Lastly According to the greater or less value it sets upon the Fathers Councils and her own authority For those whose doctrines more agree to those of the Fathers and Councils seem rather to be adhered-to and those more agreeing with them are likely more to value and ascribe to them an higher authority and also who lessen Church-authority seem to have the less Title to it And she who more earnestly challengeth a filial obedience seems stronglier to believe her self the true Mother On the contrary Step-mothers and the little-favoured by former Authority and Antiquity endeavour more according to their interest to prejudice weaken and depress all these do much insist upon Christian liberty and quote frequently the texts that may seem to caution against any such rash submission to or dependance on others as Matt. 15.9.14 1. Jo. 4.1 1. Thess 5.21 And to render their Sons full of unsettledness unconstancy and dispute §. 48. 4. Avoiding curiosities of Science and the inquiring into and dispute about the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Quomodo Quatenus of things 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 saith Gregory Nazianzen For besides that of such silly languishing of one not content with sound words 1. Tim. 6.4 comp 3. about many questions and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as they are called by the Apostle do come envies contentions railings and evil surmisings and perverse disputings and mis-interpretations of other men's meanings 1. Tim. 6.4 It also happeneth many times that from an only-excluded quatenus in the dispute the whole substance of a necessary duty is prejudic'd and omitted in mens practice §. 49. 5. In these matters of Controversy more willingly embracing those tenents that give more than that give less efficacy to any Christian practice or duty Since the one increaseth the other diminisheth your affection to it and the necessity of it As two teaching good works necessary he of them that should say they are so only out of gratitude or as signs of true Faith c. would more weaken mens study of them So for Alms and deeds of Charity he that should teach them necessary as a duty in obedience to a precept not also as a special means for procuring remission of sins and receiving many as well temporal as spiritual blessings from God c would more weaken mens practice of them So for Fasting he that should teach it to be a means indeed to weaken our lusts but no duty required by God §. 50. 6. Not hearkning to your reason against what seems clear Revelation nor against strongly-confirmed Tradition or common Ecclesiastical History nor against the professed experience of other Saints of God That Philosophical Caution 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 seems mischievous in Divinity especially against the common authority and credulity of so many others And that thing may be most credible and conformable to a well-rectified Reason that disagrees with ours as yet not so clear-sighted or otherwise prejudiced and mis-seasoned Not opposing God's wisdome or justice such as we fancy them to what is his work or his Power to what is his promise and not stating what is and what is not to him possible But captivating our reason for other things in the former Circumstances as far as we do for the Trinity For our Reason is very weak and all true Reason hath an anti-reason and verity a verisimility always opposing it 7. Taking heed also of using negative argumentations from former Authority against better As That if such a thing were a truth or a truth of such consequence It would have been mentioned by our Lord the Apostles the Fathers of such and such times As if any in the Apostles times should have argued That the Mosaical Ceremonies were not abrogated by Christ because our Lord who foresaw such a grand Controversy yet in the Gospels hath expresly said nothing of nullifying them Or again That he had said nothing of them because the Apostles quote not any such his commands Or should have argued That the Gentiles were not to be admitted into the Church c. because so many at Pentecost when inspired with the Holy Ghost as yet knew nothing of it Or because afterward it a matter of such consequence was revealed to none of the rest and discovered to Peter only by a Vision and an Experiment See Acts 11.3.15 comp Act. 10.28.34 not by a clear command Again Not rejecting any thing as the Invention or Institution only of later times from this negative arguing That it cannot be shewed in the Writings Histories or Registers of the former For many things may be believed or practised in such times when they are not mentioned in the Records thereof Especially if those times less abound with Writings Nor is every thing to be concluded new that is newly spoken of or agitated Which agitation first happens to be upon some new opposition made to things formerly received Not using also Negative Argumentations from former times to the disparaging or disswading any practice of the later on this account such practice was not in former or then was less frequent For many such very beneficial for the augmenting of Piety or Devotion may be discovered or also instituted anew in any age And it is a sufficient licence of them if nothing therein can be shewed contrary to the Divine Prohibitions or Commands The same thing also may be said concerning the Divine Favours and Honors done to God's Servants and Saints not in all ages perhaps dispensed altogether after the same manner but some more frequent in one some in another And for such varying practices of later Church or Favours of the Divine Grace if a considerable benefit appears of the first and an evident proof of the second Voluntas Dei as St. Austine De Inventione S. Stephani Fidem quaerit non quaestionem this is sufficient for allaying our further inquisition and establishing our acquiescence in them For God seems to be pleased that the successive ages of the World should be entertained with some variety And the Oeconomy of the Church after Constantine's times differing in many things from the former yet was entertained with general approbation §. 