except the Father draw him That ye may know what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us ward who 〈…〉 eve according to the working of His mighty power which He wrought in Christ when He raised Him from the dead c. Here is the exceeding greatness of Gods power and the working of His mighty power which is expressed as much in the conversion of a sinner and in working saving Faith in his heart as it was manifested in raising Christ from the dead O the great power Eph. 2. 4. 56. riches inmercy and greatness of the love of God to poor sinners And to me in especial Where-with He hath loved us even when we were dead in trespasses and sins hath quickned us together with Christ and hath raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus Furthermore the principal efficient cause of Faith is God the impulsive cause is His free grace by which we are elected and called the instrumental cause whereby Faith is given to us in those of ripeness of age is ordinarily the word of God Faith cometh by hearing and Rom. 10. 17. hearing by the word of God And yet not the preaching of the word alone but as it is joyned with the efficacy of the Holy Spirit For the Lord opened Acts 16. 14. the heart of Lydia that she attended to those things spoken by Paul Thâ—â—â—â—tter of our Faith which is as the obâ—ect largely is the Word of God properly the free promises of the Gospel founded upon Jesus Christ The righteousness of God Rom. 3. 22. verse 25. which is by Faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation Rom. 10. 9. through Faith in His blood If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shall believe in thine heart that God raised Him from the dead thou shalt be saved So then justifying Faith consists in these two things 1. In having a mind to know Christ 2. In having a will to rest upon Him Whosoever sees so much excellency in Christ that thereby he is drawn to embrace Him as the only Rock of Salvation that man truly believes to justification Thus far of the description of Faith the several kinds of Faith and the causes of it that we may know the nature of true justifying saving Faith Such a Faith as our Saviour here requires Oh! this precious Faith of what 2 Pet. 1. 1. absolute necessity is it Necessary to everlasting Salvation We are kept by 1 Pet. 1. â— the power of God through Faith unto salvation Believe on the Lord Jesus Acts 16. 32. Christ and thou shalt be saved Which was the answer the jaylor had of Paul when he asked What he must do to be saved Without Faith it is impossible Heb. 11. 6. verse 2. to please God by Faith the elders obtained a good report Faith causes us to apprehend those deep mysteries of salvation which by the eye of Sense we can never fathom as Trinity in Unity the Incarnation of the Son of God c. The Word is unprofitable to us if it be not mixt with Faith In the Sacrament Heb. 4. 2. we receive no more than we do believe hast thou no Faith thou reapest no fruit or benefit or comfort If thou prayest thou must pray in Faith nothing Jam. 1. 5 7. wavering else do not think to receive any thing of the Lord. Whatsoever Mark 11. 24. things ye desire when ye pray believe that ye receive them and ye shall have them So we see that Faith is of absolute necessity in all our spiritual duties Worship and Services Pray we therefore with the disciples Lord increase Lord strengthen our Faith Luk. 17. 5. Acts 15. 9. Rom. 3. 28. Gal. 2. 16. Faith it purifies the heart Aman is justified by Faith We are justified before God only by Faith in Christ i. e. by Christs righteousness imputed to us by God and received and laid hold on by us with a lively Faith As Faith justifies it also quickeneth The righteousness of God Rom. 1. 17. is revealed from faith to faith as it is written the just shall live by faith Faith is the means of obtaining and professing a spiritual life From faith to saith that is to say more and more according as Faith increases and grows stronger so it doeth more and more enjoy the benefit of this righteousness of Christ imputed Labour therefore to be strong in faith Abraham being strong in faith gave Rom. 4. 20. glory to God The stronger in Faith the more glory mayest thou bring to God They which be of faith are blessed Gal. 3. 9. with faithful Abraham Our faith must be a working faith Faith worketh by Gal. 5. 6. love It shews it self by the fruits of a new-life which are comprehended under the love of God and our neighbour 1 Thess 1. 3. We read of the work of faith our faith must not be a dead and idle faith but a lively and working faith shewing it self by its fruits and effects Jaâ—m 2. 