other have split their vessels in these days But the Author so clearly distinguishes that he misseth both Rocks and carries on the truth Amain with Top-sail against all battery and opposition Here ye shall finde the vail rent and the last shadows vanishing and some Rayes of the glory of the holiest of all appearing being hid from ages and generations but in these last times upon the bringing in the fulness of the Gentiles and for the calling of the Iews more brightly breaking forth revealing the mystery of the Scriptures or the marrow of the true word of God which endureth forever wherein the Life and Spirit of the Holy Word is clearly distinguished from the outward and killing letter comparing spiritual things with spiritual that all those errors differences revilings and bitter censurings so much broken forth of late occasioned by resting in the letter may now vanish and make haste before the presence of the Lord and the glory of his coming whose fan is in his hand and he will throughly purge his floor and gather the wheat into his garner but will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire And will baptize his own people with his own Spirit with the Holy Ghost and with fire Howbeit we speak wisdom onely among them that are perfect yet not the wisdom of this world nor of the Princes of this world which comes to nought But we speak the wisdom of God in a MYSTERY even the hidden wisdom which God hath ordained before the world unto our glory which none of the princes of this world knew 1 Cor. 2. It is written Eye hath not seen nor ear heard neither hath entred into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for those that love him having revealed them unto us by his spirit And if in this life onely we had hope in Christ we were of all men most miserable 1 Cor. 15. 19. We are fools for Christs sake but ye are wise we are weak but ye are strong ye are honourable but we are despised 1 Cor. 4. 10. Let no man deceive himself if any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world or to himself let him become a fool that he may be wise 1 Cor. 1. 18. For the preaching of the CROSSE is to them that perish foolishness but unto us which are saved it is the power of God verse 18. But the foolishness of God is wiser then men and the weakness of God is stronger then men verse 25. He that is spiritual judgeth all things yet he himself is judged of no man verse 15. The Spirit searcheth all things yea the deep things of God 1 Cor. 2. 10. And the anointing which you have received of him abideth in you and ye need not that any man teach you but as the same anointing teacheth you all things and is truth and is no lye and even as it hath taught you ye shall abide in him 1 John 2. 27. If any man have an ear to hear let him hear Verse 10. Now unto him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy Jude 24. and to do exceeding abundantly for you above all that we can ask or think according to the mighty power which worketh in you unto him be glory and majesty dominion and power in the Church by Iesus Christ thoughout all ages world without end Eph. 3. 20. The grace of our Lord Iesus Christ the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all Amen Rapha Harford An Approbation THe publisher of this Book is desirous that it might pass with some testimonial into the world but it needs not testimony from man for I find it imprest with such a Divine Image and bearing such clear lineaments of Heaven-born truths as testifie it to be of God and therefore strongly bespeaks us to receive it as into our houses so chiefly into our heaâ—ts I dare assure thee Reader if thou hast received a spiritual relish thou shalt taste much sweetnes in it And if thou canst rejoyce to be laid low and made nothing that God may be exalted and made all in all then shalt thou find here that which will help thy joy and let me intreat thee That as thou readest the Book to read also thine own heart and by this thou mayest come to find thine heart in the Book and the Book in thine heart and will make thee fall upon thy face with that Ideot and worship God and report God is in this word of a truth 1 Cor. 14. 25. Some are casting off the letter of the Scripture others resting in it some are despising Ordinances others overvaluing them I find the Author walking warily betwixt both giving due honour to the letter and the form while he is exalting the Power and the Spirit incomparably above both And thou shalt find him laying the Ax of truth and the Edge of his Spirit to that cursed Root of Self-Approbation in man which is daily bringing forth such bitter fruits in his heart in his life and in the world and yet remains unseen and untouched in the hearts of many that would be thought to be arrived at the brink of perfection while they scarce understand wherein the great imperfection of the natural man doth lie Some expressions in thy reading may seem harsh or obscure to thee as they did to me but if thou comparest one place with another thou wilt clearly see what the Author means and shalt find his whole discourse to have a Sacred tendency to lay man low and so to put him into a Rich capacity of coming in to the nearâ—st fellowship with God so that while some seek to build up themselves upon the deceitful foundation of corrupted nature and struggle though in vain in the light and power of it to advance towards perfection He is planting his spiritual Artillery against it to throw it into the dust that man may come to be surely bottomed upon the Righteousness Power and Wisdom of Iesus Christ which is the onely foundation that God hath laid and the Gospel revealed And in some things you must give him a latitude to his judgement as thou desirest to thine own in other If thou findest some truths delivered and inforced with reiterated expressions consider they were delivered for the most part in several Congregations so that in some particulars the same things may be re-inforced but yet with more lustrâ— to make Truth more clear And that thou hast them as they were Preached and Pressed in Sermons to the Capacity and Conscience of his Auditors and taken from his mouth by a Notary yet afterward owned and approved by himself and compared with his own notes Read Consider and Try and hold fast that which is good March 26. 1653. Tho. Brooks M. Barker Imprimatur Ioseph Caril Decemb. 6. 1652. In remembrance of the Author and upon view of his Essigies and SERMONS HIS ICON curiously
and thwart and contradict one another and that the confusion of things confounds thine understanding yet be sure I am with them and in them and I order all and to me all things work harmoniously though to thee cross and contradictory yet all effect and bring about my Ends they can do nothing but what is agreeable to my will for they are all led by one spirit they all to me do keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace with me Even all Contradistories Coincide And so far forth as thou canst see and believe this they all shall do the Same to thee Beloved you know these my two hands are moved by the same spirit in me and the same soul moves all the members of my body and think you will one member hurt another No will my hand smite or pierce any member to hurt it No surely and if it do yet it is to better its condition though for the present it may hurt and wound and make it smart yet it is not to Hurt it but for its greater good So say I In the world what can happen or fall out to hurt us or displease us Truly nothing at all If we were but come to this that we could but keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace If we did But Behold ONE Spirit moving and ruling through the whole earth And if we did but see that He is the cause of all Wars and Tumults and that He stirs up their spirits for what End is best known to himself and thought we see such varieties and changes in the world yet in him and to him all things Coincide Even those things that are contradictories to us even all changes and oppositions and contentions and clashings in the world all in him Coincide That is all things to him are in agreement in an Harmony and work to his Almighty praise to the Highest to the utmost that can be Yet in regard of men he may be dishonoured but in himself and by himself He Works out His own praise in all contrarieties Because Really and in truth Nothing contradicts his will but if it do His revealed will yet He makes every act in the creature be it good or evil to contribute to his praise And he whom God hath been pleased to shew this vision to which he here shewed to Moses and the interpretation thereof he sees it so and his will and Gods clash not but Harmonize and coincide Gods actings and their wills agree these Blessed Souls They cannot finde fault with any thing but subscribe that He hath done all things well How then can this man distrust or murmure against God in whatever falls out because he sees God doing all he sees one Spirit moves all acts all but so far forth as men are Drowned in the Letter of this Vision they see none of all this They onely look upon it As a wonderful thing that God did thousands of years since and so take it as an History or according to their utmost interpretation viz. That God in the midst of the Afflictions of the Church yet he preserved them even as in the veâ—â—sâ—re though Pharaoh oppressed them and Egypt was as a furnace to the Israelites in which God kept them and brought them out of it which interpretation I condemn not but I think there is more held forth for God bid Moses tell the Israelites I AM had sent him He that was the Substance and Being of all things the worker and orderer of all things in heaven and earth But so far as men see not this When they hear of wars and rumours of wars and Nation rising against Nation they tremble and they fear and are at their wits end not knowing they are all led by the same spirit himself is when as those who see the Almighty thus working ordering and filling all creatures yea Burning and Changing Melting and reducing the Elements from one form and shape to another so that they see one generation come and another go These men they go on in an holy Serenity and Tranquillity of minde knowing there shall not an hair of their head perish without their Fathers pleasure and ordering Beholding his wisdom and power and goodness in all things in all turnings and tumblings and overturnings Having Cast all their care upon him for they know He takes care of them and infinitely beyond what they could do for themselves Therefore they Repose themselves sweetly upon his will and disposing which condition they prize above all earthly enjoyments yea more then a thousand natural lives if they had so many for They have forsaken Houses Lands Wives Children c. and all for Him and in him they enjoy and possess a hundred-fold instead thereof even in this life If they have them they enjoy God in them and through them and though they want all yet they have God instead of all who is to them more worth then all But others not being able to Hear or Bear these things being not yet come to be either Fathers or Yong-men in Christ living still in the Letter and in Shadows whom indeed these fathers in Christ pity and pray for and their Bowels yern for them and such is their strength that they are fain to become weak to the weak and all to all not that they shall gain all but that they may gain some for some are like the Egyptians here spoken of that not all the precepts or examples nor all the Plagues in the world will convince them They will not take knowledge That they are Acted and Guided by an unseen hand and power They see not that the whole Universe is guided by One Spirit But they think that there is one Spirit in the English and another in the French another in the Spaniard and another in the Dutch another in the Turks one in Europe another in Asia another in Affrica and another in America but be assured As to the carrying on of the affairs and designs of God in the world One and the same Spirit rules in all And though there are divers and contrary operations yet all is by the same Spirit it is God that worketh all in all and though they be never so far asunder yet all act by the same Spirit As in my body what 's further asunder then my head and my foot yet the same soul in both and know that this One soul within me hath as great a care of the lowest member as of the highest And so in the world though Almighty God hath set some in a high condition and some in a low yet know He Guides all He takes care whatever thou thinkest that the Higher Members and more Exalted and Impowred shall not oppress the lower no further then he in his wisdom thinks meet He it is that lets one man finde favour in this mans eyes and another not This as other actions all along are
