of chaffe preserv'd from burning Is it not because there is some Corne some Wheate mixed therewith If the Corne be once out will not the Lord as men use to doe after winnowing set the chaffe on fire As women with childe are grieved to be delivered so the Lord stayes till the world be delivered as it were of all his Elect ones of all the Saints of all his holy and zealous ones and then shall be brought forth the Iudgement of the great day The World may cast out these men as the Sea doth Pearles among mire and dirt but they are Pearles notwithstanding God knowes them to be so and wise-men know them to be so yea Pearles excelling other men as much as Iewels doe common stones as much as Lilies and Roses doe Thornes and Bryers among which they grow What 's the reason that Elijah is called the Chariot of Israel and the Horsemen thereof but because hee was an holy man that did much for Gods glory that did more advantage the State at home and did more prevaile abroad than all the Chariots and Horsemen And may not we apply this to the zealous among us Therefore when we injury any of them doe not wee cut off the haire from Sampsons head wherein the strength of every Countrey and Nation and every Citie and Towne consists Yea the cutting off of them is like the cutting off of his lockes which the more the grow the more strength a Kingdome hath I say no more but commend it to every man in his place wishing that you would let it be your generall care to encourage true Religion and Zeale the omitting whereof I am perswaded is one of those things which causeth the Lords hand to be stretched forth against us Secondly if it be Zeale that turnes away the LORDS wrath then where is the Zeale that should be among us Are wee not rather fallen into those later times the Apostle speakes of which should have a forme of Religion without the Zeale and Power and Life of it And if Zeale turnes away Gods wrath certainly then this formalitie this overlinesse of Religion this coldnesse without Zeale and Power is it that brings on his wrath It is true and we cannot deny but knowledge abounds amongst us as the waters in the Sea But where is the Salt That is where is that Zeale and holinesse that should season all our knowledge Where is the Fire that should adde practice to our knowledge and make it an acceptable sacrifice to GOD Wee have the light of former Times but not their heat As he complaines Ignis qui in Parentibus fuit calidus in nobis lucidus The Fire which in ancient Times was hot is now onely light We thinke it enough to goe to Church to receive the Sacrament and so to keepe a round as it were to doe as most doe being carried about with the generall course of the World as the Planets are with the rest of the Spheres contrary to that which should bee their proper motion But I beseech you consider it Is this Religion Is this the Power of Godlinesse is this to be Baptized with the Holy Ghost which is as Fire Surely Religion stands not in these outward formalities but in changing the heart in making us New Creatures in mortifying our Lusts and thorowly purging out the love of every corruption Therefore if you will turne away Gods wrath turne your formality into Zeale that is content not your selves with the performance of the duties of Religion externally but get that wherein the power of godlinesse consists else the outside of Duties will not divert Wrath. Againe did Zeale turne away the wrath of the Lord then where are our zealous affections Why are we not zealous for the Lord and zealous against sinne You know Christ died for this end that hee might purifie unto himselfe a peculiar people zealous of good workes Titus 2.14 Men doe good actions as a Taske they are glad when they be over but doe you them with much intention much fâ—rvencie much desire be you a people zealous of good workes Therefore in Rom. 12.11 They are put together be fervent in spirit and serving the Lord implying that the Lord respects no service but as it is joyned with fervencie Therefore know that it is not enough to serve the Lord in an ordinary Tract you must mend your pace to heaven it is not enough to goe but you must runne the way of Gods Commandements And as you must be zealous for him so you must be zealous against evill For you must know this and marke it well it is not enough to abstaine from sinne it is not that alone that God will accept but he lookes that you should hate sinne As it is said of Lot his righteous soule was vexed with the uncleane conversation of the Sodomites that is his heart rose against them there was an inward distaste against them the like you shall see in David and Moses You will say I hope I detest sinne and am angry with it It may be so perhaps you are angry with sinne but Zeale you know is an intention of the affection of hatred and it is required that you hate sinne Revel 2.6 This thou hast that thou hatest the worke of the Nicolaitans which I also hate You will say How doe they differ You shall know hatred by this First it is a constant affection it abides with us Anger goes away as all passions doe it is but for a fit for a flash on some occasion Againe hatred is alwayes of generals the sheepe hates all Wolves we hate all Toads all Serpents I say wheresoever there is hatred it turnes to the whole Species Now doe you hate all sinne all kindes of sinne one as well as another Doe you not only abstaine from them but also hate them of what sort soever they bee Lastly Hatred seekes the utter destruction of the thing hated Anger would have but a proportion of Iustice as Aristotle sayes Now is it so with you Doe you seeke the utter destruction of sinne abstaining not onely from grosse sinnes but from all dalliances from the least touch of sinne cleansing your selves from all pollusions of the flesh and spirit If you will be zealous for the Lord then know that this is required that you not onely doe things but that you doe them zealously that you not onely abstaine from sinne but that you hate it Againe if it be Zeale that turnes away the wrath of the Lord then where is our boldnesse our courage our forwardnesse for the Truth Why are we so fearefull and shie of doing the thing that otherwise we thinke meet to bee done For Zeale hath that prâ—pertie among the rest it makes men bold the Zeale of the Apostles was knowne by their boldnesse But you will say A man may be too bold It is very true when the horse runnes up and downe and is at libertie
is one and a principall One even to know the greatnesse of your sins The third and chiefe use of all the rest is this This Corruption of Nature this abundance of Corruption which hath beene shewed to you should drive us to Christ. And that is our end wee doe not preach damnation our end is Salvation Therefore wee would have men to know their condition to know that they bee in state of death For that that keepes men from comming to CHRIST and the reason that so few are saved that so few take the Gospell is they are not poore in spirit And why are they not so Because they see not their sins And for this cause wee have beene thus long in opening this point that you may know your selves And this I dare say If you did know your selves if GOD had kindled a light within whereby to see your Corruptions you would not stand cheapning the Kingdome of Heaven as you doe you come now in a lame and remisse manner but you would then come and give all that you have for it and goe away rejoycing and thinke you have a good bargaine God should not then deny you you would wrestle with him as Iacob did and give him no rest till you have obtained a blessing This would awaken men out of their dead sleepe of security as that is the condition of every man by nature as he is sinfull so he is secure he considers not his sins Therefore to all that I have said you must adde something of your owne what I have said is no more able to shew you the sinnes you are subject to than a little Mappe is to shew you the whole world it doth but point to the sinnes you are subject to as a point in the margent The way to make it profitable is to goe home to your owne hearts to consider these things particularly to see how your minde your Conscience Will and Memorie is out of order to consider how you have offended in thoughts in words and in actions by sinnes of Omission and of Commission and by that meanes you shall reade your Natures in your hearts and make what I have said profitable to you And doe not thinke you may goe too farre Doe not thinke we wrong your nature in saying it is more guiltie than it is for wee doe not so I may boldly say this Take that man that thinkes worst of himselfe hee is worse than he thinkes himselfe to bee and that I may not speake without Ground looke upon the first Epistle of Saint Iohn the third Chapter and the twentieth verse If our Conscience condemne us God is greater than our Conscience and knowes all things That is the Conscience of man hath some light but what is it to the eye of GOD to the light that is in him And so much as his light is greater than ours so much more hee sees what is amisse in us The heart saith Ieremie is deceitfull aboue all things who can know it There is a depth of evill in the heart which no man can search it is deceitfull and puts false glosses on things to hide them from our eyes Therefore doe not thinke thou canst exceed but labour for thy Humiliation to see all these things in a greater measure in thy selfe than as they bee here described and that not nakedly but with all Circumstances The end of the Third Sermon CERTAINE SERMONS VPON HVMILIATION The Fourth SERMON ROMANS 1.18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodlinesse and unrighteousnesse of men which with-hold the Truth in unrighteousnesse AND this is a thing wee are very unwilling to do for the Medicine shews the Disease The Apostles taking of so much pains to perswade men that they shall not be saved by their own righteousnesse is an argument that it is an hard matter to perswade them It is the hardest thing in the Word to perswade a civill man that he must not sticke to his owne righteousnesse till God himselfe puts his hand to the worke for it is not in any mans power to convince him of his sinne or of the deficiencie of his righteousnesse Therefore that use wee should make of all that hath beene said to see the necessity that lyes on us to goe to Christ and that there is no salvation without him Now to make this Doctrine more effectuall to awaken you the more to rouze men out of that sleepe wherein they are by nature we will handle these two points First that the aggravations of sin are more than the sins themselves Secondly we will take away all excuses that so every mouth may bee stopped and when these two are done you will have much adoe to finde any starting-hole to keepe you from comming to Christ. For that is our End And these are very necessary For though you doe consider in your selves all the sins formerly named if it be done negligently without the Circumstances sin is a sword without an edge the Circumstance is that that gives it an edge