be suffered for sin by the sinner is the curse-everlasting of soul and body seing a meer creature cannot for ever satisfie for his rebellion how long soever we presuppose his duration under suffering And for obedience by way of doing perfectly what the Law doth crave it is utterly impossible because we are carnal sold under sin and cannot satisfie the Law and because we cannot satisfie the Law the Law becometh weak and unable to justifie and save us Rom. 8. 3. How the Covenant of works may be called the Covenant of nature ALbeit the Law written by nature in mens heart differeth from the Covenant for performance of the Law as hath been shown before yet the Covenant of works made with Adam before he fell tying him to keep that Law may be called the Covenant of nature First because the Covenant of works is grounded upon the Law of nature and doth exact nothing of man save that which God might require of him according to the Law of nature Secondly because when the Covenant of works was made with Adam it was made with all his natural posterity which was to spring of him by natural generation and so the obligation thereof did pass upon all his natural posterity by the Law of nature which maketh the child begotten to bear the image of the begetters Thirdly that the Covenant of works may justly be called the Covenant of nature appeareth by the force of the conscience being wakened from its sleepy security for it challengeth for sin according to that Covenant and pronounceth the sentence of God's wrath against the sinner For the conscience doth acknowledge the Judgment of God that they which commit such things are worthy of death Rom. 1. 32. Fourthly because the conscience naturally inclineth a man to seek justification by his own works if it can any way find pretence for it as we may see in the Pharisee who in his speech to God doth judge himself a holy man because he is not amongst the worst of men and hath many good works above others to reckon forth and lay before God Luk. 18. 11. Fifthly the inclination of mans heart to expect a reward of every good work he doth whether it be in some part reall or only apparently such testifieth so much Iudg. 17. 13. Micah so reasoneth Now know I the Lord will do me good seing I have a Levit to my Priest And how miserably the conscience may be deluded in this case when men do dote upon their own well-deserving appeareth in Leah for Gen. 30. 18. Leah saith God hath given me my hire because I have given my maiden to my husband Sixthly this point is also made manifest by the natural ignorance of righteousness by faith and affectation to be justified by works which the Apostle finds fault-with in the Israelits Rom. 9. 31. They sought righteousness not by faith but as it were by works And Rom. 10. 3. being ignorant of the righteousness of God and going about to establish their own righteousness to wit righteousness by works according to the tenour of the Covenant of works they did not submit themselves to the righteousness of God Seventhly the same course followed by Papists and other erroneous teachers testifieth the natural inclination of men to seek righteousness by works according to the tenour of the Covenant of works and not by faith in Christ Jesus that righteousness may come by grace only And so are some mens hearts glued to this error that they do transform justification by faith in justification by one work in stead of all as if the work of faith were the mans righteousness and not Christ him-himself laid hold on by faith Not considering that to the man that renounceth all confidence in any work of his own and flieth to Christ by faith Christ is made of God unto that man wisdom and righteousness 1 Cor. 1. 30. Last of all this natural inclination even of the regenerat to seek righteousness by works doth prove the Covenant of works to be naturally ingraft in all mens hearts as appeareth in the Galatians who being instructed in the doctrine of justification by faith in Christ without the works of the Law did easily upon a tentation offered look back with likeing to the way of Justification by works for which the Apostle reproveth them Gal. 4. 21. Tell me saith he ye that desire to be under the Law or Covenant of works and ver 9. But now after ye have known God or rather are known of God how turn ye again to weak and beggarly elements whereunto you desire again to be in bondage Obj. But the Galatians as it seemeth did not reject Justification by faith but did joyn with it Justification by the works of the Law thinking that the safest way was to joyn both together Ans. The inconsistency of these two wayes of Justification the Apostle sheweth Rom. 11. 6. For Justification by grace is no more by works otherwise grace is no more of grace and what Justification is by works is no more of grace otherwise work is no more works And therefore the Apostle makes the joyning of these two wayes of Justification to be nothing else but a plain seeking of Justification by the Covenant of works which cutteth a man off from any benefit by Christ Gal. 5. 2. and whosoever seeketh to be justified by the Lawâ— or Covenant of works is fallen from grace ver 4. For further clearing this matter we may distinguish two sorts of the Covenant of works The one is true genuine and of God's institution which God made with all men in Adam for perfect obedience unto God's Law out of mans own natural abilities There is another counterfeit bastard covenant of works of mans own devising which a sinner lying in his sins unable to do what the Law commands or to suffer what the Law being broken binds upon him of his own head devileth upon other conditions then God hath set and will have God to take his devised covenant in stead of perfect obedience to the Law that so he may be justified Such was the covenant which the carnal Israelits made with God in the wilderness and which their posterity did follow turning the Covenant of grace whereunto God was calling them into a covenant of works of their own framing For the grace which was offered to them in Christ under the vail of levitical types figures and ceremonies they turned into an external service of performance only of bare and dead ceremonies and into a ministry of the letter and death for they did not take up Christ to be the end of the Law for righteousness to every one that believes in him but did think that both the moral and ceremonial Law was given unto them of God to the intent that they should do the external works of the moral Law so far as they could and when they transgressed the moral Law they should fly to the ceremonial Law and make amends for their faults by
satisfying for their sin by the external sacrifice of some clean beast offered to God or by the washing of their body and their cloaths Such also is the covenant which now adayes many make with God cutting short with the old Pharisees the sense of the precepts of the Law by extending it no further then they may keep the same that so they may make their own inherent righteousness the longer conform unto their own clipped rule of righteousness and this they do by denying themselves to be guilty of original sin after baptism and by extenuating and diminishing many faults as but light and venial as they call them and by devising satisfactions for expiating the sins of the living by penances and pilgrimages and of the dead by their sufferings in their imaginary purgatory that so they may be justified by their works and sufferings Such also is their covenant who seek justification by deceased Saints merits hoping they may so have absolution from sin and obtain life eternal And all these sorts of covenants of mens framing we call bastard-covenants of works because God will not admit any other Covenant of works then that which requireth perfect personal obedience And therefore so many as seek to be justified by works do stand under the obligation of perfect personal obedience under pain of death and will be found not only utterly unable to do any good work but also to be without Christ and to be fallen from grace as the Apostle Gal. 5. 3 4. doth teach us Obj. Seing God doth abhor these bastard-covenants of works and doth well know that men are so far from performance of the due obedience of the Law that they are utterly unable before they be reconciled through faith in Christ to do so much as one acceptable work as the Psalmist teacheth Psal. 14. 1 2 3. Why doth the Lord exact perfect obedience unto the Law from sinners why doth he press so instantly the slaves of sin to perform the duties required in the true Covenant of works Ans. The Lord justly doth abhor and reject these bastard-covenants because they evacuat and make void both the Covenant of works and the Covenant of grace which is by faith in Christ and he doth press all men to perform perfect obedience to all the commands whereunto they are naturally obliged to the end that proud men conceity of their own natural abilities may find by experience that they are unable to perform the condition of the Covenant of works and may acknowledge the same and so dispair of righteousness by their works and be forced to flye to Christ and to the Covenant of grace through him that they may be fred from that covenant and being justified by faith in Christ may be enablâ—d to begin new obedience to the Law in the strength of Christs furniture For Christ is the end of the Law for righteousness to every one that believeth Rom. 10. 4 And the Law entered that men might by the Law see and acknowledge that the offence did abound and then might perceive that the 〈…〉 â—â—grâ—ce by Christ did super-abound Rom. 〈…〉 and 1 Tim. 1. 5. The end of the command is 〈…〉 of a purâ— heart and a good conscience and faith unfamed This was the end of the promulgation of the Law in mount Sinai that a stiff-necked people trusting in their own abilities might be made sensible of their imperfection by the repetition of the Law And to this also God super-added the external yoke of the ceremonial Law which neither they nor their posterity were able to bear Acts 15. 10. that the people perceiving their manifold pollutions and guiltiness wherein they were daily involved by breaking of God's Law might in the sense of the burden lying on them and of their damnable estate under it flye to Christ the lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world as he was represented and offered to their sight in the sacrifices and burnt offerings Of this end of pressing the Law upon proud men we have an example Math. 19. 16 17 18 19 20 21 22. In the conference of Christ with the young conceity rich man who in the opinion of his own inherent righteousness and of his abilities was hudgly swelled as if he had already for time by-gone satisfied the the whole Law and that he was able and ready to do any good work which could be prescribed unto him for obtaining of eternal life whose proud conceit that Christ might humble and bring down he craveth nothing but that he would keep the commands And when the young man denyed that he had broken the Law he proveth him guilty of gross and vile Idolatry from this that he put a higher estimation on his riches than on remission of sin and did love them more then heaven and fellowship with God in eternal life In all this let it be considered that albeit mens confidence in their works doth displease God yet good works do not displease him but they are so far pleasant unto him that there is no morall motive which may serve to stir up in his people an endeavour to follow after good works which the Lord doth not make use of partly by setting before them the reward if they obey partly by setting punishments before theiâ— eyes if they obey not yea and the very observation of externall morall duties and obedience such as may be discharged by the unregenerat man albeit God in relation to Justification do esteem it polluted and vile yet he doth sometimes reward their externall works by giving them externall and temporall benefits for their encouragement for even Ahabs temporary humiliation the Lord so far accepted that there-upon He took occasion to delay to take vengeance upon him 1 Kings 21. 27 28 29. Likewise the Lord useth to recompence the civil justice of Pagans with a temporal reward yea and to reward the outward diligence of every man in every lawfull occupation with some answerable outward reward The very Pharisees who for the raising to themselves a fame and higher estimation for holinesse did take a great deal of pains in prayers in the streets and Mercat-places and other exercises of Religion wanted not an answerable reward veâ—ily saith Christ they have their reward Matth. 6. 2. And this course the Lord doth keep that he may encertain and foster the civil society of men among themselves and that His people looking on this bounty of God may be stirred up the more to bring forth the fruits of faith in hope of a mercifull promised better reward of grace in the life to come beside what they may have in this life CHAP. VI. Of the Covenant of Grace THe third and last covenant concerning mans eternall salvation is the covenant of Grace made between God and man through Christ the Mediatour Grace someâ—imes simply and absolutely taken is opposed to merit and in this sense every good thing which of Gods good pleasure is ordained or promised or actually bestowed on the
of the Israelits who were ignorant of the deceitfulness of their own heart and of their inability to perform what they promised he saith ver 28 29. They have well said all that they have spoken Therefore unto the tying a man in this bond of the covenant this morall honesty is sufficient albeit to salvation it is not sufficient but in order thereto a mean of God's appointment Now that there is such a thing as we call morall integrity or honesty which differeth from the true Christians spiritual honesty or sincerity it is plain from these places of Scripture which speak of this integrity of heart in such persons as were not renewed because they intended no other thing then they pretended Thus Abimelech excuseth himself to God when he took away Sarah Abrahams wife from him thinking Sarah had been his sister and not his wife Gen 20. 6. In the integrity of my heart and innocency of my â—â—ads have I done this And this the Lord doth acknowledge to be true ver 17. So also the captains that came with their companies to David in Ziklag are said to have a perfect heart because they were morally honest and resolved as they professed uprightly to make David King and to help him in the war and not betray him 1 Chron. 12. 33. 38. Of the sundry wayes of mens framing of the covenant of Grace AS we told there was a covenant of works one truly so called of Gods institution and another false sort of covenant of works of mans framing So it is also in the mater of the covenant of Grace there is one truly so called and another sort false and counterfeit of mans framing That which is of Gods framing is the covenant that God makes with the Church for giving righteousness and life by faith in Jesus Christ that which we call a counterfeit covenant is the covenant which men frame unto themselves upon any other condition then faith Such was the counterfeit covenant of the false apostles who corrupted the Gospel-covenant among the Galatians whereof the Apostle Paul complaineth Gal. 1. 6 7. challenging them that they had forsaken God who called them to the grace of Christ and were turned over to another Gospel that is to another covenant of grace then the true one which is only one and not various but by the troublers of the Church was changed into another frame for the true covenant was perverted and corrupted by these who went about to joyn together Justification by works and Justification by grace through faith in Christ which two sorts of covenant are inconsistent and do mutually overthrow one another So also did the Pharisee Luke 18. 11 12. corrupt and pervert both the covenant of works and the covenant of grace he corrupted and perverted the covenant of works because he put up to God some external good works for the perfect obedience of the law and he perverted the covenant of grace because albeit he did acknowledge the grace of God and gave him thanks for giving him ability and power to do good works and for infusing habits of piety and justice in him yet he exalted himself and took the thanks and praise to himself who had made good use of these verâ—uous habits God I thank thee saith he that I am not like other men c. 2. Like unto this fault is the errour of many of whom some makes the act of faith brought forth by the power of natural free-will to be the condition of the covenant contrary to the doctrine of the Gospel which makes saith infused to be the gift of God renouncing its own righteousness and the merit of all works also and resting on Christ to be the condition For the sentence of the Apostle standeth firm and unmovable Rom. 11. 16. If it be by grace it is no more of works c. Other some make this the condition of the covenant that Christ should pay for mortal sins by his own temporal sufferings and so take away everlasting punishment but will have the sinner himself to pay for veniall sins by temporal sufferings partly in this life and partly in purgatory Other some dream of framing the covenant of grace thus if a man do all the good he is able and hath a will to serve God better then before they conceive that God must take the will for the perfect dead and so for good payment Which counterfeit conditions and other such like inventions of self-pleasing conceits are all of them nothing else but the adulterating both of the covenant of works and of the covenant of grace appointed of God by which inventions men deceive themselves to their own perdition Now that such perverting of the covenant of works and of grace are rife frequent among men experience may prove For before Christs coming this was the way of carnal Israelits Rom. 10. 3. and Rom. 9. 30. For they being ignorant of the righteousness of God went about to establish their own inherent righteousness and would not subject themselves to the righteousness of God And of the Galatians it is said chap. 5. 4. Christ is become of none effect unto you whosoever of you are justified by the Law ye are fallen from grace that is ye who seek righteousness or justification by worke have renounced so far as in you lyeth grace to be had by Christ and experience daily sheweth the same disposition in many professed Christians Quest. Are not then such corrupters of the covenant of grace loosed from their obligation wherein by their baptism they were tyed to seek righteousness by faith only Ans. No for albeit by so doing they prove themselves to be corrupters and falsifiers of their covenant to their own perdition if they repent not yet they stand obliged still before God to their covenant sealed in baptism For the covenant of God with man cannot be dissolved by mens treachery and without Gods consent not only because the covenant of God with men in regard of the perpetual equity thereof hath in it a perpetual obligation but also because the soveraign dominion of God hath the force of a law to oblige them whom God hath taken in among his people that being once his confederat subjects they should remain still his subjects For as circumcision was a seal of covenanted righteousness by faith So baptism is a seal of the same covenanted righteousness by faith whether the covenanters remain constant unto their covenant or not as we see in the Israelits who albeit they were polluted with idolatry in Egypt and albeit they proved rebellious in the wilderness and in the land of promise were found often guilty of breach of covenant yet still in the Scripture they are called God's people and the Lords interest and right in them stood fast and their right also unto the external priviledges of the citizens of God's kingdom remained fast also untill the time that for their open and obstinat rejecting of Christ the children of the kingdom were
