141. Luxury 155. Lying 96. 146. M Magistrates 163. 148. Maintenance 114. Malice 116. Man 91. 94. 116. Manichees 116. Mahometans 138. Manna hidden 137. Marriage 142 Martyrs 124 Masteries 137 Means 91. 109 Meekness 12. 116 Mercy 12. 38 Meeting 135 Members 96. Metallists 11. Miracles 162. Moses 36. 40. 49. 115. 153. Mortality 92. Murmurers 37. Musick 104 Mysteries 62. 65. 66. N Name 1. 17. 58. 104. Natural man 45. Nazianzen 124. Newness 38. 47. O Obedience 23. 46. 92. 93. 97. 128. Object 108. Offertory 15. Offend offence 22. 156. 145. Offerings 90. Omnipotent 67. Omni-presence 134. 136. Order 89 Ordinances 18. P Pambo 144. Passion 69. Paul 114. 123. Parents 92. 100. Pastors 79. Partition wall 85. 117. Peace 32. 58. 117. 155. Peter 25. 160. Pentecost 81. Persecution 32. 96. Perfect 171. Pharaoh 26. 55. Pharisees 78. 158. Philosophy 49. Piety 126. Pillar 86. Pleasures 137. 140. Poor 35. 36. 121. Practice 167. 150. Presbytery 7. Provide 17. Providence 154. Prayer 21. Preaching 173. Prescience 26. 53. Prophecy 33. 45. Promises 101. Principles 41. 89. Praises 110. Prosperity 95. 112. Pride 94. 143. Power 62. Psalms 110. Pure 18. Purity 97. 140. Purposes 57. Q Quarrels 145. Questions 60. R Regenerate 7. 44. Reprobate 5. Reprobation 52. Receive 22. Resistance 29. Redemption 53. 7â— Resurrection 59. 77. 171. Repentance 85. 94. 95. 103. Religion 90. 93. 153. 144. Reward 101 102 103. 133. 179. Reason 108. 119. Reputation 103. Revelation 154. Rich 13. 67. 93. Riches 34. Righteous 34. 47. 49. Rituals 157. Rock 1. Romanism 160. 153. Righteousness 173. 173. S Salvation 3. 66. 68. 722. 44. Sanctity 10. Saviour 102. Sacrament 15. 101. Sacrifices 90. Salt 117. Saints 91. 161. Scripture 59. 108. 117. Scrupulous 158. Schisms 90. 163. Scandal 22. 35. 165. Self-denial 9. 96. 124. Sealed 39. Search 118. Seeing God 169. Severus 148. Sins 20. 30. 111. Sinners 118. Sinus Abrahami 181. Sincerity 25. Songs 180. Soul 16. 70. 114. Solomon 102. Sorrow 95. Spirit 8. 16. 44. 81. 115. 151. 152. Speculation 106. 126. Spiritual 96. Sufferings 31. 76. 176. Submission 34. Suspicion 159. T Temperance 125. Temple 30. Theology 108. Tongue 51. 96. 144. Tribute 156. Tribulation 5. 32. Trouble 112. Tree of knowledg 41. Tree of life 184. Treasures 43. 169. Trust 67. Truth 82. 84. 88. 116. 118. 128. V Vain glory 14. Vicars 83. Virgins 127. 139. 141. Victory 11. Voluntas signi 52. Ungodly 47. 112. Unity 80. 166. Unregenerate 70. Uriah 19. 111. Usury 15. W Warfare 197. War 95. Way 171. Wife 36. Will worship 24. Wicked 95. 112. Wit 96. Wisdom 121. Widow 124. Women 125. Words 130. 145. Works 46. 51. 131. World 16. 38. 39. 72. Wrath 29. 56. Y Yoke 23. 95. 167. Z Zelots 30 Zacharias 132. Greek Words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 27. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 35. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 14. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 16. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 24. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 63. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 93. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 105. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 35. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 5. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 149. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 3. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 15. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 15. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 33. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 28. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 30. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 29. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 14. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 102. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 16. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 94. 95. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 119. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 8. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 53. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 38. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 3. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 25. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 29. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 31. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 70. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 16. 119. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 45. 119. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 113. FINIS THREE MINISTERS Communicating their Collections and Notions touching Several Texts of Holy Scripture At their weekly Meetings The first Meeting A. I. Matth. 16. 18. That the gates of Hell shall not prevail against the Church proves not the pretence of Infallibility Instead of Hell the word may be rendred Grave So the meaning is Death which is the mouth and gate through which we pass into the grave shall never prevail against the Church i. e. The Church shall never die II. Matth. 16. 18. On this rock Suppose the rock on which the Church was to be built were S. Peter himself that is not peculiar unto him since we are all built on the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets and on the twelve foundatiâ—ns of the new Jerusalem are written the names of the twelve Apostles of the Lamb. III. Mat. 16. 19. The keyes of the Kingdome of Heaven given to Peter saith no more but that he was to open the Gospel which is usually called the Kingdome of God or of Heaven in the new Testament Now the use of keyes being to open the door this was in peculiar S. Peters honour who did first publish the Gospel both to Jews and Gentiles and in particular did first receive the Gentiles into the new dispensation B. I. LUke 19. 