think upon three things present the brevitie of this present life the difficultie of being saved and the paâ—citie of them that shall be saved Alwayes think upon three things to come Death then which nothing is more horrible judgement then which nothing is more terrible the pains of hell then which nothing is more intolerable Let thy evening prayers amend the sinnes of the day past Let the last day of the week amend the faults of the dayes past In the evening think how many are plunged that day into hell and give thanks unto God for granting thee time to repent There are three things above thee which never let slip out of thy memorie The eye that sees all the eare that heares all and the book wherein all things are written God hath communicated himself wholly unto thee Communicate thou thy self wholly unto thy neighbour That is the best life which is busied in the service of others Shew obedience and reverence to thy superiour give counsel and aid to thy equall defend and instruct thy inferiour Let thy bodie be subject to thy minde and thy minde to God Bewail thy evils past and esteem not the goods that are present and desire with all thy heart the goods which are future Remember thy sinne to grieve for it Remember death that thou mayst cease from sinne Remember Gods justice that thou mayst be kept in fear Remember Gods mercie that thou mayst not despair As much as thou canst withdraw thy self from the world and addict thy self wholly unto the service of the Lord. Alwayes in delights think that thy chastitie is in danger in riches think that thy humilitie is in danger in many businesses think that thy godlinesse is in danger Study to please none but Christ Fear to displease none but Christ. Alwayes pray thou unto God to command what he will and to give what he commands Pray unto him to cover what is past and to govern what is to come As thou desirest to seem so also thou must be For God judgeth not according to the shew but according to the truth In thy words take heed of much babling because for every idle word thou must give an account in the day of judgement Thy works be they what they will do not passe away but are cast as certain seeds of eternitie If thou sowest in the flesh of the flesh thou shalt reap corruption If thou sowest in the spirit of the spirit thou shalt reap life everlasting The honours of the world shall not follow thee after death neither shall thy heaps of riches follow thee neither shall thy pleasures follow thee neither shall the vanities of the world follow thee But after all thy works shall follow thee As therefore thou desirest to be at the day of judgement to day appeare to be such in the sight of God Do not esteem those things that thou hast but rather esteem those that thou wantest Be not proud for what is given thee but be humbled rather for that which is denied thee Learn to live whiles thou mayst live In this life is eternall life either obtained or lost After death there is no time to work but the time of recompense begins In the life to come working is not expected but the reward of working Let holy meditation bring forth in thee knowledge and knowledge compunction and compunction devotion and let devotion make prayer The silence of the mouth is a great good for the peace of the heart The more thou art separated from the world the more acceptable thou art unto God Whatsoever thou desirest to have ask of God whatsoever thou hast give unto God He that is not thankfull for that which is given already is unworthy to receive more Gods graces cease to descend when our thanks cease to ascend Whatsoever happeneth unto thee make use of it for good When thou art in prosperity think that thou hast then an occasion to blesse and praise God When thou art in adversitie think that thou art then put in minde of thy repentance and conversion Shew the strength of thy power in helping the strength of thy wisdome in instructing and the strength of thy riches in doing good Let not adversitie cast thee down neither let prosperitie lift thee up Let all thy life be directed unto Christ as unto the mark Follow him in the way that thou mayst overtake him in thy countrey In all things have a speciall care of profound humilitie and ardent charitie Let charitie lift up thy heart unto God that thou mayest cleave unto him And let humilitie keep thy heart down that thou beest not proud Judge God to be a Father for his clemencie a Lord for his discipline a Father for his power and gentlenesse a Lord for his severitie and justice Love him as a Father piously fear him as a Lord necessarily Love him because he willeth mercy fear him because he willeth not sinne Fear the Lord and trust in him acknowledge thy misery and proclaim his mercy O God thou that hast given us to will give us also grace to perfect Meditat. XXIX Of the shaking off securitie To live it is not but to die To live