18. verse 20. Shew me thy faith by thy works faith without works is dead There can be no justifying and saving faith separate from good works for he who truly doth good works hath a lively faith which is the root and spring of them and good works are proper perpetual and inseparable from a true and lively faith So we must reconcile those two places of Scripture which seem contrary to each other in Jam. 2. 24. Ye see then that by works a man is justified and not by faith onely and Rom. 3. 28 We conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law the meaning is thus We are justified before God only by faith in our Lord Jesus Christ but our good works which are the true fruits of saving lively faith declare us to be just before men Let us therefore be fruitful in every good Câ—â—â— 1. 10. Coll. 2. 7. 2 Thess 1. 3. Heb. 10. 22. 2 Pet. 1. 1. Jude 20. Rom. 3. 22. Rev. 14. 12. work and be stablished in the faith let our faith grow exceedingly that we may have that full assurance of faith This faith as it is a precious faith as we said before so it is a most holy faith It is called the faith of God Rom. 3. and the faith of Jesus Christ where the object is put for the subject And in our spiritual armour above all we are Eph. 6. 16. bid to take the shield of faith whereby we shall be able to quench the fiery darts of the Devil Now a shield is an instrument of War made for defence to award and keep off the blows of an enemy such a shield is faith to bear off and beat back the sierce temptations of Satan whom we must resist being sted fast in the faith 1 Pet. 5. 9.
18 There is no fear in love c. And also largely to that place Rom. 8. 15 Ye have not received the Spirit of bondage again to fear c. That place in Rev. 21. 8 But the fearful c. shall be cast into the lake of sire c. answered What is that fear of God here commanded farther set down in three particulars Q. What are the special marks of the true fear of God answered in seven particulars Q. What the arguments are to induce us to fear God answered in eight things In way of a conclusion Thirteen sentences about the fear of God Exercitation V. Of waiting upon God upon these words My Soul wait thou only upon God for my expectation is from Him Three ingredients to wait upon God What waiting upon God is Four signs of our waiting upon God Four helps for strengthening us against troubles An explanation out of the Greek of waiting and expectation The manner of our waiting in three things Gods waiting upon us Wait upon God only What expectation is What we expect from God Examples of the miseries of those who would not wait upon God Exercitation VI. The way to salvation repentance and faith On these words Mark 1. 15 Repent ye and believe the Gospel What repentance is Repentance is twofold 1. Legal 2. Evangelical What they both are The signs whereby they may be known Four parts of Evangelical repentance Repentance must be renewed What faith is Five acceptations of faith The object of true saving faith The manner of Gods working of it The absolute necesssity of it in every part of Gods worship Encouragements to labour for it Exercitation VII Holiness on these words Psal 93. 5. Holiness becometh thine house O Lord for ever What Holiness is 1. As applyed to God 2. To believers Our holiness must bear a conformity to Christs holiness in four things What sanctification is The terms from which and to which Two degrees of sanctification Two parts of it The ends of it in two things What we must do that we may be holy Four things thereto Three things to be observed for holiness sake Christ is the principle of our holiness and also the pattern of it the comeliness of holiness Of Gods house How holy it is and how holy we must be A Scriptural Prayer to God for Holiness A farther Encomium and praise of Holiness Exercitation VIII Of Swearing On these words Jer. 23. 9 For because of Oaths the Land mourneth A sad complaint of the over-spreading and greatness of this horrid sin of prophane swearing Of taking Gods name in vain Superstitious and foolish swearing How an Oath is to be taken The parts of an Oath The form of an Oath The end of an Oath The divers kinds of an Oath How an Oath is to be performed Is it lawful for Christians to take an Oath Proved affirmatively by four reasons An exploding the Opinion of the Anabaptists c. by six Arguments By whom we must swear About what things an Oath may be taken Whether all Oaths are to be kept How God in Scripture is said to swear The sum of the third Commandment Six Corollaries Of the government of the tongue Exercitation IX Hardness os heart On these words And Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also The Plague of hardness of heart Examples of it To harden the heart what it is 1. In reference to God 2. â—o Satan 3. To a mans self Of conscience what it is How did God harden Pharaohs heart and how he did iâ— himself The miseries ensuing hardness of heart Exeroitation X. Of the Sabbath On these words in Exod. 31. 