that sharpens sin that makes it fit to wound us And secondly if the sword be never so keene and sharpe and yet we be forced to keepe it off it will not wound us Therefore we will I say in the second place take away the excuses by which men fence themselves and decline the stroke of truth decline this wound of the Law And so we will conclude this point and hasten to the rest For the first to make all you have heard before effectuall we will adde the Circumstances which is a thing necessary for it is a true rule the Schoole-men have that in moral things the circumstance is more than the thing it selfe Many times in natural things accidents are nothing in comparison of the forme but In moralibus as they say Circumstantia plus valet quà m forma For it is the Circumstance by which an action lookes if you looke round about it and see all that borders on it it will aggravate and make sin out of measure sinfull To run thorow them briefly First Consider this Circumstance in sinnes committed I speake of the corrupt nature of man that every sin committed against God is not only an offence committed against so great a Majesty for I will not stand to enlarge that Circumstance that the sin is greater as the person is greater against whom it is committed but consider the affection with which you commit it and you shall finde all this in a sin committed by a naturall man First an hatred of God in the sin They thinke they love God but if it be so what is the reason that word is put in Rom. 1.30 where the Apostle speaking of the rebellion of mankinde he reckons up particularly that which here he puts up in the grosse in the generall Haters of God You will say you doe not hate God but let me aske you this question Wouldest thou not live at liberty
Wouldest thou not have that removed which restraines thee Couldest thou not wish that there were no such strict law as Gods Law is Couldest thou not wish that there were not any Iudge to call thee to account Every naturall man had rather be at liberty hee wishes with all his heart that there were no such God no such Iudge Now if thou wishest God were not certainely thou hatest God when we wish a man not to be to be taken out of the nature of things out of the subsistence of being this man we properly hate and thus every man hates God Therefore Rom. 5.10 the Apostle speaking generally of mankind sayes When you were Enemies It is the condition of every man hee is an Enemie to God and sins out of Enmity and what obedience he performes is out of a false servile feare that is the first Secondly that is not all but he denies God dethrones him and sets up another god naturall men little thinke they doe so when they follow their Covetousnesse Lusts Honours Ambitions they little thinke they doe it But they doe Tit. 1. ult They professe that they know God but in their workes they deny him When they are charged with this that they thinke there is no God and told of the greatnesse of the fault as it is the greatest Treason to deny the King to be the King this Atheisme every man is ready to disclaime he thinkes it is not so with him But I beseech you consider there be two kindes of Thoughts in a mans heart some we call reflex thoughts when a man thinkes a thing and knowes that he thinkes it other we call direct thoughts which are in the heart but a man knowes it not and these must be found out by the Actions for they are discovered by the fruits But God that knowes the meaning of the spirit knowes likewise the meaning of the flesh Now saith the Text they professe they know him but in deeds they deny him that is in truth they deny God there bee certaine direct thoughts which have not such reflection in the heart of every naturall man by which he denies God for he honours not God as he ought hee denies the Power the Omni-presence the Iustice and Omni-science of God and if you can see this in his workes you may say there be such thoughts in him because he lives as if there were no God But you will object every man thinks there is a God It is true there is naturally some light in them but where there be two different Principles there be two different conclusions there is some light planted in them that teaches that there is a God but take the darknesse that is in their heart set aside from this light there is nothing but Atheisme he sets God aside and puts up something else in stead of him some make pleasures their god some make their riches their god some make their belly their god c. But we cannot stand on this Thirdly they despise God in the Commission of sin see it in the sin of lying wherein a man respects man more than God and so despises God he cares not though God knowes it and is a witnesse to it and so it is an injury to God a contending with God We little thinke it is so but see that place 1 Cor. 10.22 the Apostle speaking there of one particular sin that is of eating meat offered to Idols saith Will you continue to doe it Will you provoke God to jealousie Are you stronger than he It is as if you set your selves against him of purpose to doe him an Injury And these affections are in the sin of every naturall man And that is the first Circumstance A second Circumstance to aggravate sin is when it is committed against Knowledge and indeed no Circumstance does it more than this that a man sins against the light he hath when he knowes it to be a sin and it may be bethinks himselfe of it and yet commits it You know how it is with men An offence committed an Injury offered to a King after Proclamation comes to be a rebellion because his will was made knowne And so it is with God when he hath revealed a Truth to mee that I know this to be a sin and am convinced of it and yet goe on in it this alters the nature of a sin it is not now a bare Transgression of the Law but a Rebellion and so God is provoked in an high degree for in a sinne against Knowledge there is more harme more disobedience more presumption If a Prince be in a place where he is not knowne and findes not respect sutable to his worth hee matters it not hee wiâ—l not take it amisse for he is not knowne but if hâ— be known and taken notice of and yet neglected it is great dis-respect and taken for a great offence So when men sin against light given it aggravates sin exceedingly As in the one and twentieth verse of this Chapter this that the Apostle laid to the charge of the Romans aggravated their sin they knew God but they glorified him not as God as if he had said If you had not knowne him it were another case but to know God and not to practise according to knowledge to know God and not to glorifie him as God this God will not take in good part it shewes you are sinners and in a condition of death Therefore in Acts 17. saith dthe Apostle The times of Ignorance God regarded not but now he admonishes every one to repent that is when the Gentiles walked in their owne wayes before the Gospell came before God published and made knowne his will he wincked at it but now regards it not a yeare nor a day shall now passe without an account for it the axe is now laid to the root of the Tree he will deferre no longer he will take it no more as he did heretofore Therefore the Apostle Paul 1 Tim. 1. 13. saith I was a persecutour and blasphemer but am received to mercy because I did it ignorantly Why doth he adde that Because if he had had knowledge and so had done it wittingly and willingly his sin had beene out of measure sinfull and exceedingly aggravated it Therefore Daniel tels Balthazar as an addition to his sins Thou knowest all this and yet hast not humbled thy selfe if thou hadst not knowne it if thou hadst not had an example if it had not bin revealed to thee thy sin had beene so much the lesse and perhaps God would have suffred thee to live but thou knowest all this and yet didst not humble thy selfe But of all places take that in Rom. 7.13 Was that then which was good made death unto me God forbid But sin that it might appeare sinne working death in me by that which is good that sinne by the Commandement might become exceeding sinfull The meaning is this When a man knowes that the Law of God
in the world what outward imployment soever wee exercise our selves in yet our maine businesse is in heaven we be ready on all occasions to look to the face of the Ruler of the Physition of men and creatures but we forget that the swaying of the ballance this way or that way is from the Lord When Iacob had prayed earnestly to be delivered from Esau God answers him thou hast prevailed with God and thou shalt prevaile with men so whatsoever businesse you have on earth if you will bring your enterprize to passe prevaile with God and you shall be sure to prevaile with men turne him and all is turned with him for all depends upon him Whatsoever is done on earth is first done in heaven and concluded there and then we feele and taste the fruit of it here From this generall we may descend to particulars and from hence you may learne That it is not our Army by Land nor our Navy at Sea that shall secure us at home or prevaile abroad though it bee well that these things bee done and therefore you doe well in contributing cheerefully to his Majesty for the maintenance thereof for the common good yet still remember that all your businesse is in heaven and that you must trust more to your faithfull prayers then to your preparations for successe in all enterprises It is not our woodden wals that will guard us it is not the Sea wherewith you are invironed nor our policy counsell and strength that will secure us and defend us but it is turning to the Lord and cleansing the Land from the sinnes wherewith he is provoked that will doe the deed Turne to him and then he will turne to you that shall bee a blessing on us and all our enterprises This is to see God in all things this is to sanctifie and exalt him for God in our hearts and without this all is nothing I will end this point with this briefe direction you know there is in every man I speake now of every man that is holy and not of others who are strangers from God the flesh and the spirit there is faith and sense and one of these two every man sets on worke to take a view of the things that are before them If you set faith and the spirit on worke to looke on things they will tell you it matters not what outward things are what the Creature is for it is God that doth all set the flesh on worke set sense and carnall reason on worke and they will bring quite contrary newes like the wicked Spies that were sent into the Land of Canaan who when they did but cast their eye on the state of things there they were first discouraged themselves and then discouraged the hearts of the people Oh there bee Gyants and wals reaching up to heaven Whereas the good Spies that looked on things with another eye brought another kinde of message Iust thus it is with us in sending out our Spies to looke upon the state of things before us if we send forth the Flesh Sense and Reason they bring report of terrible Wals and cruel Giants their power is so great their forces so strong that there