Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n
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A17320
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The Christians heauenly treasure. By William Burton of Reading in Barkeshire
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Burton, William, d. 1616.
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1608
(1608)
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STC 4168; ESTC S115749
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64,773
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170
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reason is because hee hath now goods inough for many yeers but as he was thus dreaming of many yeeres goods and rest a voice comes and awakes him and tels him plainly that he doth vtterly mistake the matter Thou foole saith hee this night shall they fetch away thy Soule and then whose goods shall those be that thou hast gathered So is it saith Christ with him that gathereth riches to himselfe and is not rich in God This vanitie is well set out by the holy Ghost when Salomon saith there is an euill sicknesse namely â—iches reserued to the hurt of their owners and these riches perish by euill trauaile And this is also an euill sicknesse saith the man of experience that in all points as hee came so shall hee goe and what profit hath hee that he hath trauailed for the winde I haue also seene a man saith he to whom God hath giuen riches and treasures and honour and he wanteth nothing for his soule of all that he desireth but God giueth not power to eate thereof this is vanitie and vexation of spiâ—it As this vanitie is a vexation to the spirit of man so is it no lesse grieuous to the spirit of God for that contrary to the minde of our heauenly father we bestow our loue so fondly vpon that which cannot help vs. The commandement saith wee must honour our parents now amongst other things tending to the honour of our earthly parents this is not the least for a child to require the consent of his parents in bestowing of himselfe in marriage and to marrie against their mindes especially when there is reason to the contrary cannot bee but a great dishonour offred to our parents But what earthly parents haue so great interest in their children as God hath in vs what childe oweth such dutie to his earthly parents as wee owe to God If I be your father saith the Lord where is my honour as if hee had said if you depend vpon me for your prouision and looke for my blessing how is it that you set your harts vpon my creatures not vpon mee knowing that my minde is so much against such foolish bestowing of your selues as though I could not or would not fill your harts with as much ioy and gladnesse as my creatures can doe and more too Therefore saith Paul to Timothy Charge them that are rich in this world that they bee not high minded and that they trust not in vncertaine riches but in the liuing God How dangerous worldliness is to the Soule THere is no truer Nobilitie then to be a citizen of the heauenly Ierusalem sonne and heire to the most high all which is defaced and abolished if the hart lie buried in earthly things There is no sounder ioy then the ioy of the holy ghost which is a fruit of Faith is grounded on the loue of God but this cannot bee relished or tasted by him whose hart doth cleaue to this miserable bondage of worldly cares There are no such goods as the sanctifying graces of the holy ghost which onely make a man truely happy as to cleaue vnto God by faith to loue the Lord from the hart to worship him in spirit and truth and to bee wholly vnited vnto him But far is hee from these things whose hart is set vpon earthly goods At the Sermon his minde runneth after his couetousnesse and with his mouth hee maketh iests both of the doctrine and Doctor because hee liketh neither the one nor the other like the Pharises which mocked Christ when hee spake against couetousnesse because themselues were couetous When the Sermon is done they forget al because their harts wer choked with the thorny cares of the world if they fall to reporting of the Sermon it is with additions and detractions mistakings and falsify cations most strange to heare as if the Preacher had ben mad or drunke or in some dreame when he spake Thus the word of life and grace which is a sweet sauour of life vnto life eternall to the regenerate and spirituall minde yeeldeth a most fearefull sauour of death vnto death euerlasting to the carnall worldly minded man Seeing therefore to bestow the hart affection vpon earthly things is proued to be a match so base and vnbeseeming the dignitie of a Christian so wretched and miserable so vaine and deceiptfull so dishonourable to God and preiudiciall to our owne saluation let vs labour by earnest prayer and holy meditation to haue our mindes purged from this euill sicknesse of worldly loue and neuer giue the Lord any rest vntill by zealous prayer wee haue obtained of his diuine Maiestie the wings of a liuely Faith whereby our heauie harts and dull spirits may bee mounted vp aloft to seeke for our Treasure in heauen and then indeed shall wee bee heauenly minded for where the Treasure is there will the hart bee also How to iudge by the heart whether â— mans Treasure be in heauen or no. THere be certaine signes in the hart whereby a man may iudge of his estate to come as there be in the skie to know what weather shall happen when the skie is red in the Euening men say faire weather when it is red lowring in the morning it is a signe of foule weather when a cloud riseth out of the West they say a shower is comming when the South-winde bloweth a signe of heat By obseruing how Ionathan shot his arrows Dauid knew how Saul stood affected towards him by the holding out of the golden Scepter Hester knew shee was in the Kings fauour by the budding of the Trees wee know that Summer is come by the sound of the Vessell the emptinesse or fulnes thereof is perceiued by the beating of the pulses the distemperature of the body is discerned And by the affections of the heart which are the pulses of the soule the hearts Treasure is discouered and where it lyeth for God that hath giuen men signes to know the state of the body the alteration of weather and the mindes of other men hath also giuen certaine notes and signes to discerne the state of the Soule by Yea Christ doth condemne them for Hypocrites which will not iudge of themselues as well as of other things Hipocrites saith hee Yee can discerne the face of the Earth and of the Skie but why discerne yee not this time yea and why iudge yee not of your selues what is right But how may that be will some say or how may a man know by the affections of the heart where the hearts treasure is Then mark the way of wisdome and learne to bee wise when the Lord Iesus heard one answeare discreetely he said vnto him Thou art not farre from the kingdome of God to shew that discreet answeres in matters of religion are signes of grace When Zacheus did with heart obey Christ and with reuerence receiue Christ and in charitie releiue Christ in