13 14 15 16 17. 20. 8 Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy The necessity of a sabbath The morality of it The excellency of the Moral Law above the Ceremonial or Judicial What the sanctifying of the sabbath is the parts of it A short Paraphrase on Isai 58. 13 14. which is borrowed The strict observation of the sabbath belongs more to us then to the Jews the reasons of the alteration of it How the sabbath is a sign Woe to sabbath prophaners and sabbath idlers The right manner of sanctifying of the sabbath Be not weary of sabbath-duties For Reasons why it is called sabbath The many sabbaths of the Jews formerly Three Reasons why God commands us to observe the sabbath We must lay out our strength in sabbath-duties Exercitation XI Of Patience On these words Luk. 21. 19 In your patience possess ye your souls Of afflictions to the Godly 1. For correction 2. For tryal Inferences upon each Examine for what particular sin God so afflicts Afflictions a sign of Gods love Why afflictions are called temptations What patience is Of impatience The good effects of patience Motives to it The true nature of patience towards God our selves and others Four Arguments to strengthen us in our patience The vices contrary Exercitation XII Pride and humility On these words James 4. 6 God resisteth the proud but giveth grace to the humble What Pride is The parts of Pride How it is shewed Of pride against God and of pride towards men Of the sin of the fallen Angels and of the sin of our first Parents Four helps to subdue pride What grace is Several acceptations of grace A description of humility Humility towards God humility towards men Five means to attain humility towards God Three marks of humility towards men Humility farther described and praised Incitations to humility Some additional notes about pride and humility Fourteen Aphorisms about humility Exercitation XIII Of Care On these words 1 Pet. 5. 10 Casting all your care upon God for He careth for you Seven Arguments against carefulness Twofold care of outward things Worldly cares compared to thorns in four respects Irregular cares are 1. Superfluous 2. Sinful We are to do our duty faithfully and then trust in God who is our Father and the great house-keeper of all the earth The fourth Petition in the Lords Prayer fully explained If we rowl our selves upon God He hath engaged Himself to relieve us Outward things are necessary for us in a threefold respect Rest upon Gods Providence What Gods actual Providence is Of the fate of the heathen Philosophers The parts of Providence Depend upon Providence Wait Gods time Live by faith Be we diligent in our callings The tenderness fidelity and wisdom of Gods Providence The twelve miracles observed about Manna More of Gods Providence and twelve Corollaries thereabout Exercitation XIV Of death judgment hell and heaven On these words Rev. 20. 12. 15 And I saw the dead small and great stand before God and the books were opened and another book was opened which is the book of life and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books according to their works And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire 1. Of death what death is The causes of it The
God He â—ob 38. 41. feedeth the young ravens when they cry unto Him If God feed the beasts and birds surely He will not suffer the soul Prov. 10. 3. Psal 37. 10. Isai 33. 16. of His people to famish In the days of fumine they shall be satisfied Bread shall be given them their waters shall be sure And as for rayment If God cloath the grass of the field which to day is and to morrow is cast into the oven shall he not much more cloath us Mat. 6. 30 31 32. Therefore take we no thought saying what shall we eat or what shall we drink or wherewithall shall we be cloathed for our heavenly father knoweth we have need of all these things Be we diligent and industrious in our places ever using lawful means that is our part for to do But the care of provision and maintenance is God's part which we must leave to Him Who hath promised to bless our lawful and honest endeavours subservient to His holy will and command 2. As for maintenance and provision so also my Expectation from God is that as I have committed all my ways to Him and trust in Him so He will bring them Psal 37. 5. Josh 5. 9. Rom. 8. 28. all to pass for the best That he will rowl away my reproach and cause all things to work together for my good He will plead my cause and execute judgment for me He will bring me forth Micah 7. 9. to the light and I shall behold His righteousness My Redeemer is strong Jer. 50. 34. the Lord of hosts is his name He shall Isai 51. 