26. Vnto every one that hath i. e. hath made use of the talent of Grace intrâ—â—â—ed to him as Heb. 12. 28. To have Grace signifies to make use of it to the end to which it is design'd shall be given and from him that hath not i. e. hath not made use of his talent even that he hath shall be taken from him II. Act. 2. 47. The Lord added daily to the Church such as should be saved 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the saved The word signifies peculiarly those who received that exhortation v. 41. that is those that repented of their sins and therefore the Syriac renders it the Lord added daily those that became safe in the Church i. e. recovered themselves from that danger in which they were involved among that wicked Generation and betook themselvs to the Church as to a Sanctuary III. Hebr. 2. 16. He taketh not hold of Angels but of the seed of Abraham he taketh hold So the words are rightly rendred in the margin Where 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies to catch any one who is either running away or falling on the ground or into a pit to fetch back or recover again Thus Christ did for men in being born and suffering in our Flesh but for Angels he did it not C. I. MAtth. 1. 23. They shall call his name Emmanuel i. e. He shall be God with us or God incarnate in our flesh For in the Hebrew tongue word and thing calling and being name and person are all one No word i. e. no thing shall be impossible with God And My house shall be called i. e. shall be the house of prayer to all People Gentiles as well as Jewes And so many names i. e. so many men II. Mark 1. 24. Art thou come to destroy us And in another place Art thou come to torment us before our time Matth.
II. Act. 10. 34. Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons i. e. that now â—he partition wall is broken down that Jew â—nd Gentile are both alike and the Church which was formerly shut up in Judea is now become Catholick a body which every one that will may be a member of III. Eph. 2. 20. Christ sent his Apostles to make us Christians to make that which he taught them a Rule of life and to fix it on the Church as on a Pillar that all might read it that none should add to it or take away from it And for this they are called a foundation and we are said to be built upon them Jesus Christ being the head corner stone The three and Twentieth Meeting A. I. 1 JOh. 4. 1. Believe not every Spirit Ouâ— present Age hath shew'd us many who tho very ignorant yet are wiseâ— than their teachers so Spiritual that they despise the Word of God which is the dictate â—â— the Spirit If they murder the Spirit moveâ— their hand and drew their sword if the throw down Churches it is with the breatâ— of the Spirit if they would bring in paritâ— the pretence is the Spirit cannot endure thâ— any should be supreme Our humour oâ— madness our malice our violence our implacable bitterness our railing and revilling must all go for Inspirations of the Spirit II. 1 Joh. 4. 2. Every Spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God i. e. Whosoever striveth to advance the kingdome of Christ and to set up the Spirit against the flesh to magnifie the Gospel to promote men in their wayes of innocency and perfect obedience which infallibly lead to happiness is from God Every such Inspiration is from the Spirit of God III. Matth. 7. 20. By their Fruits ye shall know them Their hypocrisie as well and cunningly wrought as it is is but poor cobweb lawn and we may easily see through it We may see these Spiritual men swearing and toiling for the flesh these spirits diging in the minerals and making hast to be rich Sure I am the Spirit of Truth looketh upward moveth upward directeth upward to those things which are above and if we follow him neither our doctrine nor our actions will ever favour of this dung B. I. 2. COr 4. 3. If the truth be hid it is hid to them that perish If we have eyes to see her she is a fair object as visible as the Sun If we do but love the truth the Spirit of truth is ready to take us by the hand and lead us to it but those that withdraw themselves doth his Soul hate II. Prov. 2. 4. If thou seekest her as Silver c. Truth is best bought when it costeth us most it must be Wooed oft and seriously and with great devotion To Love seven years are but a few days Gen. 29. great burdens are but small and labour is a pleasure When we walk in the region of truth viewing it and delighting in it gathering what may be for our use we walk as in a Paradise Never did any rise up early and in good earnest travel toward it but he was brought to his journeys end III. Eph. 1. 5. God dispenseth all things according to the good pleasure of his Will And certainly he will not lead thee if thou wilt not follow he will not teach thee if thou will not learn Nor can we think that the Truth will be sown in every ground and as Devils tares grow up in us whilst we sleep C. I. MAtth. 6. 33. Seek ye first the Kingdome of God And in that Kingdome every thing in its order There is something first and something next to be observed We must keep a set Course in our studies and proceedings II. Heb. 6. 1. The Apostle tels us of principles of doctrine which must be learned before we can be led forward to perfection of milk and of strong meat of plainer lessons before we reach at higher mysteries Most Christians are perfect too soon which is the reason why they are never perfect III. Heb. 11. 6. Without Faith it is impossible to please God It is true but without justice and honesty Faith is but a name For can we imagine that Religion should turn Theif and Devotion a Cutpurse The four and Twentieth Meeting A. I. MIch 6. 