for Natural Corruption not to mistake a Super-induced Nature defaced by all the Slime and Mud which popular Errors and Fashions leave upon it for Original Nature or Nature in that State in which it enters the World 'T is I doubt a very hard thing to find but one arrived at any Maturity of Years in whom Nature is the same thing now that it was in the Womb or the Cradle in whom these are no worse Propensions than what necessarily flow from the Frame and Composition of his Being Alas our Original Depravation be it what it will is very betimes improved by false Principles and foolish Customs by a careless Education and by the Blandishments and Insinuations of the World and every Man is so partial to himself that he is very willing to have his Defects and Errors pass under the Name of Natural and unavoidable ones because this seems to carry in it its own Apology This is a fatal Error and continues Men in their Vices nay gives them peace in them too to their Lives End for why should not a Man forbear attempting what he despairs of effecting To prevent which I earnestly desire my Reader to consider that all who have treated this Doctrine of Original Sin with any Solidity or Prudence do carry the Matter as far at least as I have done They teach not only that Original Corruption may be Prun'd and Lop't but that it may be cut down mortified and dried up That since no Man can assure himself how far he may advance his Conquest over his natural Corruption and the Interest of every Man's safety and Glory obliges him to advance it as far as he can he must never cease fighting against it while it fights against him That since every Sin is so far Mortal as it is voluntary and has as much Guilt in it as Freedom every Man ought to be extreamly jealous least he be subject to any vicious Inclination that is in Reality the Pruduct not of Nature but of Choice And Lastly since though much less than habitual Goodness may constitute a Man in a State of Grace yet nothing less can produce Perfection or a constant Assurance of Eternal Happiness therefore no Man ought to acquiesce while he sees himself short of this and every Man should remember that his Goodness ought to consist in a Habit of those Vertues to which he is by Nature the most averse I have now dispatched My first Enquiry and resolved how far Original Sin is curable The Next is § 2. How this Cure may be effected And here 't is plain what we are to aim at in general for if Original Righteousness consists as I think it cannot be doubted in the Subordination of the Body to the Soul and the Soul to God and Original Corruption in the Subversion of this Order then the Cure must consist in restoring this Subordination by the weakning and reducing the Power of the Body and by quickning and strengthening the Mind and so re-establishing its Soveraignty and Authority The Scriptures accordingly let us know that this is the great Design of Religion and the great Business of Man 1 Cor. 9 25. And every Man that striveth for the Mastery is temperate in all things Now they do it to obtain a corruptible Crown but we an incorruptible And this St. Paul illustrates and explains by his own example in the following Words I therefore so run not as uncertainly so fight I not as one that beateth the Air But I keep under my Body and bring it into Subjection The Preference given to the Cares and Appetites of the Body or of the Mind is the distinguishing Character which constitutes and demonstrates Man either Holy or Wicked they that are of the flesh do mind the things of the flesh and they that are of the Spirit the things of the Spirit Rom. 8.5 And the Threats of the Gospel belong to the Servants of the Flesh its Promises to the Servants of the Spirit For if ye live after the flesh ye shall dye but if ye through the Spirit do mortifie the deeds of the Body ye shall live Rom. 8.13 He that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting Gal. 6.8 I grant that in these Places and elsewhere very commonly as by the Spirit is meant the Mind enlightened and aided by the Grace of God so by the Body or Flesh is meant our inferiour Nature not just such as it proceeds out of the Womb but as it is further depraved by a Carnal and Worldly Conversation However since Original is the Seed or Root of Voluntary or Customary Corruption these Texts do properly and directly enough serve to the Confirmation of the Doctrine for which they are alledg'd This then is the great Duty of Man this is the great End which he is always to have in his Eye the mortifying the Body and entirely subjugating it to the Reason of the Mind Here the Christian Warfare must begin and here end for he who has crucified the Body with the Lusts and Affections thereof has entered into rest as far as this Life