22. throughly plead my cause for He hath stiled Himself the God that pleadeth the cause of His people The Lord God of recompences will surely requite Jer. 51. 56. My expectation is higher than these temporal things as heroically and Christianly Luther once said Lord I have sworn and am resolved that I will not be put off with these lower things or to esteem them my portion c. 2dly But my expectation is higher my expectation from God is chiefly for spiritual and everlasting mercies That Acts 26. 18. as He hath opened mine eyes and turned me from darkness to light and from the power of Sathan unto God so that I Ephes 5. 8 1â— may walk as a child of light and have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness but rather reprove them Having respect to all God's Commandments Psal 119. 8. not allowing my sell in any onâ— known sin Denying all ungodliness and worldly lusts to live soberly righteously Godlily in this present word To grow Tit. 2. 12 2 Pet. 3. 18. Joh. 1. 16. 2 Pet. 1. 10. Eph. 3. 19. in Grace and in the knowledge of my Lord Jesus that of His fulness I may receive and Grace for Grace that so may make my calling and election sure being filled with the fulness of God that he will grant me according to the riches of his glory to be strengthned with all might by his Spirit in the inneâ— man that Christ may dwell in my hearâ— by faith c. that as he who hath begun 16. 17. a good work in me will also finish Phill. 1. 6. Heb. 12. 2. it For he is the author and finisher of my faith Who is able to build me up â— Acts 20. 32. and that He will settle strengthen and stablish me in every good word and work to do His will working in mâ— 1 Pet. 5. 10. Heb. 13. 21 that which is well-pleasing in His sight through Jesus Christ That I Phill. 1. 10 11. may approve those things which are excellent being sincere and without offence filled with the fruits of righteousness c. Pressing toward the mark Phill. 3. 11 14. for the price of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus if by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead that is to such a measure of Grace and Holiness as I shall have 2 Tim. 3. 17. at the resurrection of the dead that I may be perfect throughly furnished unto every good work And for my outward conversation that it may be as it becometh the Gospel Phill. 1. 27. Tit. 2. 3 10. of Christ as becometh holiness that I may adorn the doctrine of God my Saviour in all things so that the Word of Verse 5. God may not be blasphemed nor the way 2 Pet. 2. 2. Jam. 1. 27. of truth evil spoken of through my default and that I may keep my self unspotted of the world walking so as 1 Joh. 2. 6. Christ walked while He was here upon the earth That after I have served my generation by the will of God and shall fall asleep and be gathered to my fathers Acts 13. 36. 2 Tim. 4. 7. and see corruption after I have fought a good fight here finished my course Heb. 12. 28. and kept the faith I may receive a kingdom that cannot be shaken an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled that 1 Pet. 1. 4. jude 1. fadeth not away reserved in heaven for me and to which I am preserved in Christ Jesus This is my hope this is my expectation for I know whom I have believed and I am perswaded that he is able to 2 Tim. 1. 12. keep that which I have committed to Him even the keeping of my soul and the crown of everlasting life against that day The Lord is the portion of my soul I am 3. 24 Prov. 23. 18. therefore will I wait for Him and my expectation shall not be cut off For they that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength they shall mount up with wings as eagles they shall run and not be weary Isai 40. 31. they shall walk and not saint Now the Lord direct our hearts into the love of God and into the patient 2 Thess 3. 5. waiting for Christ Be not weary in well-doing continue Addition 2 Thess 3. 13. to wait upon God Take heed of impatiency of spirit like Joram that wicked King of Israel in that dreadful man-devouring famine of Samaria who 2 King 6. 33. though he acknowledged this evil is from the Lord yet impatiently and wickedly added wherefore should I wait on the Lord any longer He was convinced of the hand of God in His judgments upon Him so rationally he should have concluded therefore will I wait upon Him and seek to Him for relief Vna eademque manus vulnus opemque feret the same hand that wounds the same hand must bring the cure It had been more rationally inferred this evil is from the Lord therefore upon Him will I wait to Him will I address my self for deliverance But he concludes as in the Hebrew it is Mah Ochil â—adonai Quid expectabo Dominum wherefore should I wait on the Lord why should I fast and pray or carry my self patiently as the Chaldee hath