6. Shall I come before him with burnt offerings 'T is in effâ—ct I must not do it The question maketh the denyal more strong That which is Religion hath so little relation to it that it can subsist without it and most times hath been swallowed up and lost in it It was in the World before any Command came forth for sacrifice and it is now most glorious when every Altar is thrown drown and hath the sweetest savour now there is no other smoke II. Jer. 7. 22. I spake not to your Fathers concerning burnt offerings They were before they were enjoyned and the Fathers offer'd them up out of a voluntary affection to the honour of God devoting that unto him which was with them of highest esteem God did not Command but did accept them for the zeal and affection wherewith they were offer'd being in themselves neither good nor evil III. Gal. 4. 10. Joh. 4. 20. The Ceremonies were confined to time and Place You observe days and months saith the Apostle Yea and they observed places too Ye say that Jerusalem is the place saith the woman of Samaria to our Saviour But that which is truely good and in it self is of that Nature that Time and place hath no power or influence on it It is never out of season never out of place Every day every hour every minute is the good mans sabbath and rest The Church is the place the market is the place and the prison may be the place nay Sodom it self And it is the greatest Commendation to be good among the worst B. I. ISai. 1. 15. Will I be pleased with thousands of rams i. e. I will not We may then learn thus much from the Prophets question That the Ceremonious part of Gods worship tho enâ—oyned by God and performed most exactly by men yet if is be not driven to that end for which it was commanded is so far from finding acceptance with God that it is odious and hateful in his sight II. Isa 64. 4. All our righteousness he meaneth formal and counterfeit righteousness is as a menstruous Cloth III. Matth. 25. Come ye blessed c. The form or reason is not for you have sacrificed ye have fasted often ye have heard much c. yet these are holy duties but they are ordinata in a liud ordained for those that follow For I was hungry and ye gave c. Then the outward worship hath its Glory and reward when it draweth the inward along with it when I sacrifiee and obey hear and do pray and endeavour contemplate and practise fast and repent C. I. JOh. 3. 5. Except
8 29. The Devils acknowledge that Christ was to destroy them they understood so much in the Sacred predictions but withal hope it was not yet the time for that execution and in the mean while counted it a kind of destruction and torment to them to be cast out or retrenched of any of their power which they had over the bodies or souls of men III. Rom. 4. 22. It was imputed or counted to him for Righteousness i. e. God took this for such an expression of Abrahams faithfulness and sincerity and true piety that he accepted him as a righteous person tho no doubt he had many infirmities and sins which he was or had been guilty of in his life unreconcilable which perfect righteousness The second Meeting A. I. 2. COr 13. 5. Know ye not that Christ Jesus is in you among you as Ex. 17. 7. except you be reprobates The words may be best resolved into a question and an answer Know you not discern you not your selves by the miracles and preaching the demonstration of the Spirit and of power that Christ Jesus that is the power of the Gospel is come amongst you this by the context appears to be the meaning And then the Answer except ye be reprobates i. e. ye are obdurate insensate creatures unless you do know it II. Rom. 5 3 4 5. Tribulation worketh patience and patience experience and experience hope and hope maketh not a shamed Here the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which we render experience Signifies being approved upon a tryal and the sense runs thus Tribulation is a season and a means to work patience and that patience to produce approbation as of one that is tryed in the fire and hath past the test and this a means to work an hope or expectation of reward and that hope will keep from being ashamed of those sufferings and make us rather rejoyce in them as in benign auspicious signes that in another world there is a reward for the righteous So Rom. 12. 12. rejoycing in hope and patient in tribulation are joyn'd togeher III. 1 Joh. 3. 3. Every man that hath this hope in him on him relying on his mercy purifieth himself By this you shall know a Christian hope from all other The Hypocrite or Carnal man hopes and is the wickeder for hoping he fears nothing and so discerns not the necessity of mending The best way to reform such a one is to rob him of his ungrounded hope But this hope of seeing God being grounded on the Conditional promises and the conditions being purity and holiness 2 Cor. 7. 1. sets presently to the performance of the conditions B. I. MAtth. 22. 37. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart with all thy Soul with all thy mind and with all thy strength The heart seemeth to signifie the affections the Soul the will or elective faculty the mind the understanding or rational faculty and the strength the powers of the body for action All four together make up the whole man and the word all is affixt to each not to exclude all other things from any inferior part of your love but only from an equal or superior love to exclude a partial or a half-love II. Jam. 5. 16. Confess your faults one to another The context seems very probably to mean the presbyters for they are to be called v. 14. And for the cure of sin it will sure be very profitable to advise with the Physicians of the Soul to which end alone the disclosing of the particular estate is more then profitable And this may tend much to your comfort when the Minister of God upon a strict survey of your former life and your present repentance passes judgment on you better than you can do on your self III. 1. John 3. 9. