that many turne from other sects to the Epicureans but none from the Epicureans to any other sect The reason was because nature is inclined to sensuality in all and when it is confirmed by use and doctrine Philosophy is too weak to master it But Christ calleth and saveth Epicures and Publicans and Harlots and hath cleansed many such by his grace which teacheth men to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts and to live soberly righteously and godly in the world Philostratus tells us of a sudden change upon one Isaeus that turned him from Luxury to exceeding temperance so that when one asked him Is not yonder a handsom woman he answered The diseases of my eyes are cured when they askt him which dish was the pleasantest he answered Desii curare I have done regarding such things and told them the reason that marvelled at his change Because he found that he did but gather fruits out of Tantalus garden They are deceitful lusts Eph. 4. 22. And Satan himself will reproach thee for ever if he can deceive thee by them As Alexander when he had taken Darius his gallantâ—y and sumptuous Houses and Furniture reproaches him with it saying Hoccine erat imperare was this to rule so Satan would shew thee thy lusts and say was this to be a Christian and seek salvation PART VI. Directions against sinful Excess of Sleep § 1. OF this something is said already Chap. 5. Part 1. § 51. and more afterwards in the Directions against Idleness Therefore I shall say but little now 1. I shall shew you when sleep is excessive 2. Wherein the sinfulness of it consisteth 3. What to do for the Cure of it § 2. I. Sleep is given us for the necessary remission of the animal operations and of the labour or motion of the exteriour parts by the quieting of the senses or shutting them up that the Natural and Vital operations may have the less disturbance It is necessary 1. To our Rest 2. To Concoction Therefore Weariness and want of Concoction are the chief indications to tell us how much is needful for us Sleep is sinfully excessive 1. When it is Voluntarily more than is needful to our health 2. When it is unseasonable at forbidden times § 3. It is not all weariness or sleepiness that maketh sleep lawful or needful for some is contracted by laziness and some by many diseases and some by other constant causes which make men almost alwayes weary Nor is it all want of concoction that sleep is a remedy for some may be caused by excess of eating which must be cured a better way and many diseases may cause it which require other cure Therefore none must indulge excess upon these pretences Nor must a present sense of the pleasure of sleeping or the displeasure of waking be the judge For sluggards may think they feel it do them good and that early rising doth them hurt but this good is but their pleasant ease and this hurt is but a little trouble to their head and eyes and lazy flesh just at the time But Reason and experience must judge what Measure is best for your Health and that you must not exceed To some five hours is enough To the ordinary sort of healthful persons six hours is enough To many weak valetudinary persons seven hours is needful To sick persons I am not to give Directions § 4. 2. Sleep is excessive at that particular Time when it is unseasonable As 1. When we are asleep when we should be doing some necessary business which calls for present dispatch 2. Or when we should be hearing the Sermon or praying in publick or private In a word when it puts by any greater duty which we should then perform As when the Disciples slept when Christ was in his agony Could ye not watch with me one hour watch and pray that ye enter not into temptation Matth. 26. 40 41. § 5. It is a foppery and abuse of God and our selves to think that the breaking of our sleep is a thing that of it self pleaseth God or that rising to pray at midnight is more acceptable to God than at another hour usually such rising to pray is sinful 1. Because it is done in an erroneous conceit that God accepts it better than in the day time 2. Because they waste time in dressing and undressing 3. Or else hurt their health by cold in the Winter and so lose more time than they redeem by shortning their lives 4. And usually they are more drousie and unfit But to rise in the night to prayer is meet on some extraordinary occasion that calls for it as to pray with or for a dying person or such like or when an extraordinary fervour and fitness prepareth us for it and when we can stay up when we are up and not lose time in going to bed again But ordinarily that way is to be chosen that best Redeemeth time and that is to consider just how much sleep our health requireth and to take it if we can together without interruption and to rise then and go about our duties But those that cannot sleep in the Night must redeem that Time as discretion shall direct them § 6. It is the Voluntariness of the excess that the sinfulness principally consisteth in And therefore the more voluntary the more sinful In a Lethargie or Caros it is no sin And when long watching or some bodily weakness or distemper make it almost unavoidable the sin is the smaller Therefore in case of long watching and heaviness Christ partly excused his Disciples saying The Spirit is willing but the flesh is weak Matth. 26. 41. But when it cometh from a flesh-pleasing sloth or from a disregard of any holy exercise that you are about it is a grievous sin And though it be involuntary just at the time and you say I would fain forbear sleeping now if I could yet if it be Voluntary remotely and in its Causes it is your sin You would now forbear sleeping but you would not forbear that pampering your body and stuffing your Guts which causeth it you would not deny the flesh its ease to avoid it § 7. II. The sinfulness of excess of sleep lyeth in these particulars 1. That it is a sinful wasting Nil temporis tam perit de vita nostra quam quod somno deputatur 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of every minute of that time which is consumed in it And this is a very grievous thing to a heart that is sensible of the pretiousness of time when we think how short our lives are and how great our work is it should tell us how great a sin it is to cast away any of this little time in needless sleep And yet what abundance of it with many is thus spent Almost half their whole lives is spent in bed by many drones that think they may sleep because they are Rich and have not a necessity of labouring to supply their wants I was never tempted that
to corruption as it doth the bruits but to live in joy with Christ and his Church-triumphant § 14. Direct 14. Remember both how vile your body is and how great an enemy it hath proved to Direct 14. your soul And then you will the more patiently bear its dissolution It is not your dwelling house but your tent or Prison that God is pulling down And yet even this vile body when it is corrupted shall at last be changed into the likeness of Christs glorious body by the working of his unresistible power Phil. 3. 20 21. And it is a flesh that hath so rebelled against the spirit and made your way to Heaven so difficult and put the soul to so many conflicts that we should the easilier submit it to the will of justice and let it perish for a time when we are assured that mercy will at last recover it § 15. Direct 15. Remember what a world it is that you are to leave and compare it with that Direct 15. which you are going to and compare the life which is near an end with that which you are next to enter upon Was it not Henochs reward when he had walkt with God to be taken to him from a polluted world 1. While you are here you are your selves defiled sin is in your natures and your graces are all imperfect sin is in your lives and your duties are all imperfect You cannot be free from it one day or hour And is it not a mercy to be delivered from it Is it not desirable to you to sin no more and to be perfect in holiness to know God and Love him as much and more than you can now desire You are here every day lamenting your darkness and unbelief and estrangedness from God and want of Love to him How oft have you prayed for a cure of all this And now would you not have it when God would give it you why hath God put that spark of Heavenly life into you but to fight against sin and make you weary of it And yet had you rather continue sinning than have the victory and be with Christ 2. It is a life of Grief as well as sin And a life of cares and doubts and fears When you are at the worst you are fearing worse If it were nothing but the fears of death it self it should make you the willinger to submit to it that you might be past those fears 3. You are daily afflicted with the infirmities of that flesh which you are so loth should be dissolved To satisfie its hunger and thirst to cover its nakedness to provide it a habitation and supply all its wants what care and labour doth it cost you Its infirmities sicknesses and pains do make you oft aweary of your selves so that you groan being burdened as Paul speaketh 2 Cor. 5. 3 4 6. And yet is it not desirable to be with Christ 4. You are compassed with temptations and are in continual danger through your weakness And yet would you not be past the danger Would you have more of those horrid and odious temptations 5. You are purposely turned here into a Wilderness among wild beasts you are as Lambs among Wolves and through many tribulations you must enter into Heaven You must deny your selves and take up your Cross and forsake all that you have and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus must suffer persecution in the world you must have trouble the seed of the Serpent must bruise your heel before God bruise Satan under your feet And is such a life as this more desirable than to be with Christ Are we afraid to land after such storms and tempests Is a wicked world a malitious world a cruel world an implacable world more pleasing to us than the joy of Angels and the sight of Christ and God himself in the Majesty of his Glory Hath God on purpose made the world so bitter to us and permitted it to use us unjustly and cruelly and all to make us love it less and to drive home our hearts unto himself and yet are we so unwilling to be gone § 16. Direct 16. Settle your estates betime that worldly matters may not distract or discompose you Direct 16. And if God have endowed you with Riches dispose of a due proportion to such pious or charitable uses in which they may be most serviceable to him that gave them you Though we should give what we can in the time of life and health yet many that have but so much as will serve to their necessary maintenance may well part with that to good uses at their death which they could not spare in the time of their health especially they that have no Children or such wicked Children as are like to do hurt with all that is given them above their daily bread § 17. Direct 17. If it may be get some able faithful guide and comforter to be with you in your Direct 17. sickness to counsel you and resolve your doubts and pray with you and discourse of heavenly things when you are disabled by weakness for such exercises your selves Let not carnal persons disturb you with their vain bablings Though the difference between good company and bad be very great in the time of health yet now in sicknes it will be more discernable And though a faithful friend and spiritual Pastor be alwayes a great mercy yet now especially in your last necessity Therefore make use of them as far as your pain and weakness will permit § 18. Direct 18. Be fortified against all the Temptations of Satan by which he useth to assault men Direct 18. in their extremity Stand it out in the last conflict and the Crown is yours I shall instance in particulars Directions for resisting the Temptations of Satan in the time of sickness § 19. Tempt 1. The most ordinary Temptation against the Comfort of Believers for I have already Tempt 1. spoken of those that are against their safety is to doubt of their own sincerity and consequently of their part in Christ Saith the Tempter All that thou hast done hath been but in hypocrisie Thou wast never a true Believer nor never didst truly Repent of sin nor truly love God and therefore thou art unjustified and shalt speedily be condemned § 20. Against this Temptation a Believer hath two Remedies The first is to confute the Tempter by those Evidences which will prove that he hath been sincere such as I have often mentioned before And by refelling those reasonings by which the Tempter would prove him to have been an Hypocrite As when it is objected Thou hast repented and been humbled but slightly and by the halves Answ. Yet was it sincerely and weak grace is not no grace Obj. Thou hast been a lover of the world and a neglecter of thy soul and cold in all that thou didst for thy salvation Answ. Yet did I set more by Heaven than earth and I first sought the
named Chap. 3. Dir. 8. § 16. and the aggravations § 17 18. If the Devil can but once perswade you that sin is harmless all Faith all Religion all Honesty and your souls and all are gone For then all Gods Laws and Government must be fictions Then there is no work for Christ Psal. 40. 12. Psal. 51. as a Saviour or the Spirit as a Sanctifier to do Then all Ordinances and Means are troublesome Vanities and Godliness and Obedience deserve to be banished from the earth as unnecessary troublers of mankind Then may this poyson be safely taken and made your food But O how mad a conceit is this How quickly will God make the proudest know what harm it was to refuse the Government of his Maker and set up the Goverment of his beastly appetite and misguided will and that sin is bad if Hell be bad § 32. Tempt 26. The Devil also tempteth them to think that though they sin yet their good works Tempt 26. are a compensation for their bad and therefore they pray and do some acts of Pharisaical devotion to make God amends for what they do amiss § 53. Direct 26. Against this consider that if you had never so many good works they are all Direct 26. but your duty and make no satisfaction for your sin But what good works can you do that shall save a wicked soul and that God will accept without your Hearts Your hearts must be first cleansed See Prov. 28 9 Prov. 15 26 8 Prov. 21. 27. Isa. 1. 13. 14. and your selves devoted and sanctified to God For an evil Tree will bring forth evil fruit First make the Tree good and the fruit will be good It is the Love of God and the hatred of sin and a holy and heavenly life which are the good works that God chiefly calleth for and Faith and Repentance and Conversion in order to these And will God take your lip-labour or the leavings of your â—â—â—â—sh by way of alms while the world and fleshly pleasure have your hearts Indeed you do no work that 's truly good The matter may be good but you poyson it with bad Principles and Ends. The carnal mind is not subject to the Law of God nor indeed can be but is enmity to God Rom. 8. 6 7. § 54. Tempt 27. Some are tempted to think that God will not condemn them because they are poor Tempt 27. and afflicted in this life and have their sufferings here And that he that condemneth the rich for not shewing merâ—y tâ— the pâ—â—r will himself shew them mercy § 55. Direct 27. Hath he not shewed you mercy And is it not mercy which you vilifie and reâ—â—se Direct 27. Even Christ and his Spirit and holy communion with God Or must God shew you the mercy of Glory without the mercy of Grace Which is a contradiction Strange that the same men that will not be intreated to accept of mercy nor let it save them are yet saying that God will be merciful and save them And for your poverty and suffering is it not against your will You cannot deny it And will God save any man for that which is against his will You would have riches and honour and pleasure and your good things in this life as well as others if you could tell how You love the world as well as others if you could get more of it And to be carnal and worldly for so poor a pittance and to have the world when you suffer in it doth make you more unexcusable than the rich The Devils have suffered more than you and so have many thousand souls in Hell And yet they shall be saved never the more If you are poor in the world but rich in faith and holiness then you may well expect salvation Iames 2. 5. But if your sufferings make you no more holy they do but aggravate your sin § 56. Tempt 28. Also the Devil blindeth sinners by keeping them ignorant of the nature and power Tempt 28. of Holiness of heart and life They know it not by any experience And he will not let them see it and judge of it in the Scripture where it is to be seen without any mixed contraries but he points them only to professors of holiness and commonly to the weakest and the worst of them and to that which is worst in them and sheweth them the miscarriages of hypocrites and the falls of the weaker sort of Christians and then tells them This is their Godliness and Religion They are all alike § 57. Direct 28. But it 's easie to see how these men deceive and condemn themselves This is Direct 28. as if you should plead that a Beast is wiser than a man because some men are drunk and some are passionate and some are mad Drunkenness and passions which are the disturbances of Reason are no disgrace to Reason but to themselves Nor were they a disgrace themselves if Reason which they hinder were not honourable So no mans sins are a disgrace to Holiness which condemneth them nor were they bad themselves if holiness were not good which they oppose It is no disgrace to the day-light or Sun that there is night and darkness Nor were darkness bad if light were not good Will you refuse health because some men are sick Nay will you rather choose to be dead because the living have infirmities The Devils reasoning is foolisher than this Holiness is of absolute necessity to salvation If many that do more than you are as bad as you imagine what a case then are you in that have not near so much as they If they that make it their greatest care to please God and be saved are as very Hypocrites as the Devil would perswade you what a hopeless case then are you in that come far short of them If so you must do more than they and not less if you will be saved Or else out of your own mouths will you be condemned § 58. Tempt 29. Another way of the Tempter is by drawing them desperately to venture their souls Tempt 29. Come on them what will they 'le put it to the venture rather than live so strict a life § 59. Direct 29. But O man consider what thou dost and who will have the loss of it and Direct 29. how quickly it may be too late to recall thy adventure What should put thee on so mad a resolution Is sin so good Is Hell so easie Is thy soul so contemptible Is Heaven such a trifle Is God so hard a Master Is his work so grievous and his way so bad Doth he require any thing unreasonable of you Hath God set you such a grievous task that it 's better venture on damnation than perform it You cannot believe this if you believe him to be God Come near and think more deliberately on it and you will find you might better run from your food your friend your life than from your
head-strong Horse that must be kept in at first and is hardly restrained if it once break loose and get the head If you are bred up in temperance and modesty where there are no great temptations to gluttony drinking sports or wantonness you may think a while that your natures have little or none of this concupiscence and so may walk without a guard But when you come where baits of lust abound where Women and Playes and Feasts and Drunkards are the Devils snares and tinder and bellows to enflame your lusts you may then find to your sorrow that you had need of watchfulness and that all is not mortified that is asleep or quiet in you As a man that goeth with a Candle among Gunpowder or near Thatch should never be careless because he goeth in continual danger so you that are young and have naturally eager appetites and lusts should remember that you carry fire and Gunpowder still about you and are never out of danger while you have such an enemy to watch § 2. And if once you suffer the fire to kindle alas what work may it make ere you are aware James 1. 14 15. Every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed Then when lust hath conceived it bringeth forth sin and sin when it is finished bringeth forth death Little knoweth the Fish when he is catching or nibling at the bait that he is swallowing the hook which will lay him presently on the bank When you are looking on the cup or gazing on alluring beauty or wantonly dallying and pleasing your senses with things unsafe you little know how far beyond your intentions you may be drawn and how deep the wound may prove how great the smart or how long and difficult the cure As you love your souls observe Pauls counsel 2 Tim. 2. 22. Flee youthful lusts Keep at a full distance Come not near the bait If you get a wound in your consciences by any wilful heinous sin O what a case will you be in How heartless unto secret duty afraid of God that should be your joy deprived of the comforts of his presence and all the pleasure of his wayes How miserably will you be tormented between the tyranny of your own concupiscence the sting of sin the gripes of conscience and the terrors of the Lord How much of the life of faith and love and heavenly zeal will be quenched in a moment I am to speak more afterwards of this and therefore shall only say at present to all young Converts that care for their salvation Mortifie the flesh and alwayes watch and avoid temptations Direct 15. BE exceeding wary not only what Teachers you commit the guidance of your souls unto Direct 15. Nam si falsi solo nomine tumidi non modo non consulendi sed vitandi sunt quibus nihil est importunius nihil insu siâ—s c. Pâ—tâ—a câ— Dâ—al 117. li. 2. but also with what company you familiarly converse That they be neither such as would corrupt your minds with error or your hearts with viciousness profâ—neness lukewarmness or with a feavorish factious zeal But choose if possible judicious holy heavenly humble unblameable self-denying persons to be your ordinary companions and familiars but especially for your near Relations § 1. It is a matter of very great importance what Teachers you choose in order to your salvation In this the free grace of God much differenceth some from others For as poor Heathens and Infidels have none that know more than what the Book of Nature teacheth if so much so in the several Nations of Christians it is hard for the people to have any but such as the Sword of the Magistrate forceth on them or the stream of their Countreys Custom recommendeth to them And it is a wonder Scientiâ— est posse dâ—cere Provâ—â—b Sub indocto tamen doctus evadâ—re potes â—fflaâ—u aliquo divino ut Ciâ—â—ro loquitur Augustinus de seipso testatur cui non omnia credere nefas est quod Aristotelicas Categorias quae inter difficillima numerantur artes liberales quas singulas a praeceptoribus didicisse magnum dicitur nullo tradeâ—te omnes intellexit â—â—â—â—ardus item vir doctrina sanctitate clarissimus omnes suas literas quarum inter cunctos sui temporis abundantissimus fuâ—â— in sâ—lvis in agris didicit non hominum magisterio sed meditando orando nec ullos unquam alios praeceptores habuit quam quercus sagos Pâ—trâ—â—ch li. 2. Dialog 40. if pure Truth and Holiness be countenanced by either of these But when and where his mercy pleaseth God sendeth wise and holy Teachers with compassion and diligence to seek the saving of mens souls so that none but the malignant and obstinate are deprived of their help § 2. Ambitious proud covetous licentious ungodly men are not to be chosen for your Teachers if you have your choice In a Nation where true Religion is in credit and hath the Magistrates countenance or the Major Vote some graceless men may joyn with better in preaching and defending the purity of doctrine and holiness of life And they may be very serviceable to the Church herein especially in expounding and disputing for the truth But even there more experienced spiritual Teachers are much more desirable They will speak most feelingly who feel what they speak And they are fittest to bring others to faith and love who believe and love God and holiness themselves They that have life will speak more lively than the dead And in most places of the world the ungodliness of such Teachers makes them enemies to the Truth which is according to godliness Their natures are at enmity to the life and power of the doctrine which they should preach And they will do their worst to corrupt the Magistrates and make them of their mind And if they can but get the Sword to favour them they are usually the cruellest persecutors of the sincere As it is notorious among the Papists that the baits of Power and Honour and Wealth have so vitiated the body of their Clergy that they conspire to uphold a worldly Government and Religion and in express contradiction to Sense and Reason and to Antiquity and the judgement of the Church and to the holy Scriptures they captivate the ignorant and sensual to their tyranny and false worship and use the seduced Magistrates and multitude to the persecuting of those that will not follow them to sin and to perdition Take heed of proud and worldly Guides § 3. And yet it is not every one that pretendeth Piety and Zeal that is to be heard or taken for a Teacher But 1. Such as preach ordinarily the substantial Truths which all Christians are agreed in 2. Such as make it the drift of their preaching to raise your souls to the Love of God and to a holy heavenly life and are zealous against confessed sins 3. Such as contradict not the
your salvation Take heed lest it turn into carnal security and a perswasion of your good estate upon ill grounds or you know not why 4. Have you the Hope of glory Take heed lest it turn into a careless venterousness of your soul or the meer laying aside of fear and cautelous suspicion of your selves 5. Have you a Love to them that fear the Lord Watch your hearts lest it degenerate into a carnal or a partial Love Many unheedful young persons of different Sexes at first love each other with an honest chaste and pious Love but imprudently using too much familiarity before they were well aware it hath turned into a fleshly Love which hath proved their snare and drawn them further into sin or trouble Many have honoured them that fear the Lord who insensibly have declined to honour only those of them that were eminent in wealth and worldly honour or that were esteemed for their parts or place by others and little honoured the humble poor obscure Christians who were at least as good as they Forgetting that the things that are highly esteemed among men are abomination in the sight of God Luke 16. 15. and that God valueth not men by their places and dignities in the world but by their graces and holiness of life Abundance that at first did seem to Love all Christians as such as far as any thing of Christ appeared in them have first fallen into some Sect and over admiring their party and have set light by others as good as them and censured them as unfound and then withdrawn their special Love and confined it to their party or to some few and yet thought that they loved the godly as much as ever when it was degenerate into a factious Love 6. Are you zealous for God and truth and holiness and against the errors and sins of others Take heed lest you lose it not while you think it doth increase in you Nothing is more apt to degenerate than zeal In how many thousand hath it turned from an innocent charitable peaceable tractable healing profitable heavenly zeal into a partial zeal for some Party or Opinions of their own and into a fierce censorious uncharitable scandalous turbulent disobedient unruly hurting and destroying zeal ready to wish for fire from Heaven and kindling contention confusion and every evil work Read well Iames 3. 7. So if you are meek or patient take heed lest it degenerate into stupidity or contempt of those you suffer by To be patient is not to be meerly insensible of the affliction but by the power of faith to bear the sense of it as over-ruled by things of greater moment § 3. How apt men are to corrupt and debase all duties of Religion is too visible in the face of the far greatest part of the Christian world Throughout both the Eastern and the Western Churches the Papists the Greeks the Armenians the Abassines and too many others though the Essentials of Religion through Gods mercy are retained yet how much is the face of Religion altered from what it was in the dayes of the Apostles The ancient simplicity of Doctrine is turned into abundance of new or private opinions introduced as necessary Articles of Religion and alas how many of them â—alse So that Christians being too proud to accept of the ancient test of Christianity cannot now agree among themselves what a Christian is and who is to be esteemed a Christian and so they deny one another to be Christians and destroy their Charity to each other and divide the Church and make themselves a scom by their divisions to the Infidel world And thus the Primitive Unity Charity and Peace is partly destroyed and partly degenerate into the Unity Charity and Peace of several Sects among themselves The primitive simplicity in Government and Discipline is with most turned into a â—orâ—â—ble Secular Government exercised to advance one man above others and to satisfie his will and lusts and make him the Rule of other mens lives and to suppress the power and spirituality of Religion in the world The primitive simplicity of Worship is turned into such a Masque of Ceremony and such a task of formalities and bodily exercise that if one of the Apostolical Christians should come among them he would scarce think that this is the same employment which formerâ—y the Church was exercised in or scarce know Religion in this antick dress So that the amiable glorious face of Christianity is so spotted and defiled that it is hidden from the Unbelieving world and they laugh at it as irrational or think it to be but like their own And the principal hinderance of the conversion of Heathens Mahometans and other Unbelievers is the corruption and deformity of the Churches that are near them or should be the instruments of their conversion And the probablest way to the conversion of those Nations is the true Reformation of the Churches both in East and West which if they were restored to the ancient spirituality rationality and simplicity of Doctrine Discipline and Worship and lived in charity humility and holiness as those whose hearts and conversations are in Heaven with all worldly glory and honour as under their feet they would then be so illustrious and amiable in the eyes even of Heathens and other Infidels that many would flock in to the Church of Christ and desire to be such as they And their light would so shine before these men that they would see their good works and glorifie their heavenly Father and embrace their faith § 4. The commonest way of the degenerating of all Religious duties is into this dead formality or lifeless Image of Religion If the Devil can but get you to cast off the spirituality and life of duty he will give you leave to seem very devout and make much ado with outward actions words and beads and you shall have so much zeal for a dead Religion or the Corpse of Worship as will make you think that it is indeed alive By all means take heed of this turning the Worship of God into lip-service The commonest cause of it is a carnality of mind Fleshly men will think best of the most fleshly Religion or else a slothfulness in duty which will make you sit down with the easiest part It is the work of a Saint and a diligent Saint to keep the soul it self both regularly and vigorously employed with God But â—o say over certain words by rote and to lift up the hands and eyes is â—asie And hypocrites that are conscious that they are void of the life and spirituality of Worship do think to make all up with this formality and quiet their consciences and delude their souls with a hansome Image Of this I have spoken more largely in a Book called The Vain Religion of the Formal Hypocrite § 5. Yet run not here into the contrary extream as to think that the Body must not worship God as well as the soul or that the