day is altered The Jews did and do observe Saturday because upon that day God rested from the work of Creation which now is changed into the first day of the week A. This was done not by humane but by Divine authority which appears by the practice of Christ and the Apostles Joâ— 20. 19. 26. 20. 7. which should be a sufficient rule to us especially because the Apostles have added a Commandment thereunto And 1 Cor. 16. 1 2. there is no other reason but in regard of the Lord Christ's special institution Rev. 1. 10. why it should be called the Lords-day as the Lords Prayer because of His making and the Lords Supper is so also 1 Cor. 11 2â— called because it was of Christ's immediate institution therefore there is no special mention made of it in the New Testament because there was no question made at all of this change in the Apostles time it was so commonly known and another reason which I imagine why it is not mentioned in the New Testament not to deter the Jews from coming into the Church for we read in several places of the Acts of the Apostles how much and how far they Acts 15. 29. 21. 24. condescended to the Jews to win them to Christ So this day is specially dedicated to the Lords service for otherwise all the dayes of the week are the Lords dayes and he is to be served and worshipped in them but on this day wholly and more especially For Christ alone could change the sabbath day who is the Lord of the Sabbath Mat. 12. 8. Athanasiuâ— plainly saith that Christ himself did change the day There are many more arguments for the change of the Sabbath which we read of but I spare prolixity As God rested from the works of Creation then he sanctified and blessed the seventh day on which He rested so it was meet that our Lord Jesus Christ having finished the work of our Redemption on the Cross when He said It is finished and Joh. 19. 30. bowed His head and gave up the ghost and rested in the grave and was declared to be the Son of God with power Rom. 1. 4. by His resurrection from the dead this same day in which Christ rested from His labour and the work of our redemption which was greater than the work of Creation this day did He sanctifie unto Himself This day as Christ sanctified by His resurrection so by twice Joh. â—â— 19. â—â— Acts 2 â— â— appearing to His Apostles on the same day and by sending the Holy Ghost upon them on the same day which day Acts 20. â— 1 Cor. 16. â— Apoâ— â— â—â— the Apostles observed and the Churches also But in the words at first read God said that the Sabbath was a sign between Him and the Children of Israel therefore some say it is a type or a ceremony or a representation of something to come We have proved it not to be a ceremony but we may well and will also grant it to be a type or representation of our heavenly rest that perpetual Sabbath Heb. 4. 3. 9. of rest we shall keep there But sign signifies here as much as a document so Christ said By this shall Joh. 13. 35. all men know that ye are My Disciples if ye love one another In the observation of the Lords Day there is a common and publick profession made of that Communion which is between God and us So then every solemn profession is a sign of that thing of which it is a profession so also the Sabbath is called a Sign in that common reason But some will say this Sabbath was enjoyned only to the Children of Israel what is that to us This belongs also to the spiritual Israel and not only to the bodily which Rom. 9. â— were of that lineage by corporal generation The Jews alone were Israel 1 Cor. 10. 18. after the flesh but we also after the spirit for the believing Gentiles are called the Israel of God Gal. 6. 1â— The word Remember is prefixed to this fourth Commandment to shew that although all the Commandments are needful diligently to be observed and remembred yet this more especially The word Remember is to put us in mind 1. Of our natural forgetfulness of this Commandment 2. Of the excellency and worth of it 3. To prepare our selves for the due keeping of it For we are naturally most negligent in it suffering our selves to be with-drawn by our worldly businesses from the Lords Service upon the Lords day and therefore such a special warning is needful to be added And as to keep it holy when it is come so also to prepare our selves for it and put our hearts our selves in a ready Sabbath-days posture and to dispose our worldly businesses so that if possible we may have no avocation lett or hinderance on the Lords day To speak a little more of the words read at first in Exodus 31. 