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin i. e. doth not live in sin as in a trade or course for his seed remaineth in him there is in the regenerate a new principle or seed of life a cognation with God which whilst it continues keeps out sin and he cannot sin in such manner because he is born of God or if he do sin thus he is no longer a child of God or a regenerate person So we say An honest man cannot do this not affirming an impossibility but that his principles of honesty will not suffer him to do it or if he do it he is no longer to be counted an honest man C. I. GAl. 5. 17. The flesh lusteth against the spirit c. By the spirit it meant the seed of Grace planted in the heart by God as a principle of new life or the mind and upper Soul elevated yet higher by that supernatural principle By the flesh is meant the carnal appetite still remaining in the most regenerate during this life The lusting of one against the other is their contrariety that whatsoever one likes the other dislikes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 So that you do not the things ye would this contrariety gives you trouble that whatsoever ye do on either side you do it not quietly but with resistance In this opposition we must be sure that the flesh do not carry it against the Spirit i. e. do not get the consent of the will to it For he that fulfils the lust's of the flesh walkes not in the Spirit and consequently is not in a regenerate estate II. Matth. 16. 24. If any man will come after me let him deny himself Self denial is to renounce whatsoever comes at any time in competition with Christ namely all opinion of my own abilities towards the attaining of any supernatural end not depending upon any righteousness of my own for Salvation but only the free mercy of God in Christ not imputing unto me sin All unlawful desires of the flesh and even lawful liberty my reputation my estate and life if selfe when either Christ must be parted with or these By taking up the Cross in the following words is meant bearing of Affliction patiently and chearfully III. Phil. 1 29. To you it is given i. e. It is granted as a grace and Vouchsafement of Gods special favour to suffer far Christ and that grace is designed to reform what is amiss and to punish here that there may be nothing of evil left for another world Wherefore we are bound not only to patience but thankfulness also in our Afflictions The third Meeting A. I. 1. COr 2. 9. Eye haâ—h not seen nor ear heard neither have entred into the heart of man the things which God haâ—h prepared for tbem that love him The true superlative delights even to flesh and blood that are in Sanctity and the practice of Christian Virtues beyond all that any sensual pleasure affords are so great that when they are exprest by the Apostle in these words they are ordinarily mistaken for the description of Heaven II Rom. 7. 23. I see another law in my members warring against the law of my mind
and purest times By degrees this power fell in its esteem through some abuse of it it being drawn down from that most profitable and necessary end for which it was given and this at last brought all Religion into disgrace III. Job 18. 14. Death is a King of terrors But Christians having the divine Image restored in them are secure and fear it not For what can that Tyrant take from them Their life That is hid with Christ in God It cannot cut them off from pleasures for their delight is in the Lord. It cannot rob them of their treasure For that is laid up in Heaven It can take nothing from them but what themselves have already crucified their flesh It cannot cut off one hope one thought one purpose for all their thoughts purposes and hopes were levell'd not on this but in another life B. I. LUk 19 41. shall Christ shed his blood for his Church that it may be one with him and at unity in it self and canst thou not drop a tear when thou seest this his body thus rent in pieces as it is at this day when thou seest the world the love of the World break in and make such havock in the Church Oh it is a sad Contemplation will none but Christ weep over Jerusalem II. Rom. 10. 10. He that believeth from the heart cannot but be obedient to the Gospel Unless we can imagine there can be any man that can so hate himself as deliberately to cast himself into hell and run from happiness when it appeareth in so much Glory III. Act. 2. 1. when the day of Pentecost was Come Every day to a Christian is a day of Pentecost his whole life a continued holy day wherein the Holy Ghost descendeth both as an Instructor and as a Comforter secretly and sweetly by his word characterizing the Soul and imprinting saving knowledge not forcing or drawing by violence but sweetly leading and guiding us into all truth C. I. JOel 2. 28. I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh Christs Advent was for the fulfilling of the Law and the Spirits for the fulfilling and compleating of the Gospel Christs advent to Redeem the Church and the Spirits to teach the Church Christ to shed his blood and the Spirit to wash and purge it in his blood Christ to pay down the ransome for us Captives and the Spirit to knock off our fetters Christ to preach the acceptable year of the Lord and the Spirit to interpret it II. Joh. 16. 13. He will guide you into all truâ—h Ille He designeth a certain person and Ille He in Christs mouth a distinct person from himself Besides we are taught in the Schools Actiones sunt suppositorum Actions and operations are of persons III. Joh. 16. 13. The Spirit of Truth We may be zealous and not cruel devout and not superstitious we may hate Idolatry and not commit sacriledge stand fast in our Christian liberty and not make it a cloak of miliciousness if we did follow the Spirit in all his ways who in all his ways is a Spirit of Truth For he Commandeth zeal forbiddeth râ—ge he commendeth devotion forbiddeth superstition he condemneth Idolatry yea and condemneth sacriledge he preacheth liberty and preacheth obedience to superiors and in all is the same Spirit The two and Twentieth Meeting A. I. JOh. 20. 