is capable of it He that laies the Foundation of Morals here does build upon a Rock and he that here pushes his Success to the utmost point has reached the highest Round in the Scale of Perfection and given the finishing strokes to Holiness and Vertue This I say then he that will be free must lay down as a general Rule to himself from which he must resolve never to swerve That he is by all rational and possible Methods to diminish the Strength and Authority of the Body and increase that of the Mind By this we ought to judge of the Conveniences or Inconveniences of our worldly Fortunes by this we are to determine of the Innocence or Malignity of Actions by this we are to form and estimate our Acquaintance and Conversation and by this we are to judge of the Bent and Tendency of our Lives by this we are to regulate our Diversions by this we may resolve of the Nature and Degree of our Pleasures whether lawful whether expedient or not And in one word by this we may pass a true Sentence upon the Degrees and Measures of our Natural Affections There are many things that are in their own Nature indifferent enough that prove not so to me and there is such a Latitude in the Degrees and Measures of Duty and Deviations from it that it is a very hard matter in several Cases to define nicely and strictly what is lawful or unlawful But I am sure in all Cases this is a wise and safe Rule that we are to aim at the strengthning the Authority of our Minds and the weakning the Force and Power of our carnal Appetites By Consequence every Man ought to examine himself by what Arts by what Practises the Light of his Understanding comes to be obscured the Authority of his Reason weaken'd and the Tenderness of his Conscience to be so much blunted and worn off And when he has discovered this he must avoid these things as temptations and snares he must shun these Paths as those that lead to Danger and Death and whatever he finds to have a contrary Tendency these are the things that he must do these are the things that he must Study contrive and follow how happy would a Man be how perfect would he soon grow if he did conduct himself by this Rule how little need would he have of outward Comforts how little value would he have for Power and Honour for the State and Pride of Life how little would he hunt after the Pleasures of Sense what Peace should he maintain within when he should do nothing that were repugnant to the Reason of his Mind what Joy and Hope would he abound with when he should have so many daily Proofs of his Integrity as the living above the Body would give him and how would all this strengthen and exalt the Mind what Flights would it take towards Heaven and how invincible would it prove to all Temptations Happy and Perfect that Man who has the Kingdom of God thus within him whose Life is hid with Christ in God when Christ who is his Life shall appear he also shall appear with him in Glory This is a comprehensive Rule and if well pursued sufficient of its self to do the Work I am here aiming at But that it may be more easily reduced to Practice I think it not amiss to take a more particular View of it And then it may be resolved into these two 1. We must lay due Restraints upon the Body 2. We must invigorate and fortifie the Mind partly by the Light of the Gospel and the Grace of the holy Spirit and partly by accustoming it to retire and with draw it self from the Body § 1. As to the Restraints we are to lay upon the Body what they are we easily learn from the Scriptures for First these expresly forbid us to gratifie the Lusts and Affections of the Flesh and that not only because they are injurious to our Neighbour and a Dishonour to our holy Profession but also because they have an ill Influence upon the strength and Liberty the Power and Authority of the Mind Dearly beloved I beseech you as Strangers and Pilgrims abstain from fleshly Lusts which war against the Soul 1 Pet. 2.11 And whoever enters into the account of things will easily discern this to be true there is a Deceitfulness in Sin a sensuality in Lust Who sees not that there is more Attraction in the Pride and Ostentation of Life than in the Simplicity and Plainness of it That there is more Temptation and Allurement in Riot and Luxury than in frugality and a Competency that the Imagination of a Solomon himself cannot but be wretchedly abused if he give it leave to wander and wanton in variety In a word if the Mind follow a carnal or worldly Appetite and Fancy in all its Excesses and Debauches it will soon find it self miserably enslaved and intoxicated it will be wholly in the Interest of the Body and wholly given up to to the Pleasures of it Secondly Though the Scripture do not prohibit some States or Conditions of this Life which seem as it were more nearly allied to or at least-wise at less Distance from the Lusts of the Flesh than others are yet it forbids us to covet and pursue them Thus St. Paul Rom. 12.16 Mind not high things The Apostle does not here oblige any Man to degrade himself