of this rotten cottage of ours meate and drinke take a great deale of our time And the labour of a mans particular vocation all these must needs take up a great deale more of a mans time for the world then a man doth immediatly for the service of God and without blame well suppose that Thoughts and cares But now examine in the next place the proportion of thy paines especiall with the concurrence of thy affections and thy heart which hath the most full gale of thy paines and which art more eager upon I say if thou dost neither give God the principall of thy time nor bestow the greatest part of thy time upon him yet dost thou give him the principall of thy heart and affections that though thou art necessitated to converse more about the world then for God why yet if thou dost it more eagerly and with a greater eagernesse of affections towards God and thy heart doth infinitely more prize and love and esteeme of God and goeth with more alacrity and cheerefulnesse and more heate and delectation of spirit when thou art about God and about heavenly things than it doth about worldly things this may be some thing indeed but if there goeth together with the flower of thy time the eagernesse of thy heart and affections towards earthly things that thy heart is corrupted with them and thy judgement and thy estimations drawne after them and thou art builded more on them and pleased more with them and in a word all thy affections runne more to them than to heavenly things I cannot see then how there can be any colour of excuse Now therefore examine thy selfe in this and doe thou deale truely with thy selfe and by that wee may discerne a greater streame running for the world than for God and so a great disorder in the affections And lastly it is an evident character Neglect of that there is an inordinate love going a whoring after the world and of placing our felicity in them more than we should doe and more than we doe in God when wee can facilitate and further our prosecution of these worldly things with a neglect of our duty to God Duty to God when I can neglect my duty to my God when I can neglect my duty to my owne soule To our owne soule when I thus runne after the world that I care not if I doe trample upon God in the way and trample upon Christ in the way upon my owne soule upon heaven and all in the way so that I can make so much the more speede towards these worldly things This is an evident signe that my heart is addicted to them and that my heart is over-growne with a desire of them Marke this and if thou findest I say that thou canst dispense with thy duty towards God or any service of his for the prosecution of thy worldly estate if thou findest that thou canst dispense with thy duty towards thy neighbour because thou wilt not diminish thy estate or that thou canst dispense with thy duty towards thy owne soule neglect the spirituall edification of it because it doth take thee from the prosecuting of the world This is an evident signe that thy heart runnes out wonderfully inordinatly after them Exhortation 3. Vse In the last place let me adde briefely the summe of the Exhortation which if time had not prevented I would have propounded more particularly The exhortation shall be to presse this duty upon us that wee knowing our felicitie doth not consist in these worldly things would regulate and square our selves by this rule I will briefely touch these two things I will briefly touch 1. The duties that may be inferred upon the consideration of this Point 2. The motives that may be used for the inforcing of those duties upon us to set us upon the performance of them 1. Duty Now there be divers duties that might be inferred very naturally upon the consideration of this truth and are worthy to be learned As 1. Abate for the world Abate for the world If this be so that our happinesse doth not consist in these worldly things Let us learne then to abate our selves something in our eagernes towards the world that we would not be so eager for it Tanquam hac sit nostri medicina doloris follow not the world as though that would cure our maladie and heale our misery and bring a happinesse to our soules and therefore they that have such erronious thoughts and finde themselves convinced let them shew it by abating of their eagernesse towards these worldly things 1. Abate our actions Action the eagernesse of them learne hence not to be so busie not so early and so late and so thoughtfull and so carefully for and about these worldly things not to be so anxious in our spirits for them I say learne hence to abate our actions not to incumber our selves too much with worldly things doe but as our duty and conscience require so farre as we are bound by the rule of dutie to provide for our selves and family do it in duty and inconscience to God but doe not over-doe it doe not too much trouble not your selves about too many things