51. Digr Of the great confidence and little strength notwithstanding the conformity which truth hath to the Intellect beyond error of Humane Reason made mostwhat a slave to our secular Interests and Passions discerned by the serious contemplation 1. Of the learned of one nation from several education and interest and concatenation of Tenents embracing a contrary Sect of Religion to those of another both with the same zeal and pretended evidence on their side yet both perusing the same Scriptures and one another's Arguments And this so unanimously that it is almost a Miracle if one among many hundreds deserts his Party So that as any one happens to be educated in his Studies For Example in Spain or in England accordingly he is prepared to suffer the like Martyrdome in Defence of the Roman or the Reformed Tenents 2. Of the general
and also of our Graces and services i. e. our satisfaction love our praising and glorifiing God nobler there according to the several Degrees of our Service here 4. Contemplation of the Reward a great incouragement to the work 5. Contemplation of the many various Degrees and heights thereof proportioned to our obedience a great incouragement of an holy zeal to attain perfection in our Works §. 10 VII Concerning the Faisibility Easiness Excellencies of It. VII Next Concerning the Faisibility and Easiness of this Service Consider 1. The great light we have of Natural knowledge 2. The natural Inclination we have to many good Duties as to Sobriety c. only alterable by custome and ill example and our Passions very serviceable to the exercise of Vertues Digr Of the Art of well using and heightning the Passion toward things of Piety 3. The Easiness of Christ's Yoke Matt. 11.30 after a while upon contrary custome and the removal of temptations as may be gathered by the perseverance of Saints bearing this Yoke still with more and more zeal whereas no forced actions are permanent It being in many things heavy at first not so much from its opposition to natural Inclinations as to vicious habits and ill education and inadvertency of admitting alluring Objects c His Commandments are not grievous 1. Jo. 5.3 4. The many Benefits of our Saviour to mankind which see displayed more largely below Medit. 5. and the advantagious repairs of our losses by the first in him the second Adam and ours far happier times since the Gospel 5. The near Relations the Son of God out of infinite love hath contracted to us by his Incarnation He our Father we his Children He our Husband we his Spouse He our Head we his Members He our Root we his Branches He the Foundation we his Building He the Son of God we his Brethren we his People and He our High-Priest who after he had here offered himself a Sacrifice for us now with his Blood in the Heavenly Sanctuary makes perpetual Intercession for us 6. Baptisme in our Infancy or at what time soever worthily received rescuing us from the Curse of Adam and his Posterity and totally cancelling all former hereditary or personal Guilt gratis and restoring to us supernatural Grace lost by our first Parents and God's friendship and favour only carnal Concupiscence not quite eradicated to make the acts of Vertue more valuable and the victories of Grace more excellent 7. The sufficient ability all the baptized have by this Grace procured by the death of Jesus and applied in Baptisme to perform the Covenant of the Gospel and all the obedience that is required under pain of Damnation and to live free from the habit of any small sin from the single Acts of any great one 8. The great disparity of the malignity and guilt that is in Sins of which whilst we daily fall into some of the less yet we may and good Christians do totally avoid the greater in which respect they are called Saints Holy Righteous dead to and no more committers of Sin c. Digr Of the narrow extent of Sins of excusing i. e. of natural Infirmity which Infirmity is either in avoidable ignorance when the understanding is cozened or inadvertency or want of observation when the choice is surprised Hence great sins cannot be such since we are neither in general ignorant of them nor in particular Acts unobservant of them nor yet small sins be such if multiplied since they also when frequent must needs be pre-observed Of the danger of that Tenent that God's Commandments cannot be kept or fulfilled in that sense as it is vulgarly misunderstood 1. That we cannot live free from all greater sins See Matt. 19.17 5.17 18. com 19 20. Rom. 8.4 as from all Uncleanness and Fornication Avarice Detraction all greater degrees of Intemperance of Anger Impatience c. 9. Many omissions of doing some good and deficiencies in doing good not formal fins though all are imperfections 10. The many Benefits of the Holy Ghost which see collected more fully below in Medit. 