beneath his Birth or to fly from those Advantages which God's Providence and his own Merits give him a just Title to but certainly he does oblige the Christian not to aspire ambitiously to great Things nor fondly to pride himself in successes of this kind so when a little after he commands us in Honour to prefer one another certainly he does not teach how to talk but how to act not how to court and compliment but how to deport our selves consonant to those Notions with which Charity towards our Neighbour and Humility towards our selves ought to inspire us Thus again we are not forbidden to be rich no Man is bound to strip himself of those Possessions which he is born to or to shut out that Increase which God's Blessing and his own Diligence naturally bring in But we are forbid to thirst after Riches or to value our selves upon them and commanded to be content with those things that we have and if God bless us with Wealth to enjoy it with Modesty and Thankfulness and dispense it with Liberality 1 Tim. 6.6 7 8 9 10. Godliness with Contentment is great gain for we brought nothing into this World and it is certain we can carry nothing out and having Food and Raiment let us be therewith content But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a Snare and into many foolish and hurtful Lusts which drown Men in Destruction and Perdition For the Love of Money is the root of all Evil which while some coveted after they have erred from the faith and pierced themselves
slighting the blood of the Covenant and grieving the Holy Spirit all which we do by willful Sin is a Guilt that will sink down the obstinate Sinner into the lowest Hell and render his Condition more intolerable that that of Tyre and Sidon Sodom and Gomorrah 2. The Second Effect of the firm Belief of these Gospel Truths is that it begets in us a Contempt of this World and all the things of it To him that Beelieves How short is Time compar'd to Eternity How false how empty are the Pleasures of Sin compared with those of Heaven how insignificant the Esteem or Love of Man to that of God How worthless are all our worldly Hopes and Pretensions in respect of an Interest in Jesus Now the Soul that is once possess'd thoroughly with these Notions what will it not do what will it not suffer rather than fall short of or forfeit its Crown In what state will it not be contented nay in what state will it not abound in Joy whilst it holds fast the steadfastness of its Hope and is secure of the Love of Jesus Here begins that Purity of Heart which is the Fountain of true Epicureism that Greatness of Mind which alone is true Honour and Fortitude But that Faith may have these Effects upon us it must not be only a true but a lively Faith therefore my 2. Second Rule or if you please another Branch of the former Rule shall be this They that will be free indeed must not only believe the great Truths of the Gospel but must frequently and seriously ponder them till they have imprinted in themselves as clear distinct and perfect Ideas of them as we are capable of This will soon mortifie the Appetites of the Body corrrect our false Opinions of worldly Things and baffle all the Sophistry and Confidence of Lust A lively Faith is a Faith that imports the most clear and natural the most full and enlarg'd Notions of its Objects a Faith that not only looks upon the Articles of our Creed as true but beholds them in a manner as present and so represented and drawn to the Life that they fill the Soul with great and moving Considerations This Faith does not only Believe that there is a God but it beholds Him and walks before Him as present it sees Him array'd in all his Glory and in all his Majesty in all the Power and all the Terrors in all the Beauties and all the Graces of the Divine Nature it does not only believe that there are Rewards and Punishments but is extreamly sensible of the Terrors of the one and Attractions of the other and looks upon both as at the door It does not only acknowledge a Mediator but takes a full view of the Misery of that state wherein we lay through Sin and of the Blessedness of that into which we are translated by the Redemption which is in Jesus It Contemplates this Mediatour in all the several steps of Condescension and Humiliation in all the Tenderness and Transports of his Passion in all the melancholy Scenes of his Sufferings and the bright and chearful ones of his Glory This is the Faith that sets us free 3. We must not stop in Faith till it be made perfect in Love We must meditate Divine Truths till they have fired our Souls till they have enkindled our Affections till we be possess'd by an ardent Love of God of Jesus of Righteousness and of Heaven till all our other Desires and Passions be converted into and swallowed up of Love till God becomes the Center of our Souls and in Him we rest in Him we glory and in Him we rejoyce O Love how great