to God so we decay in our obedience to him As our love is to Christ so according is our fruitfulnesse cold love is attended with barrennesse To doe our first workes is a speciall means to recover our first love Meanes to recover our first love 1. Frequent those duties meditation and prayer c. in which you injoyed communion with God in which God conveyed himselfe to thee God may by those meanes fill thee with himselfe 2. Beleeve God will raise thee up it 's his promise Hos 14. I will heale their backslidings want of depending upon God is a cause of our declining therefore faith is a meanes to raise us when fallen 3. Pray continually to God to raise thee and to hold thee up hold up my going that my footsteps slide not we are to use the means but without the presence and blessing of God all is to no purpose 4. Love not the world nor the things of the world wee cannot minde things above and things below he that minds the things below cannot minde the things above he that is filled with these things below is empty of things above he cannot live above with God he that is buried in the creature he cannot set his affections on things above 5. Meditate often upon Christs love to thee what he hath given thee and done for thee the consideration thereof is enough to â—aise thee Use This reprooves those that doe not their first works and yet thinke to recover their first love yet sit still God hath appointed meanes for his peoples prosperitie and welfare and they are to use them Or else I will come God will not suffer his to continue long in their fallen estate Gods coming to his is to reforme them and doe them good Come quickly 1. Such as are fallen from their first love are willing and prone to continue so 2. The time of our repentance and reformation is not left to us God will not stay our pleasures 3. As soone as we are convinced of a dutie to be done we are presently to practise it after admonition God requires a present reformation he expects we should regard his word and be ruled by it 4. Those that leave their first love God will allow but a little time and space to repent in This should exhort all that are fallen to rise now quickly put it not off to another season there is no reason why we should put it off because 1. Gods command is now quickly To day if yee will heare his voice harden not your hearts To put it off will but more harden your hearts 2. For that which is put off till hereafter is oft-times never done Felix was almost perswaded by Paul but he put him off to another season but when did his season come 3. It 's easier rising now then hereafter rise now whilest it is in your heart to rise now God calls therefore rise now now while your conscience is awake and tell yee yee are fallen the longer yee lay the longer yee may for your heart will be more hardened through the deceit fulnesse of sin then yee will have lesse minde to rise and be lesse able to doe your first workes 4. You have declined enough and laine long enough therefore doe not deserre it no longer seeing Christ calls saying Rise my love my faire one come away Song 2. 10. Oh therfore rise rise and goe quickly to him thirst after him cry to him now inwardly and secretly to raise you and draw out your heart abundantly to him Use Reproofe to such as know they are â—â—en and have left their first love yet rise not nor use not any meanes to get up but put it off till hereafter Oh that you would now consider that in so doing yee disobey the voice of the Lord and if you rise not quickly he will remove the Candlesticke out of it's place Observe he saith not if they doe not so he will damme them but remove the Candlesticke The Candlesticke is his Church which is called a Candlesticke Rev. 1. 20. A Candlestick holds forth the light so doth the Church of Christ the light of truth the light of Christ To remove the Candlesticke is to remove one socket from another to take it a pieces as the Candlestickes in the Temple had many sockets so the Church consists of many members so that to remove the Candlesticke out of it's place is to divide and scatter the Church the members one from another so he hath done to the Churches of Asia where there is not any appearance of any of the 7 Churches to be found Wee learne that a Church of Christ may cease to be so and which is more a Church of Christ may cease to be although not guiltie of any scandalous sin nor error in doctrine God chargeth them not with any such evills but onely for decaying or leaving their first love So that if a Church of Christ decay in their love to him he will quickly un-church them except they repent and doe their first workes God will have his to know it is no small affliction to be un-churched and such as prise the injoyment of the Saints with the ordinances of God count it an affliction to be stripped of them and because God threateneth to un-church then unlesse they repent c. it appeares that although they were fallen from their first love yet they had so much love to Gods ordinances and communion of Saints that before they would be stripped of them they would repent and doe their first workes Except thou repent Repentance is a means to escape affliction If we repent not he will strip us of that which is neere to us that so we may repent and be reformed When love will not reforme us a rod must and it is a mercy to be reformed by any meanes Lam. 3. 33. The life of Faith The just shall live by Faith Hab. 2. 4. THat we might live by faith God hath given his many rich and precious promises for this life and that to come that we may be comforted and satisfied in the injoyment of God in them our lives cannot be sweet without them by reason of the many miseries within and without that attends us I have here set downe many principall promises that you may with ease and speed finde them and live upon them Faith supplieth all wants faith honours God and God honours them most that live by it see Heb. 11. Hos 12. 3 4. Job 13. 15. By faith we live to God a life of joy in him our righteousnesse as if we had never finned by faith we live above sin infirmities temptations disertions sense reason feares doubts faith sweetens the sweetest mercy and the bitterest miseries it makes great afflictions as none it maintains the soules strength and comfort by faith wee obey God it makes Christs yoke easie and sweet faith puts the soule into possession of heaven while the body is on earth by it we view the glory of
