the covenant betweene God and â—…em was made before they have given up â—…emselves to GOD and committed their â—…ules to God before for a Christian gives â—…p himselfe every day he commits himselfe â—…ule and body continually to God as a blesâ—…ed sacrifice of a free-will offering so hee â—…arns to die daily daily labours to live in the â—…state he would die in he ought to doe thus â—…nd many Christians doe thus therefore notwithstanding these distempers the covenant â—…etweene GOD and the soule remaines still â—…nd he dies in faith It is said here they all diâ—…d in faith he saith not they all died in feeâ—…ing A man may die in faith and yet not die â—…n feeling and sometimes the strongest faith â—…s with the least feeling of Gods love Feeâ—…ing may be reserved sometimes for heaven â—…et notwithstanding wee must not take it so as 〈◊〉 there were no feeling where there is faith for there was never faith yet but upon the â—…ouch of faith the soule drew some strength â—…nd some inward feeling though it be not discerned of the soule in regard of the immodeâ—…ate desire of the soule to have more yet there is alway so much feeling and strength and comfort that supports the soule from despaire take the childe of GOD at the worst Therefore when I speake of feeling I speak of a glorious demonstration that God sometimes takes away from his children They died in faâ—…th though not alway in feeling of 〈◊〉 they died in faith though not alway by a faiâ—… death or in a comely manner outwardly 〈◊〉 the applause of the world it is no matter for that they all died in faith and that is sufficient It is the desire of Gods Children that they may dye in faith and die in Christ as they have lived in faith and lived in Christ. Faiâ—… is a blessed grace by it we live by it we stand by it we conquer and resist by it we indure by it we die by it we do all those worthy matters we doe in spight of the devill and his kingdome this is that excellent grace of faith by which we live and by which we die These all died in faith For they lived as they died and died as they lived It is a usuall generall rule as men live so they die he that lives by faith dies by faith he that lives prophanely dies prophanely If we suffer the devill to lead us and abuse us all the time of our life we must thinke God in just judgement will give us up that he shall delude us and abuse us at the houre of death Carnall confidence disposeth men to thinke they shall step our of their filthy blasphemous course of life out of their sinfull cursed condition to leape to heaven presently it is no such matter Alas heaven it must be entred into on earth there must bee a fiting and preparing time on earth for heaven we must looke to die as we live There is but one example of a man that died by faith that did not live by faith that is the good thiefe and yet that little time of life we see how fruitfull it was but the rule is all that will die in faith must live in faith and usually men are affected and disposed and their speeches and carriage are on their death bed as they were when they lived GOD in just judgment giving them up to that course Many wish that they may live in popery and enjoy the liberty of that carnall religion but they would not die by that religion they live by that religion and die by ours when they have had the sweetnesse and liberty that is given them there to sin and then open all in confession and be cleane and then sin againe and such easie courses they have that betrayes thousands of soules to damnation Now this is their course when conscience is awakened they flie to savation by CHRIST if they understand any thing at all or else they die desperate if they looke to be saved by that religion as they live by it if we look to die by faith we must live by it These all died in faith not having received the promises For God promised them Canaan and they died many hundred yeares before their posterity came into Canaan hee promised them Christ and they died long before Christ came he promised them heaven and they entred not into heaven till death so they received not the promises that is they received not the things promised for else they received the promise but not that that was promised they received not the type Canaan not the things typified Christ and heaven This is added as a commendation of their faith that though they received not the things that they looked for yet notwithstanding they had such a strong faith that they continued to live by faith and died in faith The promises here are taken for the blessed things promised This should teach us this lesson that Gods promises are not emptie shells they are reall things And then whatsoever God promiseth it is not barely propounded to the soule but in a promise it is wrapped up in a promise hee gives us not emptie promises nor naked things but hee gives us promises of things which we must exercise our faith in in depending upon him for the performance of them till we be put in possession For here all the blessings they looked for is wrapped up in the name promises they received not the promises the meaning is they received not Canaan they received not Christ in the flesh not life everlasting Now the believing soule it lookes upon all the good things that it looks for from God not nakedly but as they are involved and wrapped and lapped up in promises it must have a word for it it looks to GODS word For the soule looks not now immediately as it shall doe in heaven it looks not to God and to Christ directly but it lookes to Christ and heaven and happinesse as it is in a promise It dares not expect any thing of God but by a promise Alas the guiltie soule how dares it look God in the face but by a promise except he have ingaged himselfe by promise and he hath ingaged himselfe by promise that he will doe it he hath pawned his faithfulnesse that he will doe it and then the soule lookes to the promise and in that it looks to Christ and grace and heaven and happines and all good things A presumptuous idle person that knowes not what God is that he is a consuming fire he rusheth into Gods presence Faith dares not go to God but first it pleads his word to him it pleads his promise to him it lookes on God by a promise The very phrase inforceth this upon us that we should make great account of the promises because we have all good wrapped in them The promises are the swadling clouts Christ and Heaven is wrappped in them And when wee have a promise let
the knowledge of being in a good estate 1 To humble us Quest. Answ. How to know Gods children in losse of assurance Psalme 73. Vsually Gods children have particular perswasion Quest. Answ. If perswasion be not supernaturall 1 There will not be obedience 2 No holding out 3 No fruitfulnes Quest. Answ. Perswasion wrought by the spirit Quest. Answ. How the spirit perswades The manner of working this perswasion 1. Sweetly 2. strongly A strong work to perswade the soule Deut. 29. Use. To labour for spirituall perswasion 2 Cor. 2. 10 11. To begge the spirit Luke 11. Use. To desire God to perswade us God perswades with enlightning Evidence that we are not perswaded Faith makes much of what it hath Imbracing followes perswasion Triall of our estate by imbracing 2. Branches of faith To trie our està te by our affections Faith carries the whole soule The soule made for heavenly things Love of earthly things abaseth the soule What quiets the soule Micah 2. Want of faith scene by want of affections How to know nature is corrupted To shame our selves in want of affections To pray for affections Quest. Answ. What affections imbrace good things Gen. 17. 3. Quest. Answ. How this imbracing is wrought 1. By supernaturall knowledge To let goe other things Keepe the affections tender To meditate of Gods love in Christ. The excellency and necessitie of the good we hope for The hopefulnesse of them Iohn 17. Case Sol. Why the affections of Gods children are somtimes dead Scope of the words Difference betweene pilgrims and strangers Doct. Gods people strangers on earth Christians borne anew from heaven Heaven a Christians Country 1 Chron. 29. 15. August Christ a stranger on earth Iohn 1. We must have affection of strangers The Patriarchs strangers 1. In their owne esteeme Psal. 39. 12. 2. In Gods esteeme 3. In the worlds esteeme Object Answ. Wicked men how strangers here The carriage oâ—… him that is a stranger 1. He is going toward his country 2. Hee is contented Jerem. 45. 3. Patient 4. Thankefull The way to heaven smoother to some 5. He is glad of company 6. They minde their journies end 7. Though he step out of his way he comes in againe 8. He provides for all incumbrances 9. Inquires of the way 10. He useth things as they may help in his journey Indifferent things Apparent sins I Peter 2. 11. Hâ—… values not himselfe by outward things Dependance of the words A Christian dead how Life of a Christian hidden Psal 73. 7. Object Answer Question Answer 2 Cor. 4. Question Answer Iohn 17. 2 Thess. 1. 10. Rom. 8. Quest. Answer 1 Cor. 15. Quest. Answer Simile 1 Tim. 6. 13. 2 1 Pet. 1. 1 Thess. 4. Simile Simile Simile Iohn 14. 1. Quest. Answer Revel 1. Act. 9. 1 Cor. 15. Rom. 5. 1. Quest. Answer Rom. 8. 2 Cor. 5. 1. 1 Thess. 4. Observ. 1. The righteous die as well as the wicked Vse 1. To improoveâ—… the short time of life Vse 2. To use the world moderatly Observ. 2. The soule continues after death Life of the soule double 1 Reason It crosses the desires of the bodie 2 Reason It operates most in the bodies weakenesse 3 Reason It projects for the time to come Vse To use our soules to the end they were given Worldly men out live their happinesse Observ. 3. Great difference between the death of the godly and the wicked 1 The godly happy in life 2 In death 1 In disposition 2 In condition * See the Sermons on Philip 3. 21. 3 After death Three degrees of life Vse Who truly wise Godly mans end what Vse 2. To labour to partake of this happinesse Righteous man who A wicked man may know the happy estate of Gods children Reason 1. To justify God in their condemnation Reason 2. To restraine their malice Degrees of wicked men Vse Not to refuse all that ill men say Vse 2. To go beyond wicked men in our desires Difference of desires in true Christians others 1 They are notâ—… constant 2 They are not from an inward principle 5 They are not growing desires Cant. 1. 6 They are not strong Desires the best character of a christian 7 They desire happines not holinesse Wicked men desire not heaven aright Simile Conviction of such as come short of Balaam Directionshow to have holy desires 1 Beg the spirit of revelation Simile See what hinders good desires To â—…cherish good motions To renewe our covenants Question Answer Quest. Answer Why men want comfort in death Objection Answer When God accepts the will for the deed Objection Answer God leaves not good desires Gal. 2. Zach. 13. Gen 15. 1. Psal. 84. 1. The Arke a figure of Baptism in divers respects 2. Parts of the Text. 2. Parts of Baptisme The Devill carries to extreames Men prone to give too much to outward worship Psal. 50. Isay 1. Isay ult Reason outward performances easie and glorious 2. They dawbe Conscience Vse To performe inward service 2 Tim. 3. Vse 2. Ministers duty Christ the foundation of the Covenant of Grace Observ. There must be somewhat in us to make use of that is in Christ. Reas. 1. From the nature of the Covenant Reas. 2. Where agreement is there is a like disposition Vse To search our hearts for the evidence of our estate Covenant of grace why so called Demand of conscience proceedes from the answer of it Good conscience what Three degrees of a good conscience A troubled good Conscience 2. A peaceable good Conscience 3. A gracious good Conscience Heb. 13. Double ground of comfort Quest. Ans. How to know a good Conscience though troubled 1. If it answer God in trouble 2. By allowing Gods truth 3. By acknowledging Gods goodnesse Psal. 73. Quest. Ans. A man may know when he doth things graciously Ans. How to know what we doe from a good Conscience 1. It answeres towards God 2. From an inward principle Object Ans. Why Children are Baptised Simile Baptisme binds when we come to yeares Covenant in Baptisme Those that live in sins against Conscience renounce their Baptisme Exhortation to get this answer of a good Conscience Marke 9. Cant. 6. Psal. 51. How to get the answer of a good Conscience To make use of our Baptism 1. Against temptations to sin 2. In temptations to discouragment Ier. 3. 2. To distrust Comfort from the answer of a good Conscience Levit. 26. Verse 5. Psal. 41. Gal. 4. Psal. 109. Colos. 3. Simile Prov. 12. 18.