he lives or when he comes to dye if the Lord do but speak to him as he did to Iob then he finds quite contrary that all evil is his and no good at all and then he is amazed at himself and confounded And although it is heartily wâ—shed if it had so pleased God that the Author had lived to see these Sermons in print and some other pieces of his as he intended but prevented by death yet as the proverb is Seeing we cannot do as we would 〈◊〉 us do we may T is pity these things should dye and be altogether obsâ—ured there may be in them such an apâ—â— door to some men whom the Lord hath this way enlightned and such hints given as may lead them to 〈◊〉 things then these yet thus much we assure you 〈…〉 were in the Authors hands a Considerable and were perased over by himself 〈…〉 who gave this approbation of them There is nothing in them but I own he saying withal That writing of Sermons was a very great advantage not onely giving men account of what was delivered many years after when both the matter the subject and expressions were forgoten But also said he t is a kind of immortalizing mens labours and the workings of God upon their spirits to generations to come though they themselves dye and are forgotten yet their works may live and remain And if Writing be so much more Printing which makes them so common publique and cheap so that so many thousands do enjoy them and many thousands more might and would were there not a common fault especially of late in those that should disperse sell or communicate them and do not or will noâ— either because of their particular dislikes every one affecting and will not prefer any thing but what suâ—s to their apprehensions or else being tainted with envy at others accepâ—ation and prosperity whereby abâ—ndance of precious Books dye in obscurity either lying by the walls and rot or turned to Wast paper being a just judgement of God upon persons and Traders tainted with envy or affecting singularity the fruits whereof this generation hath deeply tasted the bitterness of and those that succeed are like to do much more except we repent and resolve amendment beginning again to love and receive each other in the truth and bearing with what our selves at present see not for you have found that with what measure ye mete it shall be measured to you again but let us now learn that safe and sure rule so much in these dayes neglected As ye would that men should do unto you even so do ye unto them for this is the Law and the Prophets T is true we know one main cause is fulness and over-abundance whereby many stomachs are cloyed and indeed our full stomachs have loathed and turned against abundance of precious hony-combs but though this be one reason yet the two formâ—r may lead the van as being chief ring-leaders to this mischief But to conclude for this Authors Sermons thou must accept of these or none for here is all can be hoped for or expected we rather choosing to present thee with all at once then divided in regard this Authors manner of teaching was not in an ordinary way whereby some things asserted may seem harsh or dark to some that so one paâ—t thereof may express and give light to another he insisting more fully in some Sermons then other therefore judge not all untill thou hast read the work through and pondered well with waiting on God by prayer for here are things worthy to be seriously weighed and waited for till God reveal So we commit thee and them to him who is not tyed to mans teachings but is able to teach without him and it is onely be that teacheth by him according to his most gracious promise in the new Covenant I will be their God and they shall be my sons and daughters and thâ—y shâ—ll not teach every man his brother saying Know the Lord for they shall all know me from the least to the greatest Farewel Yours desiring if by any means he might serve you in the Gospel and help you on to perfection R. H. TESTIMONIES Freely given By Mr. Iohn Webster and by Mr. Iohn Cardell in their publick Preaching at Aâ—hallowes Lombard-street LONDON By Mr. JOHN WEBSTER AND therefore I cannot but take notice and I much wonder at That precious Book lately printed which it may be many of you have not taken notice of being Sermons preached by Dr. Everard called Gospel-Treasures opened wherein he among other Divine things expresseth this point in several of his Sermons most Divinely and Elegantly and I could not but recommend it to you having my self found so much sweetness in it and I wonder much at the Heavenliness and sweetness of his spirit for to me it is as clear a piece as any I know extant Setting forth as to this particular the infinite and deep condescention of the Son of God being God equal with his Father yet to stoop lower and beneath the unexpressible misery of man to bring him up again He there shewing that herein lay the great and unconceivable sufferings of Christ far beyond his external sufferings of whipping reviling spitting upon crowning with Thorns or his crucifying upon the Cross and the like all being far below and not worth the naming the same day with these sufferings And shewing also how these things are to be also in every Christian And that this Liberty purchased by Christ is not to encourage the flesh or to purchase liberty for it but 't is for the inward man and the spirit And how he once having such a principle of life he cannot give way to sin but sin is his bondage and how the power of Christ in him slayes all fleshly actings in the love of them And that all things of man shall be slain and crucified in him by the death of the Son of God And that these are the things which shall be burnt up for ever and ever with unquenchable fire And although many self-wise Professors in the world are offended at the Book and stick not to asperse and belye it with their common slanders of Error and Heterodoxal opinions and the like Yet we know the World can do no other but will belye the Truth as it alwayes hath done And the more Divine any truth is the more they oppose it Why Because the Light thereof Condemns their Darkness Sin and Ignorance and their Practices And they are not able to stand in or bear the Light thereof For either they must Condemn the Truth to justifie themselves or else Condem themselves by the Truth which they can never do till they are overcome and Captivated by the Truth By Mr. JOHN CARDELL AND therefore I cannot but recommend to you those precious Sermons Preached by Dr. Everard which I know many of you have both in your houses and hearts whose Name is very sweet and precious to many that
may be of no effect Christ may be to thee infatuate unsavoury good for nothing as he is in reprobates Now I hope is answered that Question What if the salt hath lost his savour wherewith shall it be salted Christ who is the true salt in himself he cannot be unsavoury and good for nothing but he may lose his favour in thee and to thee may be as a thing good for nothing because he dyed in vain to thee his cross is of no effect and so may be as he saith himself good for nothing but to be cast out and troden under the feet of men Alas brethren Christ blessed for ever he in himself cannot be said to be good for nothing noâ— he cannot be troden under the feet of men but till their eyes be opened to see him and acknowledge him as he is that they be aware of Christ and oâ— his presence and greatness and filling all things they as it were tread him under foot And as it is said Heb. 10. 29. How much sorer punishment suppose ye shall he be thought worthy of who hath troden under foot the Son of God and hath counted the blood of the convenant an unholy thing wherewith he was sanctified and hath done despite unto the spirit of Grace But beloved none of all these things can any creature do to Christ in himself for to him all Angels cry aloud Rev. 4. 8. The heavens and all the powers therein cry continually Holy holy holy Lord God of Sabboths heaven and earth are full of the majesty of thy glory No creature can dishonour him in himself but in â—hemselves and to themselves they tread him under foot because he lives not in them and so they see not neither acknowledge him or his workings in them Then my beloved let us make this use of this If this salt be in us and that wee see it is he that is our life and our motion then let us not onely give ear to him but let us love reverence and obey him and hearken to what he woâ—ld teach us and work in us let him be sole Lord and Saviour to us to deliver and save us from our lusts and from Satan nay if this salt be in us these will be the fruits and effects that will follow To love reverence and obey him God himself proclaims him to be his well beloved Son in whom onely he is pleased hear him Silence then your selves deny your own life hear no longer your selves nor your own lusts what honour saith what profit saith what self and your own by-ends saith But hearken now to what he commands This shall be your wisdom before all people this shall be your life and he that findeth his life shall lose it but he that loseth his life thus shall find it Beloved Christ being once dead dyeth no more saith the Apostle and yet he saith again That we crucifie to our selves the Son of God afresh He in himself cannot dye cannot be crucified no more but to our selves and in our own soules he maâ— be and is crucâ—fied daily that is when your lusts and your sins live then Christ he is dead and you have crucified him of whom you have been the betrayers and muâ—therers as Stephâ—n said to the Jews Acts 7. 52. so that he hath then losâ— his savour and his taste in and to thy soul for thou tastest him not seest him not nor feelest him though he be in thee Further know this that Christ himself is that salt himself hereâ—ommandeth â—ommandeth To have salt in our selves is to have Châ—ist himself in us as if he should say Though I be in you as I am in all things in all creatures yet my being there doth you no good except you feel and see me there except your faith believe me there and your life express me The third and last point is What is it to have salt in our selves We must have salt in us 1. Exclusively and 2. Inclusively not onely to see Christ in our selves and in â—ll creatures as we have shewed you but to have it in our selves is to be sure we look to our own 〈◊〉 whether we have this salt or no and this is a necessary Exhortation now in these times when men are so ready to neglect themselves and are so much in questioning the estates of others We are too ready to â—udge and condemn otheâ—s that tâ—ey have not this salt but heâ—e we are admonished 〈◊〉 others alone and first be sure to look circumspectly that we have it in our selves Another mans grace will do thee no good if thou haâ—â— none in thy selfâ— Warm thy self at thine own fire and drink the waters of thine own Cistern as Solomon counsels Prov. 5. 