sober Profession can be taken for an insufficient title Grudge not then at the Communion of any Professed Christian in the Church Visible though we must do our part to cast out the obstinately impenitent by Discipline which if we cannot do the Fault is not ours The presence of Hypocrites is no hurt but oft a Mercy to the Sincere How small else would the Church seem in the World Outward Privileges belong to Outward Covenanters and Inward Mercies to the Sincere Division is wounding and tends to Death Abhor it as you love the Churches welfare or your own The Wisdom from above is first pure and then peaceable Never separate what God conjoineth It is the Earthly sensual devilish Wisdom which causeth bitter envying and strife and confusion and every evil Work Blessed are the Peace-makers XIV Take heed of Pride and Self-conceitedness in Religion If once you over-value your own understandings your crude Conceptions and gross Mistakes will delight you as some supernatural light And instead of having compassion on the Weak you will be unruly and despisers of your Guides and censorious contemners of all that differ from you and persecutors of them if you have Power and will think all intolerable that take you not as Oracles and your words as Law Forget not that the Church hath always suffered by censorious unruly Professors on the one Hand and O what Divisions and Scandals have they caused as well as by the Prophane and Persecucutors on the other Take need of both And when Contentions are afoot be quiet and silent and not too forward and keep up a Zeal for Love and Peace XV. Be faithful and conscionable in all your Relations Honour and obey your Parents and other Superiors Despise not and resist not Government If you suffer unjustly by them be humbled for those Sins which cause God to turn your Protectors into Afflictors And instead of murmuring and rebelling against them reform your selves and then commit your selves to God Princes and Pastors I will not speak to Subjects and Servants and Children must obey their Superiors as the Officers of God XVI Keep up the Government of God in your Families Holy Families must be the chief preservers of the Interest of Religion in the World Let not the World turn God's Service into a customary lifeless Form Read the Scripture and edifying Books to them Talk with them seriously about the State of their Souls and everlasting Life Pray with them fervently Watch over them diligently Be angry against Sin and meek in your own cause Be Examples of Wisdom Holiness and Patience And see that the Lord's Day be spent in holy preparation for Eternity XVII Let your Callings be managed in Holiness and Laboriousness Live not in Idleness be not slothful in your Work whether you be Bound or Free in the sweat of your Brows you must eat your Bread and labour the six Days that you may have to give to him that needeth Slothfulness is Sensuality as well as filthier Sins The Body that is able must have fit Employments as well as the Soul or else Body and Soul will fare the worse but let all be but as the labour of a Traveller and aim at God and Heaven in all XVIII Deprive not your selves of the benefit of an able faithful Pastor to whom you may open your Case in secret or at least of a holy faithful Friend And be not displeased at their free Reproofs Wo to him that is alone How blind and partial are we in our own Causeâ— and how hard is it to know our selves without an able faithful Helper You forfeit this great Mercy when you love a Flatterer and angrily defend your Sin XIX Prepare for Sickness Sufferings and Death Overvalue not Prosperity nor the Favour of Man If selfish Men prove false and cruel to you even those of whom you have deserved best marvel not at it but pray for your Enemies Persecutors and Slanderers that God would turn their Hearts and pardon them What a Mercy is it to be driven from the World to God when the love of the World is the greatest danger of the Soul Be ready to die and you are ready for any thing Ask your Hearts seriously What is it that I shall need at a dying Hour And let it speedily be got ready and not be to seek in the time of your Extremity XX. Understand the true Method of Peace of Conscience and judge not of the State of your Souls upon deceitful Grounds As presumptuous Hopes do keep Men from Conversion and embolden them to sin so causless Fears do hinder our Love and Praise of God by obscuring his Loveliness And they destroy our Thankfulness and our Delight in God and make us a Burden to our selves and a grievous Stumbling block to others The general Grounds of all your Comfort are 1. The gracious Nature of God 2. The sufficiency of Christ And. 3. the Truth and Universality of the Promise which giveth Christ and Life to all if they will accept him But this Acceptance is the Proof of your particular Title without which these do but aggravate your Sin Consent to God's Covenant