have said of this subject in my Directions for a sound Conversion Dir. 5. which I hope the Reader will peruse I shall here briefly name the Uses which we must make of Christ by faith in order to our holy converse with God But I must tell you that it is a Doctrine â—anâ— omnium vâ—râ—â—â—â—um radix â—undâ—mâ—â—rum fides â—â— quae certance adjuvat Vâ—nâ—â—nâ—â—s câ—ronâ—t câ—â—lessi dono quosdam de 〈…〉 signoâ—um 〈◊〉 Nihil enim quod sincerae fidei denegâ—tur quia nec aiâ—ud â— nobis Deuâ— quam fidem exigit Hanc dâ—â—git hanâ— requirit huic â—â—nâ—ta promitut tribur S. 〈◊〉 Mâ—rt Aâ—â—â—â— Toâ—â—t Memâ—â—dâ—â— Sanct. p. 4. Notandum quod cum fides moriua â—t praeter opera jam nâ—que fides est Nam neque hâ—mo mortutis homo est Non enâ—m sicu spiritâ—um â—oâ—pore meliorem ita â—â—â—â—ra fâ—deâ— pra 〈…〉 da â—um quando gratia salvatur homo non ex of eribus sed ex fide nisi forâ—e hâ—c in questiore sit quod salve fides quae cum oâ—â—riâ— us propriiâ— vâ—â—â—â—t tanquam a iud genus operum sit praeter quae salus ex fide prevenâ—â—t we autem sunt opera quae sub umbra 〈◊〉 bâ—eâ—â—anâ—uâ— Diâ—â—â—â—nus Alexand. in Iac. cap. 2. which requireth a prepared heart that hath life within to enable it to relish holy truth and to dispose it to diligence delight and constancy in practice A senseless Reader will feel but little savour in it and a sluggish Reader that suffereth it to dye as soon as it hath toucht his ears or fantasie will fall short of the practice and the pleasure of this life He must have faith that will live by faith And he must have the heart and nature of a child that will take pleasure in loving reverent and obedient converse with a Father § 4. 1. The Darkness of Ignorance and Unbelief is the great impediment of the soul that desireth to draw near to God When it knoweth not God or knoweth not mans capacity of enjoying him and how much he regardeth the heart of man or knoweth not by what way he must be sought and found or when he doubteth of the certainty of the word which declareth the duty and the hopes of man all this or any of this will suppress the ascending desires of the soul and clip its wings and break the heart of its holy aspirings after God by killing or weakning the hopes of its success Here then make Use of Iesus Christ the great revealer of God and his will to the blinded world and the great confirmer of the Divine authority of his Word Life and immortality are brought more fully to light by the Gospel than ever they were by any other means Moses and the Prophets did bring with their Doctrine sufficient evidence of its credibility But Christ hath brought both a fuller Revelation and a fuller evidence to help belief An inspired Prophet which proveth his inspiration to us is a credible messenger but when God himself shall come down into flesh and converse with man and teach him the knowledge of God and the way to life and tell him the mysteries of the world to come and seal his testimony with unquestionable proofs who will not learn of such a Teacher and who will deny belief to such a messenger except absurd unreasonable men Remember then when Ignorance or Unbelief would hinder your access to God that you have the ablest Teacher and the surest Witness to acquaint you with God in all the world If God had sent an Angel from Heaven to tell you what he is and what he requireth of you and what he will do for you would it not be very acceptable to you But he hath done much more he hath sent his Son Dilectio Dei misiâ— nobâ—â— salvaâ—orem cuâ—uâ— Gâ—aâ—iâ— salvati sum â—s ut possideamus haâ—c gratiaâ— cammunicatio facit spiritus A 〈◊〉 iâ— 2 Coâ— 13. 13. The Deity it self hath appeared in flesh He that hath seen God and he that is God hath come among men to acquaint them with God His testimony is more sure and credible than any Angels Heb. 1. 1 2 3. God who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in times past to the Fathers by the Prophets hath in these last dayes spoken to us by his Son John 1. 18. No man hath seen God at any time the only begotten Son who is in the bosome of the Father he hath declared him We have neither heard the Voice of God nor seen his shape John 5. 37. No man hath seen the Father save he which is of God he hath seen the Father John 6. 46. No man knoweth the Father save the Son and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him Matth. 11. 27. What more can we desire that is short of the sight of the Glory of God than to have him revealed to us by a messenger from Heaven and such a Messenger as himself hath seen him and is God himself Plato and Plotinus may describe God to us according to their dark conjectures something we may discern of him by observing his works But Christ hath declared what he saw and what he knew beyond all possibility of mistake And lest his own testimony should seem questionable to us he hath confirmed it by a life of Miracles and by Rising from the dead himself and ascending visibly to Heaven and by the Holy Ghost and his miraculous gifts which he gave to the Messengers of his Gospel Had it been no more than his Resurrection from the dead it had been enough to prove the utter unreasonableness of unbelief § 5. 2. It is also a great impediment to the soul in its approach to God that Infinite distance disableth us to conceive of him aright We say as Elihu Job 36. 26. Behold God is great and we know him not And indeed it is impossible that mortal man should have any adequate apprehensions of his Fssence But in his Son he hath come down to us and shewed himself in the clearest Glass that ever did reveal him Think of him therefore as he appeared in our flesh As he shewed himself in his Holiness and Goodness to the world You may have positive thoughts of Iesus Christ Though you may not think that the Godhead was flesh yet may you think of it as it appeared in flesh It may quiet the understanding to conceive of God as incarnate and to know that we cannot yet know him as he is or have any adequate conceptions of him These may delight us till we reach to more § 6. 3. It hindereth the souls approach to God when the Infinite distance makes us think that God will not regard or take notice of such contemptible worms as we we are ready to think that he is too high for our converse or delight In this case the soul hath no such remedy as to look to Christ and see how the Father hath regarded us and set his
that is bestowed in sin upon Gods enemies is used against him and noâ— as his Own 6. And that he that hideth his Talent or useth it not at all cannot be said to Use it for God Both idleness and alienating the gifts of God are a robbing him of his own § 9. III. To help you in this work of self-resignation often consider 1. That if you were your Own you were most miserable You could not support preserve or provide for your selves who should save you in the hour of temptation or distress Alas if you are humbled Christians you know so much of your Own insufficiency and feel your selves such a daily burden to your selves that you have sure enough of your selves ere now And beg of God above all your enemies to save you from your selves and of all judgements to save you from being forsaken of God and given up to your selves 2. Remember that none in the world hath sufficient Power Wisdom and Goodness to take the full care and charge of you but God None else can save you or sanctifie you or keep you alive one hour And therefore it is your happiness and honour that you are His. 3. His Right is absolute and none hath Right to you but he None else did Create you Redeem you or Regenerate you 4. He will Use you only in safe and honourable services and to no worse an end than your endless happiness 5. What you deny him or steal from him you give to the Devil the World and the flesh And do they better deserve it 6. You are his own in Tiâ—le whether you will or not and he will fulfil his will upon you Your Consent and Resignation is necessary to your good to â—ase you of your cares and secure you from present and eternal misery DIRECT VI. Gr. Dir. 6. Remember that God is your Soveraign King to Rule and Iudge you And that it is your Rectitude and happiness to obey and please him Labour therefore to bring Of subjection to God as our Supream Governour your souls and bodies into the most absolute subjection to him and to make it your Delight and business sincerely and exactly to obey his Will § 1. HAving Resigned your selves absolutely to God as your Owner you are next to subject your selves absolutely to God as your Governour or King How much of our Religion consisteth in this you may see in the nature of the thing in the design of the Law and Word of God in the doctrine and example of Jesus Christ in the description of the last judgement and in the common consent of all the world Though Love is the highest work of man yet is it so far from discharging Aristipâ—us rogatus aliquando quiâ— haberent ex mâ—um Philosophi Si omnes inquit leges interâ—ant aequabiliter vivemus Laâ—tius us from our subjection and obedience that it constraineth us to it most powerfully and most sweetly and must it self be judged of by these effects John 14. 15. If ye love me keep my Commandments 21. He that hath my Commandments and keepeth them he it is that loveth me 23. If any man love me he will keep my words and my Father will Love him and we will come unto him and make our abode with him 24. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings John 15. 10. If ye keep my Commandments ye shall abide in my Love even as I have kept my Fathers Commandments and abide in his Love 14. Ye are my friends if ye do whatsoever I command you John 13. 17. If ye know these things happy are ye if ye do them 1 John 5. 3. For this is the Love of God that ye keep his Commandments and his Commandments are not grievous 1 John 2. 4. He that saith I know him and keepeth not his Commandments is a lyar and the truth is not in him 5. But who so keepeth his word in him verily is the Love of God perfected hereby know we that we are in him 6. He that saith he is in him ought himself also to walk even as he walked 29. If ye know that he is Righteous you know that every one that doth Righteousness is born of him 1 John 3. 6. Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not whosoever sinneth hath not seen him neither known him 7. Little children let no man deceive you he that doth righteousness is righteous even as he is righeeous 8. He that committeth sin is of the Devil for the Devil sinneth from the beginning for this purpose the Son of God was manifested that he might destroy the works of the Devil 9. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin for his seed remaineth in him and he cannot sin because he is born of God 10. In this the children of God are manifest and the children of the Devil whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God 22. And whatsoever we ask we receive of him because we keep his Commandments and do those things that are pleasing in his sight Rev. 22. 14. Blessed are they that do his Commandments that they may have right to the Tree of Life and may enter in by the gates into the City I set together these testimonies of the Scripture that the stream of Divine authority may carry you to a lively sense of the necessity of Obedience § 2. I shall here first tell you what this full subjection is and then I shall Direct you how to attain it I. As in God there is first his Relation of our King and then his actual Government of us by his Laws and Iudgement so in us there is first our Relation of Subjects to God and then our actual obedience Subjection what We are Subjects by Divine obligation before we consent as Rebels are but our Consent or self-obligation is necessary to our Voluntary obedience and acceptation with God Subjection is our stated obligation to Obedience This subjection and habit of Obedience is then right and full 1. When the sense of Gods authority over us is Practical and not notional only 2. And when it is deep-rooted and fixed and become as a Nature to us As a mans intention of his End is that hath a long journey to go which carryeth him on to the last step or as a Childs subjection to his Parents or a Servant to his Master which is the Habit or principle of his daily course of life 3. When it is Lively and ready to put the soul upon obedience 4. When it is constant keeping the soul in a continual attendance upon the Will of God 5. When it hath universal respect to all his Commandments 6. When it is resolute powerful and victorious against temptations to disobedience 7. When it is superlative respecting God as our supream King and owning no authority against him nor any but what is subordinate to him 8. When it is Voluntary Pleasant Chearful and delectable to us to Obey him to the utmost of our Power § 3. II. To bring
the respects of his Goodness and Love as to our selves but highliest regarding himself for himself as carried to him above our selves § 10. 11. Though Love in its own Nature be still the same and is nothing but the Rational appetite of Good or the Wills Volition of Good apprehended by the understanding the first motion of the Will to Good arising from that Natural inclination to Good which is the Nature of the Will and the pondus animae the poise of the soul or from healing Grace which repaireth the breach that is made in nature Yet Love in regard of the state of the Lover and the way of its imperate acting is thus differenced 1. Either the Lover is in the Hopeful pursuit of the thing beloved and then it is DESIRING SEEKING LOVE 2 Or he is or seemeth to be denyed destitute and deprived of his beloved in whole or in part and then it is a MOURNING LAMENTING LOVE 3. Or he enjoyeth his beloved and then it is ENJOYING DELIGHTING LOVE 1. The ordinary Love which Grace causeth on Earth is a predominancy of seeking desiring Love encouraged Nobâ—â—us praestaâ— ius est Charitatem exertere in Deo quam virtures propter Deum Châ—â—â—â—tâ—s compâ—ndiosissima ad Deum via est per quam celeâ—â—ime in Deum perveniâ—ur nec sine Charitate aliqua viâ—tus supernaturaâ—ter homini sapit Charitas enim forma omnium virtutum est Per hoc Charitatis exercâ—tium homo ad tantâ—m 〈◊〉 aâ—ominationem venit ut non solum seipsum contemrat verum etiam se ab aliis contemni aequo animo ferat imo etiam ab aliis contemptus gaudâ—aâ— Thaulâ—rus flor c. 7. p. 114. by some little fore-tastes of enjoying delighting Love and in a great measure attended with Mourning Lamenting Love 2. The state of deserted dark declining relapsing and melancholy tempted Christians is A predominance of Mourning Lamenting Love assisted with some help of seeking desiring Love but destitute of enjoying delighting Love 3. The state of the Glorified is Perfection of enjoying delighting Love alone And all the rest are to bring us unto this III. The Reasons why Love to God is so great and high and necessary a thing and so much esteemed above other Graces are 1. It is the motion of the soul that tendeth to the End And the End is more excellent than all the Means as such 2. The Love or Will or Heart is the Man where the Heart or Love is there the Man is It is the fullest resignation of the whole man to God to Love him as God or offer him the Heart God never hath his Own fully till we Love him Love is the grand significant vital motion of the soul such as the Heart or Will or Love is such you may boldly call the man 3. The Love of God is the perfection and highest improvement of all the faculties of the soul and the End of all other Graces to which they tend and to which they grow up and in which they terminate their operations 4. The Love of God is that Spirit or life of moral excellency in all other Graces in which though not their form yet their acceptableness doth consist without which they are to God as a lifeless Carrion is to us And to prove any action sincere and acceptable to God is to prove that it comes from a Willing Loving mind without which you can never prove it 5. Love is the commander of the soul and therefore God knoweth that if he have our Hearts he hath all For all the rest are at its command For it is as it were the nature of the Will which is the commanding faculty and its Object is the Vltimate End which is the Commanding Object Love setleth the mind on Thinking the tongue on speaking the hands on working the feet on going and every faculty obeyeth its command 6. The obedience which Love commandeth participateth of its nature and is a ready chearful sweet obedience acceptable to God and pleasant to our selves 7. Love is a pure chaste and cleansing grace and most powerfully casteth out all creature Austi◠〈…〉 all 9. iâ— Iohn having shewed that among men it makeeth no one beautiful to Love one that is beautiful saith Anima nostio soeda est per inâ—quitatem amando Deum pulchra â—fficiâ—ur Qualâ—s amâ—r qui â—eddaâ— pulchrum amantem Deus semper Pater est amavit nos faedos ut ex saedis faceret pulchros Pulchri erimus amando enim qui pulcher est Quantum in â—e crescit Amor tantum crescit pulchritudo Quia ipsa Charitas animae pulchritudo est pollution from the soul The Love of God doth quench all carnal sinful love and most effectually carryeth up the soul to such high delights as causeth it to contemn and forget the toyes which it before admired 8. The Love of God is the true acknowledging and honouring him as good That blessed Attribute his GOODNESS is denyed or despised by those that Love him not The Light of the Sun would not be valued honoured or used by the world if there were no eyes in the world to see it And the Goodness of God is to them that Love him not as the Light to them that have no eyes If God would have had his Goodness to be thus unknown or neglected he would never have made the Intellectual creatures Those only give him the glory of his Goodness that truly Love him 9. Love in its attainment is the Enjoying and delighting Grace It is the very content and felicity of the soul Both as it maketh us capable to receive the most delightful communications of Gods Love to us and as it is the souls delightful closure with its most amiable felicitating object 10. Love is the Everlasting Grace and the work which we must be doing in Heaven for ever These are the the Reasons of Loves preheminence § 12. IV. The Love of Creatures hath its Contraries on both extreams in the excess and in the Defect But the Love of God hath no contrary in excess For infinite Goodness cannot possibly be Loved too much unless as the passion may possibly be raised to a degree distracting or disturbing the brain The odious Vices contrary to the Love of God are 1. Privative Not loving him 2. Positive Hating him 3. Opposite Loving his creatures in his stead All these concurr in every unsanctified soul. That they are all void of the true Love of God and taken up with creature Love is past all doubt But whether they are all Haters of God may seem more questionable But it is as certain as the other Only the hatred of God in most doth not break out into that open opposition persecution or blasphemy as it doth with some that are given up to desperate wickedness Nor do they think that they hate him But the Aversation of the Will is the Hatred of God And if men had not a great aversation to him they would not forsake him and
basest of the people whose poverty might tempt them to discontent nor set thee upon the pinnacle of worldly honour where giddiness might have been thy ruine and where temptations to pride and lust and luxury and enmity to a holy life are so violent that few escape them He hath not set thee out upon a Sea of cares and vexations worldly businesses and encumberances but fed thee with food convenient for thee and given thee leisure to walk with God He hath not chained thee to an unprofitable profession nor used thee as those that live like their beasts to eat and drink and sleep and play or live to live But he hath called thee to the noblest and sweetest work when that hath been thy business which others were glad to taste of as a recreation and repast He hath allowed thee to converse with Books and with the best and wisest men and to spend thy dayes in sucking in delightful knowledge And this not only for thy pleasure but thy use and not only for thy self but many others O how many sweet and precious truths hath he allowed thee to feed on all the day when others are diverted and commonly look at them sometimes a far off O how many precious hours hath he granted me in his holy Assemblies and in his honourable and most pleasant work How oft hath his Day and his holy uncorrupted Ordinances and the communion of his Saints and the mentioning of his Name and Kingdom and the pleading of his cause with sinners and the celebrating of his praise been my delight O how many hundreds that he hath sent have wanted the abundant encouragement which I have had When he hath seen the disease of my despondent mind he hath not tryed me by denying me success nor suffered me with Ionas according to my inclination to overrun his work but hath ticed me on by continued encouragements and strowed all the way with mercies But his mercies to me in the souls of others have been so great that I shall secretly acknowledge them rather than here record them where I must have respect to those usual mercies of believers which lye in the common road to Heaven And how endless would it be to mention all All the good that friends and enemies have done me All the wise and gracious disposals of his providence in every condition and change of life and change of times and in every place whereever he brought me His every dayes renewed merciâ—s His support under all my languishings and weakness his plentiful supplies his gracious helps his daily pardons and the Glorious Hopes of a blessed Immortality which his Son hath purchased and his Covenant and Spirit sealed to me O the mercies that are in One Christ one Holy Spirit one Holy Scripture and in the Blessed God himself These I have mentioned unthankful heart to shame thee for thy want of Love to God And these I will leave upon record to be a witness for God against thy ingratitude and to confound thee with shame if thou deny thy Love to such a God Every one of all these mercies and multitudes more will rise up against thee and shame thee before God and all the world as a monster of unkindness if thou Love not him that hath used thee thus Here also consider what God is for your future good as well as what he hath been hitherto How all sufficient how powerful merciful and good But of this more anon § 24. Direct 7. Improve the vanity and vexation of the Creature and all thy disappointments and Direct 7. injuries and afflictions to the promoting of thy Love to God And this by a double advantage First By observing that there is nothing meet to divert thy Love or rob God of it unless thou wilt Love thy trouble and distress Secondly That thy Love to God is the comfort by which thou must be supported under the injuries and troubles which thou meetest with in the world And therefore to neglect it is but to give up thy self to misery Is it for nothing O my soul that God hath turned loose the world against thee That Devils rage against thee and wicked men do reproach and slander thee and seek thy ruine and friends prove insufficient and as broken Reeds It had been as easie to God to have prospered thee in the world and suited all things to thy own desires and have strawed thy way with the flowers of worldly comforts and delights But he knew thy proneness to undo thy self by carnal loves and how easily thy heart is enticed from thy God And therefore he hath wisely and mercifully ordered it that thy temptations shall not be too strong and no creature shall appear to thee in an over-amiable tempting dress Therefore he hath suffered them to become thy enemies And wilt thou love an enemy better than thy God What! an envious and malicious world A world of cares and grief and pains a weary restless empty world How deep and piercing are its injuries How superficial and deceitful is its friendship How serious are its sorrows What toyish shews and dreams are its delights How constant are its cares and labours How seldome and short are its flattering smiles Its comforts are disgraced by the certain expectation of succeeding sorrows Its sorrows are heightned by the expectations of more In the midst of its flatteries I hear something within me saying Thou must dye This is but the way to rottenness and dust I see a Winding-sheet and a Grave still before me I foresee how I must lye in pains and groans and then become a lothesome corpse And is this a world to be more delighted in than God What have I left me for my support and solace in the midst of all this Vanity and Vexation but to look to him that is the All-sufficient sure never failing good I must love him or I have nothing to love but enmity or deceit And is this the worst of Gods design in permitting and causing my pains and disappointments here Is it but to drive my foolish heart unto himself that I may have the solid delights and happiness of his Love O then let his blessed will be done Come home my soul my wandering tired grieved soul Love where thy love shall not be lost Love him that will not reject thee nor deceive thee nor requite thee as the world doth with injuries and abuse Despair not of entertainment though the world deny it thee The peaceable region is above In the world thou must have trouble that in Christ thou maist have peace Retire to the harbour if thou wouldst be free from storms God will receive thee when the world doth cast thee off if thou heartily cast off the world for him O what a solace is it to the soul to be driven clearly from the world to God and there to be exercised in that sacred Love which will accompany us to the world of Love § 25. Direct 8. Labour for the truest
great Direct 13. a part of thy duty Is it not the sweetest employment in the world to be alwayes thinking on so sweet a thing as the mercies of God and to be mentioning them with glad and thankful hearts Is not this a sweeter kind of work than to be abusing mercie and casting it away upon fleshly lusts and sinning it away and turning it against us Yea is it not a sweeter work than to be groaning under sin and misery If God had as much fixt your thoughts upon sadning heart-breaking objects as he hath by his commands upon reviving and delighting objects you might have thought Religion a melancholly life But when sorrow is required but as preparatory to delight and chearful Thanksgiving is made the life and sum of your Religion who but a Monster will think it grievous to live in Thankfulness to our great Benefactor To think thus of the sweetness of it will do much to incline us to it and make it easie to us § 16. Direct 14. Make conscience ordinarily of allowing Gods mercies as great a room in thy Direct 14. Thoughts and Prayers as thou allowest to thy sins and wants and troubles In a day of humiliation or after some notable fall into sin or in some special cases of distress I confess sin and danger may have the greater share But ordinarily mercy should take up more time in our remembrance and confession than our sins Let the Reasons of it first convince you that this is your duty And when you are convinced hold your selves to the performance of it If you can not be so Thankfull as you desire yet spend as much time in the confessing of Gods Mercy to you as in confessing your sins and mentioning your wants Thanksgiving is an effectual petitioning for more It sheweth that the soul is not drowned in selfishness but would carry the fruit of all his mercies back to God If you cannot think on mercy so thankfully as you would yet see that it have a due proportion of your thoughts This course of allowing mercy its due time in our Thoughts and Prayers would work the soul to greater thankfulness by degrees Whereas on the contrary when men accustom themselves to have ten words or twenty of Confession and Petition for one of thanksgiving and ten thoughts of sins and wants and troubles for one of mercies this starveth thankfulness and turneth it out of doors You can command your words and thoughts if you will Resolve therefore on this duty § 17. Direct 15. Take heed of a proud a covetous a fleshly or a discontented mind for all Direct 15. these are enemies to Thankfulness A proud heart thinks it self the worthiest for more and thinks diminutively of all A covetous heart is still gaping after more and never returning the fruit of what it hath received A fleshly mind is an insatiable gulf of corporal mercies like a greedy Dog that is gaping for another bone when he hath devoured one and sacrificeth all to his belly which is his God Phil. 3. 18. A discontented mind is alwayes murmuring and never pleased but findeth something still to quarrel at and taketh more notice of the denying of its unjust desires than of the giving of many undeserved mercies Thankfulness prospereth not where these vices prosper § 18. Direct 16. Avoid as much as may be a Melancholy and over-fearful temper for that Direct 16. will not suffer you to see or taste your greatest mereits nor to be glad or thankful for any thing you have but is still representing all things to you in a terrible or lamentable shape The Grace of Thankfulness may be habitually in a timerous melancholly mind And that appeareth in their valuation of the Mercy How glad and thankful would they be if they were assured that the Love of God is towards them But it is next to impossible for them ordinarily to exercise thankfulness because they cannot believe any thing of themselves that is good and comfortable It is as natural for them to be still fearing and despairing and complaining and troubling themselves as for froward children to be crying or sick men to groan Befriend not therefore this miserable disease but resist it by all due remedies § 19. Direct 17. Take heed of all unthankful doctrines which teacheth you to deny or undervalue Direct 17. mercy Such is 1. The Doctrine of the Pelagians whom Prosper calleth the Ungratefull that denyed faith and special grace to be any special gift of God and that teach you that Peter is no more beholden to God than Iudas for his differencing grace 2. The Doctrine which denyeth general grace which is presupposed unto special and tells the world that Christ dyed only for the Elect and that all the mercy of the Gospel is confined to them alone and teacheth all men to deny God any thanks for Christ or any Gospel mercy till they know that they are elect and justified and would teach the wicked on Earth and in Hell that they ought not to accuse themselves for sinning against any Gospel mercy or for rejecting a Christ that dyed for them 3. All Doctrine which makes God the physical efficient predeterminer of every act of the creature considered in all its circumstances and so tells you that saving grace is no more nor no otherwise caused of God than sin and every natural act is and our thanks that we owe him for keeping us from sin is but for not irresistible pre-moving us to it Such Doctrines cut the veins of thankfulness and being not doctrines according to godliness the life of grace and spiritual sense of believers is against them § 20. Direct 18. Put not God off with verbal Thanks but give him thy self and all thou hast Direct 18. Thankfulness causeth the soul to enquire What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits towards me Psal. 116. 12. And it is no less than thy self and all thou hast that thou must render that is thou must give God not only thy Tythes and the Sacrifice of Cain but thy self to be entirely his servant and all that thou hast to be at his command and used in the order that he would have thee use it A thankful soul devoteth it self to God This is the living acceptable Sacrifice Rom. 12. 1. It studieth how to do him service and how to do good with all his mercies Thankfulness is a powerful spring of obedience and makes men long to be fruitful and profitable and glad of opportunities to be serviceable to God Thus Law and Gospel Obedience and Gratitude concur A thankful obedience and an obedient thankfulness are a Christians life Psal. 50. 14 15 23. Offer unto God thanksgiving and pay thy Vows to the Most High And call upon me in the day of trouble and I will deliver thee and thou shalt glorifie me Who so offereth praise glorifieth me and to him that ordereth his conversation aright I will shew the salvation of God