15. And who made thee Iudge over others what hast thou to do to take Christs office from him he is appointed to be Iudge of quick and dead Acts 10. 42. Yet thou wilt take upon thee to be Iudge and to sit in Christs throne thou wilt be judging and censuring of thy Brethren before thou hast censured thy self Christ is not in such and such men thou canst spy motes in thy brothers eye and perceivest not the beam in thine own Mat. 7. 5. whereby thy sight is quite put out as to thy self You know Christ himself when he was here in the slesh when they brought to him the woman taken in Adultery sayes he Hath no man condemned thee neither dâ— I. John 8. 11. Beloved did he disclaim this Iâ—dicature and shall we presume to take it up shall we overlook our selves and judge reproch and condemn other men This man hath no grace and that man hath no grace away away with all these things such a man O he is a wreâ—ched sinner and thou wouldst have God destroy him and plague him thou wonderest God doth not strike him down dead and seest not thy self how vile thou art Lord shall we call for fire from heaven said some of the Disciples away away saith Christ Ye know not of what spirit ye are of Leave off then â—udging of others and leave all â—udgement to God Vengeance is mine saith the Lord Christ could have writ every mans sins in his forehead as his are whom thou despisest to be read and seen of all men But thy sins are more secret and hidden and yet as odious to God as his and this thine own conscience knows what would become of thee I pray thee â— if all thy secret sins were written visibly in thy forehead But know that this gift of having salt in our selves is not in any mans power to take but God onely must give it where and when he pleases to bestow it they shall have it and none else And in his time and not sooner nor later But this command to have Salt in our selves is as much as to say before you go about to search other mens cellars that you see your cellars be
their father which is in heaven Til this time Iesus Christ was crucified dead and buried but when once this Lion of the Tribe of Iudah begins to rouse up himself then it shall appear that there is now a King born that will bear rule that shall be such a Messiah spiritually as the Iews expected temporally a Potent and Mighty Prince whose Government shall be upon his shoulders His Name being WONDERFUL Counsellour and Prince of Peace And now all those Accursed Iews which â—rucified him and made him to serve shall now be made to serve him as the Prophet saith You have made me to serve with your iniquites Now all those headstrong lusts those Kings and Rulers of the Earth which cryed Let us break his bonds in sunder and cast away these cords from us He shall now rule them with a rod of iron and crush them in pieces like a potters vessel So that we shall live no longer the life of natural carnal men in the vanity of their mind to fulfil the lusts of men and the will of flesh and of the world but they live the life of spiritual men we shall then shew that we are the Off-spring of Christ Till you become to this whatever you think of your selves there can be nothing well done for before this we altogether think our own thoughts do our own actions go our own ways For all the imaginations of mans heart are onely evil continually But before this great and not able day of the Lord come the Lord will set signs in the heavens and in the earth and there shall be great stirs and wars and rumors of wars and the Inhabitants of the earth shall be troubled amazement and terrour shall seize upon them because of these things And when thou seest these things come to pass I say within thee then look up for know your redemption draweth nigh When you see the red Dragon watch against the woman shall be delivered of her man-child spoken of in the Revelation that he sends forth whole floods of water out of his mouth to drown her then know the child is born But before this time when you see the woman in travel and hath great pain and cryeth out extremely and hath bitter pains I say Bitter pangs then you may know the child is near delivery that is when this beloved old man our own will as the Scripture terms him who was never by us denyed anything himself desired but all was carried smoothly according to his own desire and now to be crost and contradicted Oh â—his is great pain to him Oh he cryes out like a travailing woman Oh he would by no means forsake himself his own will his own pleasure his own profit Take up his cross and follow Christ What forsake all that is dear to him this is death to him Oh! when you hear your flesh cry out Oh! would to God I had never been born then I had never seen this day Oh! let me dye let me dye I am weary of my life when ye hear him like Iob bitterlycurse the day of his birth Oh Beloved this day is a terrible day to flesh and blood it never saw such a day Oh it s a bloody day it comes with a terrible confused noise of the warriors and garments tumbled in blood as the Prophet speaks it was never so haled and puld this way the flesh tother way the spirit it was never so torn in pieces But know Beloved when these pains are upon you that the child is at the birth near to be delivered Beloved these things will be if ever Christ be born in the soul And when it is so that the flesh hales one way and the Spirit another Oh then it behoves you to pray That so your flight be not in the winter nor on the Sabbath nor in the harvest Oh Beloved pray that these things this Seed do not dye without fruit that in the midst of this biting bitter winter you do not fly but bide by it and indure and wait the fruit that in the midst of winter you may enjoy your Sabbaths a day of rest peace lest that when other men enjoy their Sabbaths their harvest you have nothing but winter bitterness trouble and want and no fruit to refresh you Brethren I beseech the Lord that you may prove try and examine your selves by these things see if this day hath overpast ye hath your woman had pains and bitter agonies have you suffered such contradiction between the flesh and the spirit that these wars and terrours and rumours have struck through the very soul of you that you have felt it as bitter as gall as bitter as bitterness it self for saith our Loâ—d Luk 21. 22. Then be the dayes of VENGEANCE that all things which are written may be fulfilled insomuch as you may say of your selves Call me not now Naomi pleasant but call me Marah bitterness for the Almighty hath dealt bitterly with me This work being gone through you may be sure the child is born to you and to you a Son is given else not Tell me of what you will of education and good nature and the still work of Gods Spirit except this work be done in you so that you can speak of the work thereof experimentally you do but befool and delude your own souls And this work being gone through and the child born then as I said before he grows and increases in age and perfection every day He is not grown to a man in a moment but by steps by degrees He that hath this work brought about in his soul he need fear nothing he is in a free and safe condition all the men upon earth nay the powers of darkness cannot hurt him although the Dragon the Devil Sin Lusts the old man Self Lucifer Adam the Serpent c. these with all their fiery darts for when I name one I name all as I opened them to you upon another occasion for I opened near 20 of his names severally for these names and many such the Scripture gives him to set out that evil one within us which the most part of men are little acquainted with although they hug them in their bosomes eat drink sleep work play with them all these I say although they send forth whole floods of water after the woman yet they cannot drown her 〈◊〉 this work delivers and frees men from the powers of darkness this work brings down the strong holds disarms the strong man and sets the soul free Saves it delivers it carries it above all waves The next remarkable action Christ did he was circumcised That is He submitted himself to all outward Ordinances because he knew that all powers were ordained of God and so far forth as they tend to God and tend to love and peace we ought to submit So then we are then circumcised with Christ and Christ is
laid down the first being Condemnation of our selves the second is Annihilation bringing or reducing our selves to just nothing Mistake not for your own sakes I do not mean to be really nothing at all of no substance that is more then any earthly power can do more then Potentates or Kings can do they may attempt such a thing but their arm can onely reach to division or separation of soul and body and dividing of the Elements one from another they may grind us to powder they may burn us to ashes and when they have so done cast the ashes into the river as in some case they may justly do but they cannot make us nothing for the same power that Creates can onely Annihilate for every thing retires to its own proper place every thing to its element the water to his the fire to his the air to his the earth to his so that when I tell you of making your selves nothing I do not mean you should destroy your selves but I speak of such a making nothing and destroying as that you keep all your members such a making nothing as Iob complains of himself ch 16. 12. I was at ease and he hath broken me asunder he hath taken me by the neck and hath shaken me to pieces and hath set me up for his mark he cleaveth my reins asunder and poureth my gall upon the ground Iob there complains that he was broken to pieces and yet Iob had all his joynts and all his members therefore that which I mean is the turning of a mans self into dust and powder before God to be emptie in our selves to be Nothing less then nothing in our own esteem that all those huge bulwarks that we have raised in our souls of our somethingness and of our own esteem may be all laid flat to the ground and brought to nothing as Abraham Gen. 18. 27. when God had appeared to him said Now I have taken upon me to speak unto the Lord which am but dust and ashes he seeing the infinite vast difference between God and him he cryes out O Lord I am but dust and ashes And I tell thee O man pulvis es in pulverem revertâ—ris Gen. 3. 19. Dust thou art and to dust thou must return But give me leave and I will yet be more plain to you For my beloved My mouth is open unto you my bowels are not straightned to you-ward my heart is enlarged though the Jews should forbid me to speak any more in this name as they did the Apostles yet I will not keep back any part of Gods Counsel from you And I pray God you do not take the childrens bread and cast it unto dogs and I shall express my meaning briefly All that thou callest I All that selfness All that arrogancy propriety that thou hast taken to thy self all this must be brought to nothing whatsoever creates in us Iness or Selfness this is pulvis cinis Dust and Ashes and Vanity for take away these and we are glorious creatures the workmanship of God himself but these things Iness and Selfness being let in These these things make us deformed this is that makes us like the Devil himself for take from him this I I am something and take away Selfness I will have mine own will and I will be Lord and King and take away Propriety I will have and I will enjoy something to my self and for my self and then the Devil himself is a glorious Angel there is nothing then left but what is good all things were at first very good It is true That Man at the best is but created of the dust of the earth but what is he and what a case is he in when sin enters into him I do believe there are thousands at this instant in Hell that do wish from their souls that they were or could be reduced to nothing at all But that man that is reduced in this sense to nothing and hath truly considered himself he cryes out and complains See O Lord how I am become Vile Lam. 1. 