Canaan and of heaven the benefits by Christ is the upshot of all this They died in faith He doth not say how otherwise they died because it is not materiall whether they died rich or poore great or meane God takes no great notice of that nor a Christian takes no great notice of it They died in faith Whether they died a violent or a peaceable death it is no matter they died blessed in that they died in faith They died in faith which in other phrases is to dye in the Lord to sleepe in the Lord because whosoever dies in faith dies in Christ. Faith lifts them up to Christ and they steepe in Christ. It is a happy thing to dye in Christ Now those that die in faith they die in Christ Blessed are those that dy in the Lord they rest from their labours saith the Apostle All these died in faith They continued in faith to death and then they ended their dayes in faith When death closed up the eyes of their bodies then with the eye of faith they looked upon Christ upon God in Christ reconciled to them the point is cleare that The grace of faith it is such a grace that it carries a Christian through all the passages of this life It inableth him to hold oâ—…t to the end to suffer those things that he is to suffer and in the end by it he dies and when all things else leave him in death when riches leave him when friends leave him when honour and great places leave him when his life sences leave him when all leave him yet faith will never leave him till it have put him in full possession of heaven and then it ceaseth when it hath done the worke it hath to doe which is to bring us to heaven then it is swallowed up in vision and sight and hope into fruition and enjoying of the thing hoped for It is a blessed grace that stands by us and goes along with us and comforts us in all the passages of this life and even in death it selfe in those darke passages it never forsakes us till it have put us in possession of heaven All these died in faith What is it to die in faith To die in faith as I said is to die in the Lord by faith and it lookes to the Time Past. Present To come To the time past to die in faith is to die in assurance of the forgivenesse of sins when by faith and repentance we have pulled oâ—…t the sting of sins past for faith looks upon Christ and Christ hath taken the sting of death in his owne body and death ever since hath beene stinglesse and harmelesse to his members he hath disarmed it death had nothing to doe to kill Christ now seizing upon him who should not have died who was our suretie death hath lost his sting so that to die in faith is to die in assurance of forgivenesse of sinnes past by Christ. For the present in the present instant of death to die in faith is to see God reconciled to us in Christ and with the eye of Stephen to see Christ ready to receave our soules to see Christ sitting at the right hand of God to breake through all that is betweene to see our selves sitting at the right hand of God in heavenly places with Iesus Christ This is to die in faith to see our selves there with our head where wee shall bee ere long Faith makes things to come present To die in faith is to die in assurance of that blessed salvation presently even at that instant of time at the parting of soule and body that Christ will receive our soules that are redeemed with his precious bloud that cost him so deare he will not suffer the price of his bloud to miscarry Faith apprehends that Christ will goe downe with us to the grave as God said to Iacob feare not to goe downe into Egypt I will goe with thee so God would not have us feare to goe down into the grave those darke cels and dungeons God will goe downe with us Our flesh shall rest in hope because Christ our surety was raysed out of the grave and sits in heaven in glory and majesty therefore our flesh rests in hope as it is Psalme 16. 5. Thou wilt not suffer thy holy one to see corruption therefore our flesh rests in hope till the resurrection because GOD did not suffer his holy one to see corruption this is to dye in faith And for the time to come to die in faith is by faith to overcome all the horrour of death Death is a terrâ—…ble thing and of all the passages wherein we have occasion to use faith it is most exercised in death It requires more to die in faâ—…th then to live in faith for then the soule it lookes to the horrour of the grave it sees nothing there but dust and rottennesse It lookes to the panges of death sense and nature doth And likewise the soule so farre as it hath nothâ—…ng but nature in it it looks to the dissolution of two friends the body and the soule who have been long coupled together and their parting is bitter And then it looks to the parting with friends here with whom they have lived lovingly and sweetely In death nature sees an end of all imployment in this world of all the comforts of this life c. and therefore it is a terrible thing Now to die in faith is to die in conquering all these with a spirit above all these What doth faith in the houre of death It over-comes all these and all such like For when the soule by faith considers the horrour of the grave as the chambers of death faith considers they be but resting places for the body that it sleepes there a while till the day of the resurrection and then they meete againe And it considers that the flesh rests there in hope of a glorious resurrection and faith sees a time of restoring as Saint Peter saith There shall be a day of restoring of all things There is a day of refreshing and restoring to come when those eyes where with wee now looke up to heaven and those feeâ—…e that carry us about our callings and about the exercisâ—… of religion and those hands that have beene lift up to God that body that hath beene the vessell of the soule shall be restored thoâ—…gh it be turned to dust and rottennesse Faith seetâ—… the faithfulnesse of God that God in Christ hath taken these bodies of ours in trust 〈◊〉 know whom I have believed 2 Tim. 1. 12. and be is able to keepe that I have committed to him I have committed to him my soule my body my whole salvation I know he is able to keep that I have committed to him And I knâ—… that my Redeemer liveth saith Iob it was his comfort in all extremity that he should see him with his very same eyes And then for the
heaven wee hope for a Saviour from thence The third reason is from the condition of the body how ever it was now for the present He shall change our vile body that it may be like his glorious body Who shall change our vile body You see here the Apostle having set himselfe upon a holy and heavenly meditation he could not satisfie himselfe but goes from point to point setting downe his present holy conversation grounded upon his future hope of a blessed state to come Christ shall change our vile body Our bodies are vile and our bodies here is the point then that The best mens bodies in this world are vile Vile in regard of the matter whence they are taken the earth from the dust the fairest body is but well coloured dust base and vile from the beginning from the wombe base in the whole life base in death most base after death They are base I say in the beginning But especially base in our life our bodies are base in regard of labour Man is borne to labour in this world as the sparkes flie upward God would humble the body of every man with labour or else those that have not the labour of men here shall have the labour of devils hereafter The best body of the best Saints are condemned to labour Vile likewise in regard of sicknesse and diseases which grow out of the body so that be it kept never so warme and tenderly yet as the wormes grow out of the very wood and consumes the wood that breeds it so diseases grow out of and come from the body There is a fight and conflict betweene moysture and heate till the one prey upon the other and consume it In regard of sickenesse therefore they are vile bodies In regard likewise of disposing the soule the worst way for take all tempers of the body they incline the soule to some sinne or other to some ill disposition or other Choller inclines it to intemperate anger Melancholy to distrust and darkenesse of spirit The Sanguine inclines it to liberty and loosenesse c. Phlegme to deadnesse and dulnesse of spirit So our base bodies make the soule dull it becomes an unfit instrument whereby the soule cannot worke as it would an unfit house the body is oft times a darke house sometimes a house that drops in with moist diseases a house that lets in water and so consumes it to rottennesse sometimes it is a house fired by hote diseases it is thus indisposed and therefore a vile body A vile body likewise that when it is thus indisposed there is no comfort in the earth that can comfort it for all the foundation of comfort in this world is the health of this poore body A Kingdome nay all the Kingdomes in the world will not comfort a man if his body be not in tune and alas how soone is this body out of tune An instrument that hath many strings is soone subject to be out of tune and there are many strings in the body how many turnings how many instruments doth the soule use if any be out of tune the musicke is hindred it becomes an unfit instrument in this regard it is a vile body In regard likewise of the necessities of nature this body is vile in this world I speake not of what comes from the body in which respect it is base and vile but how many things doth this vile body stand in need of man in that respect is the basest creature in the world he is b-holding to the wormes he is beholding to nature to feed him in health in sickenes the body needs patching up and piecing by this creature and by that so it is a vile body in regard of the necessities of it in health in sickenesse in youth in age It is vile in life I need not stand on this It is more vile in death in the houre of death then it is base and vile indeed can wee indure the sight of our dearest friends how noysome is their presence after death and the most exquisite temper is the most vile and noysome of all those that are most delicately fed and most beautifully faced are most offensive and this is the condition of all That head that wore a Crowne those hands that swayed a Scepter those braines and that understanding that ruled many Kingdomes all are subject to death yea and to basenesse after death as well as those that are poorer And then they are vile bodies because they are subject to all manner of deaths the bodies of Gods Saints have beene cast out to the fowles of the Ayre the poore Martyrs how many wayes have they tasted of death These bodyes are subject to all manner of deaths to variety of deaths therefore they are vile bodies And then they are vile after death as wee were taken out of dust at the first so we returne to dust againe and if these bodies be not transformed to be like the glorious body of Christ they are most vile of all The spirit of despayre the spirit of anger that is in reprobate persons how doth it disfigure their faces one may see their shame their griefe their despayre in their very lookes so their bodies are most vile and dishonourable but I speake of Gods Children I say here in this world in regard that they come of parents that are miserable and sinfull Man that is borne of a woman hath but a short time to live and is full of misery Iob 14. 1. Man that is borne of a woman of a weake miserable sinfull woman in this respect it is a vile body And in all the passages of our life in respect of labour and paine and sickenesses and diseases and likewise for indisposing the soule that it is an instrument to ill and in death it selfe more vile then in life and after death most of all vile So you see they are vile bodies every way To make some use of this If this be so considering what the condition of our body is here let this abate the pride of the greatest let them consider when they looke upon their gay apparell what doth these garments hide when great Magistrates and others have their purple on let them consider what doth this glorious garment cover nothing but dust a vile body why should wee be proud then of our bodies or of any ornament of our body seeing it is a vile body Againe if our bodies be vile and base why should wee spend the strength of our soules in searching to satisfie the lusts of so vile a body and so make our soules nothing else almost but stewards to proule how to content how to cloath and how to feed this body as it is the study of many idle vaine persons almost all the day long to give contentment to the craving lusts of this vile body they make even an idoll of this poore base piece of flesh and sacrifice the best of their thoughts and the best of their studies
to come and of our interest in it and both these together the excellency of the estate and our interest in it without deceiving of our soules what life will it put into all our carriage what will be grievous to us in this world when our soules are thus settled Oh let us spend a few dayes fruitfully and painfully here amongst men and doe all the good we can and use these bodies of ours to all the happy and blessed services we can why wee shall have glory more then we can imagine Let it comfort us in the houre of death what death soever we die or are designed to Now you know the sickenesse is abroad and alas those bodies especially are vile bodies that are under the visitation so then that their dearest friends dare not come neare them yet let this comfort us they are vile bodies for a time put case wee die the death that may hinder the comforts of this life Those that die in much honour and pompe and have their bodies imbalmed doe all what they can with the body it will come to dust and rottennesse it will be vile in death or after death at one time or other and those that die never so vile and violent a death for Gods sake those that die of this base death that they are deprived of much comfort yet let it comfort them Christ will transforme their vile bodies to be glorious They talke much of the Philosophers stone that it will change metals into gold here is the true Stone that will change our vile bodies to be glorious Let us die never so base or violent a death let us comfort our selves in our owne death if it be thus with us and in the death of our friends these vile bodies when they are most vile in death they shall be made like the glorious bodie of Christ. Let us oft thinke of these things FINIS BALAAMS VVISH In one Funerall Sermon upon NVMB. 23. 10. BY The late Learned and Reverend Divine RICH. SIBBS Doctor in Divinity Mr of KATHERINE Hall in Cambridge and sometimes Preacher to the Honourable Society of GRAYES-INNE PRO. 13. 4. The soule of the sluggard desireth and hath nothing LONDON Printed by E. Purslow for N. Bourne at the Royall Exchange and R. Harford at the gilt Bible in Queenes head Alley in Pater-Noster-Row 1639. BALAAMS VVISH NUMB. 23. 