as Martha did Affections 2. Abate at least if not our actions if wee cannot forbeare any one of our actions but our charge and calling require it yet I say abate in our affections coole our affections towards these things that though I doe use them for necessities sake yet my heart longs to be freed from this necessitie O when shall my minde be perfectly freed from these things and O when shall that happy time be that God will free me from the burden of these worldly things that I may not soile my soule still with these worldly things that I may not converse in this present world alway but that I may live continually in the injoyment of that blessed presence of God and behold his face continually and exercise my selfe in nothing but serving and praising of him and having nothing else to doe Abate at least your affections doe not so much esteeme these worldly things and this world though you cannot leave it yet despise all these worldly things and contemne them and trample them and have them under our feete as God hath given them to us so esteeme them but as in the Psalme 8. Hee hath put all things under our feete In respect of worldly things it is true of the godly man in this sense it is true I say in regard of Christians they have them all under their feete but worldly men have them as a crowne on their head and they esteeme it so but indeede it is a burden that presseth them downe that they cannot arise in any noble thoughts and therefore to prevent this abate your affections towards these worldly things 3. Learne to abate your estimation Exhortation or else these cannot doe it For so long as
yet more often bestow yet more time in meditating upon our wayes Reinforcing and reinforcing our selves upon new resolutions humbling our selves for what wee have failed and even as a horse will do after every stumbling make so much more speed so after al our stumblings and failings let us recover and inforce our selves so much the more To omit all extraordinary cases and extraordinary persons and extraordinary times and motions of Gods spirit and all other extraordinary occasions wee must take this course of serious examination and strong resolution Speedy execution 3 And then there remains nothing but speedy execution to let upon this which is the third thing in the generality and which I will expresse a little more particularly And there bee but two things that I will mention as most considerably helpfull to set a man upon and strengthen him in a way of obedience In speciall First of all Repaire and increase in Knowledge the repairing and increasing of those former things in the poynt as namely your knowledge labour for a new improvement every day increase your knowledge Let the word of God dwell plenteously among you strive more to know what the good and acceptable will of God is build your selves up more in your knowledge and this is one step toward our obedience Increase your faith and beliefe Faith cleaving and assenting to the word of God beliefe that is a good helpe It is unbeliefe that is a great rubbe hindring us from setting upon the wayes of obedience for because wee doe not beleeve therefore we doe not doe But the more firmely we beleeve the more strongly wee shall runne the wayes of Gods Commandements Againe increase your holy affections of feare and love Increase a holy feare of God Feare often set his Majesty before your eyes often thinke upon the holinesse the excellencie and the purity of his nature thinke on his Majesty in all respects think upon his All seeing eye and upon his All-knowing knowledge that he takes an account of all a mans wayes and all his actions and this will worke a holy feare of his Majesty and that holy feare will put it upon holy obedience Increase also your love and sweet affections towards God labour to see Love not only excellencie to astonish but beauty in God to move us to love and sweetnes to inflame our love labour to see all the goodnesse and sweetnesse that is in him and this will wonderfully raise our thoughts to love him and that love infinitely set us on in a way of obedience to him This I say will be a great helpe for the truth is nothing in this kind commeth off hansomly from us if it comes not from love it is against the hair if it come not from a principle of love whereas on the otherside as the saying was Marti arma non sunt onera The commandements of God will not be burthensome to us if we love God so that now the increasing and the renewing of every one of these former things wil be a meanes to set us upon obedience for every one of them servs proportionably for the watering of the very root of obedience to make it thrive and prosper though I doe not now for it is not necessary if I would make a young tree grow that I have planted that I should goe to the top or boughes of the tree and cast water there it is but frivolous for it sufficeth to cast the water