But the misery is that few of the ignorant and weak have knowledge and humility enough â—o pâ—rceive their ignorance and weakness but they think they speak as wisely as the best and are offended if their words be not reverenced accordingly As a Minister should study and labour for a skill and ability to preach because it is his work so every Christian should study for skill to discourse with wisdom and meet expressions about holy things because this is his work And as unfit expressions and behaviour in a Minister do cause contempt instead of edifying so do they in discourse § 31. Direct 10. When ever Gods holy Name or Word is blasphemed or used in levity or jeast Direct 10. or a holy life is made a scorn or God is notoriously abused or dishonoured be ready to reprove it with gravity where you can and where you cannot at least let your detestation of it be conveniently manifested Of Prayer I have spoken aâ—terwaâ—d Among those to whom you may freely speak lay open the greatness of their sin Or if you are unable for long or accurate discourse at least tell them who hath said Thou shalt Tom. 2. c. not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his Name in vain And where your speech is unmeet as to some Superiours or is like to do more harm than good let your departing the room or your looks or rather your tears shew your dislike Directions for the glorifying God in our Lives § 32. Direct 1. Our Lives then glorifie God when they are such as his Excellencies most appear in Direct 1. And that is when they are most Divine or Holy when they are so managed that the world may see that Turâ—issimum est Philosopho secus docere quam viviâ— Paul Scaligâ—r p. 728. it is God that we have chiefly respect unto and that HOLINESS TO THE LORD is written upon all our faculties and affairs So much of GOD as appeareth in our lives so much they are truly venerable and advanced above the rank of fleshly worldly lives God only is the real glory of every person and every thing and every word or action of our lives And the natural conscience of the world which in despight of their Atheism is forced to confess and reverence a Deity will be forced even when they are hated and persecuted to reverence the appearance of God in his holy ones Let it appear therefore 1. That Gods Authority commandeth you above all the powers of the earth and against all the power of fleshly lusts 2. That it is the Glory and Nam illa quae de regno calorum commâ—mâ—rantur à nâ—bâ—â— dâ—que praesentâ—um reâ—um contâ—mpâ—u vel non caâ—â—unt vel non â—aâ—â—le sibi peâ—suadeâ—t cum sâ—rmo factis evertitur Interest of God that you live for and look after principally in the world and not your own carnal interest and glory And that it is his work that you are doing and not your own and his cause and not your own that you are engaged in 3. That it is his Word and Law that is your Rule 4. And the example of his Son that is your pattern 5. And that your hearts and lives are moved and acted in the world by motives fetcht from the Rewards which he hath promised and the punishments which he hath threatned in the world to come 6. And that it is a supernatural powerful principle sent from God into your hearts even the Holy Ghost by which you are inclined and actuated in the tenor of your lives 7. And that your daily converse is with God and that men and other creatures are comparatively nothing to you but are made to stand by while God is preferred and honoured and served by you and that all your business is with him or for him in the world Acâ—staâ—l 4. c. 18. p. 418. § 33. Direct 2. The more of Heaven appeareth in your Lives the more your Lives do glorifie God Worldly and carnal men are conscious that their glory is a vanishing glory and their pleasure but a transitory dream and that all their honour and wealth will shortly leave them in the dust And Direct 2. therefore they are forced in despight of their sensuality to bear some reverence to the life to come And though they have not hearts themselves to deny the pleasures and profits of the world and to spend their dayes in preparing for eternity and in laying up a treasure in Heaven yet they are convinced that those that do so are the best and wisest men and they could wish that they might dye the death of the righteous and that their last end might be like his As Heaven exceedeth Earth even in the reverent acknowledgement of the World though not in their practical esteem and choice so Heavenly Christians have a reverent acknowledgement from them when malice doth not hide their Heavenliness by slanders though they will not be such themselves Let it appear in your lives that really you seek a higher happiness than this world affordeth and that you verily look to live with Christ and that as Honour and Wealth and Pleasure command the lives of the ungodly so the hope of Heaven commandeth yours Let it appear that this is your design and business in the world and that your Hearts and conversation are above and that whatever you do or suffer is for this and not for any lower end and this is a life that God is glorified by § 34. Direct 3. It glorifieth God by shewing the excellency of faith when we contemn the riches Direct 3. and honours of the world and live above the worldlings life accounting that a despicable thing which he accounts his happiness and loseth his soul for As men despise the toyes of children so a believer must take the transitory vanities of this world for matters so inconsiderable as not to be worthy his regard save only as they are the matter of his duty to God or as they relate to him or the life to come Saith Paul 2 Cor. 4. 18. We look not at the things which are seen they are not worth our observing or looking at but at the things which are not seen For the things which are seen are temporal but the things which are not seen are eternal The world is under a believers feet while his eye is fixed on the coelestial world He travelleth through it to his home and he will be thankful if his way be fair and if he have his daily bread but it is not his home nor doth he make any great matter whether his usage in it be kind or unkind or whether his Inn be well adorned or not He is almost indifferent whether for so short a time he be rich or poor in a high or in a low condition further than as it tendeth to his Masters service Let men see that you
have it No nor with any perfection of your intellectual nature meerly as such and for your selves without the Pleasing and Glorifying God in it If you practically perceive that every thing is therefore and so far Good and Amiable as God shineth in it as its cause or as it conduceth to Glorifie him and Please his Will If accordingly you Love that person best on whom you perceive most of God and that is most serviceable to him though not at all beneficial to your self If you Love the wellfare of the Church the Kingdom the World and of the Heavenly society Saints Angels and Christ as the Divine Nature interest Image or impress maketh all Lovely in their several degrees and would rather be annihilated were it put upon your choice than Saints Angels Kingdoms Church should be annihilated If your hearts have devoted themselves and all that you have to God as his own to be used to his utmost service If your chief desire and endeavour in the world be to please his blessed will and in that will and the comtemplation of his infinite perfections you seek your rest If you desire your own everlasting happiness in no other kind but as consisting in the perfect sight of Gods Glory and in your perfect Loving of him and being pleasant or beloved to him and this as resting more in the Infinite Amiableness of God than the felicity which hence will follow to your selves though that also must be desired If now you deny your own glory for his Glory if your chief desire and endeavour be to Love him more and more and you Love your selves best when you Love him most In a word If nothing more take up your care than how to Love God more and nothing in the whole world your self or others seem more Amiable to your sober practical judgement and your wills than the Infinite Goodness of God as such If all this be so you have not only attained sincerity which is not now the question but this Divine nature and high confirmed Holiness Though withall you never so much desire your own salvation which is but to desire more of this Love And though your Nature have such a sensitive selfish desire of Life and Pleasure as is brought into subjection to this Divine Love If any be offended that so many propositions must be used in opening the case and say that they rather confound mens witts than inform them I Answer 1. The matter is high and I could not ascend by a shorter ladder Nor have I the faculty of climbing it per saltum stepping immediately from the lowest to the highest part If any will make the case plainer in fewer words and with less ado I shall thankfully accept his labour as a very great benefit when I see it 2. Either all these particulars are really diverse and really pertinent to the matter in question or not If not it is not blaming the number that will evince it but naming such particulars as are either unjustly or unnecessarily either distinguished or inserted And if it be but repeating the same things that is blamed I shall be glad if all these words and more would make such weighty cases clear and do confess that after all I need more light and am allmost stalled with the difficulties my self But if the particulars can be neither proved false nor needless but the Reader be only overset with multitude I would intreat him to be patient with other men that are more laborious and more capable of knowledge And let him know that if his difficulties do not rather engage him in a diligent search than tempt him to impatience and accusation I number him not only with the slothful contemners but therefore also with the enemies of knowledge even as I reckon the neglecters and contemners and accusers of Piety among its enemies But ere I end I must answer some Objections Object 1. Some will say Doth not every man Love God above himself and all while he knoweth him to be Better and so more Lovely For there is some Act of the will that answereth this of the understanding Answ. 1. You must know that the carnal mind is first captivated to carnal self and sensuality And therefore the most practical and powerful apprehensions of Goodness or Amiableness in every such person doth fasten upon Life and Pleasure or sensual prosperity And the sense having here engaged the mind and will the contrary conclusions that God is Best are but superficial and uneffectual like dreams and though they have answerable effects in the will they are but uneffectual velleities or wishes which are born down with far stronger desires of the contrary And though God be loved as one that is notionally conceived to be Best and Most to be Loved yet he is not loved Best or Most Yea though ordinarily the understanding say God is Best and Best to me and for me and Most to be loved when it cometh to volition or choice there is a secret apprehension which saith more powerfully hic nunc this sensible pleasure is Better for me and more eligible Why else is it chosen Unless you will say that the motion is principally sensitive and the force of the sensitive Appetite suspendeth all forcible opposition of the Intellect and so ruleth the Locomotive facultie it self But whether the Intellect be Active or but Omissive in it the sin cometh up to the same height of evil However it be it is most evident that while such men say God is most to be Loved they love him not most when they will not leave a lust or known sin for his Love Nor shew any such love but the contrary in their lives Object 2. But do not all men practically Love God best when they Love Wisdom Honesty and Goodness in all men Even in strangers that will never profit them And what is God but Wisdom Goodness and Greatness it self Answ. They first Idolize themselves and their sensual delights and then they Love such Wisdom Goodness and Greatness as is suitable to their self ish sensual lust and interest And it is not the Prime Good which is above them and to be preferred before them which they love as such but such Goodness as is fitted to their fleshly concupiscence and ends And therefore Holiness they Love not And though they love that which is never like to benefit them that is but as it is of the same kind with that which in others nearer them may benefit them and therefore is suitable to their minds and interest And yet we confess that the mind of man hath some principles of virtue and some footsteps and witnesses of a Deity left upon it But though these work up to an approbation of Good and a dislike of evil in the General notion of it and in particulars so far as it crosseth not their Lust yet never to prefer the Best things practically before their Lust And God is not Loved Best nor as God
all that he hath to do with If there were Laws or Canons to be made he would have the making of them He would have all men take his counsel as an Oracle He would have all the world of his opinion and sets more by those that thus esteem him and are of his opinion and yield to all that he saith and doth than by those that most earnestly desire to conform their minds to the Word of God and differ from him in the understanding of any part of it He loveth them better that enquire of him and take his word than them that enquire of the Word of God Though he cannot deny but it is Gods Prerogative to be infallible and the Rule of the world § 27. Sign 17. A proud man affecteth the reputation of Gods Immutability as well as his Infallibility Sign 17. He will stand to an error when once he hath vented it and resist the Truth when once he hath appeared against it to avoid the dishonour of being accounted Mutable or one that formerly was deceived His pride keepeth him from Repenting of any fault or error that he can but find a cloak for If he have done wrong to God and mischief to the Church he will do as much more to make it good and justifie it by any cruelty or violence If he have once done you wrong he will do more for fear of seeming to have wronged you If he have slandered you he will stab or hang you if he can to justifie his slander rather than seem so mutable as to retract it § 28. Sign 18. A proud man affecteth a participation of Gods Omniscience and is eager to know Sign 18. more than God revealeth if he be an enquiring man whose pride runneth this way Thus our first Parents sinned by desiring to be as God in knowledge This hath filled the world with proud contentions and the Church with divisions while proud Wits heretically make things unrevealed the matter of their ostentation imposition censures or furious disputes while humble souls are taken up in studying and practising things revealed and keep themselves within Gods bounds as knowing that God best knoweth the measure fittest for them and that knowledge is to be desired and sought but so far as it is useful to our serving or enjoying God and the Good which Truth revealeth to us and that knowledge may else become our sorrow Eccles. 1. 1 8. and Truth the instrument to torment us as it doth the miserable souls in Hell § 29. Sign 19. A proud man is discontented with his Degree especially if it be low He would be Sign 19. higher in power and honour and wealth yea he is never so high but he would fain be one step higher If he had a Kingdom he would have another and if he had the Dominions of the Turkish or Tartarian Emperour he would desire to enlarge them and to have more and would not be satisfied till he had all the world Men feel not this in their low condition They think If I had but so much or so much I would be content But this is their ignorance of the insatiable Pride that dwelleth in them Do you not see the greatest Emperours on Earth still seeking to be greater Every man naturally would be a Pope the Universal Monarch of the world And every such Pope would have both Swords and have Princes and people wholly at their will And when they have no mind to hurt they would have power to hurt that all the world might hold their Estates and Liberties and Lives as by their clemency and gift and they might be as God to other men And if they had attained this Pride would not stop till it had caused them to aspire to all the prerogatives of God and to depose him and dethrone him of his Godhead and Majesty that they might have his place § 30. Sign 20. A proud man would fain have Gods Independency Though need make him stoop Sign 20. yet he would willingly be beholden to none Not only because in prudence he would keep his liberty and not be unnecessarily the servant of men nor under obligations to serve them in any evil way For so the humblest would fain be Independant But because he would be so great and high as to scorn to lean on any other Thus you see how Pride is that great Idolatry that sets up man as in the place of God Signs of the next Degrees of Pride as against God § 31. Sign 1. A Proud heart is very hardly brought to see the greatness of its sins or to know its Sign 1. emptiness of Grace or to be convinced of its unpardoned miserable state or of the Justice of God Men sick in mind as witless fools and loose persons and unjust and injurious think noâ— that that they do amâ—ss and sin c. Plutarâ—h Tract thaâ— Maladies oâ— the mind are worse than those of the body if he should damn it to everlasting torments Concerning others it may confess all this but hardly of it self It s own unbelief and aversness from God and holiness seemeth to it a small and tollerable fault It s own pride and lust and worldliness and sensuality seem not to be so bad as to deserve damnation Much less the smallest sin which it committeth Though customarily they may say that God were just if he did condemn them yet they believe it not at the heart The most convincing Preacher shall have much ado to bring a proud man heartily to confess that he is an enemy to God a child of wrath and under the guilt of all his sins and sure to be condemned unless he be converted He will confess that he is a sinner or any thing else which the most godly must confess or which doth not conclude him to be in a damnable unrenewed state But to make an ungodly man know that he is ungodly and an impenitent person know that he is impenitent and and unsanctified person know that he is unsanctified is wonderful hard because that Pride hath dominion in them Are we blind also Say the proud incorrigible Pharisees to Christ Ioh. 9. 40. § 32. Sign 2. A proud heart doth so much overvalue all that is in it self that every common Sign 2. grace or duty doth seem to it to be a state of godliness Their common knowledge seemeth to them to be saving illumination Every little sorrow for their sin or wish that they had done better when they have had all the sweetness of it doth go with them for true Repentance Their heartless lip-labour goes for acceptable prayer Their Image of Religion seemeth to them to be the life of godliness They take their own presumption for true faith and their false expectation for Christian Hope and their carnal security and blockish stupidity for spiritual peace of conscience and their desperate venturing their souls upon deceit they take for a Trusting them with God If they forbear but such
the Christian faith and in taking better Rooting than you had at your first believing and in growing upward into a greater knowledge of God and into greater Love of him and heavenly mindedness and then in growing up to greater skill and ability and readiness to do him service in the world Know as much as you can know of the works of God and of the languages and customs of the world but still remember that to know God in Christ better is the growth which you must daily study And when you know them most you have still much more need to know better these great things which you know already than to know more things which you never knew The Roots of faith may still increase and the branches and fruits of Love may be still greater and sweeter As long as you live you may still know better the Reasons of your Religion though not better Reasons and you may know better how to use your knowledge And whatever you know let it be that you may be led up to Know God more or Love him more or serve him better § 11. Direct 5. With fear and detestation watch and resolve against all carnal worldly ends and see that your hearts be not captivated by your fleshly interest nor grow not to a high esteem of the pleasures or profits or honours of this world nor to relish any fleshly accommodations as very pleasant and desirable but that you take up with God and the hopes of Glory as your satisfying portion and follow Christ as Cross-bearers denying your selves and dead to the world and resolved and prepared to forsake all for his sake § 12. These are words that you can easily say your selves but these are things that are so hardly Direct 5. learnt that many of the most Learned and Reverend perish for want of being better acquainted with them And I shall never take that man to be wisely learned that hath not learnt to scape damnation Christs Cross is to be learned before your Alphabet To impose the Cross is quickly learnt but to learn to bear it is the difficulty To lay the Cross on others is to be the followers of Pilate but to bear it when it is laid on us is to be the followers of Christ. If you grow corrupted with a love of honour and riches and preferment and come to the study of Divinity with a fleshly worldly mind and End you will but serve Satan while you seem to be seeking after God and damn your souls among the doctrines and means of salvation and go to God for materials to chain you faster to the Devil and steal a nail from Divinity to fasten your ears unto his door And you little know how Iudas's gain will gripe and torment the awakened Conscience and how the rust will witness against you and how it will eat your flesh as fire Iam. 5. 3. § 13. Direct 6. Digest all that you know and turn it into holy Habits and expect that success Direct 6. first on your selves which if you were to Preach you would expect in others Remembring that knowing Primum contemplativae sapientiae rudimentum est meditati condisceâ—e loquitari dediscere Paul Scalig. Thes. p. 730. is not the end of knowing but it is as eating to the body where health and strength and service is the end § 14. Every Truth of God is his candle which he sets up for you to work by It is as food that is for Life and action You lose all the knowledge which ends in knowing To fill your head and common-place-book is not all that you have to do But to fortifie and quicken and enflame your hearts Good habits are the best provision for a Preacher The habits of the Mind are better than the best library But if the Habits of Heavenly love and life in the heart do not concur the Heart and life of a Preacher and a Scholar is wanting still for all your knowledge Study Pauls words 1 Cor. 8. 1. Knowledge pusseth up but charity edifieth If he had said that knowledge edifieth others and charity saveth our selves he would have said nothing that is strange But even as to edification charity hath the precedency § 15. Direct 7. Yea see that you excell the unlearned as much in Holiness as you do in knowledge Direct 7. unless you will perswade them that your knowledge is a useless worthless thing and unless you would be judged as unprofitable servants § 16. Every degree of Knowledge is for a further degree of Holiness Ten Talents must be improved to ten more They that know and do not are beaten with many stripes The Devils Schoars look on the godly that are unlearned with hatred and disdain and preach to their discouragement and disgrace and strive to set and keep true Godliness in the stocks But Christs Ministers love Holiness where ever they see it and are ashamed to think that the unlearned should be more holy and heavenly than they and strive to go beyond them as much in the use and ends of knowledge as in knowledge it self And with Austin lament that while the unlearned take Heaven by violence the learned are thrust out into Hell as thinking it is their part to know and teach and other mens to practise § 17. Direct 8. Cast not away a moment of your pretious time in idleness or impertinencies but Direct 8. follow your work diligently and with all your might § 18. I mean not that you should over-do and overthrow your brains and bodies nor forbear such sober exercise as is most necessary to your health For a sick body is an ill companion for a Student and much more a crazed brain But time-wasters are Lovers of pleasure or idleness more than of knowledge and holiness And wisdom falleth not into idle sluggish dreaming souls If you think it not worth your painfullest and closest studies you must take up with idle ignorance and go abroad with swelling Titles and empty brains as the deceivers and the scourges of the Church § 19. Direct 9. Keep up a Delight in all your studies and carry them not on in an unwilling weariness Direct 9. And if it be not by notable error in matter or method gratifie your delight with such things as you are best pleased with though they bring some smaller inconvenience because else your weariness may bring much more § 20. I know that a delight in sin and vanity is not to be gratified and force must be used with a backward mind in cases of necessity and weight But if it be but in the variety of subjects and the choice of pleasing studies which are profitable though simply some other might be fitter something is to be yielded to delight But especially the heart must be got to a delight in holy things And then time will be improved the memory will be helped much will be done and you will persevere And it will preserve the mind from temptations
use And though I cannot say that Grace immediately maketh any alteration on the senses yet mediately it doth by altering the mind and so the Will and then the imagination and so the sensitive appetite and so in exercise the sense it self We see that Temperance and Chastity do not only restrain but take down the appetite from the rage and violence which before it had Not the natural appetite but the sensitive so far as it is sinful § 2. The Sanctifying and Government of the senses and their appetite lyeth in two parts First In guarding them against the entrance of sin and Secondly In using them to be the entrance of good into the soul. But this latter is so high a work that too few are skilled in it and few can well perform the other § 3. Direct 1. The principal part of the work is about the superiour faculties to get a well informed Direct 1. judgement and a holy and confirmed will and not about the sense it self Reason is dethroned by sin and the will is left unguided and unguarded to the rapes of sensual violence Reason must be restored before sense will be well governed for what else must be their immediate Governour It is no sin in Brutes to live by sense because they have not Reason to rule it And in man it is ruled more or less as reason is more or less restored When Reason is only cleared about things temporal as in men of worldly wisdom there sense will be mastered and ruled as to such temporal ends as far as they require it But where Reason is sanctified there sense is ruled to the ends of sanctification according to the measure of grace § 4. Direct 2. It is only the high eternal things of God and our salvation objectively setled in the Direct 2. mind and will and become as it were connatural to them and made our Ruling End and interest that can suffice to a true and holy Government of the senses Lower things may muzzle them and make men seem temperate and sober as far as their honour and wealth and health and life require it But this is but stopping a gap while most of the hedge lyeth open and an engaging the sense to serve the Flesh the World and the Devil in a hansome calm and less dishonoured way and not so filthily and furiously as others § 5. Direct 3. The main part of this Government in the exercise is in taking special care that no Direct 3. sensitive good be made the ultimate End of our desire nor sought for it self nor rested in nor delighted in too much but to see that the soul having first habitually fixed on its proper higher end and happiness dâ— direct all the actions of every sense so far as it falls under deliberation and choice to serve it remotely to those holy ends For the sense is not sanctified if it be not used to a holy end and its object is not sanctified to us if it be not made serviceable to more holy objects A meer negative restraint of sense for common ends is but such as those ends are for which it s done When the eyes and ears and taste and feeling are all taught by reason to serve God to his glory and our salvation then and never till then they are well governed § 6. Direct 4. To this End the constant use of a lively belief of the Word of God and the things unseen Direct 4. of the other world must be the first and principal means by which our Reason must govern every sense bâ—th aâ— to their restraint and their right employment And therefore living by sight and living by faith are opposed in Scripture 2 Cor. 5. 7. For we walk by faith not by sight that is sight and sense is not our principal guiding faculty but subservient to faith nor the objects of sight the things which we principally or ultimately seek or set by but the objects of faith As it is before expounded 2 Cor. 4. 18. While we look not at the things which are seen but at the things which are not seen For the things which are seen are temporal but the things which are not seen are eternal Therefore Faith is described to be the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen Heb. 12. 1. Believing is to a Christian instead of seeing because he knoweth by Gods testimony that the things believed are true though they are unseen And you know that the objects of sense are all but trifles to the great astonishing objects of faith Therefore if faith be lively it must needs prevail and over-rule the senses because its objects utterly cloud and make nothing of the transitory objects of sense Therefore the Apostle Iohn saith 1 John 5. 4. Whatsoever is bâ—rn of God overcometh the world and this is the victory that overcometh the world even our faith And Moses by seeing him that is invisible overcame the desires of Aegypts treasures and the fear of the wrath of the King Heb. 11. 26 27. having respect to the recompence of reward Stephen easily bore his cruel death when he saw Heaven opened and Christ standing at the right hand of God Acts 7. 56. I dare appeal to that man that is most sensual and saith I am nâ—t able to deny my appetite or rule my senses whether he would not be able if he did but see at the same time what 's done in the other world If he saw Heaven and Hell the glorified and the damned and saw the Majesty of that God who commandeth him to forbear would he not then be able to let alone the Cup the Dish the Harlot the Sport which is now so powerful with him I would not thank the most beastly sensualist among you to live as temperately as to the act as the strictest Saint alive if he did but see the worlds which departed souls now see It is not possible but it would overpower his sensual desires yea and call off those senses to serve him in some enquiry what he should do to be saved Therefore if Believing the unseen world be instead of seeing it with our eyes its most certain that the means to overcome sensuality is faith and lively Belief must rule our senses § 7. Direct 5. The more this Belief of God and glory doth kindle Love to them the more effectual in Direct 5. will be in the Government of the senses Our common Proverb saith Where the Love is there is the Fye How readily doth it follow the heart Love will not alter the sense it self but it commandeth the Use of all the senses It will not clear a dimm decayed sight but it will command it what to look upon As the stronger love of one dish or one sport or one company will carry you from another which you love more faintly so the Love of God and Heaven and Holiness will carry you from the captivity of all sensual things § 8.