11. and he acknowledges as David 2 Sam. 6. 21. that if I be Vile I will yet be more Vile Doth Gods book require that he should be Vile and abominable and low in his own sight his heart Echoes and answers I will yet be more vile I will be more nothing as the Prophet Esay sayes ch 40. 17. We are nothing we are less then nothing all Nations are but as the drop of the Bucket they are nothing they are vanity it self we are but as a bubble as David confesses we are but as a broken pitcher that can hold no water Psal. 31. 12. we are but as dead men cast out of sight and clean out of mind David was then in a most miserable condition in the eyes of flesh and blood But Oh happy thrice happy are those men that are once come thus to be Dead men whatever men think You know dead men they cannot so much as say this is I they esteem not of themselves let men do what they will with them they are all one strike him he feels it not they claim no interest nor propriety in any thing let them be merry while he lies by or let them be sad all is one to him let them be sharers of his goods One will have one part Another another let them spend lavishly and make merry with his goods he he is not moved why because he hath lost his sense he hath lost his taste so he that is dead to himself he hath lost his sense he hath lost his taste in this world let others rejoyce in heaping up riches and adding land to land and making themselves and their posterity great in the world these things concern not him and likewise poure any thing into a broken Pitcher it can hold nothing it can hold no honour no praise no price so likewise into this man pour what ye will into him pour wealth into him pour health pour honour into him pour praise pour credit or the contrary he can hold nothing whatever ye do to him or take from him he is all one if ye take his cloak from him he will give you his coat if ye strike him on the one side he will turn the other curse him and he will pray for you and this he learns of his sweet and dear Saviour Jesus Christ who hath set him a pattern for him to follow and commands him to learn of him and thereby ye shall find Rest to your souls for saith he with Iacob Gen. 32. 10. I am less then the least of thy mercies These things Selfness and Propriety being taken away Then there is a Fair Table for Gods Spirit to write what he pleases for if a sheet of paper be blacked all over can a man write any thing thereon but if ye can take away that which blacks the paper and defiles the soul
inheritance To Caleb Ioshua being made Governour he gave Hebron which he took upon him to subdue and to finish the conquest for Here and there The Enemy had some strong holds So that Calâ—b he took Hebron for his inheritance And he undertook He and his friends to assist him that if he could overcome it he should have it to him and his for ever if he could not he should lose it And passing along he came to this City Kiriathsepher It being a City very strong yet of great importance for him he much desired it Caleb makes a stand proclaims That whosoever smiteth this Kiriathsepher and taketh it he promiseth to give him his daughter Achsah to wife it seems Beloved She was One very Amiable and to be desired for her Comeliness and Beauty One worth having and therefore he propounds Her as a Great and full Reward to whosoever taketh it as it is in the verses read And Caleb said Whoever smiteth Kiriathsepher and taketh it to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife We come now to divide the words There is in these two verses two things 1. Onus the work the burthen whosoever smiteth Kiriathsepher and taketh it And secondly Here is Honos the gift or the Reward or the honour To him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife But now let us consider what is all this to us what is Caleb to us or what have we to do with the smiting or taking Kiriathsepher or what shal we be the better for Achsah Calebs daughter I have here you know even now read the first and second Lesson part of this 15. of Ioshua and the other out of 2 Cor. 3. I may boldly say One answers to the other like the two Cherubims This looks forward to that Chapter in the Corinthians and that looks back to this The one is the interpretation of the other But it may be you will say to me That is very strange we see no such thing what is this Chapter to that or that to this for S. Paul tels us there That the letter kils but the Spirit gives life and that They are Ministers not of the letter but of the Spirit And likewise he speaks there of the two Tables of the Law and compares it with the Glorious dispensations of the Gospel as being far more gloâ—ious If there was so much glory at the Promulgation of the Law which was written but in Tables of Stone and to be abrogated and was also but the ministration of death much more glorious is the ministration of the Spirit written by the finger of God himself in the Tables of our hearts for even that which was made glorious had no glory by reason of that which excelleth in glory And Moses He put on a vail else the people could not behold Him nor Hear him Which vail is still upon the heart and our mâ—nds are still blinded by reason of that vail which is still upon the heart while we are under the law for to this day remaineth still the same vail untaken away In the reading the old Testament which vail is done away in Christ. But to all this I redudce onely This part of this Chapter now read to unfold and interpret all this And for the present I have made choise of these two Verses to give light to that whole Chapter and that Chapter is the Exposition of this as I before said O how like is my text and every part thereof to those New washed sheep Cant. 4. 2. Every word beareth twins and there is none barren among them Of which two Verses I shall say as Abigal said of Nabal when David came to destroy him Regard not this son of Belial and let not my Lord be angry Nabal is his name and so is he So I may say of this Text as their Names are so are They. Here is Kiriathsepher and Caleb and Othniel and Achsah We will see what Secrets and Mysteries The holy Spirit hath Couched under these vails For as they are in Hebrew they express nothing to us but Read them in English and take off their vail and you may see what honey will come out of the mouth of the eater and out of the strong Sweetness What then is Kiriathsepher In Hebrew it signifies The City of the Book or the City of the Letter We will first interpret them to you into English and then we shall come to shew you what they are To every one of us for it is the office of the Ministers of the new Testament To strive To take off the Vail that every one may come to see His own face in the Scriptures as a man seeth His natural face in a glass In the next place What is Achsah In Hebrew it signifies The Rending of the vail And then what signifies Caleb In the Hebrew it is as much as to say My heart or a perfect heart or a good heart And what then is Othniel In Hebrew it is Gods good time or The Lords fit Opportunity I have Beloved as yet Read the Text to you but in â—ebrew And then it runs as it is written And Caleb said Whosoever smiteth the City Kirâ—athsepher and taketh it to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife And Othniel the son of Kenaz the brother of Caleb took it and he gave unto him Achsah his daughter to wife and so on But in English it is to be read thus And my heart said or a good heart said That whosoever smiteth and taketh the City of the Letter to him will I give the Tearing or Rending of the vail And Othniel took it as being Gods fit time or opportunity and he married Achsah that is enjoyed the Rending of the vail and thereby had the blessing possessed by Achsah viz. by this Vail being Rent and possessed both the upper springs and the nether springs To him that obtains This rending of the vail to him shall be given the mysteries of the Kingdom of God He possesses full content heaven and all happiness and whatever his heart can wish for as we shall shew hereafter if God permit But in the interim it may be you will say to me Sir but methinks this seems to be a very bold allegory But have patience for I must tell you that not onely in this Scripture but throughout the old Testament from the first of Genesis to the last of the Prophets there runs an Allegory a Mystery a Secret Woof in the Web of the Letter as I may so call it which if you have not the skill and Art to know it that so you may eye it and see it through the letter for it is hid and covered with the letter I will be bold to say it you have not the Marrow the life of the Scriptures in the justification of which I dare live and die I deny not the history of the word It is really true undeniably most certainly true
daily in our souls Did he heal the lame and cast out Devils then He doth the same in our souls And whereever he doth them he doth them so as they shall never be Blind more never Dumb more never Deaf more the devil shall never possess thee more The whole letter of the word is but Christs Body and therefore we must not be content with that and rest in that When once we have the Substance of Christs actions there is no more use oâ— the signes we must labour to find out the Truth that is hid in this shell and to find the treasure the pearl that is hid in this field seek for THE WORD as our Saviour prayes Father sanctifie them with thy truth Thy WORD is Truth Mosâ— men henâ—e think when they read the letter of the word they think they read Gods word No no this is not the truth that Christ calls truth for he himself is the Word the Truth and the Life He is the meat and the marrow of which that is but the Bone and the shell Search the Scriptures for in them ye think to have eternal life for they testifie of me I am the substance I am the SOUL of them And they do but testifie of Me they are not the life the soul Yet I prize the letter as high as any man but I must not prefer the Handmaid before the Mistress Yet much ado there hath been among many men about this Letter of the word who pretend to know much in Gods word as if they knew whatever were to be known They are gone so far and are come to such perfection as they think that they can resolve any point in Divinity give the interpretation of any place of Scripture and many large voluminous works have been published to the world and filled it full of their Expositions but God knows how many of them have kept a deal ado and much blustring to little purpose And in our dayes and in our Nation what talk is there everywhere of Gods word when indeed and in truth most men are ignorant of Gods word and all is because they take these Literal black letters to be The word of God you are deceived Is it The Word of God because it is English or Latin or Greek or Hebrew can we tell whether ever God spake in any of these languages or if he did These Letters cannot be The word of God If any way The word be taken in vain it is this way when men think God speaks to them And they hear him when they read the letter You are deceived in this The letter doth but bear Witness to the truth Christ is the Truth and the letter gives Testimony to him See what the Evangelist sayes The Word is Joh. 1. In the beginning was the word Bibleswere not then and the word was God This is That Word so magnified both in the old and new Testament To which all their Sacrifices and Prophesies pointed to in shadows but the Substance of them is Christ as the Apostle saith Heb. 10. The Law is but a Shadow of good things to come But Christ he is The Word He is The Truth He is those good things promised throughout All the Scriptures The letter is but the Shadow the Signes the BODY and Substance is Iesus Christ. And if it be so then let me say thus much more to you Never any man ever yet Saw the Truth nor ever any man Heard the truth nor ever read the truth Those that onely read the Letter they are ignorant of the word for the truth is the word and the word is the Spirit It is the Spirit That discerns the word through the letter and it is the Spirit that applyes it where ever it works it is the Spirit onely that knows the truth And t is the Spirit onely that fructifies and thrives by it and lives in it The word heard or read is but the Bark the Outside the Sheath the Lanthorn but the Sap the Life the Sword the Light that is within And this is Onely Christ Co-Essential with the Father This is that word which the Scripture speaks of which is able to make the man of God perfect for as the Apostle saith The Law made nothing perfect but the bringing in of a better hope did for do you what you can yea keep the whole Law according to the letter yet this cannot make us perfect But this word this truth we now unfold is the Sure the real the true the eternal word against which The gates of hell shall never be able to prevail Have ye what ye can of the letter except ye have also Christ the substance thereof the letter will but deceive you for you have but the shadow and therefore you must needs be deceived for you to think you have the substance when you have but the shadow It is not any outward thing we can do will do us any good it is the Spirit the word it self that doth the deed Yet I must tell you more That this word and Christ and the Spirit All dwell Among us dwell In us and we know them not as Iohn 1. 