in all securitie COnsider thou devout soul what an hard matter it is to be saved and thou shalt easily shake off all securitie At no time and in no place is there securitie Neither in heaven nor in paradise and then much lesse in the world An angel fell in the presence of the divinitie and Adam fell in the place of pleasure Adam was created after the image of God and yet notwithstanding he was deceived by the treacheries of the devil Solomon was the wisest of men and yet his wives turned away his heart from the Lord. Judas was in the school of our Saviour and did every day heare the saving word of that chief Doctour and yet was not he safe from the snares of Satan He was plunged headlong into the pit of covetousnesse and so into the pit of eternall punishment David was a man after Gods own heart and he was unto the Lord as a most deare sonne and yet by murder and adulterie he became the sonne of death Where then is there securitie in this life Relie with an assured confidence of heart upon the promises of God and thou shalt be safe from the invasions of the devil There is no securitie in this life but that which is infallibly promised to those that beleeve and walk in the way of the Lord But when we come unto future happâ—nesse then at length we shall have full securitie In this life fear and religion are coupled together neither must one be without the other Be not secure in adversitie but whatsoever adversitie happâ—neth unto thee in this life think that it iâ— the reward of thy sinnes God often punisheth secret offences by open corrections Think upon the grievous stains of
in this present life be thou unto me Jesus in death be thou unto me Jesus in the last judgement be thou unto me Jesus in the life which is everlasting I know thou wilt sweet Jesus for as thou art immutable in thy essâ—nce so also thou art immutable in thy mercy Thou wilt not change thy name Lord Jesus for my sake alone who am a miserable sinner Yea rather thou wilt become my Saviour For thou dost not cast out him that cometh unto thee Thou that hast given me a will to come unto thee grant also unto me that coming I may be received For thy words are truth and life Let the propagation of originall sinne within me condemne me yet thou art my Jesus Let my conception in sinne condemne me yet thou art my Jesus Let my forming in sinne and under the curse condemne me yet thou art my Saviour Let the corruption of my nativitie condemne me yet thou art my Saviour Let the sinnes of my youth condemne me yet thou art my Jesus Let the course of my whole life defiled with most grievous sinnes condemne me yet thou art still my Jesus Let deâ—th the just punishment of my many and grievous sinnes and offences condemne me yet thou art my Saviour Let the severe sentence in the last judgement condemne me yet thou art my Jesus In me is sinne reprobation damnation In thy name is righteousnesse election salvation I was baptized in thy name I beleeve in thy name In thy name will I die In thy name will I rise again In thy name will I appeare in judgement In this name are all good things prepared for us and shut up as it were a treasure So much are they diminished as my diffidence is increased which that it may be farre from me I beseech thee by this thy name good Jesus that for my sinne and unbelief I be not damned whom by thy precious merit and saving name thou wouldst have saved Meditat. V. An exercise of faith from the love of Christ in the agonie of death The grace of Jesus Christ to me Is th' onely true felicity SEe Lord Jesus how injurious I am to thy passion My heart is vexed and my soul is very sorrowfull because I have no good works of mine own because I have no merits when as thy passion is my action thy works my merits I am injurious to thy passion when as I seek for the supplement of my works whereas it is in it self all-sufficient If I should finde righteousnesse in my self thy righteousnesse would profit me nothing or else I should not so much desire it If I seek for the works of the law by the law shall I be condemned But I know that now I am no longer under the law but under grace I have lived wickedly I have sinned holy Father against heaven and before thee I am not worthy to be called thy sonne yet thou wilt not refuse to call me thy servant Deny me not I pray thee the fruit of thy passion let not thy bloud wax barren but let it bring forth fruit and deliver my soul. My sinnes have alwayes lived in my flesh but I intreat thee let them at length die with me Hitherto the flesh hath alwayes ruled over me but let the Spirit at length triumph Let the outward man be subject to corruption and worms that the inward man may be glorified Hitherto I have alwayes given way to the suggestions of the devil but grant hereafter I beseech thee that I may trample them under my feet Satan is readie at hand to accuse me but he hath