13 c. for this word Verily the Septuagint render it see to it or look unto it that ye keep My Sabbath then we have the reasons annexed 1. It is a sign between Me and you of which word Sign we have spoken already 2. That ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctifie you as ye expect a Sabbath-blessing or for Me to instamp My image of holiness upon you see that ye keep holy My Sabbath Observe here also the frequent iterated injunctions ye shall keep it holy therefore 3. It is fenced with such dreadful Comminations Every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death And whosoever doth any work therein that soul shall be cut off from amongst his people And again he shall surely be put to death and more such expressions here are So then it is not at every man's liberty if he will observe the Sabbath or no. God as He is faithful in His promises of mercy so also in His threatnings of vengeance Although Sabbath-prophaners may escape punishment here God will assuredly without great repentance make them suffer for ever hereafter for slighting neglecting and breaking of His Covenant of the Sabbath For the breaking of the Sabbath is a violation of the whole Worship of God Wo therefore to those prophane ungodly Sabbath-breakers who are also usually addicted to Oaths Cursings and Blasphemies to Whoredom Drunkenness and other notorious abominations for one such hainous sin never goes alone whose judgment lingreth 2 Pet. 2. 3. not and their damnation slumbreth not Wo also to those who idle away the Sabbath spending it in worldly discourses gadding gazing idleness and such-like as if the negative part of keeping the Sabbath thou shalt do no manner of work were enough never looking to the positive part to keep it holy to spend the whole day in God's Service to His glory and for their own spiritual edification and advantage They that will not sanctifie God's rest here shall never enter
search wherefore the Lord hath done so unto us For God hath holy ends and purposes in all His dispensations towards us Hath God taken away a near Relation from me as a loving Husband tender Wife or a hopeful Child to instance in these which was the desire of mine eyes and the joy of my heart if God hath taken Ezek. 34. 16. them away with His stroke did not I dote or depend too much upon them did not my heart run out too much after them did I use them so as I should when I did enjoy them ask thy self these and the like questions Commune Psal 4. 4. with thine own heart and be still go to God in Prayer and say wherefore hath the Lord done thus unto me what meaneth the heat of this great anger Deut. 29. 24. But be sure to fall out with thy sins and not with God So search and try thy ways and turn unto the Lord Lam. 3. 40. with thy whole heart for He doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children ver 33. of men Are they dead death hath passed and will pass upon all men for Rom. 5. 12. that all have sinned It is appointed to Heb. 9. 27. all men once to dye We must needs dye and are all as water spilt upon the ground 2 Sam. 14. 14. which cannot be gathered up again We are strangers and sojourners here as all our fathers were our days on the earth are but as a shadow and here is no abiding If we did not dye we should 1 Chron. 29. 15. always be subject to sin and misery death freeth the Saints from all for Blessed are the dead which dye in the Lord yea so saith the Spirit for they Rev. 14. 13. rest from their labours and their works follow them But see if it be not for any particular sin of thine this affliction is befallen thee if upon serious search thou findest it so to be then be humbled for it repent and amend and walk more closely with God for the future That it may not be said of thee as formerly of Ephraim gray hairs are here and there Hos 7. 9. upon him yet he knoweth it not that is he considered not God's Judgments knew not nor was humbled for his sins waxed old in his wickedness yet did not he know it or lay it to heart God doth now empty thee from vessel to vessel Jer. 48. 11 and doth not suffer thee to be at ease to be setled upon thy lees O therefore let not the taste of thine old corruptions remain in thee to rellish of them and like them as formerly and thy scent not to be changed when thou art as worldly and wicked as ever Zeph. 1â— 12. For the Lord will surely search thee as with candles and punish thee and all those that are setled upon their Lees. Whatever was good and commendable in thy Deceased Relations that follow practice and imitate and make good use of This affliction of thine is a tryal Ezek. 21. 13. Isaiah 48. 10. God will try thee now in the Furnace of affliction This may be a sign unto thee that thou belongest unto God who hath his â—ire in Zion and his Furnace Isaiah 31. 9. in Jerusalem Although God may let some run on in outward prosperity and to have even more than heart can Psal 73. 7. Gen. 15. 16. Mat. 23. 