10. Let me dye the death of the Righteous and let my last end be like his THe false Prophet Balaam goes about to curse where God had blessed but God reveales his wonders in his Saints by delivering of them and keeping them from dangers when they never thinke of them they never thought they had such an enemy as Balaam The Church of God is a glorious company and the great God doth great things for it so long as they keepe close to him their state is impregnable as wee may read here neither Balak nor Balaam that was nired to curse them could prevaile but the curse returnes upon their own head These words I have read to you they are Balaams desire Balaams acclamation Diverse questions might be moved concerning Balaam which I will not stand upon but come directly to the words wherein are considerable these things First that the righteous men die and have an end as well as others Secondly that the state of the soule continues after death it was in vaine for him to desire to dye the death of the righteous but in regard of the subsistence of the soule Thirdly that the estate of righteous men in their end is a blessed estate because here it was the desire of Balaam oh that I might dye the death of the righteous Fourthly there is an excellent estate of Gods people and they desire that portion oh let mee dye the death of the righteous These are the foure things I shal unfold which discover the intendment of Balaam in these words For the first I wil touch it briefly so go on The righteous dye and in the same manner outwardly as the wicked doe For Christ in his first comming came not to redeeme our bodies from death but our soules from damnation his second comming shall be to redeeme our bodyes from corruption into a glorious liberty Therefore wise men dye as well as fooles those whose eyes and hands have beene lift up to God in prayer and whose feet have carried them to the holy place as well as those whose eyes are full of adultery and whose hands are full of blood they dye all alike in manner alike ofttimes it is the same in the eye of the world Death comes upon good and bad but to the good for their greater glory for the shell must be broken before they come to the pearle death it fits them for the blessed life after the body lying a while in the grave the soule being in the hands of God and death now it makes an end of sinne that brought in death and it makes us conformable to the son of God our elder brother that dyed for us The point is pregnant and full of gracious and serious meditations It should enforce this excellent duty that considering we have no long continuance here therefore while we are here to doe that wherefore we come into the world As a factor that is sent into a place to provide such goods before hand let us consider that here we are sent to get into a state of Salvation to get out of the state of nature into the state of grace to furnish our soules with grace to fit us for our dissolution to come let us not forget the main end of our living here considering we cannot be here long let us doe the worke that God hath put into our hands quickly and faithfully with all our might And let it enforce moderation to all earthly things the time is short therefore let those that use the world be as if they used it not c. Those friends that have bin joyned together will part therefore let us use our bodies and soules so that we may present them both comfortably to God Let us begge of God to make a right use of this fading condition But I hasten The second point is this that The estate of the soule continues after death For here he wisheth to die the death of the righteous not for any excellency in death but in regard of the subsistence and continuance of the soule after death Scripture and reason and nature enforceth this that the soule hath a subsistence of it selfe distinct from the life it communicates to the body There is a double life a life proper to the soule and the life it communicates to the body now when the life it communicates to the body is gone to dissolution it selfe hath a life in heaven And indeed it is in a manner the whole man for Abraham was Abraham when he was dead when his soule was in heaven and his body in the grave it is the
whole man And it discovers indeed that it hath a distinct life and excellency in it selfe by reason that it thwarts the desires of the body when it is in the body Reason if there be no grace in the soule that crosseth the inclination of the body grace much more And we see oft-times when the outward man is weake as in sicknesse c. then the Understanding Will and affections the inward man is most sublime and rapt unto heaven and is most wise Take a man that hath been besotted all his life time that hath beene drunke with the pleasures of a carnall life that hath beene a covetous wretch an earth-worme that enjoyes not heaven but lives as his wealth and lusts carry him in slavery yet at the houre of death when hee considers that he hath scraped together and considers the way that his lusts have lead him and that all must leave him now he begins to be wiâ—…e and speakes more discreetly hee can speake of the vanity of these things and how little good they can doe Indeed many way the most men are not wise untill that time therefore the soule of it selfe hath a distinct being because when the body is lowest it is most refined and strong in its operations Likewise it appeares by the projects that it hath of the time to come the soule especially of men that are of more elevated and refined spirits it projects for the time to come what shall become of the Church and Common-wealth what shall become of posterity and of reputation and credit in the world Certainly unlesse there were a subsistence of it selfe it would never looke so much before hand and lay the grounds of the prosperity of the Church and Common-wealth for the time to come I will not stand further on it but rather make some use of it Let us know which is our best part namely the soule that hath a being after death that we doe not imploy it to base uses for which it was not made nor given us doe we thinke that these soules of ours were made and given us to scrape wealth to travell in our affections to base things worse then our soules are they not capable of supernaturall and excellent things are they not capable of grace and glory of communion with God of the blessed stampe of the Image of God Let us use them therefore to the end that God gave them And let us not deserve so ill of our soules as to betray them to cast them in the dirt to lay our Crowne in the dust This is our excellency what can keepe our bodies from being a deformed loathsome thing if the soule be taken away yet so we abase this excellent part oft times we abase it to serve the base lusts of the body which is condemned to rottenesse What is the life of most men but a purveying and prouling for the body The lusts of the body set the wit and affections on worke to proule for it selfe what a base thing is this Were our soules given us for this end and especially considering this that our soules are immortall that they shall never die but be for ever let us not altogether spend this precious time that is given us to save our soules and to get the Image of God stamped upon them I say let us not spend this precious time in things that will leave us when our soules shall live still let us not carry the matter so that our soules shall out-live our happinesse All worldlings and base creatures they out-live their happinesse for where do they plant it in the base things of this life all their life long they are prouling for those things that they must leave when they die whereas their soules shall not die but everlastingly subsist What a misery is this that these soules of ours shall have a being when the things wherein we placed our happinesse and abused our soules to gaine them they shall have an end The soules of such men that seeke the things of this life shall have a being in eternall misery Indeed so it is for these soules of ours the same degree they have in excellency if they be used as they should if we doe not abase them the same degree they shall have in basenesse and misery if wee abuse them and make them slaves to earthly things For as the Devils the same degree they had of excellency when they were Angels the same degree they have in misery now they be Devils The more excellent the creature is when it keepes its excellency the more vile it is when it degenerates so these soules of ours that next to Angels are the most excellent creatures of God the more excellent it is if it get the Image of God stamped upon it and the new creature and have the life of grace the more cursed is the state of the soule if it subsist to everlasting misery It were happy if the soules of such creatures were mortall that labour for a happinesse in this life Oh! that we would thinke of this Most men in the bosome of the Church which is lamentable to thinke they live as if they had no soules They overturne the order that God hath set that hath given us our bodies to serve our soules they use all the strength and marrow of their wits all the excellencies in their soules for the base satisfaction of the lusts of the body so much for that point The third is that There is a wide broad difference betweene the death of the godly and of the wicked The godly are happy in their death for here we see it is a matter desirable This caitiffe this wretched man Balaam Oh! saith he Let me die the death of the righteaus and let my last end be like his It being the object of his desire it is therefore certainly precious the death of the righteous And indeed so it is holy and gracious men they are happy in their life while they live they are the sonnes of God the heirs of heaven they are set at liberty all things are theirs they have accesse to the Throne of grace all things worke for their good they are the care of Angels the Temples of the Holy-Ghost Glorious things are spoken of these glorious creatures even while they live But they are more happy in their death and most happy and blessed after death In their death they are happy in their disposition and happy in condition Happy in their disposition what is the disposition of a holy and blessed man at his end His disposition is by faith to give himselfe to God by which faith he dies in obedience he carries himselfe fruitfully and comfortably in his end And oft times the nearer he is to happinesse the more he layes about him to be fruitfull Besides his disposition he is happy in condition for death is a sweet close God and he meet grace and glory meete he
consists other creatures wanting understanding to discerne a better good out of then in themselves their life being their good desire only the continuance of their owne beeing without society and fellowship with others But man having the knowledge of God the Creator of heaven and earth but especially of God the Redeemer providing for him a second beeing better then his first understandeth that his best and chiefest good dependeth more in him then in himselfe and because his happinesse standeth in acquaintance and fellowship with this God which is the chiefe good he desireth a communion with him that he may partake of his good This communion and fellowship of man with God was first founded on a Covenant of workes made with Adam in Paradise if he did obey and did not eat of the forbidden fruit he should have life both for himselfe and his posterity the which Covenant because God would not have forgotten hee afterward renewed in the delivery of the ten Commandements requiring from man obedience to them in his owne person exactly at all times perpetually promising life on the obedience and threatning death and cursing if hee continued not in every thing the law required to doe But this fellowship being placed in mans owne freedome and having so weake a foundation he lost both himselfe and it so that now by the first Covenant of workes Adam and all his posterity are under a curse for we cannot fulfill the law that requireth personall obedience perfect obedience and exact obedience hee that continueth not in all is cursed The Law then findeth us dead and killeth us it findeth us dead before and not onely leaves us dead still but makes us more dead Now after this fall mans happinesse was to recover againe his communion and fellowship with God and therefore we must have a new Covenant before wee can have life and comfort God must enter into new conditions with us before wee can have any communion with him God therefore loving man doth after the breach of the first agreement and Covenant when Adam had lost himselfe by his sinne and was in a most miserable plight as ever creature was in the world falling from so great a happinesse into wondrous misery hee raysed him up and comforted him by establishing a second a new and better Covenant laying the foundation of it in the blessed seed of the woman Christ the Messiah who is the ground of this new Covenant and so of our communion and fellowship with God without whom there can be no intercourse betweene God and us in love and because this Covenant vvas almost forgotten therefore now in Abrahams time God renewed it to Abraham in this place I will be thy God and the God of thy seed after thee c. There are foure periods of time of renevying this Covenant first from Adam to Abraham and in those first times of the vvorld those that were under the Covenant vvere called the sonnes and daughters of God the children of the promise and the covenant of grace was called a promise of the blessed seed Secondly from Abraham to Moses and then it was called a covenant and they the children of the covenant I will establish my Covenant A covenant is more then a promise and a more solemne thing because there be Ceremonies The third period of renewing the covenant of grace was from Moses to Christ and then it was more cleare when as to the covenant made with Abraham who was sealed with the Sacrament of Circumcision the Sacrament of the Pascall Lambe was added and all the Sacrifices Leviticall and then it was called a Testament that differeth a little from a Covenant for a Testament is established by blood it is established by death so was that but it was onely with the blood and death of Cattle sacrificed as a Type But now to Christs time to the end of the world the covenant of grace is most cleare of all and it is now usually called the new Testament being established by the death of Christ himselfe and it differs from a Covenant in these respects First a Testament indeed is a covenant but something more it is a covenant sealed by death the Testator must die before it can be of force so all the good that is conveyed to us by the Testament it is by the death of the Testator Christ Gods covenant with us now is such a covenant as is a Testament sealed with the death of the Testatour Christ for without blood there is no redemption without the death of Christ there could be no satisfaction and without satisfaction there could be no peace with God Secondly a Testament bequeatheth good things meerely of love it giveth gifts freely A covenant requireth some thing to be done in a Testament there is nothing but receiving the Legacies given In covenants ofttimes it is for the mutuall good one of another but a Testament is meerely for their good for whom the Testament is made to whom the Legacies are bequeathed for when they are dead what can they receive from them Gods Covenant now is such a Testament sealed with the death of Christ made out of love meerely for our good for what can God receive of us all is legacies from him and though hee requireth conditions requireth faith and obedience yet he himselfe fulfilleth what he asketh giveth what he requireth giveth it as a Legacie as we shall see afterward Thus you see that the communion and fellowship of man with God must either be by a covenant of workes or by a covenant of grace And we must distinguish exactly betweene these two covenants and the periods of them When the covenant of workes was disanuled by ours sinnes because we could not fulfill the Law exactly and perpetually God will have a new Covenant if wee beleeve in Christ we shall have everlasting life Now if wee sticke to the one we must renounce the other if it be of faith it is not of workes and if it be of workes it is not of faith This was excellently signified by Ioshua and Moses Ioshua bringeth the people to Canaan and not Moses Moses doth not bring any to heaven it must be Ioshua the Type of the true Jesus that must bring them through Iordan to Canaan This was typified also in the Arke there was the Law the Covenant of workes in the Arke but the propitiatory the Mercy-seate was above the Arke above the Law and from thence God made all his Answers to signifie to us that we can have nothing to doe with the Law without the Propitiatory Christ is the Propitiatory the Mercy-seate in Christ God heareth us he makes all his Answers in the Propitiatory Christ. Therefore when the question is of salvation how wee have title to heaven Not by the merit of workes for then we reverse the Covenant of grace but our title is meerely by Gods mercy in Christ apprehended by faith The evidence indeed to prove our faith to be a true faith is from