do them all the good we can both for body and soule 1. Cor. 9. 19. Thirdly in Meekenesse Mat. 11. 28. Learne of mee c. His Meekenesse appeared in bearing Patiently all Inâ—uries and abuses and suffering the curse of the Law without grudging submitting himselfe to his fathers will in all things So must wee and the more wee follow him herein the more wee are like him in his Death and Refurrection Fourthly in his Humilitie for being God hee became man for vs and of a man a worme that is troden vnder foot that hee might saue man Phil. 2. 5. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ who being equall with God tooke vpon him the shape of a Seruant and humbled himselfe euen to the death of the Crosse. Here is to be obserued that the example of Christ hath something more in it then any other hath or can haue for it doth not onely shew vs what wee ought to doe but it is both a remedie against many vices as also a motiue to many good Dueties as for example the serious consideration that the very Sonne of God himselfe suffered all the wrath of God and curse of the Law for our sins is the most effectuall meanes to stir vp our hearts to a godly sorrow for them to which end euery man must bee perswaded that hee was the man that crucified Christ that hee is to bee blamed as well as Herod Pilate and the Iewes and that his sinnes were the nayles and speares that pearced Christ. Againe if Christ for our sinnes shed his bloud and if our sinnes made him sweate drops of bloud why should not wee shed bitter teares for our sinnes Hee that findeth himselfe so dull and hardened that the passion of Christ doth not humble him is in a lamentable case Againe when thou art sicke and in paine thinke how light these are being compared to the Agony and bloudy Sweate the Thornâ— and Nayles which Christ endured when thou art wronged abused turne thy eie to the crosse consider how meekly Christ bare it and prayed for them that put him to death When thou art tempted with Pride and Vaine-glory consider how for thy sinnes Christ was mocked despised and condemned when thou art moued with anger and desire of reuenge think how Christ gaue himselfe to death to saue his enimies when they most cruelly set themselues against him and these meditations being mingled with faith will ease thy minde And hence ariseth sayth M. Perk. a three-fold knowledge first of God secondly of our neighbour thirdly of our selues Of God for if wee would know him to our Saluation wee must know him in Christ crucified for God of his owne nature is inuisible and is reuealed to vs onely in Christ in whom hee sets foorth his Iustice Wisedome Goodnesse and Prouidence Heb. 1. 3. Col. 1. 3. whatsoeuer out of Christ commeth to vs in the name of God is a flat Idoll of mans braine The second knowledge that ariseth from the former meditations is of our neighbours that is those that are of gods Church They are to bee knowen of vs in this manner When wee are to do any Duetie to them wee are not barely to respect their persons but Christ crucified in them and them in Christ Saul Saul why c. when the poore come for reliefe it is Christ that commeth to our dores and saith I am hungry therefore let our compassion bee towards them as towards Christ. The third knowledge is of our selues and the right knowledge of our selues ariseth of Christ crucified in whom and by whom wee come to the knowledge of fiue speciall things First the grieuousnesse of our sinnes and our miserie in regard of them for if wee consider our offences in our selues wee may bee deceiued because our conscience being corrupt often erreth in giuing testimonie and so it seemes but little but if sinne bee considered in the death and passion of Christ whereof it was the cause and the vilenesse thereof measured by the vnspeakable torments endured by him the least sinne will appeare to be a most grieuous sinne indeed Secondly by this wee know that men beleeuing in Christ are not their owne but wholly both body and soule belong to Christ. Thirdly that euery true beleeuer hath this being from Christ not as hee is a man but as hee is a new man Fourthly that all good works done of vs proceede from the vertue and merit of Christ crucified Ioh. 15. 2. Fiftly that we owe vnto Christ an endlesse debt for hee was crucified onely as our suertie and pledge and in the spectacle of his passion wee must consider our selues as the chiefe debters we owe him all our selues for the paines that hee endured to set vs most miserable bankroupts at libertie from Hell Death and the Diuell but 〈◊〉 when doe wee beginne to pay it Thus wee see what benefits we haue by Christ crucified and in what manner wee ought to vse them but alas but few haue treasured vp this knowledge of Christ as they ought for herein faile both the Papist and the common Protestant The Popish Churches though in word they confesse him yet doe they not know him as they ought for in their Sermons they vse the passion as a means onely to stirre vp pittie and compassion towards Christ and hatred of Pilate the Iewes and Iudas c. But the seruice of God which in that Church stands now in force by the Cannons of the Counsell of Trent defaceth Christ crucified in that first the Passions of Martires are made meritorious secondly the very word and signe of the Crosse is their onely refuge and help thirdly the Virgine Mary is made the Queene of heauen and a mother of Mercy who may commaund her Sonne fourthly they giue religious adoration to dumbe stocks Crucifixes made by the hands of men The common Protestant also commeth short for three causes for first though in Word they confesse him to bee a Sauiour that hath redeemed them yet indeede they make him a patron of their sinnes Secondly they take knowledge of his merit but little regard the vertue of his death and resurrection in mortifying of their sinfull lusts and affections thirdly they vsually content themselues generally and confusedly to know Christ to be their redeemer neuer once seeking in euery perticuler estate of life and blessing of God to feele the benefit of his passion What is the cause of all the securitie in the world and that men are not touched for their sins surely because they did neuer yet seriouslie consider that Christ in the Garden lay groueling vpon the earth sweating of bloud c. for their offences Againe oppressours of the poore neuer knew that their sinnes drew out the hart bloud of Christ. Againe proud persons puffed vp with strange atire neuer consider that Christ was not crucified in gay atire but naked that hee might beare the whole shame and curse of the Law for vs. These and