lest they see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and convert and be healed So Rom. 1. 21 28. Because that when they knew God they glorified him not as God neither were thankful but became vain in their imaginations and their foolish heart was darkned And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge God gave them over to a reprobate mind to do those things which are not convenient For this cause God shall send them strong delusion that they should believe a lie that they all might be damned who believed not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness Now such fore judgments as these are come upon and procured by many who turn the grace of God into wantonness professing to be most spiritual live as the almost most carnal little minding because greatly ignorant of those spiritual causes they may run into to the bringing upon themselves such spiritual judgments or sicknesses and afflictions as these And indeed how comes it to pass that such afflictions are not feared before they come to the provoking such to walk so as may prevent their coming but ignorance of the Scripture they not conversing often with them to the well informing themselves what judgments may come on their minds and what are the Causes God assigns of their coming so as to be in trembling and dread continually to the keeping themselves out of that channel where such bitter waters runs Again there are outward sicknesses and afflictions and they are such as these Deut. 28. 58 59 60. If thou wilt not observe to do all the words of this Law that are written in this Book that thou maist fear this glorious and fearful Name the Lord thy God Then the Lord will make thy plagues wonderful and the plagues of thy seed even great plagues and of long continuance sore sicknesses and of long continuance Moreover he will bring upon thee all the diseases of Egypt which thou was afraid of and they shall cleave unto thee Levit. 26. 15 16. If ye shall despise my Statutes or if your soul shall abhor my judgments that you will not do them but that you break my Covenant I also will do this to you I will even appoint over you Terror Consumption and the burning Ague that shall consume the eyes and cause sorrow of heart and ye shall sow your seed in vain for your Enemies shall eat it But I shall speak fully to the Causes of Affliction in the Twenty second Sign and therefore proceed no further here but come to the second Calamity that Scripture Ignorance brings Secondly That your uneven walking with God may bring upon your selves death before its time This Particular is proved thus Long life promised to the obedient Exod. 20. 12. Honour thy Father and thy Mother that thy dayes may be long in the Land which the Lord thy God giveth thee Also Deut. 32. 46 47. Set your hearts to all the words which I testifie among you this day command them your Children for it is not in vain because that through this thing mark that ye shall prolong your dayes in the Land whither ye go over into Jordan to possess it This is also proved by the contrary which comes upon the disobedient Deut. 11. 16 17. Take heed to your selves that your heart be not deceived and ye turn aside and serve other Gods and then the Lords wrath be kindled against you and ye perish quickly from off the good Land which the Lord giveth you Eccles 8. 13. But it shall not be well with the wicked neither shall he prolong his dayes which are as a shadow because he feareth not before God So Chap. 7. 17. Be not over much wicked neither be thou foolish why shouldst thou die before thy time Thirdly By means of Scripture Ignorance you cannot know to ask in faith the things you want for soul or body that is you will not know where to be absolute or positive in your asking and whereto be submissive and conditional in your asking Now the Scripture gives directions as to the putting up Petitions to God and men may easily err by not observing them Gen. 32. 26. And he said to wit the Angel Let me go for the day breaeth and he answered to wit Jacob I will not Let thee go except thou bless me So Exod. 32. 12. Wherefore should the Egyptians say for mischief did he bring them out to slay them in the Mountains and to consume them from the face of the earth Turn from thy fierce wrath and repent of this evil against thy people So Acts 12. 5. Peter therefore was kept in prison but prayer was made without ceasing unto God for him By these Scriptures we may observe that to be conditional or indifferent in our asking when God may be dishonoured by denying is not good therefore in this case may a man coming in Gods way be bold to ask pardon of his sins peace to his conscience power over his corruptions without condition in such case Gracious and humble resolutions to have no denial greatly liketh God and suits with his will Isa 62. 6 7. I have set Watchmen upon thy walls O Jerusalem which shall never hold their peace day nor night you that make mention of the Lord keep not silence till he establish and make Jerusalem a praise in the earth But observe in all cases Petitions putting up must not thus be framed Acts 21. 14. And when he would not be perswaded we ceased saying the will of the Lord be done So Rom. 1. 