is the true Condition and Proof of your Title to God as your Father Saviour and Sanctifier and so to the saving Blessings of the Covenant Which Consent if you survive must produce the Duties which you consent to He that heartily consenteth that God be his God his Saviour and Sanctifier is in a state of Life But this includeth thâ—â— rejection of the VVorld Much Knowledge and Memory and Utterance and lively Affections are all very desirable But you must judge your state by none of these for they are all uncertain But 1. If God and Holiness and Heaven have the highest estimation of your practical Judgment as being esteemed best for you 2. And be preferred in the Choice and Resolution of your Wills and that habitually before all the Pleasures of the VVorld 3. And be first and chiefly sought in your Endeavours This is the infallible proof of your Sanctification Christian Upon long and serious study and experience I dare boldly commend these Directions to thee as the VVay of God which will end in Blessedness The Lord resolve and strengthen thee to obey them This is the true Constitution of Christianity This is true Godliness and this is to be Religious indeed And all this is no more than to be seriously such as all among us in general VVords profess to be This is the Religion which must difference you from Hypocrites which must settle you in Peace and make you an Honour to your Profession and a Blessing to those that dwell about you Happy is the Land the Church the Family which doth consist of such as these These are not they that either Persecute or Divide the Church or that make their Religion a servant to their Policy to their ambitious designs or fleshlâ— Lusts nor that make it
resolute in performing them Know all the Sins of the Tongue that you may avoid them for your Innocency and Peace do much depend on the prudent Government of your Tongues X. Govern your Thoughts with constant skilful Diligence In this right Habits and Affections will do most by inclining them unto Good It 's easy to think on that which we love Be not unfurnished of matter for your Thoughts to work upon And often retire your selves for serious Meditation Be not so solitary and deep in Musings as to over-stretch your Thoughts and confound your Minds or take you off from necessary converse with others But be sure that you be Considerate and dwell much at Home and converse most with your Consciences and your God! with whom you have the greatest Business Leave not your thoughts unimployed or ungoverned Scatter them not abroad upon impertinent Vanities O that you knew what daily business you have for them Most men are wicked deceived and undone because they are inconsiderate and dare not or will not retiredly and soberly use their Reason or use it but as a slave in Chains in the service of their Passion Lust and Interest He was never Wise or Good or Happy who was not soberly and impartially Considerate How to be Good to do Good and finally enjoy Good must be the sum of all your Thoughts Keep them first holy then charitable clean and chaste And quickly check them when they look towards sin XI Let Time be exceeding Precious in your Eyes and carefully and diligently redeem it What haste doth it make and how quickly will it be gone and then how highly will it be valued when a Minute of it can never be recalled O what important Business have we for every Moment of our Time if we should live a thousand Years Take not that Man to be well in his Wits or to know his God his End his Work or his Danger who hath Time to spare Redeem it not only from needless Sports and Plays and Idleness and Curiosity and Complement and excess of Sleep and Chat and Worldliness but also from the Entanglements of lesser Good which would hinder you from greater Spend time as Men that are ready to pass into another World where every Minute must be accounted for and it must go with us for ever as we lived here let not Health deceive you into the expectation of living long and so into a sensless Negligence See your Glass running and keep a reckoning of the expence of Time and spend it just as you would review it when it is gone XII Let the Love of all in their several Capacities become as it were your very Nature and doing them all the Good you can be very much of the Business of your Lives God must be loved in all his Creatures his natural Image on all Men and his spiritual Image on his Saints Our Neighbour must be loved as our natural selves That is our natural Neighbour as our natural Self with a Love of benevolence and our spiritual Neighbour as our spiritual Self with a Love of Complacence In opposition to Complacence we may hate our sinful Neighbour as we must our selves much more But in opposition to Benevolence we must neither hate our Selves our Neighbour or our Enemy O that Men knew how much of Christianity doth consist in Love and doing Good With what Eyes do they read