is no medling with them but send Faith and the Spirit and the Will like good Spies looke on things with a right Iudgement and indeed that is all the difference betweene an holy man and another the one lookes on things with another eye hee sees a vanity in the Creature which the other doth not he sees an All-sufficiencie in God which the other cannot And therefore he hath onely an eye to the Lord all his care is to serve him and please him in all things So he hath no ill newes from heaven he cares for nothing on earth The other cares not how matters stand betwixt God and him so all things bee well below so his Mountaine stands strong and therefore that we may judge of things with a righteous judgement we must be carefull to see them in their true nature which onely Faith and the Spirit will present And so much shall serve for that point You see then that it is the wrath of God that doth all hurt and the favour of the Lord that doth all the good We come now to the second point which will come in well upon the former That it is sinne that causes wrath sin and wrath are knit together they are inseparable So that as Elisha said when Iehoram sent a messenger unto him to take away his life when he was sitting in the house with the rest of the Elders Shut the doore upon him and hold him fast for is not the sound of his Masters feet behind him So I say to every man If sinne and wrath come together then first shut the doore of sin which is the Messenger suffer it not to come in give it no entertainment for is not the sound of his Masters feet behinde him Doth not the wrath of God follow And shall not that wrath take away our head as Elisha said Therefore if you will keepe out GODS anger keepe out sinne But you will say I feele no such thing I have committed sinne and yet have no experience of his wrath following so close upon it I answer you must know this that as diseases must have a time of ripening so must sinne You know the poison of a disease enters not into the heart at first Sin hath certaine Vestigia which are set downe Iames 1.14 When Lust is conceived it brings forth sinne and when sinne is ripened and perfected it brings forth death The reason why it brings not death presently is because it is not perfect because it is not ripe The sinnes of the Amorites saith God are not yet full Ahab had committed a sinne he had got the Vineyard and slaine Naboth and yet heard nothing of it but when he had killed and taken possession too then came the Messenger of wrath and execution followed God let Iudas goe on till he had made the match taken recompence and betrayed his Master but than wrath came in upon him God stayed a great while till the sinne of Pharaoh was perfected till his hardnesse of heart was come to a ripenesse and then he was drown'd in the Red-sea Therefore in the second to the Romans it is said There is a Treasure of wrath Now in a Treasure there are three things First when a man is once able to treasure up any thing he is still adding to it and by degrees it growes and in that sense the Lord hath a Treasure of wrath as we adde sinnes he addes drops to the viall of his wrath till it be full Secondly it is a Treasure for a Time it lies still a while for else it were not Treasure And thirdly when the time of expence comes then it is opened And so it is with the wrath of the Lord it is gathered by
abound The Apostle saith It is impossible that those that are dead to sinne should live any longer therein as if he should say Set aside all your carnall reasonings it is impossible for him that is dead to sinne to live yet therein how can he as if he should say Whosoever is in Christ the Spirit of Christ is sent into his heart that mortifies sin so that he cannot live any more in it there is such a change wrought in him hee is a new Creature if hee be once in Christ that is the first rise as soone as we are justified the Spirit of Christ is sent into our hearts But is not the Spirit sent into our hearts before when he workes faith It is true but the meaning is when wee are once in Christ the Spirit of Sanctification is shed more plentifully and in a greater degree than before for there is a certaine work of the Spirit that begetteth faith and the same worke of the Spirit in its time begetteth the degrees of Sanctification But now that this may not be in notion only we will shew you how the Spirit workes this that you may not think these to be things carried in clouds and to have place only in our understandings but that you may know it in the experience that every man finds in himselfe that after hee hath taken Christ there is indeed such a Spirit shed into his heart that changeth him For the understanding of this know that when wee come to invite men to come into Christ as it is all our businesse to invite men to the marriage all the world stands out and every man gives that answer that they did in the Gospell they have bought farmes and married wives every man is so set on these outward things that his carnall heart carrieth him to that they will not hearken to us so that we may preach in vaine you see to how many Christ himselfe preached in vaine and the Apostles had preached in vaine if there had been no more than their owne preaching So likewise now the Spirit is sent into the hearts of men that when wee come and invite men to come into Christ the Spirit also secretly compels them to come in Wee are indeed bidden to compell men to come in but unlesse there bee another compeller that is except there be the Spirit within to doe it the worke is not done unlesse there be two compellers at the same time the Holy Ghost within preaching to your hearts when we preach to your eares except there be two callers that when wee call men the Lord send his Spirit to call you too it is in vaine And that you may understand this you must know that it is as hard a thing to move a man to leave his pleasures and divers lusts and his vaine conversation as to turne the whole course of nature which I call the instinct that God hath put into every creature to move that way that it goeth as the water to move downward and the fire to goe upward Thinke with your selves now whether there must not be an Almighty Power to turne the course of nature because the heart of man naturally goes downward to sinne it descends downward with the same propensity it hath the same 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as we call it the same forwardnesse and pronenesse to evill that any naturall thing hath to goe the course that is naturall to it Now unlesse there be an Almighty Power to turne this course of Nature no man will ever come to Christ. As for example That rectitude of Gods Image that is expressed in the Word come to experience and looke upon every mans heart living and see whether it be not quite contrary to it in all things even as contrary as the motion of the stone is from ascending towards the heavens but when the Spirit commeth he turneth this course of Nature Now when wee come to doe this doe you thinke that any man in the world is able to worke it in the hearts of men It is true a man may goe thus farre It is possible for a King or for a man in authority to set preferments on the one side and punishments on the other to make a man to doe much or to suffer much but all this while here is but a turning of the actions of men but to turne the inclinations of mans heart it is proper only to God man is not able to doe it in any particular If a mans heart be set upon covetousnesse Christ saith it is impossible all the men in the world can change his heart But put the case a man could doe it as no man can if he could turne a mans heart it would be but in a particular or two but to turne the whole frame of the heart to make a generall change to make him another man another Creature It is impossible for any man in the world to doe it Or put the case he could doe so it must be after long reasoning but to do it upon the sudden and at one Sermon as the Spirit sometimes doth to take one word and by it to change the heart of man it must needs be the worke of an Almighty Power Therefore in the 2 Cor. 3. Chap. and the last verse when the Apostle speakes of this great change he saith when we reade or heare the Word we see there the Image of God as one seeth his face in a glasse and are changed into it from glory to glory that is from one glorious degree to another But how is this done It is done saith he by the Spirit of the Lord. As if he should say It is impossible for a man to be turned into the glorious Image of God and not by the Spirit of God A man may as well say I will make a clod of earth a shining Starre as to say he can make the carnall and dead heart of man to be like the Image of God It must be the Spirit of God himselfe that must doe it it is a work above Nature It is therefore done by the Spirit which doth so enlighten the understanding and so bow the will that whereas before there was in man such a strong appetite such a strong propensity to ill such a strong inclination that would over-weigh all the reasons that could be brought to the contrary when the Spirit hath wrought this work there is such a contrary inclination such a propensnesse to God and to that which is good that it over-ballanceth all the temptations that the world the flesh and the Devill can lay against it Is not this a mighty Power that must doe this that whereas there was in a man before such a strong inclination to sin there is a disposition so contrary now such a desire wrought in him such a strong impression that carries him to God to Christ and to holinesse that let all the reasons in the world be brought to the contrary they cannot keepe
