made them your equals Remember that they have immortal souls and are equally capable of salvation with your selves And therefore you have no power to do any thing which shall hinder their salvation No pretence of your business necessity commodity or power can warrant you to hold them so hard to work as not to allow them due time and seasons for that which God hath made their duty 2. Remember that God is their absolute Owner and that you have none but a derived and limited Propriety in them They can be no further yours than you have Gods consent who is the Lord of them and you And therefore Gods Interest in them and by them must be served first 3. Remember that they and you are equally under the Government and Laws of God And therefore all Gods Laws must be first obeyed by them and you have no power to command them to omit any duty which God commandeth them nor to commit any sin which God forbiddeth them Nor can you without Rebellion or Impiety expect that your work or commands should be preferred before Gods 4. Remember that God is their Reconciled tender Father and if they be as good doth Love them as well as you And therefore you must use the meanest of them no otherwise than beseemeth the Beloved of God to be used and no otherwise than may stand with the due signification of your Love to God by Loving those that are his 5. Remember that they are the Redeemed ones of Christ and that he hath not sold you his title to them As he bought their souls at a price unvaluable so he hath given the purchase of his blood to be absolutely at your disposal Therefore so use them as to preserve Christs right and interest in them Direct 2. Remember that you are Christs Trustees or the Guardians of their souls and that the Direct 2. greater your power is over them the greater your charge is of them and your duty for them As you owe more to a Child than to a Day Labourer or a hired Servant because being more your own he is more entrusted to your care so also by the same reason you owe more to a slave because he is more your own And power and obligation go together As Abraham was to Circumcise all his servants that were bought with money and the fourth Commandment requireth Masters to see that all within their gates observe the Sabbath day so must you exercise both your Power and Love to bring them to the Knowledge and faith of Christ and to the just obedience of Gods commands Those therefore that keep their Negro's and slaves from hearing Gods word and from becoming Christians because by the Law they shall then be either made free or they shall lose part of their service do openly profess Rebellion against God and contempt of Christ the Redeemer of souls and a contempt of the souls of men and indeed they declare that their worldly profit is their treasure and their God If this come to the hands of any of our Natives in Barbado's or other Islands or Plantations who are said to be commonly guilty of this most heinous sin yea and to live upon it I intreat them further to consider as followeth 1. How cursed a crime is it to equal Men and Beasts Is not this your practice Do you not buy them and use them meerly to the same end as you do your horses to labour for your commodity as if they were baser than you and made to serve you 2. Do you not see how you reproach and condemn your selves while you vilifie them as Savages and barbarous wretches Did they ever do any thing more savage than to use not only mens bodies as beasts but their souls as if they were made for nothing but to actuate their bodies in your worldly drudgery Did the veriest Cannibals ever do any thing more cruel or odious than to sell so many souls to the Devil for a little worldly gain Did ever the cursedst miscreants on earth do any thing more rebellious and contrary to the will of the most merciful God than to keep those souls from Christ and holiness and Heaven for a little money who were made and redeemed for the same ends and at the same pretious price as yours Did your poor slaves ever commit such villanies as these Is not he the basest wretch and the most barbarous savage who committeth the greatest and most inhumane wickedness And are theirs comparable to these of yours 3. Doth not the very example of such cruelty besides your keeping them from Christianity directly tend to reach them and all others to hate Christianity as if it taught men to be so much worse than Dâ—gs and Tygers 4. Do you not mark how God hath followed you with Plagues and may not Conscience tell you that it is for your inhumanity to the souls and bodies of so many Remember the late fire at the Bridge in Barbado's Remember the drowning of your Governour and Ships at Sea and the many judgements that have overtaken you and at the present the terrible mortality that is among you 5. Will not the example and warning of neigbour Countreys rise up in judgement against you and condemn you You cannot but hear how odious the Spanish name is made and thereby alas the Christian name also among the West Indians for their most inhumane Cruelties in Hispaniola Iamaica Cuba Peru Mexico and other places which is described by Iosep. a Costa a Jesuite of their own And though I know that their cruelty who murdered millions exceedeth yours who kill not mens bodies yet yours is of the same kind in the merchandize which you make with the Devil for their souls whilst you that should help them with all your power do hinder them from the means of their salvation And on the contrary what an honour is it to those of New England that they take not so much as the Natives Soyl from them but by purchase that they enslave none of them nor use them cruelly but shew them mercy and are at a great deal of care and cost and labour for their salvation O how much difference between holy Master Eliot's life and yours His who hath laboured so many years to save them and hath translated the whole Bible into their language with other Books and those good mens in London who are a Corporation for the furtherance of his work and theirs that have contributed so largely towards it And yours that sell mens souls for your commodity 6. And what comfort are you like to have at last in that money that is purchased at such a price Will not your money and you perish together will you not have worse than Gebezi's Leprofie with it yea worse than Achan's death by Stoning and as bad as Iudas his hanging himself unless repentance shall prevent it Do you not remember the terrible words in Jude 11. Woe unto them for they have gone in the way of Cain
in the sense of your natural sin and misery to stir up the lively sense of the wonderful Love of God and our Redeemer and to spend all the day in the special exercises of Faith and Love And seeing it is the Christian weekly festival or day of Thanksgiving for the greatest mercy in the world spend it as a day of Thanksgiving should be spent especially in Ioyful Praises of our Lord and let the huâ—bling and instructing exercisâ—s of the day he all subordinate to these laudatory exercises I know that much time must be spent in teaching and warning the ignorant and ungodly because their poverty and labours hinder them from other such opportunities and we must speak to them then or not at all But if it were not for their meer necessity and if we could as well speak to them other dayes of the Week the Churches should spend all the Lords Day in such praises and thanksgivings as are suitable to the ends of the institution But seeing that cannot be expected methinks it is desirable that the antient custome of the Churches were more imitated and the morning Sermon being fuited to the state of the more ignorant and unconverted that the rest of the day were spent in the exercises of Thanksgiving to the Joy and encouragement of believers and in doctrine suited to their state And yet I must add that a skilfull Preacher will do both together and so declare the Love and Grace of our Redeemer as by a meet application may both draw in the ungodly and comfort those that are already sanctified and raise their hearts in Praise to God § 4. Direct 4. Remember that the Lords day is appointed specially for publick worship and personal Direct 4. Communion of the Churches therein see therefore that you spend as much of the day as you can in this publick worship and Church-communion especially in the celebration of that Sacrament which is appointed for the memorial of the death of Christ untill his coming 1 Cor. 11. 25 26. This Sacrament in the Primitive Church was celebrated every Lords day yea and ofter even ordinarily on every other day of the week when the Churches assembled for Communion And it might be so now without any hinderance to Preaching or Prayer if all things were ordered as they should be For those Prayers and instructions and exhortations which are most suited to this Eucharistical action would be the most suitable Prayers and Sermons for the Church on the Lords dayes In the mean time sâ—e that so much of the day as is spent in Church-communion and publick worship be accordingly improved by you and be not at that time about your secret or family services but take only those hours for such private duties in which the Church is not assembled And remember how much the Love of Saints is to be exercised in this Communion and therefore labour to keep alive that Love without which no man can celebrate the Lords day according to the end of the institution § 5. Direct 5. Understand how great a mercy it is that you have leave thus to wait upon God for the receiving and exercise of grace and to cast off the distracting thoughts and businesses of the world and Direct 5. what an opportunity is put into your hand to get more in one day than this world can affâ—rd you all your lives And therefore come with gladness as to the receiving of so great a mercy and with desire after it and with hope to speed and not with unwillingness as to an unpleasant task as carnal hearts that Love not God or his Grace or Service and are aweary of all they do and glâ—d when it is done as the Ox that is unyoaked Isa. 58. 13 14. If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath from doing thy pleasure on my holy day and call the Sabbath a Delight the holy of the Lord honourable and shalt honour him not doing thine own waies nor finding thine own pleasuâ—e nor speaking thine own words then shalt thou delight thy self in the Lord The affection that you have to the Lords day much sheweth the temper of the heart A holy person is glad when it cometh as loving it for the holy exercises of the day A wicked carnal heart is glad of it only for his carnal ease but weary of the spiritual duties § 6. Direct 6. Avoid both the extreams of Prophaneness and Superstition in the point of your external rest And to that end Observe 1. That the work is not for the day but the day for the holy Direct 6. work As Christ saith Mark 2. 27. The Sabbath was made for man and not man for the Sabbath It is appointed for our good and not for our hurt 2. The outward rest is not appointed for it self but as a means to the freedom of the mind for inward and spiritual employments And therefore all those outward and common labours and discourses are unlawful which any way distract the mind and hinder either our outward or inward attendance upon God and our edification 3. And whatever it was to the Jews no common words or actions are unlawful which are no hinderance to this communion and worship and spiritual edification 4. Yea those things that are necessary to the support of nature and the saving of the Life or health or estate and goods of our selves or our neighbours are needful duties on that day Not all those works which are truly charitable for it may be a work of mercy to build Hospitals or make Garments for the poor or Till their ground but such works of mercy as cannot be put off to another day and such as hinder not the duties of the day 5. The same word or action on the Lords day which is unlawful to one man may be lawful to another as being no hinderance yea a duty to him As Christ saith The Priests in the Temple break or prophane the Sabbath that is the outward rest but not the command and are blameless Matth. 12. 15. And the Cook may lawfully be employed in dressing meat when it were a sin in another to do it voluntarily without need 6. The Lords day being to be kept as a day of Thanksgiving the dressing of such meat as is fit for a day of Thanksgiving is not to be scrupled The primitive Christians in the Apostles time had their Love-feasts constantly with the Lords Supper or after on the Evening of the day And they could not feast without dressing meat 7. Yet that which is lawful in it self must be so done as consisteth with care and compassion of the souls of servants that are employed about it that they may â—e deprived of no more of their spiritual benefit than needs 8. Also that which is lawful must sometimes be forborn when it may by scandal tempt others that are loose or weak to do that which is unlawful not that the meer displeasing of the erroneous should put us out of the right
Servants 2. Masters p. 490 CHAP. III. Disput. Whether the solemn Worship of God in and by families as such be of Divine appointment Aff. proved against the Cavils of the prophane and some Sectaries p. 493. What solemn Worship is What a family Proof as to Worship in general Family-advantages for Worship The Natural obligation on families to worship God Families must be sanctified societies Instructing families is a duty Family discipline is a duty Solemn prayer and prâ—ise is a family duty Objections answered Of the frequency and seasons of family worship 1. Whether it should be every day 2. Whether twice a day 3. Whether Morning and evening CHAP. IV. General Directions for the holy Government of famili 〈…〉 How to keep up Authority Of skill in Governing Of holy Willingness p. 509 CHAP. V. Special Motives to perswade men to the holy Government of their families p. 512 CHAP. VI. Motives for a holy and careful Education of Children p. 515 CHAP. VII The Mutual Duties of Husbands and Wives towards each other p. 520. How to maintain due Conjugal Love Of Adultery Motives and Means against dissention Motives and means to further each others salvation Further duties CHAP. VIII The special duties of Husbands to their Wives p. 529 CHAP. IX The special duty of Wives to their Husbands p. 531 Q. How far may a Wife give without her Husbands Consent Q. Of Wives propriety Q Is a Wife guilty of her Husbands unlawful getting if she keep it And is she bound to reveal it as in robbing Q. May a Wife go hear Sermons when her Husband forbiddeth her Q. Must a woman proceed to admonish a wicked Husband when it maketh him worse Q. What she must do in Controverted Cases of Religion when her judgement and her Husbands differ p. 534. Q. How long or in what Cases may Husbands and Wives be distant p. 535. Q. May the bare Commands of Princes separate Husbands and Wives as Ministers Iudges Souldiers Q. May Ministers leave their Wives to go abroad to preach the Gospel Q. May one leave a Wife to save his life in case of personal persecution or danger Q. May Husband and Wife part by consent if they find it to be for the good of both Q. May they consent to be divorced and to marry others Q. Doth Adultery dissolve marriage Q. Is the injured person bound to divorce the other or left free Q. Is it the proper priviledge of the man to put away an adulterous Wife or is it also in the womans power to depart from an adulterous Husband Q. May there be putting away or departing without the Magistrates divorce or license Q. Is not Sodomy and Buggery as lawful a reason of divorce as Adultery Q. What if both parties be adulterous Q. What if one purposely commit adultery to be separated from the other Q. Doth Infidelity dissolve the relation Q. Doth the desertion of one party disoblige the other Q. Must a woman follow a malignant Husband that goeth from the Means of Grace Q. Must she follow him if it be but to poverty or beggary Q. What to do in case of known intention of one to murder the other Q. Or if there be a fixed hatred of each other Q What if a man will not suffer his Wife to hear read or pray or do beat her so as to unfit her for duty or a woman will rail at the Husband in prayer time c. Q. What to do in danger of life by the Pox or Leprosie c. Q Who may marry after parting or divorce p. 539. Q Is it lawful to suffer yea or contribute to the known sin materially of Wife Child Servant or other relations Where is opened what is in our Power to do against sin and what not p. 539. Q. If a Gentleman have a great Estate by which he may do much good and his Wife be so Proud Prodigal and pievish that if she may not waste it all in house keeping and pride she will dye or grow mad or give him no quietness What is his duty in so sad a case p. 542 CHAP. X. The Duties of Parents for their Children Where are twenty special Directions for their Education p. 543 CHAP. XI The Duties of Children towards their Parents p. 547 CHAP. XII The special Duties of Children and Youth towards God p. 552 CHAP. XIII The Duties of Servants to their Masters p. 554 CHAP. XIV Tit. 1. The Duty of Masters towards their Servants p. 556 Tit. 2. The Duty of Masters to Slaves in the Plantations p. 557 Q. 1. Is it lawful for a Christian to buy and use a man as a Slave Q. 2. Is it lawful to use a Christian as a Slave p. 558 Q. 3. What difference must we make between a Servant and a Slave Q. 4. What if men buy Negro's or other Slaves of such as we may think did steal them or buy them of Robbers and Tyrants and not by Consent p. 559 Q. 5. May I not sell such again and make my mony of them Q. 6. May I not return them to him that I bought them of CHAP. XV. The Duties of Children and fellow servants to one another p. 561 CHAP. XVI Directions for holy Conference of fellow servants and others p. 562 Q. May we speak good when the Heart is not affected with it Q. Is that the fruit of the Spirit which we force our tongues to CHAP. XVII Directions for every member of the family how to spend every ordinary day of the Week p. 565 CHAP. XVIII Directions for the holy spending of the Lords Day in families Whether the whole day should be kept holy p. 569 Tit. 2. More particular Directions for the Order of holy duties on that day p. 572 CHAP. XIX Directions for profitable Hearing Gods Word preached p. 573 Tit. 2. Directions for Remembring what you Hear p. 575 Tit. 3. Directions for Holy Resolutions and Affections in hearing p. 576 Tit. 4. Directions to bring what we hear into practice p. 577 CHAP. XX. Directions for profitable Reading the holy Scriptures p. 579 CHAP. XXI Directions for Reading other Books p. 580 CHAP. XXII Directions for right Teaching Children and Servants so as is most likely to have success The summ of Christian Religion p. 582 CHAP. XXIII Directions for Prayer in general p 587 A Scheme or brief Explication of the Exact Method of the Lords Prayer p. 590 Tit. 2. Cases about Prayer p. 591. Q. 1. Is the Lords Prayer to be used as a form of words or only as a Directory for Matter and Method Q. 2. What need is there of any other prayer if this he perfect Q. 3. Is it lawful to pray in a set form of words Q. 4. Are those forms lawful which are prescribed by man and not by God Q 5 Is free praying called extemporate lawful Q. 6. Which is the better Q. 7. Must we ever follow the Method of the Lords Prayer Q. 8. Must we pray only when the Spirit moveth us or as Reason guideth
clean and delectable and paved with mercies and fortified and secured by Divine protection and where Christ is your Conductor and so many have sped so well before you and the wisest and best in the world are your companions Live then as men that have changed their Master their end their hopes their way and work Religion layeth not men to sleep though it be the only way to Rest. It awakeneth the sleepy soul to higher thoughts and hopes and labours than ever it was well acquainted with before He that is in Christ is a new creature old things are past away behold all things are become new 2 Cor. 5. 17. You never sought that which would pay for all your cost and diligence till now You never were in a way that you might make haste in without repenting of your haste till now How glad should you be that Mercy hath brought you into the right way after the wanderings of such a sinful life And your gladness and thankfulness should now be shewed by your cheerful diligence and zeal As Christ did not raise up Lazarus from the dead to do nothing or live to little purpose though the Scripture giveth us not the history of his life So did he not raise you from the death of sin to live idely or to be unprofitable in the world He that giveth you his Spirit to be a principle of heavenly life within you expecteth that you stir up the gift that he hath given you and live according to that heavenly principle Direction 16. ENgage thy self in the chearful constant use of the means and helps appointed by God Direct 16. for thy confirmation and salvation § 1. He can never expect to attain the end that will not be perswaded to use the means Of your selves you can do nothing God giveth his help by the means which he hath appointed and fitted to your help Of the use of these I shall treat more fully afterwards I am now only to name them to thee that thou maist know what it is that thou hast to do 1. That you must hear or read the Word of God and other good Books which expound it and How Paenitents of old did rise even from a particular sin judge by these words of Pacianus Paâ—â—â—â—â—â— ad Poeâ—â—t Bibl. Pat. To. 3. p. 74. You must not only do that which may be seen of the Priest and praised by the Bishop to weep before the Church to lament a lost or sinful life in a â—ordid garment to fast pray to role on the earth if any invite you to the Bath or such pleasures to refuse to go If any bid you to a Feast to say These things are for the happy I have sinned against God and am in danger to perish for ever What should I do at Banquets who have wronged the Lord Besides these you must take the poor by the hand you must beseech the Widdow lye at the feet of the Presbyters beg of the Church to forgive you and pray for you you must try all means rather than perish apply it I shewed you before The new born Christian doth encline to this as the new born child doth to the breast 1 Pet. 2. 1 2. Laying aside all malice and guile and hypocrisies and envies and all evil speakings as new born babes that desire the sincere milk of the word that ye may grow thereby Psal. 1. 2 3. The blessed mans delight is in the Law of the Lord and therein doth he meditate day and night § 2. 2. Another means is the publick worshipping of God in communion with his Church and people Besides the benefit of the word there preached the prayers of the Church are effectual for the members and it raiseth the soul to holy joyes to joyn with well ordered Assemblies of the Saints in the Praises of the Almighty The Assemblies of holy worshippers of God are the places of his delight and must be the places of our delight They are most like to the Celestial Society that sound forth the praises of the glorious Iebovah with purest minds and cheerful voice In his Temple doth every one speak of his glory Psal. 29. 9. In such a Chore what soul will not be rapt up with delight and desire to joyn in the consort and harmony In such a flame of united desires and praises what soul so cold and dull that will not be enflamed and with more than ordinary facility and alacrity fly up to God § 3. 3. Another means is private prayer unto God When God would tell Ananias that Paul was converted he saith of him Behold he prayeth Acts 9. 11. Prayer is the breath of the new creature The Spirit of Adoption given to every child of God is a Spirit of prayer and teacheth them to cry Abba Father and helpeth their infirmities when they know not what to pray as they ought and when words are wanting it as it were intercedeth for them with groans which they cannot express in words Gal. 4. 6. Rom. 8. 15 26 27. And God knoweth the meaning of the Spirit in those groans The first workings of grace are in Desires after grace provoking the soul to servent prayer by which more grace is speedily obtained Ask then and ye shall have seek and ye shall find knock and it shall be opened to you Luke 11. 9. § 4. 4. Another means to be used is Confession of sin not only to God for so every wicked man may do because he knoweth that God is already acquainted with it all and this is no addition to his shame He so little regardeth the eye of God that he is more ashamed when it is known to men But in three Cases Confession must be made also to Man 1. In case you have wronged man and are thus bound to make him satisfaction As if you have robbed him defrauded him slandered him or born false witness against him 2. In case you are Children or Servants that are under the government of Parents or Masters and are called by them to give an acount of your actions You are bound then to give a true account 3. In case you have need of the Counsel or Prayers of others for the setling of your consciences in peace In this case you must so far open your case to them as is necessary to their effectual help for your recovery For if they know not the disease they will be unfit to apply the remedy In these cases it is true that He that covereth his sins shall not prosper but he that confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy Prov. 28. 13. § 5. 5. Another Means to be used is the familiar company and holy converse with humble sincere experienced Christians The Spirit that is in them and breatheth and acteth by them will kindle the like holy flames in you Away with the company of idle prating sensual men that can talk of nothing but their worldly wealth or business or their reputations or their appetites and lusts
to be pleased because he hath too great expectations Sign 9. from others He looks for so much observance and respect and to be humoured and honoured by all that it is too hard a task for any man to please him that hath much to do with him and hath any other Trade to follow He that will please him must either have little to do with him and come but seldome in his way or else he must study the art of man-pleasing complement and flattery till he be ready to commence Doctor in it and must make it his Trade and business as Nurses do to tend the sick or quiet Children One look or word or action will every day fall cross and some respect or complement will be wanting And as godly humble men do justly aggravate their sins from the Greatness and Excellency of God whom they offend so the proud man foolishly aggravates every little wrong that is done him and every word that is said against him and every supposed omission or neglect of him by the high Estimation he hath of himself against whom it is done § 61. Sign 10. The proud are desirous of Precedency among men To be saluted with the first Sign 10. and taken by Great ones into the greatest favour and to be set in the upper room at Table and at Church and to take the better hand He grudgeth at those that are set above him and preferred before him unless they are much his Superiours Or if he have the wit to avoid the disgrace of contending for such trifles and shewing the childishness of his Pride to others yet he retaineth a Luke 14. 9 10. displeasure at the heart When the humble give precedency to others and set themselves at the lower end § 62. Sign 11. A proud man expecteth that all the good that he doth be remembred and that Sign 11. others do keep a register of his good works and take notice of his learning worth and vertues As their own memories are stronger here than in any thing so they think other mens should be As if being conscious how unfit they are for the esteem of God they thought all were lost which is not observed and esteemed by men As their eye is upon themselves so they think the eye of Hesich Illust. saith of Arâ—esilaus In communicandis facultatibus ac deferendis beneficiis supra quam dici potest promptus atque facilis fuit Alienissimus à captanda gloriola à beneficio quod latere maluerat Invisens Câ—esibium aegrotantem quum videret illum in egestate esse clam cervicalâ— supposuit crumenam nummariam qua ille inventa Arceselai inquit hicce ludus est others should be also and that as their own to admire the good and not to see the infirmities and evil § 63. Sign 12. No man is taken for so great a friend to the proud as their admirers whatever Sign 12. else they be they love those men best that highliest esteem them The faults of such they can extenuate and easily forgive Let them be Drunkards or Whoremongers or Swearers or otherwise ungodly the proud man loveth them according to the measure of their honouring him If you would have his favour let him hear that you have magnified him behind his back and that you honour him above all other men But if the holiest servant of God think meanly of him and speak of him but as he is especially if he think they are disesteemers of him or are against his interest and honor all their wisdom and holiness will not reconcile him to them if they were as wise or good as Peter or Paul It signifieth nothing to him that they are honourers of God if he think they be not honourers of him Nay he will not believe or acknowledge their goodness but take all for hypocrisie if they suit not with his interest or honour and all because he is an Idol to himself § 64. Sign 13. A proud man is apt to domineer with insolency when he gets any advantage Sign 13. and perceiveth himself on the higher ground He saith as Pilate to those that are in his power John 19. 10 11. Psal. 10. 2 4. Psal. 73 6. Psal. 36 11. Eccles. 10. 7. Psal. 119 51. Knowest thou not that I have power to crucifie thee and power to release thee Forgetting that they have no power at all against any but what is given them from above Victories and successes lift up fools and make them look big and forget themselves as if their shadows were longer than before Servants got on Horsback will speak disdainfully of Princes that are on foot David saith The proud have had me in derision If they get into places of power by preferment they cannot bear it but are puffed up and intoxicated as if they were not the same men they were They deal worse by their inferiours if they humour them not than Balaam by his Ass when they have made them speak their insolency cannot bear it whereas the humble remembreth how far he is equal with the lowest and dealeth gently with his servants themselves remembring that he also hath a Master in Col. 4. 1 2. Heaven Ephes. 6. 9. § 65. Sign 14. A proud man is impatient of being contradicted in his speech be it right or wrong Sign 14. you must say as he or not gainsay him Hence it is that Gallants think that a mans life is little enough to expiate the wrong if a man presume to say they Lye I know that Children and servants and other inferiors must not be unreverent or immodest in an unnecessary contradicting the words of their superiours but must silently give place when they cannot assent to what is said But yet an impatience of sober and reasonable contradiction even from an inferiour or servant is not a sign of a humble mind § 66. Sign 15. Whereever a proud man dwelleth he is turbulent and impatient if he have not his Sign 15. will If he be a publick person he will set a Kingdom all on fire if things may not go as he would have them Among the crimes of the last and perilous times Paul numbereth these to be Lovers of their own selves boasters proud traytors heady high-minded If they have to do in Church affairs 2 Tim. 3. 2 3 4. they will have their will and way or they will cast all into confusion and hinder the Gospel and turn the Churches upside down In Towns and Corporations they are heady and turbulent to have their wills In families there shall be no peace if every thing may not go their way They cannot yield to the judgement of another § 67. Sign 16 Proud men are passionate and contentious and cannot put up injuries or foul words Sign 16. When a humble man giveth place to wrath and avengeth not himself nor resisteth evil but is meek and patient forbearing and forgiving and so heaping coals of fire on his enemies heads