at the root for it is the root that nourisheth all the branches and all the sap it is first at the roote and so conveighed to the boughes and branches So it is in this case I doe not speake of watering the top of obedience to make it flourish outwardly but water the root with this knowledge and these affections which are the root of all the actions of obedience and then there will naturally issue forth the fruit of obedience For if these be kept well and strong if these be renewed and furthered the other will be a naturall issue out of it 2. But yet to speake a little more particularly Exercise these The maine thing that will helpe us in obedience is the very act and exercise of obedience Every act is strengthned and every habit is strengthned by the exercise of many acts of that habit and it groweth to be strengthned by frequent use obedience is a thing that cannot bee otherwise strengthned but only by meere practice So that this is the Maine viz. the setting upon the worke not only meditating and pondering upon it and thinking what I ought to doe to obey God but when I doe know what his will is I must set upon the doing of it I must not dispute about the thing but fall upon the doing of the thing which I know I ought to doe And now in this there be two things Some things must bee taken heed of that will hinder us in the practise of obedience Take heed And some things that we must take care of that will exceedingly further us in a course of obedience I will but touch upon some few things in either Reasoning Take heed of such carnall things Of Carnal as will choak us in the very thoughts when we are to goe about a course of obedience I say will choake the very thoughts as 1. Carnall Reason It is a wonderful thing to see and yet no wonder when we consider our naturall condition how many things will boyle as it were out of the heart how many foolish excuses and how many vain pretences to keepe a man off from duty when a man hath some thoughts to goe about it as when a man hath some thoughts to goe and heare the Word of God then ariseth such an hindring thought as thus I can sit at home and reade the while and save my labour of going I know what the Minister wil say viz. that it is but faith and obedience we must labour for And so many other things there may be and indeed so many as that they will take us off from the thing we should and indeed otherwise would doe It is strange to thinke of the infinit reaching and racking a mans wit to make excuses some thought of other is in the way either it is not now time or some thing else there is alway some disputes that reason wil suggest by which wee contradict our intents and choake our purposes of doing this or that duty Take heed therefore of canall reason it is a dangerous thing to word it with God but when a man once seeth his way before him then it is hast to fall upon it let there bee no cunctating no delaying in the work for some foolish respect Remember this there is nothing in the world but may be spoken against if a man would give way to every reasoning Is there any truth in the world but may be reasoned against is there any truth so cleare but
with Object 1 Knowledge in 1 Generall 2 Speciall of 1 God in his 1 Excellent Nature shining in his 1 Attributes 2 Workes 2 Revealed Will. Covenant which he 1 Commands in the 1 Law Obedience 1 Holinesse 2 Righteousnesse 2 Gospell 1 Faith 2 Repentance 2 Commends by 1 Menaces 2 Promises 2 Divine things 2 Faith Assent 1 To Gods truth 2 On Gods Word 2 Manner Sound for 1 Matter Extension Sufficient of Necessaries 1 Respectively 2 Absolutely 2 Manner 1 Substantiall Penetrative 2 Effectuall Operative 2 Soveraigne feare and love 1 Act. 1 Feare 2 Love 2 Manner 1 Sonne-like 2 Soveraigne 3 Sincere Obedience repentance 1 Act. 1 Repentance 1 Morall Legall 2 Evangelicall 2 Obedience 2 Manner sincere 1 Characters 1 Rise 2 Rule 3 Race 2 Cognizances 1 Vniversality Currant Adequate to the 1 Act eschewing all evill doing all good 2 Rule Decalogue first second Table 3 State in generall Particular Calling 2 Perpetuity constant 2 Generall All these 1 Are required both 1 Absolutely 2 Comparatively 1 Knowledge and Faith 2 Feare and Love 3 Repentance and Obedience 2 Must be regulated by the light and line of the true Religion 1 None but that can teach these 2 These are all that that teacheth 2 These are the way to all happinesse 1 What way 1 Sufficient 1 Effectually 2 Onely 2 Necessary 2 To what happinesse 1 True 1 Inchoate 2 Consummate 2 All. 2 Probation 1 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 1 Scripture 1 Knowledge Faith Joh. 17.3 2 Feare Love Prov. ◠7 Rom. 8. 3 Repentance Obedience Psal 15. 1 Distinctly 2 Conjunctly 1 Knowledge and faith Ioh. 13.17 2 Knowledge and feare Prov. 9.10 3 Feare and obedience Deut. 3.29 4 Knowledge love obedience 1 Chron. 