6. This the Promise of our Lord as he before was of the Father and this after his Ascension sent by him to abide with his here on earth in his necessary absence until his second coming and that not to be a cohabitant with us as he but an inhabitant within us now made his Temples the Seed of God giving us a second Nativity and making us new Creatures born of God conveying into our Souls Holiness and into our Bodies immortality and life as our former Nativity did Sin and Death inwardly illuminating our understandings in the highest Mysteries of our Salvation and confirming to the Soul all that truth which our Lord taught to the Ear and communicating to the more perfect extraordinary Revelations and secrets of God from time to time inspiring the will with new and divine affections and inflaming those more perfect with a more impetuous and impatient love of God some elevated to Rapt and Extasy and to so perfect a Contemplation of and Union with the divine Majesty as this life is capable of and whilst it acting thus in us a Paraclet also interceding for us with groans unexpressible asking all things for us and predirecting us in our affairs many times contrary to humane reason according to the Will of God which Will as to the present and future this Spirit also knows and crying in our hearts Abba Pater superabundantly comforting us in all secular Distresses and animating and sealing us to future everlasting Glories O the high Nobility of a person once Regenerate What Holiness may not a man confidently aspire-to that is thus inhabited by God! 11. The powerful and diligent assistances of the good Angels who as being Fellow-Citizens and Members under the same Prince and Head Heb. 12.22 Eph. 1.10 Col. 1.20 full of Charity attend especially on the necessities of the Saints Daily carrying our Prayers and joyfully presenting our good Endeavors to the heavenly Majesty and procuring and ministring his Blessings to us and rejoycing over one Sinner that repenteth waging a continual war against Satan and his Angels in our defence suggesting we may presume as assiduously good things to our mind as Satan doth evil and since their Charity is no less than his Malice as diligent to preserve as he to destroy us and to entice to good as he to tempt to evil Lastly their number in the spacious higher world infinitely great without expression See Heb. 12.22 Matt. 26.53 Dan. 7.10 Rev. 12.4 And all the several Titles of their divers Orders as Thrones Dominations Vertues Principalities Powers Arch-angels Angels excepting the Cherubin and Seraphin the nearest Attendants upon the heavenly Majesty Esay 6.2 Rev. 4.6 comp Ezech. 1.5 26. implying Government or Service See Dan. 10 13.20 21. Eph. 1.21 3.10 6.12 Col. 1.16 2.10.15 Rev. 15.7 Matt. 18.10 24.31 Luk. 16.22 they always giving a relation or account of their Embassies and Imployments
may be holy both in Body and Spirit which is a transcendent Holiness of the Body beyond the Conjugal And 2. Cor. 7.1 after the Apostle had spoken of their being God's Temples in the 6th Chapter Wherefore saith he let us cleanse our selves from all filthiness of the Flesh and of the Spirit so perfecting Holiness And more expresly Flee Fornication saith he 1. Cor. 6.18 Why For every other sin that a man doth is without the Body i. e. without any proper infamy to the Body or giving the power and honour thereof to another besides our Lord Christ but he that committeth Fornication sinneth against his own Body i. e. in degrading it to so base an alliance as to become the same with that vile creature with which it sinneth Therefore Eph. 5.3 4. the Apostle also peculiarly concerning this sin or any filthy discourse tending to it giveth charge that it should not be once named among such as will go for Saints But Fornication saith he and all Vncleanness or Coveteousness let it not be once named among you as becometh Saints Nor filthiness or foolish talking which are not convenient or which greatly mis-become such as you see the same phrase Rom. 1.28 And as God cast a special shame upon man in the committing of this Sin so in receiving him again after his fall into a new covenant of his Grace made with Abraham the Father of the faithful he caused the Seal thereof to be set particularly on those parts in a circumcision of them which were the instruments of Lust. In Rom. 1.26 c. We find God to abandon those who had otherwise much displeased him in their following Idols c whenas God hath left such manifest testimonies in all his creatures of himself were to the greatest disgrace and dishonour of humane nature that could be called there 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And in Apocal. 22.15 The Practisers of one Species thereof as if it did utterly depose us from our man-hood are called by the name of Dogs which see also in Deut. 23.18 and Phil. 3.2 for the Gnosticks stood guilty of such impurities And Job 36.14 This is pronounced as a Curse upon a Hypocrite that Vita eorum is inter effeminatos §. 40. n. 5. 