21. As my Father sent me saitâ— our Saviour to his Disciples so send â— you And he sendeth us too whâ— are haereditarii Christi discipuli Christs disciplâ—s by inheritance and succession that every one as he is endowed from above should serve him by serving one another And tho our serving him cannot deserve that name yet is he pleased to call it helping him that we should help him to feed the hungry to guide the blind and teach the ignorant and so be Christs Vicars as the â—pirit is Christ's II. 1 Tim. 1. 10. He brought Life and Immortality to light For whatsoever the Prophets and great Rabbies had spoken of immortality was but darkness in comparison of this great light III. 1 Cor. 2. 2. I determined to know nothing but Christ and him crucified Here his desire hath a non ultra This truth is all this joyneth Heaven and Earth together God and Man mortality and immortality misery and happiness in one drawâ—th us near unto God and maketh us one with him B. I. EPh. 2. 8. Faith is called the gift of God not onely because it is given to every belâ—ever and too many are too willing to stay till it be given but because the Spirit first found out the way to save us by so weak a means as Faith And as he first found it out so he teacheth it and leaveth out nothing not a tittle not an Iota which may serve to compleat and perfect this divine Science II. Joh 16. 13. into all Truth The Spirit in the Gospel hath framed rules anâ— precepts to order and regulate all the faculties of our soul in every act in every motion and inclination if the Eye offend pluck it out if the Hand cut it off Rules which limit the Vnderstanding to the knowledge of God bind the Will to obedience moderate and confine our affections level our hope fix our Joy stint our Sorrow frame our Speech compose our Gesture Fashion our Apparel set and methodize our outward Behaviour III. 1 Cor. 13. The acts of Charity are manifest Charity suffereth long even injuries and errors but doth not rise up against that which was set up to enlarge and improve her Charity is not rash to beat down every thing that had its first rise and beginning from Charity Charity is not puffed up swelleth not against a harmless yea and an useful constition tho it be of man Charity â—eâ—keth not her own treadeth not the publick peace underfoot to procure her own Charity thinketh no evil doth not see a serpent under every leaf nor Idolatry in every bough of devotion If we were Charitable we could not but he peaceable C. I. REpent and believe the Gospel See God hath shut up Eternity within the compass of two words Believe and Repent the sum of all he taught Lay your foundation right and then build upon it Because God loved you in Christ do you love him in Christ Love him and keep his Commandments than which no other way could have been found out to draw you near unto God Believe and Repent this is all What malice what defiance what gall and bitterness amongst Christians yet this is all Believe and Repent Every part of Christendom almost is a stage of war and this pretence is written in their banners you may see it waving in the air For God and Religion yet this is all Believe and Repent Who would once think there should be such wars and fighting amongst Christians for that which is shut up and brought unto us in these two words Believe and Repent for this is the Gospel of Christ this is the whole will of God
this sense also we must take that of the Apostle where he forbids to eat witb publick and notorious offenders For the Apostles mind was not that such men were to be given over for gone or that we should acquaint our selves onely with the good and not with the bad For our Saviour Christ familiarly conversed eat and drank with publicans and sinners and gives the reason of it Because he came to call not the the righteous but sinners to repentance and we cannot think that S. Paul is contrary to Christ The four and Thirtieth Meeting A. I. MAtth. 7. 7. Search and ye shall find not every particular Truth for experience teaches us that cannot be the interpretation but whether you find or no the Truth which you search for you shall find the reward of Searching which is happiness II. 1 Cor. 2. 14. The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit c. I conceive it ought to be rendred the sensual man for such is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the Greek animalis in the Latin 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 many times signifying the lower and sensitive part of the soul in distinction to 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which is the upper or rational So the meanning is That whilst a mans reason is seduced by his appetites and passions it is an unfit judge of spiritual matters neither can be Umpire for a peace having joyn'd it self to the party of those things which are in perpetual war far against the Spirit III. â— Cor. 10. 5. Casting down reasonings c. S. Paul relates in vindication of his own just greatness against the calumnies of some that despised his person especially as weak and rude of speech how he had confuted those persons that opposed themselves by reasonings against the doctrine of Christ And whereas their understandings before were enslaved and captivated to the desires of the sensual soul which hindred them from the obedience of Christ he freed them from their cruel bondage by casting down all their strong holds brought them into another captivity by right of conquest but such a one where the yokes are light and the burdens easie i. e. by true reason he overcame and captivated their false ones B. I. 1 COr 5. 