a clock in the morning when honest labourers have done one half of their dayes work While you are in health were not six a clock in the morning a fitter hour for you to be drest that you might draw near to the most Holy God in holy prayer and read his Word and set your souls and then your families in order for the duties of the following day I do not say that you may go no neaâ—er than poor labouring people or that you may bestow no more time than they in dressing you But I say that for your souls and in your callings you are bound by God to be as diligent as they and have no more Time given you to lose than they and that you should spend as little of it in neatifying you as you can and be sensible that else the loss is your own And that abundance of precious hours which your Pride consumeth will lye heavy one day upon your consciences And then you shall confess I say you shall confess it with aking hearts that the duties you owed to God and man and the care of your souls and of your families should have been preferred before your appearing neat and spruce to men If you have but a journey to go you can rise earlier and be sooner drest but for the good of your souls and the redeeming of your precious time you cannot O that God would but shew you what greater work you have to do with those precious hours and how it will cut your hearts to think of them at last If you lay but hopelesly sick of a Consumption you would be cured it is like of this proud disease and bestow less of your time in adorning the flesh which is hasting to the grave and rottenness And cannot you now see how time and life consumes and what cause you have with all your care and diligence to use it better before it is gone I know they that are so much worse than childish as prodigally to cast away so many hours in making themselves fine for the sight of men and be not ashamed to come forth and shew their sin to others will scarce want words to excuse their crime and prove it lawful be they sense or non-sense But conscience it self shall answer all when Time is gone and make you wish you had been wiser You know not Ladies and Gallants how precious a thing Time is You little feel what a price your selves will set upon it at the last You little consider what you have to do with it you see not how it hasteth and how near you stand to vast eternity you little know how despised Time will look a wakened Conscience in the face Or what it is to be found unready to dye I know you lay not to heart these things For if you did you could not I say you could not so lightly cast away your time If all were true that you say that indeed your place and honour requireth that your precious morning hours be thus spent I profess to you I should pity you more than Gally-slaves and I would bless me from such a place and honour and make haste into the course and company of the poor and think them happy that may better spend their time But indeed your excuses are frivolous and untrue and do but shew that Pride hath prevailed to captivate your Reason to its service For we know Lords and Ladies as great as the rest of you though alas too few that can quickly be up and drest and spend their early hours in prayer and adorning their souls and can be content to come forth in a plain and incurious attire and yet are so far from being derided or thought the worse by any whose judgement is much to be regarded that they are taken justly for the honour of their order And if it were not that some few such keep up the honour of your ranck I will not tell you how little in point of Morality it would be honoured § 53. Th. 4. Another Time-wasting Thief is Unnecessary pomp and curiosity in retinue attendance Thief 4. â—ouse furniture provision and entertainments together with excess of complement and ceremony and servitude to the humours and expectations of Time-wasters I crowd them all together because they are all but wheels of the same Engine to avoid prolixity Here also I must prevent the cavils of the guilty by telling you that I reprove not all that in the rich which I would reprove if it were in the poor I intend not to levell them and judge them by the same measure The rich are not so happy as to be so free as the poor either from the temptation or the seeming necessity and obligation Let others pity the poor I 'le pity the Rich who seem to be pinched with harder Necessities than the poor even this seeming Necessity of wasting their precious Time in complement curiosity and pomp which the happy Poor may spend in the honest labours of their Callings wherein they may at once be profitable to the Common-wealth and maintain themselves and meditate or confer of holy things But yet I must say that the Rich shall give an account of Time and shall pay dear for that which unnecessary excesses do devour And that instead of envying the state and curiosity of others and seeking to excell or equal them to avoid their obloquy they should contract and bring down all customs of excess and shew their high esteem of Time and detestation of Time-wasting curiosity and imitate the most sober grave and holy and be a pattern to others of employing Time in needful great and manly things I say Manly for so childish is this Vice that men of gravity and business do abhor it and usually men of Vanity that are guilty of it lay it all on the Women as if they were ashamed of it or it were below them What abundance of precious Time is spent in unnecessary state of attendance and provisions What abundance under pretence of cleanliness and neatness is spent in needless curiosity about rooms and furniture and accommodations and matters of meer pride vain-glory and ostentation covered with the honest name of decency What abundance is wasted in entertainments and unnecessary visits complements ceremony and servitude to the humours of men of Vanity I speak not for nastiness and uncleanness and uncomeliness I speak not for a Cynical morosity or unsociableness When Conscience is awakened and you come to your selves and approaching death shall better acquaint you with the worth of Time you will see a mean between these two Nimia omnia nimium exhibâ—nâ— negotium and you will wish you had most feared the Time-wasting prodigal extream Methinks you should freely give me leave to say that though Martha had a better excuse than you and was cumbered about many things for the entertainment of such a guest as Christ himself with all his followers who lookt for no curiosity yet Mary is more
approved of by Christ who neglected all this to Redeem the Time for the good of her soul by sitting at his feet to hear his Word she chose the better part which shall not be taken from her Remember I pray you that One thing is necessary I hope I may have leave to tell you that if by you or your servants God and your souls and prayer and reading the Scriptures and the profitable labours of an honest Calling be all or any of them neglected while you or they are neatifying this room or washing out that little spot or setting strait Abundance of little things that have all their conveniences have all their inconvenices also and take up our time and sâ— would sâ—â—â—â— out greater things â—â— they be not caâ—â— aside themselves and would become great sins by such a consumption of our Time Luke 10. 42. the other wrinckle or are taken up with foeminine trifling proud curiosities this is a preferring of dust before Gold of the least before the greatest things And to say that decency is commendable is no excuse for neglecting God your souls or families or leaving undone any one greater work which you or your servants might have been doing that while I say any work that is greater all things considered O that you and your families would but live as those that see how fast Death cometh how fast Time goeth and what you have to do and what your unready souls yet want This is all that I desire of you And then I warrant you it would save you many a precious hour and cut short your works of curiosity and deliver you from your slavery to Pride and the esteem of vain Time-wasters § 54. Th. 5. Another Time-wasting sin is needless and tedious feastings gluttony and tipling Thief 5. which being of the same litter I set together I speak not against moderate seasonable and charitable Conâ—â—â—â—a quae dicunâ—ur â—um siâ—t commesâ—â—tionâ— modestia 〈…〉 mihi 〈…〉 sum inuâ—â—le ratus vocare vâ—cari c. Iâ—â—â—â— Feasts But alas in this luxurious sensual age how commonly do men sit two hours at a Feast and spend two more in attending it before and after and not improving the Time in any pious or profitable discourse yea the Rich spend an hour ordinarily in a common Meal while every Meal is a Feast indeed and they fare as their predecessor Luke 16. deliciously or sumptuously every day Happy are the poor that are free also from this temptation You spend not so much Time in the daily addresses of your souls to God and reading his Word and taking an account of the affairs of conscience and preparing for death as you do in stuffing your guts perhaps at one Meal And in Taverns and Ale-houses among their pots how much Time is wasted by Rich and poor O remember while you are eating and drinking what a corruptible piece of flesh you are feeding and serving and how quickly those mouths will be filled with dust and that a soul that is posting so fast unto eternity should find no Time to spare for vanity And that you have important work enough to do which if performed will afford you a sweeter and a longer Feast § 55. Th. 6. Another Time-wasting sin is idle Talk What abundance of precious Time doth Thief 6. this consume Hearken to most mens discourse when they are sitting together or working together or travelling together and you shall hear how little of it is any better than silence and if not better it is worse So full are those persons of Vanity who are empty even to silence of any thing that is good that they can find and feed a discourse of nothing many hours and days together and as they think with such foecundity and floridness of style as deserveth acceptance if not applause I have marvelled oft at some wordy Preachers with how little matter they can handsomly fill up an hour But one would wonder more to hear people fill up not an hour but a great part of their day and of their lives and that without any study at all and without any holy and substantial Subject with words which if you should write them all down and peruse them you would find that the sum and conclusion of them is nothing How self-applaudingly and pleasingly they can ex tempore talk idly and of nothing a great part of their lives I have heard many of them marvel at a poor unlearned Christian that can pray ex tempore many hours together in very good order and well-composed words But are they not more to be marvelled at that can very handsomly talk of nothing ten times as long with greater copiousness and without repetitions and that ex tempore when they have not that variety of great commanding Subjects to be the matter of their speech I tell you when Time must be reviewed the consumption of so much in idle talk will appear to have been no such venial sin as empty careless sinners now imagine § 56. Th. 7. Another Thief which by the aforesaid means would steal your Time is Vain and sinful Thief 7. company Among whom a spiritual Physicion that goeth to cure them or a holy person that is full and resolute to bear down vain discourse I confess may well employ his Time when he is cast upon it or called to it But to dwell with such or choose them as our familiars or causlesly or for complacency keep among them will unavoidably lose abundance of your time If you would do good they will hinder you If you will speak of good they will divert you or reproach you or wrangle and cavil with you or some way or other stop your mouths They will by a stream of vain discourse either bear down and carry you on with them or fill your ears and interrupt and hinder the very thoughts of your minds by which you desire to profit your selves when they will not let you be profitable to others § 57. Th. 8. Another notorious Time-wasting Thief is needless inordinate sports and games which Thief 8. are commonly stigmatized by the offenders themselves with the infamous name of PASTIMES Laertius saith of Solon that Thâ—spini tragedias agere docere prohibuit inuâ—â—lem eas falsiloquentiam vocaâ—â—â—â— and masked with the deceitful title of Recreations such as are Cards and Dice and Stage-plays and Dancings and Revellings and excesses in the most lawful sports especially in Hunting and Hawking and Bowling c. whether all these are lawful or unlawful in themselves is nothing to the present question but I am sure that the precious hours which they take up might have been improved to the saving of many a thousand souls that by the loss of Time are now undone and past recovery except malicious enemies of Godliness I scarce know a wretcheder sort of people on the earth and more to be lamented than those fleshly persons who through the love of sensual
thoughts a world of work If God be not in all the thoughts of the ungodly Psal. 10. 4. it is because he is not in his heart He may be nigh their mouths but is far from their reins Jer. 12. 2. Do those men believe themselves or would they be believed by any one that is wise who say they Love God above all and yet neither think of him nor love to think of him but are unwearied in thinking of their wealth and honours and the pleasures of their flesh Consider this ye that forget God lest he tear you in pieces and there be none to deliver you Psal. 50. 22. § 5. Direct 5. Soundly understand the wonderful mysterie of mans Redemption and know Iesus Direct 5. Christ and you need not want employment for your thoughts For in him are hid all the Treasures of 5. Jesus Christ and all the work of Redemption wisdom and knowledge Col. 2. 3. He is the Power of God and the Wisdom of God 1 Cor. 1. 24. If the study of Aristotle Plato Plotinus and their numerous followers and Commentators can find work for the thoughts of men that would know the works of God or would be accounted good Philosophers even for many years together or a great part of their lives what work then may a Christian find for his thoughts in Jesus Christ who of God is made to us wisdom and righteousness and sanâ—â—â—â—fication and redemption 1 Cor. 1. 30. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell Col. 1. 19. And therefore in him there is fulness of matter for our meditations As Paul determined to know nothing or make ostentation of no other knowledge but Christ crucified 1 Cor. 2. 2. So if your thoughts had nothing to work upon many years together but Christ crucified they need not stand still a moment for want of most suitable and delightful matter The mysterie of the Incarnation alone may find you work to search and admire many ages But if thence you proceed to that world of wonderful matter which you may find in his Doctrine Miracles example sufferings temptations victories resurrection ascension and in his Kingly Prophetical and Priestly Offices and in all the benefits which he hath purchased for his stock O what full and pleasant work is here for the daily thoughts of a believer The soul may dwell here with continual delight till it say with Paul Gal. 2. 20. I am crucified with Christ nevertheless I live yet not I but Christ liveth in me and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me Therefore daily bow your knees to the Father of our Lord Iesus Christ of whâ—m the whole family in Heaven and earth is named that he will grant you according to the Riches of his Glory to be strengthned with might by his Spirit in the inner man that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith that being rooted and grounded in Love you may be able to comprehend with all Saints what is the breadth and length and depth and height and to know the Love of Christ which passeth knowledge that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God Ephes. 3. 14. to 20. § 6. Direct 6. Search the holy Scriptures and acquaint your selves well with the Oracles of God Direct 6. which are able to make you wise unto salvation and you will find abundant matter for your thoughts If you cannot find work enough for your minds among all those heights and depths those excellencies and difficulties it is because you never understood them or never set your hearts to search them What mysterious Doctrines how sublime and heavenly are there for you to meditate on as long as you live What a perfect Law a system of precepts most spiritual and pure What terrible threatnings against offenders are there to be matter of your meditations What wonderful histories of Love and Mercy What holy examples What a treasury of precious promises on which lyeth our hope of life eternal What full and free expressions of grace What a joyful act of pardon and oblivion to penitent believing sinners In a word the character of our inheritance and the Law which we must be governed and judged by is there before us for our daily Meditation David that had much less of it than we saith O how I love thy Law it is my meditation all the day Psal. 119. 97. And God said to Ioshua 1. 8. This Book of the Law shall not depart out of thy mouth but thou shalt meditate therein day and night that thou maist observe to do according to all that is written therein And Moses commanded the Israelites that these words should be in their hearts and that they teach them diligently to their children and talk of them when they sate in their houses and when they walked by the way and when they lay down and when they rose up and to write them on the posts of their houses and on their gates c. that they might be sure to remember them Deut. 6. 7. § 7. Direct 7. Know thy self well as thou art the work of God and in thy self thou wilt find Direct 7. abundant matter for thy meditations There thou hast the natural Image of God to mediate on and 7. Our 〈…〉 as we are Gods wâ—â—k admire even the noble faculties of thy understanding and free will and executive power And thou hâ—st his Moral or Spiritual Image to meditate on if thou be not unregenerate even thy holy Wisdom Will and Power or thy holy Light and Love and Power with promptitude for holy practice and all in the Unity of holy Life And there thou hast his Relative Image to meditate See my Book of the 〈…〉 on even thy being 1. The Lord or Owner 2. The Ruler 3. The Benefactor to the inferiour creatures and their End O the world of mysteries which thou carriest continually about thee in that little room What abundance of wonders are in thy body which is fearfully and wonderfully made And the greater wonders in thy soul Thou art thy self the clearest glass that God is to be seen in under Heaven as thou art a man and a Saint And therefore the worthiest matter for thy own Meditations except that holy Word which is thy Rule and the Holy Church which is but a coalition of many such What a shame is it that almost all men do Live and dye such strangers to themselves as to be utterly unacquainted with the innumerable excellencies and mysteries which God hath laid up in them and yet to let their thoughts run out upon vanities and toyes and complain of their barrenness and want of matter to feed their better Meditations § 8. Direct 8. Be not a stranger to the many sins and wants and weaknesses of thy soul and thou Direct 8. never needest to be empty of matter for
commandeth them Acts 20. Epist. Tim. § 7. 3. The work of a Magistrate a Lawyer a Physicion and such like is principally in doing Rule 3. good in their several Callings which must not be neglected for contemplation Yet so that all these and all others must allow Gods service and holy thoughts their due place in the beginning and middle and end of all their actions As Magistrates must read and meditate day and night in the Word of God Iosh. 1. 8 10. So the Eunuch Cornâ—lius c. Acts 8. 10. § 8. 4. Some persons in the same Calling whose Callings are not so urgent on them by any necessities Rule 4. of themselves or others and who may have more vacant time must gladly take it for the good of their souls in the use of contemplation and other holy duties And others that are under greater necessities urgencies obligations or cannot be spared from the service of others as Physicions Lawyers c. must be less in contemplation and prefer the greatest good § 9. 5. Publick necessities or service may with some be so great as to dispense with all secret duty Rule 5. both of prayer and contemplation except short mental ejaculations for some dayes together So in Wars it oft falls out that necessity forbiddeth all set or solemn holy service for many dayes together even on the Lords Day So a Physicion may sometime be tyed to so close attendance on his Patients as will not allow him time for a set prayer so sometime a Preacher may be so taken up in preaching and exhorting and resolving peoples weighty doubts that they shall scarce have time for secret duties for some dayes together Though such happy impediments are rare In these cases to do the lesser is a sin when the greater is neglected § 10. 6. Servants who are not Masters of their time must be faithful in employing it to their Rule 6. Masters service and take none for holy duty from that part which they should work in but rather from their rest so far as they are able intermixing Meditations with their labours when they can But redeeming such time as is allowed them the more diligently because their opportunities are so rare and short § 11. 7. The Lords day excepting works of necessity and such vacancies as hinder not other Rule 7. work as when they travel on the way or work or wake in the night c. are every mans own time which he is not to alienate to anothers service but to reserve and use for the service of God and for his soul in holy duties § 12. 8. Some persons â—â—nnot bear much contemplation especially Melancholy and weak-headed Rule 8. people And such must serve God so much the more in other duties which they are able for and must not tire out and distract themselves with striving to do that which they are not able to undergo But others feel no inconvenience by it at all as I can speak by my own experience my weakness and decay of Spirits inclining me most to a dulness of mind I find that the most exciting serious studies and contemplations in the greatest solitude are so far from hurting me by any abatement of health or hilarity or serenity of mind that they seem rather a help to all Those that can thus bear long solitude and contemplation ought to be the more exercised in it except when greater duties must take place But to melancholy persons it is to be avoided as a hurt § 13. 9. To the same persons sometimes their own necessities require contemplation most and Rule 9. sometime action and so that which is at one time a duty may at another time be none § 14. 10. A meer sinful backwardness is not to be indulged A diseased disability such as Rule 10. comes from melancholy weak-headedness or decay of memory must be endured and not too much accused when Christ excused worse in his Disciples saying The Spirit is willing but the flesh is weak But a sinful backwardness in cases of absolute necessity is not at all to be endured but striven against with all your power what ever it cost you As to bring your selves to so much serious Consideration as is necessary to your Repentance and unfeigned faith and godly conversation this must be done whatever follow Though the Devil perswade you that it will make you melancholy or mad For without it you are far worse than mad § 15. 11. The most desirable life to those that have their choice is that which joyneth together Rule 11. Contemplation and Action so as there shall be convenient leisure for the most high and serious Contemplation and this improved to fit us for the most great and profitable Action And such is the life of a faithful Minister of Christ And therefore no sort of men on earth are more obliged to thankfulness than they § 16. 12. Servants and poor men and diseased men and others that are called off from much Rule 12. contemplation and employed in a life of obedient Action yea or suffering by the providence of God ☜ and not by their own sinful choice must understand that their Labour and Patience is the way of their acceptable attendance upon God in the expense of most part of their time And though it is madness in those that hope God will accept of their Labours instead of true Faith and Repentance and a godly life for these must go together and hinder not each other yet instead of such further contemplations as are not necessary to the being of a godly life a true Christian may believe that his obedient labours and sufferings shall be accepted If you set one servant to cast up an account and another to sweep your Chimney or Chanells you will not accept the former and reject the latter for the difference of their works But you will rather think that he hath most merited your acceptance who yielded without grudging to the basest service And doubtless it is an aggravation of acceptable obedience when we readily and willingly serve God in the lowest meanest work He is too fine to serve him who saith I will serve thee in the Magistracy or Ministry but not at Petrarch speaking of his intimacy and esteem with Kings and Princes addeth Multos tamen eorum quos valde amabam effugi tantus mihi fuit insitus amor liberta t is ut cujus vel nomen ipsum libertati vel illi esse contrarium videretur â—mni sâ—udio declinarâ—m In vita sua Plow or Cart or any such drâ—dgery And if thou be but in Gods way he can make thy very obedience a state of greater holiness and safety than if thou hadst spent all that time in the study of holy things as you see many ungodly Ministers do all their life time and are never the better for it It is not the quality of the work but Gods blessing that makes it do you
the Love of God we must be content to be shut out from the Love of God § 47. Inst. 9. Thus also the vulgar separate the Mercy and the Iustice of God! As if God knew Instance 9. not better than man to whom his mercy should extend And as if God be not merciful if he will be a righteous Governour and unless he will suffer all the world to spit in his face and blaspheme him and let his enemies go all unpunished § 48. Inst. 10. Thus many separate Threatnings and Promises Fear and Love a perfect Law and a pardonining Instance 10. Gospel As if he that is a man and hath both fear and Love in his nature must not make use of both for God and his salvation and the Law-giver might not fit his Laws to work on both As if Hell may not be feared and Heaven loved at once § 49. Inst. 11. Thus hypocrites separate in conceit their seeming Holiness and devotion to God from Instance 11. duties of Iustice and Charity to men As if they could serve God acceptably and disobey him wilfully Or as if they could love him whom they never saw and not love his Image in his works and children whom they daily see As if they could hate and persecute Christ in his little ones or at least neglect him and yet sincerely love him in himself § 50. Inst. 12. Thus by many Scripture and Tradition Divine faith and humane faith are commonly Instance 12. opposed Because the Papists have set Tradition is a wrong place many cast it away because it fits not that place When mans Tradition and Ministerial Revelation is necessary to make known and bring down Gods Revelation to us And a subservient Tradition is no disparagement to Scripture though a supplemental Tradition be And man must be believed as man though not as God! And he that will not believe man as man shall scarce know what he hath to believe from God § 51. Inst. 13. Thus many separate the sufficiency of the Law and Rule from the usefulness of an Instance 13. Officer Minister and Iudge As if the Law must be imperfect or else need no Execution and no Iudge for execution Or as if the Iudges execution were a supplement or addition to the Law As if the Question Who shall be the Iudge Did argue the Law of insufficiency and the promulgation and execution were not supposed § 52. Inst. 14. Thus also many separate the necessity of a publick Iudge from the lawfulness and Instance 14. necessity of a private judgement or discerning in all the rational subjects As if God and man did govern only Brutes or we could obey a Law and not judge it to be a Law and to be obeyed and not understand the sense of it and what it doth command us As if fools and mad men were the only subjects As if our learning of Christ as his Disciples and meditating day and night in his Law and searching for Wisdom in his Word were a disobeying him as our King As if it were a possible thing for subjects to obey without a private judgement of discretion Or as if there were any repugnancy between my judging what is the Kings Law and his judging whether I am punishable for disobeying it or as if judging our selves contradicted our being judged of God! § 53. Inst. 15. So many separate between the operation of the Word and Spirit the Minister and Instance 15. Christ As if the Spirit did not usually work by the Word and Christ did not preach to us by his Ministers and Embassadors And as if they might despise his Messengers and not be taken for despisers of himself Or might throw away the dish and keep the milk § 54. Inst. 16. Thus many separate the special Love of Saints from the common Love of man as man Instance 16. As if they could not Love a Saint unless they may hate an enemy and despise all others and deny them the Love which is answerable to their Natural Goodness § 55. Inst. 17. Thus many separate Universal or Catholick Union and Communion from particular Instance 17. And some understand no Communion but the Universal and some none but the particular Some say we separate from them as to Catholick Communion if we hold not local particular Communion with them yea if we joyn not with them in every mode As if I could be personally in ten thousand thousand Congregations at once or else did separate from them all Or as if I separated from all mankind if I differed from all men in my visage or complexion Or as if I cannot be absent from many thousand Churches and yet honour them as true Churches of Christ and hold Catholick communion with them in Faith Hope and Love Yea though I durst not joyn with them personally in Worship for fear of some sinful condition which they impose Or as if I need not be a member of any ordered worshipping Congregation because I have a Catholick faith and Love to all the Christians in the world § 56. Inst. 18. Thus are the outward and inward worship separated by many who think that all Instance 18. which the Body performeth is against the due spirituality or that the spirituality is but fansie and contrary to the form or outward part As if the heart and the knee may not fitly bow together nor decency of order concur with Spirit and truth § 57. Inst. 19. Thus many separate faith and obedience Pauls Iustification by faith without the Instance 19. works of the Law from Iames's Iustification by works and not by faith only and Christs Justification by our words Matth. 12. 37. And thus they separate free Grace and Iustification from any necessary condition and from the rewardableness of obedience which the Antients called Merit But of this at large elsewhere § 58. Inst. 20. And many separate Prudence and zeal meekness and resolution the wisdom of the Instance 20. Serpent and the innocency of the Dove yielding to no sin and yet yielding in things lawful maintaining our Christian liberty and yet becoming all things to all men if by any means we may save some These Instances are enow I will add no more § 59. Direct 18. Take heed of falling into factions and parties in Religion be the party great or Direct 18. small high or low in honour or dishonour and take heed lest you be infected with a factious censorious uncharitable hurting zeal For these are much contrary to the interest Will and Spirit of Christ Therefore among all your readings deeply suck in the doctrine of charity and peace and read much Reconciling moderating Authors Such as Drury Hall Davenant Crocius Bergius Martinius Amyraldus Dallaeus Testardus Calixtus Hottonus Junius Paraeus and Burroughs their Irenicons § 60. The reading of such Books extinguisheth the consuming flame of that infernal envious zeal described Iames 3. and kindleth charity and meekness and mellowness and
something else as necessary which is separable from this no wonder if you are perplexed and inclined to despair § 9. Direct 3. Understand the extent of this pardoning Covenant as to the sins which it pardâ—neth that Direct 3. it containeth the forgiveness of all sin without exception to them that perform the condition of it that is to Consenters So that directly no sin is excepted but the non-performance of the condition but conseâ—uently all sin is excepted and none at all forgiven by it to them that do not perform the condition Every conditional grant doth expresly except the non-performance of the condition by the making of it to be the condition He that saith All sin is forgiven to them that believe and repent and no other doth plainly import that not-believing and not-repenting is not forgiven while it continueth nor any other sin to such But to penitent believers or consenters all sin is pardoned Which made the Ancients say that all sin is washt away in Baptism supposing the person Baptized to be a meet Subject and to have the Condition of the Covenant which is by Baptism sealed and delivered to him § 10. Direct 4. Misunderstand not the excepted sin against the Holy Ghost which is no other than Direct 4. Though the trouble of 〈…〉 for a larger Discourse of this sin yet having 〈…〉 oâ—â— I must not here be 〈…〉 reâ—â—â—â—ng what is thâ—â—e â—aid alreadâ— an aggravated Non-performance and refusal of the condition of the Covenant viz. when Infidels are so obstinate in their Inâ—idelity that they will rather impute the Miracles of the Holy Ghost to the Devil than they will be convinced by them that Christ is the true Messias or Saviour This is the true nature of the sin against the Holy Ghost of which I have written the third Part of my Treatise against Infidelity So that no one hath the sin against the Holy Ghost that confesseth that Jesus is the Christ and Saviour or that confesseth the miracles done by Christ and his Apostles were done by the Holy Ghost or that confesseth the Gospel is true or that doth not justifie his sin and infidelity He must be a professed Infidel againâ—â— confessed Miracles that commits this sin And yet many despair because they fear they have committed this sin that never understood what it is nor have any reason but bare fear and some blaspâ—emous temptations which they abhor to make them imagine that this sin is theirs But the truth is in their fearing condition if any other sin had been as terribly spoken of they would have thought it is theirs § 11. Direct 5. Understand the Time to which the condition of the Gospel doth extend namely to the Direct 5. end of our life on earth The day of this grace hath no shorter end For the Gospel saith not He that believeth this year or the next shall be saved But absolutely without limitation to any time short of death He that believeth shall be saved so that to doubt whether true Repentance and faith will be accepted at any time before death is but to be ignorant of the Gospel or to doubt whether it be true And therefore for a despairing soul to say If I did repent it is too late because the day of Grace is past is but to contradict the Gospel-covenant it self or to say he knows not what God never refused a soul that truly Repented and believed before death § 12. Obj. 1. But they 'll say do not some Divines say that some mens day of Grace is sooner past Obj. 1. and God hath forsaken them and it is too late because they came not in in time Answ. They that understand what they say must say but this that this word the day of Grace Answ. hath divers senses 1. Properly by the day of Grace is meant The Time in which according to the When the day of Grace is past tenour of the Gospel God will pardon and accept those that repent And in this sense the time of life is the time of Graces whenever a sinner repenteth and is converted he is pardoned 2. Sometimes by the day of Grace is meant the time in which the means of grace is continued to a Nation or a Person And thus it is true that the day of grace is quicklyer past with some Countreys than others that is God sometimes taketh away the Preachers of his Gospel from a people that reject them and so by Preaching offereth them his grace no more But in this sense a man may easily know whether his day of grace be past or no that is whether Bibles and Books and Christians and Preachers be all gone or not And yet if they were he that receiveth Christ before they are gone is safe No man in his wits can think this day of grace is past with him while Christ is offered him or while there is a Bible or Preacher or Christian about him 3. Sometime by the day of grace is meant The certain time which we are sure of as our own And so it is only the present minute that is the time of grace that is we cannot before hand be sure of another minute But yet the next minute when it is come is as much the time of grace as the former was 4. Sometime by the day of grace is meant the Time in which God actually worketh and giveth grace and that is no more than the day of our Conversion And in this sense to have the day of grace past is a happiness and comfort that is that the day is past in which we were converted 5. And sometime by the day of grace is meant that day in which God moveth the hearts of the impenitent more strongly towards conversion than formerly he did And this is it that Divines mean when they talk of the day of Grace being past with men before their death ☞ that is Though such have never a day of effectuial grace yet their motions were stronger towards it than hereafter they shall be and they were fairer for Conversion than after when they are gone further from it This is true and this is all And what 's this to a soul that is willing to come in and ignorantly questioneth whether he shall be accepted because the day of grace is past § 13. Obj. 2. But Christ saith Luk. 19. 42. If thou hadst known in this thy day Obj. 2. Answ. That was the day of the Offers of Grace by Preaching we grant that Nations have but their Answ. day of enjoying the Gospel which they may shorten by sinning it away § 14. Obj. 3. But it s said of Esau that afterward when he would have inherited the blessing he was Obj. 3. rejected for he found no place of repentance though he sought it carefully with tears Heb. 12. 17. It seems then that Repentance in this life may be too late Answ. It 's true that Esau's time for the Blessing was past as