the Gospel who see not this in every Page Abhor all that Selfishness Pride and Passion which are the Enemies of Love and those Opinions and Factions and Censurings and Back-biting which would destroy it Take him that speaketh Evil of another to you without a just cause and call to be Satan's Messenger intreating you to hate your Brother or to abate your Love For to perswade you that a Man is bad is directly to perswade you so far to hate him Not that the good and bad must be confounded but Love will call none bad without constraining evidence Rebuke Back biters Hurt no Man and speak evil of no Man unless it be not only just but necessarily to some greater Good Love is lovely They that Love shall be Beloved Hating and hurting makes Men hateful Love thy Neighbour as thy self and Do as thou wouldst be done by are the Golden Rules of our Duty to Men which must be deeply written on your Hearts For want of this there is nothing so false so bad so cruel which you may not be drawn to think or say or do against your Brethren Selfishness and want of Love do as naturally tend to Ambition and Covetousness and thence to Cruelty against all that 〈◊〉 in the Way of their Desires as the nature of a 〈◊〉 to kill the Lambs All Factions and Contentions and Persecutions in the World proceed from Selfishness and want of Charity Devouring Malice is the Devilish Nature Be as zealous in doing gòod to all as Satan's Servants are in hurting Take it as the use of all your Talents and use them as you would hear of it at last Let it be your Business and not a matter on the by Especially for publick Good and Mens Salvation And what you cannot do your selves perswade other to Give them good Books and draw them to the means which are most like to profit them XIII Understand the right Terms of Church-Communion especially the Unity of the Universal Church and the Universal Communion which you must hold with all the parts and the difference between the Church as Visible and Invisible For want of these how woful are our divisions Read oft 1 Cor. 12. Eph. 4. 1. to 17. Job 17. 21 22 23. Act. 4. 32. 2. 42. 1 Cor. 1. 10 11 13. 3. 3. Rom. 16. 17. Phil. 2. 1 2 3 4. 1 Thes 5. 12 13. Act. 20. 30. 1 Cor. 11. 19. Titus 3. 10. James 3. Col. 1. 4. Heb. 10. 25. Acts 8. 12 13 37. 1 Cor. 1. 2 13. 3. 3 4. 11. 18 21. Study these well You must have Union and Communion in Faith and Love with all the Christians in the World And refuse not local Communion when you have a just call so far as they put you not on sinning Let your usual meeting be with the purest Church if you lawfully may and still respect the publick Good But sometimes occasionally communicate even with defective faulty Churches so be it they are true Christians and put you not on Sin that so you may shew that you own them as Christians though you disown their Corruptions Think not your presence maketh all the Faults of Ministry Worship or People to be yours for then I would join with no Church in the World Know that as the mystical Church consisteth of Heart-Covenanters so doth the Church as Visible consist of Verbal-Covenanters which make a credible profession of Consent And that Nature and Scripture teacheth us to take every Man's word as Credible till Perfidiousness forfeit his Credit which forfeiture must be proved before any
cannot be subject to his Law This Corruption is hereditary and is become as it were a Nature to us being the mortal Malady of all our Natures And it is easie to know that such an unholy wicked Nature must needs be loathsome to God and unfit for the happy enjoyment of his Love either here or in the Life to come For what Communion hath Light with Darkness VI. Hence then it is easie to see what Grace is needful to a Man's Salvation So odious a Creature such an unthankful Rebel that is turned away from God and set against him and defiled with all this filth of Sin must needs be both Renewed and Reconciled Sanctified and Pardoned if ever he will be saved To love God and be beloved by him and to be delighted herein in the sight of his Glory is the Heaven and Happiness of Souls and all this is contrary to an unholy State Till Men have new and holy Hearts they can neither see God nor love him nor delight in him nor take him for their chief Content for the Flesh and World have their delight and Love And till Sin be pardoned and God reconciled to the Soul what Joy or Peace can it expect from him whose Nature and Justice engageth him to loath and punish it VII And Experience will tell you how insufficient you are for either of these two Works your selves to renew your Souls or to reconcile them unto God Will a Nature that is Carnal resist and overcome the Flesh and abhor the Sin which it most dearly loveth Will a Worldly Mind overcome the World When Custom hath rooted your natural Corruptions are they easily rooted up O how great and hard a Work is it to cause a blind unbelieving Sinner to