Direct 6. It must be well considered how powerful and dangerous things sensible are and how Direct 6. high and hard a work it is in this our depraved earthly state to live by faith upon things unseen and to rule the sense and be carryed above it that so the soul may be awakened to a sufficient fear and watchfulness and may fly to Christ for assistance to his faith It is no small thing for a man in flesh to live above flesh The way of the souls reception and operation is so much by the senses here that its apt to grow too familiar with things sensible and to be strange to things which it never saw It s a great work to make a man in flesh to deny the pleasures which he seeth and tasteth and feeleth for such pleasures as he only heareth of and heareth of as never to be enjoyed till after death in a world which sense hath no acquaintance with O what a glory it is to faith that it can perform such a work as this How hard is it to a weak believer And the strongest find it work enough Consider this that it may awake you to set upon this work with that care that the greatness of it requireth and you may live by faith above a life of sight and sense For it is this that your Happiness or misery lyeth on § 9. Direct 7. Sense must not only be kept out of the Throne but from any participation in the Government Direct 7. and we must take heed of receiving it into our counsels or treating with it or hearing it plead its cause and we must see that it get nothing by striving importunity or violence but that it be governed despotically and absolutely as the Horse is governed by the Rider For if the Government once be halved between sense and reason your lives will be half bestial And when Reason ruleth not Faith and Grace ruleth not For faith is to reason as sight is to the eye There are no such Beasts in humane shape who lay by all the use of Reason and are governed by sense alone unless it be idcots or madmen But sense should have no part of the Government at all And where it is chief in power the Devil is there the unseen Governour You cannot here excuse your selves by any plea of necessity or corstcaint For though the sense be violent as well as entising yet God hath made the Reason and Will the absolute Governours under him and by all its rebellion and violence sense cannot depose them nor force them to one sin but doth all the mischief by procuring their consent Which is done sometime by affecting the fantasâ—e and passions too deeply with the pleasure and alluring sweetness of their objects that so the higher faculties may be drawn into consent and sometime by wearying out the resisting mind and will and causing them to remit their opposition and relax the reins and by a sinful privatiâ—n of restraint to permit the sense to take its course A head-strong Horse is not so easily ruled as one of a tender mouth that hath been well ridden And therefore though it be in the power of the Rider to rule him yet sometime for his own case he will loose the reins and a Horse that is used thus by a slothful or unskilful Rider to have his will when ever he striveth will strive when ever he is crossed of his will and so will be the Master As ill-bred Children that are used to have every thing given them which they cry for will be sure to cry before they will be crost of their desire So is it with our sensitive appetite If you use to satisfie it when it is eager or importunate you shall be mastered by its eagerness and importunity And if you use but to regard it over much and delay your commands till sense is heard and taken into counsel it s two to one but it will prevail or ar least will be very troublesome to you and prove a traytor in your bosome and its temptations keep you in continual danger Therefore be sure that you never loose the reins but keep sense under a constant government if you love either your safety or your ease § 10. Direct 8. You may know whether Sense or Faith and Reason be the chief in Government by Direct 8. knowing which of their objects is made your chiefest End and accounted your Best and loved and delighted in and sought accordingly If the objects of sense be thus taken for your Best and End then certainly sense is the chief in Government But if the objects of faith and Reason even God and life eternal be taken for your Best and End then faith and reason are the ruling power Though you should use never so great understanding and policy for sensual things as Riches and honour and worldly greatness or fleshly delights this doth not prove that Reason is the ruling power but proveth the ☜ more strongly that sense is the Conquerour and that Reason is depraved and captivated by it and truckleth under it and serveth it as a voluntary slave And the greater is your learning wit and parts and the nobler your education the greater is the victory and dominion of sense that can subdue and rule and serve it self by parts so noble § 11. Direct 9. Though sense must be thus absolutely ruled its proper power must neither be disabled Direct 9. prohibited nor denyed You must keep your Horse strong and able for his works though not head-strong and unruly And you must not keep him from the use of his strength though you grant him not the Government Nor will you deny but that he may be stronger than the Rider though the Rider have the ruling power He hath more of the power called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 natural power though the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 be yours So is it here 1. No man must destroy his bodily sense The quickest sense is the best servant to the soul if it be not headstrong and too impetuous The Body must be stricken so far as to be kept under and brought into subjection 1 Cor. 9. 27. but not be disabled from its service to the soul 2. Nor must we forbid or forbear the exercise of the senses in subordination to the exercise of the interior senses Heb. 4. 14. It is indeed a smaller loss to part with a right hand or a right eye than with our salvation But that proveth not that we are put to such streights as to be necessitated to either unless persecution put us to it 3. Nor must we deny the certainty of the sensitive apprehension when it keepeth its place as the Papists do that affirm it necessary to salvation to believe that the sight and taste and smell and feeling of all men in the world that take the Sacrament are certainly deceived in taking that to be Bread and Wine which is not so For if all the senses of all
men though never so sound and rational be certainly deceived in this we know not when they are not deceived and there can be no certainty of faith or knowledge For if you say that the Church telleth us that sense is deceived in this and only in this Deny not sense with the Papists I answer If it be not first granted that sense as so stated is certain in its apprehension there is no certainty then that there is a Church or a man or a world or what the Church ever said or any member of it And if sense be so fallible the Church may be deceived who by the means of sense doth come to all her knowledge To deny faith is the property of an Infidel To deny Reason is to deny Humanity and is fittest for a mad man or a Beast if without reason reason could be denyed But to deny the certainty of sense it self and of all the senses of all sound men and that about the proper objects of sense this sheweth that ambition can make a Religion which shall bring man quite below the Beasts and make him a Mushrome that Rome may have subjects capable of her Government and all this under pretence of honouring faith and saving souls Making God the destroyer of nature in order to its perfection and the deceiver of nature in order to its ☜ edification § 12. Direct 10. Sense must not be made the Iudge of matters that are above it as the proper objects Direct 10. of faith and reason nor must we argue negatively from our senses in such cases which God in nature never brought into their Court. We cannot say that there is no God no Heaven no Hell no Angels no souls of men because we see them not We cannot say I see not the Antipodes nor other Kingdoms of the world and therefore there is no such place so we say as well as the Papists that sense is no Judge whether the spiritual body of Christ be present in the Sacrament no more than whether an Angel be here present But sense with reason is the Judge whether bread and Wine be there present or else humane understanding can judge of nothing Christ would have had Thomas to have believed without seeing and feeling and blesseth those that neither see him nor feel and yet believe but he never blesseth men for believing contrary to the sight and feeling and taste of all that have sound senses and understandings in the world Their instance of the Virgins conception of Christ is nothing contrary to this For it belongeth not to sense to judge whether a Virgin may conceive Nor will any wise mans Reason judge that the Creator who in making the world of nothing was the only cause cannot supply the place of a partial second cause in Generation They might more plausibly argue with Aristotle against the Creation it self that ex nihilo nihil fit but as it is past doubt that the infallibility of sense is nothing at all concerned in this so it is sufficiently proved by Christians that God can create without any pre-existent matter Reason can see much further than sense by the help of sense and yet much further by the help of Divine Revelation by faith To argue Negatively against the conclusions of Reason or Divine Revelation from the meer negation of sensitive apprehension is to make a Beast of man We must not be so irrational or impious as to say that there is nothing but what we have seen or felt or tasted c. If we will believe others who have seen them that there are other parts of the world we have full Reason to believe the sealed testimony of God himself that there are such superiour worlds and powers as he hath told us We have the use of sense in hearing or seeing Gods revelation and we have no more in receiving mans report of those Countreys which we never saw § 13. If they will make it the Question whether the sense may not be deceived I answer we doubt not by distance of the objects or distempers or disproportions of it self or the Media it may But if the sense it self and all the means and objects have their natural soundness aptitude and disposition it is a contradiction so say it is deceived for that is to say it is not the sense which we suppose it is If God deceive it thus he maketh it another thing It is no more the same nor will admit the same definition But however it is most evident that the senses being the first entrance or inlet of knowledge the first certainty must be there which is presupposed to the certain judgement of the intellect But if these err all following certainty which supposeth the certainty of the senses is destroyed And this error in the first reception like an error in the first concoction is not rectified by the second And if God should thus leave all men under a fallibility of sense he should leave no certainty in the world and I desire those that know the definition of a lye to consider whether this ☞ be not to feign God to lye in the very frame of nature and by constant lyes to rule the world when yet it is impossible for God to lye And if this Blasphemy were granted them yet it would be mans duty still to judge by such senses as he hath about the objects of sense For if God have made them fallible we cannot make them better Nor can we create a Reason in our selves which shall not presuppose the judgement of sense or which shall-supply its ordinary natural defects So that the Roman faith of Transubstantiation denying the reality of Bread and Wine doth not only unman the world but bring man lower than a Beast and make sense to be no sense and the world to be governed by natural deceit or lyes and banish all certainty of faith and reason from the Earth and after all ☞ with such wonderful enmity to charity as maketh man liker the Devil than else could easily be believed they sentence all to Hell that believe not this and decree to burn them first on earth and to depose Temporal Lords from their dominions that favour them or that will not exterminate them from their Lands and so absolve their Subjects from their Allegiance and give their Dominions to others All this you may read in the third Canon of the Laterane General Council under Innocent 3. § 14. Direct 11. Look not upon any object of sense with sense alone nor stop not in it but let reason Direct 11. begin where sense doth end and alwayes see by faith or reason the part which is invisible as well as the sensible part by sense By that which is seen collect and rise up to that which is unseen It God had given us an eye or ear or taste or feeling and not a mind then we should have exercised no other faculty but what we had But sure he
to it 14. To defend the cause of the just and innocent and vindicate them against false accusers and excuse those causes and persons that deserve excuse 15. To communicate and convey to others the same good impressions and affections of mind which God hath wrought on us and not only the bare truths themselves which we have received 16. Lastly To be instruments of common converse of expressing our mutual affections and respects and transacting all our worldly business for learning arts manufactures c. These are the Uses and Duties of the Tongue § 11. Direct 3. Understand and remember what are the sins of the Tongue to be avoided And they Direct 3. are very many and many of them very great The most observable are these The sins of the Tongue § 12. 1. Not to say any more of the sins of omission because it is easie to know them when I have named the Duties which are done or omitted among the sins of Commission the first that I shall name is Blasphemy as being the greatest which is the Reproaching of God to speak contemptuously of God or to vilifie him or dishonour him by the denying of his perfections and to debase him by false Titles Doctrines Images Resemblances as likening him to man in any of our imperfections any thing that is a Reproaching of God is Blasphemy Such as Rabshakeh used when he threatned Hezekiah and such as Infidels and Hereticks use when they deny his Omnipresence Omniscience Government Justice particular Providence or Goodness and affirm any evil of him as that he is the author of sin or false of his word or that he governeth the world by meer deceit or the like § 13. 2. Another sin of the Tongue is false Doctrine or teaching things false and dangerous as from God If any falsly say he had such or such a point by Divine Inspiration Vision or Revelation that maketh him a false Prophet But if he only say falsly that this or that Doctrine is contained in the Scripture or delivered by tradition to the Church this is but to be a false Teacher which is a sin greater or less according to the aggravations hereafter mentioned § 14. 3. Another of the sins of the Tongue is an opposing of Godliness indirectly by false application of true Doctrine and an opposing of godly persons for the sake of godliness and cavelling against particular truths and duties of Religion or indirectly opposing the Truth or duty under pretence of opposing only some controverted mode or imperfection in him that speaketh or performeth it A defending of those points and practices which would subvert or undermine Religion A secret endeavour to make all serious godliness seem a needless thing There are many that seem Orthodox that are impious and malicious opposers of that Truth in the application which themselves do notionally hold and positively profess § 15. 4. Another great sin of the Tongue is the prophane deriding of serious Godliness and the mocking and jeasting and scorning at godly persons as such or scorning at some of their real or supposed imperfections for their piety sake to make them odious that piety through them might be made odious When men so speak that the drift and tendency of their speech is to draw men to a dislike of Truth or holiness and their mocks or scorns at some particular opinion or practice or more doth tend to the contempt of Religion in the serious practice of it When they mock at a Preacher of the Gospel for some expressions or imperfections or for truth it self to bring him and his doctrine into contempt or at the Prayers and Speeches of Religious persons to the injury of Religion § 16. 5. Another great sin of the Tongue is unjustly to Forbid Christs Ministers to preach his Gospel or speak in his Name or to stand up against them and contradict resist and hinder them in the preaching of the truth and as Gamaliel calls it to fight against God Acts 5. 39. Yet thus they did by the Apostles v. 40. When they had called the Apostles and beaten them they commanded that they should not speak in the Name of Iesus and let them go So Acts 4. 18 19. And they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the Name of Iesus But Peter and John answered and said unto them Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God judge ye for we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard 1 Thess. 2. 15 16. Who bâ—th killed the Lord Iesus and their own Prophets and have persecuted us and they please not God and are contrary to all men Forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved to fill up their sins alway for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost As Dr. Hammond Paraphraseth it And this generally is the ground of their quarrell to us that in spight of their prohibition we preach to the Gentiles § 17. 6. Another sin of the Tongue is Prophane swearing either by God or by Creatures And also all light and unreverent use of the Name and Attributes of God of which more afterwards § 18. 7. Much more is Perjury or Fâ—rswearing a most heinous sin it being an appealing to God the author and defender of Truth to bear witness to an untruth and to judge the offender and so a craving of Vengeance from God § 19. 8. Lying also is a great and common sin of the Tongue of which more anon § 20. 9. Another sin of the Tongue is hypocritical dissembling which is worse than meer lying when mens tongues agree not with their hearts but speak good words in prayer to God or conference with men to cover evil intentions or affections and to represent themselves to the hearers as better than they are § 21. 10. Another is Ostentation or proud boasting either of mens wit and learning or greatness Quod facere instituâ—s noli praedicare nam si facere nequiveâ—is rideberis Pâ—ttaâ—â— Sâ—â—t in Laâ—â—t or riches or honour or strength or beauty or parts or piety or any thing that men are proud of As the faithful do make their boast in God Psal. 34. 2. Psal. 44. 8. and in the Cross of Christ by which they are crucified to the world Gal. 6. 14. So the covetous boast themselves in the multitude of their riches Psal. 49. 6. and the workers of iniquity boast themselves against the righteous and the proud do triumph and speak hard things Psal. 94. 2 3 4. Even against the Lord do they boast in their boasting against his people Ezek. 35. 13. So far as Pride prevaileth with men they are apt to boast themselves to be some body Acts 5. 36. Either openly as the more foolish do or cunningly by the help of fair pretences as the more ingenious proud ones do § 22. 11. Another sin of the Tongue is unseasonable speaking of common things when
Ghost should dwell and Ephes. 4. 29. Ephes. 5. 4. work in so filthy a room and with such filthy company Darest thou go pray or read the Scripture or speak of any holy thing with those lips that talk of filthy ribaldry Dost thou find thy self fit to go to prayer after such discourse Or rather dost thou not allow all that hear thee to think that thou renouncest God and Godliness and never usest any serious Worship of God at all And if thou do pretend to Worship him with that filthy tongue what canst thou expect in answer to thy prayers but a vengeance worse than Nadab and Abihu's Lev. 10. 1 2 3. Shall sweet water and bitter come from the same fountain Jam. 3. 11. Dâ—st thou bless God and talk filthily with the same tongue and think he will not be avenged on thy hypocrisie § 7. Direct 7. Consider how thou bidst defiance also to common civility Thou dost that which civil Direct 7. Heathens would be ashamed of As if thou hadst a design to reduce England to the Customs of Cannibals and Savages in America that go naked and are past shame § 8. Direct 8. Observe what service thou dost the Devil for the corrupting of others as if he had Direct 8. hired thee to be a Tutor in his Academy or one of his Preachers to draw the minds of the hearers 1 Cor. 15. 33. from modesty and prepare them for the Stews Especially people can scarce have more dangerous Wild-fire cast into their fantasies than by hearing rotten filthy talk And wilt thou be one of Venus's Priests § 9. Direct 9. Remember how little need there is of thy endeavour Is not lust and filthiness so natural Direct 9. and the minds of all unsanctified and uncleansed ones so prone to it that they â—eed no Tutor nor instigator nor pander to their lusts This fire is easily kindled The Bellows of thy sâ—urrility are needless to make such Gunpowder burn § 10. Direct 10. Presently lament before God and man the filthiness that thy tongue hath been guilty Direct 10. of and wash heart and tongue in the blood of Christ and â—â—y from the company and converse of the obscene as thou wouldst do from a Pâ—st-house or any infectious pestilential â—ire And if thou hear such rotten talk râ—prove it or be gone and let them see that thou hatest it and fearest God § 11. Obj. But saith the filthy mouth I think no harm may we not jeast and be merry Obj. Answ. What! hast thou nothing to jeast with but dung and filth and sin and the defilement of Answ. souls and the offending of God Wouldst thou be unclean before the King or cast dung in mens faces and sâ—â— I think no harm but am in jeast § 12. Obj. But saith he those that art so demure are â—â— bad in secret and worse than we Obj. Answ. What! is a chaste tongue a sign of an unchaste life Then thou maist as equally take a Answ. meek and quiet tongue to be a sign of an angry man or a lying tongue to be a sign of a true man Would the King take that excuse from thee if thou talk Treason openly and say Those that do not are yet in secret as bad as I I trow he would not take that for an excuse Tit. 6. Directions against Prophane deriding scorning or opposing Godliness § 1. TO prevent the Replyes or excuses of the scorner I must here tell you 1. That by Godliness The Explication I mean nothing but an entire devotednes to God and living to him The doctrine and practice which is agreeable to the holy Scripture I mean no fansies of mistaken men nor the private opinions of any sect but the practice of Christianity it self § 2. 2. And yet I must tell you that it is the common practice of these scorners to fasten more upon the concrete than the abstract the person than the bare doctrine and to oppose Godly persons as such when yet they say that they oppose not Godliness The Reasons of this are these 1. Because they dare be bolder with the person than with the Rule and doctrine of God himself If they scorn at the Bible or at Godliness directly as such they should so openly scorn at God himself that the world would cry shame on them and Conscience would worry them But as Godliness is in such a neighbour or such a Preacher or such a man so they think they may reverence it less and that what they do is against the person and not the thing 2. In men they have something else to pretend to be the matter of their scorn Godliness in men is latent invisible unprovable as to the sincerity of it and obscure as to the exercise If he that scorneth a Godly man say He is not Godly but an Hypocrite in this world there is no perfect Justification to be had against such a calumny but the probable evidence of Profession and a Godly life is all that can be brought But Godliness as it is in Scripture lyeth open to the view of all and cannot be denyed there but by denying the Scriptures themselves 3. Godliness as in the Rule or holy Scripture is perfect without any blemish that may give a scorner a pretence But Godliness in men is very imperfect and mixt with sins with faults which the world may oft discern and the Godly themselves are forwardst to confess And therefore in them a scorner may find some plausible pretense And when he derideth these Professours of Godliness as being all Hypocrites he will not instance in their vertues but in their faults as in Noahs drunkenness and Lots incest and Davids Adultery and Murder and Peters denying Christ Yet so as the dart shall be cast at Piety it self and the Conclusion shall not be to drive men from drunkenness adultery or any â—in but from serious Godliness it self 4. Godliness as in the Rule is to them a more unobserved dormant thing and doth not so much annoy them for they can shut their Bibles or make nothing of it but as a few good words But Godliness in the Godly existent in their Teachers and Neighbours is more discernable to them and more active and more troublesome to them and so more hated by them In a dead letter or dead Saint that troubleth them not they can commend it but in the living they are molested by it And the nearer it is to them the more they are â—xasperated against it The word is the seed of Godliness which least offendeth them till it spring up and bring forth the fruit which condemneth their wicked lives § 3. 3. And as opposers and scorners do usually strike at Godliness through the person and his faults so they use to strike at the particular parts of Gods Worship through some modes or circumstances or imperfections of men in the performance It is not Preaching or Praying that they scorn if you believe
or have been and all the Godly thoughout the world and all that ever had experience of a holy life And what art thou that thou shouldst scorn all these Art thou wiser than all the Ministers and godly persons in the world Than all the Apostles and holy Martyrs of Christ that ever were Yea than God himself § 33. 8. Didst thou ever mark how unlike the speech of Christ and his Apostles was to thine Did they deride men for being too diligent for the pleasing of God and saving of their souls Read but thâ—se places following and judge Matth. 5. 8 11 20. 6. 33 21. 7. 13 14. 1 Pet. 4. 18. 2. Pet. 3. 11. 1. 10. Heb. 11. 6. Matth. 5. Rom. 8 1 5 6 7 8 9 13. Phil. 3. 18. 19. Heb. 12. 28 29. § 34. 9. Dost thou not thy self do as much for the world as those that thou opposest do for Heaven Art thou offended that they preach and pray so long Art not thou longer about thy worldly business Are not Gallants longer at a feast or visit or games and recreations Art thou offended that they talk so much of Heaven And dost not thou talk more of earth And which of these dost thou think in thy Conscience doth better deserve to be sought and talked of Which will prove better at the last And whose labour will be more worthy of derision § 35. 10. What gain would it be to thee if thou hadst thy will and Praying and Preaching and Holiness were as much banished from the world as thou wouldst have it And if men to please thee should displease God and cast away their souls for ever Would it do thee good for earth to be so like to Hell It is the grief of godly men already to think how little Holiness is in the world There is scarce a sadder thought that ever came into my heart than to survey all the Nations of the earth and to think how ignorance and ungodliness abound and how few there be that are truly holy And what an inhumane creature is that who yet would have them fewer and scorn out of the world the little Rom. 11. 1 2 wisdom and piety that is left And would it be any pleasure to thee in Hell if men should accompany thee thither to humour thee Nay it would be thy everlasting torment to see there so many for ever undone by hearkning to thy wicked counsel Say not that thou art not so cruel and it is not their damnation that thou desirest No more it is not thy own that thou desirest But all 's one as to the effect if thou desire the way to it Thou maist as well give one man poyson and deride at another for eating and drinking and yet say it is not your death that I desire But die they must if they ruled by thee § 36. 11. Were not he a cruel man that would not do as much for the saving of his neighbours soul as that which thou deridest them for in the saving of their own If thou wert sick should I refuse to pray for thy life Or if I knew that it might save anothers soul should I think any means or pains too much If not methinks I may be allowed to do as much for my self as charity bids me do for another § 37. 12. Is it a season to mock at Holiness when at the same time there are so many millions of souls in Heaven that all came thither by the way of Holiness And so many millions of souls in Hell that all came thither for want of Holiness And while thou art prating against it they are crying out in despair of the folly of their neglecting it Would one of the souls in Heaven regard thy mocks if he were to live on earth again Or would one of the souls in Hell be mocked thither if they were but tryed with another life If thou sawest at this hour what unholy souls in Hell are suffering and what holy souls in Heaven enjoy wouldst thou ever mock again at Holiness For shame consider what thou dost and see by faith the things that mortal eyes behold not § 38. 13. What if men should yield unto thy derisions and forsake a holy life to please thee Wouldst thou undertake to justifie them or be answerable for them before that God that required Holiness and will condemn all the unholy Wouldst thou bring them off and save them from damnation Alas poor soul how unable wilt thou be to save thy self And wilt thou take them for wise men if they displease the Lord and go to Hell to humour such a one as thou § 39. 14. Thou wilt not thy self be mockt out of thy House or Land or Right nor from thy meat or drink or rest wouldst thou â—ast these away if another should mock but thee for using them I think thou wouldst not And wouldst thou have wise men be mockt out of their Salvation § 40. 15. Thou wouldst not think it reasonable that thy Children or Servants be derided for loving or obeying thee Or thy very horse dispraised for serving thee And do they owe thee more than we all owe God § 41. 16. God highly honoureth them and dearly loveth them for that very thing that thou hâ—tâ—st and deridest them for Joh. 16. 27. 14. 21. He that hath my commandments and keepeth them he it is that Loveth me and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father and I will love him and will manifest my self to him Psal. 11. 7. The righteous Lord loveth righteousness his countenance doth behold the upright Psal. 146. 8. The Lord loveth the righteous 2 Cor. 6. For ye are the temple of the living God as God hath said I will dwell in them and walk in them and I will be their God and they shall be my people wherefore come out from among them and be ye separate saith the Lord and touch not the unclean thing and I will receive you and will be a father unto you and ye shall be my sons and daughters saith the Lord and Allmighty And darest thou scorn the sons and daughters of the Allmighty Even for that very thing for which he hath promised to receive them and to be a Father to them How contrary then art thou to God Mal. 3. 16 17 18. A Book of remembrance was written for them that feared the Lord and thought upon his name and they shall be mine saith the Lord of Hosts in that day when I make up my Iewels and I will spare them as a man spareth his own son that serveth him And darest thou scorn Gods Iewels and those that are thus pretious to him 1 Sam. 2. 30. For them that honour me I will honour and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed And wilt thou be one of his despisers opposing that in others for which God himself hath promised to honour them § 42. 17. To hate and scorn at Holiness is to hate and scorn at