10. He was in the world and the world was made by him He dwels among us and yet the world knows him not nay He came among his Own and his Own received him not These are strange expressions what may be the meaning of this Divine high-flowen Eagle for that is his Embleme I conceive it was to shew that he soared and flew higher in Divine contemplations of truth and in the knowledge of the Mystery then all the rest of the Evangelists This was he of whom it is said The Disciple whom Iesus loved and this is he thaâ— Leaned on his breast at supper This was he that had all those divine visions and Secret mysteries revealed to him in the Isle of Pathmos who writ the Revelation and was therefore called IOHN the Divine I conceive his meaning is when he saith He came and dwelt among us and yet the world knew him not although it was made by him was this that God in Jesus Christ dwells in every creature but the creature comprehends it not Because the light shineth in darkness and the Darkness cannot comprehend the light It is in him as the Apostle saith that we live move and have our being and yet we know it not because we are compassed about with darkness nay we are Darkness it self Is it not a strange thing that He should be in Us be so near us and be our light and our life our sun and our shield and yet we not know him we not be acquainted with him But He Shines in Darkness what 's that that is All creatures are darkness to him God in himself is light of lights infinitely far above and beyond all creatures if he put forth himself in the making of any creature that creature is infinitely below him the highest of creatures is
it and Him for it And yet WE Continually Eat as well as He. O MAN VVho art Thou That dost so Prepare A Rod foâ— thine Oâ—n Back and givest Sentence against thine Own Life In Condemning Thy first Father Adam and Pereeivest not That thou art First in the Same Trap Here then Consider Diligently VVhat OUR Will Knowledge and Understanding is Whereof we Boast so much And wherewith we Think we may Come into the Presence of God VVhereas Indeed It is Nothing But The Bitterness of Death And The Fruit of the Forbidden Tree VVho is there Among ALL Living Men That Perceiveth This Or will Learn To put Off Deny Fear and Mortifie or Kill His Own VVill and VVisdom Nay rather VVe Hold it Fast Extol and Value it as Pure Gold VVhen as Indeed It is Eternal Death And In This Misery The Whole VVorld â—yeth sick But VVhere are Those Blessed Redeemed Ones THE TREE OF LIFE WHAT IT IS And why Adam was Shut out Forbidden and withholden from it and not suffered to EAT thereof I Can also be Content there should likewise Outwardly have been in Paradise The Tree of Life as you read in the Scripture Whose Fruit might have been so Seasoned and Endowed by God And How it had that Nature that He who should Eat of it should Live for ever and Never Dye And when Adam had first Eaten of the Forbidden Tree and had Fallen as God foretold into Death it might not Now be That He should be permitted to Eat of the Tree of Life Otherwise he must have Lived for ever And the Word of God If thou eat thereof thou shalt dye the death had been false Moreover God who is meer Love and cannot for ever be angry with His own workmanship did well provide That Man in this Misery Hated of God and an Enemy to Him might not for ever Leada Wretched and Calamitous Life And for that cause he drave him out of Paradise from the Tree of Life into this House of Penance as it were The World And shewed him a Way whereby he might again come out of Death into Paradise To this Tree of Eternal Life But In the mean time He fenced The Tree of Life with a Flying Cherub and a Glittering Sword Lest Adam in this Banishment should Eat Life For it seemed better to the Good God That Man should Dye and so by Death put off this miserable Life and Changing It To be Translated to a better For He knew That Life after this Death Cold Calamity Banishment would be so much more Welcom and He so much more Dear unto God after Victory Therefore God Who cannot Hate Us Ever deals Mercifully with Us Howsoever he handleth Us If we would alwayes take it In Good Part And not Suspect Him to be our Enemy For so is The Nature and Suspicion of Mans Heart Now I do Thus think That for Agreater Testimony The Same thing did likewise Happen In the True Paradise i. e. In Adams Heart As There is The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil Which is the Seed Speech Counsel Knowledge Wisdom and VVill of the Serpent So there also is The Tree of Life The Seed Speech and Counsel of God or of The VVoman And As God and the Devil are Even so are These Two Trees So Contrary The One to the Other That the One brings Life The Other Death And therefore It is Impossible That whoso Eates of the One should at the same Time Eat of the Other or come unto it As being Separated by a Flying Cherub and a Glittering SWORD Thus I Interpret VVinged Sin and Obstinate Disobedience Which is elsewhere called in Scripture A Separation For who so Eats of the Tree of Knowledge of Good And Evil That is He that Greedily Swallowes down and Devoureth Humane and Diabolical VVisdom He Is already separated from the Tree of Life That is from the VVisdom speech and Knowledge of God Neither of these Wisdoms Speeches VVills Knowledges Can indure the Other Neither can One come from the One to the Other So great is the Gulf between them Being as Far Divided asunder as Heaven and Hell He that Eats of the Tree of Life That is Of The VVord of God He is Born of God and cannot Dye No Nor Sin For Their Fruit Doth Eat The Eater and Translate Him into His Own Nature That is Into Life As Elsewhere The Scripture Speaketh Of Eating of Christ His flesh For indeed It is The same Thing To Eat Christ To Live in His Word To Believe To Know God and the like As likewise it is All one to Be in Adam To Live in Adam To Dye To Eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil To Obey the Seed and Word of the Serpent And to become GODS Therefore He that Eats of the Deadly Tree And cleaves to the Word and Wisdom of the Serpent And Being Born of Satan and Affected as men are Lives in Flesh and Blood He cannot Do Well or Please God As Contrariwise The Other Cannot Sin Do Evil or Displease God Therefore He that will have the One Must needs part with The other We must of Necessity Go out of the Wisdom of Man and The Serpent and from The Forbidden Tree That so The Wisdom of the Tree of Life may Enter into Us Adam and the Wisdom of the Flesh must Dye in Us That Christ may Live in us and The Spirit Have the Government The Life of the One is Alwayes The Death of the Other And The Weakness of the One The Strength of the Other No man can serve two Masters And in vain shalt thou strive To Reconcile Couple together and Make Agree God and Adam or Christ and the Serpent Light and Darkness The Old man and the New That the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil planted in the heart of Adam Is the Seed Speech and Spirit of the Serpent And that great Idol ANTICHRIST Sin Death the Devil and the BEAST spoken of in Daniel and the Revelation which is the Greatest and most ordinary Worshiping of Idols VVHat do you think is the BEAST of which Daniel writeth that Resisteth and Blasphemeth the Most High and killeth his Saints What is that Old Serpent that overthrew Adam and Eve What is the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil What is the Shameless King and Antichrist Of which Daniel wrote and Pâ—ul to the Thessalonians What is That many-Headed Monster and the Seven-Headed Beast which the whole world Adoreth Of which is spoken in the Revelation What is Sin What Death What the Devil Himself But every mans own Will Wisdom Reason Religion Righteousness Skill Delight For which cause Paul calleth it Death it self Enmity against God and Folly before God And Saint Iames calls it Earthly Humane Devillish wisdom Because these three are one and the same and that is Devillish which is meerly Humane And contrariwise For Man the Devil Adam and the Serpent are the same and do agree For the Serpent did
any creature but thou wilt be willing to do as Abraham did by Sarah to buy a field to bury thy dead out of thy sight for they are dead to thee and thou art dead to them and when death shall come to call thee hence thou canst look him in the face with great joy and reâ—oycing and then shalt thou know what is the benefit of eating The hidden manna then shalt thou finde and taste both what it is and how delicious and sweet it is then shalt thou finde that one day in Gods house is befter then a thousand elsewhere then shalt thou finde that God himself will be more to thee then all the creatures put together then shalt thou finde that one day of true love to God one hours enjoyment of the love of God doth give thy soul more joy and content then all the creatures could ever afford thee then shalt thou feelingly say as the Queen of Sheba by Solomon She said to the King It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom howbeit I beleeved not the words until I came and mine eyes had seen it and behold the half was not told me of thy wisdom and prosperity exceeding the fame which I heard I have heard much of the love of God by his Ministers and of the ravishing content that was therein but now I am come to enjoy it I finde they did not relate the tenth part thereof and that it is such love which fastens and knits us together for ever and ever to the unchangeable God through Iesus Christ his onely beloved Son who is the brightness of his glory and the express image of his person OF EATING HIDDEN MANNA The Heads or Substance of a Sermon preached for Mr. Hodges at his Wednesday Lecture in OLD JURY REV. 2. 17. He that hath an ear let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the Churches To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden Manna and will give him a white stone and in the stone a new name written which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it IN a little corner of Asia were these Churches seated unto whom God by the Evangelist Saint Iohn wrote The words I have now read are as David sayes of the blessed man whose tree never withereth but is alwayes fresh flourishing and green planted by the Rivers side such are these words and all the words of God they have not onely a dead Letter but they have a living sense this Tree bears fruit in all Ages in all times As our Saviour Christ sayes what I say to you I say to all men the words of God are so spoken and meant that they are not onely true of that man that time in that place in that age in which they were spoken but they are true and concern as much all men all ages all sexes all places But if ye shall say to me as the Apostle â—aith Rom. 10. 