set his Heart on another World and lay up all his Hopes in Heaven and to cast off all the things he seeth for that God and Glory which he never saw And for a hardned worldly fleshly heart to become Wise and Tender and Holy and Heavenly and abhor the Sin which it most fondly loveth And what can we do to satisfie Justice and reconcile such a rebel Soul to God VIII Nature and Experience having thus acquainted you with your Sin and Misery and what you want will further tell you that God doth not yet deal with you according to your deserts He giveth you Life and Time and Mercies when your Sins had forfeited all these He obligeth you to repent and turn unto him And therefore Experience telling you that there is some Hope and that God hath found out some way of shewing Mercy to the Children of Wrath Reason will command you to enquire of all that are fit to teach you what way of Remedy God hath made known And as you may soon discover that the Religion of Heathens and Mahometans is so far from shewing the true Remedy that they are part of the Disease it self So you may learn that a wonderful Person the Lord Jesus Christ hath undertaken the Office of being the Redeemer and Saviour of the World and that he who is the Eternal Word and Wisdom of the Father hath wonderfully appeared in the Nature of Man which he took from the Virgin Mary being conceived by the Holy Ghost and that we might have a Teacher sent from †Heaven infallably and easily to acquaint the World with the Will of God and the unseen things of Life Eternal How God bare Witness of his Truth by abundant open and uncontrouled Miracles How he conquered Satan and the World and gave us an Example of perfect Righteousness and underwent the Scorn and Cruelty of Sinners and suffered the Death of the Cross as a Sacrifice for our Sins to reconcile us unto God How he rose again the third day and conquered Death and lived forty days longer on Earth instructing his Apostles and giving them Commission to preach the Gospel to all the World and then ascended bodily into Heaven while they gazed after him How he is now in Heaven both God and Man in one Person the Teacher and King and High-Priest of his Church Of Him must we learn the way of Life by Him must we be ruled as the Physician of Souls All Power is given Him in Heaven and in Earth By his Sacrifice and Merits and Intercession must we be pardoned and accepted with the Father and only by him must we come to God He hath procured and established a Covenant of Grace which Baptism is the Seal of Even That God will in him be our God and reconciled Father and Christ will be our Saviour and the Holy Ghost will be our Sanctifier if we will unfeignedly consent that is if penitently and believingly we give up our selves to God the Father Son and Holy Ghost in those Resolutions This Covenant in the Tenor of it is a Deed of Gift of Christ and Pardon and Salvation to all the World â—f by the true Faith and Repentance they will turn to God And this shall be the Law according to which he will judge all that hear it at the last for he is made the judge of All and will raise all the dead and will justify his Saints and judge them unto endless Joy and Glory and condemn the Unbelievers impenitent and ungodly unto endless Misery The Soul alone is judged at Death and Body and Soul at the Resurrection This Gospel the Apostles preached to the World and that it might be effectual to Mens Salvation the Holy Ghost was first given to inspire the Preachers of it and enable them to speak in various Languages and infallibly to agree in One and to work many great and open Miracles to prove their Word to those they preached to And by this means they planted the Church which ordinary Ministers must increase and teach and oversee to the end of the World till all the Elect be gathered in And the same Holy Spirit hath undertaken it as his Work to accompany this Gospel and by it to convert Mens Souls illuminating and sanctifying them and by a secret Regeneration to renew their Natures and bring them to that Knowledge and Obedience and Love of God which is the Primitive Holiness for which we were created and from which we fell And thus by a Saviour and a Sanctifier must all be reconciled and renewed that will be glorified with God in Heaven All this you may learn from the Sacred Scriptures which were written by the Inspiration of the Holy Spirit and sealed by multitudes of open Miracles and contain the very Image and Superscription of God and have been received and preserved by the Church as the certain Oracles of God and blessed by him through all Generations to the sanctifying of many Souls IX When you understand all this it is time for you to look home and understand now what State your Souls are in That you were made capable of Holiness and Happiness you know that you and