3. The wrath also of God towards those Sins above others appears every where in these holy Writings most evident by whose revenge we may most rightly measure the greatness of these faults by many made so natural and excusable In 1. Thess 4.6 the Apostle warns the Thessalonians to abstain from the Fornication of the Gentiles Because the Lord saith he is the avenger of all such And Heb. 13.4 Marriage is honourable and the Bed undefiled But Whore-mongers and Adulterers God will judge And in detestation of such unlawful Lusts the Lord appointed Deut. 23.2 That a Bastard should not enter into the Congregation of the Lord until his tenth Generation And for these sins it was that God in the sacred Story inflicted those fearful Judgments to which none other can be compared For these that he drowned the world and washed away its pollution with the Flood Gen. 6.1 2. For these that he rained flaming Brimstone on Sodome and Gomorrah and purified their Land with Fire For these that all those mighty Nations were destroyed out of Canaan and their Land given to the Children of Israel See Levit. Chap. 18. Where after great variety of these sins rehearsed it follows Vers 27. For all these abominations for this name God gives to these Sins for their loathsomness have the men of the Land done that were before you and the Land is defiled and therefore in the Verse following this defiled Land is said to have spued out the inhabitants thereof For such Sin that Twenty three Thousand of the Children of Israel also fell in one day at Baal-peor before they entred Canaan See 1. Cor. 10.8 For such Sin that all the Tribe of Benjamin was cut off except only Six hundred men Judg. 20. I need not mention the Wars and Slaughter that followed upon David's Adultery and the ten Tribes rent from Solomon as a Judgment upon his being seduced to the Toleration of Idolatry by his Lusts and unlawful Marriages This is enough to shew that these Sins tho seeming most excusable and natural to Man are most abominable and loathsome to God especially since the new Contract that is made between Us and our Lord and since our Bodies are become the Temples of the Holy Ghost Which Temples 1. Cor. 3.17 saith the Apostle Whoso defileth him will God destroy §. 41. 3. Humility 2. The Purity and Sanctification of the Soul By 3. Humility 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and Mortification of your Reason opposite to all self-conceit of your own perfections and especially that of your Holiness and Mortifications pride hypocrisy ambition envy wrath contentions of Argument disobedience to Superiors curiosity of Science Schism Heresy and what other Vices proceed from high-mindedness §. 42. Of its Opposites 1. Rational Pride of Wit and Judgment 2. Spiritual Pride of Purity and Holiness 3. Anger against Vice aggravating of other mens faults when as Charity covereth them 1. Pet. 4.8 and beareth and hopeth all things 1. Cor. 13.7 and considereth her self lest she also be so tempted Gal. 6.1 4. Anger against Error and contending vehemently to convince those that oppose us for truth when as the wrath of man c. Jam. 1.20 And the wisdome from above is gentle c. Jam. 3.17 And the man of God should not strive 2. Tim. 2.24 And God only in his good time may reveal and convince but ordinarily we cannot Phil. 3.15 2. Tim. 2.25 To prevent which anger not easily engaging your self in every discourse nor engaged contradicting Him with whom you contest in every thing that he saith amiss but only for a very necessary Truth nor seeking any way to exasperate his Spirit or to provoke him to speak something against his conscience or to disparage and shame him §. 43. The means to attain and preserve such Humility and avoid such Pride 1. Often comparing yours with the recorded lives of former Saints or of some persons living who are very eminent in holiness but carefully avoiding any comparison with others inferior 2. Often considering 1 the great imperfection of your holy duties 2 and the good in such imperfection proceeding totally from God we being rather moved than moving as to it 3. Never judging your self by the good opinion others have of you to whom we naturally hide our weaknesses and faults shew our perfections and vertues 4. Often meditating on any singular deformities or infirmities in your body or imbecility of any faculty of your soul fancy memory elocution of any great sins or disgraces of yours past or present or considering what a one you use to be in the times of desolation and the withdrawings of God's Spirit 5. Often comparing your sins with theirs who without like mercy shewed or means for their salvation offered
or approve you according to your doings 2. Making you most gracious promises upon obedience to his will and following his counsels and again grievously threatning you upon contempt of his laws and these promises And using all possible means your liberty being reserved and your will not forced to wean and fright you from the ways of death and allure you to the ways of life 3. Redeeming you after that in your natural condition you became dis-obedient when without strength Rom. 5 6 when a sinner ver 8. when an enemy ver 10. from sin death satan hell into whose cruel hands you were fallen by his own Son Him that was brought up with him his dayly delight Prov. 8.30 sent out of his own bosome Jo. 1.18 Even by him God that made the world to be given up to death to be hanged on the tree for you and in your stead Remitting all your Sin gratis for his sufferings without requiring of you so strict an account for offences how grievous soever committed in the time past before you were by the receit of the stronger iluminations of his Spirit converted unto him 4. Calling you by being born according to his good pleasure in a Christian Common-wealth to Grace i. e. To the hearing of his holy word To the use and benefit of his holy Sacraments the sure