soon as Isaac had given it to Iacob Answ. When he had sold his birth-right it was too late to recall it for the right was made over to his Brother It seemeth to be Isaac's Repentance which â—â—aw found no place â—â—â—â— But â—â— it be spoken oâ— the unacceptableness of his own Repentance when it was too late it signifieth not that any mans is too late in this life as to 〈…〉 and it was not Repentance and cryes and tears that could recal the right he had sold nor recal the words that Isaac had spoken But this doth not prove that our day of grace doth not continue till death or that any man Repenting before his death shall be rejected as Esau's repentance was The Apostle neither saith nor meaneth any such thing The sense of his words are only this much Take heed lest there be any so prophane among you as to set so light by the blessings of the Gospel even Christ and life eternall as to part with them for a base lust or transitory thing as Esau that set more by a morsel of meat than by his birth-right For let them be sure that the time will come even the time mentioned by Christ Matth. 25. 10 11. when the door is shut and the Lord is come when they will dearly repent it and then as it was with Esau when the blessing was gone so it will be with them when their blessing is gone Repentance and cries and tears will be too late For the Gospel hath its justice and terrors as well as the Law This is all in the Text but there is no intimation that our day of Grace is as short as Esau's hope of the blessing was § 15. Obj. 4. Saul had but his time which when he lost he was forsaken of God Obj. 4. Answ. Saul's sin provoked God to reject him from being King of Israel and to appoint another in Answ. his stead But if Saul had Repented he had been saved after that though not restored to the Crown And its true that as God withdrew from him the spirit of Government so many before death by the greatness of their sins cause God to forsake them so far as to withhold those motions and convictions and fears and disquietments in sin which sometime they had and to give them over to a reprobate mind Rom. 1. 28. to commit all uncleanness with greediness and glory in it as being past feeling Eph. 4. 18 19. If it be thus with you you would be no better you would not be recovered you think sin is best for you and hate all that would reform you § 16. Obj. 5. It is said 2 Cor. 6. 2. Behold now is the accepted time behold now is the day of salvavation Obj. 5. And Heb. 3. 7 12 13. To day if ye will hear his voice harden not your hearts lest any of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin Answ. This saith no more than that the present time is the hest yea the only certain time and we Answ. are not sure that the day of salvation will continue any longer because death may cut us off But if it do not yet sin is a hardening thing and the longer we sin the more it hardeneth yea God may withhold the motions of his spirit and leave us to our selves to the hardness of our hearts and thus he doth by thousands of wicked persons who are left in impenitency and hatred of the truth But most certainly if those men Repented they might be saved and the very reason why they have not Christ and life is still because they will not consent § 17. Direct 6. Understand by what help and strength it is that the Obedience to the Gospel must be Direct 6. performed not meerly by your own strength but by the help of grace and strength of Christ If he have but made you willing he will help you to perform the rest You are not by this Covenant to be a Saviour and sanctifier to your selves but to Consent that Christ be your Saviour and the Holy Spirit your Sanctifier You might else despair indeed if you were left to that which you are utterly unable to do Though you must work out your own salvation with fear and trembling it is he that worketh in you to will and to do of his good pleasure Phil. 2. 13. § 18. Direct 7. Understand well the difference between mortal sins and Infirmities that you may not Direct 7. think that every sin is a sign of death or gracelesness but may know the difference between those sins which should make you think your selves unjustified and those sins which only call for particular humiliation being such as the justified themselves commit Though in the Popish sense we take no sin to be venial that is which in it self is properly no sin nor deserveth death according to the Law of works yet the distinction between Mortal and Venial sin is of very great necessity that is between sins which prove a man De quâ vide Tract Râ—b Baâ—oâ—â—â—â— Of Mortal and Venial sin in a state of death or unjustified and sins which consist with a state of Grace and justification between sins which the Gospel pardoneth not and those which it pardoneth that is all that stand with true Repentance There are some sins which every one that Repenteth of them doth so forsake as to cease committing them And there are some lesser sins which they that Repent of them do hate indeed but yet frequently renew as our defective degrees in the exercise of Repentance it self faith love trust fear obedience our vain thoughts and words some sinful passions omissions of many duties of thought affection word or deed towards God or man some minutes of time over-slip us prayer and other duties have a sinful coldness or remissness in them and such like Many such sins are fitly called Infirmities and Venial because they consist with Life and are forgiven It is of great use to the peace of our Consciences to discern the difference between these two for one sort require a Conversion to another state and the other require but a particular repentance and where they are unknown are forgiven without particular repentance because our general repentance is virtually though not actually particular as to them One sort are cause of judging our selves ungodly and the other sort are only cause of filial humiliation Any one may see the great need of discerning the difference but yet it is a matter of very great judgement doctrinally to distinguish them much more actually to discern them in every instance in your selves The way is to know first what is the condition of the New-Covenant and of absolute necessity to salvation or justification and then every sin that is inconsistent with that condition is mortal and the rest that are consistent and do consist with it are venial or but infirmities As Venial signifieth only that sort of sin which is
pound of â—â—m 〈…〉 but a pâ—nny â—â— thâ— nâ—â—â—â— Because â—aith he I may oft receive of them but God knows whether ever I shall have more of him Laert. in Diog. Prov. 28. 19. scattereth and yet increaseth Prov. 11. 24. But this is not the issue of thy scattering Prov. 23. 19 20 21. Hear thou my son and be wise and guide thy heart in the way Be not amongst wine bibbers amongst riotous eaters of flesh For the Drunkard and the Glutton shall come to poverty and drowsiness shall cloath a man with rags § 28. 5. Thou art an enemy to thy family Thou grievest thy friends Thou impoverishest thy children and robbest those whom thou art bound to make provision for Thou fillest thy house with discontents and brawlings and banishest all quietness and fear of God A discontented or a brawling wife and ragged dissolute untaught Children are often signs that a Drunkard or Riotous person is the mâ—â—â—â—er of the family § 29. 6. Thou art a heynous consumer of thy pretious Time This is far worse than the wasting of thy estate O that thou didst but know as thou shalt know at last what those hours are worth which thou wastest over thy pots and how much greater work thou hadst to lay it out upon How many thousands in Hell are wishing now in vain that they had those hours again to spend in prayer and repentance which they spent in the ALE-house and senselesly cast away with their companions in sin Is the glass turned upon thee and death posting towards thee to put an end to all thy time and â—ay thee where thou must dwell for ever and yet canst thou sit tipling and prating away thy time as if this were all that thou hadst to do with it O what a wonder of sottishness and stupidity is a hardned sinner that can live so much below his reason The senses neglect of thy souls concernment and greater matters is the great part of thy sin more than the drunkenness it self § 30. 7. How base a Price dost thou set upon thy Saviour and salvation that wilt not forbear so much as a cup of drink for them The smallness of the thing sheweth the smallness of thy Love to God and the smallness of thy regard to his word and to thy soul. Is that loving God as God when thou lovest a cup of drink better Art thou not ashamed of thy Hypocrisie when thou saiest thou lovest God above all when thou lovest him not so well as thy Wine and Ale Surely he that loveth him not above Ale loveth him not above all Thy choice sheweth what thou lovest best more certainly than thy tongue doth It is the dish that a man greedily eateth of that he loveth and not that which he â—â—h 14 15. â— Jâ—â— 5. 2 3. commendeth but will not meddle with God tryeth mens Love to Him by their keeping his commandments It was the aggravation of the first sin that they would not deny so small a thing as the forbidden fruit in obedience to God! And so it is of thine that wilt not leave a forbidden cup for him O miserable wretch dost thou not know thou canst not be Christ Disciple if thou forsake not all for him and hate not even thy life in comparison of him and wouldst not rather die than forsake him Luk. 14. 26 33. And art thou like to lay down thy life for him that wilt not leave a cup of drink for him Canst thou burn at a stake for him that canst not leave an ALE-house or vain company or excess for him What a sentence of condemnation dost thou pass upon thy self Wilt thou â—â—ll thy God and thy soul for so small a matter as a cup of drink Never delude thy self to say I hope I do not so when thou knowest that God hath told thee in his word that Drunkards shall not inherit the Kingdom of God 1 Cor. 6. 10. Nay God hath commanded those that will come to Heaven to have no familiarity with thee upon earth no not so much as to eat with thee 1 Cor. 5. 11. Read what Christ himself saith Matth. 24. 48 49 50 51. But if that evil servant shall say in his heart My Lord delayeth his coming and shall begin to smite his fellow servants and to eat and to drink with the drunken the Lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him and in an hour that he is not aware of and shall cut him asunder and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth Read Deut. 29. 19 20. If when thou hearest the words of Gods curse thou bless thy self in thy heart and say I shall have peace though I walk in the imagination of my heart to add drunkenness to thirst the Lord will not spare that man but then the anger of the Lord and his jealousie shall smoak against him and all the curses that are written in this Book shall lye upon him and the Lord shall blot out his name from under Heaven and the Lord shall separate him to evil Thou seest here how God will spice thy Cups § 31. 8. Thou art the shame of humane nature Thou representest man in the likeness of a Beast And a shame to thy fâ—mâ—ly As its said thâ—â— Ciâ—â—ro's son pâ—oved a drunkard to whom he directed his Book de offiâ—iâ—sâ— which is made his fathers reproach and worse As if he were made but instead of a Barrel or a sink Look on a drunkard filthing and spewing and reeling and bawling and see if he be not uglyer than a bruit Thou art a shame to thy own Reason when thou shewest the world that it cannot so much as shut thy mouth nor prevail with thee in so small a thing Wrong not Reason so much as to call thy self Rational and wrong not mankind so much as to call thy self a man Non homo sed ampbora said one of Bonâ—sus the drunken Emperour when he was hang'd It is a barrel and not a man § 32. 9. Thou destroyest that Reason which is the Glory of thy Nature and the natural part of the Image of God upon thy mind If thou shouldst deface the Kings Armes or Image in any publick place and set in the stead of it the image of a dog would it not be a Traiterous contempt How much worse is it to do thus by God If thou didst mangle and deform thy body it were less in this respect for it is not thy body but thy soul that is made after the Image of God Hath God given thee Reason for such high and excellent ends and uses and wilt thou dull it and drown it in obedience to thy throat Thy Reason is of higher value than thy house or land or money and yet thou wilt not cast them away so easily Had God made thee an ideot or mad and lunatick thy case had been to be pityed but to make thy self mad and despise
dreams and lustful dreams and hath its ill effects by night and by day § 4. Direct 2. Endeavour the cure of those sinful distempers of the mind which cause sinful dreams Direct 2. The cure of a worldly mind is the best way to cure worldly covetous dreams And the cure of a lustful heart is the best way to cure lustful dreams and so of the rest Cleanse the fountain and the waters will be the sweeter day and night § 5. Direct 3. Suffer not your Thoughts or tongue or actions to run sinfully upon that in the day Direct 3. which you would not dream sinfully of in the night Common experience telleth us that our dreams Cogitationeâ— sanctiores sequuntur somnâ—a blandiora delectabilioria Greg. Moral are apt to follow our foregoing thoughts and words and deeds If you think most frequently and affectionately of that which is good you will dream of that which is good If you think of lustful filthy objects or speak of them or meddle with them you will dream of them and so of covetous and ambitious dreams And they that make no conscience to sin waking are not like much to scruple sinning in their sleep § 6. Direct 4. Commend your selves to God by prayer before you take your rest and beseech him to Direct 4. set a guard upon your fantasie when you cannot guard it Cast the cure upon him and fly to him for help by faith and prayer in the sense of your insufficiency § 7. Direct 5. Let your last Thoughts still before your sleep be holy and yet quieting and consolatory Direct 5. thoughts The dreams are apt to follow our last Thoughts If you betake your selves to sleep Iturus in somnum aliquid tecum defer in memoria cogitatione in quo placide obdormies quod etiam somniare juvet sic tibi noâ— ut dies illuminatur in deliciis tuis placide obdormies in pace quiesces facilè evigilabis surgens promptus eris ad redeundum in id unde non totus discessisti with worldliness or vanity in your minds you cannot expect to be wiser or better when you are asleep than when you are awake But if you shut up your dayes thoughts with God and sleep find them upon any Holy subject it is like to use them as it finds them Yet if it be distrustful unbelieving fearful thoughts which you conclude with your dreams may savour of the same distemper Frightful and often sinful dreams do follow sinful doubts and fears But if you sweeten your last Thoughts with the Love of Christ and the remembrance of your former mercies or the foresight of eternal joyes or can confidently cast them and your selves upon some promise it will tend to the quietness of your sleep and to the savouriness of your dreams And if you should dye before morning will it not be most desirable that your last thoughts be holy § 8. Direct 6. When you have found any corruption appearing in your dreams make use of them Direct 6. for the renewing of your repentance and exciting your endeavours to mortifie that corruption A corruption may be perceived in dreams 1. When such dreams as discover it are frequent 2. When they are earnest and violent 3. When they are pleasing and delightful to your fantasies Not that any certain knowledge can be fetcht from them but some conjecture as added to other signs As if you should frequently earnestly and delightfully dream of preferments and honours or the favour of great men suspect ambition and do the more to discover and mortifie it If it be of riches and gain and money suspect a covetous mind If it be of revenge or hurt to any man that you distaste suspect some malice and quickly mortifie it So if it be of lust or feasting or drinking or vain recreations sports and games do the like § 9. Direct 7. Lay no greater stress upon your dreams than there is just cause As 1. When you Direct 7. have searcht and find no such sin prevailing in you as your dreams seem to intimate do not conclude that you have more than your waking evidence discovers Prefer not your sleeping signs before your waking signs and search 2. When you are conscious that you indulge no corruption to occasion such a dream suppose it not to be faulty of it self and lay not the blame of your bodily temperament or unknown causes upon your soul with too heavy and unjust a charge 3. Abhor the presumptuous folly of those that use to prognosticate by their dreams and measure their expectations by them and cast themselves into hopes or fears by them Saith Diogenes What fâ—lly is it to be careless of your waking thoughts and actions and inquisitive about your dreams A mans happiness or misery lyeth upon what he doth when he is awake and not upon what he suffereth in his sleep CHAP. IX See the Directions for holy Conference Tâ— 2. â—â— 1â— Directions for the Government of the Tongue Tit. 1. The General Directions § 1. Direct 1. UNderstand in general of what moment and concernment it is that the Tongue Direct 1. be well governed and used For they that think words are inconsiderable will use them inconsiderately The conceit that words are of small moment as some say of Thoughts that they are free doth cause men to use their Tongues as if they were free saying Our lips are our own who is Lord over us Psal. 12. 4. § 2. 1. The tongue of man is his glory by which expressively he excelleth the brutes And a The Greatness of the sins and duties of the Tongue Psal. 57. 8. Psal. 16. 9. Psal. 30 12. wonderful work of God it is that a mans tongue should be able to articulate such an exceeding number of words And God hath not given man so admirable a faculty for vanity and sin The nobler and more excellent it is the more to be regarded and the greater is the fault of them that do abuse it Hilary compareth them to an ill Barber that cuts a mans face and so deformeth him when his work was to have made him more neat and comely So it is the Office of the tongue to be excellently serviceable to the good of others and to be the glory of mankind The shame therefore of its faults is the more unexcusable § 3. 2. The tongue is made to be the Index or expresser of the mind Therefore if the mind Matth. 7 16 17 18. Matth. 12. 33 34. be regardable the tongue is regardable And if the mind be not regardable the man is not regardable For our Lord telleth us that the Tree is known by its fruit an evil Tree bringeth forth evil fruits and out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh And Aristotle saith that Such as Lingua index menâ—is Aristippus being asked Quid differat sapiens ab insipiente Mitte inquit ambos nudos ad ignotos disces
Laert. in Aristip. a man is such are his speeches such his works and such his life Therefore by vain or sinful words you tell men the vanity and corruption of your minds § 4. 3. Mens works have a great dependance on their words Therefore if their deeds be regardable their words are regardable Deeds are stirred up or caused by words Daily experience telleth us the power of speech A speech hath saved a Kingdom and a speech hath lost a Kingdom Great actions depend on them and greater consequents § 5. 4. If the men that we speak to be regardable words are regardable For words are powerful instruments of their good or hurt God useth them by his Ministers for mens conversion and salvation And Satan useth them by his Ministers for mens subversion and damnation How many thousand souls are hurt every day by the words of others Some deceived some puffed up some hardned and some provoked to sinful passions And how many thousand are every day edified by words either instructed admonished quickned or comforted Paul saith The weapons of our warfare are 2 Cor. 10. 4. mighty through God And Pythagoras could say that Tongues cut deeper than swords because they reach even to the soul Tongue sins and duties therefore must needs be great § 6. 5. Our Tongues are the Instruments of our Creators praise purposely given us to speak good of Psal. 66. 2. â—â— 2 135. 3. 148. 13. â—9 2. 100. his Name and to declare his works with rejoycing It is no small part of that service which God expects from man which is performed by the Tongue nor a small part of the end of our Creation The use of all our highest faculties parts and graces are expressively by the Tongue Our Wisdom and Knowledge our Love and Holiness are much lost as to the Honour of God and the good of others if not expressed The tongue is the Lanthorn or Casement of the soul by which it looketh out and shineth unto others Therefore the sin or duty of so noble an instrument are not to be made light of by any that regard the honour of our Maker § 7. 6. Our words have a great reflection and operation upon our own hearts As they come from them so they recoil to them as in prayer and conference we daily observe Therefore for our own good or hurt our words are not to be made light of § 8. 7. Gods Law and Iudgement will best teach you what regard you should have to words Christ telleth you that by your words you shall be justified and by your words you shall be condemned Matth. Matth. 12. 32. They who use but few words need not many Laws said Charyllus when he was asked why â—yâ—â—â—â—gus made so few Laws Pâ—â—t Apophâ—hâ—g p. 423. 12. 37. And it is words of Blasphemy against the Holy Ghost which are the unpardonable sin Jam. 3. 2. If any man offend not in word the same is a perfect man and able to bridle the whole body v. 6. The tongue is a fire a world of iniquity so is the tongue amongst our members that it defileth the whole body and setteth on fire the course of nature and it is set on fire of Hell Jam. 1. 26. If any man among you seem to be Religious and bridleth not his tongue but deceiveth his own heart this mans Religion is vain 1 Pet. 3. 10. For he that will love life and see good dayes let him refrain his tongue from evil and his lips that they speak no guile Matth. 12. 36. But I say unto you that every idle word that men shall speak they shall give account thereof in the day of judgement The third Commandment telleth us that God will not hold him guiltless that taketh his Name in vain And Psal. 15. 1 2 3. Speaking the truth in his heart and not backbiting with the tongue is the mark of him that shall abide in Gods Tabernacle and dwell in his holy Hill And the very work of Heaven is said to be the perpetual praising of God Rev. 14. 11. Judge now how God judgeth of your words § 9. 8. And some conjecture may be made by the judgement of all the world Do you not care your selves what men speak of you and to you Do you not care what language your children or servants or neighbours give you Are not words against the King treasonable and capital as well as deeds The wheel of affairs or course of nature is set on fire by words Jam. 3. 6. I may conclude then with Prov. 18. 21. Death and life are in the power of the tongue and Prov. 21. 23. Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from trouble § 10. Direct 2. Understand well and remember the particular duties of the Tongue For the meer Direct 2. restraint of it from evil is not enough And they are these 1. To glorifie God by the magnifying of The Duties of the Tongue his Name To speak of the praises of his Attributes and Works 2. To sing Psalms of Praise to him and delight our souls in the sweet commemoration of his excellencies 3. To give him thanks for the mercies already received and declare to others what he hath done for our souls and bodies for Plato Rectâ— diceâ—e in quatuor scindit 1. Quid dicere oportet 2. Quam multa dicere 3. Ad quos 4. Quando sit dicendum Ea oportet dicere quae sint utilia dicenti auditori Nec nimis multa nec pauciora quam satis est Sâ—ad peccâ—ntes seniores dicendum sit verba illi aetati congrua loquamur sin vero ad juniores dicâ—ndum sit majore autoritate uâ—amur in dicendo Laâ—rt in Plat. his Church and for the world 4. To pray to him for what we want and for our brethren for the Church and for the conversion of his and our enemies 5. To appeal to him and swear by his Name when we are called to it lawfully 6. To make our necessary Covenants and Vows to him and to make open profession of our belief subjection and obedience to him before men 7. To preach his Word or declare it in discourse and to teach those that are committed to our care and edifie the ignorant and erroneous as we have opportunity 8. To defend the truth of God by conference or disputation and consute the false doctrine of deceivers 9. To exhort men to their particular duties and to reprove their particular sins and endeavour to do them good as we are able 10. To confess our own sins to God and man as we have occasion 11. To crave the advice and help of others for our souls and enquire after the will of God and the way to salvation 12. To praise that which is good in others and speak good of all men superiours equals and inferiors so far as there is just ground and cause 13. To bear witness to the truth when we are called
holy things should be preferred as on the Lords day or at the time of publick worship or when the company occasion or opportunity call for holy speeches Worldlings are talking as Saul of their Asses when they should talk of a Kingdom 1 Sam. 9. 10. To speak about your Callings and common affairs is lawful so it be moderately and in season But when you talk all of the world and vanity and never have done and will scarce have any other talk in your mouths and even on Gods day will speak your own words Isa. 58. 13. this is prophane and sinful speaking § 23. 12. Another common sin of the Tongue is a tempting and perswading others to sin enticing them to gluttony drunkenness wantonness sornication or any other crime as men that not only do the same but have pleasure in them that do them Rom. 1. 32. This is to be the instruments and servants of the Devil and most directly to do his work in the world The same I may say of unjust excusing extenuating or defending the sins of others or commanding alluring affrighting or encouraging them thereto § 24. 13. Another is a carnal manner of handling the sacred things of God as when it is done with lightness or with unsuitable curiosity of words or in a ludicrous toyish manner especially by the Preachers of the Gospel themselves and not with a style that 's grave and serious agreeable to the weight and majesty of the truth § 25. 14. Another is an imprudent rash and slovenly handling of holy things when they are spoken Didy 〈…〉 on 〈◊〉 3. of 〈◊〉 the Toâ—gue saith Non putandum est de peccato prolativi sermonis quae solaecismos barbatismos quidam vocant haec fuisse dicta of so ignorantly unskilfully disorderly or passionately as tendeth to dishonour them and frustrate the desired good success § 26. 15. Another sin of the tongue is the reviling or dishonouring of superiours When Children speak unreverently and dishonourably to or of their Parents or Subjects of their Governours or servants of their Masters either to their faces or behind their backs 2 Pet. 2. 10. They are not afraid to speak evil of dignities Jud. 8. § 27. 16. Another is the imperious contempt of inferiours insulting over them provoking and discouraging them Ephes. 6. 4. Fathers provoke not your Children to wrath § 28. 17. Another sin of the Tongue is Idle talk and multitude of useless words a babling loquacity or unprofitableness of speech when it is speech that tendeth to no edification nor any good use for mind or body or affairs § 29. 18. Another sin is Foolish talk or jeasting in levity and folly which tendeth to possess the minds of the hearers with a disposition of levity and folly like the speakers Ephes. 5. 4. Foolish talking and jeasting are things not convenient Honest mirth is lawful and that is the best which is most sanctified as being from a holy principle and about a holy matter or to a holy end as Rejoycing in the Lord always Phil. 4. 4. If any be merry let him sing Psalms Jam. 5. 13. But such a light and frothy jeasting as is but the vent of habitual levity by idle words is not allowable But especially those persons do most odiously abuse their tongues and Reason who counterfeit ideots or fools and use their wit to cover their jeasts with a seeming folly to make them the more ridiculous and make it their very profession to be the jeasters of great men They make a trade of heynous sin § 30. 19. Another sin is Filthy speaking Ephes. 5. 4. Obscene and ribbald talk which the Apostle calls corrupt or rotten communication Ephes. 4. 29. when wanton filthy minds do make themselves merry with wanton filthy speeches This is the Devils preparative to whoredom and all abominable uncleanness For when the tongue is first taught to make a sport of such filthy sins and the ear to be delighted in it or be indifferent to it there remaineth but a small step to actual filthiness § 31. 20. Another sin of the tongue is cursing when men wish some mischief causlesly or unwarrantably to others If you speak but in passion or jeast and desire not to them in your hearts the hurt which you name it is nevertheless a sin of the tongue as it is to speak blasphemy or treason in a passion or in jeast The tongue must be ruled as well as the heart But if really you desire the hurt which you wish them it is so much the worse But it is worst of all when passionate factious men will turn their very prayers into cursings calling for fire from Heaven and praying for other mens destruction or hurt and pretending Scripture examples for it as if they might do it unwarrantably which others have done in other cases in a warrantable manner § 32. 21. Slandering is another sin of the tongue when out of malice and ill will men speak evil falsly of others to make them odious or do them hurt Or else through uncharitable credulity do easily believe a false report and so report it again to others or through rashness and unruliness of tongue divulge it before they try it or receive either just proof or any warrantable call to mention it 5. 33. 22. Another sin is Backbiting and venting ill reports behind mens backs without any warrant Be the matter true or false as long as you either know it not to be true or if you do yet vent it to make the person less respected or at least without a sufficient cause it is a sin against God and a wrong to men § 34. 23. Another sin is rash censuring when you speak that evil of another which you have but Existimant loquacitatem esse facundiam maledicere omnibus bonae conscientiae signum arbritrantur Hieron Cont. Helâ—id an uncharitable surmise of and take that to be probable which is but possible or that to be certain which is but probable against another § 35. 24. Another sin is Railing reviling or passionate provoking words which tend to the diminution of charity and the breach of peace and the stirring up of discord and of a return of railing words from others contrary to the Love and patience and meekness and gentleness which becometh Saints § 36. 25. Another sin is cheating deceiving over-reaching words when men use their tongues to defraud their Neighbours in bargaining for their own gain § 37. 26. Another sin of the tongue is false witness-bearing and false accusing a sin which crys to God for vengeance who is the justifier of the innocent § 38. 27. Another sin of the tongue is the passing an unrighteous sentence in judgement when Rulers absolve the guilty or condemn the just and call evil good and good evil and say to the Righteous Thou art wicked Prov. 24. 24. § 39. 28. Another sin of the Tongue is Flattery which is the more heynous by how much more hurtful And it