11. With such a one no not to eat By eating with him is understood familiar society in dyet or lodggin For in case I come to an ordinary or Inn to eat and see at the Table an excommunicate person sitting whom I have no power to exclude what can hinder me from dining with him II. Cor. 11. 28. Let a man examine himself And yet perfect Faith â—r Repentance is not required as some by too much urging perfection which is no where found shut out almost all for ever from the Communion God accepts of a weak Faith if it be sincere III. 1 Cor. 13. 7. Chariâ—y beareth all things believeth all things He requireth here simplicity and humanity in judging these being the perpetual companions of Charity whereby a Christian thinks it better to be deceived through his benignity and facility than by a sinister suspicion to grieve his brother C. I. 1 COr 12. 8. S. Paul reckons Wisdome and knowledge in the first rank of the gifts of God and if he any where seem to reflect severely upon wisdome or humane learning he onely censures the Abuse never intending to blame the thing it self II. 1 Cor. 11. 22. What have you not houses to eat and drink in or despise ye the Church of God Where that by Church is not meant the Assembly meeting but the place in which they used to assemble is evident partly from what went before for their coming together in the Church is expounded by their coming together into one place partly from the opposition which he makes between the Church and their own private houses in this verse If they must have such irregular banquets they had houses of their own much fitter for it and for their ordinary repast than that place set a part for the common exercises of Religion III. 1 Cor. 16. 1 2. The Apostle giving directions to the Church of Corinth as he had done in the like case to other Churches concerning their contributions to the poor suffering brethren he bids them lay aside upon the first day of the weak which seems plainâ—y to respect their Religious Assemblies upon that day for then it was that every one according to his ability deposited someting for the relief of the poor and the uses of the Church The five and Thirtieth Meeting A. I. REv. 1. 18. On the Lords day This was the more proper and prevalent name of the first day week that day whereon our Lord made his triumphant return from the dead This Justin Martyr assures us Apol. 2. was the true Original of the Title upon Sundays sayes he we all assemble and meet together c. He and Terlullian call it Sunday and it seldome passes under any other name in the imperial Edicts of the first Christian Emperours The Primitive Christians looked upon this day as a time to be celebrated with great expression of joy and accordingly restrained whatever might savour of sorrow and sadness A day of rest that men might have nothing to do but to worship God and be better instructed in the Christian Faith II. Gal. 4. 15. S. Paul bears record to the Galatians that he was accounted so dear to them that if the plucking out their eyes would have done him any good they were ready to have done it for his sake And the antient Christians carried themselves toward their Bishops and Ministers with all that kindness and veneration which they were capable to express towards them S. Clement testifieth of the Corinthians that they walked in the Laws of God being subject to them that had the rule over them yielding due honour to their spiritual guides III. Col. 3. 16. In the antient times even the most rude and illiterate persons instead of profane wanton songs which vitiate and corrupt the minds of men 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Chrysostome calls them Songs of the divels composure used nothing but spiritual and divine Hymns so that as Hierome relates of the place where he lived you could not go into the field but you might hear the Plow-man at his Hallelujahs the Mower at his hymns and the Vinedresser singing Davids Psalms B. I. 1 COr 11. The Lords supper The Eucharist which S. Paul speaks of in the Church of Corinth was solemnized in the morning the Apostle calling it a supper as Chrysostom thinks not because 't was in the evening but the more effectually to put them in mind of the time when our Lord did institute those holy mysteries II. 1 Tim. 5. 10. S. Paul expresly requires it as a qualification in a Widow that was to be taken in as a Deaconess into the Church that she be one that has us'd to lodge strangers and to wash the Saints feet Tertullian assures us 't was usually
temperate in all things c. Iâ— Revel 2. 17. In the same degree in which we relish and are in love with spiritual delights the hidden Manna with the sweetnesses of devotion with the joys of thanksgiving with rejoycings in the Lord with the comforts of hope with the deliciousness of Charity and alms deeds with the sweetness of a good conscience with the peace of meekness and the felicities of a contented spirit in the same degree we disrelish and loath the husks of swinish lusts and the parings of the apples of Sodom and the taste of sinful pleasures III. 1 Cor. 10. 25. Whatsoever is set before you eat If it be provided for you you may eat it be it never so delicate and be it plain and common so it be wholsome and fit for you it must not be refused upon curiosity for every degree of that is a degree of intemperance C. I. LUk 21. 34. Take heed to your selves lest at any time your hearts be overcharged c. Christ forbids both the actual and the habitual intemperance not onely the effect of it but the affection to it for in both there is sin It is a sin inordinately to love or use the drink tho the surfeiting or violence do not follow II. 1 Thes 5. 