advantages for a better life No care and caution can be too great in a matter of so great importance § 46. Direct 6. Let no carnal motives perswade you to joyn your self to an ungodly person but let Direct 6. the holy fear of God be preferred in your choice before all worldly excellency whatsoever Marry not a Swine for a Golden trough nor an ugly soul for a comely body Consider 1. You will else give cause of great suspicion that you are your selves Ungodly For they that know truly the misery of an unrenewed soul and the excellency of the Image of God can never be indifferent whether they be joyned to the Godly or the Ungodly To prefer things temporal before things spiritual habitually and in the predominant acts of heart and life is the certain Character of a graceless soul And he that in so near a case doth deliberately prefer Riches or Comliness in another before the image and fear of God doth give a very dangerous sign of such a graceless heart and will If you set more by Beauty or Riches than by Godliness you have the surest mark that you are ungodly If you do not sâ—t more by them how come you deliberately to prefer them How could you do a thing that detecteth your ungodliness and condemneth you more clearly And do you not shew that you either believe not the word of God or else that you love him not and regard not his interest Otherwise you would take his friends as your friends and his enemies as your enemies Tell me would you marry an enemy of your own before any change and reconciliation I am confident you would not And can you so easily marry an enemy of God If you know not that all the ungodly and unsanctified are his enemies you know not or believe not the word of God which telleth you that the carnal mind is enmity against God for it is not subject to the Law of God nor indeed can â—e so then they that are in the flesh cannot please God Rom. 8. 7 8. 2. If you fear God your selves your chief end in marriage will be to have one that will be a helper to your soul and further you in the way to Heaven But if you marry with a person that is ungodly either you have no such end or else you may easily know you have no wiselyer chosen the means than if you had chosen water to kindle the fire or a bed of snow to keep you warm Will an ignorant or ungodly person assist you in prayer and holy watchfulness and stir you up to the Love of God and a heavenly mind And can you so willingly lose all the spiritual benefit which you should principally desire and intend 3. Nay instead of a Helper you will have a continual hinderer when you should go to prayer you will have one to pull you back or to fill your minds with diversions or disquietments when you should keep close to God in holy meditations you will have one to cast in worldly thoughts or trouble your minds with vanity or vexation When you should discourse of God and heavenly things you will have one to stifle such discourse and fill your ears with idle impertinent or worldly talk And one such a hinderance so neer you in your bosome will be worse than a thousand further off As an ungodly heart which is next of all to us is our greatest hinderance so an ungodly husband or wife which is next to that is worse to us than many ungodly neighbours And if you think that you can well enough overcome such hinderances and your heart is so good that no such clogs can keep it down you do but shew that you have a proud unhumbled heart that is prepared for a fall If you know your selves and the badness of your hearts you will know that you have no need of hinderances in any holy work and that all the helps in the world are little enough and too little to keep your souls in the Love of God 4. And such an ungodly companion will be to you a continual temptation to sin Instead of stirring you up to good you will have one to stir you up to evil to passion or discontent or covetousness or pride or revenge or sensuality And can you not sin enough without such a tempter 5. And what a continual grief will it be to you if you are believers to have a child of the Devil in your bosome and to think how far you must be separated at death and in what torments those must lye for ever that are so dear unto you now 6. Yea such companions will be uncapable of the principal part of your Love You may love them as Husbands or Wives but you cannot love them as Saints and members of Christ. And how great a want this will be in your Love those know that know what this holy Love is § 47. Quest. But how can I tell who are Godly when there is so much hypocrisie in the world Quest. Answ. At least you may know who is Ungodly if it be palpably discovered I take not a barren knowledge for ungodliness nor a nimble tongue for Godliness Judge of them by their Love such as a mans Love is such is the Man If they Love the word and servants and worship of God and Love a holy life and hate the contrary you may close with such though their knowledge be small and their parts be weak But if they have no Love to these but had rather live a common careless carnal life you may well avoid them as ungodly § 48. Quest. But if ungodly persons may marry why may not I marry with one that is ungodly Quest. Answ. Though Dogs and Swine may joyn in Generating it followeth not men or women may joyn with them Pardon the comparison while Christ calleth the wicked Dogs and Swine Mat. 7. 6. it doth but shew the badness of your consequence Unbelievers may marry and yet we may not marry with unbelievers 2 Cor. 6. 14 15 16. Be ye not unequally yoaked together with unbelievers For what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness and what communion hath light with darkness and what concord hath Christ with Belial or what part hath he that believeth with an Infidel and what agreement hath the Temple of God with Idols For ye are the Temple of the living God wherefore come out from among them and be ye separate saith the Lord and touch not the unclean thing c. § 49. Quest. But I make no doubt but they may be converted God can call them when he will If Quest. there be but Love they will easily be won to be of the mind as those they Love are Answ. 1. Then it seems because you Love an ungodly person you will be easily turned to be ungodly If so you are not much better already If Love will not draw you to their mind to be ungodly why should you think Love
in my Saints Rest Part 3. Chap. 14. Sect. 11. c. and therefore shall be here omitted yet something shall be inserted lest the want here should appear too great § 1. Motive 1. Consider how deeply Nature it self doth engage you to the greatest care and diligence Motive 1. for the holy education of your children They are as it were parts of your selves and those that Nature teacheth you to Love and provide for and take most care for next your selves And will you be regardless of their chief concernments and neglective of their souls Will you no other way shew your love to your children than every Beast or Bird will to their young to cherish them till they can go abroad and shift for themselves for corporal sustenance It is not Dogs or Beasts that you bring into the world but Children that have immortal souls And therefore it is a care and education suitable to their natures which you owe them Even such as conduceth most effectually to the happiness of their souls Nature teacheth them some natural things without you as it doth the Bird to flye But it hath committed it to your trust and care to teach them the greatest and most necessary things If you should think that you have nothing to do but feed them and leave all the rest to Nature then they would not learn to speak And if Nature it self would condemn you if you teach them not to speak it will much more condemn you if you teach them not to understand both what they ought to speak and do They have an everlasting inheritance of happiness to attain and it is that which you must bring them up for They have an endless misery to escape and it is that which you must diligently teach them If you teach them not to escape the flames of Hell what thanks do they owe you for teaching them to speak and go If you teach them not the way to Heaven and how they may make sure of their salvation what thanks do they owe you for teaching them how to get their livings a little while in a miserable world If you teach them not to know God and how to serve him and be saved you teach them nothing or worse than nothing It is in your hands to do them the greatest kindness or cruelty in all the world Help them to know God and to be saved and you do more for them than if you helped them to be Lords or Princes If you neglect their souls and breed them in ignorance worldliness ungodliness and sin you betray them to the Devil the enemy of souls even as truly as if you sold them to him You sell them to be slaves to Satan you betray them to him that will deceive them and abuse them in this life and torment them in the next If you saw but a burning Fornace much more the flames of Hell would you not think that man or woman more fit to be called a Devil than a Parent that could find in their hearts to cast their Child into it or to put him into the hands of one that would do it What Monsters then of inhumanity are you that read in Scripture which is the way to Hell and who they be that God will deliver up to Satan to be tormented by him and yet will bring up your children in that very way and will not take pains to save them from it What a stir do you make to provide them food and rayment and a competent maintenance in the world when you are dead And how little pains take you to prepare their souls for the heavenly inheritance If you seriously believe that there are such Ioyes or Torments for your children and your selves as soon as death removeth you hence is it possible that you should take this for the least of their concernments or make it the least and last of your cares to assure them of an endless happiness If you Love them shew it in those things on which their everlasting welfare doth depend Do not say you Love them and yet lead them unto Hell If you love them not yet be not so unmerciful to them as to damn them It is not your saying God forbid and we hope better that will make it better or be any excuse to you What can you do more to damn them if you studied to do it as maliciously as the Devil himself You cannot possibly do more than to bring them up in ignorance carelessness worldliness sensuality and ungodliness The Devil can do nothing else to damn either them or you but by tempting to sin and drawing you from Godliness There is no other way to Hell No man is damned for any thing but this And yet will you bring them up in such a life and say God forbid we do not desire to damn them But it is no wonder when you do by your children but as you do by your selves Who can look that a man should be reasonable for his child that is so unreasonable for himself Or that those Parents should have any mercy on their childrens souls that have no mercy on their own You desire not to damn your selves but yet you do it if you live ungodly lives And so you will do by your children if you train them up in ignorance of God and in the service of the flesh and world You do like one that should set fire on his house and say God forbid I intend not to burn it or like one that casteth his child into the Sea and saith he intendeth not to drown him or traineth him up in robbing and thievery and saith he intendeth not to have him hanged But if you intend to make a Thief of him it is all one in effect as if you intended his hanging for the Law determineth it and the Iudge will intend it So if you intend to train up your children in ungodliness as if they had no God nor souls to mind you may as well say you intend to have them damned And were not an enemy yea is not the Devil more excusable for dealing thus cruelly by your children than you that are their Parents that are bound by Nature to love them and prevent their misery It is odious in Ministers that take the charge of souls to betray them by negligence and be guilty of their everlasting misery but in Parents it is more unnatural and therefore more unexcusable § 2. Motive 2. Consider that God is the Lord and Owner of your children both by the title of Creation and Motive 2. Redemption Therefore in justice you must resign them to him and educate them for him Otherwise you rob God of his own Creatures and rob Christ of those for whom he dyed and this to give them to the Devil the enemy of God and them It was not the world or the flesh or the Devil that created them or redeemed them but God And it is not possible for any Right to be built upon a
that you behaved not your selves like such as Loved them It doth not deserve the name of Love which can leave a soul to endless misery § 12. What then shall we say of them that do not only deny their help but are hinderers of the 1 King 11. 4. Act. 5. 2. â—â—â—â—â—s Adams tempter Job 2. 9. holiness and salvation of each other And yet the Lord have mercy on the poor miserable world how common a thing is this among us If the wife be ignorant and ungodly she will do her worst to make or keep her husband such as she is her self And if God put any holy inclinations into his heart she will be to it as water to the fire to quench it or to keep it under And if he will not be as sinful and miserable as her self he shall have little quietness or rest And if God open the eyes of the wife of a bad man and shew her the amiableness and necessity of a holy life and she do but resolve to obey the Lord and save her soul what an enemy and tyrant will her husband prove to her if God restrain him not so that the Devil himself doth scarce do more against the saving of their souls than ungodly Husbands and Wives do against each other § 13. 2. Consider also that you live not up to the Ends of Marriage nor of humanity if you are not helpers to each others souls To help each other only for your bellies is to live together but like beasts You are appointed to live together as heirs of the grace of life 1 Pet. 3. 7. And husbands must love their Wives as Christ loved his Church who gave himself for it that he might sanctifie it and cleanse it that he might present it to himself a glorious Church without spot or wrinkle holy and without blemish Eph. 5. 25 26 27. That which is the end of your very life and being must be the end of your relations and your daily converse § 14. 3. Consider also if you neglect each others souls what enemies you are to one another and how you prepare for your everlasting sorrows When you should be preparing for your joyful meeting in Heaven you are laying up for your selves everlasting horrour What a dreadful meeting and greeting will you have at the bar of Christ or in the flames of hell when you shall find there how perversly you have done Is it not better to be praising God together in Glory than to be rageing 1 Thes. 5. 11. Heb. 12. 15. Col 2. 19. Eph. 4. 16. 1 Cor. 7. 5. Gen. 35. 2 4. Lev. 19. 17. against each other in the horrour of your Consciences and flying in the faces of one another with such accusations as these O cruel Husband O merciless deceitful Wife It was long of you that I came to this miserable woful End I might have lived with Christ and his Saints in Joy and now I am tormented in these flames in desperation You were commanded by God to have given me warning and told me of my sin and misery and never to let me rest in it but to have instructed and intreated me till I had come home by Christ that I might not have come to this place of torment But you never so much as spake to me of God and my salvation unless it were lightly in jeast or in your common talk If the house had been on fire you would have been more earnest to have quenched it than you were to save my soul from hell You never told me seriously of the misery of a natural unrenewed state nor of the great necessity of regeneration and a holy life nor never talkt to me of Heaven and Hell as matters of such consequence should have been mentioned But morning and night your talk was nothing but about the world and the things of the world your idle talk and jesting and froward and carnal and unprofitable discourse was it that filled up all Numb 16. 27 32. the time and we had not one sober word of our salvation You never seriously foretold me of this day You never prayed with me nor read the Scripture and good Books to me You took no pains to help me to knowledge nor to humble my hardened heart for my sins nor to save me from them nor to draw me to the Love of God and holiness by faith in Christ You did not go before me with the good example of a holy and heavenly conversation but with the evil example of an ungodly fleshly worldly life You neither cared for your own soul nor mine nor I for yours or mine own and now we are justly condemned together that would not live in Holiness together O foolish miserable souls that by your ungodliness and negligence in this life will prepare each other for such a life of endless wo and horror O therefore resolve without delay to live together as the heirs of Heaven and to be helpers to Directions to help each other to salvation each others souls To which end I will give you these following Sub-directions which if you will faithfully practise may make you to be special blessings to each other § 15. Direct 1. If you would help to save each others souls you must each of you be sure that Subdirect 1. you have a care of your own and retain a deep and lively apprehension of those great and everlasting matters of which you are to speak to others It cannot be reasonably expected that he should have Gen. 2. 18. a due compassion to anothers soul that hath none to his own and that he should be at the pains that is needful to help another to salvation that setteth so little by his own as to sell it for the base and momentany ease and pleasure of the flesh Nor is it to be expected that a man should speak with any suitable weight and seriousness about those matters whose weight his heart did never feel and about which he was never serious himself First see that you feel throughly that which you would speak profitably and that you be what you perswade another to be and that all your counsel may be perceived to arise from the bottom of your hearts and that you speak of things which by experience you are well acquainted with § 16. Direct 2. Take those opportunities which your ordinary nearness and familiarity affordeth Subdirect 2. you to be speaking seriously to each other about the matters of God and your salvation When you lye down and rise together let not your worldly business have all your talk but let God and your souls have the first and the last and at least the freest and sweetest of your speech if not the most When you have said so much of your common business as the nature and dispatch of it requireth â—ay it by and talk together of the state and duty of your souls towards God and of your hopes of Heaven as those that
that you must there exercise II. What there is objectively presented before you in the Sacrament to exercise all these Graces III. At what seasons in the administration each of these inward works are to be done § 47. I. The Graces to be exercised are these besides that holy fear and reverence common to all Worship 1. A humble sense of the odiousness of sin and of our undone condition as in our selves and a displeasure against our selves and loathing of our selves and melting Repentance for the sins we have committed as against our Creator and as against the Love and Mercy of a Redeemer and against the holy Spirit of Grace 2. A hungring and thirsting desire after the Lord Jesus and his Grace and the favour of God and communion with him which are there represented and offered to the soul. 3. A lively faith in our Redeemer his death resurrection and intercession and a trusting our miserable souls upon him as our sufficient Saviour and help And a hearty Acceptance of him and his benefits upon his offered terms 4. A Ioy and gladness in the sense of that unspeakable mercy which is here offered us 5. A Thankful heart towards him from whom we do receive it 6. A fervent Love to him that by such Love doth seek our Love 7. A triumphant Hope of life eternal which is purchased for us and sealed to us 8. A willingness and resolution to deny our selves and all this world and suffer for him that hath suffered for our Redemption 9. A Love to our Brethren our neighbours and our enemies with a readiness to relieve them and to forgive them when they do us wrong 10. And a firm Resolution for future obedience to our Creator and Redeemer and Sanctifier according to our Covenant § 48. II. In the naming of these Graces I have named their Objects which you should observe as distinctly as you can that they may be operative 1. To help your Humiliation and Repentance you bring thither a loaden miserable soul to receive a pardon and relief And you see before you the sacrificed Son of God who made his soul an offering for sin and became a Curse for us to save us who were accursed 2. To draw out your Desires you have the most excellent gifts and the most needful mercies presented to you that this world is capable of Even the Pardon of sin the Love of God the Spirit of Grace and the hopes of Glory and Christ himself with whom all this is given 3. To exercise your Faith you have Christ here first represented as crucified before your eyes and then with his benefits freely given you and offered to your Acceptance with a Command that you refuse him not 4. To exercise your Delight and Gladness you have this Saviour and this Salvation tendered to you and all that your souls can well desire set before you 5. To exercise your Thankfulness what could do more than so great a Gift so dearly purchased so surely sealed and so freely offered 6. To exercise your Love to God in Christ you have the fullest manifestation of his attractive Love even offered to your eyes and taste and heart that a soul on earth can reasonably expect in such wonderful condescension that the greatness and strangeness of it surpasseth a natural mans belief 7. To exercise your Hopes of Life Eternal you have the price of it here set before you you have the Gift of it here sealed to you and you have that Saviour represented to you in his suffering who is now there reigning that you may remember him as expectants of his Glorious Coming to judge the world and glorifie you with himself 8. To exercise your self-denyal and resolution for suffering and contempt of the world and fleshly pleasures you have before you both the greatest Example and Obligation that ever could be offered to the world when you see and receive a Crucified Christ that so strangely denyed himself for you and set so little by the world and flesh 9. To exercise your Love to Brethren yea and enemies you have his example before your eyes that Loved you to the death when you were enemies And you have his holy servants before your eyes who are amiable in him through the workings of his Spirit and on whom he will have you shew your Love to himself 10. And to excite your Resolution for future Obedience you see his double Title to the Government of you as Creator and as Redeemer and you feel the obligations of Mercy and Gratitude and you are to renew a Covenant with him to that end even openly where all the Church are witnesses So that you see here are powerful objects before you to draw out all these Graces and that they are all but such as the work requireth you then to exercise § 49. III. But that you may be the readier when it cometh to practice I shall as it were lead you by the hand through all the parts of the administration and tell you when and how to exercise every grace and those that are to be joyned together I shall take together that needless distinctness do not trouble you 1. When you are called up and going to the Table of the Lord exercise your Humility Desire and Thankfulness and say in your hearts What Lord dost thou call such a wretch as I What! me that have so oft despised thy mercy and wilfully offended thee and preferred the filth of this world and the pleasures of the flesh before thee Alas it is thy wrath in Hell that is my due But if Love will choose such an unworthy guest and Mercy will be honoured upon such sin and misery I come Lord at thy call I gladly come Let thy will be done and let that mercy which inviteth me make me acceptable and gratiously entertain me and let me not come without the wedding garment nor unreverently rush on holy things nor turn thy mercies to my bane § 50. 2. When the Minister is confessing sin prostrate your very souls in the sense of your unworthiness and let your particular sins be in your eye with their heinous aggravations The whole need not the Physicion but the sick But here I need not put words into your mouths or minds because the Minister goeth before you and your hearts must concurr with his Confessions and put in also the secret sins which he omitteth § 51. 3. When you look on the Bread and Wine which is provided and offered for this holy use remember that it is the Creator of all things on whom you live whose Laws you did offend and say in your hearts O Lord how great is my offence who have broken the Laws of him that made me and on whom the whole Creation doth depend I had my Being from thee and my daily bread and should I have requited thee with disobedience Father I have sinned against Heaven and before thee and am no more worthy to be called thy Son § 52. 4. When the
grace and hopes which he hath given you through Christ I know that a pained languishing body is undisposed to express the comforts of the soul But yet as long as the soul is the Commander they may be expressed in some good measure though not with such vivacity and alacrity as in health Behave your selves before all as those that are going to dwell with Christ If you shew them that you take Heaven for a real felicity it will do much to draw them to do so too Shew them the difference between the death of the righteous and of the wicked and that may so draw them to desire to dye the death of the Righteous that it may draw them also to resolve to live their lives How many souls might it win to God if they saw in his dying servants such confidence and joy as beseemeth men that are entering into a world of joy and peace and blessedness If we went out of the body as from a Prison into liberty and from a tedious journey to our desired home it would invite sinners to seek after the same felicity and be a powerful Sermon to convert the inconsiderate § 4. Direct 3. Now tell poor sinners of the vanity of the world and of all its glory wealth and pleasure Direct 3. and of the mischief and deceitfulness of sin Say to them O Sirs you may see in me what the world is worth If you had all the wealth and pleasure that you desire thus it would turn you off and forsake you in the end It will ease no pain It will bring no peace to a troubled soul It will not lengthen your lives an hour It will not save you from the wrath of God It maketh your death the sadder because you must be taken from it Your account will be the more dreadfull O Love not such a vain deceitful world Sell not your souls for so poor a price Forsake it before you are forsaken by it O make not light of any sin Though the wanton flesh would have you take it for a harmless thing you cannot imagine when the pleasure is gone how sharp a sting is left behind Sin will be then no jeasting matter when your souls are going hence into the dreadful presence of the Most Holy God § 5. Direct 4. Now tell those about you of the Excellency and Necessity of the Love of God of Heaven Direct 4. of Christ and of a holy life Though these may be made light of at a distance yet a soul that is drawing near them will be more awakened to understand their worth say to them O friends I find now more than ever I did before that it is only God that is the end and happiness of souls Nothing but his favour through Iesus Christ can comfort and content a dying man And none but Christ can reconcile us to God and answer for our sins and make us acceptable And no way but that of faith and holiness will end in happiness Opinions and customary forms in Religion will not serve the turn To be of this or that Party or Church or Communion will not save you It is only the soul that is justified by Christ and sanctified by his Spirit and brought up to the Love of God and holiness that shall be saved What ever Opinion or Church you are of without Holiness you shall never see God to your comfort as without faith it is impossible to please him Heb. 12. 14. 11. 6. Rom. 8. 6 7 8 9. O now what a miserable case were I in if I had all the wealth and honour in the world and had not the favour of God and a Christ to purchase it and his Spirit to witness it and prepare me for a better life Now I see the difference between spending time in Holiness and in sin between a godly and a worldly fleshly careless life Now I would not for a thousand worlds that I had spent my life in sensuality and ungodliness and continued a stranger to the life of faith Now if I had a world I would give it to be more holy O Sirs believe it when you come to dye sin will be then sin indeed and Christ and Grace will be better than riches and to dye in an unregenerate unsanctified state will be a greater misery than any heart can now conceive § 6. Direct 5. Endeavour also to make men know the difference between the godly and the wicked Direct 5. Tell them I nâ—w see who maketh the wisest choice O happy men that choose the joyes which have no end and lay up their treasure in Heaven where rust and moths do not corrupt and thieves do not break through and steal and labour for the food that never perisheth Matth. 6. 19 20. John 6. 27. O foolish sinners that for an inch of fleshly filthy pleasure do lose everlasting Rest and joy What shall it profit them that win all the world and lose their souls § 7. Direct 6. Labour also to convince men of the pretiousness of Time and the folly of putting off Direct 6. Repentance and a holy life till the last Say to them O friends it is hard for you in the time of health and prosperity to judge of Time according to its worth But when Time is gone or near an end how pretious doth it then appear Now if I had all the Time again which ever I spent in unnecessary sleep or sports or curiosities or idleness or any needless thing how highly should I value it and spend it in another manner than I have done Of all my life that is past and gone I have no comfort now in the remembrance of one hour but what was spent in obedience to God O take Time to make sure of your salvation before it s gone and you are left under the tormenting feeling of your loss § 8. Direct 7. Labour also to make them understand the sinfulness of sloth and of loytering in the Direct 7. matters of God and their salvation and stir them up to do it with all their might Say to them I have often heard ungodly people deride or blame the diligence and zeal and strictness of the godly But if they saw and felt what I see and feel they could not do it Can a man that is going into another world imagine that any thing is so worthy of his greatest zeal and labour as his God and his salvation Or blame men for being loth to burn in Hell Or for taking more pains for their souls than for their bodies O friends let fools talk what they will in their sleep and frenzy as you love your souls do not think any care or cost or pains too great for your salvation If they think not their labour too good for this world do not you think yours too good for a better world Let them now say what they will when they come to dye there is none of them all that is not quite forsaken of
Repent of your sinful life and yet set your Heart upon the life to come and Love God and Holiness better than the world and fleshly pleasure and trust your soul on Christ as your Redeemer and he will certainly forgive you and reconcile you unto God and present you justified and spotless in his sight Think of your sin till you abhor your self and think of your sin and misery till you feel that you are undone if you have not a Saviour and then think what Love God hath shewed you in Christ in giving him to be incarnate and die for sinners and offering you freely to pardon all that ever you have done and to justifie and save you and bring you to endless Glory with himself if yet as last you will but give up your self to Christ and accept his mercy and return to God What joyful tidings is here now for a sinful miserable soul Yet this is the certain truth of God This is his very Covenant of grace which is founded in the blood of Christ and which he is now ready to make with you and seal to you by his spirit within and his Sacrament without if you do but Heartily and unfeignedly Consent Believe in Christ and Turn to God from the world and the flesh and resolve upon a Holy life if you should recover and then I can assure you from the word of God that he will freely pardon you and take you for his Child and save your soul in endless Glory As late as it is he will certainly receive you if you return to him by Christ with all your heart And doth not your heart now rejoice in this unspeakable mercy which is willing to save you after all the sin that you have committed and after all the time that you have lost Do you not Love that God that is so abundant in Goodness and in Love and that Saviour who hath purchased you this pardon and salvation Is it not better think you to Love and praise and serve him than to live in fleshly lusts and pleasures And is it not better to dwell in Heaven with him in endless Ioys than to live awhile in the vain delights of sinners and thence to pasâ— to endless misery O beg of God now to give you a New Heart to Believe in Christ and Repent of sin and Love him that is most Holy Good and gracious And take heed that you sleight his grace no longer and that you do not now take on you in a fear to be that which you are not or to do that which you would not hold to if you should recover And to make all sure will you now sincerely enter into a Covenant with Christ I mean but the same Covenant which you made in Baptism and the Sacrament of the Lords supper and which would have saved you if you had sincerely made and kept it Let me therefore help you both to understand it and to do it by these questions which I intreat you to answer sincerely as one that is going to the presence of God Quest. 1. Do you truly Believe that you are a Rational creature differing from bruits being made to Love and serve your Maker and have an immortal soul which must live in Heaven or Hell for ever And that there is indeed a Heaven of Ioyes and a Hell of punishments when this life is ended Quest. 2. Do you believe that in Heaven the souls of the Iustified at death and the Body also at the Resurrection shall be joined with the Angels and shall dwell with Christ and see the Glory of God and be perfected in Holiness and filled with the sense of the Love of God and with the greatest Ioyes that our nature can receive and shall live in the most delightful Love and Praise of God for ever Quest. 3. Seeing you are certain that all the pleasures of this life are short and will end in death and leave the flesh which desired them in corruption do you not firmly believe that the Ioyes of Heaven are infinitely better and more to be desired and sought than all the pleasures and profits of this life And that it is most reasonable that we should Love God above all Creatures even with all our heart and soul and might Quest. 4. Seeing then that the Love of God is both our Duty and our Happiness is it not reason that we should be kept from the Love of any thing in the world which would steal away our hearts from God and hinder us from Loving him and desiring and seeking him and that we should mortifie the love of worldly riches honours and delights so far as they are against the Love of God Quest. 5. Seeing God is the absolute Lord and Ruler of the world is it not reason that we obey him whatsoever he commandeth us though we did not see the Reason why he doth command it And yet is it not plainly Reasonable that he command us to Love and honour and worship him and to Love one another and to deal Iustly with all and do as we would be done by and toâ—â—e careful of our souls and temperate for our bodies and not to neglect or dishonour our maker nor to neglect our own salvation nor abuse our bodies by beastly filthiness or excess nor to wrong our neighbours nor deny to do them any good that is in our power This is the sum of all Gods laws and this is the nature of Holiness and obedience And do you not from your heart believe that all this is very reasonable and good Quest. 6. When the sinful world was faln from Happiness into misery by turning away from God and Holiness to sensuality and God sent his Son to be their Redeemer and Saviour to be a Sacrifice for sin and a Teacher and Pattern of a Holy and Obedient life and to make a new Covenant with them in which he giveth them the pardon of all sin and everlasting happiness if they will but give up themselves to him as their Saviour and Sanctifier and by true Repentance turn to God do you not verily Believe that miserable sinners should gladly and thankfully accept of such an offer and abundantly Love that God and Saviour that hath so tenderly loved them and so freely Redeemed them from the flames of Hell and so freely offered them everlasting life And do you not Believe that he who after all this shall slight all this mercy and refuse to be renewed by sanctifying grace and shall neglect his God and soul and this salvation and rather choose to keep his sins doth not deserve to be utterly forsaken and to be punished more than if a Saviour and Salvation had never been offered to him Quest. 7. Hath not this been your own case Have you not lived a fleshly worldly life neglecting God and your salvation and minding more these lower things and have you not refused the word and spirit of Christ which would have brought you to Repentance and a holy
