of sin but to desist also from the first motions and lusts of sin There is this lastly a Christian would be much in the exercise of prayer for that spirit who convinceth the world of sin that what you do not know as of your selves he who is the great convincer of the world may imprint those convictions upon your souls which may make you sit down and bewail your selves in the bitternesse of your spirit And we shall at this time shut up our discourse only we would say to these who are entertaining this holy warfare against their corruptions that they would not be much discouraged though they see not sensible victory you must know that sin must be with you while you have a being we may certainly allude unto that word Dan. 7. 12. and may say that the dominion of your sins shall be taken a way though their lives shall be prolonged for a time and for a season As likewayes we would say this for your encouragment who have your corruptions stirring most within you that ordinarily Sathan when he is in the way to remove then stirreth and acteth most as it is observed that the last beating of the pulse in a dying man is most strong so the beating of corruption when it is going to be cast out may be most violent And we shall only give the reason why Christians are not much affected with this that the day is coming when once they shall prevail over their corruptions and shall tread Sathan under their feet why the feet of those who bring such glad tyding are not beautiful upon the mountains And we conceive that it doth either proceed from this that Christians are not seriously engaged in this holy warfare for that is most certain that if you were fighting day by day then the hope of victory and of a blessed issue would be as glad tyding from a far country and should be as cold water unto a thirsty soul that though your hope were deferred untill your hearts were sick yet the accomplishment of your desires should be sweet to your souls or else it doth proceed from this that Christians do not believe this truth that there is an issue and period of their fight if once you could be brought this length to seal this truth that that victory shall be once heard in heaven Speak comfortably to Ierusalem for her warfare is accomplished if we may allude unto these words or if a Christian be seriously debating with his lusts and hath also the faith of this truth in some measure then it doth proceed lastly from this want of the distinct perswasions of our interest and want of the assurance of our peace with him for as long as a Christian is under debate concerning his eternal rest he cannot be much affected with joy under the declaration of these means that there is a period of their fight and that they who have been made partakers of the first resurrection over them the second death shall have no power O! what a blessed day suppose ye shall that be when your feet shall stand within the gate of the new Jerusalem when you shall receive these two precious badges and eternal trophies of your victory a crown put upon your head of infinit more value than all material crowns and a palm put in your hand We conceive it is impossible to determine what joy will accrue to a Christian upon the reflect thoughts of this that he hath trode Sathan under his feet and hath bruised the head of him who hath so oft bruised his heel And as for those who are strangers as the most part of us are unto this spiritual warfare be convinced of this that within threescore and fewer years God shall enter into an eternal warfare with you where there shall be no cessation of armes neither shall there be any interruption It is better to fight with your lusts than to fight with a living and eternal God when he shall declare himself to be your opposite and enemy Man once was made perfect but he did find out many inventions and amongst all those inventions he found that accursed one how there might be a separation betwixt him and the living God and except He whose name is Prudence and hath found out the knowledge of many witty inventions had found out that precious invention of reconciling sinners unto God we should have been Magor Missabib terrors to our selves O! that you might be perswaded once to contend with your lusts that ye may endure the heat of the day and the cold of the night in wrestling against sin know this that sin goeth not out but by fasting and prayer it is so straitly united unto us it is easier for a camel to passe thorow the eye of a needle than for many of us to mortifie our corruptions We shall shut up all that we would say in this one word be perswaded of this that the day is approaching and near at hand when our blessed Lord Iesus shall come with ten thousands of his Saints what if this were the day O unmortified sinners that ye should behold that white Throne Fixed in the clouds and ye should have a summons given into your hands without continuation of dayes to appear before his Tribunal What could ye answer when ye are reproved Would not silence and confession be your best desence Certainly there is an eternal curse to be pronunced against those who do not exercise themselves unto this precious act of Godlinesse of crucifying the flesh with the lusts and affections thereof There is a law of death over your head and there is a law of sin which is within your hearts and ye shall be eternally subjects unto these two Laws except the Law of the spirit of life do make you free SERMON V. Gal. 5. 24. And they that are Christs have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts THe walk of a Christian who hath Christ in him the hope of glory is most sublime and it being from spiritual principles for spiritual ends is also according to a spiritual rule The walk of a Christian is from faith and love in Iesus Christ as that predominant principle nay more from the spirit of Christ living in the soul of a Christian by faith and dwelling in it by love which is that primum mobile and first wheel of all its motions as likewise it is for a spiritual end it being for the glory of God and to subordinate unto this their own salvation and advantage they are not like Ephraim empty vines bringing forth fruit unto themselves but it is their design to make Christ all and themselves nothing though it be natural unto a man to deifie himself and to make himself the first Alpha of his actings and the last Omega of all his performances as likewise it is according to a spiritual rule it being conformed unto that precious word of life which is perfect in it self and leadeth man unto perfection But this