might weaken their faith and to rejoyce in believing and to be zealous for the Lords glory and carefull to bring forth more and more fruits of faith and love and working such other gracious works of his Spirit in his children as may more and more mortifie sin in them and perfect the image of God in his new creature This divine magisteriall and effectuall application of reall blessings belongeth to God only and is the end of all ministeriall application which is of the externall means appointed of God to be made use of by men the blessing whereof must be left to God to bestow on whom how and in what measure and in what time it pleaseth him as the Apostle doth shew unto us 1 Cor. 3. 6. I have planted and Apollos hath watered but God giveth the increase 3. The externall means which do serve unto the foresaid divine operations are 1. The doctrine of life and salvation set down in the Scripture to be heard and read by all men and meditat upon with prayer for a blessing And 2. sent ministers to whom God hath committed the word of reconciliation by whose ministery disciples may be made unto Christ out of all nations And 3. the administration of the Sacrament whereby they with their children are baptized and gathered together in severall Churches and put under the government of such Church-officers as his Testament hath appointed And 4. these Churches joyned together in the most edifying way of mutuall communion and strengthening one another in true doctrine pure worship and discipline which Gods providence doth make way for that the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus may continue and grow in the world and all his ordinances may be exercised publickly and privatly to the best advantage of the Church for perfecting of the Saints for the work of the ministery and for the edifying of the body of Christ as the Apostle requireth Ephes. 4. 12 13 14. 4. In the use of these external means and specially in the application of these three covenants prudence is required both in Pâ—stors and people to which intent and purpose these following considerations may serve 1. The remedy of every sicâ—ness of the conscience must be grounded on the doctrine of salvation set down in Scripture which doctrine 〈…〉 be known and believed by the porty 〈◊〉 before he can receive benefit thereby And 〈…〉 a prudent application of wholsom and saving doctrine may be made of necessity the party diseased must be acquâ—â—ared with the doctrine to be applyed unto him before he can make use thereof to his advantage for experience teacheth us how hardly gross ignorants can be convinced of sin add how hardly such can be comforted when their conscience is wakened with the terrours of God because they neither know from the Word of God the cause of the terrour and anxiety wherein they are nor can they be capable of the remedy of their evill except they first be catechised in the heads of saving doctrine hâ—ld forth in the Law and Gospel which instruction can hardly be given or received in a short time and howsoever a prudent Pastor must make use of time as it is offered yet when death is near to the party to be instructed how little is it that can be expected to be done 2. The order of applying saving doctrine doth not begin at the application either of the covenant of Redemption or at the covenant of Grace but he that will follow a right order must begin at the law and covenant of works under the yoke whereof we are all born by nature children of wrath And if a man apply that covenant and law to his heart and subscribe his own dittey and deserved condemnation then may he turn up his soul to Christ Jesus the Redeemer and flye to him for refuge and accept the offer which he makes in his Gospel of a new covenant of grace for pardoning of sin and reconciling unto God in himself the person who is fled unto him and for sanctifying and saving of him which covenant when a chased soul doth consent unto and layeth hold on Christ offered for relief from sin wrath death and hell then may he ascend by faith unto the covenant of Redemption and apply to himself with Gods allowance all the saving graces purchased by Christ by that covenant to all that flye unto him and believe in him 3. This order of making use of these three covenants many do not follow but they begin at the covenant of Redemption and will either be satisfied about this whether they be elected or not given to Christ to be redeemed or not which is a secret and not to be inquired into save in Gods order as we have shown or else they will not enter upon the use-making of these means which God hath appointed to bring a man to repentance and faith in Christ. This is a tentation of Sathan which if they yield unto it shall lead them either to resolute profanity with Cain or to anxious desperation with Iudas 4. There are some also who make leap-year of the covenant of works and do take no notice of their own naturall sinfulness or wrath due to them and lying on them by nature but neglecting this order do start a race and run to a presumptuous avouching of their faith in Christ and will thrust in themselves in the number of the elect given before the world was unto Christ to be redeemed and saved pretending their believing of the Gospel when they have not believed the doctrine of the law and so do turn the grace of God into lasciviousness and wantonness and go about the satisfying and fulfilling of their own lusts Wherefore it is necessary that every man who seeketh to be saved and hath resolved to follow Gods way to attain unto salvation do begin first at the covenant of works and examine himself according to the rule of the morall law how he hath behaved himself in obedience unto the first and second table and having sound a dittey great enough that he judge himself and passe sentence on himself as guilty and worthy of everlasting wrath for his sins Secondly when he is convinced of sin and deserved wrath and of his own utter impotency to deliver himself then let him flee to Christ and lay hold on the grace offered in the Gospel applying the same to his burthened conscience according to the tennor of the covenant of grace fully revealed in the Gospel And thirdly when he hath in earnest consented unto the covenant of grace and reconciliation and hath laid hold on Christ with unfaigned faith seeking in him remission of sin and renovation of life being resolved by the grace of Christ to use the means appointed of him for that end Now it is time and not till now to look up unto the covenant of Redemption and there to read his own name as it were written in the book of life and to acknowledge that the measure of repentance and
faith in Christ bestowed on himself now in experience hath flowed from that fountain of Gods love and free grace through Christ. Except this order be keeped a man cannot warrantably and with confidence and comfort make application of these covenants Hence it followeth that it is a preposterous and perilous course which some do follow and presse others to follow that presently upon the hearing of the Gospel every man should believe that Christ hath died for him for Christ calleth no man warrandeth no man to come to him except he first do acknowledge his sins and himself to be worthy of wrath condemnation and hell for his sins and to be utterly unable to save himself by any mean save by Christ for Luke 5. 32. Christ saith I came not to call the righteous but sinners unto repentance Neither doth Christ require of any man to believe himself to be of the number of Christs sheep for whom he laid down his life except he come by faith as a lost sinner to him and submit himself to his doctrine and discipline and pastorall care over him for Ioh. 17. 9. Christ saith I pray not for the world but for these thou hast given me out of the world and no man shall know that himself is given of the Father to Christ till first he come in the order foresaid unto Christ and when he is come to Christ resolveth to abide with him then may he say the Father hath given me to Christ and drawn me to Christ for this is the mark which Christ giveth Ioh. 6. 37. All that the Father hath given unto me shall come to me And again vers 44. No man cometh unto me except the Father draw him 3. There is an order alâ—o to be observed in the application of the graces offered in the Gospel for in the Evangel first Christ himself is offered as the only and sufficient remedy against sin and misery and next unto the person that receiveth Christ heartily all Christs benefits are promised to come to him by Christ and are to be found in and through Christ such as are Justification Adoption the indwelling of the holy Ghost love joy peace gentlenesse bounty fidelity meekness temperance and other Christian graces Gal 5. 22. for no man hath right unto Christs benefits before he be a believer in Christ. But so soon as a man in the foresaid order is fled unto Christ and hath laid hold on him by faith straight way a door and entresse is opened unto him unto the rich treasure of grace and right is given to him unto all the benefits of Christ for all the promises are yea and amen not before a man come to Christ not to a man without Christ but they are all yea and a men in Christ. 4. Therefore they wrong both God and their own selves who when they come unto the throne of grace do prescribe unto God another order of working then he hath set down in his word craving in the first place consolation and sensible peace in their conscience felt in their hearts and that God would work some such saving graces in their heart which the reprobat cannot counterfit which directions if God will take off their hand and bestow his graces on them sensibly as they prescribe unto him then they will stand oblieged to continue in the faith of Christ but if they find not their directions obeyed and their petitions in their order granted then with grief of heart they begin to complain and to pretend that they dare not approach unto God or Christ so long as these petitions are not first granted and felt to be granted This temptation doth invert and overturn the order of Goâ—s calling for Christ doth not call unto him well-doers or these that do found their faith upon their own good behaviour and lean to their own works which they desire to find in themselves before they fasten faith on Christ but Christ doth call sinners in their own sense and acknowledgment who renounce all confidence in their own works past present or to come He calleth such as are lost in their own sense and do feel themselves utterly unable so much as to think a good thought of themselves that they may be cloathed with the imputed righteousnesse of Christ and indued with the spirit of sanctification by him and Christs will is that they who believe in him abide in him and suck by faith out of him as the branches do suck sap out of the tree grace to bring forth fruits more and more abundantly for this is the order which Christ doth prescribe unto his disciples Ioh. 15. 5. He that abideth in me and I in him the same bringeth forth much fruit for without me ye can do nothing Whosoever therefore will not believe in Christ or do think it is not lawfull to approach unto him till first they find in themselves amendment of life and evident fruits of saving faith they do in effect change the condition of the covenant of grace and do suspend their faith in Christ till they find works to build upon when it were their duty the more they feel their barrennesse so much the more straitly to lay hold on Christ and hold him fast and ply him with earnest supplications to make good his promise to them who do abide in him Ioh. 15. 5. 5. It is necessary to presse every man who doth believe his justification by faith that he be carefull to observe the morall law or ten commands as the perpetuall and unchangeable rule of good works prescribed of God for Christ came not to destroy the law but to fulfill it Matth. 5. 17. He hath indeed unto believers in him dissolved the covenant of the law not only by his doctrine teaching them that by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified in the sight of God because by the law is the knowledge of sin gotten but no absolution from sin Rom. 3. 20. But also by absolving every believer in him that walketh not after the flesh but after the spirit from all condemnation Rom. 8. 1â— Mean while he hath not broken the yoke of obedience of the law from off the believer as he hath broken off the yoke of the covenant of works but by the contrair he prescribes to them who come unto him for remission of sin that they take on his yoke upon them and bring forth works of new obedience Matth. 11. 29. and this is the order which the Apostle doth prescribe Tit. 3. 8. This is a faithfull saying and these things I will thou affirm constantly that they which have believed in God might be carefull to maintain good works these things are good and profitable unto men 6. The moral precepts of the law are so to be pressed that the hearers whether un-converted or converted may by them whether in some measure obeyed or disobeyed be driven to Christ that the law may ever in some sort be a pedagogue unto Christ for before conversion
and at length that they shall wholly give themselves to religious exercises and a holy life mean time they conceive they may come in among the true converts and young beginners albeit they come not up the length which they intend but are unde the power of some beloved lusts which they cannot rid themselves of but do hope they shall betime overcome them Such men do miserably mistake the mater first in that they think their purpose of repentance and a new life bred in them by conviction of their duty to be the very grace of regeneration and begun sanctification Secondly they conceive that the lusts which do reign in themselves are common to them and all other regenerat persons of whom few or none think they want their own grosse faults Thirdly they conceive they can repent more seriously when they please and will repent after a whiles following of their beloved lusts as if repentance were not a saving grace of the holy Spirit whom they do daily provoke by their vilenesse but a work in the power of every mans free-will being once convinced of his sin Fourthly they do not consider that by the delay of repenting and turning from all sin unto God their heart is daily more and more in Gods Judgment hardened and God provoked to punish their voluntary impenitence with judicial hardness of heart that they shall never repent Such men our Lord compareth to the disobedient Son who promised to his Father he would go work in his vineyard and went not Math. 21. 30. Such men are they who know the well of the Lord but do it not and therefore worthy of double punishment Math 12. 47. The â—â—medy of this evil Christ giveth Luk. 13. 24 25 26. Strive to enter at the strait gate for many â— say unto you will seek to enter in and shall not be able Mâ—n know not how soon God may shut the door therefore men had need while it is to day not to harden their hearts psal 95. 8. 2. Other some are who being of a civil life professe and do perswade themselves that they indeed do repent and believe in Christ and by faith in him do certainly expect salvation freely of his grace If you pose any such men whether they do indeed believe in Christ they shall presently answer that they firmly do believe in him and that they never doubted but he is their sweet Saviour who died for them If you press them to speak in earnest from their heart they shall presently be ill pleased with the question and ask what cause of suspecting the sincerity of their faith and repentance can be justly alledged or what cause hath any man to suspect them or doubt of Gods favour toward them in Christ In whom should we believe say they if not in Christ Is there any other Saviour of sinners beside him If a man please to try the truth of their faith by their repentance they shall forthwith affirm that they repent day and night and have just cause so to do for in many things we sin all and why then should we not alwayes repent If they be asked of their love to God and their neighbour they shall answer after the same maner Such men are these of whom Christ speaketh that they will confidently come to him and call him Lord Lord and yet be found no wayes carefull to do the Lords will but servants to their own lusts 3. Such men do deceive themselves first by framing to themselves such carnal notions of faith and repentance and of the love of God and of saving hope and other spiritual graces as in their phantasie they conceive they do practise which conceptions are not grounded upon the Word of God Secondly they esteem the assent of their mind unto the truth commending these duties unto men as good as the performance of them and they do take the sentence of their conscience concerning the equity of such duties for the sentence of their conscience bearing witnesse of their practice and obedience of these duties and while their conscience saith why should not I do so they take that for as good as if it had said I do so but saving graces go deeper then civil carriage and to commend the duties of repentance and faith in Christ is not enough except they be put in practice also in daily sorrow for sin and hatred of it and flying to Christ daily to be washen and more and more sanctified 4. Some there are who when they have heard that a man is justified by faith in Christ only without the works of the law do imagine a faith which needeth not to bring forth any good works at all and so they take off the justified man from all necessity of following good works as far as they take off good works from being the cause of justification and do open a door to themselves to live after their own will in the lusts of their flesh conceiving that they who believe in Christ are fred not only from the covenant of the law but also from the command of the law against whom our Lord doth speak and doth cut off such libertines and turners of the grace of God into wantonnesse from the kingdom of heaven Math. 5. 17 18 19. And the Apostle to guard against this self-deceit Heb. 12. 14. commandeth to follow holiness without which no man shall see the Lord. 5. Some there are who pretending to esteem well of the offer of the Gospel and of the duty of following the means of making them partaker of the marriage-supper do yet think themselves excusable when they have much ado in their worldly callings albeit they prefer the care of their family and provision for their things out-ward unto the main work of their entertaining communion with God yea they conceive that God will allow them in so doing as Christ doth insinuat in the parable of the ghuests invited to the feast answering the invitation with I pray have me excused Luke 14. 18 19. This is a rise evil in great personages rich persons and such as are much imploved in earthly affairs such men deceive themselves first in laying down this ground with themselves that their earthly affairs the necessity whereof doth first and most sensibly appear must in the first room be cared-for and that the one thing necessar may be followed after as their civil and earthly affairs may permit Secondly they reckon gain to be godliness 1 Tim. 6. 5. for they cannot be perswaded when gain may be had that God requireth of any man to slip the occasion or to put his worldly goods in hazard by defending or following maters of religion Thirdly they think themselves so wise as they can well enough serve two Masters God and covetousnesse albeit when it cometh to the proof they will be found to serve not God but their own lusts This error our Lord refuteth and giveth warning to beware of it Matth. 6. 24. And Luke 21. 34. Take heed