32. wish and others to run on in sin till they have filled up the measure of their iniquities God would purifie thee Oh be thou purified and clensed hereby That the tryal of thy faith being 1 Pet. 1. 7 much more precious then of gold that perisheth though it be tryed with fire might be sound unto praise and honour and glory at the appearance of Jesus Christ Thus we see that the afflictions of the Godly are for correction and for tryal Blessed are they whom thou chastenest O Psal 94. 12. Lord and teachest them out of thy Law When Instruction and Correction go together that is a happy and a blessed Correction Think also on the Saints of God who through faith and patience inherit the promises Heb. 6. 12. Labour to set Faith on Work yea let the tryal of thy Faith work in the patience and let patience have its perfect Jam. 1. 3 4. work that thou mayest be perfect and entire lacking nothing Thou canst not be a through-out and perfect and an accomplished Christian unless thou hast obtained this excellent grace of Patience see that thou abound in this grace also 2 Cor. 8. â— Q. But why are afflictions call'd temptations as blessed is the man that endureth Jam. 1. 12â— Jam. 1. 2. temptations And count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations I answer All temptations are not evil but some are tryals of our Faith and Hope in God if we can live by Faith and rest upon the promises and so they make much for our good And in this regard they are pronounced that fall into divers temptations Therefore ought we not simply to pray and without exception to be delivered from them but only from the evil of them As God led Israel 40 years in the Wilderness to humble them and to prove them to know what was in their Deut. 8. â— 13. 3. heart whether they would keep his Commandments or no. And to prove them whether they would love the Lord their God with all their hearts and with all their souls So afflictions are called temptations because by them God tryeth our Obedience to notisie our faith and patience both to our selves and others whether we will follow him or not And therefore we may be assured that so often as we beat back or overcome the temptations we have so many undoubted testimonies of Gods love unto us So then Patience is from the acknowledging of Gods Wisdom Providence Justice and Goodness to be Obedient unto him in bearing all adversities and crosses or losses which the Lord hath brought upon us and through grief not to murmur or repine at any of his dispensations nor to do any thing against his Commâ—â—â—ements but in the midst of our grief to retain assured hope and confidence of Gods help and to crave aid and deliverance from him and in this confidence and acknowledging of Gods Will to moderate our grief Psal 37. 7 8 34. Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him Fret not thy self in any wise to do evil So we see that patience is a duty belonging to the First Commandement not only because it 's a part of that inward obedience which we owe to God and he immediately requires it to himself at our hands but also because that from our acknowledging of God our confidence in him and our love and fear of him do follow as necessary effects To this Christian patience impatience is contrary and opposed which impatience is when through ignorance or distrust of
man shall set upon thee to hurt thee It is endless to quote all the texts in the Old and New Testament to this purpose I will only add a few Corollaries 1. God will have glory attributed Corollarâ—â—â— to Him not only as He is the Creator and Upholder of Heaven and Earth but also the most High Wise Just and Great Governor and Directer of all things This is against the Figments of the Bpicureans and Pelagians 2. This Doctrine of Providence may confirm and strengthen our hearts against the Blasphemies of the Manichees and Libertines who say that God willeth sin as it is sin Whereas He willeth the act but not the evil of the act c. 3. Against the Opinion of the Stoicks for all things are govern'd by Gods most free and unchangable Decree 4. Therefore He will be acknowledged and praised by us as the Author Fountain and Worker of all good things for nothing in any creature is or can be of good unto us but by Gods Will affectually working in it and by it 5. Seeing all good things are from God Let us not sacrifice to our own â—â—â— 1. 16. nets or burn incense to our own drag that is not resting in creatures or second causes by which we may be benefited but giving all glory and praise to God to acknowledg the creatures are but instruments and ministers in His hand and by His ordering to do good unto us 6. Sith nothing rashly or casually happeneth to us but all things betide us by Gods most Blessed Just and profitable Decree and Good-will towards us Let us effectually be stirred up by knowing and acknowledging hereof to exercise patience in all our adversities As Psal 39. 