Conscience bear witness against thy Sin and tell thee that a holy Life is best regard not the Gain-sayings of a Bediam World which is drunk with the Delusions of the Flesh But give up thy Soul and Life to God by Jesus Christ in a faithful Covenant Delay no longer Man but resolve Resolve immediately resolve unchangeably And God will he thine and thou shalt be his for ever Amen Lord have Mercy on this Sinner and to let it be resolved by thee in him II. The Parts and Practice of a Holy Life for Personal and Family Instructions ALL is not not done when men have begun a Religious Life All Trees that blossom prove not fruitful and all Fruit comes not to perfection Many fall off who seemed to have good Beginnings And many dishonour the Name of Christ by their Scandals and Infirmities Many do grieve their Teachers Hearts and lamentably disturb the Church of Christ by their Ignorance Errors Self-conceitedness Unruliness Headiness Contentiousness Sidings and Divisions Insomuch that the Scandals and the Feuds of Christians are the great Impediments of the Conversion of the Infidel and Heathen World by the exposing Christianity to their contempt and scorn as if it were but the Error of men as unholy and worldly and proud as others that can never agree among themselves And many by their Passions and Selfishness are a Trouble to the Families and Neighbours where they live And more by their Weaknesses and great Distempers are Snares Vexations and Burdens to themselves Whereas Christianity in its true Constitution is a Life of such Holy Light and Love such Purity and Peace such Fruitfulness and Heavenliness as if it were accordingly shewed forth in the Lives of Christians would command Admiration and Reverence from the World and do more to their Conversion than Swords or Words alone can do and it would make Christians useful and amiable to each other And their Lives a Feast and pleasure to themselves I hope it may prove some help to these Excellent Ends and to the securing Mens Salvation if in a few sound Experienced Directions I open to you the Duties of a Christian Life I. Keep still the true Form of Christian Doctrine Desire and Duty orderly printed on your Minds That is Understand it clearly and distinctly and remember it I mean the Great Points of Religion contained in Catechisms You may still grow in the clearer understanding of your Catechisms if you live an hundred Years Let not the Words only but the Matter be as familiar in your Minds as the Rooms of your House are Such solid Knowledge will establish you against Seduction and Unbelief and will be still within you a ready Help for every Grace and every Duty as the Skill of an Artificer is for his Work And for want of this when you come among Infidels or Hereticks their Reasonings may seem unanswerable to you and shake if not overthrow your Faith And you will easily err in lesser Points and trouble the Church with your Dreams and Wranglings This is the Calamity of many Professors that while they will be most censorious Judges in every Controversie about Church-matters they know not well the Doctrine of the Catechism II. Live daily by Faith on Jesus Christ as the Mediator between God and you Being well-grounded in the Belief of the Gospel and understanding Christ's Office make use of him still in all your Wants Think on the Fatherly Love of God as coming to you through him alone and of the Spirit as given by him your Head and of the Covenant of Grace as enacted and sealed by him and of the Ministry as sent by him and of all Times and Helps and hopes as procured and given by him When you think of Sin and Infirmity and Temptations think also of his sufficient pardoninâ— justifying and victorious Grace When thou thinkest of the World the Flesh and the Devil think how he overcometh them Let his Doctrine and the Pattern of his most perfect Life be always before you as your Rule In all your Doubts and Fears and Wants go to him in the Spirit and to the Father by him and him alone Take him as the Root of your Life and Mercies and live as upon him and by his Life and when you die resign your Souls to him that they may be with him where he is and see his Glory To live on Christ and use him in every Want and address to God is more than a general confused Believing in him III. So believe in the Holy Ghost as to live and work by him as the Body doth by the Soul You are not baptized into his Name in vain but too few understand the sense and reason of it The Spirit is sent by Christ for Two great Works 1. To the Apostles and Prophets to inspire them infallibly to preach the Gospel and confirm it by Miracles and leave it on Record for following Ages in the Holy Scriptures 2. To all his Members to illuminate and sanctifie them to believe and obey this Sacred Doctrine beside his common Gift to many to understand and preach it The Spirit having first indicted the Gospel doth by it first regenerate and after govern all true Believers He is not now given â—s for the revealing