him off But you will say these things that you speak are wonderfull things how shall we have this wrought in us By being in Christ this wonder is wrought in us when a man is once ingrafted into Christ when hee hath once received him this great worke is wrought in him in his heart hee is made a new Creature But if you adde to this the second way of raising this Sanctification from our Iustification then you will understand it yet more fully and distinctly There are certaine actions wrought in our soules by which this Sanctification followes Iustification and those are these First when a man seeth great reason for it for when a man is once convinced of a thing that it is best for him to doe it and takes a resolution to him to performe it Now when a man hath beene humbled and knoweth what sinne is when he hath had his heart prepared when he comes in once to take Christ that is when he seeth his owne basenesse and Christs excellencie what he was without Christ and what he hath by Christ that when he expected nothing but death then the Gospell came and said Thou shalt live when he seeth that Christ deales with him after this manner then hee thinkes surely It is good reason that I should serve him before indeed we thinke his service to be an hard service and we doe with him as people that are under a tyrannous King they refuse to obey such an one so doth all the world with Iesus Christ they thinke his Law to be an hard Law written with bloud and they thinke him to be an hard Governour such a King as they know not how to be subject unto But when a man is once convinced by the Spirit when he sees reason for it when he is perswaded that Christ will governe him for his wealth that Christ hath suffered for him and freed him from the wrath of God then hee thinkes thus There is reason that I should suffer him to rule over me and when a man seeth reason for it he comes then willingly to submit himselfe to Christ. This is the worke of the Spirit whereby he perswades a man that there is reason for it and it is attributed to the Spirit Iohn 16 The Spirit convinceth of Sinne of Righteousnesse and of Iudgement that is it shewes us that we are sinfull and that there is a Righteousnesse in Christ to heale that And thirdly it convinceth us that there is reason for it why we should serve God in Sanctification and Iudgement The meaning of the word He shall convince is that the Spirit shewes us reason why we should embrace Sanctification and serve the Lord in all things Now when the heart of man is brought to this to see reason and equity in this then a man takes resolution to cleave to Christ to serve him Secondly as he deales with the reason so he doth likewise with the affections for he begets love in us which love sanctifieth us it sets us on worke and turnes the whole heart as the Rudder turnes the Ship for it sits in the sterne of a mans Soule and the reason that when we are justified we love Christ is because when as before a man magnified himselfe setting himselfe at an high rate like a virgin that is coy and curious thinking no man good enough for her now the Law comming and convincing him of the need he stands in of CHRIST and shewing him what he is in himselfe he is hereupon content to marry with the Lord Christ Nay further the Spirit of God not only shews him the need that hee stands in of an husband he being not under covert and deepely in debt the whole weight of his debt lying on himselfe but it goes further and shewes him the beautie of Christ as Ioh. 14.21 To him that loves me I will manifest my selfe that is I will declare my beauty and when the Spirit shewes Christ to the Soule it makes it in love with him We may shew him to you an hundred times over and yet beget not this affection in you but the Spirits shewing is effectuall to that end and when you love him you must needs please him in all things it being the care of the married wife to please the husband So that when the heart is prepared by humiliation and takes Christ love is wrought in the Soule and love sanctifies for Sanctification is nothing else but a setting our selves apart from common uses and keeping of the heart close to God making it peculiar to him and this love makes us to doe when the wife loves the husband shee will be his altogether she will be only to him she will be divorced from all Adulterers and have nothing to doe with them and thus the Lord deales with the affections Thirdly there is wrought not only a love to the Lord but a perswasion that it is good for our selves to serve him in holinesse Indeed many times to satisfie our affections we love a thing too much though wee doe not thinke our selves gainers thereby but in this matter the Lord perswades us that it is best for our selves to sanctifie him in all things to draw neere unto him to sanctifie his Name in our hearts so that now not only love to Christ but even selfe-love also is set on worke to the making us New Creatures for the wayes of God are propounded as good and profitable and pleasing things and when the heart lookes on them it sees them as good for it selfe so that the heart turnes towards them as it cannot but doe to every thing that it apprehends to be good and profitable to it So that when the Holy Ghost shall perswade a man that it is best for himselfe that he shall best provide for himselfe every way by taking Christ hee cannot choose but come in when hee shall see it is best for him to goe to the Citie of refuge that he cannot live else and that if he comes there he shall have life and not only life but a kingdome too and that the way that leads thereto is grace and holinesse hee will goe and goe fast enough When a man is perswaded Christ is the Citie of Refuge to whom I must go else I cannot be safe and that the way to him is to be a new Creature this makes him to goe on and willingly too for it is out of selfe-love Againe when a man is justified and hath taken Christ there is bred in him an holy Ingenuitie which makes him so thankfull to Christ that hee is ashamed to joyne Christ with any sinne As Rom. 6.21 What profit had yee in those things whereof yee are now ashamed you are now ashamed to commit them any more A man will thinke it now an unreasonable thing that Christ should doe so much for him be crucified for him and so give him life being before dead men that he should take flesh for the remission
impossible he should deny you having made you a sure promise and confirmed it with a oath What the Lord sweares to he is sure to performe In all the Booke of God you shall not finde that he sware unto the first Covenant but there is an oath put to both parts of the second Heb. 6.13 Because he could not sweare by a greater he sware by himselfe that wee might have strong consolation and assurance of forgivenesse of sinnes And so the first part is confirmed And for the second Luke 1.73 The oath which he sware unto our Fathers that he would give us that we being delivered from our Enemies should walke before him in holinesse all the dayes of our life Why then will you not beleeve it Why will not you urge the Lord with this and by prayer desire the accomplishment of it As indeed though he gives holinesse of life yet you must pray for it as well as you must pray for the forgivenesse of sinnes It was Ananias his speech to Paul Act. 22.13 Rise Paul and wash away thy sinnes calling on the name of the LORD though his sinnes were forgiven yet hee could not have assurance of it without calling upon the Name of the LROD Christ promised to baptize us with the Holy Ghost and with fire that is to sanctifie us in greater measure yet wee must call and call againe So Luke 11.5 6 7 8. You must knock as at a mans doore that is a sleepe with his children and loath to rise but if you knocke long and weary the Lord out and not suffer him to rest then he will give the Holy Ghost Therefore have you prayed and yet finde not your selves New Creatures You have your old hearts and old lusts prevailing yet you must at length wash away your sinnes by calling on the Name of the Lord. And hereto you may be stirred by the Sacrament which is not onely to give assurance that your sinnes are forgiven but likewise to draw more vertue from Christ to make up the breaches of our hearts and to get more grace and to be made New Creatures in a greater measure So that when a man comes hither he must consider wherein he is faultie what breaches there are in his heart and life what imperfection there is in grace and then hee must goe to Christ to repaire them And as you bring more faith with you so you shall carry more strength and comfort from the Sacrament So that thus much I can assure you of let any man come with a strong desire to receive Christ and to be a New Creature and let him bring faith in the promises of Sanctification and it cannot bee but hee shall be filled The LORD will send his Spirit into his heart and make him a New Creature Wheresoever God hath a mouth to speake Faith hath an eare to heare and an hâ—nd to take Men forgot this they thinke that Faith is onely occupied about promises of pardon and forgivenesse but it is not so you must set your faith on worke on the promises of Sanctification and when you come to receive the Sacrament you must know that you come to a table where you have fatlings where you have new Wines And thus you must feed on CHRIST not onely taking to your selves the promises of pardon but likewise of Sanctification that you may be filled with the Spirit which is as wine to quicken you and to strengthen you in the Inner man as well as the outward Elements of Bread and Wine strengthen thine outward man So that thou mayest not thinke thou receivest the Sacrament as thou oughtest when thou goest away as weake as when thou commest when there is no strength no vigour in the Inner man And so in all thy daily services when thou commest to Christ thou must eat the flesh of the Sonne of man and drinke his bloud as the Israelites did every day feed on the Mannah You must remember his Covenant not only to pardon but to sanctifie you and then you shall live thereby and every day grow stronger and stronger The end of the first Sermon CERTAINE SERMONS VPON THE NEW CREATVRE 2 COR. 5.17 Therefore if any man be in Christ let him be a new Creature THE Woman of Canaan though shee had no countetenance from Christ though he seemed not to heare her a long time though hee gave her crosse answers yet hee commends her faith in an extraordinary manner at the last She had never had that commendations if shee had not beene put to that difficulty a little therefore when you presse God when you doe stand it out and are not discouraged in the end you shall have it in a greater measure and it will be a greater commendations of your faith And so it was with Iacob if he had not wrestled as hee did hee had never had that great reward which he had he never had a greater reward for any thing that ever he did in his life than for his contending with God when God refused as it were when he strove with him when he would not doe it when he seemed to be of a contrary mind yet when he held out and did not give over till he had gotten it hee never got so much at Gods hands And so I say to every one of you if you finde it an hard taske to get this change to bee made New Creatures you pray and have sought and yet you have not gotten it yet be encouraged doe it still never give over you shall have a greater measure as your prayers are stronger for this you must know that when you make requests to God according to Gods will that then it is the voice of his Spirit therefore when you desire to be made New Creatures doe you thinke it is possible for God to deny you No because this desire comes from his Spirit Now it is true a man may desire to be made a New Creature he may desire grace and yet doe it in a carnall manner that is hee may desire it because he sees that he cannot be saved without it he may desire it as a thing of necessity that will make him safe and whole as a thing without which he shall perish Nature may goe thus far but to desire to be made a New Creature out of the beauty and taste of it out of a desire to please God and to glorifie him whose Name is called upon you out of a desire to please the Spirit that dwels in you this is proper to the Saints it is the voyce of the Spirit and therefore goe on boldly God hath promised to heare you hee cannot deny you See how Christ did when he was upon the earth those that were lame and blinde when they came and cried after him and would not give him over he did not refuse to heale every one there was not a man that was importunate with him but howsoever his Disciples slighted them Christ respected them Now do