and glorious are the things that are said of thee 'T is thou who dost impregnate and animate Faith it self 't is thou who dost surmount the Difficulties of Duty and make the Yoke of Christ easie and his Burthen light 't is thou who dost cast out Fear and make Religion full of Pleasure 't is thou that dost make us watchful against Temptations and impatient under the Interruptions of Duty 't is thou that makest us dis-relish the Pleasures of this World and long to be dissolved and to be with Christ Here is the Liberty of the Sons of God Blessed are they even in this World who attain it But one Caution I must here add That our Love must not be a Flesh a Bit but a steady and well setled Affection an Affection that has the Warmth of Passion and the Firmness of Habit. We must therefore by repeated Meditations and Prayers daily nourish this Flame of the Altar and not suffer it to go out 4. We must never be at rest till we have possess'd our Minds with a perfect Hatred of the sin which we are most subject to The Love of God his Long-suffering and forbearance the Sufferings of Jesus the struglings of the Spirit the Peace and Pleasure of Holiness the Guilt and Vexation the Shame and Punishment of Sin its ill Influence on our present Perfection and Happiness on our Peace and Hopes are proper Topicks to effect this A thorough Hatred of Sin once setled and rooted in us will produce that Sorrow that Indignation that Watchfulness that Zeal which will remove us far enough not only from the Sin but also from the ordinary Temptations to it and place us almost without the Danger of a Relapse To this former Rule I should add this other that when once a Man has resolved upon a new Course of Life whatever Difficulties he finds in his Ways whatever Baffles he meets with he must never quit the Desgn of Vertue and Life he must never give over Fighting till he Conquer The reason is plain for he must either Conquer or Dye But this belonging rather to Perseverance in Vertue than the Beginning of it therefore I but just mention it 5. It will not be imprudent in this Moral as in Physical Cures to observe diligently and follow the Motions and Tendencies of Nature Where there are Seeds of Generosity and Honour the Turpitude and Shame of Sin the Baseness and Ingratitude of it the Love of God and of Jesus and such like are fit Topicks to dwell upon Where Fear is more apt to prevail there the Terrors of the Lord are the most powerful Motive And so whatever the Frame and Constitution of Nature be it will not be difficult to find Arguments in the Gospel adapted to it which will be so much the more prevalent as they are the more natural 6. Lastly We must use all Means to obtain the Spirit of God and to increase and cherish his Influence We must ask and seek and knock i. e. we must pray and Meditate and Travel with Patience and with Importunity that our Heavenly Father may give us his Holy Spirit And when we have it we must not grieve it by any Deliberate Sin nor quench it by Security or Negligence by sensual Freedoms and Presumption but we must cherish every Motion improve every
will quote but one or two Passages of St. Basil (a) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 p. 454. his Description of the Perfect Man with regard to his Self-denial runs thus He is one that consults the Necessities not the Pleasure of his Nature and seems to grudge the Time which he bestows on the Support and Nourishment of a corruptible Body He is so far from looking upon eating and drinking c. as an Enjoyment that he rather accounts it a Task or troublesome Service which the Frailty of his Nature demands at his hands Nor was this great Man more severe against the Lusts of the Flesh than against those other Branches of the Love of the World the Lust of the Eyes and the Pride of Life (b) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 p. 456. All Vanity and Affection of Praise and Respect all the Ostentation saith he and shew of Life is utterly unlawful for a Christian And all this is directly consonant to his Gloss (c) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 p. 457. on those words of S. Paul they that use the World as not abusing it whatever is beyond use is abuse directly consonant to his Definition of Temperance (d) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 p 454. That it is the Extirpation of Sin the Extermination of unruly Passions and the Mortification of the Body extending even to the natural Appetites and Affections of it I know not what Scruples or Mistakes the Doctrine I here advance concerning this Part of my Perfect Man's Liberty may be encounter'd with But I am Confident I have given no just Occasion for any I do not say of the Perfect with Jovinian that they cannot fall but I say they may and ought to stand and if it be not their own fault will do so I do not affirm of them as the Hereticks in Vincentius Lyrinensis