28.9 2 Conscience 2 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 1 Happinesse in Gods Favour 2 Gods favour by these 2 Application 1 Confutation 2 Conviction 3 Examination 4 Reprehension 5 Exhortation 1 Particular Get 1 Knowledge 1 What for the 1 Object divine 2 Act. 1 Apprehension 2 Assent 3 Degree 1 Extensively 2 Intensively 3 Proportionally 2 How 1 Preparatives 1 Humility 2 Ingenuity 1 Freedome from 1 Partiality 2 Prejudice 2 Full 1 Estimation 2 Affection 2 Perfectives 1 Conscience 2 Diligence to allow time 1 Imploy parts 2 Improve meanes 1 Publike 2 Private 3 Prudence 3 Wherefore Consider the 1 Thing which is a 1 Speciall ornament 2 Initiall Lineament 3 Perpetuall Regiment 4 Effectuall Instrument 2 Times of 1 Gospell 2 Reforamation 2 Get feare love 1 What for the 1 Object placed on God 2 Act tempered together 3 Degree Soveraigne 2 How in 1 Generall by taking 1 Heed to chase away other 1 Feare 2 Love 2 Care to chafe in these 2 Particular by 1 Constant Application 2 Vigilant Caution 3 Frequent Excitation 4 Pregnant Meditation of 1 Vanity of world 2 Excellency of God 3 Nobility of Man 1 Immortall soule 2 Mortall body 3 Wherefore these 1 Best fruit of knowledge 2 Next root of obedience 3 Only grace of either without which neither 1 Knowledge saving 2 Obedience pleasing 3 Get repentance obedience 1 What for the 1 Act in all parts 1 Thought 2 Word 3 Deed. 2 Manner sincere 1 Intrinsecally in the true 1 Rise from 1 Knowledge Faith 2 Feare Love 2 Rule 3 Race 2 Extrinsecally 1 Vniversall in 1 2 Negative Affirmative 3 Thought Word Deed. 2 Perpetuall 2 How in 1 Particular by 1 Increasing forme 2 Excercising these 1 Knowledge 2 Faith 3 Feare 4 Love 2 Generall 1 Serious consideration whereto take 1 Heed of 1 Carnall 1 Reasonings 2 Feare 3 Sloth 2 Worldly distractions 2 Hint of 1 Outward occasions 2 Inward motions 2 Strong resolution 3 Speedy execution 3 Wherefore these are the 1 Scope of Both. 2 Seale of Truth 3 Scale of all our 1 Owne consolation 2 Neighbours edification 3 Gods glorification 2 Generall Seeke 1 All these 1 How in the due 1 Order 2 Temper 3 Manner 2 Wherefore 1 Each of them in conjunction 1 Beautifies 2 Fortifies 3 Beatifies 2 Neither of them in separation can 1 Subsist in sincerity 2 Support in anxiety 3 Suffice in felicity 2 True Religion 1 Magnifie 2 Certifie 3 Satisfie 3 Happinesse in these 1 What happinesse which is 1 Desirable attaineable 2 Miserable in world 3 Incomparable in God 4 Indubitable in this way 2 Why. 1 Necessity of thing 2 Mortality of man 3 Mutability of times 4 Excellency of gaine 5 Oppurtunity of grace THE RIGHTEOVS MANS PLEA TO TRVE HAPPINESSE SER. 1. Preached in Ten Sermons PSAL. 4.6 There be many that say who will shew us any good Lord life thou up the light of thy countenance upon us WEe have treated formely of the use and benefit of a forme of sound and wholsome words The last time I gave you that forme which I did in a prudentiall way The summe of which consisted of 52. Heads or Particulars partly belonging to the Porch and Frontispice and partly to the Pile and Edifice it selfe There were foure things that I desire to premise in the Frontispice Concerning Happinesse Concerning Religion Concerning the Church Concerning the Scriptures And they are all of generall importance in the first gate and entrance as being the first grand inquiries that will be made as it were in the entry How shall a man attaine to true happinesse That is the very first thought the very first desire of the soule and the very scope and summe of all a mans labours and endeavours and the very scope and summe of Religon And the resolution of that brings in the second That the onely happinesse is how ever men mistake I say the onely way to attaine true happinesse is by the Knowledge Feare and Service of God according to the true Religion And that as I said leads to the second Inquirie which is There be many Religions in the world How shall a man know which is the true Religion Which of all the rest is that that the soule may rest upon And the answer will be That neither the Pagan and Heathenish nor the Iewish nor the Mahumetane but in a word the Christian Religion which is professed in the Church of God that is the true Religion And that brings us to the third which is But there be many pretenders to the Church and a man knowes not which of them is the true Church The resolution will be the Protestant Church That Church that submits its selfe to be regulated by the Scriptures is the true Church and then the fourth will be concerning the Scriptures I am now to beginne and therefore have chosen this portion of Scripture for that purpose concerning the first of these foure viz. Concerning Happinesse Now I will but briefely acquaint you with one thing which I did not doe the last time and so goe on There be as I have said 52. Heads in the whole for I framed it so at the first that if it might be possible I might goe thorough it in the compasse of one yeare There be these