Wilderness than with a contentious angry woman Prov. 29. 22. An angry man stirreth up strife and a furious man aboundeth in transgression There is no ruling the tongue if you cannot rule the passions Therefore it 's good counsel Prov. 22. 24. Make no friendship with an angry man and with a furious man thou shalt not go lest thou learn his way and get a snare to thy soul. § 47. Direct 9. Foresee your opportunities of profitable discourse and your temptations to evil Direct 9. speeches For we are seldom throughly prepared for sudden unexpected accidents Consider when you go forth what company you are like to fall into and what good you are like to be called to or what evil you are likest to be tempted to especially consider the ordinary stated duties and temptations of your daily company and converse § 48. Direct 10. Accordingly besides your aforesaid general preparations be prepared particularly Direct 10. for these duties and those temptations carry still about with you some special preservatives against those particular sins of speech which you are most in danger of and some special provisions and helps to those duties of speech which you may be called to As a Surgeon will carry about with him his instruments and Salves which he is like to have use for among the persons that he hath to do with And as a Traveller will carry such necessaries still with him as in his travail he cannot be without If you are to converse with angry men be still furnished with patience and firm resolutions to give place to wrath Rom. 12. 19. If you are to converse with ignorant ungodly men go furnished with powerful convincing reasons to humble them and change their minds If you are to go amongst the cavilling or scorning enemies of holiness go furnished with well digested arguments for the defence of that which they are likest to oppose that you may shame and stop the mouths of such gainsayers This must be done by the word of the spirit which is the word of God Ephes. 6. 17. Therefore be well acquainted with the Scripture and with particular plain Texts for each particular use By them the man of God is compleat throughly furnished to every good work 2 Tim. 3. 17. § 49. Direct 11. Continually walk as in the presence of God and as under his Government and Direct 11. Law and as those that are passing on to Iudgement Ask your selves whatever you say 1. Whether Psal. 1 9. 4. it be fit for God to hear 2. Whether it be agreeable to his holy Law 3. Whether it be such speech as you would hear of at the day of judgement If it be speech unmeet for the hearing of a grave and reverend man will you speak it before God will you speak wantonly or filthily or foolishly or maliciously when God forbiddeth it and when he is present and heareth every word and when you must certainly give account to him of all § 50. Direct 12. Pray every morning to God for preservation from the sins of speech that you are Direct 12. lyable to that day Commit the custody of your tongues to him Not so as to think your selves discharged of it but so as to implore and trust his grace Pray as David Psal. 141. 3 4. Set a watch O Lord before my mouth keep the door of my lips encline not my heart to any evil thing and that the Psal. 19. 14. words of your mouth and the meditations of your heart may be acceptable to him § 51. Direct 13. Make it part of your continual work to watch your tongues Carelesness and negligence Direct 13. will not serve turn in so difficult a work of government Iames telleth you that to tame and rule the tongue is harder than to tame and rule wild beasts and birds and serpents and as the ruling of a horse by the bridle and of a Ship that 's driven by fierce winds and that the tongue is an unruly evil and that he that offendeth not in word is a perfect man and able also to bridle the whole body Jam. 3. Make it therefore your study and work and watch it continually § 52. Direct 14. Call your tongues daily to account and ask your selves what evil you have Direct 14. spoken and what good you have omitted every day and be humbled before God in the penitent confession of the sin which you discover and renew your resolution for a stricter watch for the time to come If your servant be every day faulty and never hear of it he will take it as no fault and be little careful to amend Nay you will remember your very Ox of his fault when he goeth out of the Furrow by a prick or stroke and your Horse when he is faulty by a spur or rod And do you think if you let your selves even your tongues be faulty every day and never tell them of it or call them to account that they are ever like to be reformed and not grow careless and accustomed to the sin Your first care must be for preventing the sin and doing the duty saying as David Psalm 39. 1 2 3. I said I will take heed to my ways that I offend not with my tongue I will keep my mouth with a bridle while the wicked is before me I was dumb with silence I held my peace Psalm 35. 28. My tongue shall speak of thy righteousness and of thy praise all the day long Psal. 71. 24. Psal. 119. 172. My tongue shall speak of thy word Psalm 45. 1. My tongue is as the pen of a ready writer But your next care must be to repent of the faults which you commit and to judge your selves for them and reform Remembering that there is not a word in your tongues but it is altogether known to God Psalm 139. 4. § 53. Direct 15. Make use of a faithful monitor or reprover We are apt through custom and partiality Direct 15. to overlook the faults of our own speech A friend is here exceeding useful Desire your friend therefore to watch over you in this And amend what he telleth you of And be not so foolish as to take part with your fault against your friend Tit. 2. Special Directions against prophane swearing and using Gods name unreverently and in vain § 1. I. TO swear is an affirming or denying of a thing with an appeal to some other thing or person as a witness of the truth or avenger of the untruth who is not producible as Witness What an Oath is or Iudge in humane courts An affirmation or negation is the matter of an oath The peculiar appellation is the form It is not every appeal or attestation that maketh an Deu 6. 13 10 20. oath To appeal to such a witness as is credible and may be produced in the Court from a partial incredible witness is no oath To appeal from an incompetent Iudge or an inferior Court to
qualifications and your mirth and sporting talk will not be idle 1. Let it be such and so much as is useful to maintain that cheerfulness of mind and alacrity of spirits which is profitable to your health and duty For if bodily recreations be lawful then tongue-recreations are lawful when they are accommodate to their end 2. Let your speech be savoury seasoned with salt and not corrupt and rotten communication Jeast not with filthiness or sin 3. Let it be harmless to others Make not your selves merry with the sins or miseries of other men Jeast not to their wrong 4. Let it be seasonable and not when another frame of mind is more convenient nor when graver or weightier discourse should take place 5. Let it be moderate and not excessive either wasting time in vain or tending to habituate the mind of the speakers or hearers to levity or to estrange them from things that should be preferred 6. See that all your mirth and speech be sanctified by a holy end that your intent in all be to whet your spirits and cheer up and fit your selves for the service of God as you do in eating and drinking and all other things 7. And mix with cautelous reverence some serious things that the end and use be not forgotten and your mirth may not be altogether as empty and fruitless as that of the unsanctified is Sporting pleasant and recreating talk is not vain but lawful upon these conditions 8. Still remembring that the most holy and profitable discourse Iam. 5. 13. Is any merry Let him sing Psalms What is idle talk The sorts of it Otiosum verbum est quod justae necessitatis aut intentione piae utilitatis ca 〈…〉 t. Gregor Moral must be most pleasant to us and we must not through a weariness of it divert to carnal mirth as more desirable but only use natural honest mirth as a necessary concomitant to exhilerate the spirits § 5. Idle or vain words then are such as are unprofitable and tend not to do good I here forbear to speak of those Idle words which are also worse than vain as mentioned before among the sins of the tongue Idle words are 1. Either simply such which tend to no good at all 2. Or comparatively such which are about some small or inconsiderable good when you should be speaking of greater things The former sort are always idle and therefore always sinful The latter sort are sometimes lawful in themselves that is when greater matters are not to be talked of In its season it is lawful to speak about the saving of a penny or a point or a pin But out of season when greater matters are in hand this is but idle sinful talk § 6. Also there is a great deal of difference between now and then an Idle word and a babling prating custom by which it becometh the daily practice of some loose-tongued persons so that the greater part of the words of all their lives are meerly vain § 7. The particular kinds of Idle talk are scarce to be numbred Some of them are these § 7. 1. When the tongue is like a vagrant beggar or masterless dog that is never in the way and never out of the way being left to talk at random about any unprofitable matter that comes before it And such will never want matter to talk of every thing they see or hear is the subject of their chat And one word begetteth occasion and matter for another without end § 8. 2. Another sort of idle talk is the vain discourses by word or writing of some learned 1 Cor. 3. 20. Rom. 1. 21. men in which they bestow an excessive multitude of words about some small impertinent thing not to edifie but to shew their wit which Sâ—neca reprehends at large § 9. 3. Another sort of idle talk is vain and immoderate Disputings about the smaller circumstances oâ— Religion or frequent discourses about such unedifying things while greater matters should be talkt of Tit. 3. 9. But avoid foolish questions and genealogies and contentions and strivings about the Law for they are unprofitable and vain 1 Tim. 1. 5 6 7. Now the end of the Commandment is charity out of a pure â—eart and of a good Conscience and of faith unfeigned from which some having swerved have turned aside unto vain jangling desiring to be teachers of the Law understanding neither what they say nor whereof they affirm 1 Tim. 6. 20. O Timothy keep that which is committed to thy trust avoiding profane and vain bablings and opposition of sciences falsly so called which some professing have erred concerning the faith 2 Tim. 2. 16. But shun prophane and vain bablings for they will increase unto more ungodliness Tit. 1. 10 11. There are many unruly and vain talkers c. § 10. 4. Another sort of Idle talk is the using of a needless multitude of words even about that â—â—â—â—â— â—5 16. Saith Hugo thâ—re is a time when â—o â—â—ag and a time when soâ—â—thia should be spâ—ken but never â— time whâ—n All should be spoken which is good and necessary in it self but might better be opened in a briefer manner Even in preaching or praying words may be vain which is when they are not suited to the matter and the hearers For you must note that the same words are necessary to one sort of hearers which are vain as to another sort And therefore as Ministers must take heed that they suit their manner of speech to their auditors so hearers must take heed lest they censoriously and rashly call that vain which is unnecessary to them or such as they There may be present many ignorant persons that the preacher is better acquainted with than you And the ignorant lose that which is concisely uttered They must have it at large in many words and oft râ—peated or else they understand it not or remember not that which they understand But yet a real excess of words even about holy things must be avoided Eccles. 5. 23. Be not rash with thy mouth and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God The Spartans banished an Oraâ—or for saying He could speak all day of any suoâ—ect â—â—asn See the Manual of prayers printed at 〈◊〉 1658. pag. 507. for God is in Heaven and thou upon earth therefore let thy words be few for a dream cometh through the multitude of business and a fools voice is known by the multitude of words Two causes of idle words in prayer must be avoided 1. Emptiness and rashness 2. Affectation that is 1. Affectation to words as if you should be heard for saying so many words over and over as the Papists in their Iesus Psalter say over the name Iesu nine times together and those nine times fifteen times over besides all their repetitions of it in the petitions themselves between So in the Titles of the B. Virgin in her Litany p. 525. Hypocrites in all ages and Religions have the same
Ephes. 5. 18 19. Be not drunk with Wine wherein is excess but be filled with the Spirit speaking to your selves in Psalms and Hymns and spiritual Songs singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord giving thanks alwayes for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Iesus Psal 119. 172. Psal. 49 3 3â— 28. Christ 1 Pet. 4. 11. If any man speak let him speak as the Oracles of God Sinful omission of good discourse is the cause of sinful commission of vanity Specially when the heart it self is vain For as a man is so is he apt to speak 1 John 4. 5. They are of the world therefore speak they of the world Isa. 32. 6. For the vile person will speak villany and his heart will work iniquity to practise hypocrisie and to utter error against the Lord. § 34. Direct 5. Walk alwayes with God as in his presence and in the awe of his Laws and judgement Direct 5. that conscience may be kept awake and tender You will be restrained from vain talk if you perceive Jer. 8. 6. Prov. 6. 22. Psal. 7â— 12. 105 2. 114. 27. 149. 11. that God is hearing you and if you remember that your tongue is under a Law and that for every idle word men shall give account in the day of judgement Matth. 12. 36 37. and that by your words you shall be justified or condemned If the Law of God were in your hearts Psal. 40. 8. and hidden there Psal. 119. 11. Your heart would be fixed Psal. 57. 7. His word then would be the rejoycing of your heart Psal. 119. 111. and your tongues would then be talking of judgement Psal. 37. 30. A tender conscience will smart more with an idle world than a seared senseless conscience with an Oath or lye or slander For the Fear of God is clean Psal. 19. 9. and by it men depart from evil Proverbs 16. 6. Be thou therefore in the fear of the Lord all the day long Prov. 23. 17. § 34. Direct 6. Avoid idleness if you would avoid idle talk The drones of the Commonwealth Direct 6. that have nothing else to do but visit and complement and prate of other mens matters and that 1 Tim. 5. 13. 1 Pet. 4. 15. can have while to sit whole hours together upon no business are they that are most guilty of idle chat Idle Gentlemen and Beggars and idle gossipping Women and Old men that are void of the fear of God and Children that have no business to do are they that can sit talking away their time to as little purpose as if they had been all the time asleep All idle persons swarm with the Vermine of idle thoughts and words § 36. Direct 7. If you would avoid idle talk avoid idle talkative companions or if you cannot Direct 7. avoid them answer them not but let them talk alone unless it be to reprehend them or turn them to Gaâ—â—ulo non respondeâ—e convitium est more profitable talk For when you hear vanity it will incline you to speak vanity And these ungodly persons speak every one vanity to his neighbour as if their tongues were so their own that no Lord might controll them Psal. 12. 1 2 5 6. The Philosopher could say That which you would not hear do not speak and that which you would not speak do not hear Most are like Parrots that will oftest speak the words which they oftest hear How hard is it to avoid idle talk amongst idle talkers One vain word draws on another and there is no end § 37. Direct 8. Avoid vain works if you would avoid vain words For a man that engageth himself Direct 8. in vain employment doth lose all the words as vain which he useth about that employment What a life then do they live that have an unlawful Calling When their very business and Trade is sin the adjuncts the words about it must be sin and so all their lives are a continued sin I had rather therefore be the basest drudge than one of these men Especially Stage-players should think of this And those that spend whole hours yea half dayes if not nights in gaming and vain or sinful sports what abundance of idle words do they use about them Every cast of the Dice and every Card they play hath an idle word so that a sober man would be aweary and ashamed to hear them § 38. Direct 9. Plunge not your selves into excess of worldly business as some do that undertake more Direct 9. without necessity than they can discharge For such necessitate a variety of thoughts and words And all that are spent in serving them in those their vain employments are vain though the work for the matter of it be not vain § 39. Direct 10. Let not a vicious mind make that seem necessary or convenient which is vain Direct 10. Carnal hearts that are acquainted with no better things think nothing vain that pleaseth their sensual inclinations or which their carnal interest doth require A man-pleaser thinketh Civility obligeth him to observe his unnecessary visits and complements and to answer idle talkers and not sit silent by them noâ— contradict them And so it must be a point of good manners to break the Law of God And as they think it uncivil not to pledge every drinker in his healths so not to answer every twatler in his talk § 40. Direct 11. Take heed of a proud self-conceited mind that thinks too well of your own discourse Direct 11. Gâ—t but Humility and you will rather chooâ—e to hear than to speak But when all your fansies and Prov. 3. 7. 26. 12. 1 Cor. 3. 18. impertinâ—nâ—ies seem some excellent matters to you then you are with child till you are delivered of them and then all must reverence and silently attend your pride and folly or be taken as neglecters of you for disregarding it § 41. Direct 12. Avoid Passion and passionate companions For passion is talkative and will not be Direct 12. châ—â—kt but resisteth the restraint of reason and multiplyeth words which are worse than vain Prov. 14. 17 1â— 18. Eccles 7 8 9 § 42. Direct 13. Take heed of an inordinate jeasting vain For it habituateth the mind to foolish lâ—vity and knows no bounds and breeds idle words as thick as putrified flesh breeds Vermine And it is the greater sin because it is ordinary and with a certain pleasure and pride and glorying in vanity Direct 13. Eccles. 2. 2 Eccles. 7. 6. Epheâ— 5. 4 and sinful levity and folly § 43 Direct 14. Understand particularly what service you have to do for God or men in every company you come in and so fit your words to the present duty and company For those words Direct 14. are vain and inconvenient in one company that are necessary or convenient in another If you be to Prov. 2â— 17. Prov. 1â— 1â—
their happiness to live idly and take that for the best Service where they have least work But have you nothing to do for your selves for soul nor body If you have leisure from your Masters service you should thankfully improve it in Gods service and your own § 31. Direct 3. Settle your selves in a lawful Calling which will keep you under a necessity of ordinary Direct 3. and orderly employment As we cannot so easily bring our minds to a close attendance upon God in the Week days when we have our common businesses to divert us as we can do on the Lords Day which is purposely set apart for it and in which we have the use of his stated Ordinances to assist us even so a man that is out of a stated course of labour cannot avoid idleness so well as he that hath his ordinary time and course of business to keep him still at work It is a dangerous life to live out of a Calling § 32. Direct 4. Take heed of excess of meat and drink and sleep For these drown the senses and Direct 4. dull the spirits and load you with a burden of flesh or humours and greatly undispose the body to all diligent useful labours A full Belly and drowsie Brain are unfit for work It will seem work enough to such to carry the load of flesh or flegm which they have gathered A pampered body is more disposed to lust and wantonness than to work § 33. Direct 5. A man-like Resolution is an effectual course against sloth Resolve and it will be Direct 5. done Give not way to a slothful disposition Be up and doing you can do it if you will but resolve To this end be never without Gods quickning motives before-mentioned on your minds Think what a sin and shame it is to waste your Time to live like the dead to bury a rational soul in flesh to be a slave to so base a thing as sloth to neglect all Gods work while he supporteth and maintaineth you and looketh on to live in sloth with such miserable souls so neer to judgement and Eternity Such thoughts well set home will make you stir when a drowsie soul makes an idle body § 34. Direct 6. Take pleasure in your work and then you will not be slothful in it Your very Direct 6. Horse will go heavily where he goeth unwillingly and will go freely when he goeth thither where he would be Either your work is Good or bad If it be bad avoid it If it be good why should you not take pleasure in it It should be pleasant to do good § 35. Direct 7. To this end be sure to do all your work as that which God requireth of you Direct 7. and that which he hath promised to reward and believe his acceptance of your meanest labours which are done in obedience to his will Is it not a delightful thing to serve so great and good a master and to do that which God accepteth and promiseth to reward This interest of God in your lowest and hardest and servilest labour doth make it honourable and should make it sweet § 36. Direct 8. Suffer not your fancies to run after sensual vain delights for these will make you Direct 8. weary of your callings No wonder if foolish youths be idle whose minds are set upon their sports nor is it wonder that sensual Gentlemen live idly who glut themselves with corrupting pleasures The idleness of such sensualists is more unexcusable than other mens because it is not the labour it self that they are against but only such labour as is honest and profitable For they can bestow more labour in playing or dancing or running or hunting or any vanity than their work required And it is the folly and sickness of their minds that is the cause and not any disability in their bodies The busiest in evil are slothfullest to good § 37. Direct 9. Mortifie the flesh and keep it in an obedient dependance on the soul and you will Direct 9. not be captivated by sloth For idleness is but one way of Flesh-pleasing He that is a sensual slave to his flesh will please it in the way that it most desireth One man in Fornication and another in ambition and another in Ease But he that hath overcome and mortified the flesh hath mastered this with the rest of its Concupiscence § 38. Direct 10. Remember still that Time is short and Death makes haste and judgement will be just Direct 10. and that all must be judged according to what they have done in the body and that your souls are pretious and Heaven is Glorious and Hell is terrible and work is various and great and hinderances are many and that it is not idleness but labour that is comfortable in the reviews of time and this will powerfully expell your sloth § 39. Direct 11. Call your selves daily or frequently to account how you spend your time and what Direct 11. work you do and how you do it Suffer not one hour or moment so to pass as you cannot give your Consciences a just account of it § 40. Direct 12. Lastly Watch against the slothfulness of those that are under your charges as well Direct 12. as against your own Some persons of honour and greatness are diligent themselves and bestow their time for the Service of God their King and Countrey and their souls and Families and I would we had more such But if in the mean time their Wives and Children and many of their Servants spend most of the day and year in idleness and they are guilty of it for want of a through endeavour to reform it their burden will be found greater at last than they imagined In a word though the labour and diligence of a believing Saint and not that of a Covetous Worldling is it that tends to save the soul and diligence in doing evil is but a making haste to Hell yet sloth in it self is so great a nourisher of vice and deadly an enemy to all that 's good and idleness is such a course and swarm of sin that all your understandings resolution and authority should be used to cure it in your selves and others Tit. 3. Directions against Sloth and Laziness in things spiritual and for zeal and Diligence § 1. ZEal in things spiritual is contrary to sloth and coldness and remissness and Diligence is contrary to Idleness Zeal is the fervour or earnestness of the soul Its first subject is the will Rev. 3. 15 â—9 and affections excited by the judgement and thence it appeareth in the Practice It is not a distinct Grace or Affection but the vigor and livelyness of every grace and their fervent operations § 2. Direct 1. Be sure that you understand the nature and use of zeal and diligence and mistake Direct 1. The kinds of false zeal not a carnal degenerate sort of zeal for that which is spiritual and
melodious praise § 34. Quest. 5. Doth not your Conscience tell you that your delight is more in your plays and Quest. 5. games than it is on God And that these sports do no way increase your delight in God at all but more unfit and undispose you And yet every blessed mans delight is in the Law of the Lord and in it he meditâ—teth day and night Psal. 1. 2. And do you do so § 35. Quest. 6. Do you bestow as much Time in Praying and reading the word of God and meditating Quest. 6. on it as you do in your sports and recreations Nay do you not shuffle this over and put God off with a few hypocritical heartless words that you may be at your sports or something which you love better § 36. Quest. 7. Doth not Conscience tell thee that this pretious Time might be much better Quest. 7. spent in the works that God hath appointed thee to do And that thy sinful soul hath need enough to spend it in far greater matters Doth it become one that hath sinned so long and is so unassured of pardon and salvation and near another world and so unready for it to sit at Cards or be hearing a Stage-play when he should be making ready and getting assurance of his peace with God § 37. Quest. 8. Wouldst thou be found at Cards or Plays when Death cometh If it were this Quest. 8. day hadâ—â— thou not rather be found about some holy or some profitable labour § 38. Quest. 9. Will it be more comfort to thee when thou art dying to think of the time which Quest. 9. thou spentst in Cards and Plays and Vanity or that which thou spentst in serving God and preparing for eternity § 39. Quest. 10. Darest thou pray to God to bless thy Cards and Dice and Plays to the good of Quest. 10. thy soul or body Would not thy Conscience tell thee that this were but a mocking of God as praying for that which thou dost not intend and which thy pleasures are unfit for And yet no recreation is lawful which you may not thus lawfully pray for a blessing on § 40. Quest. 11. If you were sure your selves that you sin not in your games or sports are you Quest. 11. sure that your Companions do not That they have no lust or vanity of mind at Stage-plays no Covetousness or sinful pleasure or passion at Cards or Dice If you say we are not bound to keep all other men from sin I answer You are bound to do your best towards it And you are bound not to contribute willingly to their sin And you are bound to forbear a thing indifferent though not a duty to avoid Rom. 14. 21. 1 Cor. 8. 13. the scandalizing or tempting of another If Paul would never eat flesh while he lived rather than make a weak person offend should not your sports be subject to as great Charity He saith It is good neither to eat flesh nor to drink wine nor any thing whereby thy weak brother stumbleth or is offended or made weak Object Then we must give over our meat and drink and cloaths and all Answ. It followeth not that we must forsake our Duty to prevent another mans sin because we must forsake our pleasure in things indifferent If you knew what sin is and what it is to save or lose ones soul you would not make a sport of other mens sin nor so easily contribute to their damnation and think your sensual pleasure to be a good excuse Rom. 15. 1 2 3. In such cases we that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak that is to compassionate them as we do children in their weakness and not to please our selves to their hurt Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification that is prefer the edifying of anothers soul before the pleasure of your bodies For even Christ pleased not himself If Christ lost his life to save men from sin will not you lose your sport for it § 41. Quest 12. What kind of men are they that are most addicted to thy games and plays and Qâ—â—â—â— 12. 〈…〉 what kind of men are they that avoid them and are against them Are there not more Fornicators Drunkards Swearers Cursers Coveters of other mens mony and prophane neglecters of God and their souls among Gamesters and Players than among them that are against them Judge by the fruits § 42. And what I say to idle Gamesters is proportionably to be said to Voluptuous Youths that run after Wakes and May-games and Dancings and Revellings and are carried by the Love of sports and pleasure from the Love of God and the care of their Salvation and the Love of Holiness and the Love of their Callings and into idleness riotousness and disobedience to their Superiors For the cure of this Voluptuousness besides what is said Chap. 4. Part 9. Consider § 43. 1. Dost thou not know that thou hast higher delights to mind And are these toyes beseeming a noble soul that hath Holy and Heavenly matters to delight in § 44. 2. Dost thou not feel what a plague the very pleasure is to thy affections How it bewitchâ—th thee and befooleth thee and maketh thee out of Love with Holiness and unfit for any thing that 's good § 45. 3. Dost thou know the worth of those pretious hours which thou playest away Hast thou no more to do with them Look inwards to thy soul and forward to eternity and bethink thee better § 46. 4. Is it sport that thou most needest Dost thou not more need Christ and Grace and Pardon and preparation for Death and Judgement and assurance of Salvation Why then are not these thy business § 47. 5. Hast thou not a God to obey and serve And doth he not allway see thee And will He Eccles. 11. 9. not judge thee Alas thou knowest not how soon Though thou be now merry in thy youth and thy Heart cheer thee and thou walk in the ways of thy heart and the sight of thy eyes yet know thou that for all these things God will bring thee into judgement § 48. 6. Observe in Scripture what God judgeth of thy ways Tit. 3. 3. We our selves were 1 Pâ—â—â— 14 15. 2. 11 12. sometimes foolish disobedient deceived serving divers lusts and pleasures 2 Tim. 2. 22. Fly youthful lusts but follow after righteousness faith charity peace with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart Read 1 Pet. 4. 1 2 3 4. 2 Pet. 3. 3. 1 Tim. 3. 4. Lovers of pleasure more than Lovers of God § 49. 7. You are but preparing for your future sorrow either by Repentance or destruction And the greater is your pleasure now the greater will be your sorrow and shame in the review Having spoken this much for the cure of sinful sports I proceed to direct the more sober in their recreations § 50. Direct 2. When you