6. Who shall ascend into Heaven or who shall descend into the secrets of God to bring Christ from the Grave or to fetch him down from Heaven behold he is nigh thee even in thy heart c. Behold I am he whom God hath appointed at this time to unfold this word from God now read to you to open to you these sweet promises of mercy and grace but it will be so onely to those whose eyes are open to see them so the promise here made is large I will give him to eat Hidden Manna but it is not without a condition let them be what they will be pretend what they will let your confidence be never so great ye have no interest in this promise without the condition would you eat of the hidden Manna then ye must be overcomers he that overcometh shall eat But give me leave a little to wave the condition the Apostle Iohn saith That there are three that bare record on earth the Spirit the water and the Blood and these three agree in one So say I here is both a condition and a promise and they both agree in one A man cannot eat except he Overcome neither can he Overcome except he Eats therefore let no man think he can Overcome except he eat this hidden Manna and he that eateth doth Overcome as Christ tells the Disciples without me ye can do nothing so without ye eat this hidden Manna ye can do nothing ye can never overcome for in eating this hidden Manna we get strength to Overcome and as we eat we overcome and as we overcome we eat this was your vow made in Baptisme to renounce the Devil and all his works and to fight manfully under Christs Banner against sin the World the Flesh and the Devil thou hast there given up thy name to Christ and hast bid defiance to Satan as much as in thee lieth and hast said I renounce thee Satan and I will be one of thy Souldiers O Lord Christ. There is no man that hath prepared his heart to seek God but he shall be sure to find enemies enough he shall have temptations to wrastle with and to overcome David sayes that he found his enemies innumerable Psal. 118. they compassed him on every side and came about him all like Bees and the Lord himself tells us that all the imaginations of mans heart are onely evil continually Dost thou think then that thou hast no enemies Then let no man say if I found any enemies I would fight with them for I may say to thee as Delilah to Sampson Arise the Philistines be upon thee there be enemies enough even in the chamber within thee lying in wait and if you do not arise and stand upon your guard you shall be overcome instead of overcoming But that you may understand this Text I will lay down three things which will be necessary to unfold it The first is this All these seven promises made here to the seven Churches of Asia though they be diversly exprest yet it is all one thing suppose they be promises of eating of the tree of life in the midst of the Paradise of God or promises that we shall not be hurt of the second death or that we shal have the crown of life or of the white stone with the new name in it or of ruling the Nations with a rod of iron or the receiving the bright morning Star All these promises they are one and the same thing and they are pronounced by one and the same Spirit and let him that hath an ear hear what the Spirit saith unto the Churches wheresoever Christ shall be there shall his members be also and every member shall have a full and plentiful part there shall be nothing wanting to them they shall all have a satisfying part they shall be all as branches that are nourished with one and the same root the same sap goes thorow the whole body that is in the
claudo because it is kept secret sacrâ—d and shut up because in all Mysteries t is necessary to keep close the mind and not to shew the things which are to be concealed as one saith for as St. Paul saith concerning Circumcision Rom. 2. 28 29. He is not a lew which is one outwardly neither is that circumcision which is that of the flesh but he is a Iew which is one inwardly and circumcision is that of the heart in the spirit and not in the letter whose praise is not of men but of God So say I of saving knowledge He that sees the Mystery of the Scripture he hath the true knowledge of the Scripture He is not taught of God that knows only the Letter and the Flesh of the Scripture but true understanding is that of the Spirit and not of the Letter and though men may â—ry up and praise literal knowledge yet God onely esteems of inward knowledge the mind and inside of the Scriptures All other knowledge is vain and maketh a man not one hairs breadth the better before God Therefore we may observe also what Ministers the Apostle preferres not the Ministers of the Letter but the Ministers of the New Testament as in that of 2. Cor. 3. 6. Able Ministers not of the Letter but of the Spirit And those also to be true Christians having not the Law onely outwardly in tables of stone but within in the fleshy tables of the heart he having made us able Ministers of the New Testament not of the Letter but of the Spirit for the Letter killeth but the Spirit giveth life all the knowledge of the history is but as the Law written in Tables of stone which doth us no good but it is onely the Spirit the knowledge of the Mystery And Marrow That giveth life But you will say to me How doth the Letter kill I Answer By resting therein and not seeking for the marrow the food and the life but contenting our selves with the knowledge of the History and outside but because I have at other times unfolded this unto you I shall here pass it by and come to the Spirit and Mystery of our Text in hand So then it resteth This premised being That we may safely conclude even thus much that as our Saviour was typisied by others who went before him he was the Substance of all those Shadows both of persons and things even so Christ Jesus himself he is the resemblance and type of himself his outward temporal and visible actions in the flesh were a type of his inward and internall actions in the souls of all Believers He being their life and Resurrection they being before but dead men in Trespasses and sins untill his actions be their life and Regeneration So likewise as his life was Typical and resembled himself so in regard of his death and crucifying whatever he suffered externally in the flesh it shews how he is internally crucifyed daily even to the end of the world Heb. 6. 6. Seeing they crucifie to themselves the Son of God a fresh and put him to an open shame So likewise for all his other actions and passages related of him as his Nativity it held out our spiritual birth and Christ his being born in the soul as the Apostle expresseth it Gal. 4. 19. My beloved of whom I travel in birth till Christ be formed or brought forth in you So also in his Circumcision is held forth our Spiritual Circumcision as in that of Col. 2 11. Ye are compleat in him in whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ c. So also for holiness of life Christs holiness shew us what holiness shall be in them that are his children and people Mat. 5. 16. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your father which is in Heaven So also for his outward Teaching it represents to us that all His people should be taught of God he himself would be the true Teacher in us as Isa. 54. 13. All thy children shall be taught of the Lord and great shall be the peace of thy children And Jer. 31. 34. And they shall no more teach every man his neighbour and every man his brother saying Know the Lord for they shall all know me from the least to the greatest saith the Lord. And Christ himself cites these places Iohn 6. 45. It is written in the Prophets And they shall all be taught of God every man therefore that hath heard and learned of the father cometh unto me So also in Christs Miracles as in opening the eyes of the blind it shews that Christ himself must open our eyes or else we remaine stark blind yea as those born blind And never any man but he was known to open the eyes of any born blind David saith Psal. 13. 3. Lighten thou mine eyes lest I sleep the sleep of death And Psal. 18. 28. For thou wilt light my Candle The Lord my God will enlighten my darkness So also in opening the ears of the deaf it is he alone can say to our ears Ephathah be ye opened it is so So also for his restoring of limbs causing those that are Cripples from their Mothers womb to leap like an Hart and to run his wayes with delight The like also for his raising the dead and feeding the Multitudes And what shall I say more you may apply them more to your selves The time would fail me to undertake to speak of all his actions So also of his Resurrection If ye be risen with Christ seek those things which are above Col. 3. 2. And so of his Ascension and all other his Actions and Miracles to see all these things held forth and typiâ—ied in the Person Actions and Miracles of our Saviour These are all Saving actions wrought in us and we thereby partake of the excellency and vertue thereof The other though wrought for us yet if we are not quickned vivified and put into act by these we receive no benefit by them An outward dead faith to believe onely in an external Christ is no better then a faith of Devils This is that Christ whose day Abraham saw and rejoced in Joh. 8. 56. and not in regard of the other onely viz. Prophetically but this chiefly This is that Christ and him crucified whom St. Paul desire onely to know 1 Cor. 2. 2. in regard of which Christ in him working acting and expressing his own life himself in him he slighted the external knowledge of Christ according to the flesh 1 Cor. 5. 16. Wherefore henceforth know no wan after the flesh yea though we have known Christ after the flesh yet henceforth know we him no more Now then as all the other actions and passions of Christ were not onely meritorious in themselves