all maters do stand between God and us Secondly that we inform the conscience well from the Scripture not only concerning the law and covenant of works whereby we may know how guilty we are of manifold sins and how impossible it is for us to be justified by our works or to escape condemnation but also concerning the Gospel and covenant of gracious reconciliation by faith in Jesus Christ and concerning the covenant of redemption whereupon the covenant of grace offered in Christ is grounded Thirdly that we make due and orderly application of these covenants that the conscience may alwayes be furnished with mater of humiliation and held on in the exercise of repentance and not only keeped from desperation but also may be furnished with grounds of good hope to be saved through the grace of our Lord Jesus who hath purchased remission of sins and imputation of his righteousnesse to every humbled sinner flying to him for grace Fourthly that being ingrasted in Christ by faith we by way of thankfulnesse study in the furniture of his Spirit to live holily justly and soberly and that whatsoever measure of sanctification we attain unto we beware to fall back to that deadly error of seeking justification before God by our works whereunto we are naturally inclined for upon this rock the flour and most shining professors in Israel after the flesh made shipwrack of their salvation Rom 9. 32. Israel which followed after the law of righteousnesse hath not attained unto the law of righteousnesse wherefore because they sought it not by faith but as it were by the works of the law And Rom. 10. 3. for they being ignorant of Gods righteousnesse and going about to establish their own righteousnesse have not submitted themselves to the righteousnesse of God Unto this error of seeking righteousnesse by our works after entering in the way of justification by grace we are all naturally inclined for the covenant of works is so ingraven in all Adams children do this and live that hardly can we renounce this way of justification and howsoever it be impossible to attain righteousnesse this way yet hardly can we submit our selves to the righteousnesse by faith in Christ which not only the experience of Israel after the flesh maketh manifest but also the experience of the Galatians lets us see for they having once outwardly renounced justification by works and embraced the covenant of gracious reconciliation by faith in Jesus did turn about for a time to seek justification by the works of the law and were on the way of falling from grace and communion with Christ. And the experience of Papists doth shew the same for whatsoever they professe concerning faith in Christ yet they abhor justification by Christs imputed righteousnesse and do blaspheme that way as a meer conceit of men and a putatitious or only imaginary righteousnesse and do seek to establish their own righteousnesse and to be justified not only before men but also before God by the merits of their own and other mens works and sufferings the imputation whereof they can tell for money in the midst of their blaspheming the imputation of Christs righteousnesse What can be said for a thief condemned to die for his faults and redeemed by a potent man upon condition that he should be the domestick servant of the redeemer to work his work all his life-time and live upon his allowance and so never be necessitated to steal any more if the ransomed thief should after steal his Masters goods and make himself a stock-purse whereupon he thought he might live and loose himself from his redeemers grace and live upon his own finding were he not worthy upon the finding out of his thifts and other faults to be left in the hands of justice to die according to his deservings And what could be said for a tennent labouring a parcel of ground of his Lands-lord for a yearly farm-duty by his own miscarriage falling to beggary if he should be taken in to the free table of his Lands-lord and trusted with the same parcel of ground to be laboured for his Masters use if he should intervert the fruits of that ground and being weary of his Masters bounty and grace should seek to be fired of his Masters service and to labour the ground for himself for payment of rent if upon the finding out of his thift and not paiment of his rent he should be cast in prison did he not deserve to be dealt with according to justice who would not live by grace So may be said of the man who shall turn from justification by free grace to seek justification by his works The fifth and last use of this doctrine is that to the intent we may not absolve our selves without Gods allowance we study to make our calling and election sure by endeavouring to walk in the sense of our unworthinesse and ill-deserving and renouncing all confidence in any thing without Christ to rely on him for righteousnesse and life-eternal and by faith in him draw spirit and life from him for furnishing us unto new obedience for he is the justified man approven of God who hath no confidence in the flesh and rejoiceth in Iesus Christ and worshipeth God in the spirit Philip. 3. 3. THE SECOND BOOK CHAP. I. Of considerations to be prâ—â—sed HItherto the sicknesses of the Conscience of the un-regenerat man are spoken to and this was needfull to the end that we might shew how Regeneration is either altogether kept off or hindred from growing where it is begun And because many of these sicknesses which destroy many of the sons of Adam cleave to the regenerat man and though they do not reign nor altogether prevail over him yet do molest and vex him and hinder his comfortable walking toward his everlasting blessednesse Now we come to speak first in this Book of these cases of the conscience of the man regenerat which do brangle and bring in question his state in grace and make him doubt whether he be a man translated out of the state of nature out of the kingdom of Sathan or not And next of these cases that concern his condition in the state of grace in the following Book As to the first sort of cases which concern the regenerat mans state some considerations must be premised for making particulars afterwards more clear 1. In the question of this or that mans regeneration or his being in the state of grace it is all one to question whether he be born again or be effectually called or indued with saving faith or be a justified man or be reconciled to God or be an adopted child And in the answer of this question let it be proven that he is any of these and it is proven also that he is all these for albeit these denominations in their formal conceptions in the abstract may be distinguished yet upon the mater in the conceit they fall upon the same individual person altogether because it is impossible
faith and to follow hard after the growth of sanctification without which no man shall see the face of God and let us so extoll the covenant of Grace and freedom of the believer from the covenant of Works that we neglect not to keep up the authority of the moral Law and the commands thereof as the perpetual rule of new obedience the use whereof is very profitable in the whole course of a Christian life to hold forth the duty of believers in Christ and to shew unto them by their short-coming in duties the poyson and power of corruption remaining in the Saints and to make them sensible of the necessity of flying daily to that imputed righteousnesse by faith in Christ and of drawing strength from Christ to bring forth more aboundant fruits whereby Christ shall be more and more precious in our eyes and be acknowledged absolutely necessar for our justification sanctification and salvation 15. When question is made concerning Christian vertues and operations of the holy Spirit in us the order of Gods working held forth to us in Scripture is carefully to be marked by us which is that sense of sin should go before faith in Christ for the Law is a pedagogue to Christ for he came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance Matth. 9. 13. And faith in Christ goeth before the fruits of faith and the fruits of faith before the sensible approbation of them and approbation of the fruits by Scripture goeth before the sensible fealing of the believer and the quieting of the conscience in its approbation of what the Scripture approveth for after we have believed we come to be sealed Ephes. 1. 13. Now for the not observing this order many real Christians do make unto themselves a very un-comfortable life for albeit they be convinced of sin and humbled in the sense of their own inability to help themselves and are fled to Christ for pardon and help and do lead a life blamelesse yet do they unhappily suspend the acknowledging of the work of faith bestowed upon them and do disquiet themselves so as they cannot rest on Christ but do quarrel the reality of their faith till they shall feel and perceive with approbation of their conscience such and such fruits of faith in themselves and that in such a measure as they have fore-imagined to be the necessar evidences of faith yea and they refuse to account themselves persons justified because they cannot perceive such mature fruits in themselves as they conceive must not only be but be acknowledged also to be in the justified person before he can lay hold on justification Such persons do in effect invert the order which they should observe for when it were their part to flye unto Christ the only Mediator because they come short of new obedience and because they are loaden with sin that in him they might have God reconciled to them and by his Spirit pouring in of his grace in their souls to make them more holy they take another and contrary course by suspending their faith upon their works and do exact of themselves works before faith and so do weaken their own faith and hinder it to bring forth such fruits as they do require It is reason indeed to prove our faith by our works and it is just that such a faith be accounted dead which is not accompanied with the purpose and endeavour to live holily justly and soberly But it is against all reason and equity to condemn weak faith accompanied with the purpose of a new life as if it were no faith because it hath not as yet brought forth so fair and fully ripe fruits as the weak believer would It were their wisdom when they perceive such impotency to do what is good and such strength of the body of death in them to flye unto the Redeemer so much the more and in him to seek remission of sin and strength to bring forth good fruits and to be sucking juice and sap out of him as the true Vine for if we come to him and abide in him we shall bring forth much fruit Iob. 15. 4 5. For faith in Christ in order of nature goeth before good works for only they who come to Christ and abide in him do bring forth aboundant fruit and not they who upon the apprehension of their want of fruits do loose or slacken their grip of faith and upon discouragment are ready to depart from the living God 16. The like wisdom is required in dealing with the consciences of men concerning the preparatory dispositions of such as may confidently come unto Christ to be justified sanctified and saved for albeit it be true that all that come to Christ ought to come in the sense of their sin and acknowledgment of wrath and death deserved for their sins ought to come with contrition of heart with godly sorrow for their sins and a humble renunciation of all confidence in themselves yet must not such persons as do not satisfie themselves in the measure or sincerity of such preparatory dispositions in themselves be keeped back or debarred from coming to Christ because they not only want as they conceive both the humiliation and sorrow of heart for sin and fear of wrath required in such as have accesse unto Christ but also do perceive in themselves such blindnesse of mind and vanity thereof such stupidity of conscience and stubbornesse of a proud heart as is not fit as they conceive to be received by Christ or fit to be comforted by him such persons I say are not to be forthwith debarred from coming to the throne of grace for oft-times sincerity of conviction compunction and humiliation is to be found in such as are displeased with their own short-coming in such preparatory dispositions more then in many others who make a fairer shew and profession of their godly sorrow and humiliation and are well pleased with themselves in that respect We must be wary also while we require sorrow and humiliation and other like preparatory dispositions in them who may come unto Christ least we secretly import and insinuat a sort of merit to be in such dispositions so as if he that doth not perceive himself thus qualified could expect no good at Christs hands except he have in his hand such preparatory dispositions as if it were a price of purchasing adresse to Christ. But let us hold this fast that the more poor and empty a man be in his own eyes he ought to draw the more near unto the riches of grace in Christ because in him only are to be found all the treasures of every saving grace and preparatory dispositions for receiving thereof he is that exalted Prince who giveth repentance unto Israel Act. 5. 31. he is the author and finisher of faith unto whom all they who in the sense of their want of repentance and faith do sigh in themselves ought and safely may come that they may have from him a more ample
but not be rested upon It is indeed natural unto us to seek to have perfection in our selves for our own glory and not to follow the way prescribed to us of God for perfecting of us unto the glory of God as may be seen in the flower of Israel after the flesh Rom. 9. and 10. Now the order of God is that we should be first justified by faith in Christ without the works of the law that is God will have us in the first place to confesse unto him our sins and renounce all confidence in our own works before in and after our conversion and to renounce all confidence in our own worthinesse or our own strength and betake us to that righteousnesse which by the obedience and satisfaction of Christ is purchased unto us and offered in the Gospel to be accounted ours of meer free grace In the second place God will have us being cloathed with Christs imputed righteousnesse to approach unto the throne of grace that by faith in Christ we may receive the power of the holy Spirit in a larger and larger measure for encreasing our sanctification more and more And in the third place he will have us as we profit and grow in holinesse to give the thanks and praise and glory thereof unto God in Jesus Christ who both justifieth us and sanctifieth us by his own Spirit and in as far as we come short in the measure of sanctification which we aim at he will have us to be humbled in our selves and lay faster hold on Christ who justifieth us that he by his Spirit may more and more sanctifie us and that because Christ is made of God unto us not only our righteousnesse but also our sanctification as the Apostle teacheth us 1 Cor. 1. 30. Now when any man breaks this order and seeketh justification by Christ but sanctification by himself as it were and when he findeth sanctification not to grow as he hoped it should doth not flye in to the garment of Christs imputed righteousnesse which alone is able to hide his nakednesse Rev. 3. 18. but in stead of humbling himself in the exercise of repentance is ready to call his justification and conversion in question and to cast it away as it were what wonder is it that God being justly offended because the righteousnesse of Christ is not in due estimation and precious in that mans eyes doth not grant unto him a better measure of sanctification especially while he is contending to have his own prescribed measure of sanctification with the prejudice of that divine righteousnesse which is by faith in Jesus Christ and will not as a humble penitent hold grip of Christs righteousnesse except he obtain such a measure of sanctification and freedom from wrestling with sin as he hath resolved to find in himself before he can stand to his interest in Christ for justification What wonder is it that God suffer sin in the afflicted to put forth its power more then before that he may teach his young convert and souldier ignorant of his duty and of Gods order of proceeding with his children to be more wise and to adhere more closely under the sense of his sinfulnesse unto the righteousnesse of Christ unto which he did flye and was forced to flye in his conversion As also that he may teach his child that sanctification must be drawn out of no other fountain then Christ out of whose fulnesse we must receive grace for grace and who by faith applyeth to his redeemed ones his imputed righteousness and by faith applyeth and worketh in them sanctification purchased unto them in the covenant of Redemption 5. Wherefore for remedy of this mistake first let the afflicted when he perceiveth and feeleth the power of sin to be more then he conceived he should have found in himself after his conversion let him I say forthwith humble himself before God acknowledge his natural uncleannesse and utter inability by his own strength to resist sin and being humbled at the heart let him blesse God who of his free grace hath prepared and freely granted unto him a righteousnesse purchased by Christ 2 Cor. 5. 21. with which being cloathed he may stand before the Tribunal of grace absolved Next let him earnestly and daily pray that he may both hold fast grips of that righteousnesse of Christ by faith and out of the same fountain of Gods glorious grace in Christ study to increase in sanctification and peece and peece to mortifie and abolish the corruption of nature Thirdly let the afflicted use the ordinances and means appointed of God for mortifying of sin and reparation of the Image of God in him And fourthly let the afflicted in the use of appointed means and ordinances of God by faith look unto Christ that out of him he may suck sap and the furniture of his Spirit to bring forth good fruits for without him we can do nothing but if we abide in him we shall bring forth abundant fruits Joh. 15. 5. CHAP. XIII Wherein is solved the converts doubt whether he be in the state of grace arising from his comparing of himself with the hypocrit and unregenerat In those perfections they may attain unto SOmetime a true convert when he perceiveth how far specious hypocrits may make progresse in the way of righteousnesse with how many vertues they may be indued with how many gifts they may be adorned how-like the foolish virgins may be unto the wise and how far temporary faith may carry a man especially when it is busked with spiritual common gifts how many glorious professors of the true christian Religion have made apostasie how many wayes men do deceive themselves and may possibly further and further deceive themselves of which self-deceivings somewhat is spoken in the end of the former book what wonder is it the weak convert stagger and fear least he also deceive himself especially when he seeth nothing in himself which may not be counterfeit 2. For lousing of this doubt wherein many have been pusled we must yield to the afflicted that there are many indeed who do deceive and destroy themselves with their vain thoughts which because it doth very frequently come to passe it should stir up all men to be circumspect and wary least they deceive themselves in the mater of their salvation and for that intent to examine themselves whether they be in the saith 2 Cor. 13. least they be beguiled and so perish And because tender faith is easily hurt all their fear must be turned into a holy carefulnesse to be found sincere and serious in the use of the Lords ordinances least Sathan beguile them on the right hand or on the left And for this end we offer advice to the afflicted to discern things that differ and first to distinguish gifts common to hypocrits and true converts from saving graces or benefits accompanying salvation for learning and skill to govern great maters and eloquence and understanding of deep mysteries and revelation of