but think with your selves doe you thinke he lesse pities the diseases of the Soule than he did the diseases of the Body Doe you thinke that he hath lesse compassion now he is in Heaven than hee had when he was on Earth Or doe you think that His Arme is shortned that he cannot doe as much now to heale the running sores that are on thy soule as he did on earth to heale bodily diseases My Brethren if you doe but seeke to him if you can get but a word from him if he say but to you Be whole if hee doe but rebuke thy sinfull lusts as he rebuked the Feaver it shall presently obey him Hee that was able to calme the sea and that hath the strong winds in his power is he not able to dissolve a strong inordinate apprehension a strong lust a strong unruly affection and so set them at liberty certainly he is able You know the woman that had spent so many yeares and all that she had upon Physitians and could doe her selfe no good by all yet when shee comes to Christ once you see it was done in an instant So I say a strong lust an old lust which is contrary to this New Creature which it may be thou hast been contending with many yeares and cannot get the victory over it yet if thou canst come in this manner to him and contend with him and knocke at the doore and never give over till thou hast awaked him certainly hee will give thee the holy Ghost he will change and renue thy heart he will set thee at full libertie This he hath confirmed with an oath and whatsoever God hath sworn he will performe it without all reservation where hee is said to doe a thing without an oath there may be a reservation left therefore we never finde an oath to the old Covenant but he hath sworne to performe the new Covenant and you know this is a great part of the new Covenant to give a new heart to make a man a new Creature therefore where the new Covenant is made there this is repeated in Ier. 31. and Heb. 8. I will make a covenant with my people and what is that I will put my Law into their minds and in their hearts will I write them that is I will make them New Creatures Therefore I say this is a matter of much use to you If you goe to Christ and labour to have this done My Brethren there is nothing left for us to be assured nor any other experiment that wee need have that there is another life that Iesus Christ hath done these great things for us and that the Gospel is true I say there is nothing else left for us no other experiment in comparison of this that we see wee are made New Creatures This is all the miracles that we have nay I dare be bold to say more It was the greatest miracle that they had in that time when all the miracles were wrought And therefore you shall find that Paul gives this as the maine argument among the rest That they shall be raised againe at the last day that they were in Christ that the Gospel is real and true For saith he We have received the Spirit we have had the Spirit which is the earnest the pledge the annointing you shall finde it every where scattered in his Epistles the receiving of the Spirit is the maine ground that hee builds on as in the 2 Cor. 1.23 Hee hath established us together with you and hath annointed us and sealed us by giving the Spirit as an earnest into our hearts As if he should say this is the Argument we have that we shall be saved not for all the miracles so much as this that we have received the Spirit for that is the true annointing wee feele it in our selves that sealeth and confirmeth us wee cannot doubt having had experience of such a mighty worke in us that is the earnest and the pledge we have and therefore Ephes. 1.19 He prayes that they might see the exceeding greatnesse of his power working in those that beleeve as if that would bee a great confirmation to them if once they should finde an experiment of the greatnesse of his power And so Phil. 3.10 I care not for all the world on this condition that I might know him and the vertue of his resurrection that is that I might know him by the power of his Spirit changing my heart killing my sinnes raising me againe and in a word making me a New Creature that I might know this experiment I looke upon all the world as drosse and dung as things not to be named So I say seeing there is nothing else left in comparison of this and when miracles were wrought there was nothing like this that wee might have this experiment in our selves we should goe to God and not give him over till the worke be wrought in us that we might be made New Creatures That which keepes men off from religious courses for the most part is discouragement they think they shall not be able to go thorow it when they heare they must bee made new men in all things that there must be nothing that is old left but all the old leaven must bee purged out it discourageth men because they thinke they shall never bee able to reach it whereas this is an assurance to thee that if you go about it you shall not faile of your purpose but you shall certainly bring it to passe because if you seeke it at Gods hands he cannot deny you only I told you you must pray It may be for this purpose God will not heale thee altogether but suffer many lusts to grapple and to contend with thee that thou mayest be taught to doe this duty and therefore wee should learne to goe to Christ wee should feed on him every day and by that meanes we shall be renewed we shall get new strength otherwise what is the meaning of that In this mount hee will make a feast of fined wines and of fatlings of fat things full of marrow of wines fined and purified Esay 25.6 The meaning is this when you come to Christ to renue your Communion and your Covenant with him which is done through faith and prayer you draw neerer to him and that strengthneth the soule as Mannah strengthned them in the wildernesse that you live by it for every day there growes new distances betweene Christ and us we let goe our hold as it were in some measure and begin to fall off from him a little therefore every day we should renue this Covenant especially when we come to the Sacrament As Ionathan and David they renued the Covenant of God againe that was between them as if there were a new Solemnity of marriage if it were often to be renued to make the parties joyned more united make no question of it we should renue our match with Christ we should come neerer to him
wherein consists the new man The new man consists in holinesse wrought in the will which proceeds from truth revealed unto the understanding so when the understanding and the judgement is rectified thou art made a New Creature Againe when the will is corrupt by lusts proceeding from errour in the understanding thou art in state of an old Creature The old man stands properly in lusts therefore saith Peter 2 Pet. 1.4 Fly the corruption which is in the world through lust All the corruption of mankind stands in these inordinate lusts Others wee may looke on as the fruit but this as the Root What are those lusts Iohn shewes them by three heads 1 Ioh. 2.16 The lusts of the flesh the lusts of the eye and the pride of life The old man stands in these three Take the first Lust even the lust of the Eye A man lookes upon wealth to make him happie in this life I meane no otherwise and looking upon this he lusts after it Doe but rectifie his judgement and let wealth be presented to him as it is in it selfe and hee will come to be affected with it as Paul was who accounted all but drosse and dung hee will say then why should I set my heart upon that which is nothing but vanity I say when the understanding is rectified you will looke upon wealth aright and as you shall see it at the day of death for then wee are as a man awakened out of a dreame we will looke on it then as it is Iam. 1.10 Let the Rich-man rejoyce that hee is made low for as a flower of the grasse so shall he vanish The meaning of this is when a man is made a New Creature he is brought downe in his conceit whereas before hee thought himselfe a great man because of his wealth Now Religion comes and that makes him low and let him be glad of it Why What reason hath a man to be glad of it Indeed if wealth were a thing of moment it were another matter but he was deceived Riches are but as the flower of grasse A wise man lookes on Riches as flowers of the Garden with children and the weakest doe much magnifie Indeed if they were of great moment he lost by it but as Iames saith They are but as flowers of the grasse worth little For the Lust of the flesh that is another thing whereby this old man is seene A man lookes on outward pleasures or delights as able to give satisfaction and as the greatest delights in the world let his Iudgement be rectified he looks upon them as Enemies that fight against the Soule as the workes of darknesse which he abhorres and so he comes to Lots disposition Whose righteous Soule was vexed to see the filthinesse of the Sodomites When his Iudgement is right hee lookes on them as base and vile things as Enemies unto his Soule that will be his destructioâ— For the Pride of life Man lookes on outward things as the onely excellencies which makes him admire them so but when his Iudgement is once rectified hee lookes upon them as the Apostle doth who accounted them but empty things as bubbles blowne up by Boyes To conclude when the Iudgement is rectified in stead of Errour and Deceit which is the Root of the old man whence comes these three great Lusts which are the maine and from which all the rest will follow then the lusts are dissolved and the new man comes from truth as the other is corrupted and comes from deceit So you see what it is to have this new quality to have the Iudgement rectified and the lust dissolved And not so onely but there must be new desires wrought in thee A carnall man over-values carnall things and in spirituall things hee comes farre too short like a man that lookes upon a banquet when his belly is full he hath no appetite unto it So a carnall man lookes upon Sinne and forgivenesse But when a man hath his Iudgement rectified he comes to have many holy desires and in this stands the New Creature Againe it comes from knowledge of the Spirit But you will say we have knowledge and if that would doe it then they that know most are best men But you must know what kinde of knowledge this is The new man must be renued in knowledge This is such a knowledge of holinesse as the Holy Ghost reveales unto us and except this knowledge be revealed unto you our revealing is nothing We preach Wisdome which the Princes of the world know not neither can know Take Aristotle or others which are the Princes of the world for wisdome they know not these things nay if they were taught them they could not learne them for they are revealed by the Spirit and if wee preach unto you never so oft if the Spirit doe not reveale them unto you it