Conscience Upon the preventing of an objection and removing their false confidence hee positively sets downe what that is that doth save in Baptisme saith he it is the answer of a good Conscience The Scope of the words should have moved the holy Apostle to have said thus not the putting off the filth of the Body but the putting off the filth of the soule but instead of that hee sets downe the act of the soule which is an answer of a good Conscience to God by the Resurrection of Iesus Christ. Where first of all you must know this for a ground indeed it is a hard place of Scripture I will only take that that I think fittest and rayse what observations I think fit for you that out of that you must know for a ground that There is a Covenant of Grace Since God and Man brake in the Creation there is a Covenant which we call a Covenant of Grace God hath stooped so low hee hath condescended to enter into tearmes of Covenant with us Now the foundation of this Covenant is that God will bee our God and give us grace and glory and all good in Christ the Mediator of the new Covenant Christ is the foundation of the Covenant the Mediator of the Covenant a friend to both to God as God to man as man God and man in himselfe and by office such is his office as to procure love and agreement betweene God and man He being the foundation of the Covenant there must be agreement in him Now Christ is the foundation of the Covenant by satisfying Gods justice else God and wee could never have come to good tearmes nor conscience could ever have bin satisfyed For God must bee satisfyed before conscience bee satisfied Conscience else would thinke God is angry and he hath not received full satisfaction and conscience will never bee satisfied but with that that God is satisfied with God is satisfied with the Death of the Mediator so conscience being sprinkled with the blood of Christ applying the death of Christ conscience is satisfied too Now what doth shew that the death of the Mediator is a sufficient sacrifice and Satisfaction The Resurrection of Christ for Christ our surety should have laine in the grave to this day if our sinnes had not bin fully satisfied for Christ is the foundation of the Covenant of grace by his humiliation and by his exaltation whereof the resurrection was the first degree Now in this as in other covenants there is the party promising making the Covenant and the parties that answer in the Covenant God promises life everlasting forgivenesse of sins through the death of Christ the Mediator we answer by faith that we relye upon Gods mercy in Christ this is the answer of conscience Now this sound answer of conscience it doth save us because it doth lay hold on Christ that doth save us Christ properly saveth us by his death and passion An argument of the sufficiency of his salvation was his resurrection hee is now in Heaven triumphing but because there is somewhat in us that must lay hold of this salvation it is attributed to that that is the instrument of salvation that is to the answer of a good conscience Now this answer of a good conscience doth afford us this observation that There must bee something in us before wee can make use of what good is in God or Christ. In a Covenant both parties must agree there must bee somewhat wrought in us that must answer or else we cannot clayme any good by the promises in Christ or by any good that Christ hath wrought that is the answer of a good conscience Or else Christ should save all if there were not the answer of a good conscience required that only Gods elect children have But to shew the reasons of this that there must on our part be this answer The reason is partly from the nature of the Covenant there must bee consent on both sides or else the Covenant cannot hold there are Indentures drawn between God and us God promiseth all good if wee believe and rest on Christ we again rest upon Christ and so have interest in all that is good There is a mutuall engagement then in the Covenant God engageth himselfe to us and wee engage our solves to God in Christ and where this mutuall engagement is there the Covenant is perfect as here there is the answer of a good conscience That is the first reason then from the nature of the Covenant there must bee this answer The second reason that there must be somewhat in us is because when two agree there must bee a like disposition Now there must bee a sanctifying of our Nature from whence this blessed answer comes before that God and wee can agree There must bee a correspondency of disposition of necessity this must bee for wee enter into tearmes of friendship with God in the Covenant of Grace Now friends must have the same mind there must be an answering Now this answer is especially faith when we believe and from Faith sanctified obedience that is called the resti pulation or engagement of a good conscience to God when the promise is made wee engage our selves to believe and to live as christians Now from this that there must be an answer in us an engagement on our part I beseech you let us in generall therefore know that wee must search our own hearts for the evidence of our good estate in Religion let us not so much search what Christ hath done but search our owne hearts how wee have engaged our selves to God in Christ that we believe and witnesse our believing that wee lead a life answerable to our Faith renounce all but Christ. This mutuall engagement is in the forme in Baptisme that was used by the Apostles and by the ancient Church for wee know that in the ancient Church that they that were Baptized they were questioned doe you believe I doe believe Doe you renownce the Flesh and the World and the Divell I doe renounce them These two questions were made now when they answered this question from a good conscience truly faithfully and sincerely then they had right in all the good things by Christ. Something alway therefore in the Church was required on our part Not that wee answer by our owne strength for it is the Covenant of grace why is it a Covenant of grace not onely because the things promised are promised of grace but because our part is of grace likewise we beleeve of grace and live holily of grace every good thought is from grace it is by grace that we are that we are All is of grace in the new Covenant meerely of grace God requires not any answering by our strength for then he should require light of darknesse and life of death There is nothing good in us he requires obedience that he may worke it when he requires it For his commands in
God hath the supream power of life and death Then we must know againe that children â—…re part of their Parents God punisheth the parents in their children and it is a heavier punishment oft times in their esteeme then in themselves for they thinke to live and continue in their children now when they see their children tooke away it is worse then death men oft times live to see things worse â—…hen death as those that see their children killed before them as Zedechias and Mauritius the Emperour for indeed it is a death oft A man dies in every child this man hee died in his eldest son and he died in his youngest son he died in regard of the apprehension of death it was more sharpe in apprehension then when he died himselfe So it is a heavie judgement to be stricken in our children God when hee wil punish he punisheth oft times in posterity As we see it was the most terrible judgement of all upon Pharaoh that in his First-borne God drew them all to let Israel goe out when He smote their First-borne It is a heavie judgement for a man to be stricken in his First-born either when they are dissolute and debauch ed and lawlesse for God hath judgements for the soule as well as for the body or else when they are taken out of the world But thirdly which is very likely another reason that moved God that we may justifie God in all our sentence that we give of him hee tooke them away because they imitâ—… their father in ill and God hath a liberty 〈◊〉 strike when he will when there is cause and whom hee will he will spare for so many Generations You will say why doth he light on such 〈◊〉 Generation and why not on such a place It is his liberty and prerogative when 〈◊〉 deserve it and hee lights upon one and 〈◊〉 upon another we must not quarrel with God but leave him to his liberty it is a part of 〈◊〉 prerogative Who art thou oh man that disâ—…test Why God when all are equally 〈◊〉 strikes one and not another why he execâ—… judgements in one age and not in another there may bee reasons given of it but it is 〈◊〉 mysterie that must not be disputed but I cannot stand on these things Hee shall lay the foundation thereof in his First-borne and in his youngest Sonne set up the Gates thereof This terrible sentence wee see executed 〈◊〉 1 King 16. 34. In Achabs time there was one so venterous as to build Iericho againe There is an accent to be set upon that that it was in Achabs time Hiel would needs build Iericho againe and why should hee build it Hiel no doubt saw it a wondrous commodious place to found a Citie being near to Iordan And then he saw and considered that it was accounted a famous thing to be founder of a â—…itie And then no doubt he thought that â—…hab would not only permit him to doe it but â—…ould gratifie him wicked Ahab which had â—…ld himselfe to worke wickednesse that was 〈◊〉 abhominable Idolater himselfe and counâ—…nanced Idolatry and had set up the false â—…orship of Bâ—…al it was likely enough in his â—…me that Iericho should bee built and thereâ—…ore no doubt but he did it partly to insinuate â—…imselfe with Ahab And to shew how little â—…e cared for Iosua's or Iehova's threatning as â—…sually such impudent persons that are grown up with greatnesse that have sold themselves to be naught that have put off all humanity and modesty they are fittest to carry wicked and desperate causes being agreeable to them so this wicked person was a fit man to doe this and he thought to please Ahab by it Man is a strange creaâ—…ure especially in greatnesse of riches or place c. A piece of earth that will be puffed up if he have flatterers and sycophants about him and a proud heart withall hee will forget and dare the God of heaven and trample under foot all threatnings and menaces whatsoever As this wicked Hiel rather then he will misse of his will hee will breake through thick and thin and redeeme the fulfilling of his will with the losse of his owne soule and of his children his First-borne and his last and all Mens mihi pro regno let a man be happy in his will hee cares not for all the world if he may have his will 〈◊〉 all goe upon heapes this is the nature of maâ—… One would thinke that this threatning mighâ—… have scarred a man that had loved himselfe 〈◊〉 his posterity but nothing would keepe hiâ—… hee would venture upon it as wee see in 〈◊〉 place 1 King 16. Thus wee have passed ovâ—… the words To come to handle the words by way of Analogie how they may agree to other thingâ—… by way of proportion and in a spirituall mysticall sense There are divers degrees of men that venter upon curses and thereupon grow to be cursed themselves even as this man ventered upon the building of Iericho so there be many thaâ—… doe the like in a proportionable kind I shall name some few God did determine that the Iewish Ceremonies should determine and have an end and period Now in Saint Pauls time there were many that would put life into them and joyne them with the Gospel Saint Paul tels them Christ shall profit you nothing Those are they that build Iericho againe that revive and put life into that that God hath determined should never revive againe When the Iewish Ceremonies were honourably interred and laid in their graves these men would raise them out of their graves againe and so venter upon Gods curse and bee excluded from Christ. These are one sort of men that raise Iericho againe And so afterwards in the Church â—…here were those that would build up Iericho â—…hat would still retaine Iewish Ceremonies â—…nd Heathenish in the Church and some at the â—…irst with no ill minds But then afterwards as Augustine complaines they so pestered the Church with Iewish and Heathenish Ceremonies that the Iewes condition was better then theirs for these things should have beene buried Gerson that had many good things in him though he lived in ill times Oh saith he good Augustine Dost thou complaine of those times what wouldest thou have said if thou hadst lived now What is Popery but a masse of Iewish and heathenish Ceremonies besides some Blasphemies that they have I speake concerning what they differ from ours which are decent and orderly what a masse of Ceremonies and fooleries have they to mislead men that are taken away with fancies to distaste the truth of God and to have respect to fancies to outward pompe and gorgeous things rather then the Gospel These men build up Iericho againe and bury the Gospel as much as they can There are another sort of men that raise up Iericho that revive all the heresies that were damned to Hell by the ancient Councels The heresie of
pangs of death which nature trembles and quakes at faith considerâ—… of them as the pangs of Child birth Every birth is with pangs now what is death but thâ—… birth to immortality the birth of glory we die to be borne to glory and happinesse All our life time wee are in the wombe of the Church and here we are bringing forth glory now death I say it is the birth day of glory and a birth is with paine faith sees it is 〈◊〉 birth day it sees that presently upon it theâ—… shall be joy as with a woman after shee hath brought a man child into the world so it comforts it selfe against the pangs of death Again faith sees them short and sees the glory after to be eternall it is a little darke passage to an eâ—…nall glorious light Then for the dissolution and parting of â—…o friends soule and body faith sees that â—…is but for a whâ—…le and then that that parting 〈◊〉 a bringing in a better joyning for it brings â—…e soule immediately to her beloved our Saâ—…our Christ Iesus and faith sees that it is not â—…g till body and soule shall be reunited aâ—…ine for ever and they shall bee for ever with 〈◊〉 Lord. And then for friends faith sees indeed â—…at we shall part with many sweete friends â—…t saith faith we shall have better friends we â—…e to GOD we goe to the soules of perâ—…ct men we goe to innumerable company of â—…ngels wee goe to better company a great â—…ale And for all the imployments we have here â—…we have below faith sees that there wil be â—…rcise in heaven we shall praise God with â—…gels and all the blessed and glorious comâ—…ny of heaven So consider what you will â—…at is bitter and terrible in death faith conâ—…ers it it sees an end of it and opposeth to it â—…tter things because notwithstanding death â—…ts off many comforts yet it brings better 〈◊〉 is a blessed change it is a change for the betâ—…r every way faith sees that there is a betâ—…r place better company better imployment â—…tter liberty all better And which is more 〈◊〉 die in faith is to die in assurance that all is ours as the Apostle saith 1 Cor. 3. 16. 〈◊〉 death is ours Paul is yours Christ is yoâ—… death is yours This is our comfort whenâ—… dayes shall be closed up with death faith bâ—…lieves that death is ours that is it is for 〈◊〉 good for as I said it brings us to our wishâ—… haven it brings an end to all misery an 〈◊〉 our sinnes an end to our paine an end to 〈◊〉 vexations an end to our discomforts and to 〈◊〉 scandalls here below an end to all the temptâ—…tions of Satan The Lord will wipe all teares frâ—… our eyes then And it is the beginning of â—…pinesse that shall never end So indeed faiâ—… sees that the day of death is better than tâ—… day of birth when we come into misery 〈◊〉 not so good as when we go out of misery 〈◊〉 enter into happinesse This is to dye in faith 〈◊〉 the time past to see the forgivenesse of alâ—… 〈◊〉 sinnes to see the sting pulled out And for 〈◊〉 present to look to Christ ready to receiveâ—… soules and to see him present with us to coâ—…fort us to strengthen us against the pâ—…ngs 〈◊〉 death And for the time to come by â—…aith 〈◊〉 over-look the grave to over looke death 〈◊〉 all and to see all conquered in Christ 〈◊〉 our selves in heaven already with Christ 〈◊〉 thus a Christian being upheld with this grâ—… he ends his dayes in faith This should stirâ—… us up if this be so to 〈◊〉 this grace of faith above all graces to get â—…rance that we are in Christ Iesus that so 〈◊〉 may live with câ—…mfort and end our dayâ—… with comfort and live for ever happy in the â—…ord It is only faith and nothing else that â—…ill master this King of feares this gyant that â—…bdues all the Kings of the earth to him This â—…onster death hee out faceth all nothing can â—…ut face him but faith in Christ and that will â—…aster him As for your glorious speeches â—…f Pagans and morall civill men they are â—…ut flourishes vaine emptie flourishes their â—…earts give them the lie Death is a terrible â—…ing when it is armed with our sins and when 〈◊〉 is the messenger of Gods wrath and citeth â—…s before God it is the end of happinesse and â—…he beginning of torment When we looke â—…pon it in the glasse of the law and in the â—…lasse of nature it is the end of all comforts it â—…s a curse brought in by sinne It is a terrible â—…hing nothing can conquer and master it but â—…aith in Christ. Oh let us labour therefore to get it while wee live and to exercise it â—…hile we live that we may live every day by â—…aith It is not any faith that we candie by it must 〈◊〉 a faith that we have exercised and tryed â—…efore it is a tryed a proved faith that wee must end our dayes by For alas when death comes if we have not learned to live by faith before how can wee end our dayes in faith He that while he lives will not trust God with his children that will not trust God with his soule he that will not trust God with his estate but will use ill means and put his hand to ill courses to gaine by he that will not trust 〈◊〉 for his inheritance that will not cast his brâ—… upon the waters and trust GOD to see 〈◊〉 gaine he that will not doe this while he livâ—… how shall he trust God for body and soule 〈◊〉 all in death he cannot doe it It must beâ—… faith that is daily exercised and tryed wherâ—… by we must commit our soules to God wâ—… we dye that wee may dye in that faith tâ—… we may be able to say all the dayes of 〈◊〉 life I had experience of Gods goodnesse 〈◊〉 depended upon him and I have found him 〈◊〉 in all his promises I committed my selfe anâ—… my wayes to him and I found him good aâ—… gracious in blessing me I found him giving 〈◊〉 a good issue and now I am strengthened there by to trust GOD that hath beene so true 〈◊〉 mee all my life time I will trust him 〈◊〉 with my soule that hee will never failâ—… mee Let us all labour for this faith for thoâ—… it cannot be said of us that we die rich or thâ—… we die great in the world perhaps wee may die a violent death as there be diverse diseases that leade the body into distempers it 〈◊〉 no matter how we die distempered and in any estate so it may be said of us we die in ableâ—…sed faith But it may be objected that all Gods children die not in faith because some die raging and distempered and in such fits But we must know that they die in faith not with standing all that for then they are not â—…em selves