9 10 For God is my witness whom I serve with my spirit in the Gospel of his Son that without ceasing I make mention alwayes of you in my prayers making request if by any means I might now at length have a prosperous journey by the will of God mark that to come to you So Jam. 4 15. For that ye ought to say if the Lord will we shall live and do this or that I shall leave this to consideration and proceed to the fourth Calamity Fourthly Negligence to Reading and Meditation will make you ignorant wherein you may prevent the presence and comforts of Gods holy Spirit that is that God may either take away his spirit from striving with you or you away from his spirit My spirit shall not alwayes strive Gen. 6. 3. 1 Sam. 16. 14. But the spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him Psal 51. 7. Take not thy holy spirit from me Neh. 9. 30. Yet many years didst thou for bear them and testifiedst against them by thy spirit in thy Prophets yet would they not give ear Therefore gavest thou them into the hands of the people of the Land But they rebelled and vexed his holy spirit therefore was he turned to be their enemy and fought against them By these Scriptures we may see that the holy Spirits company may be put away from us through ungracious
upon him by pouring out their wants before him Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil Mat. 6. What hath been said may teach two things First the lamentable condition of such as neither can nor will pray that are as unaccustomed to it as the Heifer to the yoak living absolute Athiests in the World saying in their heart if not in their actions too there is no God Pour out thy wrath upon the heathen and families that call not upon thy name Secondly This teacheth to strengthen the hearts and hands of such as fear God to this service of prayer it being part of their defence or Armor Ephes 6. Praying alwayes with all prayer and suppliaction in the spirit watching thereunto with all perseverance c. When thou saidest seek my face my heart said thy face Lord will I seek thou wilt hide me in thy Pavillion Psal 27. 4 5 6 7 8 9. Read and consider so pass to the next Sign CHAP. XXII Containing in it an Assertion of the Causes of Affliction and that without great provocation God is not wont to afflict his people and though provoked very unwilling to extremity With four Objections that seem to complain against this Doctrine Answered SIGN XXII VVHen you are mighty careless to Inquire after the spiritual cause of Affliction and mighty careful to Inquire after the natural cure The more or less spiritual any man is may be easily discovered under this Tryal Affliction being of that piercing kind that other tryals are not because of the great influence it hath upon the sensitive part of man where ever it comes while sense remains it makes the person restless either to find out cause or cure or both We may therefore first inquire after the word Affliction what that meaneth to afflict is to lay some burthen upon a person that is not ordinary Gen. 15. 13. There they shall afflict you four hundred years this is opened in Exod. 1. Israel is made to serve with rigor Lam. 1. 4. 5. The wayes of Zion do mourn because none come to the solemn feasts all her gates are desolate her Priests sigh her virgins are afflicted and she is in bitterness I have seen I have seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt by reason of his task-master Acts 3. 34. By these Texts it appears that affliction meaneth any grief or trouble that cometh upon soul or body name or estate for the punishment of sin or the tryal of faith so that sickness and diseases as feavor and ague consumption inflamation the like are all comprised under this word affliction it will therefore be necessary to open the word Spiritual cause it being in the Sign oposed to natural cure by spiritual cause is to be understood some provoking God in the subject afflicted to the procuring this affliction nothing some cause or other why the Spirit suffers it to come upon us Now every body will be ready to grant that these things before promised may be truly called affliction but not grant that there can be such a spiritual cause in themselves and so make the Sign of no force Now to clear up this doubt let us make this inquiry whether any affliction or death it self come upon any man but for some cause or other from the man active or imputive that is he either so acted in his particular person or some body else in his general relation and on him it is righteously come For the resolution of this question let us inquire what causes in Scripture the righteous God assigns afflictions or death unto Gen. 3. 9 10 11 12 13. Who told thee thou wert naked hast thou eaten of the Tree I commanded thee not to eat the things in this Chapter considerable are these vers 14. the Serpent must go upon his belly eat dust and be curst above every beast of the field vers 16. to the woman he saith I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children and to Adam he saith Cursed is the Ground for thy sake Thornes and Thisles it shall bring forth to thee dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return you see in these verses misery both upon the woman and the man is brought the reason by God assigned vers 17. Because thou hast done this in hearkning to thy wife cursed is the ground for thy sake so also Josh 7. 