is nothing We see that by experiience that a man that can reason against these and these sinnes can speake of the vanity of these things can give twenty better reasons against them than another man yet hee seekes after them as much as any The wise-men and strongest wits which can say most against them yet have not their lusts dissolved when a poore man that is truly sanctified although he cannot say the hundreth part against sinne as another man yet he doth hunger after Iesus Christ. Therefore it must be the worke of the Spirit 2 Cor. 3. ult But we all behold as in a mirrour the glory of the Lord with open face and are changed into the same Image from glory to glory as by the Spirit of the Lord that is when wee looke into the Word wee see the Image of God so may another man too but he doth not see the glory of it he doth not looke on it as a desirable thing as a thing he is in love withall God shewes Moses his glory hee never shewed his glory but to the Saints The greatest request that Moses desired was to see the glory of the Lord I will shew thee my glory saith God that is thou shalt see as much as shall be needfull for thee to see in this life God shewes himselfe unto us in his Word and when hee will shew a man his glory he makes him to have a love to it and then hee is transformed into his Image Another sees it but he is not transformed into such a knowledge as convinceth the minde of sinne when wee teach knowledge it is as the Sparkes in a darke roome or as the Starres in a darke night the roome is darke still so it is with all knowledge till the Holy Ghost doth teach it wee may beget a thousand sparkes in you but they will not turne the darknesse into light But when the Holy Ghost comes it doth not onely appeare there but it changeth us from darknesse into light You must know that when we preach only it is as when the light shines the windowes being shut against it there
this may make you feare and tremble So you may see there is an end of this doctrine now we will make a little use of it and so end First if it be Christs worke if it be he that must begin it for it is a creature then you see what businesse we have in hand that are Preachers of the Gospell our businesse is to make men other Creatures which is a transcendent worke it is the worke of God and not of man this is the errand we are sent about and the work we are taught to doe every Sabbath and every Sermon which we preach to you to turne Lions into Lambes to transforme the heart of man and to make you New Creatures This I speake of not for our sakes but for yours that you may make use of it you must learne to know when you heare the Word what action you have in hand and whom you have to doe with that is with the Almighty God and not with man for alas my Brethren what are we able to doe Ephes. 2.10 You are Gods workmanship in Iesus Christ created to good workes that you should walke in them It is true we are the Instruments but ye are Gods workmanship Take the best Instrument wherewith we make any artificiall thing an Axe or a Chisell or whatsoever it is you know if there be not an influence from the Artificer it will make no artificiall thing it will strike when you use it but it will not make any artificiall thing if there be not an influence from the Artificer So we are Instruments and the Word is an Instrument but if there be not an influence from God the worke will not be done you will never be made New Creatures Therefore you are Gods workmanship created to good workes he doth it and remember you have to doe with him You have an elegant expression of it in 2 Cor. 3.2 You are Christs Epistle administred by us and written not with Inke but with the Spirit of the living God That is the Law of God is written in your hearts You know Regeneration is in many other places of Scripture A writing the Law of God in their hearts then there is a writing and in this sense the Saints are called an Epistle but they are Christs Epistle we are the pen and he is the Writer he handles the pen and what shal the pen do when there is paper and no Inke will there be any Epistle written Now what is that you are Christs Epistle not written with Inke but by the Spirit of God We doe but apply the pen to the paper but if God put not Inke into the pen that is the Spirit of the living God nothing will be written in your hearts Therefore remember what you have to doe and with whom not with us for we are able to doe nothing not Paul or Apollo mighty in Scriptures We are the Ministers by whom you beleeve It is God that doth it we are but those by whom you beleeve Peter if that ever any man was able so to doe it he was that had his tongue set on fire by the Holy Ghost yet he was not able to doe it Galath 2.8 He that was mightie by Peter over the Circumcision God was mighty by Peter but the work was none of his we are the Rams hornes but who throwes downe the walls of Iericho Are we able to doe it No my Brethren no more than Peter was able to open the Iron-gates It is true when Peter came to them they opened and not before but it was the Angell that did it So when we preach the Gospell there be everlasting doores can we open the Iron-gates No more than any man can open Iron-doores Therefore Lidia's heart was opened else Paul might have preached long enough in vaine in Luke the last Chapter He opened their understandings that they might understand the Scriptures If he had not opened their understandings as he was God he had done them no good when he preached to them as man Therefore it is God that doth it But you will say of what use is this to us that God doth it It is of much use therefore when you come to this place every Sabbath day to heare the Word when you see you have to doe with the mighty God we are the Pen it is God that doth it learne to come with reverence and feare learne to say of this place as Iacob did when he saw God when he saw the Ladder and Angels ascending and descending Surely this is a fearefull place and no other than the gate of Heaven and the House of God it may be you thought of it before You come to heare Sermons as Lectures and Declamations to have your understanding bettered but you doe not remember that it is the gate of Heaven and the House of God you see not God standing over us you should over-looke us it is the gate of Heaven that is you shall never come to Heaven ordinarily if you goe not thorow this gate it is the House of God And indeed when you come hither your eye must be upon him more than upon us expect and wait what God will doe on you hearts in such a time if you come and heare and God hath done nothing observe that and say it is because God hath with-holden his hand therefore my heart is not quickned at this Sermon if any thing hath been done know it is a Sparkle kindled from Heaven therefore cherish it looke well to it for it is a sparke kindled from heaven therefore doe as they did in the Law see what David did on the Altar which he built on Mount Moriah when the Altar was built they laid the wood and Sacrifice and looked to God when hee would send fire from heaven So we are the wood looke to God for fire if you can get a Sparke be sure to maintaine it for that was the manner of the Priests when they had a little fire from heaven they alway gave fewell they never let it goe out againe Looke to it diligently if you have got a sparke from heaven let it not goe out againe as it is the case of many thousands to doe there may be sparkes and you may heat your selves by them and it may be but fire from earht When a Sacrifice was kindled by common fire God accepted it not though it burnt as other fire yet it was no sacrifice to God Morall reason and naturall wisdome may kindle a fire that may be very like true fire but it is not from heaven Therefore come with much feare to this place like men that have your eyes on GOD seeke him not for fashion and know it is to no purpose if God send not his Spirit from heaven Againe you will say what use is there of this that it is God that doth it and not man I say therefore give the praise and glory of it to God give it not to us but to him
this is not a light notion but of great moment for it will make thee love the Lord Iesus Saint Paul puts this among the greatest mercies He hath beene mercifull to mee with faith and love that amazed him that he could never be thankfull enough for it that is he hath wrought in me faith and love therefore gives him the praise It is God that doth it wee are but the instruments we praise not the Trumpet but the Trumpetter we praise not the Pensill but the Painter It is God that doth the worke give him therefore the whole praise of it this is a matter of much use to you For when there is a Minister of God that hath beene an instrument of bringing you to heaven you will love this man prize him and magnifie him in your thoughts and you doe well but remember that you take nothing from Christ alas what is the Pen to him that writes the Epistle What are we my Brethren give not to us what belongs unto him nothing unto us saith Paul we have done thus and thus but it is nothing it is Christ that hath done all and let him have all as the servants of Christ we must be wary that we rob not our Master of mens affections for we are but spokes-men to present you to Christ therefore be exceeding wary give your affections to the Lord to whom they belong If ever you receive any good by any Sermon if you be ever quickned if ever a little enlivened by the powerfull preaching of the Word give glory to Christ and say he hath done it let him have the praise of it love him so much the more for of all graces nothing is like that to worke grace in your hearts Againe if you will say what use is there of it That it is not the Minister but GOD that doth it Then doe not expect from us that we should come with excellency of wisdome or of words that we should come with wit and eloquence and learning Will this make a New Creature No it will not doe it for it is God that makes men New Creatures and if it be so he will doe it by his owne Instruments that is by his owne Word Thus Paul reasons 1 Cor. 2. Wee preach the Gospell not with excellencie of words for then the death of Christ would be of no effect that is no man will be a New Creature and Christ would die in vaine therefore we preach the Gospel in the evidence of the Spirit and Power these go together evidence of Spirit and power What then is this preaching in evidence of the Spirit Certainely it is never evident that the Spirit speakes but when you know the Word speake therefore when any man knowes that this is the Word we preach there is an evidence it is a speech of the Spirit and when the Spiriâ— speakes to the heart there is Power and that was the reason that Christ did so much good He taught with authority and not as the Scribes What is that to come with authority As when a Constable comes in the name of the King he shewes his evidence he hath that which makes evident to him with whom he hath to deale that he comes from the King We preach with authority then onely when wee speake from God