9. David said I was dumb and opened not my mouth because Thou hast done it Job 1. 21. And Job the Lord hath taken away blessed be the Name of the Lord. 7. Let our confidence and comfort be sound firm and established in the Lord who will defend and preserve us in the midst of all enemies and dangers moderating and ordering all evils so that they tend to our good and salvation For we know that all things work Rom. 8. 28. together for good to them that love God 8. By all our past and present afflictions let us be bettered and amended Sith not by chance but by God they are inflicted upon us that we may say Psal 119. 71. It is good for me that I have been afflicted c. 9. For future crosses and afflictions seeing they are signs and tokens of Gods anger against sin Let us fear them and strive to avoid them by fleeing and abstaining from sin the cause of them 10. Let us not faint much less despair when we are in dangers troubles or adversities when the outward means of our deliverance fail and the creatures seem to be against us because God is not ty'd to help by them For man lives not by bread alone c. The Mat. 4. 4. 16. 18. gates of Hell shall not prevail c. There 1 Sam. 14. 6. is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few He can deliver either by means or without means or against means 11. Seeing all events are ordered by God and no wholsome counsels can be undertaken without Him neither doth any thing please Him but what we undertake according to His Word Let us not be lifted up in confidence of our own wisdom and power c. but demeaning our selves in the fear of God let us pray that all our actions may be directed by Him and so blessed unto us and that we may never depart from His Will revealed unto us And then confidently wait on Him for sâ—ccess 12. Sith we know as before we said God hath a care of all things especially of mankind and most principally of His own Children whom He peculiarly loveth and careth for so as Christ said the hairs of our head Mat. 10. 31. are all number'd and we are of more value than many Sparrows Let us in doing our duty faithfully in our places rest confidently on the Providence of God Casting all our care on Him for He careth for us EXERCITATION THE FOURTEENTH Rev. 20. 12 15 Verses And I saw the dead small and great stand before God and the books were opened and another book was opened which is the book of life and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books according to their works And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire EXpect not a Logical Analysis of the words and a procedure thereon accordingly that I leave to Divines in their Sermons But according to my use in my former Exercitations to chuse out some heads out of the words read and so meditate and dilate upon them And here we may consider these four heads 1 Death 2 Judgment 3 Hell 4 Heaven Accordingly we shall frame our ensuing discourse 1. Death out of these words And I 1 Death saw the dead c. First there must be death before they could be dead 2. Judgment out of these words 2 Judgment Stand before God c. and they were judged c. 3. This Judgment shall be according to their works They that have done good shall go into life everlasting and 3 Heaven they that have done evil into everlasting 4 Hell fire So it is in the Creed of Holy Athanasius And so also in the Apostles Creed I believe that Christ shall come to judg both the quick and dead I believe the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting So also in the Nicene Creed That is everlasting life for the good in heaven and everlasting life for the wicked in hell in those never Mark 9. 44. dying flames where the worm dyeth not and the fire never goeth out First to speak of Death Death is the 1 Death fruit of Sin Sin brings shame misery and death 1. Sin brings shame for before the fall our first Parents were both naked Gen. 2. 25. and were not ashamed But since the fall sin causeth shame in all men and women except those who are come to that height of impudence that they are past shame of whom the Prophet speaks Were they ashamed when they had Jer. 6. 15. committed abomination nay they were not at all ashamed neither could they blush Therefore said the Apostle What Rom. 6. 21. fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed c 2. Sin brings all sorts of miseries calamities losses c. I have wounded them Jer. 30. 14 15. with the wounds of an enemy with the chastisement of a cruel one for the multitude of thine iniquities because thy sins were increased I have done these things unto thee 3. Sin brings death the end of these Rom. 6. 21. things is death So we see that sin guiltiness and