to invocat his holy name for the right use-making of his affliction The ninth question is how remission of sin may be said to be granted in respect of sins to come IT is commonly said that the convert in his justification hath the remission of sins by-gone and sins to come whereupon the question is moved how this can stand with daily renewed remission of daily sins on the one hand daily renewed remission seemeth not necessary first because we believe that remission of all sin is the priviledge of all believers in Christ and the abridgement of the special articles of faith set down in the Apostles Creed as it is called holdeth this forth 2. Because it is certain that Christ in his death did compleat the payment of the price of redemption from all sin as 1 Ioh. 1. 7. The blood of Iesus Christ cleanseth us from all sins 3. We are said to be not under the law but under grace and so fred from the curse of the law 4. Because if daily remission of sin be necessar to be granted then it presuppones that both original sin and every actual sin flowing forth from it daily must be taken notice of reckoned for and repented of daily which is impossible On the other hand the convert seeth that every transgression of and disconformity to the law is sin and the Apostle 1 Ioh. 1. 8. speaking of himself and other converts saith If we say we have no sin we deceive our selves and the truth is not in us And Christ hath taught us as oft as we pray for our daily bread to pray also for the remission of sins The question is how the doubt of the convert may be cleared 2. For answer We must grant to the convert that original sin remaineth in the believer and is not only an exceeding sin as the Apostle calleth it Rom. 7. 13. but also is the fountain of all actual sins which doth pollute the conscience and sometimes also the outward man 2. We must grant also that there cannot be an actual and properly called remission of sins which are not yet committed for no man is guilty of that fault wherewith he cannot be charged for such a remission were a dispensation and licence to sin such as the Pope granteth to his slaves to gratifie them in allowing their vile lusts for inriching himself with the price of that iniquity 3. If such an actual remission of sins were given in justification the once justified person could never become a daily debtor by his daily transgressions contrary to the declaration of Christ in one of the articles of the Lords prayer 3. For solving the doubt then we must distinguish the significations and acceptions of remission of sin For 1. it is taken for remission purchased by Christ by virtue of the covenant of Redemption in favours of the elect but not applied unto the elect before the mans conversion Heb. 10. 12 13 14. But this man after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever sat down on the right hand of God from henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his foot-stool For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified 2. It is taken for remission promised by Christ to all that shall believe in him to be bestowed on them so soon as they shall turn to him Act. 26. 18. Thirdly it is taken for the sentence of absolution judicially applyed and adjudged to the actual believer Eph. 1. 7. In whom we have redemption through his blood the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of his grace 4. For the actual remission of all sins past before his conversion Rom. 3. 25. Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past through the forbearance of God 5. For a constant right to daily remission of sin and accesse to the fountain opened up in the house of David that is to all the children of the houshold of faith in Christ Zech. 13. 1. In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness 4. So then the convert hath first the actual remission of all sins preceeding his conversion and withall his state changed from being a child of Sathan to be a child of God Secondly he hath right unto daily remission of sins as they fall out after conversion for Christ speaking of the remission had in the time of conversion calleth it a washing of the whole man Joh. 13. 10 He that is washen needeth not to wash save his feet but is wholly clean to wit for the state of his person accepted in Christ and for the application of his right unto daily remission Christ teacheth all his disciples daily to pray for it which Christ calleth the washing of the believers feet Joh. 13. 10. 5. For answer to the objections made against the necessity of daily renewed remission of sin let it be remembred that the article of our Creed is so far from making daily remission of sin not necessar that of necessity it must be extended not only to the remission of sins past before conversion but also to the right made unto us for daily remission of the sins which run daily from the relicts of corrupt nature not fully mortified for otherwayes the believer could not have quiet consolation in the daily exercise of renewed repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. 2. As to the second objection concerning the perfect purchase made by Christ of remission by-past and to come It doth prove indeed that there is no other sacrifice for sin nor price of redemption from sin save that which was compleated on the crosse but it doth not prove that we must only once make application of this purchase for Christ keepeth the full purchase in his own hand and doth let forth the application thereof as we stand in need in his own order and by degrees till he perfect us in sanctification and glorification also 6. As for the third objection we must not think that when we are loosed from the Law as a covenant of Works we are loosed also from the commands of the Law for the covenant of Works prescribed in the Law is posterior both in order of nature and time to the natural writing of the Law in mans heart Rom. 2. 15. And therefore when the covenant of the law of Works is taken off the authority of the Law to direct and command all moral duties doth remain and can no more be dissolved then the obligation of the reasonable creature to be obedient to the Creator can be abolished and therefore when the believer falleth in a transgression he meriteth death and destruction as the wages of sin But Christ our Advocat who liveth for ever to make intercession for us holds off the execution of deserved wrath and giveth to the believer the grace of renewed repentance
and faith in him and so saveth the believer 1 Ioh. 1. 9. and 2. 1. 7. As for the last objection taken from the impossibility of knowing taking notice of or confessing every sin wherewith we are daily polluted or from the impossibility of putting repentance and faith in exercise about every particular sin we answer first that the children of God notwithstanding of this impossibility acknowledged by them have sought and obtained renewed remission of their innumerable sins Ps. 40. 12. and Ps. 19. 12 13. 8. Secondly such as are justified by faith upon confession of such sins as they know and do remember are accepted of God as if they had confessed all their sins particularly because he that hath no mind to deny or excuse any sin in himself but is willing to open up his heart to God in sincerity and to canfesse every particular if he were able he hath presented a contrite heart before God which is a sacrifice acceptable to God Ps. 51. 8 9. Ps. 32. 5. and this much also Christ doth teach us speaking of the Publican who made a short and general confession of his sins in sincerity and went home justified Luk. 18. 13 14. Thirdly it is not impossible for a watchfull conscience to observe daily as many particular sproutings from the root of in-born sin as may humble him daily and bear down all confidence in his own righteousnesse and furnish to him mater for exercise of repentance and faith in Christ. And this lesson the Lord did teach his people under the Law by the twice offering sacrifice every day morning and evening that his people observing daily the running issue of corrupt nature might daily have their recourse by faith unto the lamb of God that takes away the sins of his own people and hitherto we are directed to look Is. 45. 22. and 1 Iob. 2. 1. Mean time on the one hand let us beware to lay any sort of merit upon our daily exercise of faith and sorrow for sin in our repentance otherwayes we should be found offerers unto God of satisfaction from us and not suiters of remission of sins from God and on the other hand let us beware to be discouraged albeit we do not find daily the renewed intimation and sense of remission but as we apply the Law to our selves in the exercise of repentance So let us apply the sentence of absolution pronounced in the Gospel in favours of every penitent soul that flyeth to Christ for refuge The tenth question shall be concerning spiritual dispositions of mind and qualifications which may be joyned with or separat from the special work of true conversion and saving grace THe Apostle Heb. 6. 4 5 6 9 10. tells us of sundry qualifications which may be found in unconverted men and also he tells us of better things which do accompany salvation and are sure evidences of regeneration Of the first sort there are among others these five 1. A legal conviction of the vilenesse of sin and vanity of the world 2. A renouncing of unlawfull pleasures joyned with a refraining even from lawfull and allowed wordly delights 3. A natural desire of salvation and of sanctification that they may be saved 4. A purpose to live righteously holily and soberly in this present world 5. An outward change of maners and conversation so far as they may be blamelesse before men These and such like qualifications may make a fair show in the flesh and yet may be found to be not only in true converts but also in such as are strangers from the life of God such was the Apostle Paul before conversion such was Israel Rom. 9. 31. Which followed after the law of righteousnesse and did not attain to the law of righteousnesse Who being ignorant of Gods righteousnesse did and going about to establish their own righteousnesse did not submit themselves to the righteousnesse of God Rom. 10. 3. Of this sort are such of the Papists who go about to be justified by their own works and do but mock at the imputation of Christs righteousnesse calling it blasphemously a putatious or conceited righteousnesse not considering that the Pope and his servants do reckon the imputation of the righteousnesse and merits of men and of the superfluity of the Saints righteousnesse by reason of their works of supererogation to be worth a great sum of money as they find their merchants Concerning these five qualifications some converts especially such as desire to see the evidences of saving grace in those with whom they will joyn in the society of Church-membership may make question what to think whether they be saving graces or common operations of the Spirit 2. For answer we must distinguish between a mans judging of those qualifications in himself and his judging of another in whom these qualifications appear to be for a man judging of himself may attain to a clear and certain discerning of saving grace in himself as the Apostle giveth us to understand 1 Cor. 2 11 12. In which case of our judging of our selves this much may be said that if a man find in himself those qualifications joyned with faith in Christ for righteousnesse and eternal life and is seeking furniture from Christ to bring forth fruits of his faith in new obedience he may be quiet and be out of doubt of saving grace in himself for unto such a person the description of a true convert may safely be applyed Phil. 3. 3. We are the circumcision c. And pre-suppose he hath observed these qualifications in himself before he hath observed his closing with Christ or his application of the offer of reconciliation through him he neither needeth nor should trouble himself or others with questioning whether such and such qualifications in him before his fixing on Christ were the common or special operations of the holy Ghost for seing the kingdom of heaven cometh not with observation alwayes it is hard to determine of the first beginnings of the working of saving grace by the holy Spirit because saving faith hath in it the substance of historical dogmatical and temporary faith And therefore when both saving faith and historical dogmatical and temporary faith may produce belief of the law and convince the man of sin and wrath due for sin and produce the belief of the Gospel also without application of the offer of reconciliation how shall a man determine whether these effects were produced by vertue of dogmatical and temporary faith or by vertue of saving faith untill the time that the humbled sinner flye in unto Christ and seek to draw furniture from him for new obedience of the law of love toward God and man and so put difference betwixt saving faith and that faith which may be in an unregenerat aud unreconciled man But when the man is come up to apply Christ and cleave unto him for righteousnesse and life and furniture to carry him on the way unto salvation it is not his wisdom to dispute whether these
sin but did not seek mercy and pardon Neither is it sufficient to boast of acquaintance with Christ and professe great respect to him because many do cry Lord Lord who neither renounce their confidence in their own righteousnesse nor worship God in spirit for of such Christ saith Matth. 7. 21. Not every one that saith to Him Lord Lord shall enter into the kingdom of God Neither is it sufficient to pretend the worshiping of God in spirit for all they who think to be justified by their own works do esteem their manner of serving of God true and spirituall service and worship as may be seen in the proud Pharisee glorying before God in his own righteousnesse and acknowledging that God was the giver unto him of the holinesse and righteousnesse which he had Luke 18. 11. I thank Thee O God saith he that I am not like other men extortioners unjust adulterers or even as this publican for of this man Christ saith he returned to his house unjustified that is a man lying still in sin unreconciled Neither is it sufficient to prove a man regenerat to confess sin and by-gone unrighteousnesse and to promise and begin to amend his wayes and future conversation for so much may a Pharisee attain And there are many that professe themselves Christians who think to be justified by the merits of their own and other saints doings and sufferings and do disdainfully scoff and mock at the doctrine of the imputed righteousnesse of Christ how many are they also who think their bygone sins may be washen away and be recompenced by their purpose to amend their life in time to come How many are they who being willingly ignorant of the righteousnesse of God which is of faith in Jesus Christ go about to establish their own righteousnesse as the Jews did Rom. 10. 3. And how few are they who follow the example of the Apostle who carefully served God in spirit and truth but did not lean to his own righteousnesse but sought more and more to be found in Christ not having his own righteousnesse which behoved to be made up of his imperfect obedience of the law but that righteousnesse which is by faith in Jesus Christ Philip. 3. 9. But that man who daily in the sense of his sinfulness and poverty sleeth unto Jesus Christ that he may be justified by His righteousnesse and endeavoureth by faith in Him to bring forth the fruits of new obedience and doth not put confidence in these his works when he hath done them but rejoyceth in Jesus Christ the fountain of holinesse and blessednesse That man I say undoubtedly is regenerat and a new creature for so doth the Apostle describe him Philip. 3. 3. CHAP. IV. Of divine Covenants about the eternall salvation of men and in speciall of the Covenant of redemption shewing that there is such a Covenant and what are the articles thereof BEcause the healing of the sicknesse of the conscience cometh by a right application of divine Covenants about our salvation therefore it is necessary that some measure of the knowledge thereof be opened up 1. A divine covenant we call a contract or paction wherein God is at least the one party contracter Of this sort of covenants about the eternall salvation of men which sort chieflly belong to our purpose there are three The first is the covenant of redemption past between God and Christ God appointed Mediatour before the world was in the council of the Trinity The second is the covenant of works made between God and men in Adam in his integrity indued with all naturall perfections enabling him to keep it so long as it pleased him to stand to the condition The third is the covenant of grace and reconciliation through Christ made between God and believers with their children in Christ. 2. As to the covenant of redemption for clearing the mater we must distinguish the sundry acceptions of the word redemption for 1. Sometime it is taken for the contract and agreement of selling and buying-back to eternall salvation of lost man looked upon as in the state of sin and misery In which sense we are said to be bought by Christ both souls and bodies 1 Cor. 6. 19. 20. Ye are not your own for ye are bought with a price therefore glorifie God in your body and in your spirit which are Gods And this may be called redemption by paction and agreed bargain 2. Sometime redemption is taken for the paying of the price agreed upon In which sense Christ is said to have redeemed us by suffering of the punishment due to us and ransoming of us Gal. 3. 13. Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law being made a curse for us 3. Sometime redemption is taken for the begun application of the benefits purchased in the covenant by the price payed Ephes. 1. 7. In whom we have redemption through His blood even the remission of sins according to the riches of His grace 4. Sometime redemption is taken for the perfect and full possession of all the benefits agreed upon between the Father and Christ His Son the Mediatour In which sense we are said to be sealed with the holy Spirit of promise which is the earnest of our inheritance untill the redemption of the purchased possession Ephes. 1. 14. and Ephes. 4. 30. it is said Grieve not the holy Spirit of God whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption which is the day of Judgement when Christ shall put us in full possession of all the blessednesse which He purchased by bargain and payment for us In this place we take redemption in the first sense for the covenant past between the Father and Christ His Son designed Mediatour about our redemption 3. When we name the Father as the one party and His Son Christ as the other party in this covenant we do not seclude the Son and holy Spirit from being the party offended but do look upon the Father Son and Spirit one God in three Persons as offended by mans sin and yet all three contented to take satisfaction to divine justice for mans sin in the Person of the Son as designed Mediatour to be incarnat Whereby the Son is both the party offended as God one essentially with the Father and holy Spirit and the party contracter also as God designed Mediatour personally for redeeming man who with consent of the Father and holy Spirit from all eternity willed and purposed in the fulnesse of time to assume the humane nature in personall union with Himself and for the elects sake to become man and to take the cause of the elect in hand to bring them back to the friendship of God and full enjoyment of felicity for evermore When therefore we make the Father the one party and the Son designed mediatour the other party speaking with the Scripture for the more easie uptaking of the Covenant let us look to one God in three Persons having absolute right and soveraign