is the inherent evidence 3. The miracles of the spirit is the concomitant attestation or evidence 4. And the sanctifying work of the spirit is the subsequent attestation renewed and accompanying it to the end of the World So that the Argument runs thus That doctrine which hath this witness of the Holy Ghost antecedently in such prophecies inherently bearing his image so unimitably accompanyed by so many certain uncontrouled miracles and followed and attended with such matchless success in the sanctification of the body of Christ is fully attested by God to be his own But such is the ☞ doctrine of the Gospel Therefore c. The Major you are not to take upon trust from your Teachers though your esteem of their judgement may the better dispose you to learn But you are to discern the evidences of truth which is apparent in it For he that denyeth this must by force of argument be driven to deny 1. Either that God is the Governour of the World or that he is the supream but say he is controuled by another 3. Or that he is Good and True and must affirm that he either Governeth the world by meer deceits and undiscernable lyes or that he hath given up the power to some one that so governeth it All which is but to affirm that there is no God which is supposed to be proved before § 25. 8. There now remaineth nothing to be taught you as to prove the truth of the Gospel 8. To know the matters of fact subservient to our â—aâ—â—â—â— but only those matters of fact which are contained and supposed in the Minor of the two last arguments And they are these particulars 1. That there were such persons as Christ and his Apostles and such a Gospel Preached by them 2. That such Miracles were done by them as are supposed ☞ 3. That both Doctrine and Miracles were committed to writing by them in the Scriptures for the Est enim mirabilâ—â— quâ—dam continuatio seriesque rerum ut alia ex alia nexa omnes inter se aptae colligataeque videantur Ciâ— dâ— Natur. deor pag. 6. certainer preserving them to the Churches use 4. That Churches were planted and souls converted and confirmed by them in the first ages many of whom did seal them with their blood 5. That there have been a succession of such Churches as have adhered to this Christ and Gospel 6. That this which we call the Bible is that very Book containing those sacred Writings fore-mentioned 7. That it hath been still copyed out and preserved without any such depravation or corruption as might frustrate its ends 8. That the Copies are such out of which we have them Translated and which we shew 9. That they are so truly translated as to have no such corruptions or mistakes as to frustrate their ends or make them unapt for the work they were appointed to 10. That these particular words are indeed here written which we read and these particular Doctrines containing the Essentials of Christianity together with the rest of the material objects of faith § 26. All these ten particulars are matters of fact that are meerly subservient to the constitutingprinciples of our faith but yet very needful to be known Now the question is How these must be known and received by us so as not to invalidate our faith And how far our Teachers must be here believed And first it is very useful to us to enquire How so many of these matters of fact as were then existent were known to the first Christians As How knew they in those dayes that there were such persons as Christ and his Apostles that they preached such Doctrines and spake such Languages and did such Works and that they wrote such Books and sent such Epistles to the Churches and that Churches were hereby converted and confirmed and Martyrs sealed this with their blood c. It s easie to tell how they were certain of all these Even by their own eyes and ears and sensible observation as we know that there are Englishmen live in England And those that were remoter from some of the matters of fact knew them by such report of those that did see them as those among us that never saw the King or Court or his Restoration do know that such a thing there was and such a person there is Thus they knew it then § 27. From whence I note 1. That in those dayes it was not necessary to the being of true faith that any supernatural testimony of the Spirit or any other sort of proof than their very senses and reason should acquaint them with those matters of fact which they were eye-witnesses of 2. That credible report or history was then the means for any one that saw not a matter of fact to know as much as they that saw it 3. That therefore this is now the way also of producing faith Some things we have yet sight and sense for as that such Bibles and such Churches are existent that such holy effects this Doctrine hath upon the soul which we see in others by the fruits and after feel in our selves The rest we must know by History Tradition or Report § 28. And in the reception of these historical passages note further 1. That humane belief is here a naturally necessary means to acquaint us with the matter of our Divine belief 2. That there are various By all this it is easie to gather whether a Pastor may do his work per alium Saith Grotius de Imâ— p. 290 291. Nam illud Quod quis per alium facit per se facere videtur ad eas duntaxat pertinet actiones quarum causa efficiens proxima à jure indefinita est Yet people should labour after such maturity and stedfastness that they may be able to stand if their Pastors be dead or taken from them by persecution yea or forsake the truth themselves Victor Uâ—iâ— saith of the people in Africk when their Pastors were banished and others might not be ordained in their steads Inter haec tamen Dei populus in fide consistens ut examina apum cereas aedificantia manâ—iones crescendo melleis fidei claviculis firmabatur Quanto magis affligebantur tanto magis multiplicabantur Victor p. 382. degrees of this belief and some need more of it by far than others according to the various degrees of their ignorance As he that cannot read himself must know by humane belief in great part that the Preacher readeth truly or that such words indeed are in the Gospel as he saith are there But a literate person may know this by his eye sight and not take it upon trust So he that understandeth not Hebrew and Greek must take it upon trust that the Scripture is truly translated But another that understandeth those Tongues may see it with his eyes 3. History being the proper means to know matters of fact that are done in times past and out of our
men were before when once they converse together and grow acquainted they are more reconciled The reason is partly because they find less evil and more good in one another than before they did believe to be in them and partly because uncharitableness and malice being an ugly monster is bolder at a distance but ashamed of it self before your face And therefore the pens of the Champions of malice are usually more bitter than their tongues when they speak to you face to face Of all the furious adversaries that have raged against me in the later part of my life I remember not one enemy that I have or ever had that was ever familiar or acquainted with me And I have my self heard ill reports of many which by personal acquaintance I have found to be all false Keep together and either silence your differences or gently debate them yea rather chide it out than withdraw asunder Familiarity feedeth Love and Unity § 106. Direct 23. When ever you look at any corruption in the Church look also at the contrary exâ—râ—am Direct 23. and see and avoid the danger of one as well as of the other Be sure every error and Church-corruption hath its extream And if you do not see it and the danger of it you are the liker to run into it Look well on both sides if you would be safe § 107. Direct 24. Worship God your selves in the purest manner and under the most edifying Ministry Direct 24. that lawfully you can attain but be not too forward to condemn others that reach not to your measure or attain not so much happiness And deny not personal communion sometimes with Churches that are more blemished and fit for Communion And when you cannot joyn locally with them let them have the communion of your Hearts in faith and charity and prayer for each other I fear not here openly to tell the world that if I were turned loose to my own liberty I would ordinarily worship God in that manner that I thought most pure and agreeable to his Will and Word but I would sometimes go to the Churches of other Christians that were fit for Christian communion if there were such about me Sometime to the Independants sometime to the moderate Anabaptists sometime to such as had a Liturgie as faulty as that of the Greek or the Ethiopian Churches to shew by my practice what communion my heart hath with them all § 108. Direct 25. Take heed that you interess not Religion or the Church in Civil differences This Direct 25. error hath divided and ruined many famous Churches and most injuriously made the holy truth and worship of God to be a reproach and infamy among selfish partial carnal men When Princes and Since the writing of this I have published a Book called The Curt of Church-Divistoâ—s and a Defence of it which handle these things more fully States fall out among themselves they will needs draw the Ministers to their sides and then one side will certainly condemn them and call them all that self-interest and malice can invent And commonly when the controversie is only in point of Law or Politicks it is Religion that bears the blame of all and the differences of Lawyers and Statesmen must be charged upon Divines that the Devil may be able to make them useless as to the good of all that party that is against them and may make Religion it self be called Rebellion And O that God would maintain the Peace of Kingdoms and Kings and Subjects were all Lovers of peace the rather because the differences in States do cause so commonly divisions in the Church It would make a man wonder and a lover of History to lament to observe in the differences between the Pope and Henry the fourth and other Emperours how the Historians are divided one half commending him that the other half condemneth and how the Bishops and Churches were one half for the Pope and the other for the Emperour and one half still accounted Rebels or Schismaticks by the other though they were all of one Religion It is more to ruine the Church than Kingdoms that Satan laboureth so much to kindle Warrs and breed Civil differences in the world And therefore let him that loveth the Churches Peace be an obedient Subject and an enemy of Sedition and a Lover and defender of the Civil Peace and Government in the place that God hath set him in For this is pleasing unto God § 109. I know there are some that with too bloody and calamitous success have in most ages given other kind of Directions for the extirpation of Error Heresie and Schism than I have here given But God hath still caused the most wise and holy and charitable and experienced Christians Bâ—â—a Hist. Ecâ—lâ—sâ—â—ib 1. cap. 26. Didicerat enim Rex Edilberth a Doctoribut auctoribusque suae salutis servitium Christi voluntarium non coactitium debeâ—e esse to bear their testimony against them And he hath ever caused their way of cruelty to turn to their own shame And though like Treasons and Robberies it seem for the time present to serve their turn it is bitterness in the end and leaveth a stinking memorial of their names and actions to posterity And the Treatises of Reconcilers such as our Halls Ushers Bergius Burroughs and many other by the delectable savour of Unity and Charity are sweet and acceptable to prudent and peaâ—â—able persons though usually unsuccessful with the violent that needed them Besides the fore-cited witness of Sr. Francis Bacon c. I will here add one of the most antient and one or two of this age whom the contrary-minded do mention with the greatest honour Iustin Martyr Dial. cum Tryph. doth at large give his judgement that a Judaizing Christian who thinketh it best to be circumciâ—â—d and keep the Law of Moses be suffered in his opinion and practice and admitted to the communion and priviledges of the Church and loved as one that may be saved in that way so be it he do not make it his business to perswade others to his way and teach it as necessary to salvation or communion For such he doth condemn King Iames by the Pen of Is. Causabone telleth Cardinal du Perron that His Majesty thinketh that for Concord there is no nearer way than diligently to separate things necessary from the unnecessary and to bestow all our labour that we may agree in the things necessary and that in things unnecessary there may be place given for Christian Liberty The King calleth these things simply necessary which either the Word of God expresly commandeth to be believed or done or which the antient Church did gather from the Word of God by necessary consequence Grotius Annot. in Matth. 13. 41. is so full and large upon it that I must intreat the Reader to peruse his own words where by arguments and authority he-vehemently rebuketh the Spirit of fury cruelty and uncharitableness which
unheard or upon rash presumption Prop. 12. Christianity and Heresie being personal qualities and no where found but in individuals Ezek. 18 17. Gen. 18 3 24 â—5 nor one man guilty of anothers error it followeth that it is single persons upon personal guilt that must be judged Prop. 13. Any man may judge another to be a Christian or Heretick by a private judgement of 1 Cor. â—0 1â— Acts 1. 19. 1 Cor. â— 3 4 5. 1 Cor. 11. 3. Mat. 5. 11 12. John 16. 2. discerning or the reason which guideth all humane actions But only Church Rulers may judge him by that publick Judgement which giveth or denyeth him his publick priviledges and Communion Prop. 14. If by notorious injustice Church Rulers condemn Christians as no Christians though they may thereby deny them communion with those publick Assemblies which they govern yet do they not oblige the people to take such injured persons for no Christians Else they might oblige all to believe a lye to consent to malicious injuries and might disoblige the people from Truth Righteousness and Charity Prop. 15. There is no one Natural or Collective Head and Governour of all the Churches in the 1 Cor. 12. 27 28 29. world the Universal Church but Jesus Christ And therefore there is none that by such Governing power can excommunicate any man out of the Universal Church And such Usurpation would Eph. 4. 5 6 7. 1 Cor. 1. 12 13 3. 22 23. be Treason against Christ whose Prerogative it is Prop. 16. Yet he that deserveth to be excommunicated from one Church deserveth to be Ephes. 5. 23. 4 15. excommunicated by and from all if it be upon a Cause common to all or that nullifieth his Christianity Col. 1. 18. 2. 19. Prop. 17. And where neighbour Churches are Consociate and live in Order and Concord he that 3 John is orderly excommunicate from one Church and it be notified to the rest should not be taken into the communion of any of the rest till he be cleared or become fit for their communion But Ephes. 5. 11. 1 Cor. 5. 1â— this obligation ariseth but from the Concord of Consociate Churches and not from the Power of one over the rest And it cannot reach all the world where the person cometh not nor was ever known but only to those who through neighbourhood are capable of just notice and of giving or denying communion to that person Prop. 18. From all this it is clear that it is not either Papists alone or Greeks alone or Protestants alone or any party of Christians who are the Universal Church seeing that Church containeth All 1 Cor. 1â— 12. John 13. 3â— 1 Cor. 13 1 2 c. Christians And that reviling others yea whole Nations as Hereticks Schismaticks and no Christians or Churches will no more prove the Revilers to be the only Church or Christians than Want of Love will prove a man to be one of Christs Disciples who by Love are known to all men to be his Prop. 19. It is therefore the shameful language of distracted men to cry out against other Christian Nations It is not you but we that are the Catholick or Universal Church And our shameful Controversie which of them is the Catholick is no wiser than to question Whether it be this house or that which is the Street Or this Street or that which is the City Or whether it be the 1 Cor. 12. 12. 1 Cor. 6. 17. 10. 17. Kitchin or the Hall or the Parlour which is the House Or the Hand or Foot or Eye which is the Man O when will God bring distracting Teachers to Repentance and distracted people to their wits Ephes. 4. 3 c. Prop. 20. There is great difference in the Purity or soundness of the several parts of the Universal Church some being more Orthodox and holy and some deâ—â—led with so many Errours and sins Gal. 4. 11 12. as to make it difficult to discern whether they do not deny the very essentials Prop. 21. The Reformed Churches are the soundest and purest that we know in the world and Rev. 3 8 9 10 11 12. 2 10 11. Act. 14 22. Tit. 1 5. Rom. 16. 4 16. 1 Cor. 7 17. 11. 16. 14. 3â— 34. 2 Thes. 1. 4. Rev. 2. 23. therefore their priviledge exceeding great though they are not all the Universal Church Prop. 22. Particular Churches consisting of Lawful Pastors and Christian people associated for personal Communion in Worship and holy living are societies or true Churches of Christâ— institution and the chief parts of the Universal Church As Cities and Corporations are of the Kingdom Prop. 23. There are thousands of these in the world and a man may be saved in one as well as in another Only the purest give him the best advantages for his salvation And therefore should be preferred by all that are wise and love their souls so far as they are free to choose their Communion Prop. 24. The case then being easily resolved which is the true Church viz. All Christians ☜ as Christians are the Catholick or Universal Church and All Congregations afore described of 1 Cor. 1. 13. Rom. 16. 17. Act. 20. 30. true Pastors and Christians being particular true Churches differing only in degrees of purity he is to be suspected as a designing deceiver and troubler of the world that pretending to be a Learned man and a Teacher doth still perplex the Consciences of the ignorant with this frivolous question and would muddy and obscure this clear state of the case lest the people should rest in the discerned truth Prop. 25. The Papal Church as such being no true Church of Christs institution of which by it self anon it followeth that a Papist as a Papist is no member of the Church of Christ that is Acts 2. 44. 1 Cor. 1. 10. 1 Thes. 5. 12 13. no Christian. But yet whether the same person may not be a Papist and a Christian and so a member of the Catholick Church we shall anon enquire Prop. 26. There are many things which go to make up the fitness and desireablness of that particular Heb. 10. 25. 1 Tim. 3. 7. 3 Joh. 12. Church which we should prefer or choose for our ordinary personal Communion As 1. That it be the Church of that place where we dwell If the place be so happy as to have no divided Churches that it be the sole Church there However that it be so neerâ—â— to be fit for our Communion 2. That it be a Church which holdeth Communion with other neighbour Churches and is not singular or divided from them Or at least not from the Generality of the Churches of Christ nor Act 16 32 34. Act 10. 2. 22. Act. 18. 8. Col. 4. 15. differeth in any great matters from those that are most pure 3. That it be under the Reputation of soundness with the other Churches aforesaid
or in some other Covenant or in no Covenant If they be under no Covenant or promise or under some other promise or Covenant only and not the same they are not to be Baptized For Baptism is a mutual Covenanting where the Minister by Christs Commission in his name acteth his part and the believer his own and his Infants part And God hath but one Covenant which is to be made sealed and delivered in baptism Baptism is not an equivocal word so as to signifie divers Covenants of God Obj. But the same Covenant of God hath divers sorts of benefits The special God giveth to the sincere and the Common to the common and hypocritical receiver Answ. 1. God indeed requireth the Minister to take Profession for the Visible Church-title And so it being the Ministers duty so far to believe a lyar and to Receive dissemblers wh 〈…〉 had no right to lay that claim you may say that God indirectly and improperly giveth them Church-priviledges But properly that is by his promise or Covenant-deed of gift he giveth them nothing at all For his Covenant is one and undivided in its action though it give several benefits and Though Providence may give one and not another yet the Covenant giveth all or none God saith that Godliness hath the promise of this life and of that to come but he never said that I know of To the bypocrite or unsound Act. 2. 39. Gal. 3 22 29. 1 Tim. 4. 8. Eph. 2. 12. 2 Tim. 1. 1. Heb. 4. 1. 6. 17. 9. 15. 10. 36. 8. 6. 2 Pet. 1. 4 5. Act. 2. 38. Act. 26. 18. Luk. 24. 47. believer I promise or give right to common mercies 2. But suppose it were otherwise yet either the Children of true believers have the true Condition of Right to the special blessings of the Covenant or they have not the condition of any at all For there can no more be required of an Infant as to any special blessings of the Covenant than that he be the Child of believing Parents and by them Dedicated to God Either this condition entitleth them to all the Covenant promises which the adult believer is entitled to as far as their natures are capable or it entitleth them to none at all Nor are they to be baptized For God hath in Scripture instituted but one baptism to profess one faith And that one is ever for the remission of sins He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved Mark 16. 16. 3. Or if all the rest were granted you yet it would follow that all Infants in the World even of true believers are left out of Gods Covenant of Grace that is the Covenant or promise of pardon of life and are only taken in to the Covenant of Church-priviledges And so 1. You will make two Covenants which you denyed and not only two sorts of benefits of one Covenant 2. And two species of Baptism while all Infants in the World are only under a Covenant of outward priviledges and have no baptism but the seal of that Covenant while believers have the Covenant promise and seal of pardon and life 2. And this is my second Reason Because then we have no promise or certainty or ground of faith for the pardon and salvation of any individual Infants in the World And so Parents are left to little comfort for their Children And if there be no promise there is no faith of it nor no Baptism to seal it and so we still make Antipaedobaptism unavoidable For who dare set Gods seal to such as have no promise Or pretend to Invest any in a neer and saving Relation to God the Father Son and Holy Ghost which is the very nature of Baptism when God hath given no such commission Obj. Yes Baptism and the Covenant of special promises are for all the Elect though we know not who they are Answ. 1. I deny not Gods Eternal antecedent Election But I deny that the Scripture ever mentioneth his pardoning or Glorifying any upon the account of Election only without certain spiritual conditions which may be given as the reason of the difference in judgement God may freely give the Gospel to whom he will and also faith or the first grace by the Gospel without any previous condition in man but according to his free Election only But he giveth pardon and Heaven as a Rector by his equal Laws and judgement and alwayes rendereth a reason of the difference from the qualifications of man 2. And if this were as you say it would still overthrow Infant baptism For either we must baptize all indifferently or none or else know how to make a difference All must not be baptized indifferently And Election is a secret thing to us and by it no Minister in the World can tell whom to baptize Therefore he must baptize none if there be no other differencing note to know them by Obj. God hath more elect ones among the Infants of true believers than among others And therefore they are all to be baptized Answ. 1. It will be hard to prove that much that he hath more if there be no promise to them all as such 2. If he have more yet no man knoweth how many and whether the Elect be one of ten twenty forty or an hundred in comparison of the non-elect For Scripture tells it not So that no Minister of a Church is sure that any one Infant that he ever baptized is elect 3. And God hath given no such rule for sealing and delivering his Covenant with the benefits as to cast it hap hazard among all because it is possible or probable it may belong to some Object You have no certainty what adult professor is sincere nor to which of them the special benefits belong no not of any one in a Church And yet because that there is a probability that among many there are some sincere you baptize them all Take then the birth priviledge but as equal to the profession of the adult Answ. This partly satisfied me sometimes But I cannot forget that A visible false or hypocritical profession is not the condition of Gods own Covenant of Grace nor that which he requireth in us to make us partakers of his Covenant-benefits Nay he never at all commandeth it but only commandeth that profession of Consent which followeth the real consent of the heart He that Rom. 10. 9. Acts 8. 37. condemneth lying maketh it neither the condition of our Church-membership as his gift by promise nor yet our duty And mark well that it is a Professed Consent to the whole Covenant that God requireth as the condition of our true right to any part or benefit of it He that shall only say I consent to be a visible Church-member doth thereby acquire no right to that membership no not in foro Ecclesiae But he must also profess that he consenteth to have God for his God and Christ for his Lord and Saviour and the Holy
as much as they can whether by Synods or other meet wayes of correspondency And though this be not a distinct Government it is a distinct mode of Governing Object But that there be Pastors with fixed Churches or Assemblies is not of the Law of Nature Answ. 1. Hath Christ no Law but the Law of Nature Wherein then differ the Christian Religion and the Heathenish 2. Suppose but Christ to be Christ and man to be what he is and Nature it self will tell us that this is the fittest way for ordering the Worship of God For Nature saith God must be solemnly and ordinarily worshipped and that qualified persons should be the official Guides in the performance And that people who need such conduct and private oversight besides should where they live have their own stated Overseers Object But particular Congregations are not de primaria intentione divina For if the whole world could joyn together in the publick Worship of God no doubt that would be properly a Church But particular Congregations are only accidental in reference to Gods intention of having a Church because of the Impossibility of all mens joyning together for Ordinances c. Answ. 1. The question with me is not whether they be of primary Intention but whether stated Churches headed with their proper Bishops or Pastors be not of Gods institution in the Scripture 2. This Objection confirmeth it and not denyeth it For 1. It confesseth that there is a necessity of joyning for Gods Worship 2. And an Impossibility that all the world should so joyn 3. But if the whole world could so joyn it would be properly a Church So that it confesseth that to be a society joyned for Gods publick Worship is to be properly a Church And we confess all this If all the world could be one family they might have one Master or one Kingdom they might have one King But when it is confessed that 1. A Natural Impossibility of an Universal Assembly necessitateth more particular assemblies 2. And that Christ hath instituted such actually in his Word what more can a considerate man require 3. I do not understand this distinction de primaria intentione divina and accidental c. The Primary Intention is properly of the Ultimate End only And no man thinketh that a Law de mediis of the means is no Law or that God hath made no Laws de mediis For Christ as a Mediator is a Means But suppose it be limited to the Matter of Church Laws If this be the meaning of it that it is not the principal means but a subordinate means or that it is not instituted only propter finem ultimum no more than propter se but also in order to a higher thing as its immediate end we make no question of that Assemblies are not only that there may be assemblies but for the Worship and Offices there performed And those for Man And all for God But what or all this Hath God made no Laws for subordinate means No Christian denyeth it Therefore the Learned and Judicious Disputer of this point declareth himself for what I say when he saith I engage not in the Controversie Whether a particular Congregation be the first political Dr. Stillingflects Iâ—en p. 154 so p. 170. By Church here I mean not a particular Congregation c. So h gâ—anteth that 1 the Universal Church 2. Particular Congregations are of Divine Institution one ex intentione primaria and the other as he calls it accidentally but yet of Natural necessity Church or no It sufficeth for my purpose that there are other Churches besides The thing in question is Whether there be no other Church but such particular Congregations Where it seemeth granted that such particular Churches are of Divine institution And for other Churches I shall say more anon In the mean time note that the question is but de nomine here whether the Name Church be fit for other societiâ—s and not de re But lest any should grow to the boldness to deny that Christ hath instituted Christian stated Societies consisting of Pastors and flocks associate for personal Communion in publick Worship and holy living which is my detinition of a particular Church as not so confined to one assembly but that it may be in divers and yet not consisting of divers such distinct stated assemblies with their distinct Pastors nor of such as can have no personal communion but only by Delegates I prove it thus from the Word of God 1. The Apostles were commissioned by Christ to deliver his commands to all the Churches and settle them according to his will Iohn 20. 21. Matth. 28. 19 20 c. 2. These commissioned persons had the promise of an infallible Spirit for the due performance of their work Iohn 16. 13 14 15. 15. 26. 14. 26. Matth. 28. 20. 3. These Apostles where ever the success of the Gospel prepared them materials did settle Christian stated societies consisting of Pastors or Elders with their flocks associated for personal communion in publick worship and holy living These setled Churches they gave orders to for their direction and preservation and reformation These they took the chief care of themselves and exhorted their Elders to fidelity in their work They gave command that none should forsake such assemblies and they so fully describe them as that they cannot easily be misunderstood All this is proved Acts 14. 23. Titus 1. 5. Rom. 16. 1. 1 Cor. 11. 18 20. 22 26. 1 Cor. 14. 4 5 12 19 23 28 33 34. Col. 4. 16. Acts 11. 26. 13. 1. 1 Cor. 16. 1 2. Acts 14. 27. 15. 3. to omit many more Here are proofs enow that such particular Churches were de facto setled by the Apostles Heb. 10. 25. Forsake not the assembling of your selves together So Iames 2. 2. they are called Synagogues 2. It is confessed that there is a natural necessity of such stated Churches or Assemblies supposing but the Institution of the Worship it self which is there performed And if so then we may say that the Law of Nature it self doth partly require them 1. It is of the Law of Nature that God be publickly worshipped as most Expositors of the fourth Commandment do confess 2. It is of the Law of Nature that the people be taught to know God and their duty by such as are able and fit to teach them 3. The Law of Nature requireth that man being a sociable creature and conjunction working strongest affections we should use our sociableness in the greatest matters and by conjunction help the zeal of our prayers and praises of God 4. Gods institution of publick Preaching Prayer and Praise are scarce denyed by any Christians 5. None of these can be publickly done but by assembling 6. No Assembly can suffice for these without a Minister of Christ Because it is only his Office to be the ordinary Teacher and to go before the people in prayer and praise and to administer the