to the consciences of men this consisteth not in excellencie of words but so much as there is of God so much authority Therefore come not with affectation of excellencie of words and wisdome If we had al the wit in the world to set Word of God in it it is better than that in which it is set as the Diamond is better than the Gold in which it is set If you were to chuse a Minister chuse not such an one desire it not expect it not the foolishnesse of preaching is wiser than men it will doe more than all the wisdome of man though it is but foolishnesse to some We speake wisdome to them that are perfect saith Paul they that be perfect will recount it wisdome it is foolishnesse to them that are children and unable to discerne Againe though it be but foolishnesse on the out-side yet there be treasures within and God hath hid these treasures under base out-sides that men may stumble at them as men that hide treasure under straw the foolishnesse of preaching saves the soules of men therefore seeing it is God that doth it he will use his own Instruments God workes by it Can words can all morall wit make a New Creature No it is God then why doe we make a question The more the Word is discovered and brought home the better it is because indeed when we preach any thing else you doe but see a Creature and you thinke you have to doe with a Creature for you can answer wit with wit and learning with learning and when you see you have to doe with men though never so excellent yet they are men But when Christ speakes to the conscience now the heart is brought downe when it seeth it hath to doe with God that only hath to doe with the consciences of men therefore expect not the contrary and remember that God is the doer of it it is he that writes the Epistle though we be the Ministers It is therefore not without use that we preach this doctrine to you And to all that I have said adde this one more Therefore if you find there hath not been a mighty work of God wrought in your hearts at any time when you have heard the Word know you have heard in vaine for the labour is lost if there be no more than the worke of a man Therefore you must know there be two Preachers at the same time one that speakes to the heart powerfully that makes you New Creatures that baptizeth you with the Holy Ghost and with fire and then there is a preaching to the eares And there are two hearings one is when you can repeat and recall the Word to memory but there is another saving hearing that is when is it ingrafted And when it is ingrafted even then when it maketh you New Creatures as a graft is then grafted when it changes all the Stocke Therefore consider whether you doe so heare or no that it hath bred such a change in you and know otherwise you have heard it in vaine For what doe we do when we preach the Word we doe as Gehezi did hee came running with Elisha's staffe to raise the childe but he could not doe it for though he had Elisha's staffe he had not Elisha's spirit So we come with the staffe but not with the Spirit therefore thou art not raised to life for there is the staffe without the Spirit therefore doe not thinke thou hast heard to any purpose if the Stocke be not turned if thou findest not the Spirit there What doe we when we dresse up a Sermon never so well it is but the rigging of the sailes and what will all
same reason why they should not be poore in their spirituall estate For to what end serve riches Riches serve but for this purpose to procure things needfull for us if we want bread or wine or houses or any thing riches will procure them and therefore we prize riches And so likewise there are spirituall riches that will procure things needfull for our soules and if we want them we shall want that that is profitable for us we shall want that that is necessary for our salvation For riches doe but set men a worke to doe us service riches can doe no more than men can doe but these spirituall riches set God a worke to doe us good they are beyond the other as much as the help of God goes beyond the helpe of man when you need any thing If you be rich in Christ if you be rich in grace if you be rich in good workes it is but putting up your request and you shall have it at the hand of God if you want them you shall have whatsoever he is able to doe for you Now if you be out of Christ saith the Text you are poore that is you want these spirituall riches you have no ground to goe and to make your suit to goe for any thing Againe riches stand us in stead in the time of need for why doe men lay up treasures that when dearth comes when there comes a time of need the riches that they have laid up may serve their turne they may have those ready for their use when other men want them Are not these riches for the same purpose Will there not come a day of need will there not come a time of spending when there will be no leasure to gather at the day of death Then all the seed sowen to the spirit all the good workes that we have laid up will be as a treasure and at that time will do us good And that is the difference between the death of a godly man and another when a wicked man comes to the time of need he hath nothing to sustaine him he hath no oile left in his lampe he hath nothing to helpe him up but the godly man hath a treasure that he hath gathered all his life was to lay up a treasure And this my Brethren you shall finde to be a great comfort at that time that when you come to die all the faithfull prayers that you have made all the good workes that you have done all the sincerity that you have shewed in denying your selves in passing by the things that worldly men catch at in doing things that it may be hath brought trouble and slander and disgrace and persecution on you you shall then find it a treasure Take two men when they come to that day the one rich in this world another rich in good workes and consider which of these two conditions you would choose and therefore it is not a small matter to be rich Now when you are in Christ you are rich out of him you are poore and have nothing to stand you in stead in the time of need Againe this a man hath by riches that he is independant he needs not to serve others and therefore you know the proverbe is that a rich man he can live by others and without others and that is it they boast of So it is with all the Saints they may say to all the world they can live without it because they have God to be theirs they have all his treasures open to them they have enough in him for he is all-sufficient though they have but him alone for their portion yet he is enough as he saith to Abraham I am all-sufficient and why there are but two things that a man can desire to be free from evill and to enjoy good saith hee I am thy Buckler to keepe thee from evill and thy exceeding great reward to give good to thee that is thou shalt have enough if thou enjoy me Now if you be out of Christ you shall be poore that is you shall want these riches you want the riches of grace and of good workes that should stand you in stead in the time of need which will fetch any thing in for you when you want it which will make you more independant and stand upon your owne bottomes which is that that every man desires Againe if you be out of Christ you are naked Nakednesse is a want of that which should adorne us which should beautifie us and that is the case of every man out of Christ there is no beauty in him It is the Lord only that cloaths us with beauty As it is said of Saul Weepe for Saul yee Daughters of Ierusalem for hee clothed you with Scarlet and did hang ornaments of gold upon your apparell It may be truly said of Christ that he cloaths us with scarlet and hangs ornaments of gold on our apparell that is it is he that makes us Priests to his Father Now the Priests in the old Law were but a type of us we are the true Priests indeed you know they had Iewels and embroidered garments and so all the Saints have the shining graces of the Spirit which adorne and beautifie them when a man becomes so beautified then his sight is comely his voice is pleasant and his prayers are acceptable This benefit we have by being in Christ that it makes us comely in the sight of the Lord we shall be made beautifull Indeed Salomon in all his Royalty was not so beautifull as one of the Saints It is said the Lilies are much better cloathed than he And why Because that was a cloathing of Gods own work this is the clothing of Nature but the cloathing of Grace goes beyond the clothing of Nature If the clothing of Nature be beyond that of Salomon as indeed it is for naturall excellencie surely the cloathing of Grace goes beyond that this you shall have by Christ when you come to him you come to a rich Wardrobe where you may sute your selves from top to tooe that you need want nothing and by the way that use you may make of it when you come to him where there are garments of all sorts where there is change of rayment why should you suffer your soules to be naked in any part I know you reckon it undecent for a man to be unevenly cloathed to have some garments rich and precious and to have some vâ—le and base and why will you suffer your soules then to goe so unequally clad It may be you have graces in one kind but you want others if you come in to him it is he that cloaths you you are naked without him this benefit you shall have by him you shall be cloathed and be made beautifull you shall have that glorious attire that will make you glorious within which will make you comely in the sight of God if not you shall be naked and therefore you shall be rejected