nothing in me The sight of death affrighteth me but death is the end of my sinnes and the beginning of an holy life Now at length shall I be able perfectly to please thee O my God Now at length shall I be confirmed in goodnesse and vertue Satan terrifieth me with my sinnes but let him accuse him which took upon him my infirmities whom the Lord hath smitten for my sinnes The debt which I ow is great indeed and I cannot pay any part thereof but my trust is in the riches and bounty of him that hath undertaken the payment Let him discharge me who hath made himself suretie for me Let him pay for me who took my debt upon himself I have sinned O Lord and my sinnes are many and grievous But this horrible sinne I will not commit to make thee a lyar who by thy words works and oath dost testifie that satisfaction is made for my iniquities I am not afraid by reason of my sinnes for thou art my righteousnesse I am not afraid by reason of my ignorance for thou art my wisdome I am not afraid of death for thou art my life I am not afraid of my errours for thou art my truth I am not afraid of corruption for thou art my resurrection I am not afraid of the sorrows of death for thou art my joy I am not afraid of the severitie of judgement for thou art my righteousnesse Distill upon my withered soul the dew of thy grace and quickening consolation My spirit waxeth dry but it shall shortly rejoyce in thee My flesh doth languish and is withered but it shall shortly bud forth I am subject to corruption but thou shalt deliver me from corruption for thou hast delivered me from all evils Thou hast created me How then can the workmanship of thy hands be dissolved Thou hast redeemed me from all mine enemies How then can death have rule over me Thou hast bestowed thy body and bloud and all that thou hadst yea even thy self for my salvation How then shall death withhold them which thou hast redeemed with so precious a ransome Thou Lord Jesus art righteousnesse it self So then my sins cannot prevail against thee Thou art life it self and the resurrection So then my death cannot prevail against thee Thou art God Therefore Satan cannot prevail against thee Thou hast given me the earnest of thy Spirit in that do I glorie in that do I triumph and am fully perswaded without doubting that I shall be admitted to the marriage of the Lambe Most deare bridegroom thou art my wedding-garment which I put on in baptisme thou shalt cover my nakednesse neither will I sow the supplement of my righteousnesse to this most precious and beautifull garment What is mans righteousnes but the cloth of a menstruous woman How then can I dare to patch that most precious garment of Christs righteousnesse with this abominable ragge In this garment will I appear before thy face in judgement when thou shalt judge the world in righteousnesse and equitie In this garment will I appear before thy face in the kingdome of heaven This garment shall cover my confusion and reproch that no man remember it any more for ever There shall I appear glorious and holy in thy sight And this my flesh this my body shall be arayed with beatificall glory which glory shall be
Without the love of God there is no desire of eternall life How then can any one be partaker of the chiefest good which loveth not which seeketh not which desireth not Such as thy love is such art thou because thy love transformeth thee into it self Love is the chiefest couple because the lover and the thing loved become one What hath conjoyned the most just God and wretched sinners What hath conjoyned them being infinitely distant one from the other Infinite love And yet that the infinite justice of God might not be weakned the infinite price of Christ interceded Again what hath conjoyned together God the Creatour and the faithfull soul created things infinitely distant Love In the life which is eternall we shall be joyned to God in the chiefest degree Why Because we shall love him in the chiefest degree Love uniteth and transformeth if thou lovest carnall things thou art carnall If thou lovest the world thou shalt become worldly But flesh and bloud cannot enter into the kingdome of God If thou lovest God and celestiall things thou shalt become celestiall The love of God is the chariot of Elias ascending up into heaven The love of God is the joy of the minde the paradise of the soul it excludeth the world it overcometh the devil it shutteth hell it openeth heaven The love of God is that seal by which God sealeth the elect and beleevers God at the last judgement will acknowledge none to be his but those that are sealed with this seal For faith it self the onely instrument of our justification and salvation is not true unlesse it doth demonstrate it self by love There is no true faith unlesse there be a firm confidence and there is no confidence without the love of God That benefit is not acknowledged