sort of men the Lord doth speak Deut. 29. 18 19. shewing that he makes his covenant with his people lest there should be among you saith he a root that beareth gall and wormwood And it come to pass when he heareth the words of this curse that he bless himself in his heart saying I shall have peace though I walk in the imagination of my own heart to add drunkenness to thirst It is possible few shall be found so impudent as that they dar in expresse termes professe this their mis-belief of Gods justice yet they are not a few who foster this error in their heart who having as it were made a Covenant with death and hell are far from fearing to perish in their sins In this sort are all they to be ranked who conceive that all the threatnings in the Scripture are given forth to the intent that men being bridled by terrors might compose themselves to a more humane and social life among others who lest they should seem Atheists in word do cry up Gods mercy bounty and love to man so as they make small reckoning of the Lords truth and justice even as if the justice of God in punishing rebels could not consist with his mercy to the penitent or as if the end of creating man could not be obtained if obstinat sinners be destroyed 2. The main cause of such error is an obstinat purpose to walk after the counsel and imagination of their own heart and because they cannot quiet their conscience in following their own wayes except in promising to themselves impunity in their sinning they presume confidently to go on in their own wayes against all threatenings and so do blow their consciences blind Such profane presumption although it deserveth to be beaten with a rod rather then to be reasoned with yet let the Pastor deal with the presumer as he ought to do with other desperat like sinners and in the first place let him propose for remedy of this evil what the Lord doth speak against such a person Deut. 29. 20. The Lord will not spare him but then the anger of the Lord and his jealousie shall smoak against that man 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 as he findeth this work upon him So let him deal with him 2. Some are near of kindred to such persons who do not reject all threatenings yet do think in their heart that none are in danger except grosse flagitious and notorious sinners but as to themselves they conceive because they are not the worst of men they are without the reach of divine justice especially if their conversation be according to humane laws so regulated as they have the reputation of honest neighbours With such men Christ dealeth Luk. 13. 1 2 5. when word came concerning the Galileans whose blood Pilaâ— mixed with their sacrifices Christ saith to them Suppose ye that these Galileans were sinners above all Galileans because they suffered these things I tell you nay but except ye repent you shall all likewise perish This is the remedy prescribed by Christ to such men 3. Some there are who hope to be absolved before God and do absolve themselves in their own conscience by their good works and obedience done to the law Of this sort was Paul before his conversion who till the time that the spiritual light of the law brake in upon his mind and killed the conceit of his own inherent righteousnesse was no mean man in his own eyes Rom. 7. 9. Such was the rich young man in the Gospel who said to Christ that he had keeped all the commands from his youth up till Christ did prove him a covetous Idolater who put a higher price on his riches then upon Christ and the kingdom of heaven Such were the Pharisees who by their obedience to the law such as it was doubted nothing to absolve themselves and that God should absolve them also But that the met-yaird should be no longer then their cloath or the law of further extent then their imagined possible practice they admitted no metonymie or figurative speech in the law whereby under one branch of a duty commanded all duties of that kind are comprehended and all faults contrary to the duty are forbidden As for example they counted not the sixth command to be violat except the man did take away his neighbours life nor the seventh command broken except by grosse adultery and violation of the marriage-bed nor the eighth command transgressed except another mans goods were openly or privately taken away whose mistake Christ doth correct Matth. chap. 5. and 6. 2. Such men as those are far from repentance far from humbling themselves before God and seeking remission of sin through Christ for they are ignorant of the righteousnesse of the Gospel by faith in Jesus Christ and of the way of coming to ability for doing any acceptable work by faith in Christ and therefore they go about to establish their own righteousnesse Rom. 10. 3. and 9. 31. 32. The false ground which they do lay for their own absolution is this they think to be justified by their works against which ground the Apostle hath pronounced condemnatory sentence Rom. 3. 20. By the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified in Gods sight for by the law is the knowledge of sin 3. With this sort we may joyn these who not only come short of the obedience due to the law but also are in conscience convicted of many transgressions of the Lords law yet they conceive that God will not exact of them or of any man who is about to obey his law more then the man can in the common infirmity of flesh overtake and do perswade themselves that God will be satisfied with all them in whom is a willingnesse to obey the law their false ground which they lay is this that God will accept a mans will for the deed And to this purpose they do abuse the Scriptures Isa. 1. 19 If you be willing and obedient you shall eat the good things of the land And 2 Cor. 8. 12. If there be first a willing mind it is accepted according to that a man hath and not according to that he hath not 4. But here is their error whereupon they purchase from their conscience mis-informed an unwarrantable absolution first they lay down for a ground that they must be justified by works 2. Because they know they do come and shall come short in obedience they turn the condition of the covenant of works into other terms then God hath appointed and make the will of a man to obey the law so far as he is able to be the condition of the covenant which God disclaimeth 3. They deceive themselves in this that what is spoken to converted believers in Jesus Christ already justified by faith aiming at new obedience they do apply to themselves lying under the curse
and covenant of works for it is true indeed when God is dealing with those that are already justified by faith in Jesus and have renounced all confidence in their own works and fled unto Christ and have taken on his yoke the Lord doth take in good part the first fruits of the new creature and doth much esteem the tender fruits of the spirit as the places cited Isa. 1. and 2 Cor. 8. do shew But when the Lord hath to do with the proud natural man the unrenewed man the man that is not humbled for violation of the covenant of works he dealeth with him according to the rigour of the law according to the condition of the covenant of works pronouncing his curse against that man for every sin till the sinner be humbled and slye to Christ. 5. With the former we may joyn all these who believe they may wash away their sins partly by bearing such afflictions as are laid on them by God in this life partly by their tears prayers fastings pilgrimages penances and scourging of themselves and partly by their almes-deeds and other good works do believe they shall make amends for all their misdeeds and what they cannot perfect in this life for the mater of good works they will take assignation to the supererogation and superfluity of the merits of Saints made over unto them by the Pope And what for the mater of suffering is not endured in this life they will take upon them to endure in an imaginary purgatory and place of hell after this life and so poor souls they think they may absolve themselves at least from the sentence of everlasting condemnation by such poor shifts as those But the truth is so long as they rely upon their own sufferings and satisfactions they deny both the necessity and the worth of Christs sufferings and so long as they have confidence in their own works or works of other men they reject and disclaim the covenant of grace and yet behold how proud they prove themselves to be Isa. 58. 3. when they plead with God saying wherefore have we fasted and thou seest not wherefore have we afflicted our soul and thou takest no knowledge 6. Last of all unto the former sort we joyn these who please themselves in the composition of righteousness by works and righteousnesse by faith thinking to save themselves under the shelter of the one righteousnesse or of the other however God shall deal with them Such were the Seducers and seduced amongst the Galatians for refuting of whole errour the Apostle as it were travelled in birth till he brought them to take up the right frame of Christs way of salvation 7. The cause of all such mens deceiving of themselves in a false absolution of their conscience is their ignorance both of the righteousnesse of the law and of the righteousness by faith for such as think their sins are so few and light or their lives so innocent or their good works they have done so weighty and their purpose to do yet moe good works to be so holy or their pains taken in religion so considerable or their sufferings resolved upon so great and thereupon do absolve themselves consider not that the law or covenant of works doth require perfect personal obedience to all Gods law under the pain of Gods curse growing in Items as the law is oftener transgressed till they flye in to the perfect ransom of Christs obedience And as for the righteousnesse of faith in Jesus they consider not that his righteousnesse will not be bestowed upon any who do not renounce all confidence in their own or others works and betake themselves altogether to the only grace of Christ they consider not that if the worth of any work be relyed upon the bargain of free grace is spoiled and clear marred for if it he by works it is no more of grace and if it be of grace it is no more of works for these two are so opposit one to another in the mater of mans election and justification that they can no more consist together as causes pâ—ocuring or moving God then contradictory sentences can be both true as Paul teacheth Rom. 11. 6. 3 A third sort of self-deceivers and unwarranted self-â—bâ—olvers we reckon all persons poysoned with deadly herefies who being drawn away from the doctrine of Christ set down in the holy Scriptures turn after some false christ and false religion of mens or their own devising giving unto their Idol what worship what service what employment what power they please and making their own conditions of peace with God as they think good some denying the eternity of the Godhead of the true Christ some the reality of his assumed humane nature some evacuating so far as they can his three offices and the fruit of his execution thereof all of them promising to themselves salvation in another then in the true Christ described to us in Scripture who is Creator up-holder and Governour of all things very coeternal God with the Father and holy Spirit in the fulness of time made man ever-living Prophet Priest and King to his Church both before his incarnation and constantly since the way the truth and the life made of God unto true believers in him wisdom righteousnesse sanctification and redemption who walk among the golden candle-sticks and searches the wayes and hearts of every man as he holdeth forth himself in these Epistles unto the seven Churches of Asia Revel chap. 2. and 3. Of this danger of mistaking the true Christ and embracing a false in his room he himself doth carefully fore-warn his Disciples Math. 24. 4 5 24 25 26 Take heed that no man deceive you for many shall come in my name saying I am Christ and shall deceive many The proper remedy of this evil is this let every one that hath an ear hear what the spirit speaketh to the Churches not only in these seven Epistles but also in all the rest of the holy Scriptures which are the expressions of the holy Spirit but if any man receive not the truth in love set down by the Lords Spirit in the Scripture his punishment is set down by the Apostle 2 Thess 2. 11. and for this cause to wit because they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved God shall send them strong delusion that they should believe a lye that they all might be damned who believed not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousnesse 1. The fourth sort of absolvers of themselves without Gods warrand are these who pretend unto true religion and deny the power of it of whom some are couvinced of their duty to repent their sins and to forsake their lusts and to endeavour a reformation of their life and this they do promise to themselves and purpose seriously to do as they think only they cannot presently and at once break off the course they are upon but do hope by little and little to come forward
sense of sin begun in the afflicted by Gods mercy and that the afflicted cannot now be hindered from repentance nor be keeped in his former snare doth change himself as if he were an angel of light and setteth all at nought the measure of sorrow which the afflicted hath already and shews unto him how unanswerable the proportion of his sorrow is unto the multitude and hainousnesse of his sins and so spurreth him on to mourn more and more that if it be possible he may distemper and distract him or make him pine away and perish in his sorrow without faith or consolation in Christ this is one evil Another evil is this the affectation of such a degree of sorrow smelleth of seeking some sort of expiation of sin and compensation of the pleasure taken in sin by suitable sorrow for it unto which practical error we are by nature too too prone for as by nature we strive to be justified by works according to the covenant of works written in the children of Adam so when we see our selves come short of the righteousnesse of works we go about as is to be seen in Papists to supply the defect of works by some one sort or other of our sufferings and satisfactions for sin in special that by sorrow and tears in abundance we may wash away the guilt and pollution we have contracted by sin And in this course we run on naturally after wakening of the conscience to exact pennance and punishment on our selves till the deluded heart say it is enough And then as if all were well the deceived sinner resteth himself which deceit of the heart the oftener it hath place and prevaileth without being observed it is the more dangerous A third evil following on this practical error is by it the free grace of God and merits of Christ are greatly obscured and both the mans consolation and sanctification are marred the loss that the afflicted sustaineth on the one hand and the drawing on of new guiltinesse by such a course on the other hand is covered under the vizard of humiliation A fourth evil followeth this error which is this the afflicted person so long as he continueth in this mistake he giveth way to the tentation and doth of set purpose foster his own misbelief that he may thereby foster and augment his own sorrow and afright himself with dreadfull imaginations what shall become of him that he may augment his affected heavinesse of spirit and make the fountain of his tears run the more abundantly A fifth evil is the afflicted so long as he suspends his going to Christ because he hath not mourned sufficiently for sin he fosters another fault unawars to wit a purpose to lay down any more sorrowing for sin if once he had overtaken his imagined measure of sorrow and had his accesse so made unto Christ. This deceit of the heart is brought to light in the practice of some Antinomians who allow themselves once to mourn for sin that their mourning may make way for faith in Christ but after they apprehend they have once repented and casten their burthen on Christ and do number themselves among believers they scorn to mourn any more for sin they harden themselves against all remorse of conscience and do reject secret challenges as groundlesse and make themselves merry with their own fancy and reckon all penitents to be under the spirit of bondage which evils if the afflicted person would perceive to follow upon his error which as a net is spred before his feet to keep him from going to Christ and following the course and exercise of repentance all the dayes of his life he would take heed better to his steps 4. The afflicted must be informed or called to mind concerning sorrow for sin that it is not commended from the quantity or measure of it but from the quality or sincerity of it Now sincere sorrow for sin is best discerned by the hatred which the mourner hath against sin by the mourners humiliation of himself before God by his abhorring himself both for his sin and for the hardnesse of his heart under sin by his purpose to strive against all sin by his flying in unto Christ for relief from sin by his entertaining and renewing of godly sorrow after he hath believed in Christ according as he findeth the inherent roots of sin to be springing up in him This is indeed sincere and godly sorrow which causeth repentance never to be repented of 5. Fifthly and last of all the afflicted must be exhorted not to linger any more but flye to Christ and let him be humbled so much the more as he is not so humbled as he should and would be let him call to minde that Christ came not only to comfort mourners for sin but also to call sinners unto repentance for Christ hath not put such a measure of sorrow whereof we are speaking to be the condition of the covenant of Grace he doth not fell his precious wares nor his gifts of grace for the price of mens tears but let him remember that whosoever is so destitute in his own sense of all good as he finds neither the sense of sin nor repentance nor faith nor any other good thing in himself which may commend him to God but by the contrair much evil of all sorts and yet cometh to Christ is no doubt the poor in spirit whom Christ hath pronounced blessed Matth. 5. 3. and that the sense of his sin and misery in the measure which he hath of it is the evidence of eye-salve already bestowed upon him to encourage him to buy of Christ all the riches which he holdeth forth to the poor in spirit Revel 3. 18. CHAP. VII Wherein the Christians doubt whether he be regenerat because he findeth not his righteousness exceeding the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees is answered THere are some regenerat persons who in the sense of their sins and acknowledgment of their unworthinesse and inability to help themselves are fled unto Christ and have given over themselves to him by faith and are endeavouring to bring forth fruits suteable to repentance who for all this fall a doubting whether they be renewed whether their faith be true and saving faith and the reason which they give of their doubting is because the reformation of their life whereunto they have attained appeareth unto them not to exceed the righteousnesse which may be found in some Pagans or in Scribes and Pharisees of whom Christ hath said in the Evangel Matth. 5. 20. I say unto you that except your righteousness exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven This doubt is followed with grief anxiety of mind and fear least all vertues in them be found nothing but counterfeit and this case except it be speedily cured cannot chuse but draw after it heavy and hard consequences For curing whereof we must confesse that many Pagans and Infidels