and you know if the husband and the wife be a thousand miles asunder there might be such an union And partly it is reall a true reall unity when Christs Spirit dwels in us which may be done without the corporall presence of Christ And therefore certainly it is not needfull for the uniting of us to Christ because this union is spirituall it is done by faith by communicating the Spirit of Christ in us and therefore in this regard it is not necessary that there should be a corporall presence in the Sacrament Last of all is it necessary to encrease our faith for that likewise is one end of the Sacrament that our faith may be strengthned Why surely it is not needfull for this purpose no I say it cannot strengthen faith because the meanes you know is subordinate to the end it is lesse than the end whereas the faith that is required to beleeve Transubstantiation is far beyond the highest pitch of faith expressed in all Scripture I say it cannot be that that should be made a meanes to helpe faith that is beyond the thing that is to be beleeved marke it consider what it is we are to beleeve we are to beleeve that Christ tooke mans nature on him for us that his sufferings and crucifying belong unto us c. Is it not much easier to beleeve this than to beleeve that a peece of bread is turned into the body of CHRIST Though you see nothing though you taste nothing but bread I say it is much easier Now as we say we must not blow a sparke too much for putting it out now to have such meanes as these to helpe faith that cherisheth not the sparke of faith but blowes it out it doth not helpe faith but over-whelmes faith when the meanes used to strengthen are such as are beyond the thing to be strengthned Therefore in regard of the thing there is no necessity that there should bee any corporall presence of Christ in the Sacrament But let us consider whether there be any necessity in regard of the words This is my body Surely there is not any necessity here for the words may have another meaning This is my body that is this is the figure of my body or this is the Sacrament of my body and therefore it is not necessary specially seeing it is so frequent with Scripture to use metaphors in this kinde I need not name them to you you know Christ is called a Rock he is said to be a Lambe to be a Lion and in another case Iudas is said to be a Devill the Seed is said to be the Word nothing more frequent Christ is said to be a Vine I need not give you more instances Herod Christ cals him Fox The meaning of all this is that they are types and signes like such and such things But yet it is the manner of the Scriptures speech and therefore it is not of necessity that those words should be so taken for words are like cloaths that may fit more backes than the owners the words may agree to somewhat else there is not a word here but it may agree to divers things Body it signifies divers bodies the word This signifies as many things as you point to and therefore there is no necessity that they should signifie a corporall presence of Christ. But you will object I but in a matter of this moment as the Sacrament the Lord speakes distinctly and expresly there he useth no metaphor though in other cases he doe To this I answer briefly it is so farre from being true that he useth them not in the Sacrament that there are none of all the Sacraments but it is used In the Sacrament of Circumcision This the Covenant c. In the Sacrament of the Passeover which were the Sacraments of the old Law the Lambe is the Passeover in this very Sacrament To goe no further for instances take but the second part of it This is the Cup of the new Testament in my bloud where you shall finde two types and figures this Cup taken for this Wine This is the Cup of the new Testament that is the Sacrament of the new Testament And therefore we see there is no necessity in regard of the words And there is no necessity since with a little buckling and swarving This is my body that is this is the figure of my body we may have a convenient sense why should we faine such a monstrous thing that bread is turned into the very body of Christ and the wine into the very bloud What needs such a monstrous fetch as this to helpe the words to a meaning What need or necessity is there that they should be so interpreted And therefore we see in the first place that there is no necessity and if there be no necessity it is not to be put upon us for if that be an arbitrary thing we may aswell deny it Secondly as there is not necessitie so there is not possibilitie though it were possible they would not get much for there are many things that are possible that are not done But it is not possible if it were possible then it must stand with the power of God But the power of God is not used but where the glory and wisdome of God goe before for it is the harbinger of his glory and wisdome The power of God is not used but if it be for his honour therefore it is said God cannot lye because it is not for his honour and he cannot deny himselfe because it is not for his wisdome and his glory Now I say since this is not for the glory of God for it is against his glory that there should be such a conversion of the bread into the body of Christ and it is against his wisedome And if it be against these then certainly the power of God must not be called to it Now I say it is against his glory because whensoever the Lord appeared he appeared alway in glory though sometimes he appeared as a man yet there was such a majestie that caused them to tremble that beheld him Shall we see God and live You see when he appeared to Elias what majestie he came in what harbengers he sent before him the Wind that rent the Rockes and a Fire c. But you will say Christ humbled himselfe to death as a man therefore he doth not alwayes appeare in glory It is true and that was the lowest degree of Humiliation and yet when he appeared as man there was some sparke of his Divinitie appeared there But that Christ should appeare in the likenesse of a peece of bread that thou mayest put in thine owne mouth surely this is a monstrous thing it is against the glory of God Doe you thinke if Christ should come downe upon the earth after his Ascention and exhibite himselfe to be worshipped amongst us that he would present himselfe in the forme of a peece of bread It is impossible it is not
will come What will their condition be then when there is no sprinkling of the bloud on the doore-posts of thy soule It is the case of every man out of Christ What are we out of him when the avengers of bloud when the pursuers shall set on us and pursue us from whom we cannot flie And when we shall be shut out from the hornes of the Altar when we cannot come to Christ the Citie of Refuge it is a terrible thing if we consider it seriously It is said that Aaron when he caused the people to commit that sinne or was an instrument rather it is said that he left the people naked why because he deprived them of the presence of the Lord Now when Christ shall be taken from us when we are without him when we are deprived of him are we not naked is not the hedge broken downe there is nothing left to shelter us what are we without him but as the Conneyes out of the rockes that have nothing to shelter us from the devouring Lion Now Moses was but a type it is Christ that holds the hands of God that he cannot destroy us it is he that stands in the breach and keepes out the inundation of evils that we be not over-whelmed with them he is the Arke of God that causeth the house of Obed-Edom to be blessed and we have more cause to take to heart the want of him a thousand times than they had to lament the losse of the Arke when it was among the Philistims for the Arke was but a type of Christ This is the case of every man living out of Christ. I but you will say Christ is mercifull he is very ready to forgive I hope I am not out of him but he is ready to receive me It is very true he is mercifull but to whom surely not to the wicked he holds not the wicked innocent so speake plainly to you Whosoever continues in any knowne sinne be it never so small to such a man Christ will not be mercifull No sinne shall have dominion over you Rom. 6. for you are not under the Law but under Grace As if he should say there are none whom Christ takes to himselfe and puts into the condition of Grace but he frees them from the dominion of every sinne there is not one ruling lust there You know there are many paths that lead to hell the way that leads the right way is but one errour is manifold there are a thousand paths that lead the wrong way and will not one path lead to hell as well as a thousand He that is in Christ hath crucified the flesh and all the affections there is not one raigning lust there so that as Antichrist had his marke and they received the marke of the Beast So Christ hath his marke too as you have it Ezek. 9. The Writer marked all that mourned God set a marke upon them and he sets a marke upon all those that he is mercifull to You will say what is this mark of the Lord You shall finde 2 Cor. 5.17 Whosoever is in Christ he is a New Creature that is the marke of the LORD IESUS And therefore if thou wouldest know whether Christ will be mercifull to thee consider if thou finde that marke there Art thou a New Creature that is art thou made all New as if thou haddest another soule dwelling in thy body for thou must not be new by halfes thy whole spirit must be New Againe if you will come more properly to this marke you shall finde Ephes. 1. 2 Cor. 1. what it is The Seale and marke that Christ sets is his Spirit Whosoever hath not the Spirit of Christ is none of his You know Merchants set seales upon their goods to know them that when they meet with their seale they may say This is my parcell of goods So it is in the multitudes of men All that Christ will be mercifull unto he sets his seale on them and where he finds his seale and his mark those he knowes to be his That Seale is his sanctifying Spirit that he hath given us it is as a Seale or earnest 2 Cor. 1. and Ephes. 1. He hath sealed us with the Spirit of Promise that is with the Spirit that he hath promised to us So consider if thou have that Spirit then to sanctifie and to change thy heart to make thee another man than thou art by nature to enable thee to do more than thou canst doe by nature If thou have not this seale of God thou art yet none of his But you will say I have the Seale I hope I have the Spirit Well it is well if thou hast but know this that Christ never gives that privie Seale and Signet of his that inward Seale that none knowes save those that have it but there is a Broad-seale likewise that followes that Seale spoken of 2 Tim. 2. This foundation of the Lord remaineth sure and hath this Seale The Lord knoweth who are his and let them depart from iniquity that call upon the name of the Lord hee addes to that other a parting from iniquitie from all kinde of iniquity there must be none exempt place in thine heart nor in thy life wherein thou wilt have a priviledge thou continuest not in the least sinne but departest from all iniquity then thou hast this Seale aswell as the other If thou want these two Seales if thou be not a New Creature if any sinne have dominion over thee if there be one living lust in thee that is not mortified that is not healed I assure thee thou never haddest yet any part in Christ and if thou be out of Christ thou seest what thou art subject to to the wrath of God and you see the particulars you are subject to death you are subject to the feare of death and to hell and this is the case of every man out of Christ and me thinkes this should somewhat move us to come in and to take him But this is not all that which we have by Christ may invite us a great deale more forcibly If we could but open the Casket and shew you the Iewels or if we could but unlocke the treasures that are hid in Christ it would bring a man in love with him it would make men doe as Paul Account all drosse and dung that they might have him Well though we cannot doe it fully yet we will endevour to doe it a little You will say What shall we have by Christ First you shall have life by him Iohn 6. the place spoken of in the beginning He that beleeves in me shall have eternall life and I will raise him up at the last day When he comes to speake of water to the woman of Samaria Iohn 4. when hee would commend to us a motive to stir us up to come and take him and to drinke c. he saith Hee that drinkes this water shall thirst no more That is he