for which we do not give thanks and we do not give thanks to him whom we do not love If therefore thy faith be true it will acknowledge the benefit of our redemption wrought by Christ it will acknowledge and give thanks it will give thanks and love The love of God is the life and rest of the soul When the soul departs from the body by death then the life of the body departeth When God departs out of the soul by reason of sins then the life of the soul departeth Again God dwells in our hearts by faith God dwells in the soul by love because the love of God is diffused in the hearts of the elect by the holy Spirit There is no tranquillitie to the soul without the love of God The world and Satan do much disquiet it But God is the chief rest of the soul There is no peace of conscience but to those that are justified by faith there is no true love of God but in them that have a filiall confidence in God Therefore let the love of our selves the love of the world the love of the creatures die in us that the love of God may live in us Which God begin in us in this world and perfect in the world to come Meditat. X. Of our reconciliation with God Fear not my soul be not dismaid For Iesus Christ thy debts hath paid CHrist truly took our infirmities and bare our griefs and sicknesses O Lord Jesus That which in us merited eternall punishment thou tookest upon thy self That burden which would have pressed us down into hell thou hast undergone Thou wast wounded for our iniquities thou wast broken for our sinnes By the bluenesse of thy wounds are we healed The Lord hath laid upon thee the iniquities of us all Surely wonderfull indeed is this change Thou takest our sinnes upon thy self and bestowest thy righteousnesse upon us Death due unto us thou undergoest thy self and conferrest life upon us I cannot therefore by any means doubt of thy grace or despair by reason of my sinnes The worst thing that was in us thou tookest upon thy self How then canst thou despise that which is the best in us and thine own work to wit our soul and body Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell neither wilt thou suffer thy holy one to see corruption For he is truly sanctified whose sinnes are abolished and taken away Blessed is the man whose iniquities are forgiven and to whom the Lord imputeth not his sinnes How can God impute our sinnes to us when he hath already imputed them to another For the wickednesse of his people he hath smitten his best beloved Sonne By the knowledge of him therefore he shall justifie many and shall bear their iniquities How shall he justifie those that are his Heare and attend O my soul He shall save them by the knowledge of him that is by the saving acknowledgement and firm apprehension by faith of the mercie and grace of God in Christ. This is life eternall to know and acknowledge thee the onely true God and Iesus Christ whom thou hast sent And therefore if thou shalt confesse with thy mouth the Lord Iesus and beleeve in thy heart that God raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved Faith apprehendeth Christs satisfaction He bare the iniquities of those that are his he suffered for the sinnes of many he interceded for the transgressours For he should have had very few just unlesse in mercy he had received sinners Thou shouldst have had few just O Jesus unlesse thou hadst remitted the sinnes of the unjust How then shall Christ judge according to severitie the sinnes of the penitent which he hath taken upon himself How shall he condemn him that is guilty of sinne seeing that he himself was made sinne for us Will he condemn those whom he calleth his friends Will he condemn those for whom he hath intreated Will he condemn those for whom he died Lift up thy self therefore O my soul and forget thy sinnes for the Lord hath forgotten them Whom dost thou fear as the punisher of thy sinnes but the Lord who himself made satisfaction for thy sinnes If any other had payed the price of my redemption I might have doubted whether the just Judge would accept of that satisfaction If a man or an angel had satisfied for my sinnes yet still there might be a doubt whether the price of redemption were sufficient But now there is no place for doubt How can it be that he will not accept of that price which he hath payd himself How can that choose but be sufficient which is from God himself Why art thou troubled O my soul All the wayes of God are mercie and truth Iust is the Lord and just are his judgements Why art thou troubled O my soul Let the mercy of God raise thee up let the justice of God also raise thee up For if God be just for one offence he will not exact double satisfaction For our sinnes he hath smitten his Sonne How then can he smite us his servants for them How can he punish our sinnes in us which
