Christ and not in any strength of his owne I will goe in the strength of the Lord God I will make mention of thy rightousnesse even of thine onely Psalm 71.16 I will goe in the strength of the Lord God c. That is in every designe and in every businesse I will depend wholly upon the aide and assistance of God and upon no strength of my owne Thus we know David went against Goliah when he would declare his sincere love to God whom Goliah blasphemed Thus must we doe when ever we set upon any opportunity wherein to declare our sincere love to God or else we shall doe as Peter deny Christ instead of standing for him answerably to the occasion offered Now that what hath beene said touching this point of taking hold of golden opportunities offered for the declaration of sincerity you may all observe and follow thinke on these two or three things God calles for it Conscience calls for it Church and State calls for it Soule and body will else severely smart for it First thinke on this God calls for this at our hands that we should declare sincerity according to the speciall occasions calling thereunto Gather your selves together c. saith the Lord to the disobedient Jewes and in them to us before the decree come forth before the fierce anger of the Lord come upon you Seeke ye the Lord all ye meeke of the earth seeke righteousnesse seeke meekenesse it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lords anger Zeph. 2.1,2,3 A speciall time was offered wherein to shew themselves for God and for good and God called upon them carefully to take it as they tendered their temporall and eternall good God calls us now to the declaration of sincerity as by his word so by his workes both of mercy and justice God hath loaded us with mercies and corrections of all sorts and all for this end that we should declare our sincere love to him answerable to all opportunities offered hereunto Many a time as the Psalmist saith hath he turned away his anger and hath not made a full end of us when we have highly provoked him thereunto and all for this end that we should declare our sincere love to him answerable to all opportunities offered thereunto To the language of the Lord by the Prophet Amos I may fitly here allude God hath withholden the raine from us when there have beene but three months to the harvest God hath caused it to raine upon one shire and county and not upon another God hath smitten us with blasting and Mildew and all this to bring us to declare a sincere love to him according to all opportunities offered and yet we are backward hereunto God hath smitten us with the pestilence againe and againe and with the sword hath he threatned us againe and againe and all this to bring us on to declare a sincere love to him according to all occasions offered and yet we are backward hereunto Therefore thus will I doe unto thee saith the Lord to Israel and because I will doe thus prepare to meet the Lord thy God O Israel Amos 4. So say I to you forasmuch as all the milde meanes which God hath hitherto used are not effectuall for this end to bring us to declare our sincere love to him according to all opportunities offered therefore we must expect that God will take some severe course with us for the time to come and because we are to expect this at the hands of God let us prepare to meet the Lord our God Let every one of us repent of our halting and time-serving past and for the time to come let us set our selves to declare a sincere love to God according to all occasions offered 2. Conscience calls us hereunto as well as God Speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity now so frequently and so openly shew themselves that every mans conscience tells him that he should shew himselfe a great deale more then he doth for God his King and Countrey As in the night the Owles and the Bats looke abroad so in these darke sad daies of sinne and wickednesse the eyes of Owles and Bats the eyes of wicked and secure sinners begin to open and their consciences begin to tell them that they should doe something more now then they have done for God and the good of this Church and Kingdome 3. Church and State cals for it They both now with one dolefull voice cry out to us in the language of the Psalmist Who will rise up for me against the evill doers or who will stand up for me against the workers of iniquity Psal 94.16 They know not neither will they understand they walke on in darknesse all the foundations of the earth are out of course Psal 82.5 Finally soule and body will else severely smart for it if we doe not now step in to take hold of all opportunities for the declaration of sincerity Curse ye Meroz said the Angell of the Lord curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof because they came not to the helpe of the Lord against the mighty Judg. 5.23 This curse may all such expect who now come not forth to declare their sincere love to Christ and his truth upon all just occasions calling thereunto The soules of such Christians as now neglect and put by these golden opportunities of declaring their sincere love to Christ will be given up to lukewarmnesse coldnesse deadnesse hardnesse and some to obstinatenesse and maliciousnesse against God and all goodnesse which are all soule cursâ—s with a witnesse And such bodies as have in them such cursed soules as these you may assure yourselves they shall meet with misery enough first or 〈◊〉 Paul intimates something to this purpose where he saith At my first answer no man stood with me but all men forsook me I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge 2 Tim. 4.16 Such as take not hold of speciall times and occasions for the declaration of their sincere love to Christ and his truth may feare that sad things will be first or last laid to their charge such as shall make body and soule shake Let us therefore all as we love our bodies and soules and as we professe love to Christ which should be dearer to us then our bodies or soules take hold of all opportunities for the declaration of sincerity As God brings about speciall times and occasions for this end so let every one of us after a speciall manner take hold of them that we may after a speciall manner be honoured of God both here and hereafter Dixi. Trinuni Deo gloria Imprimatur Tho Wykes Febr. 24. 1639