of new Doctrines but to understand and obey the Doctrine revealed and sealed by him long ago As the Sun doth by its sweet and discreet Influence both give and cherish the natural life of things Sensitive and Vegetative so doth Christ by his Spirit our spiritual Life As you do no work but by your natural Life you should do none but by your spiritual Life You must not only Believe and Love and pray by it but manage all your Calling by it for Holiness to the lord must be written upon all All things are sanctified to you because you being sanctified to God devote all to him and use all for him and therefore must do all in the Strength and Conduct of the Spirit IV. Live wholly upon God as All in All As the first Efficient principal Dirigent and final Cause of all things Let Faith Hope and Love be daily feeding on him Let Our Father which art in Heaven be first inscribed on your Hearts that he may seem most amiable to you and you may boldly trust him and filial Love may be the spring of Duty Make use of the Son and Spirit to lead you to the Father and of Faith in Christ to kindle and keep alive the Love of God God's Love is our Primitive Holiness and especially called with its Fruits Our Sanctification which Faith in Christ is but a means to Let it be your principal End in studying Christ to see the Goodness Love and Amiableness of God in him A condemning God is not so easily loved as a gracious reconciled God You have so much of the Spirit as you have Love to God This is the proper Gift of the Spirit
Death they shall be gloriâ—â—ed with him in Heaven for ever And the Unbelievers Impenitent and Ungodly shall go to everâ—â—sting Punishment And having commanded his Apostles to Preach the Gospel to all the World and promised his Spirit he ascended into Heaven Where he is the Glorified Head over all Things to the Church and our prevailing Intercessor with the Father who will there receive the departed Souls of thâ— Justified and at the end of this VVorld will come again and raise all the Dead and will Judge all according to their VVorks and justly execute his Judgment III. I believe that God the Holy Spirit was given 〈◊〉 the Father and the Son to the Prophets Apostles 〈◊〉 Evangelists to be their Infallible Guide in Preachâ—â—â— and Recording the Doctrine of Salvation and the Witness of its certain Truth by his manifold Divine Operations and to quicken illuminate and sanctifie all true Believers that they may overcome the Flesh thâ— VVorld and the Devil And all that are thus sanctified are one holy Catholick Church of Christ and mâ—â—â— live in holy Câ—mmunion and have the pardon 〈◊〉 their Sins and shall have everlasting Life Believing in God the Father Son and Holy Spirit do presently absolutely and resolved 〈◊〉 give up my self to him my Creator and reconciled God and Father my Saviour and Sanctifier And repenting of my Sins I renounce the Devil the World and the sinful desireâ— of the Flesh And denying my self and taking up mâ— Cross I consent to follow Christ the Captain 〈◊〉 my Salvation in hope of his promised Grace and Glory A Short CATECHISM for those that havâ—â— Learned the first Quest 1. WHat do you believe concerning GOD 1 Assent Answ There is one onely God aâ— Infinite Spirit of Life Understanding and Will mâ—â—â— perfectly Powerful Wise and Good The Father the Word and the Spirit The Creator Governour and end of all things Our Absolute Owner our most Just Ruler and our most Gracious and most Amiâ—ble Father Quest 2. What believe you of the Creation and the nature of Man and the Law which was given to him Answ God created all the World And made MAN in his own Image an imbodied Spirit of Life Understanding and Will with holy Liveliness Wisdom and Love to know and love and serve has Maker here and for ever and gave him the inferiour Creatures for his use But forbad him to eat of the Tree of Knowledge upon pain of Death Qu. What believe you of Man's fall into sin and misery Ans Man being tempted by Satan did by wilful sinning fall from his Holiness his Innocency and his Happiness under the Justice of God the condemnation of his Law and the slavery of the Flesh the World and the Devil whence sinful guilty and miserable Natures are propagated to all Mankind And no meer Creature is able to deliver us Quest 4. What believe you of Man's Redemption by Jesus Christ Answ God so loved the World that he gave his only Son to be their Saviour Who being GOD and One with the Father took our Nature and became MAN being conceived by the Holy Ghost Born of the Virgin Mary and called JESUS CHRIST who was perfectly holy without sin fulfilling all Righteousness and overcame the Devil and the World and gave himself a Sacrifice for our Sins by suffering a Cursed Death on the Cross to ransom us and reconcile us unto God and was buried and went among the Dead the third day he rose again having conquered Death and having sealed the New Covenant