his lamentation for his short-coming in duties unto God by prayer for this is the way to make progresse in faith and repentance and humility and submission of his will unto God in the use of the means and let him thank the Lord that from day to day he is keeped from scandalous out-breaking CHAP. XVII Wherein is solved the converts doubt whether he be regenerat because he seemeth to himself to follow religion and righteousnesse from the common operation of Gods working by morall swasion and not from the special operation and impulsion of the holy Spirit THere are some true converts who have profited so far in the amendment of their life and conforming their conversation unto the rule of Gods Word that the yoke of Christ is become easie to them and their delight is to be frequently about the exercises of religion and works of righteousnesse and yet sometime they are troubled with suspicion whether the work of regeneration in them be solid because any thing they do may be done as they conceive by temporary believers in whom no sound renovation of corrupt nature will be found I find nothing in me saith one of the effectual motion of the holy Spirit but all by way of morall swasion by imitation of others by education as may be found in the unrenewed disciples of morall philosophy for as they by frequent actions do acquire habits wherewith being indued they discharge moral duties more easily and with delight So I by discharging acts of religion and acquainting my self with them daily do seem to my self to have acquired a facility and delectation in religious actions and works of righteousnesse toward my neighbours 2. This case we grant is very perilous and subtilely coloured by Sathan to deceive and weaken the true convert for it is true what power hath been seen in morall philosophy among Pagans to put a luster on mens civil conversation must be also granted to Theology among professed Christians because divine threatnings and promises for procuring outward reformation of a mans life are more apt to prevail with a man then all morall philosophy and it is true also that education by parents and imitation of good men is of great force morally to perswade a man to the following of the outward duties of religion and to a civil conversation Wherefore it is no wonder to see a true convert doubt of his own regeneration when he compareth external duties discharged by himself with the external duties discharged by others whose heart he cannot see but must judge charitably of them and yet can neither be clear determinatly to affirm all such to be true converts nor to affirm himself to be a true convert so long as he suspecteth that as some others reformation So also his own reformation may prove no better then from morall swasion which may be â—ound in a man unregenerat 3. For lousing of this doubt and strengthening of the faith of the true convert let him examine himself whether in the conscience of his natural sinfulnesse and sense of his own unworthinesse and inability to deliver himself from the power of sin wrath and misery he hath fled and from time to time doth flye to Christ according to the tenor of the covenant of grace to be justified sanctified and saved by him and doth follow the exercises of religion and righteousnesse in obedience to the commands of God If his conscience answer him that so he doth then first let him look upon his doubting of his state as the subtile tentation of Sathan and that he may be strong against this tentation let him renew the acknowledgment of his sins and sinfulnesse of his weaknesse and unworthinesse and renew also his consent to the covenant of grace in Jesus Christ and his purpose to obey the commandments of God in the strength of Christ for by this means he shall gain the entry into his refuge where-from Sathan was drawing him by furnishing doubts and weakening his faith Secondly having casten his anchor within the vail and setled his faith on Christ Jesus let him now maintain his former course so far as truth will suffer that his former course of life in following with delight the exercise of religion and righteousnesse did proceed from the holy Spirit and let him consider that it is not a sufficient reason to call in question the infused habits of saving grace because supernatural habits infused immediatly by the Spirit of Christ are entertained augmented and confirmed by frequent acts and daily exercise no lesse then natural or morall habits are which are acquired by exercise And this is clear from Scripture wherein are many exhortations to put faith love repentance patience c. in frequent exercise that these gracious habits may grow strong as the Apostle Peter doth speak 2 Epist. 1. chap. ver 5 6. c. Thirdly let him put a difference in judging of his own conversation and the conversation of others of whose principles and ends of outward godly carriage he cannot judge as he can do of his own for a man in nature unregenerat or a temporary believer may make profession of true religion and outwardly go on in a blamelesse conversation with this opinion that by his works he shall please God and procure salvation to himself But the true convert shall be found a renouncer of confidence in his own works a man sensible of his own sinfulnesse and imperfections who hath fled and resolveth still to adhere to Christ for righteousnesse and salvation through him the finding whereof in any measure after examination may solve the converts doubt for a man in nature cannot so hate sin and follow holinesse as to renounce confidence in his holinesse and slve unto Christ for righteousnesse Fourthly let the afflicted convert consider that the Lords dealing with his children both by morall motives and by effectual perswasion unto the obedience of faith may and doth very well concur and agree together neither is the special operation of the holy Spirit with any reason to be suspected because he sweetly leadeth on his child by way of counsell without the childs observation of any notable impulse making him to overcome strong tentations unto sin whereunto he is naturally inclined for the more victorious grace is over corruption the efficacie of the Lords grace is the more conspicuous and that obedience is most pleasant to God wherein corrupt nature maketh most opposition Therefore in this case here presupposed let him stand to the defence of his faith in Christ and go on cheerfully in the way of righteousnesse against Sathans tentation solliciting him to doubting and discouragement which counsell if he follow he shall find by experience that he hath made use of the shield of faith and gotten the victory not without the special operation and impulse of the holy Spirit CHAP. XVIII Wherein is solved the true converts doubt whether he be regenerat because he findeth not self-denyal in the measure which is requisite in converts
free of grosse out-breakings This last sort deceive themselves also because they esteem their natural sorrow for such sins as are grosse and scandalous to be true repentance albeit they be not humbled for the fountain of these out-breakings to wit their in-born corruption of nature and filthy concupiscence and the daily out-breakings thereof to the polluting of their spirits whereof they do take litle or no notice Many also there are who deceive themselves esteeming the outward exercises of religion and some works in themselves commendable to be sufficient fruits and evidences of their faith in Christ and of their regeneration albeit they have not as yet fled to Christ sincerely neither ever put a right estimation upon the imputed righteousnesse of Christ. Such men when they should renounce all confidence in their own works and in the sense of their sinfulnesse flye unto the covenant of grace offered in Christ that in him they might have remission of sin and from him by faith draw strength and ability to bring forth good works they run a contrary course for in the confidence of their own strength they go about sundry duties toward men and exercises of religion toward God trusting in those works as if by works they were to be justified Therefore justly shall Christ say unto them depart from me ye workers of iniquity I never knew you Such were many of the Israelits who being ignorant of the righteousnesse of God went about to establish their own righteousnesse These things when one weak in faith doth consider no wonder he be troubled and be afraid lest he deceive himself and perish as others have done 3. This is a dangerous disease and so long as it is not cured it hinders much the tender beginnings of the new creature that it cannot come up to manly strength First therefore let the afflicted wisely examine the course of his by-gone life lest he either absolve or condemn himself rashly and let him beware lest he esteem the worse of the evidences of a new creature and the fruits of faith because these that look to be justified by their works can produce the like works Secondly let the afflicted call to mind whether in the beginning of the reâ—ormation of his life the Law as a Pedagoge did lead him unto Christ and whether since that time the law did daily put him on and force him to â—lye to Christ and to embrace Christ and his righteousnesse and hath made him to study obedience to the law out of love to God so much the more carefully as he perceived himself obliged thankfully to acknowledge grace granted in Christ to him for if any measure of the daily exercise of repentance if any measure of love to Christ and any measure of endeavour of new obedience be found after examination in the person afflicted out of doubt the ground is laid solidly of his salvation out of doubt he hath an evidence of the work of grace by the operation of the holy Spirit in himself 4. If in this examination the afflicted be not clear but the doubt doth yet stick because of the suspicion he hath of the felt deceitfulnesse of his own heart we offer unto him this counsell that he quickly humble himself before God and do ingenuously acknowledge the native perversenesse and deceitfulnesse of his heart and for that very reason let him embrace Christ the Redeemer in the armes of faith offering himself to every condemned sinner and let him thank God who hath deciphered unto him this deceitfulnesse of his heart and offered Christ unto him for the true remedy of this and every other sinfull malady And in the mean time let him put a difference between himself and an hypocrit in whom the deceit of the heart is neither acknowledged nor seen but fostered and defended for a close hypocrite after hearing of the doctrine of the deceitfulnesse of the heart will stand to the defending of his own sincerity and will take it hardly if any man labour to convince him of any measure of hypocrisie but a true convert or regenerat person will not deny but much hypocrisie may be found in him and albeit he be sorrowfull that this deceitfulnesse of heart hath had lodging in him and lurked too long yet is he willing and glad to have this evil more and more discovered unto him and heartily doth he deliver up this traitor to Christ to be mortified and abolished by his Spirit 5. But if the afflicted cannot be quiet and satisfied still fearing and suspecting he be found a man unrenewed and that for the running issue of this filthy boyl opened up to him by the sword of the Spirit let him beware that he passe not permptor sentence against himself that he do not conclude himself to be a man altogether in the bond of iniquity but let him suspend for a time the disputation and do that which is allowed unto every self-condemned man in the beginning of his conversion that is quickly let him flye unto Christ for remission of sin let him lay hold on that righteousnesse purchased by him and the more he feareth to find God a severe judge let him the more firmly lay hold on Jesus Christ the Mediator who justifieth the ungodly by faith this is the only solid way to persevere in faith to overcome Sathan to solve doubts to resist temptations and to cure the wound made by Sathans firy darts for unto that man who in the sense of his sins and ill deserving and inability to help himself doth flye unto Christ it shall never be said by Christ depart from me I never knew thee 6. Now when the person afflicted hath of new laid hold on Christ and guarded the fortresse of faith and repulsed the tempter who by all means and specially by quarreling and questioning the by-past work of grace in him had laboured to weaken and overturn his faith for by-gones and for the present also lest it should convalesce and grow stronger for time to come now I say let the afflicted after victory return to the dispute and to the examination of his state in grace of his faith in Christ and of his regeneration and he shall see all the begun saving graces which were darkened by temptations clearly appear and shall perceive the several steps and degrees of Gods grace toward him in former times more evidently then he could discern them in the hour of darknesse and temptation And so he shall return from this battel strongerin faith then he was before and more perswaded of the work of the holy Spirit in him then he was before the temptation CHAP. XXV Wherein is solved the doubt of the true converts conversion arising from his breach of the covenant of Grace as he conceiveth THere are some sincere converts who albeit they do not doubt but penitents flying to Christ are received in favour with God are justified from their sins and do obtain right unto all the priviledges of the Saints yet they doubt
and for drawing him to Christ to be his refuge in his worst condition CHAP. XXVIII Wherein is solved the doubt of the true convert concerning his regeneration because he findeth the power of the body of death in the pollution of the imaginations of his heart vigorous and powerfull THere are some true converts who albeit they be cleansed from the pollutions that are in the world and have their conversation blamelesse and without giving scandall unto them they live among yet frequently are troubled with doubting of their state in grace because they feel in themselves such a power of in-bred corruption of their hearts as can hardly consist as they conceive with regeneration and saving saith because Iames chap. 3. ver 11. maketh the question thus doth a fountain send forth at the same plâ—ce sweet water and bitter c. unto the end of the Chapter This doubt the afflicted wrestles with and saith with himself what shall I think of my self whose heart is so polluted that it casteth forth continually dirt and mire how shall I reckon my self among the Saints how shall I incrude my self among the justified who find so little evidence of the work of sanctification in me For faith should purifie the heart from this pollution whereof I do justly complain 2. For solving of this doubt many things are already spoken which serve for the curing of this case and comforting the afflicted in this condition but because one and the same doubt doth diversely present it self now in one shape then in another and doth vex the afflicted in sundry wayes we shall answer this doubt proposed as it is set down First therefore let the afflicted examine himself whether he may with some measure of honesty say with the Psalmist Ps. 66. 18. I do not regard iniquity-in my heart I do not so delight in sin but that sin is still my affliction and my daily grief Secondly let him examine himself whether the power of corruption doth break forth in words and deeds or not or if it do burst out in some passionat fits whether he doth open the sluce and give it way or whether he sets himself to oppose the out-breaking of sin and is humbled for what doth break forth Thirdly let him examine whether he flyeth to Christ to wash him and help him against the power of sin or not If after examination he can in any measure of honesty joyn with the Apostle in his lamentation and recourse unto Christ for delivery Rom. 7. 24 25. he may be assured he is in the state of grace For there is a vast difference between a mans being sold unto sin by his native corruption captivating him and a mans setting of himself unto sin as a voluntary servant of sin for a renewed man may be in sundry cases a captive to sin and is a fighter against sin But a man selling himself to sin is a slave voluntarily suffering sin to reign in his mortall body Let the afflicted therefore comfort himself because in him there is a perpetual conflict between the flesh and the spirit between his native inclination to sin and the new creature or inclination to holinesse Neither let him by mis-understood Scripture formerly cited vex himself for his faith is indeed upon the work and the way of purifying his heart first because he doth flye to the bloud of Christ which cleanseth him from all sin in respect of remission granted Secondly there is a constant endeavour to be more and more holy and to draw vertue by faith from Christ to bring forth good fruits well-pleasing unto God Thirdly he is about to mortifie his lusts by the Spirit of Christ and to purge out the leaven of all filthinesse of flesh and spirit albeit he cannot purge it out all at once or wholly in in this life And fourthly because albeit his doubting of his estate in grace be not allowable yet it doth bear witnesse that the remainder of pollution in him is his grief affliction and vexation So also that other Scripture Iames 3. 11. which faith that out of the same fountain proceedeth not salt water and sweet is not to be understood so as if no rotten speech could possibly proceed out of the mouth of a regenerat man at any time for Iames doth witnesse that in many things we sin all in thought word and deed But the meaning is that he that bridleth not his tongue his religion is vain and nothing but a presumptuous boasting of that wich is not reall and in truth and that it is inconsistent with regeneration that out of a mans mouth pretending to blesse God cursing of men who are made after the similitude of God should flow forth as waters flow forth from a running fountain without controlment CHAP. XXIX Shewing how to quench the fiery darts of Sathan and resist his sinfull suggestions whether of shorter endurance or of longer continuance SOmetime on a sudain Sathan casteth a fiery dart of tentation unto some sin as his messenger seeking to prepare the lodging for him which tentation he doth so furiously presse as if he would not be refused or could not be resisted and possibly may so bear-in his tentation as the convert may be afraid that Sathan shall prevail finding himself as it were over-powered and unable to bear out in such a case as the Apostle had experience of 2 Cor. 12 7 8 9. who found himself as it were buffeted and abused by the messenger of Sathan and unable of himself to resist him The remedy whereof is that the afflicted with the Apostle be humbled in himself in the sense of his in-born sinfulnesse and inability to overcome tentations 2. That he flye to Christ the captain of militant souldiers and do pray unto him instantly to help to bear out in the conflict and to be rid of the Tempter 3. Let him hold fast the faith of promised grace and wrestle on so long as it shall please God to exercise him so With such a tentation Iob also was exercised which so far prevailed as to make carnall and corrupt nature speak for it The tentation was very fearfull and no lesse then self-murther Iob 7. 13 14 15. When I say my couch shall ease my complaint then thou scarrest me with dreams and terrifiest me with night-visions so that my soul chooseth strangling and death rather then life The remedy whereof is with Iob to flye to the Redeemer and fix faith upon him and to present the tentation unto God by prayer and humble lamentation striving against the suggestion and never to give over relying on God as he did 2. Sometime Sathan when he cannot find instruments to charge the convert with hypocrisie and a course of wickednesse as he found in Iobs tryall by his uncharitable friends he useth immediately to fall a railing against the whole course of the work of grace in the convert and charge him falsely with deep guiltinesse as calumniators use to do in their furious flyting and slandering