did of their Part that they are priviledg'd from sin by a peculiar Grace and transcendent Favour but I affirm that they shall not want Grace to preserve them from it unless they be wanting to themselves I do not go about to maintain that God sees no sin in his Children but I maintain That Mortal Sin is not the Spot of his Children But do not I in this fall in with the Papists who assert the Possibility of keeping the Commands of God I answer That taking them in the sense in which they themselves in the Conference at Ratisbone defend this Doctrine I do They there tell us that when they talk thus they take the Law or Commands of God not in a strict and rigid but in a favourable and equitable i. e. a Gospel Construction And this is so far from being Heterodox that Davenant accounts it a plain giving up the Question in Controversie But am I not run into the Error of the Pelagians and Quakers I answer if the one or the other assert That the Perfect Man passes thorough the whole Course of Life without falling into any Sin or That in the best part of Life he is impeccable and not subject to sin as in the Heat of Disputation their Adversaries seem sometimes to fasten on them I am at a wide Distance from them But if they teach That the Perfect Man has Grace and Strength enough to forbear Wilful Sin and that many actually do so I am I must confess exactly of their Mind But then I am at the same time of the same Mind with St. Austin and St. Jerome too For they teach the very same Doctrine For they never contended about the Possibility of Freedom or Deliverance from Mental Sin but only from Venial St. Jerome * Dial. Secund adv Pelag. p. 189. shall explain his own Sense Etenim absque vitio quod grecé dicitur 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 hominem posse esse aio 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 id est sine Peccato esse nego Which is the same thing that St. Austin commonly admits That Man may be sine Crimine but not sine Peccato without Mortal but not without Venial Sin And in this they are certainly of the Mind of the Scripture which every where represents the Perfect Man as holy blameless undefiled without Spot walking with God and in one word as free from Sin If any Man can reconcile these Texts which are very numerous with Mortal Sin I will not say in the best state of the best Men but a state of Sincerity and Regeneration I will acknowledge my Mistake But till then I cannot but think the Doctrine I advance necessary to establish the true Notion of Holiness and convince us of our Obligation to it This Doctrine is again necessary to wipe off those Aspersions and Calumnies the Quakers cast upon our Church as if it held That the Regenerate themselves may continue in their Sins nay cannot be freed from them Our Church teaches indeed Artic. 14. That the most Perfect Men are never utterly exempt from Defects Failings and Human Infirmities and I believe they themselves are not confident enough to teach otherwise only they will not call these Infirmities Sins And then the whole Controversie is reduced to this we agree in the thing but differ in the Name And in this Difference we are not only on the humbler but the safer side too for acknowledging them Sins we shall be the better disposed sure to be sorry for them to beg pardon of them and watch against them The Fruit of this Liberty has been sufficiently accounted for Chap. 3. And therefore I proceed S. 3. To propose some Rules for the Attainment of it 1. The Mind must be grounded and rooted in the Faith it must be thoroughly convinced and perswaded of these great Articles of the Christian Religion That there is a God and such a God Holy Just Omniscient and Omnipotent one the Incarnation Suffering and Glory of the Blessed Jesus a Judgment to come and the Eternal Rewards and Punishments of another Life The firm Belief of these things does naturally promote these two Effects 1. It will awaken a Sinner out of his Lethargy and Security it will disturb him in his sinful Enjoyments and fill his Mind with guilty Fears and uneasie Reflections And when the Man finds no Rest no security in his Sins this will naturally oblige him to endeavour the Conquest of them But then we must not stifle and suppress these Thoughts we must give Conscience full Liberty we must hear the Dictates of our own Minds patiently and consider seriously those terrible Truths which they lay before us till we go from this Exercise deeply impress'd with such Notions as these That our Sins sooner or later will certainly bring upon us temporal and eternal Misery That nothing but sincere Righteousness can produce true and lasting Happiness That it is a dreadful Danger to dally too long with Indgination or presume too far on the Mercy of a just and holy and Almighty God That the neglecting the great Salvation tender'd by the Gospel and procured by the Blessed Jesus the