with his Blood he commanded his Apostles and other Ministers to Preach the Gospel to all the World and promised the Holy Ghost And then Ascended into Heaven where he is God and Man the Glorified Head over all things to his Church and our prevailing Intercessor with God the Father Quest 5. What is the New Testament or Covenant 〈◊〉 Law of Grace Answ God through Jesus Christ doth freely give to all Mankind himself to be their Reconciled God and Father his Son to be their Saviour and his Holy Spirit to be their Sanctifier if they will believe and accept the Gift and will give up themselves to him accordingly Repenting of their sins and consenting to forsake thâ— Devil the World and the Flesh and sincerely though not perfectly to obey Christ and his Spirit to the end according to the Law of Nature and his Gospel Institutions that they may be glorified in Heaven for ever Quest 6. What believe you of the Holy Ghost Answ God the Holy Spirit was given by the Father and the Son to the Prophets Apostles and Evangelists to be their Infallible Guide in Preaching and Recording the Doctrine of Salvation and the Witness of its certain Truth by his manifold Divine Operations And he is given to quicken illuminate and sanctifie all true Believers and to save them from the Devil the World and the Flesh Quest 7. What believe you of the Holy Catholick Church the Communion of Saints and the Forgiveness of Sins Answ All that truely consent to the Baptismal Covenant are one sanctified Church or Body of Christ and have Communion in the same Spirit of Faith and Love and have the forgiveness of all their sins and all that by Baptism visibly Covenant and that continue to profess Christianity and Holiness are the universal visible Church on Earth and must keep holy Communion with Love and Peace in the particular Churches in the Doctrine VVorship and Order Instituted by Christ Quest 8. What believe you of the Resurrection and Everlasting Life Answ At Death the Souls of the Justified go to Happiness with Christ and the Souls of the Wicked â—o Misery And at the end of this World Christ will â—ome in Glory and will raise the Bodies of all Men â—rom Death and will Judge all according to their Works And the Righteous shall go into Everlasting Life where being made perfect themselves they shall 〈◊〉 God and perfectly Love and Praise him with Christâ— and all the glorified Church and the rest into Everâ—asting punishment Quest 9. You have told me what you Il. Consent Believe Tell me now what is the full Resolution and Desire of your Will concerning all this which you Believe Answ Believing in God the Father Son and Holy â—pirit I do presently absolutely and resolvedly give up my self to Him my Creator and reconciled God and Father my Saviour and my Sanctifier And Repenting of my Sins I renounce the Devil the World and the sinful desires of the Flesh And denying my self and taking up my Cross I consent to follow Christ the Captain of my Salvation In hope of the Grace and Glory promised Which I daily desire and â—eg as he hath taught me saying Our Father which 〈◊〉 in Heaven c. Quest 10. What is that Practice which by this Covenant 〈◊〉 are obliged to Answ According to the Law of Nature and Christs â—nstitutions I must desiring Perfection sincerely Obey him in a Life of Faith and Hope and
Loveâ— Loving God as God for himself above all and loving my self as his Servant especially my Soul and seeking 〈◊〉 Holiness and Salvation and Loving my Neighbour 〈◊〉 my self I must avoid all Idolatry of Mind or Body â—nd must Worship God according to his Word by â—earning and Meditating on his Word by Prayer Thanksgiving Praise and use of his Sacrament I must not profane but holily use his holy Name I must keep holy the Lord's Day especially in Communion with the Church Assemblies I must Honour and Obey my Parents Magistrates Pastors and other â—â—lers I must not wrong my Neighbour in thought word or deed in his Soul his Body his Chastity Estate Right oâ— Propriety but do him all the good I can And do as I would be done by which is summed up in the Ten Commandments God spake these words saying c. A Prayer for Families in the method of the Lords Prayer being â—ut an Exposition of it MOST Glorious GOD who art Power and Wisdom and Goodness it self the Creator 〈◊〉 all things the Owner the Ruler and the Benefactor of the World but especially of thy Church and Chosen Ones Though by sin original and actual we were thy Enemies the Slaves of Satan and our Flesh and under thy displeasure and the condemnation of thy Law yet thy Children Redeemed by Jesus Christ thy Son and Regenerated by thy Holy Spirit have leave to call thee their reconciled Father For by thy Covenant of Grace thou hast given them thy Son to be their Head their Teacher and their Saviour And in Him thou haâ—t pardoned adopted and sanctified them sealing and preparing them by thy Holy Spirit for thy Câ—â—lestial