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A30814 A glimpse of God, or, A treatise proving that there is a God discovering the grounds of atheism, with arguments of divers sorts against atheists : shewing also, the unity of the Godhead, and the trinity of the persons ... / by ... Mr. Thomas Byrdall ... Byrdall, Thomas, 1607 or 8-1662? 1665 (1665) Wing B6404; ESTC R14883 155,901 472

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is the thing he so much requireth the service that is onely well-pleasing crowned with perfect reward and without this kind of perfection all glorious duties are no other in God's account than the cursed works of darkness The Exhortation is to a double Duty 1. To be perfect as God is perfect We may be we must be perfect as God is perfect We cannot be equally perfect as God we must strive after a perfection of resemblance although we cannot possibly attain to a perfection of equality created nature being uncapable thereof Now here I will shew how we may be perfect as God is perfect and then shew what it is to serve God with a perfect heart Now first That we may be perfect as God is perfect 1. Let us lahour to get all grace to exist in us As God's perfection is the fulness of all excellencies required to the nature of God so is a Christians perfection an having of all grace requisite to a childe of God as perfection of parts is requisire to make a man perfect Were there a defect but of one excellency in God he were imperfect were there but one member in a body defective it were an imperfect body so the want of one grace makes an imperfect Saint therefore the Apostle Peter exhorteth to add to faith vertue and to vertue knowledge and to knowledge temperance and to temperance patience and to patience godlines and to godliness brotherlykindnes and to brotherly kindness charity 2 Pet. 2. 5 6. And St. Paul exhorteth us to be filled with the Spirit wherein there is no excess Ephes 5. 18. It is impossible for a man to be too holy too gracious Covetous men add ground to ground house to house field to field when they resolve to be rich thus Saints should add one vertue to another if they will be perfect as God is perfect 2. We must grow in these acquired graces the more we grow in them the more we come near God in perfection the more holy we grow the nearer we come to him that is perfectly holy as a growing childe comes near the stature and perfection of a man He is not in any wise perfect that grows not more perfect A dead childe grows not painted trees grow not and so will never come to perfection Thy holiness is but a dead holiness thy faith but a dead or painted faith if it grow not Gods perfections are eminent in him we must strive to be eminent as he is this was St. Paul's endeavour The perfection of Saints in this life is to be sensible of imperfections and to desi●e more perfection Take it my brethren for a sure rule that the work of grace was never begun in that heart where God doth not by dgrees perfect the work for he is perfect in all his works perfect in the work of Sanctification of his elect as in the Creation of them 3. We should extend the work of grace in us as far as possibly we can Let patience have its perfect work that ye may be perfect and entire wanting nothing Jam. 1. 4. Let patience have its perfect work in all afflictions and to all men There are two Graces wherein we should resemble God in our perfections First The one is in love to our enemies the sun of our love must shine upon them so doth God's perfect love and in so doing ye shall be like your heavenly Father Secondly In mercifulnes in the works of mercy to the distressed yea even to enemies themselves Luk. 6. 38. And in so doing ye shall be like your heavenly Father So that from those places we may see what it is to be petfect as God is perfect A merciful man whose mercy runs round the circumference is perfect as God is perfect a loving man that can pray for bless pardon even his enemies is perfect as God is perfect SECT 2. NOw I come briefly to the next branch of the Exhortation Is God perfect then serve him with a perfect heart God speaks to us as David to Solomon And now Solomon my Son serve God with a perfect heart and with a willing mind 1 Chron. 28. 6. Thus God speaks to every one of us Thou my son the son of my grace the son of my love of my mercy serve thou me with a perfect heart Now what it is to serve God with a perfect heart these three things will shew 1. To serve God with thy whole heart with all thy mind will and affections The whole soul must be taken up with God in his service lift up thy heart to God as well as thine eyes bow thy heart as well as thy knees do all thy duties with thy whole heart a divided a distracted heart is an imperfect heart 2. To set up pure aims and ends in thy heart in all services done to God A sincere heart is a perfect heart to serve God with such an heart is to serve him with a perfect heart Then do we serve God sincerely when we seek to advance God in all that we do we seek that God may be glorified and so in all acts of obedience Jehu's heart was not perfect because he did not seek God in doing the will of God A man may serve himself in doing God's will 3. To have in thy heart a full respect to all Gods commandments when it is in thy heart to do all God's Commandments with all thy heart to be wanting in no duty in no act of obedience this is to be perfect Such a man as this is a man after God's own heart Some give this reason why David is said to be a a man after God's own heart viz. because he was so zealous for God Others because he was so full of praises But this is the Holy Ghosts reason Acts 13. 22. David is called a man God's after own heart because he fulfilled all Gods will to do all which God commandeth We say the eye is perfectly drawn in a picture when it equally looks upon all in the same room So that is a perfect heart which equally looks to all Commandments of God Now to stir you up to serve God with a perfect heart consider these Motives Motive 1. Where perfection of heart is there the weakect performances are accepted the Widows Luk. 21. 2 3. two mites were better accepted then the great largesses of the rich the infirmities of the Saints in their faithful services because done with a perfect heart Job had bitter temptations and murmrings and many impatient fits yet all were forgotten for what saith the holy Ghost have ye not heard of the patience of Job Jam. 5. 11. 2. God will surely protect such they are his jewels the Lord highly prizeth them and would have all the world take notice of such men God even boasteth of such men Job 1. 1. the Lord saith of Joh that he was a man that was perfect and upright he speaks it in the commendation of his perfectness Vse 6. Is God perfect the very