7. Israel Gods prevailing people that by day had a pillar of a cloude and by night a pillar of fire ministring unto them now cannot stand before their enemies Joshua that at another time commands the Sun and Moon and they obey him now by prayer cannot prevail for Israel Gods people against the cursed Nation But what is the matter vers 11 12. Israel hath sinned and cannot stand neither will I be with them any more except they put the accursed thing from among them Lam. 3. 1 13. I am the man that have seen affliction vers 39. Wherefore doth a living man complain a man for the punishment of his sin 1 Cor. 11. 3. For this Cause many are sick and weak and many sleep 1 Thes 2. 11. For this Cause God shall send them strong delusion that they all might be damned that believed not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness and let all the House of Israel know that without a Cause I have not done all that I have done saith the Lord Ezek. 14. 23. Much more might be said as to afflictions that attend both the body and mind together with the Causes and this left to consideration whether if Hell condemnation the highest of affliction be the fruit or reward of sin and unbelief much rather sickness and diseases with death it self which are the least afflictions must come from Creature Causes now if any man can assign any other Cause than God doth here assign let him do it if not by all this comparing of it with the eighth Sign of dying to Christ in which I have been more large upon affliction inward and outward with their Causes I shall therefore proceed to some Objections that seem to complain against this Doctrine Object 1. The first Objection is grounded upon 2 Sam. 12. 14. The Child that is born to thee shall surely die David is threatned with death in the child that hath not offended contrary to this Doctrine Answ This act of God to take away Davids Child if considered will be found mercy mixt with justice David by the Law was to die for the matter of Vriah now God in respect he bare to David for what good he had done and further were like to do being a man so after Gods own heart goes out of the ordinary way spares the person of David and imputes it upon the relation of David viz. his Child so in Davids seed he punished Davids person this is Gods usual way in Scripture and sets his Majesty out to be full of mercy in the middest of Justice
therefore to have put my money to the exchangers and then at my coming I should have received mine own with advantage Mat. 25. 27. A Second Cause may be luke-warmness in Religion that is so indifferent that they care not whether they go forward or backward I know thy works that thou art neither cold nor hot I would thou wert cold or hot so then because thou art luke-warm I will spew thee out of my mouth Revel 3. 15 16. Thirdly a third Cause of this decay is unaptness to personal duties every professor in order to his growing hath personal duties constantly to carry about with him aptness wherein fits him for publick imployment but the contrary makes him unhandy or unskilful in the word of righteousness as children by vertuous education or the unexpert souldier by frequent discipline are both made ready for man-liker actions even so aptness in personal duties as family and closet prayer family and closet reading a careful exercise and execution of those choyce and nearly concerned duties with these mentioned of frequent fastings watchings humblings patience meekness temperance zeal fear love giving all diligence for if these things be in you and abound they make you that you shall be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ but he that lacketh these things is blind and cannot see a far off so briefly I pass to the third Sign CHAP. III. Briefly showing the cause of wearyness to hear any Truth often SIGN III. VVHen you care not to hear one matter often though a suitable truth By Often here I would not be understood so as that those that preach should day after day when they assemble without intermission preach the very same thing word for word to their hearers for indeed this may give just occasion of burthen to the hearer therefore such preaching upone truth in respect of the season must surely be so observed as to leave room for the making known other truths as necessarily to be believed therefore let the considerate Reader in this case construe my words as he upon another case judgeth he ought to construe the holy Apostles words Often 1 Cor. 11. 