pledges of his love and seals of the future performance of all his promises of remission of sin of increase of Grace c. _____ To the guidance and assistance of his holy Clergy To the Example of many holy Saints 5. Having long patience and forbearance with you whilst notwithstanding these you continued still vicious ready to be reconciled whenever you would return unto him and with all patience waiting for your repentance and himself practising most exactly towards you all the rules of long-suffering and forgiveness which he hath enjoyned you towards others 6. In your Conversion preventing you with his Grace regenerating and making you a new Creature after the image of his Son by infusing into you a new principle the Spirit which remains in you during your whole life and sufficiently enabling you in all the parts of holiness if you be not wanting to it on your part 7. Giving you day by day many illuminations divine inspirations and admonitions and by his Grace in you making you capable of and rewardable with new mercies unto you 8. Ordaining you after a few days spent here on earth to an immortal condition and unconceivable joys in heaven and to have this your vile Body after its corruption raised again in great glory and beauty §. 174. 9. Affections and Resolutions Such as these 1. Admiring his Goodness Your Ingratitude 2. Sorrow for ever having offended him 3. Re-loving him 4. Indeavouring hereafter to serve him 5. Suffering any misery for him 6. Imitating his goodness to you in yours to others c. For Considerations are easily multiplied §. 175. VI. HEADS for Meditation on the Several Offices and Benefits to Mankind of Jesus Christ our Lord extracted out of the larger Discourse of our Saviour's Benefits Consider 1. The world being full of ignorance and sin Jesus Christ 1. Law giver and Apostle The Truth the holy one of God in the fulness of time anointed by the Father and sent into the world A new Law-giver ministring not the letter of the law but the Spirit An Apostle preaching the Gospel Remitting Sins Conferring the Holy Ghost having the Keys of and admitting some into and shutting others out of the Kingdome of Heaven And who before his necessary departure ordained others by succession of Ordination to be continued to the world's end Sending them as the Father sent him delivering over his doctrine and delegating his authority and embassy and keys unto them and unto the end of the world from heaven assisting their Ministry Matt. 28.20 Appellations relating unto this Office Shepherd Pastour Bishop 1. Pet. 2.25 1. Pet. 5.4 §. 176. 2. After thus teaching the Way of life Christ the Exemplar and Pattern to mankind in his life and death The Way 2. Exemplar of all obedience to God's commands and of all suffering for righteousness sake which God hath here required And in his Resurrection and Ascension of the reward which God hath for hereafter promised §. 177. 3. God's former Covenant of Works being found unprofitable unto us 3. Mediatour upon the breach thereof now liable to God's wrath and eternal death Jesus Christ the Mediator of a new Covenant and Testament founded in remission of sins reconciling sinners to God Sealing this Covenant with his Blood the blood of the New Testament Luk. 22.20 and ratifying this Testament with his death and after his Resurrection having put into his own hands by the Father the donation of the rewards promised to those that keep the conditions of this Covenant §. 178. 4. God's justice not pardoning Sin gratis Christ the Sacrifice 4. Sacrifice the lamb of God the true sin-offering for the world expiating our guilt and our passover delivering us sprinkled with his blood Heb. 12.24 from the destroying Angel And our peace-offering by eating whereof we have Communion with God with his Son and all that is his with the Saints and all that is theirs Lastly by eating whereof being the Bread of Life our Souls and Bodies are preserved unto everlasting life as in paradise they should have been by the tree of life §. 179. 5. Man being indebted to God's justice by him unsatisfiable and in bondage to sin 5. Redeemer to the law to death and to Satan the grand Executioner of God's justice and Prince of this lower world Jesus Christ the Redeemer by paying a ransome freeing us from our debt and by making a conquest delivering us out of our slavery By whom we are freed already from the dominion of sin from the condemnation of the law from the chains of Satan from the approach of death eternal from the hurt and therefore from the fear of death temporal that being now only a passage to happiness But when the good time is come shall be by the same Redeemer yet more perfectly freed from all these than as yet we are namely from any adherence or possibility of sin from any temptation of Satan from being restrained to any law from being capable of any mortality through Jesus Christ our Lord. §. 180. 6. God making a Covenant with the first Adam made of the earth involving his seed 6. Second Adam The Life 1. Cor. 15.45 and he by his pride transgressing it so both losing the reward and bringing death both on himself and his posterity Jesus Christ the second Adam descending from heaven assuming our nature entring a Covenant involving his seed fulfilling it by walking a contrary way to the first i. e. by humility and so receiving the reward for himself and for his seed Both the holy spirit and immortality which were lost by the first Adam being now in their due time