that You know Gods manner of working is in contrary estates when we die faith sees life when we most apprehend our sins faith sees the forgivenesse of sinnes when we are in the greatest mystery faith hath so quicke a sight that it sees happinesse and glâ—…y through all It sees a farre off notwithstanding the interposing of any thing contrary by flesh and bloud Faith is sometimes called tast and by the name of other senses but especially by the name of sight As in sight there is both the light outward and a light in the eye and the application of the light in the eye to the object so in faith there is a light in the things revealed a promise and discovery of it by the light of the Gospell and an inward light in the soule answerable to the inward light in the eye for a dead eye sees nothing and a quick living eye sees nothing without the light of the ayre So there is a double revelation by the word and by the spirit the spirit works an eye of faith in the soule and then it discovers to it the things of God They saw them a farre off God created a new eye in the soule a new sight which they had not by nature for even as the natural eye cannot see things that are invisible so the naturall man cannot see the things of God which are seene not by a naturall but by a supernaturall eye eye hath 〈◊〉 seene nor eare heard nor hath entred into the heart of man to conceive what God hath prepared 〈◊〉 his children 1 Cor. 2. 10 11. The eye there-therefore that must see things a farre off it must bee a supernaturall eye and the light that must discover them must be the light of Gods truth for reason cannot see the resurrection of the body and the life to come and such glorious things as the word of God reveales to us If you aske why this sight of faith is so necessary this supernaturall sight I answer nothing can be done in religion without the supernaturall eye of the soule nothing at all for a man may see heavenly things with a naturall eye and be never a whit the better a man may see the joyes of heaven he may heare much of heaven and happinesse and forgivenesse and thinke oh these are good things but yet notwithstanding he doth not see these things with a supernaturall eye he doth not see these things to be holy and gracious and to be fit for him he wisheth them with conditions but not with the altering of his disposition As a man may see an earthly thing with a heavenly eye because he sees God in it and there is somewhat of God in it to lead him to see him so a man may see heavenly things with a carnall eye as Balaam wished to die the death of the righteous A carnall man may be ravished with heavenly things but he must look upon them as things sutable or else all is to no purpose How doth faith see this how comes faith to have this strength Because faith sees things in the power of God it sees things in the truth of God he 〈◊〉 Iehovah he gives being to things therefore as God Almighty gives being to things in their time when they are not so faith in his promises sees that these things will bee it sees things in the truth of God in the promise of God there it hath these eyes to see a farre off It selfe is wrought by the mighty power of God in the soule for it is a mighty power for the soule to neglect the things it sees to neglect riches and honours and pleasures and to stand admiring of things that it sees not for a man to rule his course of life upon reasons which the world sees not because there is a happinesse to come and a God that he believes in c. It is a mightie power that plants such a grace in the heart faith is wrought by the mighty power of GOD. As it selfe is wrought by the power of God so it layes hold upon the power of God that the promises shall be performed In all the promises it sees and layes hold on the mighty power and truth of God and therefore it hath such an eye Our duty then is to labour to have our faith cleare to have this eye of faith to have a strong faith a strong sight When is the sight of faith strong When it is as the faith of these Patriarchs was There are three things that make a strong sight that makes us conceive that he sight of faith is a strong sight When the things are farre of that we see then if the eye see them it is a strong sight a weake eye cannot see a farre off Secondly when there are clouds betweene though the things be neare yet when there are clouds betweene to breake and pierce through them there must be a strong sight Then thirdly when there is but a little light when there are many obstacles in the middest and to breake through all by a little light to seethings remote here is a strong eye and this was the sight of these blessed men they had a strong eye For the things they looked on were remote a farre off diverse thousands of yeares they saw Christ by faith the soule mounted up on the wing of faith it flew over many thousands of yeares in a moment and see Christ the Messias and see heaven it selfe typi fied in Canaan So swift is the eye of faith it mounts over all in a moment As the eye of the body in a moment can looke to the vâ—…sible heavens so a strong faith it sees Christ in heaven And then betweene them and that they looked to what difficulties were there Blessed Abraham who was a type of Christ how many difficulties had he besides other of the Patriarchs We see God commanded him to slay his sonne a command one would thinke against reason against affection against hope it was faith against faith as it were It was against reason in the eye of flesh Now in this case to strive against all these difficulties what a many clouds must Abraham breake through here against sense and against affection hee must hope against hope hee must have faith against faith he must deny affection hee must goe and take his only begotten son Isaac and he must be the executioner and butcher himselfe and slay him for a sacrifice Here must be a strong faith in the power of God that must see God raysing Isaac from the dead as he did after a sort for when he was bound for a sacrifice ready to bee slaine he caused a Ramme to be taken in the thicket and to be offered and Isaac escaped It was a strong faith to breake through all these Indeed blessed Abraham saw more excellency and power in the work of God then in his beloved Isaac So faith that is strong it
sees more comfort and joy and matter of benefit and blessing to the soule in the promises and in the word of God then in Isaac that is then in the dearest thing in our owne account that we have that the faithfull soule had rather part with all then with God it will not part with his promises for all that is in the earth not for the dearest thing in this world Isaac shall goe rather Then for their light to goe by it was but little what a little light had they Answ. Promises they saw things in types and glasses a few promises and what was that they sought A heritage farre off Wee on the contrary have all set nearer hand that may helpe us but wee have a weaker faith One would thinke it should greatly help us to lead our lives till we come to heaven for that that we believe is nearer heaven is nearer how little a time is betweene us and the day of judgment how little a time betweene us and the glory that is to be revealed For the clouds that we have betweene they are none in comparing our light with theirs How many promises have we discovered before hand we have Christ come in the flesh and risen again we have the Gentiles called and all these things we have light upon light we have larger promises and a larger unfolding of divine truths the Canon is inlarged the Bible is enlarged more than it was then there are many books added and the New Testament Now how doth it come to passe that we see not so well as they nor so strongly as they I answer the reason is this their light was lesse but their sight was stronger we have more light and lesse sight we have things nearer but our sight is weaker the more shame for us A strong eye may see a farre off by a little light When a weake eye cannot see so farre by a greater light The eye of their soule the eye of faith was stronger and more light some the spirit of God was stronger in Abraham but his light of revelation was lesser he had fewer promises for he desired to see Christs day and saw it not So it is with Christians sometimes when there is a great strength of faith yet it may be there is not so much light a weake Christian may have more light but he hath a weaker eye and he in that respect sees better then a stronger To a stronger God doth not discover to him so much outwardly sometimes sutable to his inward Gods dispensations are diverse in this kind Now to helpe our sight to heaven this sight of faith that wee may every day ascend with the eye of our soules with this blessed sight Let us take heed of the God of this world Satan that hee doe not with the dust of the world dimme our sight what is the reason that many cannot see the glorious things of GOD The God of this world saith the Apostle hath blinded their eyes hee casts dust in their eyes they are covetous they are blind in their affections they have darke soules The soule when it is lead by affections and lusts when the affections will not suffer it to see it covers the eyes of it And then the outward things of the world they are cast into the eyes we must take heed of these inward and outward lets take heed of Sathan that he doe not with outward objects bewitch us For as it is in prospective glasses you know such glasses some are of that nature they represent to a man things that are a farre off as if they were neare so faith it is a kind of prospective glasse it presents to the soule by reason of this super naturall light things that are farre off as if they were neare Now as God hath his prospective glasses to see a farre off so the Devill hath prospective glasses that when things are neare he makes them seene a farre off as such glasses there are too when death and danger and damnation are neaâ—…e When a man carries the sentence of damnation in his bosome when he carries a stayned defiled conscience the devill with his prospective glasse makes him see death and destruction as a farre off I may live so many yeares and enjoy my pleasure and my will Now this is but a false glasse the devill abuseth them for your life is but a death and when we begin to live we begin to die why should we account therefore of the time to come death and life goe in equall pace one with another everyday we live so much is taken from our life and then the cutting off of all is uncertaine let us take heed that Satan blind us not And withall desire God to open our eyes every day to take the scales from the eye of our soules that we may see the promises that we may see Christ that we may see God shining on us in Christ that he would take away the vaile from the things by exposition that he would open the truth to us by his Ministers and that hee would take away the vaile from our hearts that our hearts may joyne with the things That when by ministeriall meanes the things are cleare that there may not be a vaile of infidelity on our hearts but that our hearts may sweetly joyne with them Let us begge daily that GOD would take away the things that hinder inward and outward that we may see the things a farre off that we may not be as Peter saith mop eyed that wee cannot see a farre off but that we may set heaven before our eyes and the judgement and the happinesse to come that we may see and view and eye those things by faith and that wee may square our lives answerable Then againe to helpe our sight of Christ and happinesse let us get a fresh sight of our corruption and sinne every day let us every day look on that terrifying object of our corruption of nature hang it in the eye of our soules as an odious object to humble us Let us see every day what a corrupt heart we carry about us see how odious these things are to God how it offends him see how it exposeth us to the wrath of God if he should take us in the middest of our sinnes and corruptions let us have these things fresh in our eyes every day and that will cleare our sight Men are loath to looke in the booke of their consciences because they are loath to be disturbed from their pleasures Let us see what need we stand in of Christ the view of our corruptions will make us glad to see a better object it will make us turne our eyes to CHRIST to the promises and all things that we have by Christ we shal be glad to look to him What is the reason we have no more delight to see the glorious things afarre off We see not the dimension of our corruptions for then