26. As often as you eat this bvead Often here doth not in the least intend that not at all persons be in this service neither doth it surely intend that they do it every time they meet together but so do it as it have its season of being administred and such season as may not extinguish or leave no room for the administration of other Ordinances so that by Often I would be understood so frequent a preaching the same truth already known and believed as stands with the wisdome and judgment of persons that by God are intrusted to Preach with this alwayes premised that as they see a possibility of any truth losing its proper force in the memory and heart through want of repetition And when suitable truths upon this very score is over and over preached and meets with such Spirits as care not to hear it that are mindless careless and displeased this bespeaks such to be of the dying hand for indeed such carriages withstands Gods ordinary method which he frequently useth in Scripture to his own people in covenant with him for two great ends the one is that they may remember it the other is that they may do it Is not one great end of many institutions imposed on Israel of old and they found according to commandement in the same services yearly least they should forget what God would have them remember and when they are pleased to choose them a King it is Gods express charge when he sitteth upon the Throne of his Kingdome that he shall write him a copy of the Law and read therein all the dayes of his life that he may learn to keep all Gods word The safety of this to the same people that have already believed is plainly expressed and faultiness in them that care not to hear it plainly implyed and one of the great ends I have now noted is also a sign in 1 Cor. 15. 1 2. Moreover brethren I declare unto you the Gospel which I preached unto you which also you have received and wherein you stand by which also you are saved if you keep in memory what I preached unto you unless you have believed in vain Then he goeth on and sheweth the particulars he had preached to them Principles even so plain in the Letter of them that one would think they could not be forgotten which strongly implies that through want of preaching the same things to them again they might either loose the bare knowledge of the Principles there laid down or at least the spiritual force and nature of them how then doth this very Scripture reprove such as care not to hear a suitable truth often charging them with faultiness in forgetting that of all truth at best they know but in part and that by hearing one and the same truth again and again a man may see some excellency further than yet he ever saw experience will witness this to the considerate Psal 3. begining 2 Pet. 2. 12 13 14. Now this defect seems to arise from some wrong Judgment or apprehentions that such persons have of themselves They are notionally conceited of some large reach they have in the knowledge of those very things they care not to hear and this defect in them is occasioned through want of humble dependance upon God and sensible feeling the Spirit of that word All my springs are in thee Psal 87. last Let any that find the case thus with them be intreated to be restless in themselves not quiet or content but pray earnestly to God that he would both heal them from this foul distemper and also forgive them for this great evil of entertaining or giving way to burden at hearing again that that grace hath taught them to know already I shall end this Sign with what the wise man saith Prov. 3. 5 6. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and leane not to thy own understanding but in all thy wayes acknowledge him and he shall direct thy path or keep thy feet from runing thus astray CHAP. IV. Briefly shewing how want of Charity in hearers causeth them dislike what is preached SIGN IV. VVHen few Sermons will please you either you like not matter or manner or man When Persons come to this decay that they not only are weary to hear one matter often but few Sermons pleases them they are then ready to throw off all and it is usually known by this very character in the Sign viz. They will either find some fault with the matter or else dislike the manner or else the man and wherever this is found in person or persons without just occasion given them such certainly cannot stand long in their profession without penitent reformation Let but hearers when they come to Sermons leave charity behind them how easily may they disturb themselves
The necessity of believing this is evidenced by the sad consequence of the contrary for denying Christ Jesus to be a fleshly substance and converting him into a Spirit any Spirit or every Spirit and so in truth deny the Christ of God And then blind injudicious men may form to themselves and world what they will fancy to call their Christ This premised I shall now speak of offences what they are and what offences are not to hinder There are three sorts of Offences First Offences given and taken Secondly Offences given and not taken Thirdly Offences taken and not given First Offences given and taken are such as when Nations or Persons when not provoked by invasion to defend yet by invadeing others will offend now they that defend defending here Offences are given and taken Secondly Offences given and not taken when we bless them that curse us do good to them that do hurt to us pray for them that despightfully use us Thridly Ofâ—â—nces taken and not given are when at a seeming and no real cause persons are moved and disquieted Christ Jesus coming in the dayes of his humiliation not as he will come after the dayes of his exaltation or at his second coming proved a seeming cause was no real cause for the Jews to stumble at him his visage was marred more than any mans when they looked for him to come and presently restore Israel Now such Offences taken and not given is the intent of this sixt Sign under the terme Small so that when persons give way to their passions and are so moved at something which seems to be a just Offence to them from brethren or any other without or before they had duly weighed not suspending all kind of dislike till in the ballance they have tryed whether it be really an Offence or but seemingly so is a sign of great weakness proving that such are under some spiritual decay marked out though upon another account by Christ Jesus Mat. 13. 