knoweth what he is and what he hath done and what he hath deserved and in what a dangerous case his soul yet standeth must needs have his soul habituated to a humble frame Every penitent soul is vile in its own eyes and doth loath it self for its inward corruptions and actual sins And he that loatheth himself as vile will not be very desirous to have his sinful corruptible body seem fine nor by curious ornaments to attract And no wonder when the light of Nature reduced the serious sort of Philosophers to so plain a Garb no Socrates Zenocrates with almost all the Stâ—icks and Cyâ—â—ks and many of the Academicks and Pythagoreans the eyes of vain spectators How oft have I seen a proud vain Gallant suddenly cast off their bravery and gawdy gay attire and clothe themselves in plainness and sobriety as soon as God hath but opened their eyes and humbled their souls for sin and made them better know themselves and brought them home by true Repentance So that the next week they have not seemed the same persons And this was done by meer Humiliation without any arguments against their fashions or proud â—ttire As old Mr. Dod said when one desired him to preach against long hair Preach them once to Christ and true Repentance and they will cut their hair without our preaching against it As Pride would be seen in Proud apparel so humility will appear in a dress like it self though it desire not to be seen Maâ—k 1 Pet. 3. 3 4 5. Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair or of wearing of Gold or of putting on of apparel that is curious dressing for adorning the body beyond plain simplicity of attire But let it be the hidden man of the heart in that which is not corruptible even the ornament of a meek and quiet Spirit which in the sight of God is of great price For after this manner that is with inward Holiness and outward plainness in the old time the holy women also who trusted in God adorned themselves being in subjection to their own husbands O that God would print those words upon your hearts 1 Pet. 5. 5. Yea all of you be subject one to another and be clothed with humility For God resisteth the proud and giveth grace to the humble Plainness among Christians is a greater honour than fine clothing Jam. 2. 2 3 4 5. 1 Tim. 2. 9 10. In like manner also that women adorn themselves in modest apparel with shamefasteness and sobriety not with broidered hair or Gold or Pearl or costly array but which becometh women professing godliness with good works I intreat those that are addicted to bravery or curiosity to read Isa. 3. from ver 16. to the end § 21. Direct 12. Make not too great a matter of your clothing but use it with such indifferency as a Direct 12. thing so indifferent should be used Set not your hearts upon it For that is a worse sign that the excess in it self Take no thought wherewith ye shall be cloathed but remember how God clotheth the Lillies of the field Matth 6. 28. If you have food and rayment be therewith content though it be never so plain 1 Tim. 6. 8. § 22. Direct 13. Be not too censorious of others for different fashions of apparel Be as plain and Direct 13. modest your selves as you can But lay no greater stress on the fashions of others than there is cause If they be grosly impudent disown such fashions and seek to reform them But to carp at every one that goeth â—â—â—â—â— than your selves or to censure them as proud because their fashions are not like yours may be of worse signification than the fashions you find fault with I have oft observed more pride in such censures than I could observe in the fashions which they censured When you have your eye upon every fashion that is not according to your breeding or the custom of your rank or place and are presently branding such as proud or vain it sheweth an arrogant mind that steppeth up in the judgement seat and sentenceth those that you have nothing to do with before they are heard or you know their reasons Perhaps their fashion was as common among the modest sort where they have lived as your fashion is among those that you have converst with Custom and common opinion do put much of the signification upon fashions of apparel I Should next have given you special Directions about the Using of your Estates about your Of the proportion of our Estates to be given see my Letter to Mr. Goâ—ge Dwellings about your Meat and Drink and about your Honour or good Name But being loth the Book should prove too tedious I shall refer you to what is said before against Covetousness Pride and Gluttony c. and what is said before and after of Works of Charity and Family-Government AS to Sacred Habits and the different Garbs Laws Orders of Life Dyet c. of those called Religious Orders among the Papists Regular and Secular whether and how far such are lawful or sinful they are handled so largely in the Controversies of Protestants and Papists that I shall pass them by Only remembring the words of the Clergy of Ravenna to Carolus Iunior King of France inter Epist. Hincmari Rhemensis Discernendi à plebe vel caeteris sumus doctrina non veste conversatione non habitu mentis puritate non cultu Docendi enim potius sunt populi quam ludendi nec imponendum est eorum oculis sed mentibus praecepta sunt infundenda The End of the first Tome A Christian Directory Or A SUMM of PRACTICAL DIVINITY THE SECOND PART VIZ. Christian Oeconomicks OR THE FAMILY DIRECTORY Containing Directions for the true Practice of all Duties belonging to Family Relations with the Appurtenances By RICHARD BAXTER Josh. 24. 15. And if it seem evil to you to serve the Lord choose you this day whom you will serve But as for Me and my House we will serve the Lord. Deut. 6. 6 7 8. And these words which I command thee this day shall be in thy heart And thou shalt teach them diligently to thy Children and thou shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thy House and when thou walkest by the way and when thou lyest down and when thou risest up c. Dan. 6. 10. When Daniel knew that the Writing was signed he went into his House and his Window being open in his Chamber towards Jerusalem he kneeled upon his knees three times a day and Prayed and gave thanks before his God as he did aforetime Acts 10. 1. 2. Cornelius a devout man and One that feared God with all his House which gave much Alms to the people and Prayed to God alwayes Ephes. 6. 4. Ye Fathers provoke not your Children to wrath but bring them up in the Nurture and Admonition of the Lord. Psal. 101. 6 7. He that walketh in a perfect way
children speaking of them when thou â—ittest in thy house and when thou walkest by the way and when thou lyest down and when thou risest up and thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thy house and upon your Gates that your dayes may be multiplyed and the dayes of your children The like words are in Deut. 6. 6 7 8. where it is said And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children So Deut. 4. 9. Teach them thy sons and thy sons sons Here there is one part of Family Duty viz. Teaching children the Laws of God as plainly commanded as words can express it Arg. 2. From these texts which commend this Gen. 18. 18 19. All the Nations of the Earth shall be blessed in him for I know him that he will command his children and his houshold after him and they shall keep the way of the Lord and it was not only a command at his death what they should do when he was dead For 1. It cannot be imagined that so holy a man should neglect a Duty all his life time and perform it but at death and be commended for that 2. He might then have great cause to question the efficacy 3. As God commandeth a diligent inculcating precepts on Children so no doubt it 's a practice answerable to such precepts that is here commended And it is not bare teaching but commanding that is here mentioned to shew that it must be an improvement of Authority as well as of knowledge and elocution So 2 Tim. 3. 15. Of a child Timothy knew the Scripture by the teaching of his Parents as appeareth 2 Tim. 1. 5. Arg. 3. Eph. 6. 4. Bring them up in the nurture and admontion of the Lord 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 translated nurture signifieth both Instruction and Correction shewing that Parents must use both Doctrine and Authority or force with their Children for the Matters of the Lord and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 translated admonition signifieth such Instruction as putteth Doctrine into the mind and chargeth it on them and fully storeth their minds therewith And it also signifieth chiding and sometimes correction And it 's to be noted that Children must be brought up in this The word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifying carefully to nourish importeth that as you feed them with milk and bodily food so you must as carefully and constantly feed and nourish them with the nurture and admonition of the Lord. It is called the nurture and admonition of the Lord because the Lord commandeth it and because it is the Doctrine concerning the Lord and the Doctrine of his teaching and the Doctrine that leadeth to him Arg. 4. Prov. 22. 6. Train up a child in the way where he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it Arg. 5. From all those places that charge Children to hearken to the instructions of their Parents Prov. 1. 8. My Son hear the Instruction of thy Father and forsake not the law of thy Mother Prov. 6. 20. is the like and 3. 22. with many the like Yea the Son that is stubborn and rebellious against the Instruction and Correction of a Father or Mother in Gluttony Drunkenness c. was to be brought forth to the Magistrate and stoned to death Deut. 21. 18 19 20. Now all the Scriptures that require Children to â—ear their Parents do imply that the Parents must teach their Children for there is no hearing and learning without teaching But lest you say that Parents and Children are not the whole family though they may be and in Abrahams case before mentioned the whole houshold is mentioned the next shall speak to other relations Arg. 6. 1 Pet. 3. 7. Likewise ye Husbands dwell with them your wives according to knowledge and Eph. 5. 25 26. Love your Wives as Christ loved the Church and gave himself for it that he might sanctifie and cleanse it And this plainly implies that this knowledge must be used for the Instruction and sanctification of the Wife 1 Cor. 14. 34 35. Women must keep silence in the Church for it is not permitted unto them to speak but they are to be under obedience as also saith the Law If they will learn any thing let them ask their Husbands at home Which shews that at home their Husbands must teach them Arg. 7. Col. 3. 22 23 24 25. Eph. 6. 5 6 7 8. Servants must be obedient unto their Masters as unto Christ and serve them as serving the Lord Christ and therefore Ministers must command in Christ. Arg. 8. A fortiori fellow Christians must exhort one another daily while it is called to day lest any be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin much more must the Rulers of families do so to Wives Children and Servants 1 Pet. 4. 11. If any speak it must be as the Oracles of God much more to our own Families Col. 3. 16. Let the Word of God dwell in you richly in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another and much more must a man do this to Wife Children and Servants than to those more remote Arg. 9. Those that are to be chosen Deacons or Bishops must be such as Rule their own Children and their own houshold well 1 Tim. 3. 4 12. Now mark 1. That this is one of those Christian virtues which they were to have before they were made Officers therefore other Christians must have and perform it as well as they 2. It is a Religious Holy Governing such as a Minister is to exercise over his flock that is here mentioned which is in the things of God and salvation or else the comparison or argument would not suit ver 5. For if a man know not how to rule his own house how shall he rule the Church of God But of this more before I would say more on this point but that I think it is so clear in Scripture as to make it needless I pass therefore to the next Prop. 3. Family Discipline is part of Gods solemn Worship or Service appointed in his Word This is Prop. 3. not called Worship in so near a sense as some of the rest but more remotely yet so it may well be called in that 1. It is an Authoritative Act done by commission from God 2 Upon such as disobey him and as such 3. And to his Glory yea and it should be done with as great solemnity and reverence as other parts of worship The Acts of this discipline are first denying the ungodly entrance into the family 2. Correcting 3. Or casting out those that are in I shall be but brief on these 1. The first you have 2 Ioh. 10. If there come any to you and bring not this Doctrine receive him not into your house neither bid him God speed for he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds 2. The Duty of correcting either by corporal sensible punishment or by withdrawing some benefit is so commonly required in Scripture especially towards Children that
Widow indeed and desolate trusteth in God and continueth in supplications and prayers night and day Night and day can be no less than Morning and Evening And if you say This is not Family-prayer I answer 1. It is all kind of Prayer belonging to her 2. And if it commend the less much more the greater Arg. 6. From Luk. 6. 14. 2. 37. 18. 17. Act. 26. 7. 1 Thes. 3. 10. 2 Tim. 1. 3. Rev. 7. 15. Nâ—h 1. 6. Psal. 88. 1. Josh. 1. 8. Psal. 1. 2. which shew that night and day Christ himself prayed and his servants prayed and meditated and read the Scripture Arg 7. Deut 6. 7. 11. 19. It is exprâ—sly commanded that Parents teach their Children the Word of God when they lye down and when they rise up And the parity of reason and conjunction of the word and prayer will prove that they should also pray with them lying down and rising up Arg. 8. For brâ—vity sake I offer you together Psal. 119. 164. David praised God seven times a day 145. 2. Every day will I bless thee Psal. 5. 3. my voiâ—e shalt thou hear in the morning O Lord in the morning will I direct my prayer to thee and will look up 59. 16. I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning 88. 13. In the morning shall my prayer prevent thee 92. 12. It is good to give thanks unto the Lord and to sing praises to thy name O mâ—st High to shew forth thy loving kindness in the morning and thy faithfulness every night 119. 147 148. I prevented the dâ—wning of the morning aâ—d cryed I hâ—ped in thy word mine eyes preveâ— the night watches that I might meditate on thy word 130. 6 My sâ—ul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning I say more than they that watch for the morning The Priests were to offer Sacrifices and thanks to God every morning 1 Chron. 23. 30. Exod 30. 7. 36. 3. Lev. 6. 12. 2 Chron. 13. 11. Ezek. 46. 13 14 15. Amos 4. 4. And Christians are a hâ—ly Priesthood to offer up sacrifices to God acceptable through Iesus Châ—ist 1 Pet. 2. 5 9. Expresly saith David Psal. 55. 17. Evening and morning and at noon will I pray and cry aloud and he shall hear my voice So Morning and Evening were Sacrifices and Burnt offerings offered to the Lord and there is at least equal reason that Gospel worship should be as frequent 1 Chron. 16. 40. 2 Chron. 2. 4. 13. 11. 31. 3. Ezr. 3. 3. 2 King 16. 15. 1 King 18. 29 36. Ezra 9. 5. And no doubt but they prayed with the Sacrifices Which David intimateth in comparing them Psal. 141. 2. Let my Prayer be set forth before thee as Incense and the lifting up of my hands aâ— the Evening sacrifice And God calleth for Prayer and praise as better than sacrifice Psal. 50. 14 15 23. All these I heap together for dispatch which fully shâ—w how frâ—quently Gods servants have been wont to Worship him and how often God expecteth it And you will all confess that it is reason that in Gospel times of greater light and holiness we should not come behind them in the times of the Law especially when Christ himself doth pray all night that had so little need in comparison of us And you may observe that these Scriptures speak of Prayer in general and limit it not to secresie and therefore they extend to all prayer according to opportunity No reason can limit all these examples to the most secret and least noble sort of prayer If but two or three are gathered together in his name Christ is especially among them If you say that by this rule we must as frequently pray in the Church-assemblies I answer The Church cannot ordinarily so oft assemble But when it can be without a greater inconvenience I doubt not but it would be a good work for many to meet the Minister daily for prayer as in some rich and populous Cities they may do I have been more tedious on this subject than a holy hungry Christian possibly may think necâ—ssary who needeth not so many arguments to perswade him to â—east his soul with God and to delight himself in the frequent exercises of faith and Love And if I have said less than the other sort of Readers shall think necessary let them know that if they will open their eyes and recover their appetites and feel their sins and observe their daily wants and dangers and get but a heart that Loveth God these Reasons then will seem sufficient to convince them of the need of so sweet and profitable and necessary a work And if they observe the difference between Praying and Prayerless families and care for their souls and for communion with God much fewer words than these may serve their turn It is a dead and graceless carnal heart that must be cured before these men will be well satisfied A better appetite would help their reason If God should say in general to all men You shall eat as oft as will do you good the sick stomach would say once a day and that but a little is enough and as much as God requireth when another would say Thrice a day is little enough A good and healthful Heart is a great help in the expounding of Gods word especially of his General Commandments That which men love not but are aweary of they will not easily believe to be their duty The new nature and holy Love and desires and experience of a sound believer do so far make all these Reasonings needless to him that I must confess I have written them principally to convince the carnal hypocrite and to stop the â—â—ouths of wrangling enemies CHAP. IV. General Directions for the Holy Government of Families § 1. THE Principal thing requisite to the right governing of Families is the Fitness of the Governours and the Governed thereto which is spoken of before in the Directions for the Constitution But if persons unfit for their Relations have joyned themselves together in a Family their first duty is to Repent of their former sin and rashness and presently to turn to God and seek after that fitness which is necessary to the right discharge of the duties of their several places And in the Governours of Families thâ—se three things are of greatest necessity hereunto I. Authority II. Skill III. Holiness and readiness of Will § 2. I Gen. Dir. Let Governours maintain their Authority in their Families For if once that be lost Direct 1. and you are despised by those that you should rule your word will be of no effect with them How to keep up Authorâ—ty you do but ride without a Bridle your power of Governing is gone when your Authority is lost And here you must first understand the Nature Use and Extent of your Authority For as your Relations are different to your Wife your Children and your Servants so
read Lord have mercy upon us and encline our hearts to keep this Law And the command of Authority is not a contemptible obligation § 7. 6. It is granted by all that more than this is due to God and the life that is in every Christian telleth him that it is a very great mercy to us not only to servants but even to all men that one day in seven they may disburden themselves of all the cares and business of the world which may hinder their holy communion with God and one another and wholly apply themselves to learn the will of God And nature teacheth us to accept of mercy when it is offered to us and not dispute against our happiness § 8. 7. Common experience telleth us that where the Lords Day is more holily and carefully observed Knowledge and Religion prosper best and that more souls are converted on those dayes than on all the other dayes besides and that the people are accordingly more edified And that where ever the Lords Day is ordinarily neglected or mispent Religion and Civility decay and there is a visible lamentable difference between those places and families and the other § 9. 8. Reason and experience telleth us that if men werâ— leâ—t to themselves what Time they should appoint for Gods publick Worship in most plâ—â—es it would be so little and disordered and uncertain that Religion would be for the most part banished out of the now Christian world Therefore there being need of an Universal Law for it it is probable that such a Law there is And if so it can be by none but God the Creator Redeemer and Holy Ghost there being no other Universal Governour and Law-giver to impose it § 10. 9. All must confess that it is more desirable for Unity and Concord sake that all Christians hold their holy Assemblies on one and the same day and that all at once through all the world do worship God and seek his Grace than that they do it some on one day and some on another § 11. 10. And all that ever I have conversed with confess that if the holy spending of the Lords Day be not necessary it is lawful and therefore when there is so much to be said for the Necessity of it too to keep it holy is the safest way Seeing this cannot be a sin but the contrary may And Licâ—nce is encouragement enough to accept so great a mercy All this set together will satisfie a man that hath any spiritual sense of the concernments of his own and others souls § 12. Object But you will say That besides the name it is yet a controversie whether the whole day Object should be spâ—nt in holy exercises or only so much as is meet for publick communion it being not found in antiquiâ—y that the Churches used any further to observe it Answ. No sober man denyeth that works of necessity for the preservation of our own or other mens Answ. lives or health or goods may be done on the Lords Day so that when we say that the whole day is to be spent holily we exclude not eating and sleeping nor the necessary actions about Worship as the Priesâ—s in the Temple are said to break the Sabbath that is the external rest and to be blameless But otherwise that it is the whole day is evident in the Arguments produced The antient Histories and Canons of the Church speak not of one part of the day only but the whole All confess that when Labour or sinful sports are forbidden it is on the whole day and not only on a part And for what is alledged of the custome of the antient Church I answer 1. The antienâ—est Churches spent almost all the day in publick Worship and Communion They begun in the morning and continued without parting till the evening The first part of the day being spent in teaching the Catechumens they were then dismissed and the Church continued together in preaching and praying but especially in those laudatory Eucharistical Offices which accompany the celebration of the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ. They did not then as Gluttons do now account it fasting to forbear a dinner when they supped yea feasted at night It being not usual among the Romans to eat any dinners at all And they that spent all the day together in publick Worship and Communion you may be sure spent noâ— part of it in Dancing nor Stage-playes nor worldly businesses 2. And Church History giveth us but little account what particular persons did in private nor can it be expected 3. Who hath brought us any proof that ever the Church approved of spending any part of the day in sports or idleness or unnecessary worldly business Or that any Churches or persons regardable did actually so spend it 4. Unless their proof be from those many Canons of our own and other Churches that command the holy observation of it and forbid these playes and labours on it which I confess doth intimate that some there were that needed Laws to restrain them from the violation of it 5. Again I say that seeing few men will have the faces to say that playes and games or idleness are a duty on that day it will suffice a holy thankful Christian if he have but leave to spend all the day for the good of his soul and those about him and if he may be reading and meditating on the Word of God and praying and praising him and instructing his family while others waste that time in vanity especially to servants and poor men that have but little other leisure all the year to seek for knowledge or use any such helps for their salvation As to a poor man that is kept hungry all the Week a bare liberty of feasting with his Landlord on the Lords day would satisfie him without a Law to constrain him to it so is it here with a hungry soul. § 2. Direct 2. Remember that the work of the day â—â— in general to keep up knowledge and Religion Direct 2. in the world and to own and honour our Creater Redeemer and Regenerater openly before all and to have communion with God through Christ in the Spirit by Receiving and Exercising his Grace in order to our Communion with him in Glory Let these therefore well understood â—e your Ends and in these be you exercised all the day and stick not hypocritically in bodily rest and outward duties Remember that it is a day for heart-work as well as for the exercise of the tongue and ear and knees and that your principal business is with Heaven Follow your hearts therefore all the day and see that they be not idle while your bodies are exercised Nothing is done if the Heart do nothing § 3. Direct 3. Remember that the special work of the day is to celebrate the memorial of Christs Direct 3. Resurrection and of the whole work of mans Redemption by him Labour therefore with all diligence
way but the scandal which is spoken against in Scripture is the laying a Temptation before men that are weak to make them sin 9. Take heed of that hypocritical and câ—nsorious temper which turneth the holy observation of the day into a Ceremonious abstinence from lawful things and censureth those as ungodly that are not of the same mind and forbear not such things as well as they Mark the difference between Christ and the Pharisees in this point Much of their contention with him was about the outward observation of the Sabbath because his disciples rubbed out Corn to eat on the Sabbath day and because he healed on the Sabbath and bid the healed man Take up his bed and walk And they said There are six dayes in which men ought to work they might come and be healed on them Luk 6. 1 5 6. 13. 12 14 15 16. Ioh. 5. 17 18. Mark 1. 21 24. 2. 23 24 25 26 27 28. 3. 2 3 5. 6. 2 5. Luk. 14. 1 3 5 6. Ioh. 5. 9 10 16. 7. 22 23 24. 9. 14 16. And a man that is of their spirit will think that the Pharisees were in the right No doubt Christ might have chosen another day to heal on But he knew that the works which most declared the power of God and honoured him before all and confirmed the Gospel were fittest for the Sabbath day Take heed therefore of the Pharisees Ceremoniousness and Censoriousness If you see a man walking abroad on the Lords day censure him not till you know that he doth it from prophaneness or negligence You know not but it may be necessary to his health and he may improve it in holy meditation If you hear some speak a word more than you think needful of common things or do more about meat and cloathing than you think meet censure them not till you hear their reason A scrupulousness about such outward observances when the holy duties of the day are no whit hindred by that thing and a censoriousness towards those that are not as scrupulous is too Pharisaical and Ceremonious a Religion for spiritual charitable Christians And the extreams of some Godly people in this kind have occasioned the Quakers and Seekers to take and use all daies alike and the prophane to contemn the sanctifying of the Lords day Tit. 2. More particular Directions for the order of holy duties § 1. Direct 1. REmember the Lords day before it cometh and prepare for it and prevent those Direct 1. disturbances that would hinder you and deprive you of the benefit For Preparation 1. Six daies you must labour and do all that you have to do Dispatch all your business that you may not have it then to hinder and disturb you And see that your Servants do the same 2. Shake off the thoughts of worldly things and clear your minds of worldly delights and cares 3. Call to mind the doctrine taught you the last Lords day and if you have servants cause them to remember it that you may be prepared to receive the next 4 Go seasonably to bed that you and your servants may not be constrained to lye long the next morning or be sleepy on the Lords day 5. Let your meditations be preparatory for the day Repent of the sins of the week past as particularly and seriously as you can and seek for pardon and peace through Christ that you come not with guilt or trouble upon your Consciences before the Lord. § 2. Direct 2. Let your first thoughts be not only Holy but suitable to the occasions of the day Direct 2. With gladness remember what a day of mercies you awake to and how early your Redeemer rose from the dead that day and what excellent work you are to be employed in § 3. Direct 3. Rise full as early that day as you do on other daies Be not like the carnal generation Direct 3. that sanctifie the Lords day but as a Swine doth by sleeping and idleness and fulness Think not your worldly business more worthy of your early rising than your spiritual imployment is § 4. Direct 4. Let your dressing time be spent in some fruitful meditation or conference Direct 4. or hearing some one read a Chapter And let it not be long to detain you from your duty § 5. Direct 5. If you can have leisure go first to secret prayer And if you are servants Direct 5. or have any necessary business to do dispatch it quickly that you may be free for better work § 6. Direct 6. Let Family-worship come next and not be slubbered over sleightly but be serious Direct 6. and reverent and suit all to the nature or end of the day Especially awaken your selves and servants to consider what you have to do in publick and to go with prepared sanctified hearts § 7. Direct 7. Enter the holy Assembly with reverence and joy and compose your selves as those Direct 7. that come thither to treat with the living God about the matters of Eternal life And watch your hearts that they wander not nor sleep not nor sleight the sacred matters which you are about And guard your eyes that they carry not away your hearts And let not your hearts be a moment idle but seriously employed all the Time And when hypocrites and distempered Christians are quarrelling with the imperfections of the speaker or congregation or mode of Worship do you rather make it your diligent endeavour to watch your hearts and improve what you hear § 8. Direct 8. As soon as you come home while dinner is preparing it will be a seasonable Direct 8. time either for secret prayer or meditation to call over what you heard and urge it on your hearts and beg Gods help for the improvement of it and pardon for your publick failings § 9. Direct 9. Let your time at meat be spent in the chearful remembrance or mention of the Direct 9. Love of your Redeemer or somewhat suitable to the company and the day § 10. Direct 10. After dinner call your families together and sing a Psalm of Praise and Direct 10. by examination or repetition or both cause them to remember what was publickly taught them § 11. Direct 11. Then go again to the Congregation to the beginning and behave your Direct 11. selves as before § 12. Direct 12. When you come home call your families together and first crave Gods assistance Direct 12. and acceptance and then sing a Psalm of Praise and then repeat the Sermon which â—â—u heard or if there was none read one out of some lively profitable book and then Pray and Praise God and all with the holy seriousness and joy which is suitable to the work and day § 13. Direct 13. Then while Supper is preparing betake your selves to secret prayer and meditation Direct 13. â—either in your Chambers or walking as you find most profitable And let your Servants have no