estate of life he knew not what it was to murmur And it were certainly much our advantage to be provoked to jealousie when we reflect upon the practice of this holy man I conceive that if all that are here would examine themselves by how many degrees their Mortification to the world doth come short of this they might sit down and conclude with themselves that they are yet to begin to mortifie yea there are many here to whom we may say that they are so far from being clothed with a holy indifferency in having the things of the world that they are clothed with that woful and indispensible necessity in pursuing after these things this is the language of the most part Give give men hurrying themselves in multitudes of hopes and of fears and of expectations and likewayes an infinit number of desires And what is the end and result of all these things but vanity and vexation of spirit Now that you may be helped to attain this concerning-duty to be mortified to the world we shall propose these things unto you The first is this be much taken up in a holy contemplation and spiritual beholding of these unsearchable excellencies that are in God If once the foul of the creature were elevated to behold him there should not be much difficulty to be mortified to the world were we once admitted to draw by a lap of the vail and behold that uncreated glory and unexpressible Majesty that is treasured up in him Mortification should be no great difficulty unto us this is clearly held forth here for Paul doth tell by whom he had this grace of Mortification it was by beholding that pleasant plant of renown Jesus Christ. This is clear likewayes 1 Ioh. 5. 5 Who is he that overcometh the world but he that believeth that Iesus Christ is the Son of God Did we once believe that fundamental Article of faith that he who was crucified upon the tree was the real Son of God we should most easily win to this concerning duty of Mortification We may reduce all the causes of our little growth in this blessed work to that woful ignorance of God wherewith the most part of us are clothed were there a door opened to us in heaven and were we in the spirit to behold him who sits upon the Throne whose countenance is like a Sardine stone and about whose Throne there is that rainbow could we penetrat thorow these vails wherewith both he and we are covered we being cloathed with the vail of our ignorance and likewayes with the vail of our impurity and he being cloathed with these two most glorious vails the vail of his unsearchableness and the vail of that wonderful and unexpressible Majesty that is in him the one confounding the judgement and the other confounding the affections so that affection and judgment in a manner is put to a none-exercise and both of these do sweetly resolve in that blessed one act of admiration We need not speak much to the commendation of those unto you who were never acqainted with him that so ye might be perswaded to forsake your old lovers We shall only say this silence and admiration they speak least and yet speak most there is more divine Oratory in holy silence and more excellent expressions in blessed admiration than all our inventions could reach what can man speak of him who is that unsearchable and incomprehensible Majesty This may appear a paradox to you that silence should speak and admiration commend but it is no paradox when the object of our commendation is by infinit degrees exalted above our blessing and our practice O! men of the world will you once be perswaded to make that blessed divorce betwixt you and your idols that there may be an everlasting conjunction betwixt God and you O! if ye had so much divine understanding as to judge of things according to their real worth He alone should be exalted in that day Come and see and behold what iâ—finit sweetnesse is treasured up in him those springs wherewith ye delight your selves shall ere long dry up but he is that high and infinit spring which alwayes floweth out and yet is not impaired The second thing whereby we may attain to this blessâ—d duty of Mortification to the world is this by reflecting how passing transient those things are wherewith the sons of men use to solace themselves Paul doth presse Mortification to the world from this consideration 1 Cor. 7. 31. The fashion of this world passeth away the word is most emphatick this Schema and representation of the world or this stage play of the world it passeth away therefore let those that rejoyce he as though they rejoyced not and be careful for nothing this is clear 1 Joh. 2. 17. and 1 Pet. 4. 7. did we solidly believe how changable those enjoyments of the world were would we hurry our selves so much in our pursuits after them Those who are listed up in their enjoyments this day may be thrust down low the next day Ioh who was a man enriched in many things yet a few dayes yea we may say a few hours made a sad and strange exchange We may affirm that with great assurance of truth Surely man at his best estate is altogether vanity that word that is there at his best estate may be rendered thus man although he stand Etiamsi constitutus in your most fixed and settled condition in the world his is the Emblem and Motto of your state vanity most subject to change and why should you weary your selves in the fire for that which is very vanity The third thing by which ye may attain this duty of Mortification is to be much taken up in the consideration of the brevity of your life I suppose that if we were walking more in the house of mourning and were believing that truth that it is appointed for man once to die and that shortly we must be brought home unto that unchangeable estate of life O! how would this allay us in our pursuits I think this were a little water which we might mix with our wine when there is greatest confidence of Creature contentments left the foam of this wine should distemper our head we may mix it with this water the brevity of our life It is a sweet subject for meditation when we are most high to be much in the consideration of this that within a few dayes we shall be most low What is your life but a vapour which doth quickly evanish and doth but appear for a little Suppose the whole Creation should stay with you during all your time yet how short should your enjoyment be what is mans life but a hand-breadth these four finger-breadths which is one of the least of all geometricall measures there is morning forenoon afternoon and night all which do amount to a day there is infancy youth manhood and old age and those do quickly evanish and passe away How many are hurried into