8. Let us who are of the day be sober The Faith of the Mahometans forbids them to drink wine and they abstain religiously as the Sons of Rechab And the Faith of Christ forbids drunkenness to us and therefore is infinitely more powerful to suppress this vice when we remember that we are Christians and to abstain from drunkenness gluttony is part of the Faith and discipline of Jesus and that with these vices neither our love to God nor our hopes of heaven can consist III. 1 Cor. 6. 12. All things are lawful for me but I will not be brought under the power of any In all cases be careful that you be not brought under power of such things which otherwise are lawful enough in the use To be perpetually longing and impatiently desirous of any thing so that a man cannot abstain from it is to loose a mans liberty and to become a servant of meat and drink or smoke The Fortieth Meeting A. I. 1 THes 4. 4. to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour Chastity is that grace which forbids and restrains all irregular desires in the matter of carnal pleasures keeping the body and soul pure in that state in which it is placed by God whether of the single or of the married life II. Revel 14. 4. Single life is more excellent then the married in that degree in which it hath greater religion and a greater mortification a less satisfaction of natural desires and a greater fulness of the spiritual and just so is to expect that little Coronet or special reward which God hath prepared extraordinary and besides the great Crown of all Faithful souls for those Who have not defiled themselves with women but follow the Virgin Lamb for ever III. Hos 2. 6. The Appetites of uncleanness are full of cares and trouble and its fruition is sorrow and repentance The way of the adulterer is hedged with thorns full of fears and jealousies burning desires and impatient waitings tediousness of delay and sufferance of affronts and amazements of discovery B. I. MAtth. 5 Blessed are the pure in heart A pure mind in a chast body is the mother of Wisdome and Sober counsel Love of God and self-denial peace and confidence holy prayer and spiritual comfort and a pleasure of spirit infinitely greater than the scottish and beastly pleasures of unchastity For to overcome pleasure is the greatest pleasure and no victory is greater then that which is gotten over our lusts and filthy inclinations Cyprian II. Gen. 26. 11. Abimelech to the men of Gerar made it death to meddle with the wife of Isaac and Judah condemned Thamar to be burnt for her adulterous conception and God besides the law made to put the adulterous person to death did constitute a settled and constant miracle to discover the adultery of a suspected woman that her bowels should burst with drinking the waters of jealousie Num. 5. 14. III. Matth. 5. If a man lets his eye loose and enjoys the lust of that he is an adulterer Look not upon a woman to lust after her And supposing all the other members restrained yet if the eye be permitted to lust the man can no otherwise be called chast than he can be called severe and mortified that sits all day long seeing plays and revellings and out of greediness to fill his eye neglects his belly C. I. 1 PEt. 1. 22. Seeing ye have purified your souls see that ye love one another c. A Virgin that consecrates her body to God and pollutes her spirit with rage or impatience or inordinate anger gives him what he most hates a most foul and defiled foul II. 1 Cor. 7. 5. It is S. Pauls rule that by consent for a time they should abstain that they give themselves to fasting and prayer And tho when Christians did receive the holy communion every day it is â—ertain they did not abstain but had children yet when the Communion was more seldome they did with Religion abstain from the marriage bed during the time of their solemn preparatory devotions as antiently they did from eating and drinking til the solemnity of the day was past III. Eph. 5. 32. Marriage is by Christ hallowed into a mystery to signifie the Sacramental and mystical union of Christ and his Church He therefore that breaks this knot which the Church and their mutual Faith has tyed and Christ hath knit up into a mystery dishonours a great rite of Christianity of high spiritual and excellent signification The one and Fortieth Meeting A. I. MAtth. 11. 29. Humility is the great ornament and jewel of Christian Religion having been first put in a discipline and made part of a religion by our Lord Jesus Christ who propounded himself imitable by his Disciples so signally in nothing as in the twin sisters o Meekness and humility Learn of me for I am Meek and humble c. II. Dan. 4. 27. Entertain no fancies of vanity and private whispers of this Divel of pride such as was that of Nebuchadnezzar Is not this great Babylon which I have built for the honour of my name Some phantastick spirits will walk alone and dream waking of greatnesses of Palaces of excellent Orations loud applauses nothing but the fumes of pride III. Jam. 4. 6. God resisteth the proud professing open defiance and hostility against such persons but giveth grace to the humble Grace and pardon content in all conditions tranquility of spirit patience in afflictions love abroad peace at home and freedome from contention and the sin of censuring others and the trouble of being censured themselves B. I. MAtth. 7. 3. The humble man will not judge his brother for the mote in his eye being more troubled at