thy sinnes and fear him that shall judge thee for thy sinnes according to his justice Be not secure in prosperitie For God is angry with him that is not punished in this life What are the afflictions of the godly Bitter arrows sent from the sweet hand of God God esteems many in this life unworthy to be punished whom notwithstanding he reprobateth for ever Outward felicitie is oftentimes a signe of eternall damnation Nothing is more unhappy then the happinesse of sinners and nothing more miserable then he that knows no miserie Whithersoever thou turnest thine eyes thou seest cause of grief and findest remedies against securitie Think upon God above whom we have offended Think upon hell beneath which we have deserved Think upon the sinne behinde which we have committed Think upon the judgement before which we stand in fear of Think upon the conscience within which we have defiled And think upon the world without which we have loved Consider whence thou camest and be ashamed Consider where thou art and be sorrowfull Consider whither thou goest and tremble The gate of salvation is narrow but the way of salvation is yet narrower God hath given unto thee the treasure of faith but thou carriest it about thee in vessels of clay He gave thee the angels to be thy keepers But the devil is not farre off and he is ready to seduce thee Thou art renewed in the spirit of thy minde But yet thou hast much of the oldnes of the flesh Thou art set in the state of the grace of God But yet thou art not set in eternall glory There is a mansion prepared for thee in heaven But yet thou must endure first the afflictions and assaults of the world God hath promised forgivenesse to him that repenteth But he hath not promised will to repent to him that sinneth The consolations of eternall life expect thee But yet thou must expect to enter in through many tribulations The crown of eternall reward is promised unto thee But first thou must fight the great fight and be conquerour God doth not change his promise Neither must thou change the study of holy life If the servant doth not what the Lord commandeth then the Lord wil do what he hath threatned Let a man therefore lament grieve shaking off all securitie lest in the just and secret judgement of God he be forsaken and left in the power of the devils to be destroyed If thou hast the grace of God so delight thy self in it as knowing that it is the gift of God and that thou dost not possesse it by any hereditarie right Yet be thou so secure concerning it that thou canst not lose it lest on a sudden when God shall withhold his gift and withdraw his hand thou beest discouraged and become more sorrowfull then is fit But happy shalt thou be if thou labourest with all care and diligence to avoid securitie the mother of all evil God will not forsake thee But take heed that thou dost not forsake God God hath given thee his grace But pray thou unto him that he would also give thee perseverance God bids thee be certain of thy salvation but he bids thee not be secure Thou must fight valiantly that thou mayest at length triumph gloriously Thy flesh within thee fighteth against thee And the enemie the nearer he is the more he is to be feared The world about thee fighteth against thee And the greater the enemie is the more to be feared The devil above thee fighteth against thee And the more potent the enemy is the more to be feared Through the power of God fear not to encounter with these enemies Through the power of God thou shalt be enabled to obtain the victory But thou canst not overcome these so great enemies by securitie but by assiduity in fighting The time of life is the time of fight Then thou art most assaulted when thou knowest not that thou art assaulted Then do thy enemies most gather their forces together when they seem to grant truce They are vigilant And dost thou sleep They make themselves ready to hurt And dost not thou make thy self ready to resist Many faint by the way never come home into their countrey How many of the Israelites died in the wildernes and never came to see the promised land How many spirituall sonnes of Abraham do perish in the wildernes of this world never come to enjoy the promised inheritance of the kingdome of heaven Nothing is more powerfull to make us shake off security then to think of the paucity of them that endure to the last Let it therefore be our onely desire to attain to the glory which is in heaven Let it be our onely love to come thither Let it be our onely grief that we are not alreadie come thither And let it be our onely fear that we come not thither That so we may have no joy but in those things that either further us in the way thither or give us hope of coming thither What profiteth it thee to rejoyce for a moment to lament for ever What joy can there be in this life when that which delighteth passeth away and that never passeth away which tormenteth We live in securitie as if we were past