Kingdom and beginning in them that holy life and light and love which shall be perfected with thee in Everlasting Glory O with what wondrous love hast thou loved us that of Rebels we should be made the Sons of God! Thou hast advanced us to this dignity that we might be devoted wholly to Thee as Thine Own and might delightfully obey Thee and entirely love Thee with all our Heart and so might glorifie Thee here and for ever O cause both us and all thy Churches and all the World to hallow thy great and holy Name And to 〈◊〉 to Thee as our Ultimate End that thy shining 〈◊〉 on Holy Souls may Glorifie thy Divine Perfection And cause both us and all the Earth to cast off the Tyranny of Satan and the Flesh and to acknowledge thy Supream Authority and to become the Kingdomâ— of Thee and Thy Son Jesus by a willing and absolute subjection O perfect thy Kingdom of Grace in our selves and in the World and hasten the Kingdom of Glory And cause us and thy Churches and all people of the Earth no more to be ruled by the Luâ—â—s of the Flesh and their Erroneous Conceits and by Self-will which is the Idol of the Wicked but by thy perfect Wisdom and holy Will revealed in thy Laws Make known thy Word to all the World and send them the Messengers of Grace and Peace and cause Men to understand believe and obey the Gospel of Salvation and that with such Holiness Unity and Love that the Earth which is now too like to Hell may 〈◊〉 made liker unto Heaven and not only thy scattered imperfect Flock but those also who in their carnal and ungodly minds do now refuse a holy Life and think thy Word and Ways too strict may desire to imitate even the Heavenly Church where Thou art obeyed and loved and praised with high Delight in Harmony and Perfection And because our Being is the subject of our well-being maintain us in the Life which thou hast here given us until the work of Life be finished and give us such health of Mind and Body and such protection and supply of all our wants as shall best 〈…〉 our Duty and make us contented with our daily Bread and patient if we want it And save us from the love of the Riches and Honours and Pleasures of this World and the Pride and Idleness and Sensuality which they cherish And cause us to serve thy Providence by our diligent Labours and to serve thee faithfully with all that thou givest us And let us not make provision for the Flesh to satisfie its desires and lusts And we beseech thee of thy Mercy through the Sacrifice and Propitiation of thy Beloved Son forgive us all our sins original and actual from our Birth to this Hour our omissions of Duty and committing of what thou didst forbid Our sins of heart and word and deed our sinful thoughts and affections our sinful passions and discontents our secret and our open sins our sins of negligence and ignorance and rashness but especially our sins against Knowledge and Conscience which have made the deepest guilt and wounds Spare us O Lord and let not our sins so find us out as to be our ruin but let us so find them out as truely to repent and turn to thee Especially punish us not with the loss of thy Grace Take not thy Holy Spirit from us and deny us not his assistance and holy operations Seal to us by that Spirit the pardon of our Sins and lift up the light of thy Countenance upon us and give us the joy of thy Favour and Salvation And let thy Love and Mercy so fill us not only with Thankfulness to Thee but with Love and Mercy to our Brethren and our Enemies that we may heartily forgive them that do us wrong as through thy Grace we hope we do And for the time to come suffer us not to cast our selves wilfully into Temptations but carefully to avoid them and resolutely to resist and Conquer what we cannot avoid And O mortifie those inward Sins and Lusts which are our constant and most dangerous Temptations And let us not be tempted by Satan or the World or tryed by thy Judgments above the strength which thy Grace shall give us Save us from a fearless confidence in our own strength And let us not dally with the snare nor taste the bait nor play with the Fire of thy wrath But cause us to fear and depart from evil lest before we are aware we be entangled and overcome and wounded with our Guilt and with thy Wrath and our End should be worse than our Beginning Especially save us from those radical Sins of Error and Unbelief Pride Hypocrisie Hardheartedness Sensuality Slothfulness and the love of this present World and the loss of our love to Thee to thy Kingdom and thy Ways And save us from the malice of Satan and of wicked Men and from the Evils which our sins would bring upon us And as we crave all this from thee we humbly render our Praises with our future Service to thee Thou art the King of all the World and more than the Life of all the Living Thy Kingdom is Everlasting Wise and Just and Merciful is thy Government Blessed are they that are thy faithful Subjects