20 21. But he that received the seed into stony places the same is he that heareth the word and anon with joy receiveth it but when tribulation and persecution ariseth because of the word by and by be is offended Now persecution and tribulation is no real cause of Offences but rather an encouragement to hold fast the word being one common mark such are in the truth the Apostle Paul makes it an argument of this kind 1 Thes 3. 5. For this cause when I could no longer forbear I sent to know your faith least by some means the tempter have tempted you and our labour be in vain We would have no man moved by these afflictions for your selves know we are appointed thereto and instead of being offended we are commanded to glory in tribulation this may teach us to bemoan such and beg them be warn'd not to keep themselves from Christs Table because of this or that seeming or real miscarriage in others if in order to their reducement from it we have done our duty For any therefore to estrange themselves from Christs Table it being no less than a refusing the food he hath prepared because things go not just as they would have them doth greatly argue the stop to be in themseves though not by such heeded they being great wanderers abroad into the wayes of others perhaps more busying themselves than they ought and yet as great strangers at home to self-examination and due personal preparation which where ever it is is that indeed that so warrantably cals persons to come to Christ Jesus Feast of Bread and Wine purchased with his blood that negligence therein will prove no less than their great sin What is it therefore that should keep us from that service wherein by faith we are to feed as it were upon the flesh of the Son of God Whose flesh is meat indeed and whose blood is drink indeed Truly nothing but self-unworthiness or unpreparedness Surely surely the spiritual growing Christian whose hungrings and thirstings are after hourly communion with Jesus Christ can better forgo his natural food a thousand times than yeild to a stop from this performance Let us therefore examine our selves that we are meet subjects discerning the Lords Body and so let us eat that Bread and drink that Cup. Now the Causes of this decay or yeilding upon small Offences to absent from Christs Table may be these three First Too great Ignorance who are the Subjects Christ calls to this Service Secondly Too too great aptness to be easily provoked Thirdly Want of Love to Jesus Christ the Author of this Service First Too great Ignorance who are the Subjects Christ calls to this Service which consists in a misconstruing his general invitation to all penitent believing baptized Disciples who have had an orderly admittance thus far and by way of Precept are injoyned both to come to this Service and continue in it The same day were added to the Church three thousand souls and they continued stedfast in the Apostles doctrine fellowship breaking of Bread and prayer it is peculiarly unto such appointed and sanctified that they may keep in remembrance their Lord and Saviour So often as ye eat this Bread and drink this Cup ye do shew forth the Lords death till he come But I would not be mistaken here as that I mean the outward badge of these only makes right Subjects for Christs Call yet this outward must be but wo to it when it is alone The Kings daughter is to be all glorious within as well as her garment of pure gold The hungerer and thirster after his supply that sensibly sees all his springs to be in him and as the Hart panteth after the brooks of water hath his foul crying Oh when shall I come and appear before him negligence to be thus fitted causeth ignorance of Christs Call But Secondly Too too great aptness to be easily provoked Some Christians are so weak that they will be still forming discontent to themselves ill interpreting others actions and straining at every Gnat which generally comes through weakness in judgment and unaptness to be busying themselves with their high Calling the worth of Gods gracious priviledges afforded them by which means the inward man is too much raked or made raw and so apt to smart at every little touch as special care therefore must be had in Churches that none give just offence so that none upon too light account take offence for it doth but argue such Children or Babes in Christianity and greatly robs themselves of that spiritual refreshing strength that otherwise might be their present portion and fills their heart with disquieting thoughts to the hindring their spiritual appetite from taking in that rich refreshment Christ Jesus Table is furnisht with for every prepared guest But Thirdly Want of love to Jesus Christ the Author of this Service All those motives that provokes the heart to love Jesus Christ should be active now viz. The greatness of his love to purchase