necessario debeas ad unicum hoc est ad Patrem venire qui Pater eum huic rei destinavit 29. This may and must be done Onely by the losing of that which is contrary to the One otherwise it cannot that is Obedience in Obedience to wit An Intire Resignation A certain Perfect Sacrifice which is Voluntary Briefly that Christ is the true Son of God the first begotten of his Brethren To whom it is Proper whatsoever the Father can who is the True Intercessor by whom alone thou mayest and necessarily must come to the onely One that is to the Father who hath appointed him to this end 30. Si quis hujus orationis rationem consequi nescit is caret spiritus testimonio cujus ipse disciplinam excludit repudiat Si quis eam intelligit judicet judicat autem Dei Spiritus omnia Si quis eo destituitur caret ejus culpa est quod de casu sollicitus non est ut corrigatur qui tamen corrigendus est Si quis haecdicat acutiora sciat maximam Sancti Spiritus stultitiam ut it a loquar acutiorem esse summa totius mundi sapientia 30. If any man understand not the meaning of these speeches he wants as yet The Testimony of the Spirit whose discipline He shuts out and reâ—uses If any man understand it let him judge and the Spirit of God Iudgeth all things If any man Want and be destitute of it it is his own fault because he is not careful of his fall that it may be Amended which yet must be Corrected If any say that these things are somewhat subtil and acute let him know that the greatest Folly of the Holy Ghost if that I may so speak not derogating from him is wiser then the Highest wisdom of the whole world * Non est mirum si haec carni acuta videantur sunt enim divina de quibus judicare caro non potest Ideoque acuta judicat quemadmodum si noctua neget se posse cernere claritatem diei quippe ut ens luce noctis cujus clarissima pars obscurior est quam obscurissima diei * It is no marvel if these things seem somewhat Acute and Subtil to the flesh for they are Divine of which flesh cannot judge and therefore it thinketh them Acute as if an Owl should deny that it can see the brightness of the Day when it useth onely the light of the Night the clearest part whereof is more dark then the darkest part of the day To the Eternal Trinity in Unity neither confounded nor divided be all glory and praise Amen The Sayings of a Certain Divine of great note and name IN conclusion I will hereunto Annex the judgment of Iohn Denqui concerning the holy Scriptures made in his Recantation not long before his death and printed I do saith he prefer the Holy Scriptures before all Humane Treasure yet so that I do not so much esteem them as the Word of God which is Living Potent and Eternal and which is Free and at liberty from all the Elements of this world for if that be God himself it follows that it is Spirit not the Letter written without peâ— or ink so that it can never be Obliterated And for this cause True felicity or the word of God is not tyed to the Letter of the Scriptures The reason is because it is impossible that by the Scriptures alone an Evil mind should be Amended though it may be made more learned but a good mind that is such A One as is endued with any spark of Divine study or knowledge is made better by All things so that the Holy Scriptures are Clean to them that are Clean Good and wholsom i. e. to those endued with the Holy Spirit but to the Unclean and Unbelievers they as all things else are Unclean and Deadly Thus then it is possible that a man chosen by God may be saved without Preaching or the Scriptures yet it follows not that therefore no witness taught of God is to be heard or that the Scriptures are not to be Read and Enquired into but on the other side that all Unlearned Illiterate men are not in the state of Damnation because they cannot Read neither whole Cities and Nations sometimes because they have No Preachers sent them from God Thus far He. All these things aim at this That we should by a Received power from God do our endeavour to hunger for God and his word and not go on so securely with the Killing Letter of the Scriptures but giving them all Convenient Honour should grant them to be a certain Image Splendour Lanthorn Scabbard Manger and Vestry of the Word but withal should know that there is more required namely A Sword to this Scabbard A light to this Lanthorn that it may cut and shine but we know that whilest these things are saying There are some that are much Troubled and Offended as in the case of Mary Saying we would reject the Scriptures whereunto we say There can never be Too much Honour given but the truth is whilest unto the Scriptures as unto Mary is ascribed the Honour due to God Alone it becomes the Worshipping of Idols and of the Scriptures as of Mary is made a certain Idol which is Put Honoured Accounted Adored and Consulted with in the place of God The Scriptures indeed as an Holy thing ought to be a Terror to men and to be Read with Religious Fear and Trembling and as before is said to be preferred above all earthly Treasure but not made Equal to God and His Word The Scriptures as the Law and all things else Are Good to the Good who onely know How to use them well But as now adayes many ignorant people handle them and are conversant in them without all doubt it were Better they were asleep the while For from the wrong understanding and abuse of them flow All Heresies Sects Superstitions so that not onely the Jews but the Turks also make them their Advocates and think the Holy Scriptures are the foundation of Their faith My self know at least twenty Christian Religions all which rest upon the Holy Scriptures and every one Hopes they are on their side all these things proceed Either from far-fetcht Expositions and Allegories nothing to the purpose or from the dead Letter of the Scriptures or lastly from a certain Arrogance and Abuse of them Now it is far better in many cases not to use A thing at all then so to abuse it therefore I must needs say Once again that the Scriptures are Shut up and Forbidden to all flesh because it can Never understand them for to that end there is required to them a Supernatural Divine NEW-MAN Born of God who may bring with him to them The light of the Holy Ghost Such a man can Compose Dispose Understand Interpret Place and Accommodate All things in their due places nay more that which is the Table Feast and Life of these God-born men
the same is the Snare Poyson and Death of all Natural men Therefore As All Works before Faith and Regeneration are Sin and Unclean so also To Read the Scriptures to praise God to fast pray and the like and not onely to torture and kill men or to steal and the like for seeing that whatsoever is not of faith is sin and to the Unclean nothing is Clean but they are Reprobate to every good work It must needs follow that all their Seemingly good life exercises and vertues are sin and nothing but dissimulation So God doth often in Scripture reject the Fasts Holidays Sacrifices Prayers Praises Preachings Gifts and Charitable Deeds of the Pharisees as well as the known and gross impieties of the Publicans the wicked words of men and their Violences Usuries Murthers Adulteries Thefts c. Therefore is Regeneration Principally necessary before which All things are alike sin whatsoever thou canst Think Speak Do leave Undone Read Hear Write Give Love Worship Will Know Have or Be for as to them that Love God all things are to their Good so to them that love the world all things are to their Evil yea God himself is to them Perverse contrary and a Devil and his True word is to them hateful and deadly for it is meet that to the froward all things should fall out Untowardly and to them that are Contrary to God all things should be Cross wherefore as they are not Enough so they are not alwayes good those Sayings Fast Pray Give to the Poor Read the Scriptures c. But these before all things Be Regenerated and Born Again of God and his word and then Thou wilt be Fit to do All things which that New-birth will teach thee which Cannot Sin and whatever thy hand shall find to do thou shalt do it Well for God will be present with thee for then thou being Iust shalt do Iust things It is not enough to do a thing but to do it Well else better be idle and leave doing By this means the good deeds which good men do are not rejected but onely the shew and feigning of good deeds which that Herd of Apes do imitate It were expedient indeed to read and hear all things if a man knew how to read or hear but few there are that have the Art of God to hear and read his word and far fewer that can so pierce into this Thorny-thicket that they be not rent and torn Therefore I will not by these my writings scare any man from any right Art of writing learning or reading but do admonish all men to see they use and do all things rightly and first of all in the word of God to grow Fools and Infants and then at the length we shall know how to read do and Use all things profitably and then we may safely Philosophize even in the writings of the Gentiles or any others and like Natural Birds fly among all the boughs and branches not taken whereas before we could not safely be conversant no not in the Sacred Scriptures themselves without eating Death from God and his word Briefly by this you may See the conclusion of the whole business And be it thus determined Onely the Pious and Regenerate man can and doth use All things Well and with pleasure and profit read all Arts and all Heathen Books to him there can be nothing Prohibited or Corrupt He is a certain clean Bee upon what thing soever He Sits He sucks from it meer Honey and Life yea even from Death and Sin Again the old and Natural man which in Scripture is called flesh and blood can use nothing at all well and to him all Arts and all the Nature of things nay the very Scriptures and God Himself and His Word do bring Death and Evil He can neither Do nor Read nor Know any thing Profitably or Pleasing to God He is Abuse and Poyson it self and an Unclean Spider which Siâ— where it will sucks nothing thence but Poyson Sin Death even out of the Scriptures themselves Out of things Well done out of God and His word So it comes to pass that to the wicked all things are deadly and forbidden such as are good deeds to make or hear Sermons to read the Scriptures to do good to the poor to pray to fast and such like as is before said for to the unclean all things are unclean and hurtful so that it cannot be but the things that to the Good are profitable shall be to them Unclean and deadly Briefly the good man in point of God is never at rest till being Entred into God He have lost his own Pleasure Will Act yea Himself and all His things in God so that wanting Sense Will Desire He doth now as the word requires at his hands Covet nothing so that now God in him freely Wills Knows Desires Doth leaves Undone How What Why and to whom he pleaseth Summarily In such a man God hath freely his Will Kingdom Pleasure Place so that he is not now The man he was but is as A dead man who attributes nothing to himself yea so far that God is in him All things God in him Loves Reads Writes Preacheth Gives Prays Hears Knows and is All things and therefore it is that the great God hath determined to Crown own or Reward Nothing in us but His own work the rest which himself in us doth not Know Read Write Do leave Undone Speak Preach Hear Think are Sin and therefore saith St. Paul Now live not I but Christ liveth in me And I dare not Do nor Say anything which Christ doth not Say or Do in me To this Iudge let every man refer all his life he shall then soon find in what estate all his Affairs are and to whose Service he hath addicted himself and offered his members as a living sacrifice Let him observe himself and understand who it is that worketh in him And That he to whom he liveth and beareth fruit His Servant he is Now the fruits of the two Masters are reckoned up in the Epistle to Gal. 5. 22. The fruit of the spirit is love joy peace long-suffering gentleness goodness faith meekness temperance c. against such there is no Law and they that are Christs have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts if we live in the spirit let us also walk in the spirit c. I would be glad with all my heart if by the help of God I might have so much power as to drive all natural men from their good Deeds Actions Omissions Life Arts Reading Writings and the rest unto God the True Sabbath that lacking both hands and feet and utterly void of will Art Desire they might keep Holy-day from their own works Truly then God which otherwise goeth not forth in our strength would go forth in them with great strength for indeed God must and will go forth and the time is at hand that the heavens must keep Holy day as it is in that