the snare of death day of judgement Christ saith that he will come to judgement at such an houre as we think not of This saith Truth it self and again he repeats it Heare this and fear If the Lord will come at such an houre as we think not of we have great cause to fear that so we come not unto judgement unprovided If we come unprovided How shall we be able to endure the strict examination in judgement Notwithstanding that which is lost in this one moment cannot be recovered again for ever In the shortnes of one moment judgement shall passe what we shall be for all eternitie In this one moment life or death damnation or salvation punishment or eternall glory shall be appointed to every one Lord thou that hast given us grace to that which is good give us also perseverance in that which is good Meditat. XXX Of the holy imitation of Christ his life Christs life must be a rule to thee If Christs disciple thou wilt be THe holy life of Christ is the most perfect pattern of all vertues Every action of Christ serves for our instruction Many would come to Christ but they will not follow him They would enjoy Christ but they will not imitate him Learn of me for I am meek and lowly in heart saith our Saviour Unlesse thou wilt be Christs disciple thou canst never be a true Christian Let not Christs passion onely be thy merit but let his action also be thy example to live after Thy beloved is white and ruddie Be thou also ruddy by the sprinkling of his bloud and white by the imitation
into the court of heaven The third is the book of the Scripture according to the prescript rule whereof our faith and good works shall be judged The word that I have spoken saith our Saviour shall judge them at the last day The fourth book containeth in it the testimonies of the poore which in the day of judgement shall receive us into an everlasting habitation The fifth book contains the inward testimonie of the conscience For the conscience is the book in which all sinnes are written The conscience is a great volume in which all things are written by the finger of truth The damned cannot deny their sinnes at the day of judgement because they shall be convinced by the testimonie of their own consciences They cannot fly from the accusation of their sinnes because the tribunall of the conscience is within and at home A pure conscience is the most cleare glasse of the soul in which she beholds God and her self A filthy eye cannot behold the splendour of true light Hereupon saith our Saviour Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God As a beautifull and fair face is pleasing to the eye of man So a pure and cleare conscience is acceptable in the sight of God But the putrified conscience begets never-dying worms Let us therefore in the present have a sense and feeling of the worm of conscience and labour to destroy it But let us not foster it lest it live with us for ever All other books were invented to mend this book What doth much science profit if there be a foul conscience Thou shalt be judged hereafter before the throne of God not by the book of thy science but by the book of thy conscience If thou wilt write this book right indeed write it according to the copy of the book of life Christ is the book of life Let the profession of thy faith be conformed to the rule of Christs doctrine and let the course of thy life be conformed to the rule of Christs life Thy conscience shall be good if there be puritie in thy heart truth in thy tongue and honestie in thy actions Use thy conscience for a lanthorn in all thy actions For that will plainly shew unto thee what actions in thy life be good and what be evil Avoid that judgement of thy conscience in which one and the same shall be both defendant and plaintiffe witnesse judge tormentour prison scourge executioner and slaughterer What escape can there be there where it is the witnesse that accuseth and where nothing can be hid from him that judgeth What doth it profit thee if all men commend theâ—â— and thy conscience accuse thee What shall it hurt thee if all men detract from thee and thy conscience defend thee This judge is enough to accuse judge and condemne every man This judge is uncorrupt and cannot be moved with prayers or corrupted with rewards Whithersoever thou goest and wheresoever thou art thy conscience is alwayes with thee and carrieth about her whatsoever thou hast laid up in her whether it be good or evil She keeps for the living and restoreth to the dead that which was committed to her keeping So it is true that a mans enemies are they of his own houshold So in thine own house and amongst thine own family thou hast those that do observe accuse and torment thee What doth it profit thee to live in all abundance and plenty and to be tormented with the whip of conscience The fountain of mans felicitie and misery is in his minde What doth it profit