common field but when the sunne shines and appeares then the hearbs appeare in their lustre so it is with a Christian there is light and immortality and happinesse sowne for him when Christ the Sonne of Righteousnesse shall appeare then we shall appeare with him in glory As wee may say of all things below they have a hidden life the plants and the flowers in the winter they live by the roote and when the Sunne appeares then they also appeare with the Sunne in glory So it is with the Righteous they have a hidden life it is hid now in the roote in their head in this life when Christ the Sonne of Righteousnesse shall appeare when the spring comes when the resurrection comes then we shall appeare with him in glory and so I come to speak of that verse When Christ who is our life shall appeare then shall yee appeare also with him in Glory Our life is now hid our happinesse is vayled over there are many things betweene us and our life but shall it alwayes bee so Oh no When Christ who is our Life shall appeare wee shalt appeare also with him in Glory hee meets with a secret objection The parts here to be stood on are these First Christ hee is our Life hee shall appeare in Glory as our Life This is taken for granted it is a supposed truth When Christ who is our Life shall appeare it is taken for granted that he shall appeare in glory The next thing is that wee shall appeare likewise with Christ. Christ shall appeare and wee And then the consequence how these depend one upon another because Christ appears in Glory therefore we when Christ who is our life shall appeare The Apostle cannot mention Christ without an addition of comfort and the Christian soule loves Christ it sees such matter of comfort and such righteousnesse in him that it cannot thinke of Christ without a comfortable addition of Lord Saviour Life Hope Glory c. Christ carryes with him all comforts hee is food the bread of life the water of life all that is good to the soule therefore the Apostle gives this sweet addition Christ out life How is Christ our life He is every way the cause of the Life of Grace and of Glory And not only so the cause but the roote and spring in whom it is wee have it from Christ and in Christ wee have it in Christ as a root and from Christ as a working cause and by Christ as a Mediator For Christ procured Life at Gods hands by his Sactifice and Death Wee have it in Christ as a head from him as a cause together with both the other persons and through him as Mediator who by his death made way to life appeasing the wrath of God so we are reconciled and pardoned by the death of Christ. Christ is not only our Life so but as the matter of our life that wee seed on when hee hath wrought spirituall life in us then the Soule lives by Faith in Christ still and seedes upon him hee is our life because wee feed on him for as food nourisheth the body so the Soule being every day set on by fresh temptations and afflictions and troubles and fresh discomforts the Soule of necessity is forced to looke to Christ every day and to feed upon Christ to feed upon his blood afâ—…esh which runnes conti nually for hee is a Mediator for ever and he is in Heaven to make good that hee hath done by his death and wee looke upon him every day and feed on him and so hee maintaines the life he hath begun Christ is our life thus More particularly for memorie sake Christ when by faith wee have union with him once as we can have no communion without union with him when wee are one with him once by faith wee have life from Christ the life of reconciliation in law opposite to our death in law and in sentence for by nature we are all dead and damned as soone as we are borne for our owne sins and the sins of our first parents wee are dead in sentence Now by Christ there is a reversion of this sentence Christ by his obedience and suffering hath satisfied his father so by our union with Christ wee are alive in sentence we are absolved in GODS court of justice for hee will not punish sin twice And then after the life of justification being justified by faith we have the life of sanctification and holinesse for GOD out of his love when he hath pardoned our sin he gives his spirit as the best fruit of his love and we having our consciences absolved and acquitted by the spirit of GOD through the obedience of Christ wee love GOD. GOD so loveth us when he is appeased by Christ that the barre being taken away our sinnes being pardoned and the sluce of mercy open there is way made for another life the life of sanctification by the spirit upon pardon of our sinnes he gives the spirit and we feeling that love have love wrought in us to him againe and that love stirs up every Christian to obedience In the next place after he hath acquitted us by his Alsufficient satisfaction being God and Man and hath given us his spirit there is another life the life of comfort which is the life of our life in peace of conscience and joy unspeakable and glorious this life issues from the former for when we find our conscience appeased that God saith to our soules hee is their salvation and find a newnesse wrought in our nature by the spirit of God and some strength to obey him then we begin to have a sweet peace as the Children of God find in themselves and joy unspeakable and glorious This is the life of this life having union with Christ and his Righteousnesse and spirit wee have this peace which is the way to Glory and the beginning of it For besides that Christ is our life in Glory afterwards in this life he is our life Answerable to our servile feare as wee are dead in law we have a life in justification As wee are dead in nature so we have a life in sanctification wee are dead in despaire and runne into terrours of Conscience so wee have a life in joy and peace But all those in this life are imperfect because there is only an union of Grace here till wee come to the union of Glory in Heaven and then at the day of judgement there will bee a perfect justifying of us wee shall not only be acquitted in our conscience as we are now but wee shall bee acquitted before Angels and Divels and Men and Christ will acknowledge us these are they for whom I dyed these are they for whom I made intercession in Heaven we shall be acquitted there and there wee shall be acknowledged And then the life of sanctification that is now in part shall then be perfect and likewise the peace that now passeth understanding shall then bee
full and our joy shall bee full by Christ who is our life So then we see we have in Christ the second Adam whatsover wee lost in the first roote Whence did we draw sinne and misery by union with the first Adam we have damnation we have the wrath of God we have corruption opposite to sanctification we have terrours and horrour of conscience By the second Adam and union with him we have a spring of life and peace and all that we lost in Adam and more then all we lost he being God-man The sinne of the first Adam was the sinne of a man the obedience of the second Adam was the obedience of God-man which raiseth us to life everlasting Rom. 5. So that there is more comfort in the life we have by Christ then there is discomfort in our death by Adam We see then hence that in all our deadnesse and dulnesse and want of grace there is a spring in our nature God hath given Christ God-man that there should be a treasure in him for all the Church that we may fetch supply out of our nature He is fit to be our life for our nature in him is united to the Godhead therefore Christ is a fit fountaine to derive grace to beleevers because mans nature in him is advanced by being united to the second person he is God-man able to derive all grace and comfort and righteousnes whatsoever Shall the first Adam derive unrighteousnesse discomfort and misery that was a man shall not Christ God-man derive righteousnesse and comfort and joy and peace and whatsoever is good undoubtedly he shall Therefore in all want of grace in all temptations and assaults let us goe to the fountain to the fulnesse of grace to the fulnesse of Gods love in Christ Christ God-man is our life As when we are cold we come to the fire so when we are dull-hearted let us come to this quickening spirit And to this end let us be stirred up to use those meanes wherein Christ will be effectuall whereby as by veines the blood of this spirituall life is conveyed as the Word and Sacraments the Communion of Saints and all sanctified meanes whereby the life of grace and comfort may be conveyed to us let us never be out of such wayes and courses as where by Christ derives this life of grace and let us take heed of those that are contrary But how shall I know saith a weake soule that finds little comfort and peace and little sanctification and is besieged with troubles and is doubtfull and knowes not whether his sinnes be forgiven or no how shall I know whether Christ be my life or no I answer that the life of Christ is but now begun in us and it is very little at the first There is nothing lesse then grace at the beginning The life of Christ is conveyed to us from Christ voluntarily not by necessity Hee gives the will and the deed according to 〈◊〉 therefore we must know that we have more or lesse comfort and more or lesse grace as he pleaseth He brings all to heaven in all ages that have the true life of grace though he make a difference and give to some more and to some lesse because he is a head that flowes into his members not out of nature but of his owne pleasure And a Christian soule that hath union with Christ that hath a being and station in him may know it there are alway some pulses from this heart as we know there is some life by the beating of the pulses so Christs dwelling in the heart is knowne by these pulses there will be striving against corruption and complayning of it Nature and corruption will not complaine against corruption coâ—…ption will not strive against corruption there will be sighing and groaning which is seconded with a constant indeavour to grow better it is not a flash these pulses beating in the soule of a true Christian shew that there is the life of grace in him that Christs dwells in his heart And this oft times doth more appeare in the greatest temptations Take a Christian at the worst his heart sighs to God to recover him he is sick and yet he hopes in Christ Christ in the greatest desertion is his life who was also our paterne when he was at the lowest My God my God So a Christian at the lowest he hath a spirit of prayer though it may be he cannot pray distinctly yet he can sigh and groane and God heares the sighs of his owne Spirit alwayes Therefore when these pulses beate in him in the greatest temptations hee may know that Christ lives in him Sometimes Christ in respect of this life in this world reserves himselfe to the chiefe occasion as some great affliction of the outward man In 2 Cor. 4. We see there when the body of Saint Paul was afflicted when it was abased by many afflictions The life of Christ was most manifested in him God reserves to poore Christians that now live in peace and quiet the greatest feelings and manifestations of Christs living in them till some great crosse till the houre of death till a time of need The life of Christ is most manifest in the time of abasement By the way therefore let us not avoid crosses for Christs sake avoid not any abasement though it be imprisonment or death the more our outward man is abased if it be for Christs sake the more this life of Christ this blessed life this peace that passeth understanding and this joy in the Holy-ghost is increased we shall feele our absolution and justification the more This life of Christ is most manifested when wee honour him most by suffering for him Therfore let us avoid no crosse for him Christ who is our life Shall appeare There are two appearings wee know of Christ his first appearing and his second appearing His first appearing was to worke our salvation his second shall be to accomplish and finish what he hath begun to worke His first appearing was to redeeme our soules from death his second shall redeeme our bodies from the corruption of the 〈◊〉 so his second appearing shall be to accomplish all the good that he came to doe and to worke by his first As verily therefore as Christ is come in his first appearing so verily and certainly he shall appeare the second time And as it was the description of holy men before his first comming to wayte for him To wayte for the consolation of Isâ—…ael so Christians now those blessed soules that have the report of this they waite for the comming of Christ. There were all kind of witnesses then of his first comming Angels men women shepheards the Devils themselves The Trinitie from heaven witnessed of him so for his second comming there are witnesses Christ himselfe saith hee will come The Angels say This Iesus that ye see goe up shall come againe It is an Article of our faith that he shall come
them the Spirit of God sanctifying their soules and bodies stirring them up to holy duties guiding and leading and mooving them to holy actions they may from the sanctifying Spirit that is an earnest to them know what shall become of their bodies Hee hath given us the earnest of the Spirit To confirme this there is an excellent place in Ro. 8. 10 If any man have not the Spirit of Christ he is none of his If Christ bee in you the body is dead c. It is a vile body it as good as dead it hath the sentence of death already it is dead in regard it is sentenced to death for sinne as a malefactor that hath his sentence But the Spirit is life in regard of righteousnesse What then if the sanctifying Spirit of Christ dwell in you Hee that raised Iesus from the dead shall also quicken your mortall bodies The same Spirit that sanctifies these soules of ours our bodies and quickens them to holy duties the same Spirit shall raise our bodies As the same Spirit that sanctified the blessed masse of the body of Christ that he carryed and raised his body the same Spirit that sanctifies our soules shall raise our bodies The Spirit of God when hee hath begun to sanctifie us he never leaves us hee goes along in all changes in life in death to the grave as God said to Iacob I will be with thee there The Spirit of God he will mold our dead bodies and make them like the glorious body of Christ the Spirit of God never leaves our soules or bodies Therefore if wee find the earnest of the Spirit if we find the worke of the Spirit or the comfort of the Spirit which is the tearme the Scripture gives Ioy in the Holy-Ghost and peace of conscience together with the Spirit sanctifying us especially in the time of trouble when God sees his Children have most need they have the earnest of the Spirit the beginnings of grace and joy the beginnings of heaven upon earth by this they may know as the first fruit is so likewise is the harvest as the earnest is even so is the bargaine as wee have it now in our soules so we shall also have it in our bodies and soules hereafter These three grounds Saint Paul hath why his hope of heaven was a good hope wee groane for it and wee are wrought for it wee are fitted for it There is no man can hope to be glorious in his body but his soule must be fitted for it it must be a fit jewell for so glorious a casket a fit inhabitant for so glorious a Temple as the body shall be the body shall be fitted for the soule and the soule for the body they are wrought for it And then hee hath given us the earnest of the Spirit What need I quote further evidences the Scripture being thus pregnant I beseech you often consider your desires whether you be content to live here alway or no to satisfie the vile lusts of your body or whether you desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ when you have done the worke that God sent you for into the world if wee be content to abase our selves for God here who hath provided so much glory for us hereafter and when the time comes we can desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ it is a good signe if wee have the beginnings of the new creature yee are wrought for it that our soules are fitted for a glorious body we have the earnest of the Spirit the same Spirit that sanctifieth our soules and that quickens our soules with joy and peace the same Spirit shall raise our bodies Comfort your selves you that are Christians though you bee weake with this that if you have but the earnest of the Spirit undoubtedly you shall have a glorious house instead of this tabernacle of dust Christ will change these vile bodies that they shall be fashioned like his glorious body I beseech you therefore oft thinke of this think of the time to come comfort your selves with things to come In 1 Thess. 4. Saint Paul would have us talke one to another often of this this should be the matter of our conference not onely the state of the Church and our owne estate here but how it shall be with us when we are gone hence how it shall be with us world without end hereafter we should conferre and speake and oft meditate and thinke of these things What can be grievous what can be over burdensome to that soule that knowes it hath the pledge and earnest of glory hereafter How doth it quicken the soule to any indeavour when once we know that how soever we abase our selves here yet we shall have glorious bodies hereafter It will quicken us to any indeavour to any thing for Christ therefore let us oft thinke of our estate to come let us set our thoughts foreward to the time to come Let faith make the times to come present and that will make us heavenly minded What made Saint Paul converse as if he were in heaven faith made the estate to come present and hope which is grounded on faith it lookes to Christs comming to change our vile bodies so faith and hope they make the soule looke upward they make it heavenly minded Our soules are dull and our bodies are dull in this world but as Iron if it be touched with a Load stone up it will so if wee get faith and hope to looke foreward what shall be done to us for the time to come the spirit of faith and hope if it touch the soule will carry our dull bodies and our dead soules upward Therefore let us cherish our faith and hope by often meditation of the blessed estate to come and thinke of these two things of the excellent estate of our bodies and soules then for if our bodies shall then be glorious like the body of Christ our soules much more the inhabitant which is the speciall part the soule shall be much more glorious Let us thinke oft of this glory as it is described in the Word it transcends our thoughts wee cannot thinke high enough of it and our interest and assurance of it And daily search our selves whether our hope be good or no that we have sound evidence that our title is good to glory Let us examine our selves by those signes I named before Where are our desires what worke hath the Spirit of God in us how doe we use these bodies of ours As we use them now wee must looke they shall be used hereafter Let our tongues be our glory now and they shall be glorâ—…ous tongues afterward to praise God in heaven their bodies that have beene glorious here shall be glorious in heaven Wee may read our estate to come by that we are here those that carry themselves basely and filthily and dishonourably here we may know what will become of them hereafter Let us oft thinke of the estate