by a Pars Gubernans gubernata If not it 's no Church save equivocally If so should not the Pars regens which is constitutive have been put in If private men joyn together c. it makes but a community 2. A right to Gospel Ordinances is supposed but need not be in the definition 3. The enjoying of them is not essential to a Church The Relation may continue when the enjoyment is a long time hindered 4. Among them is a very ambiguous word Is it among them in the same place or in the same Countrey or Kingdom or in the same world If you difference and define them not by Relation to the same Bishops or Pastors and by intended Personal holy Communion your description confoundeth the universal Church as well as the National with a Particular Church For the whole Christian world is a Society of men joyning together in the visible profession of the true faith having a right to and enjoying among them the Ordinances of the Gospel Obj. A Nation joyning in the profession of Christianity is a true Church of God whence it evidently followeth that there must be a form of Ecclesiastical Government over a Nation as a Church as well as of Civil Government over it as a society governed by the same Laws For every society must have its Government belonging to it as such a society And the same reason that makes Government necessary in any particular Congregation will make it necessary for all the particular Congregations joyning together in one visible society as a particular national Church For the unity and peace of that Church ought much more to be looked after than of any one particular Congregation c. Answ. 1. From one absurdity many follow our Controversie before was but of the Name If an Accidental Royal or Civil Head may equivocally denominate an ecclesiastical society and we grant you the use of an equivocal name or rather the abuse you will grow too hard upon us if thence you will gather a necessity of a real Ecclesiastical policy besides the Civil Names abused insert not the things signified by an univocal term 2. You must first prove the form of Government and thence inferr the denomination and not contrarily first beg the name and then inferr the Government 3. If yet by a form of Ecclesiastical Government you meant nothing but the Kings extrinsick Government which you may as well call also a form of School-Government of Colledge Government c. we would grant you all But if I can understand you you now speak of Ecclesiastical Government as distinct from that And then 4. You are now grown up from a may be to a must be and necessity And a greater necessity of one National Ecclesiastical Government than of a Particular Church Government which being undeniably of Christs Institution by the Holy Ghost in the Apostles you do not make all forms to be indifferent or deny this to be jure divino What! necessary and more necessary than that which is jure divino and yet indifferent and not jure divino If you say It is necessary only on supposition that there be a national Church I answer But your reasons evidently inferr that it is also necessary that there be such a National Church where it may be had Though you deny the necessity of Monarchical Government by one High Priest in it But I know you call not this a form of Government unless as determinately managed by one many or most But why a national spiritual Policy as distinct from Congregational may not be called a form of Government as well as One mans distinct from two over the same people I see not But this is at your liberty But your Necessity of such a National Regiment is a matter of greater moment In these three senses I confess a National Church 1. As all the Christians in a Nation are under one Civil Church Governour 2. As they are Consociated for Concord and meet in Synods or hold correspondencies 3. As they are all a part of the universal Church cohabiting in one Nation But all these are equivocal uses of the word Church the denomination being taken in the first from an Accident In the second the name of a Policy being given to a Community agreeing for Concord In the third the name of the whole is given to a small integral part But the necessity of any other Church headed by your Ecclesiastical national Governour personal or Collective Monarchical Aristocratical or Democratical I utterly deny and find not a word of proof which I think I have any need to furnish the Reader with an answer to 5. And your judgement in this is downright against the constitution Canons and judgement of the National Church of England For that they use the Word in the senses allowed by me and not in yours is proved 1. From the visible constitution in which there is besides the King no distinct Ecclesiastical Head For the Arch-bishop of Canterbury is not the proper Governour of the Arch-bishop of York and his Province 2. From the Canons Can. 139. A National Synod the Church Representative Whosoever shall affirm that the Sacred Synod of this Nation in the name of Christ and by the Kings authority assembled is not the true Church of England by representation let him be excommunicated c. so that the Synod is but the Representative Church And therefore not the Political Head of the Church whether it be the Laity or the whole Clergy or both which they Represent Representation of those that are no National Head maketh them not a National Head 3. From the ordinary judgement of Episcopal Divines maintained by Bishop Bilson and many others at large against the Papists that all Bishops jure divino are Equal and Independant further than humane Laws or Agreements or difference of Gifts may difference them or as they are bound to consociation for Concord 6. How shall I deny not only the Lawfulness but the necessity of such a Papacy as really was in the Roman Empire on your grounds I have proved against W. Iohnson that the Pope was then actually but the Head of the Imperial Churches and not of all the World And if there must be one National Ecclesiastical Head under one King why not one also in one Empire And whether it be one Monarch or a collective person it is still one Political person which is now in question Either a Ruling Pope or a Ruling Aristocracy or Democracy which is not the great matter in Controversie 7. And why will not the same Argument carry it also for one Universal visible Head of all the Churches in the World at least as Lawful At least as far as humane capacity and converse will allow And who shall choose this Universal Head And who can lay so fair a claim to it as the Pope And if the form be indifferent why may not the Churches by consent at least set up one man as well as many
order to our Absolution and Communion 4. Especially so far as is necessary to subdue our fleshly lusts and tame our bodies and bring them into a due subjection to our faith and to avoid our sin for the time to come And also by 2 Cor. 7. 9 10 11. 1 Cor. 9 27. Col. 1. 5 6. Rom. 13 13 14. the exercise of sober mortification prudently to keep under all our worldly phantasies and love of this present world without unfitting our selves for duty 5. And so far as is needful by such mortification to fit us for fervent prayer especially by fasting on dayes of humiliation and to help us in our meditations of death and judgement and to further our heavenly contemplations and conversation 6. The greatest difficulty is Whether any self-revenge be lawful or due which is answered by Psal. 69. 10. Lev. 16. 29 31. â—3 27 32. Numb 29. 7. 30. 13. Ezra 8. 21. what is said already None such as disableth us for Gods service is lawful But true Repentance is an anger or great displeasure with our selves for sin and a hatred of sin and loathing of our selves for it And to judge condemn and afflict our own souls by a voluntary self-punishing is but that exercise of justice on our selves which is fit for pardoned sinners that are not to be condemned by the Lord and indeed the just exercise of Repentance and displeasure against our selves On which accounts of sober self-revenge we may cherish such degrees of godly sorrow fasting course cloathing as Sackcloth and denying our selves the pleasures of this world as shall not be hurtful but helpful to our duty And if great and heinous sinners have of old on these terms exceeded other men in their austerities and self-afflictings we cannot condemn them of superstition unless we more particularly knew more cause for it But popishly to think that self-afflicting without respect to Isa. 58. 5. such causes or necessities is a meritorious perfection fit for others is superstition indeed And â—o think as many of the Melancholy do that self-murder is a lawful self-revenge is a heinous sin and leadeth to that which is more heinous and dangerous Quest. 101. Is it lawful to observe stated times of fasting imposed by others without extraordinary occasion And particularly Lent Answ. REmember that I here meddle not with the question how far it is lawful for Rulers to 2 Chron. 20 3. Ezâ—a 8. 21. Jonah 3. 5. Zech. 8. 19. Joel 2. 15. Read Dallaeus Treatise de Iejuniis impose such Fasts on others save only to say 1. That it is undoubtedly fit for Kings to do it by Precepts and Churches by Consent in extraordinary cases of defection sin or judgements 2. That it is undoubtedly sinful usurpation for either Pope or any pretended Ecclesiastical Universal Rulers to impose such on the Universal Church Because there are no Universal Rulers Or for a neighbour Bishop by usurpation to impose it on a neighbour Church 3. And that it is sinful in all or many Churches to make by their Agreements such things to be necessary to their Union or Communion with their neighbour Churches so that they will take all those for Schismaticks that differ from them in such indifferent things But as to the Using of such fasts omitting the imposing I say I. 1. Thâ—â— so great and extraordinary a duty as holy fasting must not be turned into a meer Isa. 58. 3 5 6 7 8. formality oâ— ceremony 2. No particular man must be so observant of a publick commanded anniversary fast as for it to neglect any duty commanded him by God which is inconsistent with it As to rejoyce or keep a day of Thanksgiving in Lent upon an extraordinary obliging cause To keep the Lords day in Lent as a day of Thanksgiving and Rejoycing To preserve our own health c. It is not lawful in obedience to man to fast so much or use such dyet as is like to destroy our lives or health These being not so far put into the power of man Nor can man dispence with us as to the duty of self-preservation If God himself require us not to offer him our lives and health needlesly as an acceptable Sacrifice nor ever maketh self-destruction our duty no nor any thing that is not for mans own good then we are not to believe without very clear proof that either Prince or Prelates have more power than ever God doth use himself 3. Such an Anniversary fast as is meet for the remembrance of some sin or judgement if commanded is to be kept both for the Reason of it and for the Authority of the Commander For 1. It is not unlawful as Anniversary For 1. It is not forbidden and 2. There may be just occasion Some arbitrarily keep an anniversary fast on the day of their Nativity as I have long done and some on the day that they fell into some great sin and some on the day of the death of a friend or of some personal domestick or National Calamity and none of this is forbidden 2. And that which is not unlawful in it self is not therefore unlawful to be done because it is commanded seeing obedience to superiours is our duty and not our sin unless in sinful things 4. Whether it be lawful or meet to commemorate Christs sufferings by anniversary fasts is next to be considered II. As for Lent in particular We must distinguish 1. Between the antient Lent and the later Lent 2. Between keeping it on a Civil account and on a Religious 3. Between true fasting and change of dyet 4. Between the Imitation of Christs fourty dayes fasting and the meer Commemoration of it Which premised I conclude 1. The keeping a true Fast or Abstinence from food for fourty dayes on what account soever being impossible or self-murder is not to be attempted 2. The Imitation of Christ in his fourty dayes fasting is not to be attempted or pretended to Because his miraculous works were not done for our imitation And it is presumption for us to pretend to such a power as is necessary to Miracles or yet to make any Essayes at such an imitation any more than at the raising of the dead 3. The pretending of a fast when men do but change their dyet Flesh for Fish Fruit Sweet-meats c. is but hypocritical and ridiculous Most poor labourers and temperate Ministers do live all the year on a more flesh-denying dyet and in greater abstinence than many Papists do in Lent or on their fasting dayes And what a ridiculous dispute is it to hear e. g. a Calvin that never eateth but one small meal a day for many years to plead against the keeping of the Popish fasts and their Clergy call him voracious and carnal and an Epicure and plead for fasting as holy mortification who eat as many meals and as much meat on a Lent day or fasting day as Calvin did in three feasting dayes and drink as much Wine in
because it was but by Accident a duty and now interpreted a heinous sin But in case that the Life of any man lay on it or that the scandal on Religion for my denying Civil honour to the Prince would be greater and of more perillous consequence than the scandal of seeming Idolatry I would perform that Civil honour which I did before and which God enjoyneth me to perform to my Prince But I would avoid the scandal by open protesting seasonably against the Idolatry Quest. 116. Is it unlawful to use the Badge or Symbol of any Error or Sect in the Worship of God Answ. 1. IT is unlawful to use it formally as such 2. But not materially when 1. There are just and weighty reasons for it 2. And I Every Sect of erring Christians accordingly useth to err in worship and have some badge and symbol of their Sect and error may disown the error For 1. All Sects and Erroneous persons may turn holy words and duties into symbols of their errors 2. All Christians in the world being imperfect do sometime err in matter or manner in their worship And he that will materially avoid all the badges or symbols of their errors shall have no communion with any Church or Christian. 3. As we must do our best so to avoid all their errors that we choose them not and make them not formally our own practice as tautologies vain repetitions disorders unfit phrases c. We must our selves when we are the speakers do as much better as we can So we must not therefore separate from them that do use them nor deny them our Communion when they use them Else we must separate from all others and all others from us 4. But when we are present with them our minds must disown all the faults of the holiest prayer in the world which we joyn in We may be bound to stay with them and joyn in all that 's good and warrantable and yet as we go along to disown in our minds all that we know to be amiss Quest. 117. Are all Indifferent things made unlawful to us which shall be abused to Idolatrous Worship Answ. YOu must distinguish 1. Of the symbols of Idolatry before spoken of and other by-abuses 2. Oâ— an abuse done in former ages or remote Countreys and in our own age and Countrey 3. Of the Reasons inviting us to use them whether necessary or not 1. The Case of Symbols or Badges is not here spoken of but other abuses 2. An abuse committed in the age and place we live in or any other which will be the scandal embolden others to the like may not be complyed in without so great reason as will notably preponderate the evil consequents 3. But yet in many cases such abused Indifferent things may after be lawfully used by believers For instance 1. Names may be things indifferent abused to Idolatry and yet lawfully used by us As the name God Deus Lord Holy Just Good Temple Altar Sacrifice Priest Heaven Sun Moon Iupiter Saturn and a hundred such I mean these Letters and Syllables in these languages That these names are all in themselves indifferent appeareth in that they are neither Naturally necessary nor by Gods Institution but arbiâ—rary signs of humane invention and choice For we may easily and lawfully make new words to signifie all the same things that these do And that they are abused to Idolatry is notoriously known And that yet they are lawfully used the practice of all Christians English and Latin even the most scrupulous themselves doth judge 2. And the use of Temples these individuals which have been used to Idolatry is lawful 3. So also of Bells Pulpits Cups Tables and Fonts and other Utensils 4. The Bible it self as it is this individual Book rather than another is a thing indifferent Yet it may be read in after it hath been abused to Idolatry 5. If the King would give not only the Garments but the Money Lands Lordships Houses which have been Consecrated or otherwise abused to Idolatry to any poor people or most of the scrupulous they would think it lawful to receive and use them yea it s lawful to dedicate the same Lands and Money afterwards to holy uses and to maintain Religious Worship 6. Otherwise it were in the power of any Idolater when ever he pleased to deprive all the Christian world of their Christian liberty and to make nothing indifferent to us seeing they can abuse them all 7. Yea almost nothing is then already indifferent there being few things that some person in some time and place hath not abused to Idolatry 8. If the question be only of all Individual things abused to Idolatry the decision now given will hold good But if it be also of all species of such things it will be a dishonour to a mans reason to make a question of it Quest. 118. May we use the names of Week dayes which Idolatry honoured their Idols with as Sunday Munday Saturday and the rest And so the Moneths Answ. 1. IT were to be wished that the custome were changed 1. Because the names have been so grosly abused 2. And we have no need of them 3. And as the Papists say Our Monuments Temple-names and other Relicts among you prove ours to be the old Religion and keep possession for us till it be restored So the Heathens say to all the Christians Your very names of your dayes and moneths prove our Religion to be elder than yours and keep possession for us till it be restored 2. It is meet that we wisely do our duty toward the reformation of this abuse 3. But yet long custome and sound doctrine hath so far taken away the scandal and ill effects that rather than be an offence to any by seeming singularity it is as lawful still to use these names as it was to Luke to use the names of Castor and Pollux Iupiter and Mercury historically 4. In such cases the true solution of the question must be by weighing accidents and foreseen consequents together wisely and impartially And he that can foresee which way is likely to do most good or hurt may satisfactorily know his duty Quest. 119. Is it lawful to pray secretly when we come first into the Church especially when the Church is otherwise employed Answ. 1. THis is a thing which God hath given us no particular Law about but the General Laws must regulate us Let all be done decently in order and to edification 2. Our great and principal business in coming to the Church assembly is to joyn with them in the publick Worship And this is it that accordingly as our great business we must intend and do 3. In a place where superstition makes ignorant people think it a matter of necessity so to begin with secret prayer when the Church is otherwise employed the use of it is the more scandalous as encouraging them in their error 4. It is the best way to come before the publick worship begin
state and condition of Christians And where the Reasons and Case is the same the Obligations will be the same In a word the Text it self will one way or other shew us when a Command or Example is universally and durably obligatory and when not Quest. 137. How much of the Scripture is necessary to Salvation to be believed and understood Answ. THis question is the more worthy consideration that we may withal understand the use of Catechisms Confessions and Creeds of which after and the great and tender mercies of God to the weak and may be able to answer the Cavils of the Papists against the Scriptures as insufficient to be the Rule of Faith and Life because much of it is hard to be understood 1. He that believeth God to be true and the Scripture to be his Word must needs believe all to be true which he believeth to be his Word 2. All the Scripture is profitable to our knowledge love and practice and none of it to be neglected but all to be loved reverenced and studied in due time and order by them that have time and capacity to do it 3. All the Holy Scriptures either as to matter or words are not so necessary as that no man can be saved who doth not either believe or understand them But some parts of it are more necessary than others 4. It is not of necessity to salvation to believe every Book or Verse in Scripture to be Canonical or written by the Spirit of God For as the Papists Canon is larger than that which the Protestants own so if our Canon should prove defective of any one Book it would not follow that we could not be saved for want of a sufficient faith The Churches immediately after the Apostles time had not each one all their Writings but they were brought together in time and received by degrees as they had proof of their being written by authorized inspired persons The second of Peter Iames Iude Hebrews and Revelations were received in many Churches since the rest And if some Book be lost as Henocks Prophecy or Pauls Epistle to the Laodiceans or any other of his Epistles not named in the rest or if any hereafter should be lost or doubted of as the Canticles or the second or third Epistles of Iohn the Epistle of Iude c. it would not follow that all true faith and hope of salvation were lost with it It is a Controversie whether 1 Iohn 5. 7. and some other particular Verses be Canonical or not because some Greek Copies have them and some are without them But who ever erreth in that only may be saved 5. There are many hundred or thousand Texts of Scripture which a man may possibly be ignorant of the meaning of and yet have a saving faith and be in a state of salvation For no man living understandeth it all 6. The holy Scripture is an entire comely body which containeth not only the essential parts of the true Religion but also the Integral parts and the ornaments and many accidents which must be Rom. 14. 17 18. Rom. 13. 8 9 10. 1 Cor. 15. 2 3 4 5 6. Mar. 16. 16. distinguished and not all taken to be equal 7. So much as containeth the Essentials of true Religion must be understood and believed of necessity to salvation And so much as containeth the Integrals of Religion doth greatly conduce to our salvation both that we may be the surer and the better Christians as having greater helps to both 8. The very adjuncts also have their use to make us the more adorned Christians and to promote our knowledge of greater things Quest. 138. How may we know the Fundamentals Essentials or what parts are necessary to Salvation And is the Papists way allowable that some of them deny that distinction and make the difference to be only in the degrees of mens opportunities of knowledge Answ. 1. THâ—se Papists perverseness can mean no better than that Christianity it self is not necessary to salvation to those that have not opportunity to know it As Iohnsons Rejoynd to me and Sancta Clara and many others plainly intimate And were that never so true and certain it were nothing to the question between them and us which is What are the Essentials of Christianity And what is necessary to salvation where Christianity is necessary or where the Christian Religion is made known and men may come to the knowledge of it if they will do their best This is the true state of our Controversie with them And whereas they would make all the parts of Christian faith and practice equally necessary where men have a capacity and ability to know believe and practise them It is a gross deceit unworthy of men pretending to a mediocrity of knowledge in the nature of Religion And thereby they make all sins and errors as equal as all duties and James 3. 2. 1 John 1. ult truths Whereas 1. There is no man that hath not some error and some sin 2. There is no man that doth all that ever he was able to do to understand all the truth 3. Therefore there is no man whose errors themselves are not many of them at least culpable or sinful 4. And they that distinguish between Mortal and Venial sins and yet will not distinguish between Mortal and Venial Errors are either blind or would keep others blind As it is not so damning a sin for a man to think a vain thought or to speak a vain word as not to Love God or Holiness no though he was more able to have forborn that idle word than to have Loved God So it is not so mortal a sin that is inconsistent with a justified state to mistake in a small matter as who was the Father of Arpâ—â—xad or what year the world was drowned in c. as to blaspheme the Holy Ghost or deny Jesus Christ to be the Saviour of the world or to deny that there is a God or everlasting life or a difference between Good and Evil. All sins are not equal in magnitude or danger Therefore all errors are not equal in magnitude sinfulness or danger 2. And what Priest is able to know whom to take for a Christian and baptizable upon such terms as these Who knoweth just what opportunities of knowledge other men have had and what impediments And will they indeed baptize a man that is a Heathen because he had not opportunity to come to the knowledge of Christianity I think they will not Or will they deny Baptism to one that knoweth and believeth only all the Articles of the Creed and the chief points of Religion because he knoweth not as much more as he had opportunity to know I think not Do not these men perceive how they condemn themselves For do they not say themselves that Baptism to the due receiver washeth away sin and puts the person in a state of life O when will God deliver his poor Church from factious deceivers
Priest and therefore had a Kingdom holily governed and therefore not only a visible but also a National Church supposing that he was not Sem as the Jews and Broughton c. think For the scituation of his Countrey doth make many desert that opinion 5. And Iob and his friends shew that there were Churches then besides the Jews 6. And it is not to be thought that all Ismaels posterity suddenly apostatized 7. Nor that Esau's posterity had no Church state for both retained Circumcision 8. Nor is it like that Abrahams off-spring by Keturah were all apostates being once inchurched For though the special promise was made to Isaac's seed as the peculiar holy Nation c. yet not as the only Children of God or persons in a state of salvation 9. And the passages in Ionah about Ninive It is this Jewish pride of their own prerogatives which Paul so much laboureth in all his Epistles to pull down give us some such intimations also 10. And Iaphet and his seed being under a special blessing it is not like that they all proved Apostates And what was in all other Kingdoms of the World is little known to us We must therefore take heed of concluding as the proud Jews were at last apt to do of themselves that because they were a chosen Nation priviledged above all others that therefore the Redeemer under the Law of Grace made to Adam had no other Churches in the World and that there were none sâ—vâ—d but the Jews and proselytes Quest. 157. Must we think accordingly of the Christian Churches now that they are only advanced above the rest of the World as the Iews were but not the only people that are saved Answ. THis question being fitter for another place what hope there is of the salvation of the people that are not Christians I have purposely handled in another Treatise in my Method Theologiae and shall only say now 1. That those that receive not Christ and the Mark 16 16. Joh. 3. 16 17 18 19 20. Joh. 1. 11 12. Gospel revealed and offered to them cannot be saved 2. That all those shall be saved if such there be who never had sufficient means to know Christ incarnate and yet do faithfully perform the common conditions of the Covenant of Grace as it was made with Adam and Noe And particularly All that are truly sanctified who truly hate all known sin and Love God as God above all as their merciful reconciled pardoning Father and lay up all their hopes in Heaven in the everlasting fruition of him in glory and set their hearts there and for those hopes deny the interest of the flesh and all Psal. 19. 1 2 3 4 5. Act. 10. 2 3 35. Rom. 2. things of this World 3. But how many or who doth this abroad in all the Kingdoms of the World who have not the distinct knowledge of the Articles of the Christian faith it is not possible for us to know 4. But as Aquinas and the Schoolmen ordinarily conclude this question we are sure that the Church hath this prerogative above all others that salvation is incomparably more common to Christians than to any others as their Light and helps and means are more The opinions of Iustin and Clem. Alexandr Origen and many other Ancients of the Heathens salvation I suppose is known In short 1. It seems plain to me that all the World that are no Christians and have not the Gospel are not by Christs incarnation put into a worse condition than they were in before But may be saved on 1 1 Tim. 2. 4. 4. 10. Tit. 2. 11. Joh. 1. 29. Joh. 3. 17. 4. 42. Rom. 1. 21. the same terms that they might have been saved on before 2. That Christs Apostles were in a state of salvation before they believed the Articles of Christs dying for sin his Resurrection Ascension the giving of the Holy Ghost and Christs coming to judgement as they are now to be believed 3. That all the faithful before Christs coming were saved by a more general faith than the 2 Joh. 5. â— c. 9. 12 c. Mat. 16. 22. Joh. 12. 16. Luk. 18. 34. Apostles had as not being Terminated in This person Iesus as the Messiah but only expected the Messiah to come 4. That as more articles are necessary to those that have the Gospel than to those that have it not and to those since Christs Incarnation that hear of him than to the Iews before so before there were more things necessary even to those Iews that had a shorter Creed than that which the Apostles believed 3 Mal. 3. 1 2. Joh. 4. 25. before the Resurrection than was to the rest of the World that had not promises prophecies types and Laws so particular distinct and full as they had 4 Rom. 2. 12 14 26. Luk. 12. 47 48. 16. 10. 5. That the Promises Covenant or Law of Grace was made to all lapsed mankind in Adam and Noe. 6. That this Law or Covenant is still of the same tenour and not repealed 5 Gen. 3. 15. Gen. 9. 1 2 3 4. 7. That this Covenant giveth pardoning mercy and salvation and promiseth Victory over Satan to and by the holy seed 6 Psal. 136. 103. â—7 100. 5. 8. That the condition on mans part is Repentance and faith in God as a merciful God thus pardoning sin and saving the penitent believer But just how particular or distinct their belief of the incarnation of Christ was to be is hard to determine 7 Gen. 3. 15. Jonah 3. 9 10. 4. 2. 9. But after Christs Incarnation even they that know it not yet are not by the first Covenant bound to believe that the Messiah is yet to be incarnate or the Word made flesh For they are not bound 8 Jonah ib. Rom. 2. 4. Luk. 13. 3 5. Act. 10. 35. Joh. 3. 19 20 21. to believe an untruth and that as the condition of salvation 10. Men were saved by Christ about 4000 years before he was man and had suffered satisfied or merited as man 11. The whole course of Gods actual providence since the fall hath so filled the world with mercies contrary to mans demerit that it is an actual universal proclamation of the pardoning Law of 9 1 Joh 4. 2 3. 1 Tim. 3. 16. Grace which is thereby now become even a Law of nature that is of Lapsed pardoned nature as the first was the natural Law of Innocence 11 Rom. 1. 20. 21. Act. 14. 17. Rom. 2. 15 16. Psal. 19. 1 2 3. Prov. 1. 20 21 22 23. 24. Exod. 34. 6. â—â—â—â— 3. 12. â—â—h 4. 2. Luk. 6. 36. Luk. 18. 13. 12. Christ giveth a great deal of mercy to them that never heard of him or know him And he giveth far more mercy to believers than they have a particular knowledge and belief of 13. There is no salvation but by Christ the saviour of the world Though there be
more mercy from Christ than there is faith in Christ. 14. No man could ever be saved without Believing in God as a merciful pardoning saving God though many have been saved who knew not the person of Christ determinately For he that cometh to God must believe that God is and that he is the Rewarder of them that diligently seek him who is no respecter of persons but in every Nation he that feareth God and worketh righteousness is accepted of him 12 Ps. 145. 9. 〈…〉 4. 10. Rom. 10. 20. 13 Act. 4. 12. Joh. 14. 6. 14 Heb. 11. 6. Act. 10. 35. 2 Thes. 1. 11 12. Jâ—r 10. 25. 〈…〉 10. 12 13 1â— 15. 15. All Nations on Earth that have not the Gospel are obliged by God to the use of certain means 15 Act. 14. 17. 17. 27 28 29 30. Rom. 1. 19 20 21 22. 2. 4 7 10 14 15 16 27. Isa. 55. 6 7. and improvement of certain mercies in order or tendency to their Salvation And it is their sin if they use them not 16. God hath appointed no means in vain which men must either not use or use despairingly But his Command to use any means for any end containeth though not an explicite promise yet great and comfortable encouragement to use that means in hope 17. Therefore the world is now in comparison of the Catholick Church much like what it was before Christs incarnation in comparison of the Jews Church who yet had many wayes great 16 Jonah 4. 2. 3. 10. Act. 10. 35. Mal. 3. 14. Isa. 45. 19. Deut. 32. 47. Mal. 1. 10. Prov. 1. 22 23 24. Gâ—n 4. 7. Rom. 3. Rom. 2. advantage though God was not the God of the Jews only but also of the Gentiles who had a Law written in their hearts and an accusing or excusing Conscience 18. Those over-doing Divines who pretend to be certain that all the World are damned that are not Christians do add to Gods word and are great agents for Satan to tempt men to Infidelity and â—o Athâ—ism it self and to disswade mankind from discerning the Infinite goodness of God and occasion many to deny the Immortality of the soul rather than they will believe that five parts in six of the world now and almost all before Christs incarnation have Immortal souls purposely created in thâ—m to be damned without any propounded means and possibility-natural of râ—tnedy And as I know they will pour out their bitter censure on these lines which I could avoid if I regarded it more than truth so with what measure they mete it shall be measured to them and others will dâ—mn them as confidently as they damn almost all the world And I will be bold to censure that they are UNDOERS of the Church by OVER DOING See more in my Vindication of Gods Goodness Quest. 158. Should not Christians take up with Scripture wisdom only without studying Philosophy and other Heathens humane Learning Answ. I Have already proved the usefulness of common knowledge called Humane Learning by twenty Reasons in my book called The Unreasonableness of Infidelity pag. 163. part 2. sect 23. Prov. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Psal. 92. 5 6. 104. 24 25. 113. 5 6. 107. 8 15 21. Psal. 66. 3. 4. Psal. 111. 2 3 4 5 6. 145. 7 8 9 10 11 17 18 19. Act. 2. 6 7 8 9. 21. 40. 24. 2. 1 Cor. 14. 2 4 9 13 14 19 26 27. Rev. 9. 11. 14. 16. 5. 9. Psal. 19. 1 2 3. 94. 10. 139. 6. Prov. 2. 1 2 3 4. 8. 9 10 12. 1 Cor. 15. 34. Prov. 19. 2. Job 32. 8. 38. 36. Yet I refer the Reader to my Treat of Knowledge which sheweth the Vanâ—ty of pretended Learning to which I refer the Reader And only say now 1. Grace presupposeth Nature We are men in order of nature at least before we are Saints and Reason is before supernatural Revelation 2. Common knowledge therefore is subservient unto faith We must know the Creator and his works And the Redeemer restoreth us to the due knowledge of the Creator Humane Learning in the sense in question is also Divine God is the Author of the light of nature as well as of grace We have more than Heathens but must not therefore have less and cast away the good that is common to them and us Else we must not have souls bodies reason health time meat drink cloaths c. because Heathens have them Gods works are honourable sought out of all them that have pleasure therein And physical Philosophy is nothing but the knowledge of Gods works 3. And the knowledge of Languages is necessary both for humane converse and for the understanding of the Scriptures themselves The Scriptures contain not a Greek and Hebrew Grammar to understand the language in which they are written but suppose us otherwise taught those tongues that we may interpret them 4. The use of the Gospel is not to teach us all things needful to be known but to teach us on supposition of our common knowledge how to advance higher to supernatural saving knowledge â—aith Love and practice Scripture telleth us not how to build a house to plow sow weave or make our works of art Every one that learneth his Countrey tongue of his Parents hath humane Learning of the same sort with the learning of Greek and Hebrew He that learneth not to read cannot read the Bible And he that understandeth it not in the Original tongues must trust other mens words that have Humane Learning or else remain a stranger to it But though none but proud fools will deny the need of that humane Learning which improveth Col. 2. 8 9 23. 1 Cor. 2. 1 4 5 6 13. 3. 19. 2 Cor. â— 12. â—ob 28. 28. Prov. 1. 7. 9. 10. Joh. 17. 3. Gal. 4. 9. Eph. 3. 10. 1 Joh. 2. 13 14. Col. 1. 9 27 28. Eph. 6. 19. 1 Cor. 2. 11. Col. 3. 16. nature and is subservient to our knowledge of supernatural Revelations yet well doth Paul admonish us to take heed that none deceive us by vain Philosophy and faith that the wisdom of the world is foolishness with God and that the knowledge of Christ Crucified is the true Christian Philosophy or Wisdom For indeed the dark Philosophers groping after the knowledge of God did frequently stumble and did introduce abundance of Logical and Physical vanities uncertainties and â—alsities under the name of Philosophy by meer niceties and high pretendings seeking for the glory of wisdom to themselves when as it is one thing to know Gods works and God in them and another thing to compose a systeme of Physicks and Metaphysicks containing abundance of errours and confusion and jumbling a few certainties with a great many uncertainties and untruths and every sect pulling down what others asserted and all of them disproving the methods and assertions of others and none proving their