a man in a burning fever to lie upon a bed of gold What doth it profit a man tâ—â—mented with the firebrands of an â—â—conscience to enjoy all outward felicitie As much as we regard everlasting salvation so much let us regard our conscience For if a good conscience be lost faith is lost and if faith be lost the grace of God is lost and if the grace of God be lost how can we hope for everlasting life As the testimony of thy conscience is such judgement mayest thou expect from Christ. Sinners shall become their own accusers though none accuse them or bring ought against them As the drunkard while he is overwhelmed with wine hath no sense of the hurt which he receiveth by the wine but when he hath slept out his drunken fit then he feels the hurt So sinne whiles it is in action doth blinde the minde and like a thick cloud doth obscure the brightnesse of true judgement But at length the conscience is roused and gnaweth more grievously then any accuser There are three judgements The judgement of the world the judgement of thy self and the judgement of God And as thou canst not escape the judgement of God So neither canst thou escape the judgement of thy self although sometimes thou mayest escape the judgement of the world No walls can hinder this witnesse from seeing all thy actions What excuse can save thee when thy conscience within doth accuse thee The peace of conscience is the beginning of everlasting life Thou mayest more truely and heartily rejoyce in the midst of troubles having a good conscience then thou canst in the midst of thy delights having an evil conscience Against the backbiting of all that bear thee ill will thou mayest confidently oppose the defence and excuse of thy conscience Enquire of thy self concerning thy self because thou knowest thy self farre better then any other man doth At the last judgement what will the false praises of others profit thee or the backbitings of others without a cause hurt thee By Gods and thine own judgement shalt thou either stand or fall Thou shalt not stand or fall by the testimonie of others The conscience is immortall as the soul is immortall And the punishments of hell shall torment the damned as long as the accusation of conscience shall endure No externall fire doth so afflict the bodie as this inward fire doth inflame the conscience The soul which is burned is eternall and the fire of the conscience is eternall No outward scourges are so grievous unto the bodie as these inward whips of conscience are unto the soul. Avoid therefore the guilt of sinne that so thou mayest avoid the torment of conscience By true repentance blot thy sinnes out of the book of thy conscience that they may not be read at the judgement and that thou mayest not be afraid of the voice of Gods sentence Mortifie the worm of conscience by the heat of devotion that it do not bite thee and so beget eternall horrour Extinguish this inward fire by thy teares that so thou mayest attain to the joyes of an heavenly cooler Grant O Lord that we may fight the good fight keeping faith and a good conscience that at length we may come safe and sound into our heavenly countrey Meditat. XXXIIII Of the study of true humilitie What is a
Therefore for our sinnes God casts us off Take not thy holy Spirit from me Therefore as bees are driven away with smoak and pigeons with ill savours so by our sinnes is the holy Spirit driven out of the temples of our hearts Restore me the joy of thy salvation Therefore sinne doth torment the minde and dry up the moisture of the heart The earth is defiled by the inhabitants thereof which have transgressed the law crieth Esay Therefore sinne is a contagious and infectious poison Out of the deeps have I cryed unto thee O Lord saith the Psalmist Therefore our sinnes presse us down unto hell We were sometimes dead in our sinnes saith the apostle Therefore sinne is the spirituall death of the soul. By mortall sinne man loseth God God is the infinite and incomprehensible good Therefore to lose God is an infinite and incomprehensible evil As God is the chiefest good so sinne is the chiefest evil Punishments and calamities are not absolutely evil for many times there comes good of them Yea rather it appeares that they are good because they come from God who is the chiefest good from whom can proceed nothing but that which is good They were in the chiefest good to wit in Christ And the chiefest good cannot partake in that which is evil truely so called And moreover they leade us unto the chiefest good that is to life everlasting Christ by his passion entred into his glorie And so do Christians by tribulations enter into eternall life Therefore sinne is the chiefest evil because it withdraws us from the chiefest good The nearer thou comest unto God the further thou departest from sinne The nearer thou comest unto sinne the further thou departest from