likewise shewes that the great designe of the wicked against the godly is frustrate which is to deprive them of all comfort if they could p. 139 140. c. If consciousnesse to our selves of the sincerity of our conversation will lessen and sweeten troubles consciousnesse of hypocrisie must needs imbitter all troubles p. 142 143 Man that is borne to troubles as the sparks flie upward exhorted to get an upright heart and so an excusing conscience to comfort him in all troubles p. 144 145 What kind of joy 't is that conscience raises in the soule in times of trouble for righteousnesse sake p. 147 148 c. What we should doe if walking sincerely we do not for all this finde our consciences raising sweet joy within us in all our bitter troubles for righteousnesse sake p. 155 What we ought to doe if we doe finde the joy of our sincere course p 156 157 The sweet joy which ariseth to us from conscience testifying our sincerity should cause us to keepe on in our sincere way p. 160 What sorrow 't is which conscience as an accuser for hypocrisie causeth in the soule p. 162 163 c. IV. Proposition That there be speciall times and occasions for the declaration of sincerity which ought to be observed and answerably to declare and shew our selves p. 177 Personall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 181 Personall occasions from the world for the declaration of sincerity p. 181 182 Personall occasions from the flesh for the declaration of sincerity p. 183 Personall occasions for the declaration of sincerity from the Divell p. 185 Domesticall occasions for the declaration of sincerity 186 187 Sociall or symmachicall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 189 190 Nationall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 191 192 The reasons why God in the course of his providence brings about speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 196 I. That the world and the divell may see that Gods people are indeed sincere p. 196 197 II. That God may hereby admirably advance his owne glory p. 199 III. That God may admirably adde to the torture of the divell his children p. 201 IIII. That the joy of the upright may be augmented in this life and in the life to come p. 202 The application of this fourth and last point 203 Men which through wilfulnesse and such as of weaknesse passe by speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity blamed p. 203 204 When men wilfully passe ly speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 204 205 The causes why men wilfully passe by speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 206 Their sin is very great which wilfully shun speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity how this appeares p. 207 208 Such as passe by speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity out of weaknesse are to be blamed of which see 4 sorts p. 209 210 Some ignorant of what is right others of the time when that which is right should be stood for p. 210 211 The dangers which ensue by being ignorant of time or judgement p. 211 212 Some through carnall feare passe by speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 213 What such should doe for the cure of this evill p. 214 Some through carnall perswasion passe by speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity and how this evill may be cured p. 215 216 Some out of carnall pitty passe by speciall occasions for the declaration of sincerity and how this evill may be cured p. 216 217 Seeing there be speciall times for the declaration of sincerity we should diligently observe them and how they may be knowne p. 218 219 As we are to take notice of speciall time occasions for the declaration of sincerity so we are to take hold of them and how we may doe this aright p. 221 222 Encitements to take hold of speciall times and occasions for the declaration of sincerity p. 224 God cals for it p. 224 Conscience cals for it p. 227 Church and State cals for it ibid. Soule and body will else severely smart for p 228 2 COR. 1.12 For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisdome but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the World and more abundantly to you-wards NO grace how glorious soever in the eye of man goes for good weight in the eye of God without sincerity The greatest man in the world weighed in the Ballance of the Sanctuary without this will be accounted too light for Heaven 'T is a very needfull subject then that this Text plainely profers to our consideration And as excellent in it selfe as needfull to us is sincerity 'T is the precious extract of all graces and to call this a grace is too little 'T is that which gives to every grace its due lustre in the eye of God and to call any thing a grace in man without this is too much 'T is the glory of all graces as the Sunne is the glory of all the Starres 't is the vitall blood of the soule which that it may runne in the veines of you all unto your eternall happinesse have I chosen this Text to insist on For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with fleshly wisedome but by the grace of God we have had our conversation in the world c. No condition is trucly joyous without and no condition is truely dolorous with sincerity If a man be never so rich never so honourable yet if not withall sincere there is no true joy in such a man he laughes but in the midst of laughter his heart is oft times sad and his conscience spoiles his sport On the other hand if a man be never so poore never so much oppressed which is the deadliest and the most opposite enemy to joy of all yet if that man be sincere his heart may be as full of joy as it can hold for all this as you may see in these words read For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity c. Paul and Timothy have beene sincere servants of Jesus Christ for the good of his Church amongst the Gentiles and in this they had transcendant comfort in the midst of all the misery they met withall 'T is not misery but sinne that robs the soule of joy Let a man labour to live sincerely and then let men and divels doe what they can or will such a man shall never be bereaft of joy he shall have joy in poverty joy in disgrace he shall have joy in prison as much as in liberty and much more So had Paul and Timothy which made them thus bravely breake out in the midst of misery For our rejoycing is this the testimony of our conscience that in simplicity and godly sincerity not with