though the Kings of the Nations rule over them and exercise authority and are called Benefactours yet with them it shall not be so Answ. These were the old cavils of Celsus Porphyry and Iulian but very impudent As though Answ. Love and Patience were against peace and Government Christ commandeth nothing in all these words but that we love our neighbour as our selves and love his soul above our wealth and that we do as we would be done by and use not private revenge and take not up the Magistrates work And is this doctâ—ine against Government It is not Magistrates but Ministers and private Christians whom he commandeth not to resist evil and not to exercise Lordship as the Civil Rulers do When it will do more hurt to the soul of another than the benefit amounteth we must not seek our own right by Law nor must private men revenge themselves All Law-suits and contentions and hurting of others which are inconsistent with loving them as our selves are forbidden in the Gospel And when was Government ever disturbed by such principles and practices as these Nay when was it disturbed but for want of these when was there any sedition rebellion or unlawful wars but through self-love and Love of earthly things and want of Love to one another How easily might Princes rule men that are thus ruled by Love and patience § 81. Obj. 3. Christianity teacheth men to obey the Scriptures before their Governours and to obey no Object 3. Law that is contrary to the Bible And when the Bible is so large and hath so many passages hard to be understood and easily perverted some of these will be alwayes interpreted against the Laws of men And then they are taught to fear no man against God and to endure any pains or death and to be unmoved by all the penalties which should enforce obedience and to rejoyce in this as a blessed martyrdom Le Blank in his Travails pag. 88. saith of some Heathen Kâ—ngs They are all jealous of our Religion holding that the Christians adore one God great above the rest that will not suffer any others and that he sets a greater esteem and value upon innocent poor and simple people than upon the rich Kings and Princes and that Princes had need to preserve to themselves the affections and esteem of their subjects to reign with greater ease to the face of Kings and thâ—se that punish them are reproached as persecutors and threatned with damnation and made the vilest men on earth and represented odious to all Answ. The sum of all this Objection is that That there is a God For if that be not denyed no Answ. man can deny that he is the Universal Governour of the world and that he hath his proper Laws and judgement and rewards and punishments or that Magistrates are his Ministers and have no power So B. Bilson of subject p. 243. Princes be supream not in respect that all things be subject to their wills which were plain Tyranny not Christian authority But that all persons within their Realms are bound to obey their Laws or abide their pains So p. 242. but from him and consequently that the commands and threats and promises of God are a thousand fold more to be regarded than those of men He is a beast and not a man that feareth not God more than man and that feareth not Hell more than bodily sufferings And for the Scriptures 1. Are they any harder to be understood than the Law of nature it self Surely the Characters of the will of God in naturâ rerum are much more obscure than in the Scriptures Hath God sent so great a Messenger from Heaven to open to mankind the mysteries of his Kingdom and tell them what is in the other world and bring life and immortality to light and yet shall his revelation be accused as more obscure than nature it self is If an Angel had been sent from Heaven to any of these Infidels by name to tell them but the same that Scripture telleth us sure they would not have reproached his message with such accusations 2. And are not the Laws of the Land about smaller matters more voluminous and difficult And shall that be made a reproach to Government And for misinterpretation it is the fault of humane nature that is ignorant and rash and not of the Scriptures Will you tell God that you will not obey him unless he will make his Laws so as no man can misinterpret them when or where were there ever such laws God will be God and the Judge of the world whether you will or not And he will not be an underling to men nor set their Laws above his own to avoid your accusations If there be another Life of joy or misery it is necessary that there be Laws according to which those rewards and punishments are to be adjudged And if Rulers oppose these who are appointed to promote obedience to them they must do it at their perils For God will render to all according to their works § 82. Obj. 4. Doth not experience tell the world that Christianity every where causeth divisions and Object 4. sets the world together by the ears What a multitude of sects are there among us at this day And every The differences are oft among the Lawyers which set the Common-wealth on fire and then they are charged on Divines â— g. Grotius de Imper. p. 53. Si â—rma in eos reges sumpta sâ—nt in quos totum populi jus translatum erat ac qui proinde non precariò sed proprio jure imperabant laudari salva piâ—tate non possâ—nt quâ—mcunque tandâ—m praetâ—xtum aut eventum habuerint Sin alicubi Reges tales suere qui pactis sive positivis legibus Seraâ—us aliâ—ujus aut Ordinum decretis astâ—ingerentur in hos ut summum Imperium non obtinent arma ex optimatum tanquam superioâ—um sententia sumi justis de causis poâ—uerinâ— Multi enim Reges etiam qui sanguinis jure succedunt Reges sunt nomine magâ—s quam Imperio Sed fallit imperitos quod illam quotidianam maximè in oculoâ— in curâ—entem rerum administrationem quae saepe in optimatum statu penes unum est ab interiore Reipublicae constitutione non satis disceruunt Quod de Regibus dixi idem multo â—agis de iis acceptum volo qui â—e nomine non Reges sed Principes fuere h. e. non summi sed Priâ—i p. 54. one thinketh that his salvation lyeth upon his opinion And how can Princes govern men of so contrary minds when the pleasing of one party is the losing of the rest We have long seen that Church-divisions shake the safety of the State If it were not that few that are called Christians are such indeed and serious in the Religion which themselves profess there were no quietness to be expected For those that are most serious are so full of scruples
of Iesus of Nazareth which thing I also did c. And 1 Tim. 1. 13. that it was ignorantly in unbelief that he was a blaspheamer a persecutor and injurious And on the other side some Persâ—cute Truth and Goodness while they know it to be so Not because it is Truth or Goodness but because it is against their carnal worldly interest and inclination As the Conscience of a worldling a drunkard a whoremonger beareth witness against his sin while he goeth on in it so oft-times doth the Conscience of the Persâ—cutor and he hath secret convictions that those whom he persecuteth are better and happier than himself § 5. 3. As to the cause sometime persecution is for Christianity and Godliness in the gross or for some great essential point And sometimes it is only for some particular Truth or duty and that perhaps of a lower nature so small or so dark that it is become a great Controversie whether it be Truth or errour duty or sin In some respects it is more comfortable to the persecuted and more heynous in the persecutor that the suffering be for the Greatest things For this leaveth no doubt in the mind whether our cause be good or not and this sheweth that the persecutors mind is most aliene from God and truth But in some other respect it is an aggravation of the sin of the persecutor and of the comfort of the persecuted when it is for smaller truths and duties For it is a sign of great uncharitableness and cruelty when men can find in their hearts to persecute others for little things And it is a sign of a heart that is true to God and very sincere when we will rather suffer any thing from Man than renounce the smallest truth of God or commit the smallest sin against him or omit the smallest duty when it is a duty 4. Sometime persecution is directly for Religion that is for matters of professed Faith or Worship And sometimes it is for a civil or a common cause Yet still it is for our Obedience to God or else it is not the persecution which we speak of though the Matter of it be some common or civil thing As if I were persecuted meerly for giving to the poor or helping the sick or for being Loyal to my Prince and to the Laws or for doing my duty to my Parents or because I will not bear false-witness or tell a lye or subscribe a falshood or any such like This is truly persecution whatever the matter of it be as long as it is truly for Obeying God that we undergo the suffering § 6. I omit many other less considerable distributions And also those afflictions which are but improperly called persecutions as when a man is punished for a fault in a far greater measure than it deserveth this is Injustice but not persecution unless it be his Religion and Obedience to God which is the secret cause of it § 7. Direct 2. Understand well the greatness of the sin of Persecution that you may be kept in a Direct 2. due fear of being tempted to it Here therefore I shall shew you how Great a sin it is § 8. 1. Persecution is a fighting against God So it is called Act. 5. 39. And to fight against God is odious Malignity and desperate folly 1. It is Venemous malignity for a Creature to fight against his Creator and a sinner against his Redeemer who would save him and for so blind a worm to rise up against the wisdom of the All-knowing God! and for so vile a sinner to oppose the fountain of Love and Goodness 2. And what Folly can be greater than for a Mole to reproach the Sun for darkness or a lump of Earth to take up Arms against the Almighty terrible God Art thou able to make good thy cause against him or to stand before him when he is offended and chargeth thee with sin Hear a Pharisee Act. 6. 38 39. And now I say unto you refrain from these men and let them alone for if this counsel or this work be of men it will come to nought But if it be of God ye cannot overthrow it lest happily ye be found even to fight against God Or hear Christ himself Act. 9. 4 5. I am Iesus whom thou persecutest It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks with bare feet or hands to beat the thorns How unmeet a match is man for God! He needeth not so much as a word to take away thy soul and crush thee to the lowest Hell His will alone can lay thee under thy deserved pains Canst thou Conquer the Almighty God Wilt thou assault the Power which was never overcome or storm Jehovahs Throne or Kingdom First try to take down the Sun and Moon and Stars from the Firmament and to stop the course of the Rivers or of the Sea and to rebuke the Winds and turn night into day and Winter into Summer and decrepit Age into vigorous Youth Attempt not greater matters till thou hast performed these It is a greater matter than any of these to conquer God whose cause thou fightest against Hear him again Isa. 45. 9. Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker Let the potsherd strive with the Potsherds of the Earth Shall the Clay say to him that fashioneth it What makest thou Or thy work He hath no hands And Isa. 45. 9. who would set the bryars and thorns against me in battel I would go through them I would burn them together Wo to the man that is not content to fight with men but chooseth the most dreadful God to be his enemy It had been better for thee that all the World had been against thee § 9. 2. Persecution opposeth the gracious design of our Redeemer and hindereth his Gospel and work of mercy to the world and endeavoureth the ruine of his Kingdom upon earth Christ came to save men and persecutors raise up their power against him as if they envyed salvation to the World And if God have made the work of mans Redemption the most wonderful of all his works which ever he revealed to the sons of men you may easily conceive what thanks he will give them that resist him in so high and glorious a design If you could pull the Stars out of the Firmament or hinder the motions of the Heavens or deny the rain to the thirsty Earth you might look for as good a reward for this as for opposing the merciful Redeemer of the World in the blessed work of mans salvation § 10. 3. Persecution is a resisting or fighting against the Holy Ghost Act. 7. 51. saith Stephen to the Jews Ye stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears ye do alwayes resist the Holy Ghost as your fathers did so do ye If you silence the Ministers who are the means by which the spirit worketh in the illuminating and sanctifying of souls Act. 26. 17 18. or if you afflict men for those Holy duties which the
nature of Carnal-selfishness and it is no better § 4. 3. SELFISHNESSE is the corruption of all the faculties of the soul. It is the sin of the mind by self-conceitedness and pride It is the sin of the will and affections by self-love and all the selfish passions which attend it Selfish desires angers sorrows discontents jealousies fears audacities c. It is the corruption of all the inferiour faculties and the whole conversation by self-seeking and all the forementioned evils § 5. 4. Selfishness is the commonest sin in the world Every man is now born with it and hath it more or less And therefore every man should fear it § 6. 5. Selfishness is the hardest sin in the world to overcome In all the unregenerate it is predominant For nothing but the sanctifying Spirit of God can overcome it And in many thousands that seem very zealous in Religion and very mortified in all other respects yet in some way or other selfishness doth so lamentably appear yea and is so strong in many that are sincere that it is the greatest dishonour to the Church of Christ and hath tempted many to infidelity or to doubt whether there be any such thing as true sanctification in the world The persons that seemed the most mortified Saints if you do but cross them in their self-interest or opinion or will or seem to slight them and have a low esteem of them what swellings what heart-burnings what bitter censurings what proud impatience if not Schisms and separations will it cause God hath better servants but too many which seem to themselves and others to be the best are no better How then should every Christian abhor and watch against this Universal Evil § 7. Direct 2. Consider oft how amiable a creature man would be and what a blessed condition the Direct 2. world and all societies would be in if selfishness were but overcome There would then â—e no pride no covetousness no sensuality no tyranny or oppressing of the poor no malice cruelty or persecution no Church-divisions no scandals nothing to dishonour Religion or to hinder the saving progress of the Gospel no fraud or treacheries no over-reaching or abusing others no lying noâ— deceit no neglect of our duty to others In a word no injustice or uncharitableness in the world § 8. Direct 3. Iudge of good and evil by sober Reason and not by bruitish sense And then oft Direct 3. consider whether really there be not a more excellent end than your self ish interest Even the publick good of many and the pleasing and glorifying of God And whether all mediate good or evil should not be judged of principally by those highest ends Sense leadeth men to selfishness and privateness of design But true Reason leadeth men to prefer the publick or any thing that is better than our self-interest § 9. Direct 4. Nothing but returning by converting Grace to the true Love of God and of Man for Direct 4. his sake will conquer selfishness Make out therefore by earnest prayer for the Spirit of Sanctification And be sure that you have a true apprehension of the state of Grace that is that it is indeed The Love of God and Man Love is the fulfilling of the Law Therefore Love is the Holiness of the soul Set your whole study upon the exercise and increase of Love and selfishness will dye as Love reviveth § 10. Direct 5. Study much the self-denying example and precepts of your Saviour His life and Direct 5. doctrine are the liveliest representation of self-denyal that ever was given to the World Learn Christ and you will learn self-denyal He had no sinful selfishness to mortifie yet natural-self was so wonderfully denyed by him for his Fathers Will and our Salvation that no other Book or Teacher in the world will teach us this lesson so perfectly as he Follow him from the Manger or rather from the Womb to the Cross and Grave Behold him in his poverty and contempt enduring the contradiction and ingratitude of sinners and making himself of no reputation Behold him apprehended accused condemned crowned with thorns clothed in purple with a reed in his hand scourged and led away to execution bearing his Cross and hanged up among Thieves forsaken by his own Disciples and all the world and in part by him who is more than all the world And consider why all this was done For whom he did it and what lesson he purposed hereby to teach us Consider why he made it one half the condition of our salvation and so great a part of the Christian Religion to Deny our selves and take up our Cross and follow him and will have no other to be his Disciples Luke 14. 26 31 33. Were a Crucified Christ more of our daily study and did we make it our Religion to learn and follow his holy example self-denyal would be better known and practised and Christianity would appear as it is and not as it is misunderstood adulterated and abused in the world But because I have long ago written a Treatise of Self-denyal I shall add no more CHAP. XXVII Cases and Directions for Loving our Neighbour as our selves Tit. 1. Cases of Conscience about Loving our Neighbour Quest. 1. IN what sense is it that I must love my neighbour as my self Whether in the kind of Quest. 1. love or in the degree or only in the reality Answ. The true meaning of the Text is You must love him according to his true worth without the diversion and hinderance of selfishness and partiality As you must love your self according to that degree of Goodness which is in you and no more so must you as impartially love your neighbour according to that degree of Goodness which is in him So that it truly extendeth to the reality the kind and the degree of love supposing it in both proportioned to the goodness of the object But before this can be understood the true nature of Love must be well understood Quest. 2. What is the true Nature of Love both as to my self and neighbour Quest. 2. Answ. Love is nothing but the prime motion of the Will to its proper object which is called Complacence The object of it is simple Goodness or Good as such It ariseth from suitableness between the Object and the Will as appetite doth from the suitableness of the appetent faculty and the food This GOOD as it is variously modified or any way differeth doth accordingly cause or require a difference in our Love Therefore that Love which in its prime act and nature is but one is diversly denominated as its objects are diversified To an object as simply Good in it self it followeth the Understandings Estimation and is called as I said meer Complacence or Adhesion To an Object as not yet attained but absent or distant and attainable it is called Desire or Desiring Love And as expected Hope or Hoping Love which is a conjunction of Desire
of a worldly corporal felicity and not principally for God and his service and servants and our salvation And indeed as Sensualists love them they should be hated § 4. Worldliness is either predominant and so a certain sign of death or else mortified and in a subduâ—d Worldliness 〈…〉 â—â—â—â— 14. 26 33. degree consistent with some saving grace Worldliness predominant as in the Ungodly 〈…〉 s When men that have not â— lively belief of the everlaâ—sting happiness noâ— have not laid up their treasure and hopes in Heaven do take the pleasure and prosperity of this life for that felicity which is highest in their esteem and dearest to their hearts and therefore love the Riches of the world or full provisions as ☞ the matter and means of this their temporal felicity Worldliness in a mortified person is When â—e Matth. â— 19 20 21 33. Iohn 6 27. Luke 12 19 20. Luke 18 22 23 he that hath laid up his treasure in Heaven and practically esteemeth his everlasting hâ—pes above all the pleasure and prosperity of the flesh and seeketh first the Kingdom of God and his righteâ—usness and useth his estate principally for God and his salvation hâ—th yet sâ—me remnants of iâ—ordinate desire to the pâ—â—sperity and pleasure of the flesh and some inordinate desire of Riches for that end which yet he â—â—â—â—eth lameâ—teth reâ—uteth and so far subdâ—â—th that it is not predominant against the interest of God and his salvation Yet this is a great sin though it be forgiven § 5. III. The Malignity or Greatness of this sin consisteth in these points especially when it The Malignity of it is predominant 1. The love of the World or of Riches is a sin of Deliberation and not of meer temerity or sudden passion Worldlings contrive the attaining of their ends 2. It is a sin of Interest â—ove and Choice set up against our chiefest Interest It is the setting up of a false end and seeking that and not only a sin of error in the means or a seeking the right end in a mistaken way 3. It Ephes. 5. 5. Col. 3. 5. Jam. 4. 4. is Idolatry or a denying God and deposing him in our hearts and setting up his creatures in his sâ—â—ad in that measure as it prevaileth The worldling giveth that Love and that Trust unto the creature which is due to God alone He delighteth in it instead of God and seeketh and holdeth it as his felicity instead of God And therefore so far as any man loveth the world the love of the Father is not in him 1 Joâ—n 2. 15. And the friendship of the world is enmity to God 4. It is a contempt of Heaven when it must be neglected and a miserable world preferred 5. It sheweth that unbelief prevaileth at the heart so far as worldliness prevaileth For if men did practically believe the Heavenly Glory and the promise thereof they would be carried above these present things 6. It is a debasing of the soul of man and using it like the Brutes while it is principally set upon the serving of the flesh and on a temporal felicity and neglecteth its eternal happiness and concernments 7. It is a perverting of the very drift of a mans life as employed in seeking a wrong end and not only of some one faculty or act It is a habitual sin of the state and course of mind and life and not only a particular actual sin 8. It is a perverting of Gods creatures to an End and Use clean contrary to that which they were made and given for and an abusing God by his own gifts by which he should be served and honoured And a destroying our souls with those mercies which were given us for their help and benefit This is the true character of this heinous sin In a word it is the forsaking God and turning the heart from him and alienating the Life from his service to this present world and the service of the flesh Fornication drunkenness murder swearing perjury lying stealing c. are very heinous sins But a single act of one of these committed rashly in the violence of passion or temptation speaketh not such a malignant turning away of the heart habitually from God as to say a man is Covetous or a Worldling § 6. IV. The signs of Covetousness are these 1. Not preferring God and our everlasting Happiness Signs of Worldliness before the Prosperity and Pleasure of the flesh but valuing and loving fleshly prosperity above its worth 2. Esteeming and loving the creatures of God as provision for the flesh and not to further Rom. 13. 14. Matth. 6. 19. 1 Tim. 3. 8. Phil. 3. 18. Ezek. 3â— 31. Jer. 9. 23. us in the service of God 3. Desiring more than is needful or useful to further us in our duty 4. An inordinate eagerness in our desires after earthly things 5. Distrustfulness and carking cares and câ—ntrivances for time to come 6. Discontent and trouble and repining at a poor condition when we have no more than our daily bread 7. When the world taketh up our thoughts inordinately when our thoughts will easilier run out upon the world than upon better things And when our thoughts of worldly plenty are more pleasant and sweet to us than our thoughts of Christ and Grace and Heaven And our thoughts of want and poverty are more bitter and grievous to us than our thoughts of sin and Gods displeasure 8. When our speech is freer and sweeter about prosperity in the world than about the concernments of God and our souls 9. When the world beareth sway Mark 7. 22. in our families and converse and shutteth out all serious eadeâ—vours in the service of God and for our own and others souls Or at least doth out short Religious duties and is preferred before them and thrusteth them into a corner and maketh us slightly huddle them over 10. When we are dejected over much and impatient under losses and crosses and worldly injuries from mâ—n 11 When worldly matters seem sufficient to engage us in contentions and to make us break peace and we will by Law-suits seek our right when greater hurt is liker to follow to our brothers soul or greater wrong to the cause of Religion or the honour of God than our Right is worth 12. When in our trouble and distress we fetch our comfort more from the thoughts of our provisions in the world or our hopes of supply than from our trust in God and our hopes of Heaven 13. When we are more Job 1. 21. thankful to God or man for outward riches or any gift for the provision of the flesh than for hopes or helps in order to salvation for a powerful Ministry good Books or seasonable instructions for the sâ—â—l 14. When we are quiet and pleased if we do but prosper and have plenty in the world though the soul be miserable unsanctified and unpardoned 15. When we are more careful to provide a worldly
than a heavenly portion for children and friends and rejoyce more in their bodily than their spiritual prosperity and are troubled more for their poverty than their ungodliness or sin 16. When we can see our brother have need and shut up the bowels of our compassion or can part with no more than meer superfluities for his relief when we cannot spare that which 1 Tim 6. 17 18. Mal. 3. 8 9. Judg. 7. 21. makes but for our better being when it is necessary to preserve his Being it self or when we give unwillingly or spâ—â—ingly 17. When we will venture upon sinful means for gain as lying over-reaching deceiving flattering or going against our Consciences or the Commands of God 18. When we are too much in expecting liberality from others and think that all we buy of should sell cheaper Duâ— râ—s maxime homines ad maleficium impellunt Luxuries avaritia 〈◊〉 1. ad Heâ—en Corrupti sunt depravatique mores admiratione divitiarum Idem 2. Offâ—â— Nihil est tam sanctum quod non violaâ—i nihil tam munitum quod non expugnari pecunia possit Cicero 2. in Verreâ— When Alexander sent Phocion an hundred tâ—lents â—e asked why he rather sent it to him than all the rest of the Atâ—enians He answered Because he took him to be the only honâ—st man in Aâ—â—eas whereupon Pâ—ocion returned it to him again intreating him to give him leave to be honest still to us than they can afford and consider not their loss or want so that we have the gain nor are contented if they be never so bountiful to others if they be not so to us 19. When we make too much ado in the world for riches taking too much upon us or striving for preferment and flattering great ones and envying any that are preferred before us or get that which we expected 20. When we hold our money faster than our innocency and cannot part with it for the sake of Christ when he requireth it but will stretch our consciences and sin against him or forsake his cause to save our estates Or will not part with it for the service of his Church or of our country when we are called to it 21. When the Riches which we have are used but for the pampering of our flesh and superfluous provision for our posterity and nothing but some inconsiderable crums or driblets are imployed for God and his servants nor used to further us in his service and towards the laying up of a treasure in Heaven These are the signs of a worldly covetous wretch § 7. V. The counterfeits of liberality or freedom from covetousness which deceive the worldling are such as these 1. He thinks he is not Covetous because he hath a necessity of doing what he doth for more Either he is in debt or he is poor and scarcely hath whereon to live And the poor think that none are worldlings and covetous but the Rich. But he may love riches that wanteth them as much as he that hath them If you have a necessity of labouring in your callings you have no necessity of loving the world or of caring inordinately or of being discontented with your estate Impatience under your wants shews a love of the world and flesh as much as other mens bravery that possess it § 8. 2. Another thinks he is not a worldling because if he could but have necessaries even food and rayment and conveniencies for himself and family he would be content and it is not riches or great matters that he desireth But if your hearts are more set upon the getting of these necessaries or little It was one of â—hiâ—ons sayings Lapideis cotibus aurum examinari aâ—ro autem bonorum malorumque hominum mentem cujusmodi sit comprobaâ—â— i. e. As the touchstone trveth Gold so Gold tryeth mens minds whether they be good or bad Laâ—â—â—â—us iâ—â—â—â—â— p. 43. things than upon the preparing for death and making sure of the Heavenly treasure you are miserable worldlings still And the poor man that will set his heart more upon a poor and miserable life than upon heaven is more unexcusable than he that setteth his heart more upon Lordships and Honours than upon Heaven Though both of them are but the slaves of the world and have as yet no treasure in Heaven Math. 6. 19 20 21. And moreover you that are now so covetous for a little more if you had that would be as covetous for a little more still and when you had that for a little more yet You would next wear better cloathing and have better fare and next you would have your house repaired and then you would have your land enlarged and then you would have something more for your children and you would never be satisfied You think otherwise now but your hearts deceive you You do not know them If you believe me not judge by the case of other men that have been as confident as you that if they had but so much or so much they would be content but when they have it they would still have more And this which is your pretense is the common pretence of allmost all the covetous For Lords and Princes think themselves still in as great necessity as you think your selves As they have more so they have more to do with it and usually are still wanting as much as the poor The question is not How much you desire but to what use And to what end and in what order § 9. 3. Another thinks he is not covetous because he coveteth not any thing that is his neighbours They think that covetousness is only a desiring that which is not our own But if you love the world and worldly plenty inordinately and covet more you are covetous worldlings though you wish it not from another It is the worldly mind and love of wealth that is the sin at the root The ways of getting it are but the branches § 10. 4. Another thinks he is no worldling because he useth no unlawful means but the labour of his calling to grow rich The same answer serves to this The love of wealth for the satisfying of the flesh is unlawful whatever the means be And is it not also an unlawful means of getting to neglect God and your souls and the poor and shut out other duties for the world as you often do § 11. 5. Another thinks he is no worldling because he is contented with what he hath and coveteth no more When that which he hath is a full provision for his fleshly desires But if you over-love the world and delight more in it than God you are worldlings though you desire no more He is described by Christ as a miserable worldly fool Luke 12. 19 20. that saith Soul take thy ease eat drink and be merry thou hast much goods laid up for many years To overlove what you have is worldliness as well as to desire more § 12. 6. Another thinks he is no worldling