conscience and felt wrath pursuing me for sin may be clear to me by its own light and scriptural evidence albeit it being possibly the very instant of my conversion I cannot produce any fruits or evidences of my conversion past or else what shall be said of malefactors on the scaffold presently to be put to death and possibly not wakened in conscience before not fled to Christ before What shall be said of sick persons near unto death who being self-condemned do betake themselves in their last agony unto the grace of God in Christ offered to self-condemned sinners in the Gospel 2. I must put difference between a reason to prove that I have believed and a reason why I may and must now believe The reason to prove that I have believed is from the effect to prove the cause thereof to wit faith to be in me but the reason why I may now and must believe is from the cause to infer the effect that should be in me the cause of believing in Christ is Gods command to self-condemned sinners which command I must now obey left I perish and so if I find fruits I prove I have believed because I feel the love of God shed abroad in my heart and that I love God who hath freely loved me and here I reason from the effect to prove that the cause of this fruit to wit saâ—ing faith hath preceeded and is gone before Again I prove that I should believe because the offer of the Gospel and of free grace in Christs made to all self-condemned persons renouncing confidence in their own worth or works is made to me with a command to believe in the Son of God Christ Jesus for which cause I may and ought to cast my self upon his grace who justifieth the ungodly flying to him without the works of the Law 3. I must put difference between my having fruits of faith in me and my observing and finding these fruits in me for a true convert may have both faith and fruits and for the time being under tryal and temptation may be so darkened that he can see nothing in himself but sin and apparent wrath pursuing him for sin as may be seen in Ionah in the belly of the fish Ionah 2. 4. and David Ps. 51 9 10. 4. I must put difference between my perswasion that I have been and am a true convert and a sincere believer and my perswasion that I have right reason and good warrand to believe in Christ in my lowest condition howsoever then I find my self emptied of all signes of saving grace in me for the time yet my perswasion that I should in this sad condition flye to Christ and believe in him doth serve to make me consent heartily unto the offer of the covenant of grace in Christ doth serve to make way for my justification and looseth all doubts and objections of Sathan tempting me to mis-believe and to run away from Christ and the offered mercy in him 5. And last of all I must put difference between making use of good fruits brought forth by me for confirmation of my faith and my putting confidence in or laying weight on these good fruits for many true converts do here fail and do not mark the mistakes for when they find love to God and his Saints with fear and holy reverence and such other like signes of grace in their hearts and outward fruits thereof in their life then they do believe in Christ and rejoice in him but when at another time they find hardnesse of heart profanity and perversenesse of a wicked nature in themselves they are like to quite their interest in the covenant of Grace and to stand aloof from Christ like strangers when they should most be humbled and creep in to him for remission of sin aâ—d hiding of their nakednesse by his imputed righteousnesse And what is this in effect else then in the first place to lean on their works and holy disposition as if there were merit in them and then after in the next place to believe in Christ who hath furnished them those fruits whereas they should in the sense of their sin and unworthinesse first flye to Christ and firmly adhere to him by faith that out of his fulnesse they may receive grace for grace according as we are taught to do by Christ himself Ioh. 15. 5. He that abideth in me and l in him the same bringeth forth much fruit for without me you can do nothing CHAP. VII Concerning the case of the convert in some point of doctrine deluded and pleasing himself in this condition TO speak of delusion and bewitching in the general requireth a large Treatise It shall suffice our purpose to speak of it as it hath place in the point of doctrine and practice erroneous Which we describe thus Delusion is a powerfull operation of a lying Spirit whereby he obtrudes to men some noysome error in doctrine or practise contrary to true doctrine fairded over with sophistical deceits and doth perswade inconsiderate souls effectually to receive the error for truth and to defend and spread it in their rash zeal For explication of which description we say 1. delusion is a powerfull operation of a lying Spirit wherein Sathan in Gods judgment is permitted to put forth his power in lying effectually Therefore in all his effectuall delusions there is a concurring righteous judgment of God in loosing reins to the rempter that by delusion one sin in one degree may be punished by a following sin in a higher degree No wonder therefore that a lying Spirit do work more effectually when he is not restrained by the powerfull hand of God 2. We say that delusion is in some dangerous error tending to the damage of the Church and hazard of souls And this we say not as if we did think that any sin doth not draw with it the merit of death for the wages of every sin is death but because Sathan is not so busie to spred and foment such errors as are lesse perillous as he is active in such errors which do most tend to pester the Church and divert the professors of religion from the path way of saving doctrine And to this purpose he essayes all means that he may obscure and darken the truth and devise and spread abroad the most pernicious errors Mean time he is not idle in sowing and spreading lesser errors that he may stir up contention and jangling in the Church whereby precious time which should be spent for mutual edification may be idly wasted in needlesse disputes and mens minds may be prepared to receive grosser errors Thirdly we put some difference between errors in doctrine and errors in practice albeit there cannot be one error in practice whether it be in the external worship or government of the Church or in outward conversation which being stiffly maintained hath not some error of judgment and doctrine joyned with it or else it should not be contrary to sound doctrine
yet there may be an error in doctrine and judgment of the mind when in the outward practice the error may lye hid and men of contrary judgment may consent and agree in the same practice Fourthly we presuppose the errors whereof we are speaking to be coloured and covered with fair pretenses and to be found deceitfull sophistry For otherwayes a disciple of Christ could not be easily insnared if the error were seen in its own colours if it were demonstrat unto him with sound reason to be contrary to sound doctrine and pernicious to the welfare of the Church and to mens souls For in this case every ingenuous and honest mind would keep off from the error as from a deep pit But Sathan setteth forth the error as if it were no error but most consonant to wholsome doctrine and profitable for mens souls and the Churches good And by plansible pretenses sets out the error so as it may seem lovely and worthy to befended and spred abroad by all means Fifthly in this delusion we are speaking of we presuppose that in the person deluded there is a perswasion stronger then any probation which he hath can support For there the efficacie of error doth specially appear when the lying Spirit by probable conjectures appearance of advantage and sophistical disputation doth perswade the deluded soul that the error is as sure as if by divine oracle it were revealed and declared to be a truth How this can be and how Sathan worketh this perswasion it is not to our purpose to make inquiry For lying Spirits have their own way unknown to us whereby they insinuat and suggest their errors unto men It may suffice us that the Scripture hath taught us that Sathan can form objections against our faith Ephes. 6. 10 11 12. and throw them at us as fiery darts and work strong perswasions in unstable or ignorant souls Such was the perswasion of the Galatians which the Apostle avoucheth to have been procured not by God who had called them Gal 5. 8. Sixthly we presuppose in a powerfull delusion a bastard and misled zeal making the deluded man ardently to defend and promove the error which he hath embraced For this is Sathans main endeavour when he hath leavened with error one or moe in a Church to make all the use of them he can to leaven the Church with the same error And to the intent this mater may be the more usefully spoken of three questions must be answered so briefly as may be The first question is whether such a powerfull delusion may befall a true convert We answer it is possible and experience proveth it that it is possible we learn from the Apostles fear 2 Cor. 11. 3. I fear least by any means as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtility So your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity which is in Christ He was feared also for the Colossians lest they should be deluded Col. 2. 4. This I say lest any man beguile you with intising words And ver 8. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit after the traditions of men after the rudiments of the world and not after Christ. Wherein it is clear that this sort of delusion may befall the Saints Now that it hath indeed and in experience befallen some true converts it is evident by what Christ saith to the Church of Thyatira Rev. 2. 20. I have a few things against thee because thou sufferest that woman Jezabel which calleth her self a prophetesse to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication and to eat things sacrificed to Idols And the Apostle shews the mater evidently to have befallen the Galatians Gal. 3. 1. O follish or mad Galatians who hath be witched you that you should not obey the truth Secondly that this delusion drew deep and was very dangerous appeare Gal. 1. 6. I marvel that you are so soon turned from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another Gospel And Gal. 5. 2. they were in danger to lose all benefit by Christ and ver 4. in danger and on the way to fall from grace Thirdly the Galatians did erre both in doctrine and practice in doctrine because they sought to be justified by the works of the Law Gal 5. 4. In practice they erred Gal. 4. 10 11. ye observe dayes aud moneths and times and years I am afraid of you lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain Fourthly their error was fairded with the pretense of the truth which made them greedily embrace the error for Gal. 4. 9 they turned themselves back to Mosaical rites and ceremonies now abolished under the pretense of sometime commanded duties And ver 21. they desired to be under the Law and so run themselves under the curse Fifthly their error was not by a light opinion held by them but by a full perswasion wrought in them not by Christ but by a lying spirit Gal. 5. 8. Sixthly this bastard and unhallowed zeal was evidenced both in the seducing teachers and in the misled Galatians Gal. 4. 17. They zealously affect you but not well yea they would exclude you that you might affect them that is draw you away from the society of Christ and his true Apostles that you might be their affectionat disciples And as for the Galatians deluded by Sathan by their means they turned their ardent affection toward the Apostle almost in hatred against him Gal. 4. 15 16. Am I become your enemy because I tell you the truth Hence it is clear that true converts are subject to this evil and ready to fall in it except they watch carefully and earnestly deal with God to keep them from deceivers for many young converts are like lambs and sheep very simple and being lately turned unto the course of holinesse they are easily taken with every appearance of piety whereof if they do apprehend any seeming signs in seducers they suspect no guile in wolves clad with sheeps skins wherethrough they are overtaken unawares and moved to separat from the society of the Saints by the fleshly authors of division who by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple Rom. 16. 17 18. Quest. 2. As for the second question what are the effects and marks of such a delusion We answer there is a delusion active wherein Sathan and his seducing instruments do set themselves on work to delude and there is a passive delusion in the party deluded by Sathan and his instruments The effects of the deluding or lying spirit and the marks of delusion in the party deluded do concur for the effects of Sathans powerfull delusion do appear in the party deluded as signs and evidences of the effectual delusion These effects and signs albeit they be many we shall content our selves to specifie some of them The first and chief effect and sign of delusion is the rejecting of a point of true doctrine and the avouching of a false error
of the heart perfectly Rom. 16. 18. They that are such serve 〈◊〉 our Lord Iesus Christ but their own belly and by good â—ords and fair speeches they deceive the hearts of the simple Of such men Iude speaketh ver 20. These are murmuâ—rs complainers walking after their own lusts c. As for passive delusion in seduced people the Apostle prophesieth 2 Tim. 4. 3 4. The time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine but after their own lusts â—all they heap to themselves teachers having itching ears and they shall turn away their ears from the truth and shall 〈◊〉 turned unto fables In which words he holdeth forth the meritorious and adjuvant causes of passive delusion their lusts their turning away from sound doctrine their itching ears and desire to hear flatterers who by false doctrine may foster them in their lusts and making choyce of such men to be their Pastors From this sort of teachers Christ fore-warneth his disciples to keep off Mat. 17. 15. Beware of false prophets which come to 〈◊〉 in sheeps cloathing but inwardly they are ravening â—olves ye shall know them by their fruits Their outward behaviour and conversation will not decipher them for they will seem innocent and harmlesse lambs but their doctrine which is the fruits of their teaching and the proper work of the ministery shall find them out But the meritorious cause of this giving men over to be deluded is plainly set down 2 Thess. 2 10 11. Because they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved for this cause God shall send them strong delusion This judgment albeit it pursues unto the death only the reprobat yet whiles in some degree for a time it may over-take the elect and renewed persons because some of them sometime are found to give way to their lusts and not to take head to the truth which by Gods blessing might kill these lusts therefore God in his justice suffereth them to be infected with a contrary error and to eat the bitter fruits of their folly that being corrected they may repent and for ever fall out with their carnall lusts and reject the error whereby they were infected for God in his wisdom and justice most holily and powerfully doth so rule the whole exercise of his elâ—ct that truth shall have no loss but be the more cleared and no elect soul perish as Christ giveth assurance speaking of the efficacie and power of delusion by the doctrine of false christs Mat. 24. 24 There shall arise false Christs and false prophets and shall shew great signs and wonders in so much that if it were possible they shall deceive the very elect This is also manifest by what the Apostle saith 1 Cor. 11. 18 19. where he declares that God hath decreed to permit heresies to arise that both the truth oppugned by the heresie and the true converts may be made the more manifest for by this means the lusts and wickednesse of some is brought to light some are chastised some perish justly some have their weaknesse and folly discovered by being tainted with error for a time and in their recovery out of the heresie the grace and power of God is made more evident and in these who shall suffer for refusing or resisting heresie God shall make manifest for stopping the mouth of Sathan and all â—alumniators that truth is more precious to his sincere â—isciples then goods or lands or liberty or life or whatsoever can befall them in this mortall life for adâ—ereing to truth and of this many martyrs are sufficient proofs in all ages The remedy of this fearfull condition ALbeit this delusion draweth the reprobat when they are over-taken with it unto certain perdiâ—on as the Apostle 2 Thess. 2. 10 11. expresly doth â—â—ach and albeit this fearfull plague be hardly curable when it falleth on the elect partly by reason of the deep roots of carnall lusts in them which open the way unto error partly by reason of the subtile sophistry of seducers whereby honest souls are inâ—ngled partly by reason of new tentations suggested against returning to the truth wherefrom they are â—lidden and partly by reason of the difficulty of coming forth from the bonds of temporal judiciall hardnesse of heart whereby God hath chastified his child for harbouring such lusts in himself as made way for the error yet the cure of delusion is not desperat for the Apostle giveth good hope of possible and certain recovery out of it for Gal. 5. 10. I have confidence in you saith he to the insnared Galatians through the Lord that you will be no other wayes minded but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment whosoever he be 1. For preveening and curing of this evil the Apostle commandeth Pastors to hold forth to all sound doctrine to preach the Word and to be instant upon all occasions in season and out of season reprove rebuke exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine 1 Tim. 4. 6. and 2 Tim. 4. 1 2. 2. Let the deluded person be disputed with that by arguments drawn from Scripture he may be convinced as the Apostle dealt with these who denyed the resurrection 1 Cor. 15. and with these who sought to be justified by works among the Galatians 3. Let the deluded be exhorted to examine accuratly his own conscience how he standeth affected to his own carnal wisdom and earthly lusts for if he be proud in the conceit of his own wisdom power or holinesse or any gift he hath received or be led by the lust of the eye lust of the flesh or pride of life and come to God by prayer to solve his doubts or to teach him the right way he shall receive such an answer as Balaam received and such as the Lord threateneth to give Ezek. 14. 2 3 4. c for he hath by his lusts deceived his own conscience and made it a flatterer of himself when it should have been a grave counsellor being well informed 4. Let the deluded person be exhorted to be humbled for the sins which he granteth to be in himself and flye to Christ for pardon pity and help against his own known corruptions making use of all Christs offices in the sense and acknowledgment of his standing in need of the benefits thereof daily for if he do not repent known sins but go on in them against the light of his conscience how shall he expect that God shall give him light in his doubts or errors who maketh no use or an ill use of the light he hath and if he be in a course of grieving the Spirit of the Lord and make no use of the grace that is offered in Christ how is it possible that he who doth not follow Christ should eshew to walk in darknesse 5. And last of all let the party deluded consider how from time to time and most evidently in this time wherein we live God hath punished the lusts and sinfull practices of professed