more to hinder them from the same priviledge than what is of Necessity § 14. Direct 14. At Supper spend the time as is aforesaid at Dinner Alwayes remembring Direct 14. that though it be a day of Thansgiving it is not a day of gluttony and that you must not use too full a dyet lest it make you heavy and drowsie and unfit for holy duty § 15. Direct 15. After Supper examine your Children and Servants what they have learnt all Direct 15. day and sing a Psalm of praise and conclude with prayer and thanksgiving § 16. Direct 16. If there be time after both you and they may in secret review the duties Direct 16. and mercies and failings of the day and recommend your selves by Prayer into the bands of God for the night following and to betake your selves to your rest § 17. Direct 17. And to shut up all let your last thoughts be holy in the thankful sense of Direct 17. the mercy you have received and the goodness of God revealed by our Mediator and comfortably trusting your souls and bodies into his hands and longing for your nearer approach unto his Glory and the beholding and full enjoying of him for ever § 18. I have briefly named this order of duties for the memory of those that have opportunity to observe it But if any mans place and condition deny him opportunity for some of these he must do what he can but see that carnal negligence cause not his omission And now I appeal to Reason Conscience and Experience whether this employment be not more suitable to the principles ends and hopes of a Christian than idleness or vain talk or Cards or Dice or Dancing or Ale-house haunting or worldly business or discourse And whether this would not exceedingly conduce to the increase of Knowledge Holiness and Honesty And whether there be ever a worldling or voluptuous sensualist of them all that had not rather be found thus at death or look back when Time is past and gone upon the Lords days thus spent than as the idle fleshly and ungodly spend them CHAP. XIX Directions for profitable Hearing the Word Preached OMitting those Directions which concern the external modes of Worship for the Reasons mentioned Tom. 2. and known to all that know me and the time and place I live in I shall give you such Directions about the personal internal management of your duty as I think most necessary to your Edification And seeing that your Duty and benefit lyeth in these four General points 1. That you hear with understanding 2. That you Remember what you hear 3. That you be duly affected with it 4. And that you sincerely practise it I shall more particularly Direct you in order to all these ends and duties Tit. 1. Directions for the Understanding the Word which you hear § 1. Direct 1. REad and meditate on the holy Scriptures much in private and then you will be Direct 1. the better able to understand what is Preached on it in publick and to try the doctrine whether it be of God Whereas if you are unacquainted with the Scriptures all that is treated of or alledged from it will be so strange to you that you will be but little edified by it Psal. 1. 2. Psal. 119. Deut. 6. 11 12. § 2. Direct 2. Live under the clearest distinct convincing teaching that possibly you can procure Direct 2. There is an unspeakable difference as to the edification of the hearers between a judicious clear distinct and skilful Preacher and one that is ignorant confused general dry and only scrapeth together a Cento or mingle-mangle of some undigested sayings to fill up the hour with If in Philosophy Physicks Grammar Law and every Art and Science there be so great a difference between one Teacher and another it must needs be so in Divinity also Ignorant Teachers that understand not what they say themselves are unlike to make you men of understanding as Erroneous Teachers are unlike to make you Orthodox and Sound § 3. Direct 3. Come not to hear with a careless heart as if you were to hear a matter that little Direct 3. concerned you but come with a sense of the unspeakable weight necessity and consequence of the holy word which you are to bear and when you understand how much you are concerned in it and truly Love it as the word of Life it will greatly help your Understanding of every particular truth That which a man Loveth not and perceiveth no necessity of he will hear with so little regard and heed that it will make no considerable impression on his mind But a good understanding of the Excellency and Necessity exciting Love and â—â—rioâ—s attention would make the particulars easie to be understood when else you will be like â—â— stopt oâ— narrow mouthed bottle that keepeth out that which you desire to put in I know that understanding must go before affections But yet the understanding of the concernments and worth of your own souls must first procure such a serious care of your salvation and a general regard to the word of God as is needful to your further understanding of the particular instructions which you shall after hear § 4. Direct 4. Suffer not vain thoughts or drowsie negligence to hinder your attention If you mark Direct 4. not what is taught you how should you understand and learn set your selves to it as for your Prâ—â— 4. 1 20 ◠〈…〉 7. 24. lives Be as earnest and diligent in attending and learning as you would have the Preacher be in Teaching If a drowsie careless Preacher be bad a drowsie careless hearer is not good Saith Mâ—ses Dâ—ut 32. 46. Set your hearts to all the words which I testifie among you this day Neâ— 1 6. 1â— Psal. 130. 2. Prov. 28. 9. 47. For it is not a vain thing for you because it is your life You would have God attentive to your pâ—ayers in your distresses and why will you not then be attentive to his words when the prayers of him are abominable to God that turneth away his ear from hearing the Law â—â—ik 19. 48. All the people were very attentive to hear Christ. Neh. 8. 3. when Ezra read the Law from morning till mid day the ears of all the people were attentive to it when Paul continued his Lords day exercise Act 16. 14. Act. 10. 9. and speech untill midnight one young man that full asleep did fall down dead as a warning to them that will sleep when they should hear the message of Christ. Therefore you are excused that day from worldly business that you may attend oâ— the Lord with out distraction 1 Cor. 7. 35. Lydia's attending to the words of Paul accompanied the opening of her heart and her Conversion Act. 16. 14. § 5. Direct 5. Mark specially the design and drift and principal doctrine of the Sermon Both because Direct 5. that is the chief thing
the most behind 2. Another may remember more than you 3. All is not lost when the words are forgotten For it may breed a habit of understanding and promote resolution affection and practice § 8. Direct 8. Writing is an easie help for memory to those that can use it Some question whether they should use it because it hindereth their affection But that must be differently determined according to the difference of subjects and of hearers Some Sermons are all to work upon the affections at present and the present advantage is to be preferred before the after perusal But some must more profit us in after-digestion and review And some hearers can write much with ease and little hinder their affection and some write so little and are hindered so much that it recompenseth not their loss Some know so fully all that is said that they need no notes and some that are ignorant need them for perusal § 9. Direct 9. Peruse what you remember or write down when you come home and fix it speedily before it 's lost And hear others that can repeat it better Pray it over and confer of it with others § 10. Direct 10. If you forget the very words yet remember the main drift of all and get those Direct 10. Resolutions and affections which they drive at And then you have not lost the Sermon though you have lost the words As he hath not lost his food that hath digested it and turned it into flesh and blood Tit. 3. Directions for holy Resolutions and Affections in hearing THE understanding and memory are but the passage to the Heart and the Practice is but the expression of the Heart therefore how to work upon the Heart is the principal business § 1. Direct 1. Live under the most convincing lively serious Preacher that possibly you can It is Direct 1. a matter of great concernment to all but especially to dull and sensless hearts Hearken not to that earthly generation that tell you because God can bless the weakest and because it is your own fault if you profit not by the weakest that therefore you should make no difference but sit down under an ignorant dumb or sensless man Try first whether they had as willingly have a bad servant or a bad Physicion as a good one because God can bless the labours of the weakest Try whether they would not have their Children duly reproved or corrected because it is their own faults that they need it And whether they would not take physick after a surfet though it be their own fault that made them sick It 's true that all our sin is our own fault but the question is what is the most effectual cure what man that is alive and awake doth not feel a very great difference between a dead and a lively Preacher § 2. Direct 2. Remember that Ministers are the Messengers of Christ and come to you on his business Direct 2. and in his name Hear them therefore as his officers and as men that have more to do with God 2 Cor. 6. 1. himself than with the speaker It is the phrase of the holy Ghost Heb. 4. 13. All things are naked and opened to the eyes of him with whom we have to do It is God with whom you have to do and therefore accordingly behave your selves See Luk. 10. 16. 1 Thes. 4. 8. 1 Cor. 4. 1. § 3. Direct 3. Remember that this God is instructing you and warning you and treating with Direct 3. yâ—u about no less than the saving of your souls Come therefore to hear as for your salvation Can that heart be dull that well considereth that it is Heaven and Hell that is the matter that God is treating with him about § 4. Direct 4. Remember that you have but a little time to hear in and you know not whether Direct 4. ever you shall hear again Hear therefore as if it were your last Think when you hear the Calls of God and the offers of Grace I know not but this may be my last How would I hear if I were sure to dye to morrow I am sure it will be ere long and may be to day for ought I know § 5. Direct 5. Remember that all these dayes and Sermons must be reviewed and you must answer for Direct 5. all that you have heard whether you heard it with Love or with unwillingness and weariness with diligent attention or with carelesness and the word which you hear shall judge you at the last day Hear therefore as those that are going to judgement to give account of their hearing and obeying Joh. 12. 48. § 6. Direct 6. Make it your work with diligence to apply the Word as you are hearing it and to Direct 6. work your own hearts to those suitable resolutions and affections which it bespeaketh Cast not all upon the Minister as those that will go no further than they are carryed as by force This is fitter for the dead than the living You have work to do as well as the Preachers and should all the while be as busie as he As helpless as the infant is he must suck when the Mother offereth him the breast If you must be fed yet you must open your mouths and digest it For another cannot digest it for you nor can the holiest wisest powerful Minister convert or save you without your selves nor deliver a people from sin and hell that will not stir for their own deliverance Therefore be all the while at work and abhor an idle heart in hearing as well as an idle Minister § 7. Direct 7. Chew the Cud and call up all when you come home in secret and by Meditation Direct 7. Preach it over to your selves If it were coldly delivered by the Preacher do you consider of the great weight of the matter and Preach it more earnestly over to your own hearts You should love your selves best and best be acquainted with your own condition and necessities § 8. Direct 8. Pray it over all to God and there lament a stupid heart and put up your complaints Direct 8. to Heaven against it The name and presence of God hath a quickening and awaking power § 9. Direct 9. Go to Christ by faith for the quickenings of his spirit Your life is hid in him Direct 9. your root and head and from him all must be conveyed He that hath the Son hath life and because he liveth we shall live also Intreat him to glorifie the power of his Resurrection by raising the dead and to open your hearts and speak to you by his spirit that you may be taught of God and your hearts may be his Epistles and the tables where the everlasting Law is written Col. 3. 3 4. Ioh. 15. 1 2 3 4 5. Ioh. 11. 25. 14. 19. Phil. 3. 7 8. Act. 16. 14. Ioh. 6. 45. 2 Cor. 3. 3 6 17 18. Heb. 8. 10. 10. 16. Ier. 31. 33.
still reason enough to review and Repent of all that is past and still pray for the pardon of all the sins that ever you committed which were forgiven you before So many years sinning should have a very serious Repentance and lay you low before the Lord. § 3. Direct 3. Cleave closer now to Christ than ever Remembering that you have a life of sin for Direct 3. him to answer for and save you from And that the time is near when you shall have more sensible need of him than ever you have had You must shortly be cast upon him as your Saviour Advocate and Judge to determine the question what shall become of you unto all eternity and to perfect all that ever he hath done for you and accomplish all that you have sought and hoped for And now your natural life decayeth it is time to retire to him that is your Root and to look to the life that is hid with Christ in God Col. 3. 4. and to him that is preparing you a mansion with himself and whose office it is to receive the departing souls of true believers Live therefore in the daily thoughts of Christ and comfort your souls in the belief of that full supply and safety which you have in him § 4. Direct 4. Let the ancient mercies and experiences of Gods Love through all your lives be still Direct 4. before you and fresh upon your minds that they may kindle your Love and Thankfulness to God and may feed your own delight and comfort and help you the easier to submit to future weaknesses and death Eaten bread must not be forgotten A thankful remembrance preserveth all your former mercies still fresh and green The sweetness and benefit may remain though the thing it self be past and gone This is the great priviledge of an aged Christian that he hath many years mercy more to think on than others have Every one of those mercies was sweet to you by it self at the time of your receiving it except afflictions and misunderstood and unobserved mercies And then how sweet should all together be If unthankfulness have buried any of them let thankfulness give them now a Resurrection What delightful work is it for your thoughts to look back to your Childhood and remember how mercy brought you up and conducted you to every place that you have lived in and provided for you and preserved you and heard your prayers and disposed of all things for your good How it brought you under the means of grace and blest them to you and how the spirit of God began and carryed on the work of grace upon your hearts I hope you have recorded the wonders of mercy ever upon your hearts with which God hath filled up all your lives And is it not a pleasant work in old age to ruminate upon them If a Traveller delight to talk of his travels and a Souldier or Seaman upon his adventures how sweet should it be to a Christian to peruse all the conduct of mercy through his life and all the operations of the spirit upon his heart Thankfulness taught men heretofore to make their mercies as it were attributes of their God As the God that brought them out of the Land of Egypt was the name of the God of Israel And Gen. 48. 15. Iacob delighteth himself in his old age in such reviews of mercy The God which fed me all my life long unto this day The Angel which Redeemed me from all evil bless the lads Yea such thankful reviews of ancient mercies will force an ingenuous soul to a quieter submission to infirmities sufferings and death and make us say as Iob Shall we receive good at the hands of God and not evil and as old Simeon Lord now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace It is a powerful rebuke of all discontents and maketh death it self more welcome to think how large a share of mercy we have had already in the world § 5. Direct 5. Draw forth the treasure of wisdom and experience which you have been so long in laying Direct 5. up to instruct the ignorant and warn the unexperienced and ungodly that are about you Job 32. 7. Dayes should speak and multitude of years should teach wisdom The aged women must teach the young women to be sober to love their husbands and children to be discreet chaste keepers at home good obedient to their own husbands that the word of God be not blaspheamed Tit. 2. 3 4 5. It is supposed that Time and experience hath taught you more than is known to raw and ignorant youth Tell them what you have suffered by the deceits of sin Tell them the method and danger of temptations Tell them what you lost by delaying your Repentance and how God recovered you and how the spirit wrought upon your souls Tell them what comforts you have found in God what safety and sweetness in a holy life how sweet the holy Scriptures have been to you how prayers have prevailed how the promises of God have been fulfilled and what mercies and great deliverances you have had Tell them how Good you have found God and how bad you have found si◠and how vain you have found the world Warn them to resist their fleshly lusts and to take heed of the ensnaring Joel 1. 3. Deut. 11. 19 20. Deut. 29. 22. flatteries of sin Acquaint them truly with the History of publick sins and judgements and mercies in the times which you have lived in God hath made this the duty of the aged that the Fathers should tell the wonders of his works and mercies to their children that the ages to come may praise the Lord Deut. 4. 10. Psal. 78. 4 5 6. § 6. Direct 6. The Aged must be examples of wisdom gravity and holiness unto the younger Where Direct 6. should they find any virtues in eminence if not in you that have so much time and helps and experiences It may well be expected that nothing but savoury wise and holy come from your mouths and nothing unbeseeming wisdom and godliness be seen in your lives Such as you would have your Children after you to be such shew your selves to them in all your Conversation § 7. Direct 7. Especially it belongeth to you to repress the heats and dividing contentious and Direct 7. censorious disposition of the younger sort of professours of Godliness They are in the heat of their blood and want the knowledge and experience of the aged to guide their zeal They have not their senses yet exercised in discerning good and evil Heb. 5. 12. They are able to try the spirits They are yet but as children apt to be tossed to and fro and carryed up and down with every wind of doctrine after the craft and subtilty of deceivers Eph. 4. 14. The Novices are apt to be puffed up with pride and fall into the condemnation of the Devil 1 Tim. 3. 6. They never saw the issue of errours and
united your Heart unto himself and turned it from sin to Holiness from the world to God and from Earth to Heaven and made you a new creature to live for Heaven as you did for earth Surely this is not so small and indiscernable a work or change but he that hath felt it on himself may know it It is a great work to bring a sinner to feel his unrighteousness and misery and to apply himself to Christ for Righteousness and life It is a great work to take off the heart from all the felicity of this world and to set it unfeignedly upon God and to cause him to place and seek his happiness in another world what ever become of all the prosperity or pleasure of the flesh It is thus with every true Believer for all the remnant of his sins and weaknesses And may you not know whether it be thus or not with you One of these is your case And it 's now time to know which of them it is when God is ready to tell you by his judgement If indeed you are in Christ and his Spirit be in you and hath renewed you and sanctified you and turned your heart and life to God I have then nothing more than Peace and Comfort to speak to you as in the following Exhortation But if it be otherwise and you are yet in a carnal state and were never renewed by the spirit of Christ Will you give me leave to deal faithfully with you as is necessary with one in your condition and to set before you at once your sin and your Remedy and to tell you what yet you must do if you will be saved IV. And first will you here lay to heart your folly and unfeignedly lament your sinful life before the Lord Not only this or that particular sin but principally your fleshly heart and life that in the main you have lived to this corruptible flesh and loved and sought and served the world before your God and the happiness of your soul. Alas friend did you not know that you had an immortal soul that must live in joy or misery for ever Did you not know that you were made to Love and serve and honour your maker and that you had the little time of this life given you to try and prepare you for your endless life and that as you lived here it must go with you in heaven or hell for ever If you did not believe these things why did you not come and give your Reasons against them to some judicious Divine that was able to have shewed you the Evidence of their truth If you did believe them alas how was it possible that you could forget them Could you believe a Heaven and a Hell and not regard them or suffer any transitory worldly vanity to be more regarded by you Did you know what you had to do in the world and yet is it all undone till now Were you never warned of this day Did never Preacher nor Scripture nor book nor friend nor conscience tell you of your end and tell you what would be the fruit of sin and of your contempt and slighting of Christ and of his grace Did you know that you must Love God above the world if ever you would be saved and that you must to that end be partaker of Christ and renewed by his spirit and yet would you let out your heart upon the world and follow the bruitish pleasures of the flesh and never earnestly seek after that Christ and spirit that should thus renew and sanctifie you Do you not think now that it had been wiser to have sought Christ and grace and set your affections first on the things above and to have made sure work for your soul against such a day as this than to have hardened your heart against Gods grace and despised Christ and Heaven and your salvation for a thing of nought You see now what it was that you preferred before Heaven what have you now got by all your sinful Love of the world where now is all your fleshly pleasure Will it all now serve turn to save you from death or the wrath of God and everlasting misery will it now go with you to another world Or do you think it will comfort a soul in Hell to remember the wealth which he gathered and left behind him upon earth would it not now have been much more comfortable to you if you could say My dayes were spent in Holiness in the Love of my dear Redeemer and in the hearty service of my God in praising him and praying to him in learning and obeying his holy word and will My business in the world was to please God and seek a better world and while I followed my lawful trade or calling my eye was chiefly on eternal life Instead of pleasing the flesh I delighted my soul in the Love and praise and service of my Redeemer and in the hopes of my eternal blessedness and now I am going to enjoy that God and happiness which I believ'd and sought Would not this be more comfortable to you now than to look back on your time as spent in a worldly fleshly life which you preferred before your God and your salvation Christ would not have forsaken you in the time of your extremity as the world doth if you had cleaved faithfully to him You little know what peace and comfort you might have found even on earth in a holy life How sweet would the word of God have been to you How sweet would prayer and meditation and holy conference have been Do you think it is not more pleasant to a true Believer to read the promises of eternal life and to think and talk of that blessed state when they shall dwell with God in Ioy for ever than it was to you to think and talk of worldly trash and vanity If you had used the world as a traveller doth the necessaries of his journey the thought of heaven would have offorded you solid rational comfort all the way O little do you know the sweetness of the Love of God in Christ and how good a Christian findeth it when he can but exercise and increase his knowledge and faith and Love to God and thankfulness for mercy and hopes of Heaven and walk with God in a heavenly conversation Do you not wish now that this had been your course But that which is done cannot be undone and time that is past can never be called back But yet there is a sure Remedy for your soul if you have but a heart to entertain and use it God so loved the world Joh. 3. 16 18. that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever Believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life Iesus Christ being God and Man is the Mediator between God and man His death is a sufficient Sacrifice for our sins It is his Office to save all those that come to God by him Do but unfeignedly
upon Justification c. which I have seen de nomine and neither of them seemed to take notice of it Be sure as soon as you peruse the terms of your question to sift this throughly and dispute verbal controversies but as verbal and not as real and material We have real differences enow we need not make them seem more by such a blind or heedless manner of Disputing § 22. Direct 11. Suffer not a rambling mind in study nor a rambling talker in Disputes to interrupt Direct 11. your orderly procedure and divert you from your argument before you bring it to the natural issue Both deceiving Sophisters and giddy headed praters will be violent to start another game and spoil the chase of the point before you But hold them to it or take them to be unworthy to be disputed with and let them go except it be where the weakness of the Auditors requireth you to follow them in their Wild-goose Chase. You do but lose time in such rambling studies or disputes § 23. Direct 12. Be caâ—telous of admitting false suppositions or at least of admitting any inference Direct 12. that dependeth upon them In some cases a supposition of that which is false may be made while it no way tends to infer the truth of it But nothing must be built upon that falshood as intimating it to be a truth False suppositions cunningly and secretly workt into arguments are very ordinary instruments of deceit § 24. Direct 13. Plead not uncertainties against certainties But make certain points the measure Direct 13. to try the uncertain by Reduce not things proved and sure to those that are doubtful and justly controverted But reduce points disputable to those that are past doubt § 25. Direct 14. Plead not the darker Texts of Scripture against those that are more plain Direct 14. and clear nor a few texts against many that are as plain For that which is interpreted against the most plain and frequent expressions of the same Scripture is certainly mis-interpreted § 26. Direct 15. Take not obscure Prophecies for Precepts The obscurity is enough to make Direct 15. you cautelous how you venture your self in the Practice of that which you understand not But if there were no obscurity yet Prophecies are no warrant to you to fulfill them no though they be for the Churches good Predictions tell you but de eventu what will come to pass but warrant not you to bring it to pass Gods Prophesies are oft-times fulfilled by the wickedest men and the wickedest means As by the Jews in killing Christ and Pharaoh in refusing to let Israel go and Iehu in punishing the house of Ahab Yet many self-conceited persons think that they can fetch that out of the Revelations or the Prophecies of Daniel that will justifie very horrid crimes while they use wicked means to fulfil Gods Prophecies § 27. Direct 16. Be very cautelous in what cases you take mens practice or example to be instead of Direct 16. precept in the sacred Scriptures In one case a Practice or example is obligatory to us as a Precept and that is when God doth give men a commission to establish the form or orders of his Church and Worship as he did to Moses and to the Apostles and promiseth them his Spirit to lead them into all truth in the matters which he employeth them in here God is engaged to keep them from miscarrying for if they should his work would be ill done his Church would be ill constituted and framed and his servants unavoidably deceived The Apostles were authorized to constitute Church officers and orders for continuance and the Scripture which is written for a great part historically acquaints us what they did as well as what they said and wrote in the building of the Church in obedience to their commission at least in declaring to the World what Christ had first appointed And thus if their practice were not obligatory to us their words also might be avoided by the same pretenses And on this ground at least the Lords day is easily proved to be of Divine appointment and obligation Only we must see that we carefully distinguish between both the Words and Practices of the Apostles which were upon a particular and temporary occasion and obligation from those that were upon an universal or permanent ground § 28. Direct 17. Be very cautelous what Conclusions you raise from any meer works of Providence Direct 17. For the bold and blind exposition of these hath lead abundance into most heynous sins No providence is instead of a Law to us But sometimes and oft-times providence changeth the Matter of our duty and so occasioneth the change of our obligations As when the husband dyeth the Wise is disobliged c. But men of worldly dispositions do so over-value worldly things that from them they venture to take the measure of Gods Love and hatred and of the causes which he approveth or disapproveth in the World And the wisdom of God doth seem on purpose to cause such wonderful unexpected mutations in the affairs of men as shall shame the principles or spirits of these men and manifest their giddiness and mutability to their confusion One year they say This is sure the cause of God or else be would never own as he doth Another year they say If this had been Gods cause he would never have so disowned it Just as the Barbarians judged of Paul when the Viper seized on his hand And thus God is judged by them to own or disown by his prospering or afflicting more than by his Word § 29. Direct 18. In controversies which much depend on the sincerity or experience of Godly men take Direct 18. heed that you affect not singularity and depart not from the common sense of the Godly For the workings of Gods spirit are better judged of by the ordinary tenour of them than by some real or supposed case that is extraordinary § 30. Direct 19. In Controversies which most depend on the testimony of Antiquity depart not from Direct 19. the judgement of the ancients They that stood within View of the dayes of the Apostles could better tell what they did and what a condition they left the Churches in than we can do To appeal to the Ancients in every cause even in those where the later Christians do excell them is but to be fools in reverence of our fore-fathers wisdom But in points of History or any thing in which they had the advantage of their posterity their testimony is to be preferred § 31. Direct 20. In Controversies which depend on the Experience of particular Christians or of the Direct 20. Church regard most the judgement of the most experienced and prefer the judgement of the later ages of the Church before the judgement of less experienced ages except the Apostolical age that had the greater help of the spirit An ancient experienced Christian or Divine is
withdrew from the accusation as tending to their own confusion And Severus saith Certe Ithacium nihil pensi nihil sancti habuisse definio fuit enim audax loquax impudens sumptuosus ventri gulae plurimum impertiens Hic stultitiae eo usque processerat ut omnes etiam sanctos viros quibus aut studium inerat lectionis aut propositum erat certare jejuniis tanquam Priscilliani socios discipulos in erimen arcesseret Ausus etiam Miser est Martino Episcopo viro plane Apostolis conferendo palam objectare haeresis infamiam quia non desinebat inâ—repare Ithacium ut ab accusatione desisteret And when the Leaders were put to death the Heresie increased more and honoured Priscillian as a Martyr and reproached the Orthodox as wicked persecuters And the end was that the Church was filled by it with divisions and manifold mischiefs and all the most godly made the common scorn Inter haec plebs Dei optimus quisque probro atque ludibrio habebatur They are the last words of Severus's History And changing the names are calculated for another Meridian and for later years CHAP. IX How to behave our selves in the publick Assemblies and the worship there performed and after them See my Treaâ— of the Lords day and my Cure of Church-Div I Have purposely given such particular Directions in Tom. 2. on this subject and written so many Books about it and said so much also in the Cases of Conscience that I shall here only cast in a few common Directions lest the Reader think I make a bawk Direct 1. Let your preparations in secret and in your family on the beginning of the Direct 1. Lords dayes be such as conduce to fit you for the publick Worship Run not to Church as ungodly Eccl. 5. 1 2 3 4. people do with a carnal heart that never sought God before you went nor considered what you go about As if all your Religion were to make up the number of the auditors and you 1 Pet. 2. 1 2. Prov. 1. 20. to the end thought God must not be worshipped and obeyed at home but only in the Church God may in mercy meet with an unprepared heart and open his eyes and heart and save him But he hath made no promise of it to any such He that goeth to Worship that God at Church whom he forgetteth and despiseth in his heart and house may expect to be despised by him O consider what it is for a sinner that must shortly die to go with the servants of God to worship him to pray for his salvation and to hear what God hath to say to him by his Minister for the life of his immortal soul Direct 2. Enter not into the holy Assembly either superstitiously or unreverently Not as if Direct 2. the bending of the knee and mumbling over a few words with a careless ignorant mind and spending an hour there as carelesly would save your souls Nor yet as if the Relation which the worship the worshippers and the dedicated Place have unto God deserved not a special honour and regard Though God be ever with us every where yet every Time and Place and person and business is not equally Related to God And Holiness is no unfit attribution for that Company or that Place which is Related to God though but by the lawful separation and dedication of man To be uncovered in those Countreys where uncovering signifieth Reverence is very well becoming a reverent soul except when the danger of cold forbids it It is an unhappy effect of our Contentions that many that seem most reverent and holy in their high regard of holy things do yet carry themselves with more unreverent deportment than those that themselves account prophane God is the God of Soul and Body and must be worshipped by both And while they are united the actions of one are helpful to the other as well as due and decent Direct 3. If you can come at the beginning that you may shew your attendance upon God and Direct 3. your esteem of all his worship Especially in our Assemblies where so great a part of the duty as Confession Praises Reading the Scriptures are all at the beginning And it is meet that you thereby shew that you prefer publick worship before private and that needless businesses keep you not away Direct 4. If you are free and can do it lawfully choose the most able holy Teacher that you can Direct 4. have and be not indifferent whom you hear For O how great is the difference and how bad are our hearts and how great our necessity of the clearest doctrine and the Livelyest helps Nor be you indifferent what manner of people you joyn with nor what manner of worship is there performed But in all choose the Best when you are free But where you are not free or can have no better refuse not to make use of weaker Teachers or to communicate with faulty Congregations in a defective faulty manner of worship so be it you are not compelled to sin And think not that all the faults of the Prayers or Communicants are imputed to all that joyn with them in that worship For then we should joyn with none in all the World Direct 5. When the Minister is weak be the more watchful against prejudice and sluggishness of Direct 5. heart lest you lose all Mark that Word of God which he readeth to you and reverence and Love and lay up that It was the Law Read and meditated on which David saith the Godly do delight Psal. 1. 2 3. Psal. 12. 6 7. 19. 7 8 9. in The sacred Scriptures are not so obscure and useless as the Papists do pretend but convert the soul and are able to make us wise unto salvation Christ went ordinarily to the Synagogues where even bad men did read Moses and the Prophets every Sabbath day There are thousands that cannot Read themselves who must come to the Assembly to hear that word read which they cannot read or hear at home Every sentence of Scripture hath a divine excellency and therefore had we nothing but the Reading of it and that by a bad man a holy soul may profit by it Direct 6. Mind not so much the case of others present as your selves And think not so much how Direct 6. bad such and such a one is and unworthy to be there as how bad you are your selves and unworthy of communion with the people of the Lord and what a mercy it is that you have admittance and are not cast out from those holy opportunities Direct 7. Take heed of a pievish quarrelsome humour that disposeth you to carp at all that 's said Direct 7. and done and to find fault with every mode and circumstance and to affect a causless singularity as thinking that your own wayes and words and orders are far more excellent than other mens Think ill of nothing out of