the Exercise of his Power but Redemption the expence of his blood II. Tit. 2. 12. Teaching us that denying ungodliness c. Christ's great design was to reform the debaucht manners of the World to reduce mankind to the Obedience of God to Teach men how to live as well as â—alk and to restore the practice of Piety and Justice of Meekness and Humility and an Universal Good Will and so to restore them to that Honour and Happiness and immortality they had lost III. Rom. 8. 9. If any man have not the Spirit of Christ he is none of his i. e. Unless he have the same temper and disposition of mind which Christ had which is called having the Spirit of Christ by an ordinary figure of the cause for the effect for all those Virtues and Graces wherein our conformity to Christ consists are called the Fruits of the Spirit Eph. 5. 9. C. I. GAl. 4. 19. Christ is formed in us when we are throughly instructed in the doctrine and Religion of Christ and are thereby molded into his likeness and Image When we love God and men as our Saviour did when we are Meek and humble and patient and contented as he was II Joh. 3. 5. To he born again of Water is to be made the Disciples of Christ and Subjects of his Spiritual Kingdome by making a publick profession of our Faith in Christ and of Obedience to him in our Baptism and we are born of the Spirit too when our minds become subject to Christ and our Faith is sincere and hearty and governs all the Motions and Desires of our Soules and makes us really such as we pretend to be for all Christian Graces and Vertues are in Scripture attributed to the Spirit of God as the Author of them III. Luk. 10. 16. He that heareth you heareth me and He that despiseth c. When nothing is made the condition of our Communion which is expresly forbidden by the Laws of our supreme Lord we acknowledge his Authority in our subjection to our spiritual Guides and we disown his Authority in disowning and affronting theirs The four and Fortieth Meeting A. I. MAtth. 5. 44. I say unto you Love your enemies c. He that shall compare these precepts with the practices of most men will be ready to say with Linacer Aâ—t hoe non est Evangelium aut nos non sumus Evangelici Such is the palpable contradiction of the lives of the generality of Christian men now to the Rules of the Religion II. Heb. 10. 25. Forsake not the assembling c. The confluence to the publick worship was in his dayes so Great and consent of heart and voice so universal that S. Hieromâ— said The Hallelujahs of the Church was like the noise of many waters and the Amen like thunder III. Rom. 1. 8. The Roman Church whose Faith was Famous and spoken of through all the World is now as infamous for usurpation superstition and cruelty and so deformed with Pagan rites that Christianity is the least part of her B. I. GEn. 50. 20. God disposed it for Good It is the usual method of Almighty God to bring about his own designs by making the sinister intensions of men co-operate towards them He made use of the unnatural cruelty of Josephs brethren to the preservation of the whole family of Jacob sending Joseph as a harbinger and nurse to provide for them in a famine The obstinacy and incredulity of the Jewes proved to be the riches of the Gentiles The persecution of the Apostles at Jerusalem made way for the spreading of the Gospel into all other Countries Instances of this kind are innumerable II. Gal. 1. 8. If an Angel from heaven c. If we admit of new revelations we lose the old and our Religion together we accuse our Saviour and his Apostles as if they had not sufficiently revealed Gods mind to the World and we incur S. Paul's Anathema which he denounces against him whosoever he shall be If an Angel from heaven that shall preach any other doctrine than what had been recieved And S. Jude hath told us the Faith was once that is at once or once for all delivered to or by the Saints III. 1 Cor. â— 4. The Church of Corinth first needed the severe check of an Apostle for their wantonness and divisions that one was of Paul another of Cephas c. And who can give a more probable account of this their luxuriancy than from the riches ease plenty and liberty of that City C. I. 11. ROm. 12. 18. When he so passionately exhorts If it be possible and so far as in you lies have peâ—â—â— with all men surely he did not mean that we should onely accept of peace when t is offer'd us for nothing or be quiet till we can pick a quarrâ—l but that we should be at some cost to purchase it and part with something for it and deny our selves something which but upon that account we might â—â—lly have enjoyed II. 1. Cor. 1. 20. I became things to all men He was no longer a starcht inflexible Pharisee but a complaisant Christian as some perhaps would have call'd him a Latidudinarian He that will sacrifice nothing to publick tranquility must live in perpetual flames here whatsoever become of him hereafter III. Act 15. 29. When a Council of the Apostles at Jerusalem decreed that the Gentiles should abstain from things strangled and from blood they depriv'd them of a part of their Christian liberty meerly to conciliate the Jews to them and required that to be done for peace which no Law of God required at their hands The five and Fortieth Meeting A. I. MAtth. 17. 27. Our Saviour himself when he came into the world complied with the laws and customs which he found when a certain tribute was demanded of him he first proves that he was not obliged to pay it yet least he should offend them determins to pay it and works a miracle to inable Peter to do it II. Jer. 6. 16. Stand upon the way and enquire c. i. e. Inquire for a better way but stand upon the old wayes till you have discover'd it And its reasonable before we leave the present Church-way to produce a better model least instead of having a new Church we have no Church III. Rom. 16. 16. The holy kiss the feasts of love the order of Deaconesses are no where now observed several things instituted by the Apostles were intended and so construed to be obliging only so long as circumstances should stand as then they did and no longer T was no design of the Apostles to bind the Church for ever to a certain form of rituals B. I. EPhes 2. 14. The Jewsh Rituals were contriv'd on purpose to distinguish them from all other people in the world and therefore is call'd the middle wall of partition But the Christian Religion was to throw down all inclosures and make of all nations one people and therefore must be left with that