Doctrine and Discipline of Christ. Of which question there is enough written by learned and godly men and and in this place it doth not fall in conveniently to be disputed 2. Concerning the other pretense of being oft-times deceived by sundry such as were unworthy of respect we grant that there are many hypocrits who pretend to be Saints and worthy to be blamed in that respect and it is no wonder that the charity of many wax cold when so many speak vanity every man to his neighbour Ps. 12. 2. for this our Lord foretold Mat. 24. 12. Because iniquity shall abound the love of many shall wax cold Yet it is not iustifiable to cut charity short because of mens ill-deserving Rivers of tears saith David run down my eyes because they keep not thy Commands Here is love to Gods glory and pity toward perishing â—ouls such mourners were spared in the day of Gods wrath Ezek. 9. 9. 1. Ob. But some may say the same Psalmist did hate the wicked and profane Ans. 1. But he did so with a perfect hatred not with a carnal and corrupt hatred against their persons but with a spiritual and sincere hatred tending to the abolishing of their vice and safety of their persons for which end the Psalmist presenteth his affections to be examined of God and teacheth men by his example to purifie their hearts in hating sinners 2. 〈◊〉 caâ—e that God did reveal unto the Prophet the reprobation of some enemies of God for whose perdition he prayed in sundry Psalms that the justice of God might be ministered and the Church preserved from their malice This his practice is not to be imiâ—aâ— by them who know not of what spirit â—hey are and cannot justifie before God the integrity of 〈◊〉 â—earts in the particular 2. Ob. But put case saith one that I am a civil Judge shall my charity hinder justice and cutting off malefactors man-slayers or others such-like Ans. Not for charity to the malefactor may stand with the love of Justice and the Common-wealth when the malefactor is adjudged to death For when Ioshua was to destroy Achan he exhorted him to repent and give glory to God that his soul might be saved Ios. 7. 19. Likewayes the Prophets when they denounced the destruction of Cities and Nations had melting hearts in compassion toward them who were condemned by God Is. 16. 11. Ier 48. 36. and Christ our Lord charity it self weeped for the misery of Ierusalem destinat justly to destruction Mat. 23. 37. 3. Obj. But saith he a special regard must be had toward believers in the exercise of charity Gal. 6. 10. Ans. It is true but the Apostles words are As we have opportunity let us do good unto all men especially unto them that are of the housheld of faith Which houshold consisteth of all them who by profession have subjected themselves to the doctrine and discipline of Christ and are members of the visible Church 4. Ob. But saith he as all that are of Israel are not the Israel of God Rom. 9. 6. So all that are in the visible Church are not of the houshold of God Ans. Who hath made thee a Judge either to discern who are elect who not or to discern what shall become of this man or that man whereby thou may abandon charity toward him God hath given to us his Spirit saith the Apostle that we may know what saving grace he hath given to our selves but not to know what he hath bestowed on others 1 Cor. 2. 10 11. God who only searcheth the secrets of all hearts hath reserved the judgements of mens hearts to himself and he alone can discern who is the hypocrit and in whose heart there is no guil 5. Ob. But saith he the judgment of charity iâ— not blind but should be according as the truth is otherwayes I shall esteem a man a true convert who is not regenerat and so deceive my self Ans. The judgment of charity concerning other mens inward estate and condition is not one alwayes with the judgement according to verity for the rule of the judgement of charity is equity and commanded duty reserving the judgment according to verity to God For this distinction the Apostle gives ground Phil. 1. 6 7. in charity judging all the Philippians to be sincere converts he saith his speech and estimation of them was according as was meet for him to think Now equity required that he should judge the best of them all albeit he did not know the hearts of them all as he saith 1. Cor. 13. 7. charity believeth all things hopeth all things endureth all things But for the judgment of other mens estate and condition in grace according to verity he doth forbid men to judge before the time 1 Cor. 4. 3. 5. Rom. 14. 4. Iam. 4. 12. And 1 Pet. 5. 12. the Apostle speaking in charity of Sylvanus saith he is a faithfull brother as I suppose 2. If we see it our duty to show charity to our neighbour whatsoever he be our charity is not blind but clear-sighted 6. Ob. But saith he mens profanity wickednesse and atheisme may clearly be seen for the Psalmist saith The transgression of the wicked saith within my heart that there is no fear of God before his eyes Ps. 36. 1. and Christ speaking of false Prophets Mat. 7. 16. saith Ye shall know them by their fruits Ans. What the Prophet saith by the Spirit and what Christ saith is true and we grant that mens ill deeds and corrupt doctrine do be wray their naughty inward disposition but what serveth this to justifie thy rash judgment of thy brother that there is no saving work of grace in him because they cannot perceive the evident signes thereof in him in whom possibly thou cannot find any reigning vice or open out-breaking scandals What doth this serve to hinder expressions and fruits of charity toward open sinners so long as God waiteth patiently on their repentance It is one thing to be wary lest we be infected with the contagion of mens ill maners or corrupt doctrine another thing to cut them off from being the objects of our charity 7. Ob. But we are forbidden saith he to have fellowship with sinners who may intise us to sin Pro. 1. 11. and to make friendship with an angry man Pro. 22. 24. Ans. This warinesse may consist with charity for albeit we cannot be partakers with evil workers or enter in needlesse familiarity with those with whom we cannot converse and be free of damnage from them yet we may not exclude them from the object of our charity or carry our selves so toward them as they can take no good from our hand for so long as we live in the world we must follow peace with all men and holinesse Heb. 12 14. 1 Cor. 5. 10 8. Obj. Albeit it be true that we must in common duties of civility and humanity prudently behave our selves yet we must carry otherwayes to professed Christians if their conversation
if he find this sicknesse from day to day cleaving fast unto him he falleth in discouragement and in question with himself whether it be better to break off at least in secret such ragged worship or to go on to offer the sacrifice of a fool unto God for so he doth esteem of his devotion thus leavened with vaiging and vanity of his mind In this case the convert doth not only mis-regard what is right in his devotion or divine service but also by fretting discouragement and mis-behaviour of his spirit is ready to augment his sinfull condition and to provoke the Lord to be wroth with him indeed 2. For remedy of this evil let the convert judge wisely of his condition that he charge not himself with guiltinesse more then he ought to do and that he may take a right course to be free of guiltinesse and healed of this sicknesse where guiltinesse is found And to this end 1. let him put difference between vaiging of mind with interruption of worship and the natural course of his phantasie and understanding which may consist with the continued acts of worship for as the eyes of a man running to some place cannot choose but see every visible thing in his way and yet runneth on without staying till he come to the place he aimeth at So the phantasie and understanding cannot choose but take up and discern whatsoever is offered unto them in time of prayer from the outward senses or from the memory and yet make no interruption of prayer such is the natural agility of a mans mind and therefore this natural course of imagination or phantasie must not be charged as guiltinesse upon the worshiper who followeth on the work of worship notwithstanding 2. Sundry suggestions may be cast into the converts mind by Sathan to marr his worship which must be charged on Sathan chiefly and the worshiper not alway made guilty thereby 3. When the worship indeed is interrupted and the mind falleth off from the work of devotion or divine service and entereth upon discourses about vain vile or impertinent maters let the convert not only acknowledge guiltinesse here but also examine if this his vaiging of mind in prayer and divine service be not also a chastisement from God for his not acknowledging of God in his affairs and and for loosing reins to his mind to roave all the day which justly meeteth him at night in his devotion as a rod on his back for his voluntar vaiging from God in his former walking 3. These considerations being premised and the sins which have drawn on this evil being discovered and the power of indwelling-sin perceived and the power of Sathans temptations noticed and the Lords chastiseing rod justified and his own culpable infirmity acknowledged 1. Let him humble himself and flye to the rich grace of God offered in Christ and lay stronger hold on the satisfaction made by Christ imputed to all believers in him that guiltinesse may be by free pardon removed 2. Let him pray for more assistance of the holy Spirit in all the exercises of religion and expect a gracious granting thereof in Gods wise dispensation of the measure of his grace in the use of holy Ordinances 3. Let his heart be in the fear of the Lord all the day long making him lift up his eyes from time to time to God in the midst of his lawfull affairs how mean so ever 4. Let him gather his thoughts before every religious exercise by way of preparation lest he take the name of the Lord in vain by rash and unreverent rushing in upon divine Service 5. Let him thank the Lord for granting him grace to see his sinfull vaiging of mind and to be displeased with it and to confesse it 6. Let him be comforted in the Lord who gathereth the ragged and scattered honest desires of supplicants and taketh away the iniquity of the service of his clients as our high Priest bearing in his appearing for us as it were on his fore-head Holiness unto the Lord. CHAP. XXII Concerning the converts discour agment for felt want of ability to do the duties commanded whereunto his renewed will is very bent SUndry true converts finding a will to do that which is good but not finding power how to perform that which is good do fall in disquietnesse and discouragement when they should go and seek to make good use of their infirmity and go to Christ for remeed as the Apostle did Rom. 7. 18. The cause of this evil is the relicts of corrupt natural inclination to seek to be justified by works and to have in our hand ability to do the good which we would do for albeit the convert be forced to seek reconciliation with God by remission of sins in his conversion yet in his course toward heaven and salvation he desireth to have a store-house and treasure of strength in himself to be made use of as he willeth For it seemeth to him in his carnal wisdom a poor shift to be in every good action put to beg supply from Christ by prayer and to stand waiting on in a dependance on Christ till furniture come from heaven unto him Which furniture of strength because our Lord doth suspend to give till his infirm and humble child hold up his heart as an empty vessel to receive influence from him according to his wise pleasure the inconsider at convert doth trouble himself and falleth in a distemper 2. This case is not altogether evil as the convert doth take it but this much is right that he looks upon the Law as holy spiritual and good that he desireth earnestly to obey it and that he loaths himself for his felt unconformity unto it Yet this is wrong in him that he doth not humble himself but is cast down and discouraged that he doth not make Christ his sanctifications as well as his righteousnesse that he doth not consider of the furniture to be brought unto him from heaven by faith in Christ and that this grace is nearer and more ready to serve his turn then if it were in his own hand 3. Therefore let him renounce more and more all confidence in his own righteousnesse with the Apostle Phil. 3. 8 9. let him thank God in Christ in whom an out-gate is to be found in all difficulties Rom. 7. 25 let him trust Christ for supply in all service in whom if a man abide he shall bring forth much fruit and without whom he can do nothing Ioh. 15. 5. For if he depend on Christ in his emptinesse and weaknesse he shall find by experience that when he is weakest then is he strongest CHAP. XXIII Concerning the converts imprudent censure of himself for felt ingratitude SOme converts sometime do passe rash sentence against themselves for ingratitude namely when after receiving some notable benefit for which they had made earnest supplication to God and for which before the receiving of the benefit they had oblieged themselves by vow to a
the Son of God but his holy heart could not admit such a temptation And the Apostle Eph. 6. 11 12. c. doth warn the Saints that our adversary Sathan useth to throw firy darts at all the children of God which firy and poysonable darts the regenerat man should not meddle with nor finger them but by the shield of faith with all speed quench and extinguish them But when a probable reason is joyned with the temptation and the temptation doth appear to be very reasonable and when there is a fear that the tentation shall be yielded unto except the scruple be removed then let the temptation be examined and brought to the form of a reason or sylogism that the strength of it being tryed to be null it may be rejected or let the temptation be communicated to a prudent friend or Pastor who may discover the sophistry of the temptation for if the temptation shall be slighted and not discussed albeit it lye quiet for a time yet it will return again and raise more trouble and vexation to the conscience then it did before 11. In answering of doubts and temptations tending to weaken faith it is needfull to observe and â—shew an usual stratagem of Sathan whereby he doth multiply and heap together a number of doubts and after he hath suggested one doubt presently doth suggest on the back of that another and after that another whereby he marreth the answering of the first doubt which from the Word of God either immediatly or by some faithfull Friend or Minister is offered for solution thereof by this mean Sathan endeavours that the mind of the afflicted person may at one time both be turned off from taking notice of the answer offered and be taken up wholly with the consideration of the new suggested doubt So that the answer to the new doubt hath no place because the afflicted party doth not take heed thereto In this case both the party afflicted and the party offering consolation must hold to the first doubt and not suffer any other new doubt to have place till a satisfactory answer be given to the first doubt and after that let every objection moved by the party afflicted be answered one after another in order 12. Seing every doubt whereby the regenerat person is troubled doth tend either to weaken faith in Christ or to hinder the bringing forth of the fruits of faith let no answer to any doubt of this kind be esteemed sufficient except it lead the afflicted person unto Christ teaching him to humble himself before God and being brought low in his own eyes to lay hold by faith on Jesus Christ the only Redeemer and relief from sin and misery and after laying hold on the Physician to request for the remedy of that evil which hath moved and given strength to the doubt for Christ is the end both of the Law and of every spiritual exercise for the enjoining of such and such moral duties whereby un-skillfull Physicians use to over-charge diseased consciences commanding the afflicted party in the first place to go about such and such duties and the exercise of such and such vertues as may remove the evil which gave ground to the doubt can never avail the diseased person except he be led first unto Christ for remission of sin and acceptation of his person that in him power to do these duties may be obtained and by his Spirit moral precepts may be quickened for if these precepts be pressed upon the diseased without Christ they can do no more but detain the afflicted in self confidence and make him hope in vain that he may or can by his own work over-come the evil felt in him or that he can by himself attain to that good which he conceiveth necessar for loosing of his doubt but let him go to Christ for remission of sin and then for strength to go about the duty 13. Because almost in all cases of conscience which pertain to the state of the regenerat man some grace or Christian vertue is pitched upon and called in question whether it be in him or not heed must be taken that evangelick graces vertues or actions be not weighed in the ballance of the moral Law and covenant of Works wherein nothing hath weight which cometh short of absolute perfection of personal obedience for in the strict judgment of God and the conscience according to the law of Works no meer man nor any action of man can stand Ps. 130. 3. for there are so many imperfections and blemishes in the Saints and their best works being compared with the perfect rule of righteousnesse by the Law that whatsoever lustre or appearance of good may be in a work it is blecked and made to hide it's face before the Law but let the tender buds of new obedience and fruits of faith be examined by the grace of the Gospel which judgeth of the begun obedience of the believer in Christ according to the sincerity and uprightnesse of the man aiming at conformity to the Law how short soever he come of his aim and of the spiritual perfection of the Law and it will be taken for new obedience It is true the Evangel requireth that a man fled to Christ for justification and reconciled to God by faith in Christ should set himself to work the works prescribed in the moral Law for the glory of God and should aim at the exact obedience of all the Commands yet the Gospel doth not reject a good work for the defects imperfections and blemishes thereof but accepteth and taketh in good part the first fruits and buds of new obedience and doth foster the tender and small beginnings that they may grow and encrease And the reason is because the Gospel doth not teach us to seek the justification of our persons before God by works but by faith in Christ and then teacheth us to seek the justification of our faith before men in our own and others conscience by the sincere endeavour of new obedience And therefore 14. While we are about the cure of the wounds of the conscience and strengthening of faith we must on the one hand take heed left we foster presumption and hinder either the exercise of repentance or doing diligence in following duties for Christian graces do not impede but help and strengthen one another if they be real and kindly because they must flow from the same fountain of the spirit of sanctification and do run toward the same end which is the glory of God and on the other hand we must take heed lest we presse the exercise of repentance as it were out of our own strength or the practice of duties so as we hinder the exercise of faith in Christ who is that exalted Prince to give repentance and is the author and finisher of faith Let us so cry up the imputed righteousnesse of Christ that we neglect not to presse the regenerat man freely justified by grace to bring forth the fruits of