of a distinct order the Reader must not expect that I here determine For 1. The Power is by Christ given to them as is before proved and in Tit. 1. 5. 2. None else are ordinarily able to discern aright the Abilities of a man for the sacred Ministry The people may discern a profitable moving Preacher but whether he understand the Scripture or the substance of Religion or be â—ound in the faith and not Heretical and delude them not with a form of well uttered words they are not ordinarily able to judge 3. None else are fit to attend this work but Pastors who are separated to the sacred office It requireth Act. 13. 2. Rom. 1. 1. 1 Tim. 4. 15. more time to get fitness for it and then to perform it faithfully than either Magistrates or people can ordinarily bestow 4. The power is no where given by Christ to Magistrates or people 5. It hath been exercised by Pastors or Church-officers only both in and ever since the Apostles dayes in all the Chuâ—ches of the World And we have no reason to think that the Church hath been gathered from the beginâ—â—â—â— till now by so great an errour as a wrong conveyance of the Ministerial power III. The word Iurisdiction as applyed to the Church officers is no Scripture Word and in the common sence soundeth too bigg as signifying more power than the servants of all must claim For Isa. 33. 2â— Jam. 4. 1â— there is One Lawgiver who is able to save and to destroy But in a moderate sence it may be tolerated As Jurisdiction signifieth in particular 1. Legislation 2. Or Judicial Process or Sentence 3. Or the Execution of such a sentence strictly taken so Ordination is no part of Jurisdiction But as Iurisdiction signifieth the same with the power of Government Ius Regendi in general so Ordination is an Act of Jurisdiction As the placing or choosing of Inferiour officers may belong to the Steward of a Family or as the Calling or authorizing of Physicions belongeth to the Colledge of Physicions and the authorizing of Lawyers to the Judges or Society or the authorizing of Doctors in Philosophy to the Society of Philosophers or to particular rulers Where note that in the three last instances the Learning or Fitness of the said Persons or Societies is but their Dispositio vel aptitudo ad potestatem exercendam but the actual Power of conveying authority to others or designing the Recipient person is received from the supream power of the Land and so is properly an Act of Authority here called Jurisdiction So that the common distinguishing of Ordination from Iurisdiction or Government as if they were totâ specie different is unsound IV. Imposition of hands was a sign like the Kiss of peace and the anointing of persons and like our kneeling in Prayer c. which having first somewhat in their nature to invite men to the use was become a common significant sign of a superiours benediction of an inferiour in those times and Countreys And so was here applyed ordinarily for its antecedent significancy and aptitude to this use and was not purposely Instituted nor had its significancy newly given it by Institution And so was not like a Sacrament necessarily and perpetually affixed to Ordination Therefore we must conclude 1. That Imposition of hands in Ordination is a decent apt significant sign not to be scrupled by any nor to be omitted without necessity as being of Scripture ancient and common use 2. But yet that it is not essential to Ordination which may be valid by any fit designation and separation of the person And therefore if it be omitted it nullifieth not the action And if the Ordainers did it by Letters to a man a thousand miles off it would be valid And some persons of old were ordained when they were absent V. I add as to the need of Ordination 1. That without this Key the office and Church doors would be cast open and every Heretick or Self-conceited person intrude 2. It is a sign of a proud unworthy person that will judge himself fit for so great a work and Act. 13. 2. Heb. 5. 4. 10. intrude upon such a conceit when he may have the Judgement of the Pastors and avoideth it 3. Those that so do should no more be taken for Ministers by the people than any should go for Christians that are not Baptized or for marryed persons whose marriage is not solemnized Quest. 20. Is Ordination necessary to make a man a Pastor of a particular Church as such And is he to be made a General Minister and a particular-Church-Elder or Pastor at once and by one Ordination I Have proved that a man may be made a Minister in general yea and sent to exercise it in Converting Infidels and baptizing them before ever he is the Pastor of any particular Church To which I add that in this General Ministry he is a Pastor in the universal Church as a Licensed Physicion that hath no Hospital or Charge is a Physicion in the Kingdom And 1. As Baptism is as such our Enterance into the universal Church and not into a particular so is Ordination to a Minister an enterance only on the Ministry as such 2. Yet a man may at once be made a Minister in general and the Pastor of this or that Church in particular And in Kingdoms wholly inchurched and Christian it is usually fittest so to do Lest many being ordained sine titulo idleness and poverty of supernumeraries should corrupt and dishonour the Ministry Which was the cause of the old Canons in this case 3. But when a man is thus called to both at once it is not all done by Ordination as such but his complicate Relation proceedeth from a complication of Causes As he is a Minister it is by Ordination And as he is The Pastor of this People it is by the conjunct causes of appropriation which are 1. Necessarily the Peoples Consent 2. Regularly the Pastors approbation and recommendation and reception of the person into their Communion 3. And sometimes the Magistrate may do much â—â— oblige the people to consent 4. But when a man is made a Minister in general before he needeth no 〈◊〉 Ordination to fix him in a particular charge but only an Approbation recommendation particular Investiture and Reception For else a man must be oft ordained even as oft as he removeth But yet Imposition of hands may fitly be used in this particular Investiture though it be no proper ordination that is no collation of the office of a Minister in general but the fixing of one that was a Minister before Quest. 21. May a man be oft or twice Ordained IT is supposed that we play not with an ambiguous word that we remember what Ordination is And then you will see Cause to distinguish 1. Between entire true Ordination and the external act or words or ceremony only 2. Between one that was truly ordained before and one that
that which never was and that God should take a new course in the world 8. And the opinion of imposing forms of prayer may draw on the opinion of imposing forms of preaching as much and of restraining free preaching as much as free praying as we see in Moscovy And then when nothing but bare Reading is required nothing more will be ordinarily sought And so the Ministry will be the scorn of the people 9. And it will be a shameful and uncomfortable failing when a Minister is not able on variety of occasions to vary his prayers accordingly and when he cannot go any further than his Book or Lesson It being as impossible to make prayers just fitted to all occasions which will fall out as to make Sermons fit for all or as they say to make a Coat for the Moon And the people will contemn the Ministers when they perceive this great deficiency 10. And it is a great difficulty to many Ministers to learn and say a form without book so that they that can all day speak what they know can scarce recite a form of words one quarter of an hour the memory more depending upon the body and its temper than the exercise of the understanding doth He that is tyed just to these words and no other is put upon double difficulties like him that on height must walk on a narrow plank where the fear of falling will make him fall But he that may express the just desires of his soul in what words occur that are apt and decent is like one that hath a field to walk in For my own part it is easier to me to pray or preach six hours in freedome about things which I understand than to pray or preach the tenth part of an hour in the fetters of a form of words which I must not vary And so the necessity of a Book coming in doth bring down the reputation of the Ministers abilities in the peoples eyes 11. But the grand incommodity greater than all the rest is that it usually occasioneth carelesness deadness formality and heartless lip-labour in our prayers to God whilest the free way of present prayer tendeth to excite our Cogitationâ— to consider what we say And it is not only the multitude of dead-hearted hypocrites in the Church that are thus tempted to persevere in their lip-labour and hypocrisie and to draw near to God with their lips when their hearts are far from him and are gratified in their self-deceit whilest Parrot-like they speak the words which they regard not and their tongues do overgo their hearts But even better men are greatly tempted to dead remisness I mean both the speakers and the hearers For 1. It is natural to mans mind to have a slothful weariness as well as his body and to do no more than he findeth a necessity of doing And though Gods presence alone should suffice to engage all the powers of our souls yet sad experience telleth us that Gods eye and mans together will do more with almost all men than one alone And therefore no mens Thoughts are so accurately governed as their words Therefore when a Minister knoweth before hand that as to mans approbation he hath no more to do but to Read that which he seeth before him he is apt to let his Thoughts fly abroad and his affections lye down because no man taketh account of these But in extemporate diversified prayer a man cannot do it without an excitation of his understanding to think to the utmost what to say and an excitation of his Affections to speak with life or else the hearers will perceive his coldness And though all this may be Counterfeit and hypocritically affected yet it is a great help to seriousness and sincerity to have the faculties all awake And it is a great help to awaken them to be under such a constant necessity even from man As those that are apt to sleep at prayer will do it less when they know men observe them than at another time 2. And both to speaker and hearers humane frailty maketh it hard to be equally affected with the same thing spoken a hundred times as we are at first when it is new and when it is cloathed in comely variety of expressions As the same Book affecteth us not at the twentieth reading as it did at the first Say not it is a dishonourable weakness to be thus carryed by the novelty of things or words For though that be true it is a dishonour common to all mankind and a disease which is your own and which God alloweth us all lawful means to cure and to correct the unhappy effects while it is uncured 12. Lastly Set forms serve unworthy men to hide their unworthiness by and to be the matter of a Controversie in which they may vent their envy against them that are abler and holyer than themselves II. Having now truly shewed you the Commodities and Incommodities of both the wayes for the other question Which of them is the best I must give you but some Rules to answer it your selves 1. That is best which hath most and greatest Commodities and fewest and least discommodities 2. For neither of them is forbidden in it self considered nor evil but by accident 4. One may have more Commodities and the other more discommodities in one Countrey and age than in another and with some persons than with others 4. Sober Christians should be very backward in such cases to quarrel with the Churches where they live or come but humbly submit to them in lawful things though they think them inconvenient Because it is not they that are the Governours and Judges 5. The Commands of Authority and the Concord of the Churches may weigh down many lighter accidents 6. I crave leave to profess that my own judgement is that somewhat of both wayes joyned together will best obviate the incommodities of both To have so much wholsome methodical unquestionable forms as near as may be in Scripture phrase as is necessary to avoid the inconvenience of a total exclusion of forms and to the attainment of their desirable Ends and to have so much withall of freedome in prayer as is necessary to its ends and to avoid the deadness formality and other incommodities of forms alone Though by this opinion I cross the conceits of prejudiced men on both extreams I think I cross not the judgement of the Church of England which alloweth free prayers in the Pulpit and at the visitation of the sick And I cross not the opinion of any antient Church that ever I read of nor of the Fathers and Pastors whose works are come to our hands nor yet of Luther Melancthon Bucer Zuinglius Calvin Beza Zanchius and the rest of our famous Reformers nor yet of the famous Nonconformists I have a Manuscript of Mr. Cartwrights in which having fully proved the falshood of Sutliffes suspicion that he was acquainted with Hackets project he answereth his charge as if he were
paribus by an unnecessary thing to occasion divisions in the Churches But where one part judgeth Church Musick unlawful for another part to use it would occasion divisions in the Churches and drive away the other part Therefore I would wish Church-musick to be no where set up but where the Congregation can accord in the use of it or at least where they will not divide thereupon 2. And I think it unlawful to use such streins of Musick as are Light or as the Congregation cannot easily be brought to understand Much more on purpose to commit the whole work of singing to the Choristers and exclude the Congregation I am not willing to joyn in such a Church where I shall be shut out of this noble work of praise 3. But plain intelligible Church-musick which occasioneth not divisions but the Church agreeth in for my part I never doubted to be lawful For 1. God set it up long after Moses Ceremonial Law by David Solomon c. 2. It is not an instituted Ceremony meerly but a natural help to the minds alacrity And it is a 1 Sam. 18. 6. 1 Chron. 15. 16. 2 Chron. 5. 13. 7. 6. 23. 13. 34. 22. Psal. 98. 99. 149. 150. duty and not a sin to use the helps of nature and Lawful art though to institute Sacraments c. of our own As it is lawful to use the comfortable helps of spectacles in reading the Bible so is it of Musick to exhilerate the soul towards God 3. Jesus Christ joyned with the Jews that used it and never spake a word against it 4. No Scripture forbiddeth it therefore it is not unlawful 5. Nothing can be against it that I know of but what is said against Tunes and Melody of Voice For whereas they say that it is a humane invention so are our Tunes and Metre and Versions Yea it is not a humane invention As the last Psalm and many other shew which call us to praise the Lord with instruments of musick And whereas it is said to be a carnal kind of pleasure they may say as much of a Melodious harmonious confort of Voices which is more excellent Musick than any Instruments And whereas some say that they find it do them harm so others say of melodious singing But as wise men say they find it do them good And why should the experience of some prejudiced self-conceited person or of a half-man that knoweth not what melody is be set against the experience of all others and deprive them of all such helps and mercies as these people say they find no benefit by And as some deride Church-musick by many scornful names so others do by singing as some Congregations neer me testifie who these many years have forsaken it and will not endure it but their Pastor is fain to unite them by the constant and total omission of singing Psalms It is a great wrong that some do to ignorant Christians by putting such whimseyes and scruples into their heads which as soon as they enter turn that to a scorn and snare and trouble which might be a real help and comfort to them as well as it is to others Quest. 128. Is the Lords day a Sabbath and so to be called and kept and that of Divine institution And is the seventh day Sabbath abrogated c. Answ. ALL the Cases about the Lords day except those practical directions for keeping it in the Oeconomical part of this Book I have put into a peculiar Treatise on that subject by it self and therefore shall here pass them over referring the Reader to them in that discourse Quest. 129. Is it Lawful to appoint humane Holy dayes and observe them Answ. THis also I have spoke to in the foresaid Treatise and in my Disput. of Church-Govern and Cer. Briefly 1. It is not lawful to appoint another weekly sabbath or day wholly separated to the Commemoration of our redemption For that is to mend pretendedly the institutions of God Yea and to contradict him who hath judged one day only in seven to be the fittest weekly proportion 2. As part of some dayes may be weekly used in holy assemblies so may whole days on just extraordinary occasions of prayer preaching humiliation and thanksgiving 3. The holy doctrine lives and sufferings of the Martyrâ— and other holy men hath been so great a mercy to the Church that for any thing I know it is lawful to keep anniversary Thanksgivings in remembrance of them and to encourage the weak and prâ—voke them to constancy and imitation 4. But to dedicate dayes or Temples to them in any higher sence as the Heathens and Idolaters did to their Hero's is unlawful or any way to intimate an attribution of Divinity to them by word or Worship 5. And they that live among such Idolaters must take heed of giving them scandalous encouragement 6. And they that scrupulously fear such sin more than there is cause should not be forced to sin against their Consciences 7. But yet no Christians should causelesly refuse that which is lawful nor to joyn with the Churches in holy exercises on the dayes of thankful commemoration of the Apostles and Martyrs and excellent instruments in the Church Much less peâ—ulantly to work and set open Shops to the offence of others But rather to perswade all to imitate the holy lives of those Saints to whom they give such honours Quest. 130. How far is the holy Scriptures a Law and perfect Rule to us Answ. 1. FOr all thoughts words affections and actions of Divine faith and obedience supposing still Gods Law of Nature For it is no Believing God to believe what he never revealed nor no Trusting God to trust that he will certainly give us that which he never either directly nor indirectly promised Nor no obeying God to do that which he never commanded 2. The Contents will best shew the Extent Whatever is Revealed promised and commanded in it for that it is a perfect Rule For certainly it is perfect in its kind and to its proper use 3. It is a perfect Rule for all that is of Universal Moral necessity That is Whatever it is necessary that 1 Tim. 3. 16. 2 Pet. 1. 20. 2 Tim. â— 15. Rom. 15. 4. 16. 26. Joh. â— 3â— Act. 1â— 2. 11. Joh. 19. 24 28 36 37. man believe think or do in all ages and places of the World this is of Divine obligation Whatever the World is Universally bound to that is All men in it it is certain that Gods Law in Nature or Scripture or both bindeth them to it For the World hath no Universal King or Lawgiver but God 4. Gods own Laws in Nature and Scripture are a perfect Rule for all the duties of the understanding thoughts affections passions immediately to be exercised on God himself For no one else is a discerner or judge of such matters 5. It perfectly containeth all the Essential and Integral parts of the Christian Religion so
antient formulae agree not in words among themselves 5. It is not to be doubted of but the Apostles did appoint and use a Creed commonly in their ☞ dayes And that it is the same with that which is now called the Apostles and the Nicene in the main but not just the same composure of words nor had they any such precise composure as can be proved But this much is easily provable 1. That Christ Composed a Creed when he made his Covenant and instituted Baptism Matth. 28. 19. 2. That in the Jewish Church where men were educated in the knowledge of the Scriptures and expectation of the Mâ—ssiah it was supposed that the people had so much preparatory knowledge as made them the more capable of Baptism as soon as they did but seriously profess to Believe and Consent to the terms of the Covenant And therefore they were presently baptized Acts 2. 38 39 40. 3. That this could not be rationally supposed among the Gentiles and common Ignorant people of the world And Ignorantis non est Consensus He doth not Covenant who understandeth not the Covenant as to what is promised him and what he promiseth 4. That the Apostles baptized and caused others to baptize many thousands and settle many Churches before any part of the New Testament was written even many and many years 5. That the Apostles did their work as well and better than any that succeeded them 6. That their successors in the Common Ministery did as far as any Church History leadeth us up Instruct and Catechise men in the meaning of the Baptismal Covenant which is the Christian faith before they baptized them Yea they kept them long in the state of Catechumens usually before they would baptize them And after baptized but twice a year at Easter and Whitsontide as our Liturgy noteth And they received an account of their tolerable understanding of Religion before they would receive them into the Church 7. No doubt then but the Apostles did cause the baptizable to understand the three Articles of Christs own Creed and Covenant and to give some account of it before they baptized them ordinarily among the Gentiles 8. No doubt therefore but they used many more Explicatory words to cause them to understand those few 9. There is neither proof nor probability that they used a Composure of just the same words and no more or less Because they had to do with persons of several capacities some knowing who needed fewer words and some ignorant and dull who needed more Nor is any such Composure Heb. 5. 11 12. 6. 1 2 3. come down to our hands 10. But it is more than probable that the Matter opened by them to all the Catechumens was still the same when the words were not the same For Gods Promises and mans Conditions are still the same where the Gospel cometh Though since by the occasion of Heresies some few material clauses are inserted For all Christians had one Christianity and must go one way to Heaven 11. It is also more than probable that they did not needlesly vary the words lest it should teach men to vary the matter But that all Christians before baptism did make the same profession of faith as to the sense and very much the same as to the very words using necessary caution and yet avoiding unnecessary preciseness of formality But so as to obviate damnable Heresies that the Christian profession might attain its ends 12. Lastly No doubt but this practice of the Apostles was exemplary and imitated by the Churches and that thus the Essentials of Religion were by the tradition of the Creed and Baptism delivered 2 Tim. 1 13. 2 Cor. 3. 2 3 7. Heb. 8. 10. 10. 16. by themselves as far as Christianity went long before any Book of the New Testament was written And every Christian was an Impress or Transcript or Specimen of it And that the following Churches using the same Creed wholly in sense and mostly in words might so far well call it The Apostles Creed As they did both the Western and the Nicene Quest. 140. What is the use of Catechisms Answ. TO be a more familiar explication of the Essentials of Christianity and the principal Integrals in a larger manner than the Creed Lords Prayer and Decalogue do that the ignorant may the more easily understand it Every man cannot gather out of the Scripture the Greatest matters in the true method as distinct from all the rest And therefore it is part of the work of the Churches Teachers to do it to the hands and use of the ignorant Quest. 141. Could any of us have known by the Scriptures alone the Essentials of Religion from the Rest if Tradition had not given them to us in the Creed as from Apostolical Collection Answ. YEs For the Scripture it self telleth us what is necessary to salvation It describeth to us the Covenant of Grace both Promises and Conditions And it were strange if so large a Volume should not as plainly tell us what is necessary to salvation as fewer words The Scripture hath not Less than the Creed but more Quest. 142. What is the best Method of a true Catechism or Summ of Theology Answ. GOd willing I shall tell the Church my opinion of that at large in a peculiar Latin Treatise called Methodus Theologiae which here I cannot do Only I shall say that among all the great variety of Methods used in these times I think none cometh nearer the Order of the Matter which is the true Commendation of a Method than those which open Theology 1. In the breviate of the Baptismal Covenant 2. In the three explicatory summs the Creed Lords Prayer and Decalogue with the added Gospel Precepts 3. In the Largest form which is the whole Scripture And that our common English Catechism and Paraeus or Ursine and many such who use that common easie Method are more truly Methodical than most that pretend to greater accu 〈…〉 ness Though I much commend the great industry of such as Dudley Fenner Gomarrus and 〈…〉 cially George Sohenius Quest. 143. What is the use of various Church Confessions or Articles of Faith Answ. I Will pass by the very ill use that is made of them in too many Countreys where unnecessary opinions or uncertain are put in and they that can get into favour with the Secular Power take advantage under pretence of Orthodoxness and Uniformity Truth and Peace to set up their opinions and judgements to be the common rule for all to bow to though wiser than themselvâ—s And to silence all Ministers and scatter and divide the flocks that will not say or swear as they do that is that they are wise men and are in the right The true and commendable use of various Church Professions or Confessions of faith is 1. To be an Instruction to the more ignorant how to understand the Scriptures in most of the most weighty points 2. To be an enumeration of
truly signifieth the Rulers Will. 2. That it is the Act of a Power derived from God and therefore no further bindeth than it is the exercise of such a power 3. That it is given 1. Finally for Gods glory and pleasure and for the Common Good comprehending the Honour of the Ruler and the welfare of the society ruled And therefore obligeth not when it is 1. Against God 2. Or against the Common Good 2. And it is subordinate to Gods It is not Mr. Humphâ—â—y alone that hath written that Laws bind not in conscience to obedience which are against the Publick Good The greatest Casuists say the same excepting the case of scandal He that would see this in them may choose but these two special Authors Bapt. Fragos de Regimine Reipublicae Greg. Sayrus in his Clavis Regia and in them he shall find enow more câ—â—ed Though I think some further Cautions would make it more satisfactory own Laws in Nature and Scripture and therefore obligeth not to sin or to the violation of Gods Law 4. You must note that Laws are made for the Government of Societies as such universally and so are fitted to the Common Case for the Common Good And it is not possible but that a Law which prescribeth a duty which by accident is so to the most should meet with some particular subject to whom the case is so circumstantiated as that the same act would be to him a sin And to the same man it may be ordinarily a duty and in an extraordinary case a sin Thence it is that in some cases as Lent Fasts Marriages c. Rulers oft authorize some persons to grant dispensations in certain cases And hence it is said that Necessity hath no Law Hereupon I conclude as followeth 1. It is no sin to break a Law which is no Law as being against God or not authorized by him as of a Usurper c. See R. Hooker Conclus Lib 8. 2. It is no Law so far as it is no signification of the true Will of the Ruler what ever the words be Therefore so far it is no sin to break it 3. The Will of the Ruler is to be judged of not only by the Words but by the Ends of Government and by the Rules of Humanity 4. It being not possible that the Ruler in his Laws can foresee and name all exceptions which may occur it is to be supposed that it is his Will that the Nature of the thing shall be the notifier of his Will when it cometh to pass And that if he were present and this case fell out before him which the sense and end of the Law extendeth not to he would say This is an excepted Case 5. There is therefore a wide difference between a General Law and a personal particular Mandate As of a Parent to a Child or a Master to a Servant For this latter fully notifieth the Will of the Ruler in that very case and to that very person And therefore it cannot be said that here is any exception or that it is not his Will But in an Universal or General Law it is to be supposed that some particular excepted Cases will fall out extraordinarily though they cannot be named And that in those Cases the Rulers will dispenseth with it 6. Sometimes also the Ruler doth by the meer neglect of pressing or executing his own Laws permit them to grow obsolete and out of use And sometimes he forbeareth the execution of them for some time or to some sort of persons And by so doing doth notifie that it was not his Will that â—t such a time and in such cases they should oblige I say not that all remissness of execution is such a sign But sometimes it is And the very word of the Law-giver may notifie his dispensation or suspending will As for instance Upon the burning of London there were many Laws about coming to Parish Churches and relief of the poor of the Parish and the like that the people became uncapable of obeying And it was to be supposed that the Rulers will would have been to to have excepted such Cases if foreseen and that they did dispense with them when they fell out 7. Sometimes also the penalty of violating a Law is some such Mulct or service which the Ruler intendeth as a Commutation for the duty so that he freely leaveth it to the choice of the subject which he will choose And then it is no sin to pay the Mulct and omit the Action because it crosseth not the Law-givers will 8. Sometimes also the Law may command this principally for some mens sake which so little concerns others that it should not extend to them at all were it not lest the Liberty of them should be an impediment to the obedience of others and consequently of the common good In which case if those persons so little concerned do but omit the action secretly so as to be no scandal or publick hurt it seemeth that they have the implicite Consent of the Rulers 9. Sometimes particular duties are commanded with this express exception Unless they have just and reasonable impediment As for coming every Lords Day to Church c. which seemeth to imply that though in cases where the publick good is concerned the person himself shall not be Judge nor at all as to the penalty yet that in actions of an indifferent nature in themselves this exception is still supposed to be implyed Unless we have just and reasonable impediments of which in private Cases as to the Crime we may judge 10. I need not mention the common natural exceptions As that Laws bind not to a thing when it becometh naturally impossible or cessante materia vel capacitate subjecti obligati c. 11. Laws may change their sense in part by the change of the Law-giver For the Law is not formally to us his Law that is dead and was once our Ruler but his that is alive and is now our Ruler If Henry the eighth make a Law about the outward acts of Religion as for coming to Church c. and this remain unrepealed in King Edwards Queen Maries Queen Elizabeths King Iames his dayes c. even till now As we are not to think that the Law-givers had the same sense and will so neither that the Law hath the same sense and obligation For if the general words be capable of several senses we must not take it as binding to us in the sense it was made in but in the sense of of our present Law-givers or Rulers because it is their Law 12. Therefore if a Law had a special Reason for it at the first making as the Law for using Bows and Arrows that Reason ceasing we are to suppose the Will of the Law-giver to remit the obligation if he urge not the execution and renew not the Law 13. By these plain principles many particular difficulties may be easily resolved which cannot be foreseen and named e.