the threed of your affliction spun out unto a long length then study discontentment But would you know what is the most spiritual and compendious way to have the rod taken off and to have God no more to turn about the face of his Throne then study contentment In a manner the crosse hath gotten and obtained that end and errand why it was sent when you do attain to contentment and humility under it We may say of the sin of discontent that it is a most irrational and reasonless sin for you cannot by your discontent extricate your self out of your calamities all the advantage that you have by it is this to make your bonds stronger upon your spirits and to have your fetters and chains lying more heavily upon you There is this advantage likewayes that a Christian hath by the exercise of contentment under every rod that he meeteth with it is that divine quality of the soul by which a Christian doth attain to most mortification unto the pleasures and vanities of a world O! how sweetly will a contented Christian under the losse of things here below speak to the dispraise of these fancied images It is a poor sight to behold a living substance tyed unto shaddows by these two iron chains of love and delight Ought we not to study so much holy ambition and spiritual generosity as to undervalue all things that are below God as being below us In a manner as Ionadab spoke to Amnon 2 Sam. 13 4. Why art thou being a kings son lean from day to day We may likewayes bespeak the heirs of the promise and those that are begotten by a lively hope who being the children of him who is the King of kings do you wax lean for the losse or want of those things that are here below Have you not a kingdom And why then should you repine at the losse of these things which are but passing and transient vanities That which is the great idol of the world silver and gold what is it but more refined dust It is white and yellow clay And we conceive that much of the excellency of it doth consist in the estimation of men that they have so valued it but one that hath the assurance of eternal life and that God is their's may walk thorow the wildernesse with joy We confesse it is an evil amongst the heirs of promise that they love to go to heaven thorow a most easie and pleasant way they love to walk to that palace of everlasting rest thorow a valley of roses but we must not meet with two heavens it is abundance if we have that one eternal and everlasting heaven And as for the cause of discontent under our crosse or any calamity that we meet with we conceive pride and want of mortification are those two catholick and general grounds of all our discontent and impatiency We shall shut up our discourse upon this divine quality of contentment desiring that men that have abundance of the world may study contentment though this may seem a paradox unto many why those that have enough should yet be desired to pursue after contentment We conceive there are none more discontent then those that have the greatest occasion of contentment their desires are so much wedded unto things here below that that voice is never heard among them It is enough and I am satisfied I conceive that may fully confute that vain opinion that Christians and others do intertain that if they had such a competency of the world they would be discontent no more but would silently make on in their way and that which is the ground of their discontent is as they alledge the want of a competency of subsistency I shall only say to you that which is recorded of Alexander who after he had purchased the possession of the world he was so far from attaining to contentment that as it is recorded of him he sat down and wept because there was not another world to purchase And believe me this is most undeniable that if you cannot attain to contentment under your present lot it is impossible for you to attain to contentment when your lot is better It is only the delusion of Sathan under which the evil of your discontent is vailed But as for those that have abundance of these worldly goods we shall presse this exhortation upon them which is Prov. 23. 4. Labour not to be rich which is a thing that ye will not easily close with though certainly riches as he there most divinely speaketh are a thing that is not Now this is most clear that there is a necessity of pressing these who have abundance of the world to be content where Paul doth subjoyn in the following words I know saith he how to abound People might have imagined that is no great lesson but believe me it is a great if not greater then the other which is that by which we would presse contentment to those that are poor in each lot and estate that they fall in here below know this that the day is coming when ye shall acknowledge infinit wisdom in guiding you to heaven by that way O give Christ a negative vote in the dispensation of your lots and be content to be regulated by him who is that wonderful counsellor who though he lead you by a way that ye know not yet take Christs advice upon implicite faith for he knoweth not what it is to disappoint any of their expectation Study contentment for that is heaven brought down to earth for what is the happinesse and blessednesse of those that are above It is confined in this one word Contentment they have now all anxiety and all loathing and all desires save one taken away from them O I what a life must it be to drink of the rivers of pleasures Did you ever know or read of such a river the waters whereof were pure delight and pleasure when we shall sit down and be overjoyed with these consolations that shall flow from his face when we shall draw forth that endlesse line and period of eternity in having joy and light flowing in admiration and praise flowing out believe me the gleanings of a Christian are better then the vintage of a reprobate Little that a righteous man hath is better then the riches of many wicked for it is a messenger of hope of that more enduring substance which Christ shall give And since it is the exercise of those that are above let it be the exercise of those that are below that there may be a sweet conformity and harmony betwixt the practice of that higher house and the practice of this lower house that we may have our souls united unto him who is perfumed with all the powders of the merchant and whose garments do smell of myrrhe and aloes Believe this time shortly is to have a period and eternity is to come Let a Christian comfort himself in this eternity is at hand when they shall hear that voice and truth sealed by the oath of an Angel time shall be no more Let that precious day come and let all other dayes passe away FINIS