he will Tear and Rent the Man and when he doth not though he seem to depart he keeps possession still or will Return with seven other spirits worse then himself Many perswade themselves they have grace because they are of a smooth fine affable disposition and carriage and many Prophets daub them up with untempered morter as if they had grace from their Cradles whereas indeed All men are as deep in Adams fall one as another and one as hard to be recovered as another I have shewed you upon another Text how all must suffer with Christ none excepted if they will be glorified with him and shewed you wherein viz. All and every one must be emptied and humbled as Christ was When Christ comes to cast the Devil out of these men in person himself I le warrant you he will Rend and Tear them When for Christ and to enjoy the life of Christ they must be emptied of all their fine natural endowments and come to see the ugliness the sinfulness of all their thoughts words actions and to be arraigned as the vilest Malefactors for all their great progress in Religion for even these are as far off the life of Christ as the other And they must be at the mercy of the Judge as much as the other And their Secret and Heart-Idols and defilements are as odious to God as the other I pray where is then their In-bred gracious natures If they must pass through that Condemnation and annihilation and abdication and indifferency c. as I then shewed you And must fight with the strong man Armed before he be cast out I le warrant you they will find this A Fiery Tryal Also the Apostle calls it A new birth What throws and pangs is there in natural births And do you think there is less and easier in the New birth No no deceive not your selves far far more for ye must be Slain and Crucified with Christ. I pray consider seriously of these things and be not deceived and lulled asleep nor receive not any such pillows under your Elbows from any for they cry peace peace when there is no peace and they say Thus saith the Lord when he hath not spoken unto them but they flatter you with the visions of their own heart Jet 23. 16. But be sure these unclean spirits are in every one of us naturally and they depart not without Tearing Beloved know All these are the unclean spirits in men that God will cause to pass out of the Land Zech. 13. 2. And I say t is to be suspected That when as the unclean spirit goes out without RENTING he intends a second return And contrarily where Satan departs with Renting he hath no hopes of re-possession For where he spoils and tears his lodging at his departure he finds that he that is stronger then himself casts him out and that such a soul is weary of such a troublesom Guest and turbulent intruding Inmate whom he rents he leaves and whom he Teares God Repairs whom he Rents God Renews Oh how I desire to have all our hearts Rent for then and not till then will God regard them Rent your hearts saith Ioel Joel 2. 12. And A broken heart a soul that is contrite and rent O Lord thou wilt not despise Psal. 51. 17. And therefore O sweet Saviour Rebuke thou all our unclean spirits with power command all our sins and corruptions to depart out of our hearts let them not reign or have the dominion over us but be thou our Lord our King and reign over us Other Lords indeed have had rule over us but do thou set up thy Kingdom O Lord and cast down thine Enemies under thy feet Thy Kingdom come for thine is the Kingdom power and glory for ever AMEN Come Lord Iesus come quickly ALL POVVER Given to IESUS CHRIST IN HEAVEN AND IN EARTH MAT. 28. 18 19 20. All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth c. In one Sermon Preached at a private Meeting in Old-street Augustine and others with him reckon this to be the ninth and last time of our Saviours appearing to his disciples after his Resurrection And that for this end he appeared so often to manifest the truth of his Resurrection and yet for all this some still doubted as you read in the foregoing Verse And they had great cause for though he had appeared to so many and so many times as this being the ninth time and it is also said He was seen of more then five hundred brethren at once yet for all this some doubted and although the Disciples were particularly appointed by Jesus to come at this time into this mountain and when they saw him they fell down and worshipped him yet some for all this doubted they knew they had seen him in great and extreme sorrow and anguish of soul even to the utmost that the malice of men and Devils could invent they saw him yield up the Ghost and they thought they had done their last office for him accompanying him to his execution and death and so to his grave and sepulchre but here He after many appearings to them to confirm their saith appears this once more and it seems to be very probably the last time of his appearing immediately before his ascention and now he gives them a commission and command To go and teach all Nations as it follows in the 19 and 20. Verses baptizing them in the name of the Father c. and teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you for â—o I am with you alwayes even to the end of the world And because they should be able to shew their Authoritie and Warrant if any should ask who sent them he tells them He that is IAM hath sent you IAM is with you and further tells them that their power they shall derive from Him For all power is given to me in heaven and earth And these words however they be few in number yet there is in them an Abyss of matter there is a mighty power and a vast length and breadth height and depth in all His words for His words are alwayes full of sense spoken to the highest pitch that our capacity can conceive or reach The words of Christ are most pure free from all concourse of the depravedness of the creature they are like the pure wine that he made at Canaan there is no tincture no brackishness no leaven of the old Adam or of the Pharisees Mens writings and speakings are alwayes low they have in them some Allay of humane weakness but in his words there is not the least allay they cannot admit of any moderation or modification Others it may be writ they knew not what themselves as I may so speak even the Penmen of the holy Scriptures for they wrote things beyond their own comprehension they being directed by another spirit they spake not of themselves but the holy
Ghost In them for all Scripture was given by inspiration 2 Tim. 3. 16. after they were once set apart by God to write the holy Scriptures they all spake as they were moved by the holy Ghost as Dan. 12. 4. God commands Daniel Shut up the words and seal the Book even till the time of the end These holy men being once set apart for this use they prophesie Beyond themselves and out of course and latter and after-times shall make known that which they themselves which wrote them knew not for they spake as inspired by God but Christs words are alwayes absolute and perfect truth he knew and saw very well what he said there is nothing useless in his words there is no Tautologies as we call them no vain repetitions when Christ speaks they are words of weight words of power they carry vertue with them as for instance if ever the winds blow and the storms arise in thy soul Then thou shalt find experimentally and feelingly that One word from Christs mouth will do thee more good then all the words and all the power of men To Still those winds and storms those who have experience here of know it full well as we see when the ship was like to be Overcome by the winds and storms and Christ was asleep you may see there how One word from him Ceased them No more but Peace and be still and t is the same in the soul and Psal. 107. 29. He maketh the storm a calm so that the waves thereof are still These words we have now read All power is given to me in heaven and earth They signifie that Christ is God equal with the Father but there seems to be a great difficulty in the words in that Christ never said before he was ready to leave the earth All power is given unto me in heâ—ven and earth The question is What power had Christ now committed to him that he had not before what new power received he that when he was to leave the earth and had given his Disciples a Commission and it was to be sealed at the day of Pentecost that he should say now and never before All power is given me in heaven and earth what addition of power had he now which he had not before if he be God equal with his Father and he saith many times The Father hath committed all judgement to the Son and again Before Abraham was I am and many such like words which shews he is God and of Equal power and Authority with his Father and yet he saith in the 14 of Iohn The Father is greater then I Can God receive any new Access of power No certainly but these words are so hard and difficult to reconcile that in the daies of Arius it filled the Church full of Errors and Heresies the Church fell much at Odds for many from hence denied the Divinity of Christ because they could not reconcile these Scriptures And by the way if he be Lord of all power then he leaves none for man to claim to himself But that I may answer this doubt and make it clear I will lay down two grounds First Although God receive no new power in himself yet he doth receive power by being made further known unto man And Secondly By mans being made further known unto him First By his being made further known unto man the revealing and discovering of God unto man making himself more known the manifestation of this is said To Adde power to him but not That any thing can be added to him who is infinite if there could he were not infinite and He were not God But know this whatever attribute God hath ascribed to him it is in regard of his creatures not in regard of himself for there are no such things in God Neither in regard of his incommunicable or communicable Attributes as Eternity Infiniteness Omnipotency Immensness c. Or in regard of his communicable as Wisdome Iustice and Mercy and Patience c. as if these were several things in God for God is One and cannot be more for when he is said to be any of these Iust or Good or Severe or the like these are all One and the same thing in him they are but Attributed to him that we may conceive of him it is but spoken of him according to the several workings of God on the creatures As for instance the Sun makes the Roâ—e to smel sweet and pleasant and it makes the Nettle to sting it makes the fields to grow and cast a Pleasant savour but it makes the Carrion and the Dunghil to stink and all this variety is by one and the self-same Sun the same light and heat doth divers things causes divers effects in the subjects Says the Rose it makes me fragrant and sweet and says the Dung-hill but it makes me stink and be unsavoury says the Wax it makes me soft and pliable but says the clay it makes me hard and obdurate yet the Sun doth not do one thing to one and another thing to another Even so Beloved it is with our God One man He finds God A comfort and a rejoycing to his heart another he finds God A Terror and an Amazement to him One he finds God A sweet guide and direction to him and thereby and therefore he draws nearer to God loveth and embraceth him Another apprehends God an enemy to him and this makes him run away from God Is God therefore thus various no no He is the self-same God to the One and to the Other and the self-same action in him is to the One and to the other He that is a Hammer to the Hard heart he is also mollifying and softning Oyl to the Penitent soul He that is A comfort to the fatherless and widow he is as an Enemy A Revenger and a consuming fire to the obstinate and rebellious And yet for all this Our God is always the same he is not nor cannot be changed in him is no shadow of change And therefore we cannot imagine that he can grow greater or less in regard of himself but as To us he doth that is if he manifest himself more to us more within us in our souls then he is said to be greater and if he lessen the knowledge of himself As to us then he is said to grow less And in this sense also he is said to come nearer to us and go further from us As also he is said so to do when he expresses as to us more or less some act of justice or mercy or any other artribute then I say he is onely said to be so in regard of us To grow greater or less to come nearer or depart further but He in himself is for ever blessed and perfect Unchangeable Immoveable always the same we can no way Touch him or Alter him but it is onely We the Creature is Altered and he is altered to us as to