act of sin And when an unmortified lust or love of the world doth hurry you to the halter by sinful discontent And what hope of pardon without Repentance How exceeding likely therefore is it that when ever you put your selves out of your present pain and trouble you send your souls to endless torments And will it ease you to pass from poverty or crosses into Hell Or will you damn your souls because another wrongeth you O the madness of a sinner Who will you think hath wronged you most when you feel Hell fire Are you aweary of your lives and will you go to Hell for ease Alas how quickly would you be glad to be here again in a painfuller condition than that which you were so weary of yea and to endure it a thousand years Suppose you saw Hell before your eyes Would you leap into it Is not time of Repentance a mercy to be valued Yea a little reprieve from endless misery is better than nothing What need you make haste to come to Hell Will it not be soon enough if you stay thence as long as you can And why will you throw away your hopes and put your selves past all possibility of recovery before God put you so himself § 6. Direct 6. Understand the wonders of mercy revealed and bestowed on mankind in Iesus Christ Direct 6. and understand the tenour of the Covenant of Grace The ignorance of this is it that keepeth a bitter taste upon your Spirits and maketh you cry out Forsaken and Undone when such Miracles of mercy are wrought for your salvation And the ignorance of this is it that maketh you foolishly cry out There is no hope The day of grace is past It is too late God will never shew me mercy When his Word assureth all that will believe it that who ever confesseth and forsaketh his sins shall have mercy Prov. 28 13. And if we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive 1 John 1. 9. And that whoever will may freely drink of the waters of life Rev. 22. 17. And that whoever believeth in him shall not perish but have everlasting life John 3. 17. I have no other hope of my salvation but that Gospel which promiseth pardon and salvation unto all that at any time repent and turn to God by faith in Christ And I dare lay my salvation on the truth of this that Christ never rejected any sinner how great soever that at any time in this life was truly willing to come to him and to God by him John 6. 37. He that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out But the malitious Devil would â—ain make God seem odious to the soul and representeth Love it self as our enemy that we might not Love him Despair is such a part of Hell that if he could bring us to it he would think he had us half in Hell already and then he would urge us to dispatch our selves that we might be there indeed and our despair might be uncurable How blind is he that seeth not the Devil in all this CHAP. IX Directions for the forgiving of Enemies and those that injure us Against Wrath See Tom. 1. Ch. against Anger and Malice and Revenge and Persecution § 1. IT is not only actual Murder which is forbidden in the sixth Commâ—ndment but also all inordinate Wrath and Malice and desires of Revenge and injuring the person of our neighbour or our enemy For so the Prophet and Judge of the Church hath himself expounded it Mat. 5. 21 22. Anger hath a hurting inclination and Malice is a fixed Anger and Revenge is the fruit of both or either of them He that will be free from injurious actions must subdue that wrath and malice which is their cause Heart-murders and injuries must be carefully rooted up For out of the Heart proceed evil thoughts and murders c. Matth. 15. 19. This is the fire of Hell on which an evil tongue is set Iames 3. 6. and this must be quenched if you would be innocent § 2. Direct 1. See God in your neighbour and Love him for that of God which is upon him If he Direct 1. be Holy he hath the Moral Image of God If he be unholy he hath his Natural Image as he is a man He is not only Gods Creature but his Reasonable Creature and the Lord of his inferiour works And art thou a child of God and yet canst not see him and love him in his works Without God he is nothing whom thou art so much offended with And though there be somewhat in him which is not of God which may deserve thy hatred yet that is not his substance or person Hate not or wrong not that which is of God It would raise in you such a reverence as would asswage your wrath if you could but see God in him that you are displeased with § 3. Direct 2. To this end observe more the Good which is in your neighbour than the evil Malice Direct 2. overlooketh all that is good and amiable and can see nothing but that which is bad and detestable It hearkeneth more to them that dispraise and open the faults of others than to those that praise them and declare their virtues Not that Good and Evil must be confounded But the Good as well as the Evil must be acknowledged We have more use our selves for the observation of their virtues than of their faults and it is more our duty And were it never so little good that is in them the right observing of it at least would much diminish your dislike § 4. Direct 3. Learn but to Love your neighbour as your self and this will make it easie to you both Direct 3. to forbear him and forgive him With your self you are not apt to be so angry Against your self you bear no malice nor desire no revenge that shall do you hurt As you are angry with your self penitently for the faults you have committed but not so as to desire your own destruction or final hurt but with such a displeasure as tendeth to your recovery so also must you do by others Direct 4. To this end be sure to mortifie your self ishness For it is the inordinate respect Direct 4. that men have to themselves which maketh them aggravate the faults of all that are against them or offend them Be humble and self-denying and you will think your selves so mean and inconsiderable that no fault can be very great nor deserve much displeasure meerly as it is against you A proud self-esteeming man is easily provoked and hardly reconciled without great submission because he thinketh so highly of himself that he thinketh heinously of all that is said or done against him and he is so over-dear to himself that he is impatient with his adversary § 5. Direct 5. Be not your own Iudge in cases of setled malice or revenge but let some impartial Direct 5. sober by
12. Dearly beloved I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul having your conversation honest among the Gentiles that whereas they speak against you as evil doers they may by your good works which they shall behold glorifie God in the day of Visitation And it was the aggravation of the Hereticks sin that many shall follow their pernicious wayes by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of 2 Pet. 2. 2. O then how carefully should Ministers and all that are Godly walk The blind world cannot read the Gospel in it self but only as it is exemplified by the lives of men They judge not of the Actions of men by the Law but of the Law of God by mens actions Therefore the saving or damning of mens souls doth lie much upon the lives of the Professours of Religion because their liking or disliking a holy life doth depend upon them Saith Paul of young Women I will that they give no occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully for some are already turned aside after Satan 1 Tim. 5. 14 15. Hence it is that even the appearance of evil is so carefully to be avoided by all that fear God left others be drawn by it to speak evil of Godliness Every scandal truly so called is a stab to the soul of him that is scandalized and a reproachful blot to the Christian cause I may say of the faults of Christians as Plutark doth of the faults of Princes A wart or blemish in the face is more conspicuous and disgraceful than in other parts § 42. Direct 20. Let no pretence of the evil of Hypocrisie make you so contented with your secret innocency Direct 20. as to neglect the edification and satisfaction of your neighbours When it is only your own interest that is concerned in the business then it is no matter whether any man be acquainted with any good that you do And it is a very small matter how they judge or what they say of you The approbation of God alone is enough No matter who condemneth you if he justifie you But when the vindication of your innocency or the manifestation of your virtue is necessary to the good of your neighbours souls or to the honour of you Sacred profession the neglect of it is not sincerity but cruelty CHAP. XIII Directions against Scandal-taken or an aptness to receive hurt by the words or deeds of others § 1. IT was not only an admonition but a prophesie of Christ when he said Wo to the world because of offences It must be that offence come And Blessed is he that is not offended or scanlized in me He foreknew that the errors and misdoings of some would be the snare and ruine of many others And that when damnable herefies arise many will follow their pernicious wayes by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of 2 Pet. 1. 2. Like men in the dark where if one catch a fall he that comes next him falls upon him There are four sorts of persons that use to be scandalized or hurt by the sins of others § 2. 1. Malignant enemies of Christ and Godliness who are partly hardned in their malice and partly rejoyced at the dishonour of Religion and insult over those that give the offence or take occasion by it to blaspheme or persecute 2. Some that are more equal and hopeful and in greater possibility of conversion who are stopt by it in their desires and purposes and attempts of a godly life 3. Unsound Professors or hypocrites who are turned by scandals from the way of Godliness which they seemed to walk in 4. Weak Christians who are troubled and hindered in their way of piety or else drawn into some particular error or sin though they fall not off § 3. So that the effects of scandal may be reduced to these two I. The perverting of mens judgements to dislike Religion and think hardly either of the doctrine or practice of Christianity II. The emboldning of men to commit particular sins or to omit particular duties or at least the troubling and hindering them in the performance Against which I shall first give you distinctly some Meditative Directions and then some Practical Directions against them both together § 4. I. Direct 1. Consider what an evident sign it is of a very blind or malicious soul to be so apt Direct 1. to pick quarrels with God and godliness because of the sins of other men Love thinketh not ill of those we love Ill will and malice are still ready to impute what ever is amiss to those whom they hate Enmity is contentious and slanderous and will make a crime of virtue it self and from any Topick fetch matter of reproach There is no witness seemeth incredible to it who speaketh any thing that is evil of those they hate An argument a baculo ad verber◠is sufficient Thus did the Heathens by the primitive Christians And will you do thus by God Will you terrifie your own consciences when they shall awake and find such an ugly Serpent in your bosome as Malice and Enmity against your Maker and Redeemer It is the nature of the Devil even his principal sin And will you not only wear his livery but bear his image to prove that he is your Father and by community of natures to prove that you must also have a communion with him in condemnation and punishment And doth not so visible a mark of Devilisme upon your souls affright you and make you ready to run away from your selves Nothing but devilish malice can charge that upon God or godliness which is done by sinners against his Laws Would you use a friend thus If a murder were done or a slander raised of you or your house were fired or your goods stollen would you suspect your friend of it Or any one that you honoured loved or thought well of You would not certainly but rather your enemy or some lewd and dissolute persons that were most likely to be guilty You are blinded by malice if you see not how evident a proof of your devilish malice this is to be ready when men that profess Religion do any thing amiss to think the worse of Godliness or Religion for it The cause of this suspicion is lodged in your own hearts § 5. Direct 2. Remember that this was the first Temptation by which the Devil overthrew mankind Direct 2. to perswade them to think ill of God as if he had been false of his word and had envyed them their felicity Gen. 3. 4 5. Ye shall not surely dye For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof then your eyes shall be opened and ye shall be as Gods knowing good and evil And will you not be warned by the calamity of all the world to take heed of thinking ill of God and of his Word and of believing the Devils reports against him § 6
instruments of the Devil § 4. III. The Evil of Unrighteous Judgements 1. An unrighteous Judge doth condemn the Cause of God himself For every righteous cause is his 2. Yea he condemneth Christ himself in his members For in that he doth it to one of the least of those whom he calleth Brethren he doth it to himself Matth. 25. It is a damnable sin Not to relieve the innocent and imprisoned in their distress when we have power What is it then to oppress them and unrighteously condemn them 3. It is a turning of the remedy into a double misery and taking away the only help of oppressed innocency What other defence hath innocency but Law and Justice And when their refuge it self doth fall upon them and oppress them whither shall the righteous flye 4. It subverteth Laws and Government and abuseth it to destroy the ends which it is appointed for 5. Thereby it turneth humane society into a state of misery like the depredations of hostility 6. It is a deliberate resolved sin and not done in a passion by surprize It is committed in that place and in that form as acts of greatest deliberation should be done As if he should say Upon full disquisition evidence and deliberation I condemn this person and his cause 7. All this is done as in the Name of God and by his own Commission by one that pretendeth to be his Officer or Minister Rom. 3. 3 4 5 6. For the Iudgement is the Lords 2 Chron. 19. 8 10. 19. 5 6 7. And how great a wickedness is it thus to blaspheme and to represent him as Satan an enemy to truth and righteousness to his servants and himself As if he had said God hath sent me to condemn this Cause and person If false Prophets sin so heinously who belye the Lord and say He hath sent us to speak this which is untruth the sin of false Judges cannot be much less 8. It is sin against the fullest and frequentest prohibitions of God Read over Exod. 23. 1 2 3 c. Lev. 10. 15. Deut. 1. 16 17. 16 18. Isa 1. 17 20 23. Deut. 24. 17. 27. 19. Cursed be he that perverteth the judgement of the stranger the fatherless and widow and all the people shall say Amen Ezra 7. 26. Psal. 33. 5. 37. 28. 72. 2. 94. 15. 106. 3. 30. Prov. 17. 27. 19. 28. 20. 8. 29. 4. 31. 5. Eccles. 5. 8. Isa. 5. 7. 10. 2. 56. 1 2. 59. 14 15. Ier. 5. 1. 7. 5. 9. 24. Ezek. 18. 8. 45. 9. Hos. 12. 6. Amos 5 7 15 24. 6. 12. Mic. 3 9. Zech. 7. 9 8. 16. Gen. 18. 19. Prov. 21. 3 7 15. I cite not the words to avoid prolixity Scarce any sin is so oft and vehemently condemned of God 9. False Judges cause the poor to appeal to God against them and the cryes of the afflicted shall not be forgotten Luke 18. 5 6 7 8. 10. They call for Gods Judgement upon themselves and devolve the work into his hands How can that man expect any other than a judgement of damnation from the righteous God who hath deliberately condemned Christ himself in his cause and servants and sate in judgement to condemn the innocent Psal. 9. 7 8 9. The Lord hath prepared his throne for judgement and he shall judge the world in righteousness he shall minister judgement to the people in uprightness he will be a refuge for the oppressed Psal. 37. 6. He will bring forth righteousness as the light and thy judgement as the noon day Psal. 89. 14. Iustice and judgement are the habitation of his throne Psal. 103. 6. The Lord executeth righteousness and judgement for all that are oppressed Psal. 146. 7. In a word the sentence of an unjust Judge is passed against his own soul and he calleth to God to condemn him righteously who unrighteously condemned others Of all men he cannot stand in judgement nor abide the righteous doom of Christ. § 5. Direct 2. When you well understand the greatness of the sin find out and overcome the root Direct 2. and causes of it in your selves Especially selfishness covetousness and passion A selfish man careth not what another suffereth so that his own ends and interest be promoted by it A covetous man will contend and injure his neighbour when ever his own commodity requireth it He so much loveth his money that it can prevail with him to sin against God and cast away his own soul much more to hurt and wrong his neighbour A proud and passionate man is so thirsty after revenge to make others stoop to him that he careth not what it cost him to accomplish it Overcome these inward vices and you may easily forbear the outward sins § 6. Direct 3. Love your neighbours as your selves For that is the universal remedy against all Direct 3. injurious and uncharitable undertakings § 7. Direct 4. Keep a tender conscience which will not make light of sin It is those that have Direct 4. seared their consciences by infidelity or a course of sinning who dare venture with Iudas or Gehezi for the prey and dare oppress the poor and innocent and feel not nor fear not whilst they cast themselves on the revenge of God § 8. Direct 5 Remember the day when all these causes must be heard again and the righteous God Direct 5. will set all strait and vindicate the cause of the oppressed Consider what a dreadful appearance that man is like to have at the Bar of Heaven who hath falsly accused or condemned the just in the Courts of men What a terrible inditement accusation conviction and sentence must that man expect If the hearing of righteousness and the judgement to come made Faelix tremble surely it is infidelity or the plague of a stupified heart which keepeth contentious persons perverters of justice false witnesses and unjust Judges from trembling § 9. Direct 6. Remember the presence of that God who must be your final Iudge That he seeth Direct 6. all your Pride and Covetousness and all your secret contrivances for revenge and is privy to all your deceits and injuries You commit them in his open sight § 10. Direct 7. Meddle not with Law Suits till you have offered an equal arbitration of indifferent Direct 7. men or used all possible means of love to prevent them Law Suits are not the first but the last remedy Try all others before you use them § 11. Direct 8. When you must needs go to Law compose your minds to unfeigned love towards him Direct 8. that you must contend with and watch over your hearts with suspicion and the strictest care lest secret disaffection get advantage by it And go to your neighbour and labour to possess his heart also with love and to demulce his mind that you may not use the Courts of Iustice as Souldiers do their weapons to do the
3. Either Christianity is something and discernable or nothing and undiscernable If the latter then Christians are not to be distinguished from Heathens and Infidels If the former then Christianity hath its Constitutive parts by which it is what it is And then it hath essential parts distinguishable from the rest 4. The word Fundamentals being but a Metaphor hath given room to deceivers and Contenders to make a Controversie and raise a dust about it Therefore I purposely use the word Essentials which is not so lyable to mens Cavils 5. Those are the Essentials of Christianity which are necessary to the Baptism of the Adult Know but that and you answer all the pratings of the Papists that bawle out for a list of Fundamentals And sure it is not this day unknown in the Christian world either what a Christian is or who is to be baptized Do not the Priests know it who baptize all that are Christened in the world And why is Baptism called our Christening if it make us not Christians And why hath Christ promised that He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved Mark 16. 16. if that so much faith as is necessary to baptism will not also serve to a mans state of salvation 6. The Baptismal Covenant of Grace therefore is the Essential part of the Gospel and of the Christian Religion And all the rest are the Integrals and Accidents or Adjuncts 7. This Covenant containeth I. Objectively 1. Things True as such 2. Things Good as such 3. Things Practicable or to be done as such The Credenda Diligenda Eligenda Agenda as the objects of mans Intellect Will and Practical power The Credenda or things to be known and believed are 1. God as God and our God and Father 2. Christ as the Saviour and our Saviour 3. The Holy Ghost as such and as the Sanctifier and our Sanctifier as to the offer of these Relations in the Covenant The Diligenda are the same three persons in these three Relations as Good in themselves and unto us which includeth the grand benefits of Reconciliation and Adoption Justification and Sanctification and Salvation The Agenda in the time of baptism that make us Christians are 1. The actual Dedition resignation or dedication of our selves to God the Father Son and Holy Ghost in these Relations 2. A Promise or Vow to endeavour faithfully to live according to our undertaken relations though not in perfection that is as Creatures to their Creator and their Reconciled God and Father as Christians to their Redeemer their Teacher their Ruler and their Saviour And as willing Receivers of the Sanctifying and Comforting operations of the Holy Spirit II. The Objects tell you what the Acts must be on our part 1. With the Understanding to know and believe 2 With the Will to love choose desire and resolve and 3. Practically to deliver up our selves for the present and to promise for the time to come These are the Essentials of the Christian Religion 8. The Creed is a larger explication of the Credenda and the Lords Prayer of the Diligenda or things to be willed desired and hoped for and the Decalogue of the Natural part of the Agenda 9. Suffer not your own Ignorance or the Papists Cheats to confound the Question about Fundamentals as to the Matter and as to the expressing words It is one thing to ask What is the Matter ☞ Essential to Christianity And another What Words Symbols or Sentences are Essential to it To the first I have now answered you To the second I say 1. Taking the Christian Religion as it is an Extrinsick Doctrine in signis so the Essence of it is Words and Signs expressive or significant of the Material Essence That they be such in specie is all that is essential And if they say But which be those words I answer 2. That no particular Words in the world are essential to the Christian Religion For 1. No one Language is essential to it It is not necessary to salvation that you be baptized or learn the Creed or Scriptures in Hebrew or Greek or Latin or English so you learn it in any Language understood 2. It is not necessary to salvation that you use the same words in the same Language as long as it hath more words than one to express the same thing by 3. It is not necessary to salvation that we use the same or any one single form method or order of words as they are in the Creeds without alteration And therefore while the Antients did tenaciously cleave to the same Symbol or Creed yet they used various words to express it by As may be seen in Irenâ—â—s Tertullian Origen and Ruffin elsewhere cited by me so that its plain that by the same Symbol they See the Appendix to my Reformed Pastor meant the same Matter though exprest in some variety of words Though they avoided such variety as might introduce variety of sense and matter 10. Words being needful 1. To make a Learner understand 2. To tell another what he understandeth it followeth that the great variety of mens capacities maketh a great variation in the necessity of Words or Forms An Englishman must have them in English and a Frenchman in French An understanding man may receive all the Essentials in a few words But an Ignorant man must have many words to make him understand the matter To him that Understandeth them the words of the Baptismal ☞ Covenant express all the Essentials of Christianity But to him that understands them not the Creed is necessary for the explication And to him that understandeth not that a Catechism or larger Exposition is necessary This is the plain explication of this question which many Papists seem loth to understand Quest. 139. What is the Use and Authority of the Creed And is it of the Apostles framing or not And is it the Word of God or not Answ. 1. THe Use of the Creed is to be a plain explication of the Faith professed in the Baptismal Covenant 1. For the fuller instruction of the duller sort and those that had not preparatory knowledge and could not sufficiently understand the meaning of the three Articles of the Covenant what it is to believe in God the Father Son and Holy Ghost without more words 2. And for the satisfaction of the Church that indeed men understood what they did in baptism and professed to believe 2. The Creed is the Word of God as to all the Doctrine or Matter of it what ever it be as to the order and composition of words 3. That is oft by the Antients called the Apostles which containeth the matter derived by the Apostles though not in a form of words compiled by them 4. It is certain that all the words now in our Creed were not put in by the Apostles 1. Because Vid. 〈…〉 Vossiâ—m de Symbolis some of them were not in till long after their dayes 2. Because the