God How saving therefore is repentance which withdraws us from sinne and brings us back again unto God! Sinne is measured by the greatnesse of him that is offended But him the heavens the earth cannot contain In like manner such is our repentance as he unto whom we return by repentance The sinner is accused by his conscience which he hath defiled by the Creatour whom he hath offended by the sinnes which he hath committed by the creatures which he hath abused and by the devil by whom he hath been seduced How saving then is repentance which frees us from such accusations Let us make haste therefore let us make haste to such a saving medicine for such a grievous disease If thou repentest at thy death thou dost not leave thy sinnes but thy sinnes leave thee Thou shalt scarce finde any one that repented truely at his death unlesse it were the thief upon the crosse Fourteen yeares have I served thee said Jacob to Laban it is time now that I should provide for mine own house And if thou hast served the world and this life so many yeares is it not fit that thou shouldest begin now to make provision for thy soul Every day doth our flesh heap sinne upon sinne Let the Spirit therefore every day wash them away by repentance Christ died that sinne might die in us And shall we suffer that to live and reigne in our hearts for the destroying whereof the sonne of God himself died Christ enters not into the heart of man by grace unlesse John Baptist prepare the way by repentance God poureth not the oyl of mercie but into the vessel of a contrite heart God doth first mortifie us by contrition that afterwards he may quicken us by the consolation of the Spirit He first leads us into hell by serious grief that afterwards he may bring us back again by the taste of grace Elias first heard a great and strong winde overturning mountains and cleaving rocks and after the winde an earthquake and after the earthquake there appeared fire At length there followed a small and still voice In like manner terrour goes before the taste of Gods love and sorrow before comfort God bindes not up thy wounds unlesse thou lay them open by confession and bewail them He covers not unlesse thou first uncover He pardons not unlesse thou first acknowledge He justifies not unlesse thou first condemne thy self He comforts not unlesse thou first despair in thy self This true repentance God by his holy Spirit work in us Meditat. IIII. Of the name of JESVS Blessed blessed name of Jesus Who tormented was to ease us O Good Jesus be thou my Jesus for thy holy names sake have mercy on me My life condemnes me but the name of Jesus shall save me For this thy names sâ—ke do unto me according to thy name seeing that thou art a true and a great Saviour surely thou dost respect those that are sinners indeed yea great sinners Have mercie on me O good Jesus in the time of mercie that I be not condemned in the time of judgement If thou receive me into the bosome of thy mercy thou shalt have never the lesse room If thou bestow upon me the crumbes of thy goodnesse yet thou shalt want never the more For me thou wast born for me thou wast circumcised to me also thou art become a Jesus How sweet and delightfull is this name For what is Jesus but a Saviour and what harm can happen to those that are saved what else can we desire or expect beyond salvation Receive me Lord Jesus into the number of thy sonnes that together with them I may land thy holy and saving name Though I have lost my integritie yet thou hast not forgotten thy mercy Though I had power to lose and condemne my self yet thou in thy mercie art more powerfull to save me Lord do not thou so look upon my sinnes as to forget thy mercy do not so ponder and weigh my offences that they overpoise thy merit do not so remember my wickednesse as therefore to forget thy goodnesse Remember not thy anger against my guiltinesse but remember thy mercie towards my miserie Thou who hast given me a minde to desire thee withdraw not thy self from my desire Thou who hast shewed unto me my unworthinesse and just damnation hide not from me thy merit and the promise of everlasting salvation My cause is to be tried at the heavenly tribunall but this is my comfort that in the court of heaven thou hast assigned unto thee the name of a Saviour for that name was brought down from heaven by an angel O most mercifull Jesus to whom wilt thou be Jesus if not to miserable sinners that seek thy grace and salvation They that trust in their own righteousnesse and holinesse seek salvation in themselves but I flie unto thee my Saviour for I finde nothing in my self worthy of eternall life Save the condemned shew mercie to the sinner justifie the unrighteous absolve the accused Thou Lord art truth thy name is holy and true Let thy name also become true in respect of me and become thou my Jesus and Saviour Be thou unto me Jesus