is in heaven as it were before his time What is death to him The end of all misery of all sin of body and soule it is the beginning of all true happinesse in both This I might shew at large but I have spoken somewhat of this point out of another Text. They are happy in their death for their death is precious in Gods sight the Angels are ready to doe their attendance to carry their soules to the place of happinesse They are happy in their death because they are in the Lord when death severs soule and body yet notwithstanding neither soule nor body are severed from Christ They die in the Lord therefore still they are happy Much might be said to this purpose and to good purpose but that the point is ordinary and I hasten to presse things that I thinke will a little more confirme it They are blessed in death And blessed after death especially for then we know they are in heaven waiting for the resurrection of the body There is a blessed change of all for after death we have a better place better company better imployment all is for the better There are three degrees of life The life in the wombe this world heaven The life in the wombe is a kind of imprisonment there the child lives for a time The life in this world it is a kind of inlargement but alas it is as much inferiour to the blessed and glorious life in heaven as the life in the wombe is narrower and straiter and and more base then this life wherein wee behold the blessed light and enjoy all the sweet comforts of this life They are happy after death then the Image of God is perfect in the soule all graces are perfected all wants supplied all corruptions wrought out all enemies subdued all promises accomplished waiting their time for the resurrection of the body and then body and soule shall sit as Judges upon the wretches that have judged them on earth and they shall be both together for ever with the Lord. I might enlarge the point much it is a comfortable meditation And before I passe it let us make some use of it If godly men be blessed and happy not onely before death in the right and title they have to heaven but in death because then theâ—… are invested into possession of that that makes them every way happy Therefore this may teach us who are truly wise A wise man is he that hath a better end then another and works to that end A true Christian man he hath a better end then any worldling his end is to be safe in another world and hee works and carries his forces to that end Let my last end be like his saith Balaam insinuating that there was a better end inregard of condition and state then he had aymed at A gracious man his end is not to be happy here his end is to enjoy everlasting communion with God in the heavens and hee frames all his courses in this world to accomplish that end and he is never satisfied in the things that make to that end A worldling he hath no such end he hath a naturall desire to be saved as wee shall see afterwards but a man may know that it is not his end for hee workes not to it He is not satisfied in prouling for this world he is not weary of getting wealth hee is not satisfied with pleasure so that his end is the things of this life Therefore let him be never so wise he is but a foole for he hath not the true end nor workes to it Wicked men are very fooles in the manner of their reasoning for they will grant that there is a happy estate of godly men in death and after death better if it be so why doe they not worke and frame their lives to it Herein they are fooles because they grant one thing and not another which must needs follow they doe beleeve there is such a happinesse to Gods children and yet seeke not after it If there be such a blessed estate of Gods children in death and after death I beseech you let us carry our selves so as that wee may be partakers of that happinesse let us labour to be righteous men labour to be in Christ to have the righteousnesse of Christ to be ours to be out of our selves in Christ in Christ in life in Christ in death and at the day of Judgment in Christ not having our owne righteousnesse as the Apostle saith but his righteousnesse and then the righteousnesse of grace and of a good conscience will alway goe with the other For this makes a righteous man to be in Christ and to have his righteousnesse and to have his spirit and the beginnings of the new creature in us Let us labour to be such as may live and die happily and blessedly and be for ever happy So much for that third point That which I intend mainly to dwell on is the last and that is this that Even a wicked man a wretched worldling may see this hee may know this happinesse of Gods people in death and for ever and yet notwithstanding may continue a cursed wretch Balaam here wishes Oh that I might die the death of the righteous and that my last end might be like his It was a strange speech of such a man as this was that his soule should be rapt up in this manner but indeed Balaam was scarse himselfe hee scarce understood what he said no more then the beast that carryed him But God will sometimes even stirre up the hearts of wicked men to a sight and admiration of the excellent estate of Gods children why For diverse reasons Among the rest for this that he may convince them the more of their owne rebellion when they see a more excellent estate then they are in if they will not take the course to partake of it Therefore at the day of Judgement it will justifie the sentence of damnation upon such wretches and they may pronounce selfe condemnation upon themselves Oh! what a terrour will it be when they shall thinke I had a better estate discovered I heard of it in the ministery of the Word and Gods Spirit revealed an excellent estate and I might have gotten it if I had improoved the blessed meanes that God made me partaker of and now I am shut out for ever and ever from communion in that estate To convince wretched men I say and to justifie the just sentence of damnation upon them that their hearts may goe with the sentence at the day of Judgement God thus enlightens them oftentimes that they see better courses if they had grace to take them What a thing is this that a wicked man should see such an estate and not take it And what serves that knowledge for but to damne them the more This is the estate of many men that live in the bosome of the Church and
is an everlasting covenant which will not faile It is a point of comfort in the losse of friends in the losse of estate in this world If I lose friends yet I cannot lose God if hee be mine he is mine for ever a friend now and a friend ever my portion now and my portion for ever whatsoever God takes away hee never takes away himselfe and in him I have all that is taken away all the comfort that hee doth still derive to mee by friends hee resumeih to himselfe it is not perished with the party he can immediately by himselfe convey whatsoever comfort was derived to me by others he is God Al-sufficient that is put the case all the world were taken away not only friends but the sun the light the earth food and rayment all as it shall be at the day of judgement if all bee taken away yet I have him yet I have him that made all that supporteth all cannot he doe all in a more excellent manner is not he Al-sufficient though I lose all things else It is a point of wondrous comfort God knew it well enough therefore he laboureth to stablish the heart of the father of the faithfull good Abraham here with this instead of all I am God Alsufficient and I will be thy God Againe if this be so that God will be a God to us for ever let us comfort our selves hence in all the unfaithfull dealings of men they are friends to day and enemies to morrow but God is my God and whom he loveth hee loveth to the end An ingenuous spirit certainely esteemeth it the greatest crosse in the world and if any thing will whet a man to heaven this is one that those whom hee trusteth will prove false and at length deceive him Man is but man in the ballance hee is lighter then vanity but he that is in Covenant with God his promise and love and faithfulnesse never faileth A Christian in all the breaches of this world hath this comfort that he hath a sure God to trust to hee that hath not God to trust to and is unfaithfully dealt withall in the world what a wretched man is hee this was Davids comfort when he was beset with calamities and miseries all tooke from him and the people were ready to stone him he trusted in the Lord his God I come to the extent of it To thee and to thy seed after thee Why doth he make the Covenant with his seed as well as with himselfe I answer we apprehend favours and curses more in our seed ofttimes then in our selves and it will humble a man to see calamities on his posterity more then on himselfe and a man more rejoyceth to see the flourishing of his seed them of himselfe It is said that Iosiah did dye in peace though he dyed a bloody death because hee saw not the ruine of his house and family which was worse then death God saw how Abraham apprehended and valued seed when hee said what wilt thou give me since I am childlesse therefore God intending a comfortable enlargement of the covenant of Grace to Abraham extends it to his seed I will be the God of thy seed It is a great blessing for God to bee the God of our seed it is alluded to by S. Peter in the new Testament The promise is made to you and to your Children But what if they have not Baptisme the seal of the Covenant That doth not prejudice their salvation God hath appointed the sacraments to be seales for us not for himselfe hee himselfe keepeth his Covenant whether we have the seale or no so long as we neglect it not therefore we must not thinke if a childe dye before the sacrament of baptisme that God will not keepe his Covenant they have the sanctity the holinesse of the Covenant You know what David said of his childe I shall goe to it but it shall not returne to me and yet it dyed before it was circumcised You know they were 40 yeers in the wildernes and were not circumcised therefore the sacrament is not of absolute necessity to salvation So he is the God of our children from the conception and birth But how can God bee the God of our children when they are borne in corruption Children of wrath Can they bee Children of wrath and the Children of God both at one time I answer yes both as one time for even as in civill matters in our city here a man may be a free-man of the city and yet be borne lame or leprous or with some contageous disease this hindreth not his freedome so the children of a believing father and mother may bee freemen of the city of God and in the covenant of grace and yet be tainted with originall sin that over-spreadeth the powers of the soul notwithstanding Whence we see a ground of baptizing infants because they are in the Covenant To whom the Covenant belongs the seal of it belongs but to infants the Covenant belongs therefore the seale of it Baptisme belongeth to them If circumcision belonged to them then Baptisme doth but circumcision belonged to them for the eighth day they were circumcised therefore Baptisme belongeth to them Anabaptisticall spirits would not have children baptized if they believe not why then were the Children of the Iewes circumcised They were circumcised because they were in Covenant and is not the Covenant of grace enlarged wherein doth the new Covenant differ from the old but among many other things in the enlargement of it there is now a new people the Gentiles in Covenant that were not before new Priests new sacrifices new sacraments all is new in the covenant of grace if all be enlarged in the covenant why should we deny the seale of the covenant to them in the new that had it in the old even children It is sencelesse The Scripture to meete with such applyeth baptisme to them and circumcision to us to shew that in the covenant of grace they are all one in effect 1 Cor. 10. All they were baptized under the cloud and S. Paul saith 1 Colos. Wee are circumcised with circumcision without hands We are circumcised and they were baptized to shew I say that all are one in Christ. Christ is all one yesterday to day and the same for ever yesterday to them that were under the law and to day to us under the Gospell and for ever to posterity and therefore if Children had interest in Christ then so they have now This is cleare and undeniable God is the God of our Children This should bee an encouragement to parents to bee good if not for love of themselves and their owne soules yet for their Children and posterity sake that God may do good to their children for them they cannot deserve worse of their children then to bee naught themselves How many examples are there in Scripture that God plagued and punished the children for the fathers sinnes though in the maine matter hee will not
have beene sick How can we looke for performance on Gods part when we have not had grace to performe our part but our whole life hath beene a satisfying of our base lusts Let us make that use in temptations to sinne let us fetch arguments against sinne from our Baptisme from the answer that we made then for we must make good now that that was made then or else it is in vaine Againe when we are solicited by Satan to be discouraged let us consider that we are baptised in the name of the Father and of the Sonne and of the Holy-Ghost and consider that the promise is made whensoever we repent without any expection of time nay though we have broke with God for Satan will use that as a chiefe weapon thou hast fallen thou hast fallen yet as it is Ieremiah 3. Though a man will not take his wife after a breach yet God transcends us hee is God and not man therefore after breaches if wee yet answer his command and his promise for the command of beleeving is upon us while we live if we beleeve and confesse our sins we shall have mercie if we come cast our selves upon Christ. Therefore after relapses let not Satan abuse them to make us despaire Baptisme is a seale of our faith and faith is enjoyned us all the dayes of our life all this time of life is a time of grace and we are commanded to repent and beleeve Let not Satan therefore discourage us after sinne let us goe to our Baptisme it is a seale to us of faith and repentance whensoever we beleeve and repent When we are solicited to distrust in God for the things of this life any way as if God cared not for us let us consider that we have answered that we beleeve in God the Father Almightie therefore he is our Father he knowes what is good for us and he loves us he is an Almightie God it is an article of our faith that we have answered to let us make it good upon all temptations in that kind Dothnot God care for us he had an Arke for Noah in the worst times when the flood overwhelmed the whole World So if there be the answer of a good Conscience he will have an Arke for his Noah's to save and protect and defend us he is a Father Almightie Let us know the grounds of our Religion the Articles of our Faith the grounds and foundation of our Faith let us consider the good things promised there and consider withall that wee have all ingaged our selves to beleeve those things and to make use of our faith upon all occasions Those that cannot read if they have no other let them looke on these two Bookes the Booke of their Baptisme and the Booke of conscience they would be sufficient to instruct them some people pretend Ignorance consider what thou art Baptised to the grounds of Religion consider there what thou hast renounced consider in particular