Christian that hath tasted how gracious God in Christ is to him and how bitter sin is knows both better than that Minister that hath onely read a thousand books or that Christian that hath onely heard a thousand Sermons of both When we preach of the sweetness of God and his ordinances to men that never had any experimental knowledg we do but commend dainty meats to dead pallates and commend the Sunne to men that are blind knowledg in the soul is both the eye and light if the light that is in a man be darkness how great is that darkness Why do the Generality of the world take phancy for faith presumption and conceit for faith is it not because they want this light of saving knowledg to discern the right hand of faith from the left hand of phancy and presumption now craving pardon for this my boldness my prayer for you to God shall be that you may not be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledg of God and now when the World is blew with envy green in malice and withered in goodness and when many great persons provide delitiously for their bellies gloriously for their backs and poorly for their souls you may always be doing good laying up in store for yo●● selves a good foundation against the time to come and laying hold of eternal life that when others shall be found among the foolish virgins with their sic dicentes so saying you may be found among the good servants with your sic facientes so doing I humbly take my leave and rest Much honoured Sir and Madam Your Worships most humble Servant in the Gospel W. GEARING May. 1. 1665. A Discourse shewing that there is a God with Arguments against Atheism of divers sorts HEB. 11. 6 But without Faith it is impossible to please God for he that cometh to God must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him CHAP. I. Sect. 1. THese words have reference to the foregoing Enoch was translated from this earthly vale of misery into a full possession of heavenly happines before he was translated he had communion and fellowship with God and now he enjoyeth eternal fellowship with his God without interruption for a moment because he had this Testimony that he pleased God hence I observe That there is no heavenly happiness to be expected after death without pleasing God on earth Heaven is an holy place and will not admit rebells Abraham's bosome is no lodging-place for unbelieving miscreants How came Enoch to please God the Apostle sheweth in this verse it was by faith Without faith it is impossible to please him By faith I understand a Justifying faith a fiduciall recumbency upon God in Christ By pleasing God two things are understood 1. Approbation By faith Enoch was approved of God or Enoch did approve himself before God 2 That he was justified accepted of as a righteous person his faith made his person acceptable and his obedience well-pleasing the gift sanctifieth not the altar but the Altar the gift the gold is therefore pretious because it is the gold of the Temple the same may be spoken of our persons and of our works our good works make not our person good but our person makes our works good 't is by faith our works are denominated good A thousand duties and glorious works will no more benefit an unbelieving person then crowns of gold and diamonds and Garlands of roses a filthy putrifying Carcass all moral perfections how glorious and gratious soever to outward appearance yet are as St. Augustine calls them Splendida peccata glittering sins speaking of moral vertues in the unbelieving Heathens you may learn hence these three things 1. Whatsoever graces are in men yet faith is the grace which makes them the delight of Gods eyes the Apostle nameth not one grace in Enoch but his faith Faith is the rich diamond in the ring of grace 't is the rose of Sharon in a garland of Lillies 2. All unbelieving men what glorious vertues soever are in them yet cannot nor shall obtain salvation the knowledg of God from the creature was too dark a lant-horn to guid the Philosophers feet in the way of etern●l peace and salvation 'T is no better then an ignis fatuus which leads men into the p●t of destruction it is only the light of the Gospel which like the star that guided the wise men to Christ must bring us to Christ and so to salvation 3. The best works and duties of unregenerate men please not God for want of faith God throws them away as execrable things he will not touch them because they are unclean Sect. 2. Now in the next words the Apostle sheweth what Faith is here are two things 1. Here is Credere Deum a man must first be perswaded that there is a God or that God is 2. Credere in Deum a believing in Credere Deum God or a reposing of confidence in God as a bountifull rewarder of all them that seek him Or thus there are two things Credere in Deum required in all that look to be made partakers of eternal and glorious communion with God in heaven 1. There must be certa notitia veri Dei a true and right knowledg of the true God 2. There must be fiducia a trust and Fiducia Ass●ns●s in int●llectu ●t co●sensus in volu●tate confidence in God There must be assensus in intellectu consensus in voluntate the Mind must apprehend God and the Will must embrace God this is true faith which makes a man to please God for what is faith but a fiduciall knowledg of God or a knowledg of God in Christ with application But I will further open these three Phrases and shall enquire 1. What is this coming to God 1. By coming to God some understand believing in God faith is called a comming to God in Christ No man can come unto me i. e. no man can believe in me unlesse the Father draw him or raise him up to believe 2. By Coming is rather meant a fruition of God as the chief goodnesse and happines for in the following words he speaks of believing A man must first believe that God is and that he is a bountiful rewarder of such before he will come unto him 2. We are to enquire the meaning of that phrase Must believe that he is I answer He must believe either that Bez. annot in loc there is a God or els as Beza hath it that God is true and faithful in his free and gracious promises 3. What is meant by the other phrase And a rewarder of them that diligently seek him I answer 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It is Beza's observation that there is mutuall relation betvveen 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 praemium ultroneam promissionem a free reward or gift and a free gracious promise and not inter mercedem merita between a