whether this thing that thou art moved to be Gods or the Divells command and answer Satan and thy lusts by not answering of them give them their answer and tell them a good conscience must answer Gods command and promise but they must have their answer by denyall by this answer of a good conscience Those that cannot read and are not learned let them make use of the learning of their Baptisme There is a world of instruction and comfort a treasurie of it in Baptisme I dare be bold to say if any Christian when he is tempted to any sinne to despaire or discouragement if he consider what a sollemne promise he hath made to God in Baptisme it would be a meanes to strengthen his Faith and to arme him against all temptations There is no man sinnes but there is a breach with God first in wronging the promise hee hath ingaged himselfe to in Baptisme Wee all that are heere have beene Baptised let us learne to make more Conscience of this Blessed Sacrament then wee have done and let us labour to have the answer of a good conscience at all times What a comfort is it when our hearts and Consciences makes a gracious answer to God in believing and obeying and in renouncing all Gods and our enemies What a comfort is such a Conscience It will uphold us in sicknesse in death and at the day of judgement in all ill times in this life A Conscience that hath answered God by believing his promises and hath renewed the Covenant to obey God in all things what a wondrous peace hath it Let the Devill object what he can let our unbelieving hearts object what they can yet notwithstanding if it bee a renewed sanctified Conscience it can out of the privity of its owne act say I have believed I have cast my selfe upon Gods mercy in Christ I have renounced these motions and suggestions and courses and though I bee overcome with temptations yet I heartily hate them What a comfort is this Conscience it is either the greatest friend or the greatest enemy in the world It is the chiefest friend when it is privy to it selfe of this resolute answer that it hath obeyed God in all things then Conscience is our friend it speakes to God for us at all times Then againe at the houre of death what a comfort it is that we have this answer of a good conscience especially at the day of judgement when we can looke God in the face a sincere heart a Conscience that hath laboured to obey the Gospell and to keepe Covenant with God it can looke God in the face for what in the covenant of grace goes for perfect obedience but sincerity and truth God requires that when the heart can say with Hezekias Lord thou knowest that I have walked perfectly before thee Lord I have believed and laboured to expresse it in my life and conversation though with much weakenesse yet in truth This sincerity will make us looke God in the face in the hour of death and at the day of judgement and in all troubles in this life A Christian that hath the answer of a good Conscience hee hath Christ to be his Arke in all deluges Christ saves us not only from hell and damnation but in all the miseries of this life If any thing come upon us for the breach of Gods Covenant as God threatneth Levit. 26 to send warre and famine c. For the breach of his Covenant what a comfort is it then for such as have kept the Covenant For then God hath an arke for such in ill times for every deliverance in evill times it comes from the same ground as the deliverance from hell doth why doth God deliver me from hell and damnation because he loves me in Christ and that moves him to deliver me in evill times if I keepe a good Conscience and that love that gives mee Heaven gives me the comforts of this life if I labour to have this answer
speakes of it as if they had a murderous intention and in the event and issue it is a kind of murther As with a sword in my bones my enemies reproach me c. This sword were but words he is a murtherer in Gods esteeme and so it will prove if hee repent not that wounds another man with his tongue for what doth the Holy Ghost here in David doth he not set out words by swords Is it not oft in the Psalmes Their words are as swords the poyson of Aspes is under their lipps There is an excellent place you have for this in Prov. 12. 18. There is that speakes like the piercing of a sword but the tongue of the wise is health A good man hath a healing tongue hee hath a medicinall salving tongue but a wicked man his words are as swords and as he â—…aith here their speaking is as the piercing of a sword Therefore hence let us learne not to think our selves free from murther when we have killed no body or free from adultery when wee are free from the grosse act this is but a pharisaicall glosse upon the commandements but if wee will understand the commandements of God as they are to bee understood wee must inlarge them as the Scripture inlargeth them he that prejudiceth the life and comfort of any man hec is a murtherer of him in Gods esteeme and he that labours to cut another man to the heart with sharpe piercing words in Gods esteeme he is a murtherer Those that though among men they cannot say blacke is their eye and pride themselves as if they were very religious men yet notwithstanding they are men that are not wanting of their tongues men that care not to speake bitterly and sharpely of others if they did consider of this it would take them downe and make them thinke a little meaner of themselves when indeed in Gods construction they are little better their murtherers As with a sword in my bones mine enemies reproach me while they say to me daily where is thy God So much for these words FINIS The TABLE A Acquaintance ACquaintance with God to be maintained part 2 p. 143 Affection Affections trie our estates 1 264 Affections wanting shew want of faith 1 269 To shame our selves in want of Affections 1 271 To pray for Affections 1 272 Affections to be kept tender 1 278 Affections why sometimes dead 1 285 See Hatred Answer see Conscience Appearing Two appearings of Christ. 2 18 Application Application the ground of obedience 1 149 Necessity of Application 1 151 Principle of Application 1 153 To begge the spirit of Application 1 154 Danger in want of Application 1 156 Arke 〈◊〉 Baptisme Assurance How to know our estate in want of Assurance 1 240 B Baptisme Want of baptisme no prejudice to salvation p. a. pag. 157 Ground of baptising Infants 2 158 Aggravation of sins after Baptisme 2 162 The Arke a figure of Baptisme 2 170 Parts of Baptisme 2 172 Children why Baptised 2 190 Baptisme binds 2 191 Covenant in Baptisme 2 192 What sins renounce baptisme Ibid. How to make use of our baptisme 2 195 Beast The Beast who 1 7 The Beast and Dragon resembled 1 10 State of Rome the Beast why 1 13 Beasts ill carriage towards Kings 1 40 To further the destruction of the Beast 1 49 The Beast shall fall 1 51 See Hatred Body Not to satisfie the lusts of the body 2 44 Our bodyes shall be glorious 2 51 How to use our bodyes 2 52 Glory of the body in sixe things 2 53 To abase our bodyes for Christ. 2 57 How to know our bodyes shall bee glorious 2 60 See Vile God to be sought betimes 1 187 Blessing see Ministers C Man a changeable creature 2 46 God punisheth parents in their children 1 110 God the God of our children 2 157 Parents to bee good for their childrens sake 2 159 Comfort to those that leave little to their children 2 160 All our good first in Christ. 2 32 49 To be thankfull for Christ. 2 50 To make use of what is in Christ. 2 179 To thinke of Gods love in Christ. 1 278 See covenant Difference between Christians and others 1 92 Come To thinke oft of the times to come 2 66 Comfort Double ground of comfort 2 186 See Death Children Communion Mans happinesse in communion with God 2 108 Communicative Gods goodnesse communicative 1 142 Confidence Issue of false confidence dangerous 1 63 False confidence overturned 1 66 Conscience Demand of conscience whence 2 182 Good conscience what 2 183 3. Degrees of a good conscience 2 184 Conscience good that is troubled 2 187 How to know we doe things from a good conscience 2 189 To get the answer of a good conscience 2 193 Comfort from the answer of a good conscience 2 199 Conviction Conviction double 1 236 Corruption How to set against our corruptions 1 8â—… Corruption why not subdued at once Ibid. To strengthen faith in the fall of our corruptions 1 89 Sight of corruptions help faith 〈◊〉 230 Victory over corruptions 2 138 How to know nature is corrupted 1 270 See Iericho Country See Heaven Covenant Covenants to be renewed 2 â—…00 Covenant of workes 2 108 Covenant of grace 2 109 Covenant of grace qualities of it 2 115 Covenant of grace conditions of it 2 116 Comfort from the covenant of grace 2 254 God gives us grace to performe our covenants 2 164 Christ the foundation of the covenant of grace 2 178 Nature of the Covenant 2 180 Covenant of grace why so called 2 182 See Testament works Creature insufficient to teach the knowledge of God 1 139 Not to curse particular persons 1 105 D Death Die Death terrible 1 205 Men die as they live 1 208 A Christian how dead 2 2 Comfort in Death 2 66 Righteous and wicked die 2 74 Difference in their death 2 80 Why men want comfort in death 2 101 See first-borne faith Demand see conscience Dependance Dependance upon God 1 27 Desire To out-strippe the wicked in our desires 2 87 Difference of desires in men Ibid. Desires the best character of a Christian. 2 93 Wicked men desire not heaven aright 2 94 Directions for holy desires 2 96 God leaves not good desires 2 102 Desire of earthly things how abated 2 143 Destruction How to prevent our own destruction 1 86 Dragon see Beast Distemper Distemper hinders not Christians dying in faith 1 206 E Enemies GOD meetes with his Enemies 1 45 GODS Children have Enemies 1 214 Envie No Envie in God 1 144 Everlasting Covenant of grace everlasting 2 251 Evill How GOD hath a hand in evill 1 16 Gods providence in evill 1 19 God keepes us from doing of evill 1 25 Extremity God to bee sought in extremity 1 184 Difference of men in extremity Ibid. Eye To desire God to open our eyes 1 229 See Faith F Face Seeking Gods face what 1 174 Directions to seeke Gods face 1 179 Incouragements
to seeke Gods face 1 189 Faith Faith in the use of meanes 1 70 Faith said to do that God doth 1 71 Faith enlivens all graces 1 72 Faith strengthened by experience 1 90 Faith to be laboured for 1 94 Faith one from the beginning 1 196 Perseverance in Faith 1 197 Faith carries a Christian through all passages 1 198 To die in faith what 1 199 Faith over comes all that is terrible in death 1 201 Faith the eye of it 1 218 Faith seeth afar off how 1 219 Sight of faith how to help it 1 228 Two branches of faith 1 262 Faithâ—…w â—…w cherished 2 65 Faith of Christians how shaken 2 218 Faith to be strengthened 2 220 Farre see Faith Favour Favour of God to bee sought first 1 181 Feare How to know God is ours by feare 2 125 Feeling Christians may want feeling 1 207 First-borne Death of the first-borne a great judgment 1 110 Free Freedome in sin a judgment 1 22 Covenant of grace free 2 249 See Will. G Glory Glorious God gets glory by weake meanes 1 68 Why wee shall bee glorious with Christ. 2 19 Wherein that glory shall be 2 21 When the Saints shall be glorified 2 23 To think of the glory to come 2 25 Glory why revealed before-hand 〈◊〉 28 See Body God Two things wherin we are like God 1 144 What it is for God to be our God 2 117 God ours in the covenant of grace 2 120 How to know God is our God 2 121 To labour that God may be our God 2 140 To make use of all in God as ours 2 143 Goodnesse God is willing to bestow his goodnesse 1 143 See Communicative Gospell Punishment of slighting the Gospell 1. 43 Grace see Covenant Guidance Guidance of God to be prayed for 1 24 H Happinesse Wicked men out-live their happines 2 78 Happines of the godly 2 80 Wicked men may know the happinesse of Gods children 2 84 Hatred Affection of hatred due to the beast 1 47 Heaven Heaven the country of a Christian. 1 292 See desire Hid hidden The life of a Christian hidden 2 4 God sometimes hides himselfe 2 223 Hope see Faith I Satans kingdome like the walls of Iericho 1 73 Our corruptions like the walles of Iericho 1 74 Antichrists kingdom like the wals of Iericho 1 75 Meanes to east downe mysticall Iericho 1 78 How to prevent the building of spirituall Iericho 1 80 120 Iericho why not to be built againe 1 106 How men build Iericho againe 1 114 118 Imbrace Faith imbraceth what it hath 1 259 Imbracing followeth perswasion 1 260 What affections imbrace good things 1 272 Imbracing how wrought 1 274 Ioy. Knowing God ours is our joy 2 129 Iudgement see spirituall K Kings The tenne Kings wherein sinfull 1. 28 Knowne knowledge God willing to be known 1 141 Knowledge of our estate sometime suspended 1 238 L Life Christ our life how 2 11 To improve the time of life 2 75 Life 3. degrees of it 2 82 See die hidden soule Love God knowne to be ours by our Love 2 127 M Malice see reproach False confidence over-turned by weake meanes 1 67 See Faith Blessing of Ministers to bee regarded 1 103 Ministers duty 2 176 God the only Monarch 1 26 Good Motions to be cherished 2 99 N 3. Things in man by Nature 1 64 O Quality of obedience 1 160 Obedience sutable to the command 1 164 To know God is ours by our obedience 2 131 God to be sought in his Ordinances 1 186 Men give too much to Outward worship 2 172 Why men are prone to Outward performances 2 174 Papists work their own overthrow 1 53 How to set against Popery 1 87 Popery how it sprung up 1 117 Covenant of grace Peculiar 2 252 Perswasion followes sight 121 Perswasion what 1 233 Perswasion degrees of it 1 235 Perswasion spirituall necessary 1 236 Perswasion particular sometimes weake 1 237 Perswasion how to know it is not supernaturall 2 242 Perswasion wrought by the spirit 1 247 How the spirit doth perswade 1 248 The manner of working perswasion 1 250 A strong worke to perswade the soule 1 251 To labour for spirituall perswasion 1 253 To desire God to perswade us 1 256 Evidences that we are perswaded 1 257 Persons see Curse Pilgrims Difference betweene Pilgrims and strangers 1 289 To resolve to please God 2 141 Power see Truth To know God is ours by our prayer 2 134 Preaching the force of it 1 78 Presence of God how considered 1 171 Things as present affect us 1 218 Promises to alleage them to God 1 167 God deales with men by promises 1 210 Faith lookes to God by the Promises 1 211 Promises oft to be thought on 2 13 Proportion see Punishment Providence see Evill Punishment proportionable to sin 1 109 R Religion disgraced how it affects us 2 132 Reproach the expression of malice 2 216 Not to be cast downe for reproach Ibid. David sensible of reproach 2 228 God doth not reveale all things at all times 1 215 Righteous man who 2 84 S See Sight Things requisite to sight 1 222 Sight of faith necessary 1 223 3. Things in strong sight 1 224 See Faith perswasion Mercies and judgments apprehended in our seed 2 156 To seeke GOD by his strength 1 158 Seeking what it doth implie 1 170 Ground of seeking of God 1 171 See Strength betimes face Sensible see reproach Sentence of Christ unavoydable 1 132 Men must not appoint how to serve God 1 138 Sinne considered in three times 1 17 Soule made for heavenly things 1 267 Love of earthly things abase the Soule 1 268 Soule how quieted Ibid. Soule continues after death 2 74 Life of the Soule double Ibid. How to use our Soules 2 75 Spirit Spirituall Spirituall judgements greatest 1 22 Order of the Spirits working 1 217 To begge the Spirit to perswade us 1 254 Stranger Gods people strangers here 1 290 CHRIST a stranger on earth 1 294 To have the affections of strangers 1 295 Wicked men how strangers here 1 297 Carriage of a stranger 1 300 See Pilgrim Strike see threaten The covenant of grace sure 2 250 T Covenant of grace a Testament 2 110 Difference of a covenant and Testament Ibid. To be thankfull for that we have 1 215 God threatensâ—…re â—…re he strike 1 108 Wickednes shall nos alway thrive 1 47 To tremble at Gods word 1 133 Men naturally trust soâ—…what 1 62 Try all of our trust 1 65 How to know GOD ours by trust 2 129 Truth of God 1 150 Faith looks to Gods power truth 1 224 V The best mens bodyes vile in this world 2 40 God revealed to man 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 understanding creature 2 107 Our nature prone to unthankefulnes 2 116 W To goe to Christ in all wants 2 15 Degrees of wicked men 2 86 Will of man free in sinne 1 20 To be left to our owâ—… will a great judgement 1 21 Will when accepted for