a lost sinner then he is or can be willing to be saved This should teach and incourage all that desire Christ to beleeve though thy sins aâ—â— many you need not doubt of his love for 't is infinite without time or measure full free and eternall I will love them freely Hos 14. 4 We pray you a loving way Obs Gods way of saving man is in a way of love Therefore God saith I drew them with the cords of a man with bands of love Hos 11. 4. Behold I will allure her and speake comfortably to her Hos 2. 15. Wee pray you Obs Fallen man is contented to be as he is he is so seduced and deceived by sin that he need to be prayed and intreated to be reconciled We pray you in Christs stead Obs If Christ were with us he would pray us to be reconciled to him in his absence he hath sent some to pray us in his stead Obs Ignorance of Christs love is a cause of our feares when it is discovered our doubts are resolved and our hearts revived and inlarged Psal 63. 5 6. Be yee reconciled to God Obs The best estate of nature is a state of enmity against God for if these need any reconciliation how much more enemies Sight of reconciliation to God is consolation We are to distinguish betwixt Gods love and Reconciliation to us and our love and reconciliation to him they differ in nature and time and is grounded upon severall causes as to instance the cause of Gods Reconciliation to us is Gods love and the death of Christ our Reconciliation to God is the holy Spirit of God revealing to us Gods love and Christs Righteousnesse to be for us Reconcile us Obs Even such sinners as God doth love and sends after and will save they look upon God as their enemy and have hard thoughts of him For he hath made him Obs God the Father hath set apart the Lord Jesus to save man There is no other name whereby we may be saved Acts 4. 12. Heb. 9. 14. 22. Obs The way and meanes God hath chosen to free a sinner from sin is onely by Jesus Christ This should teach us to prize him and rest satisfied in him and not suffer ouâ— foolish hearts to seek after nor desire any other meanes or way of deliverance from fin but onely him Made him to be sin Some understand a sacrifice for sin and no more so as the guilt and punishment shall be translated unto Christ and not the fault but is it not unequall if not unjust and impossible to impose our guilt upon Christ and not our sin sin and guilt are inseperable for where there is no sin there can be no guilt therefore that our guilt might be laid on Christ necessarily our sins must after a sort be made his and annexed unto him by imputation all the sinnes of the Elect their adulteries murders blasphemies c. were laid upon him Isa 43. 5. Obs Sin must be charged upon Christ or the sinner and had not Christ undergone the penalty of sin no man could be saved as appeares Joh. 1. 1. 7. Joh. 1. 29. Rev. 8. 2. Eph. 2. 14 15. Heâ— 9. 22 Col. 1. 20. Zach. 9. 11. Our happinesse lieth in this that our sinnes are not â—mouted unto us Psal 32. 1 2. Obs God hath imputed our sins unto Christ and so laid them upon him that they are not ours no more but Christs who hath â—reed us and himselfe from them and so he shall apâ—eare without sin Heb. 9. 28. We should rest â—atisfied in Christs satisfaction because it is a â—ull perfect and infinite satisfaction Obs It appeares that the sence and guilt of â—in doth discourage a soule and cause it to desire to be at a further distance from God as Luk. 5. 8. Obs There needs strong reasons and earnest â—ntreaties to reconcile a soule to God yea â—he arme of the Lord must be revealed in them â—o make them effectuall Isa 53. 1. Obs The way to reconcile a soule to God â—s to let him understand the cause way and â—eans of his salvation therefore the Apostle â—aith He hath made him to be sin to us and â—hat we are justified freely Obs The words us and we in this verse wee are to understand them in the 19 verse to whom God doth not impute their trespasses therefore they are blessed Psal 32. 1 2. They shall not misse of glory they have Redemption by his blâ—ud the remission of sinnes Col. 1. 14. Rom. 5. 10. Therefore by us and we cannot be understood every sonne and daughter of Adam Obs For us That which is spoken in generall to beleevers every beleever is to apply it to himselfe in particular so Paul saith He loved â—e and gave himselfe for me Gal. 2. 20. Obs For us for me The word and promise of God that it is for me is that which the soule should fix its eye upon and for eveâ— relie upon to a full satisfaction to my soule knowing that the word and promise of God is the onely ground of faith and is securitiâ— sufficient for my salvation Obs Jesus Christ being made sin for me 〈◊〉 as good for me yea better for me then iâ—â— had never sinned as much better as a spirituall body is better then a naturall and 〈◊〉 the image of the heavenly is better then thâ— image of the earthly as much better 〈◊〉 strength is better then weaknesse and heâ—ven better then earth 1 Cor. 15. 43 44 〈◊〉 55. Obs As soone as the soule is convinceâ— that Jesus Christ is made fin for me and he made the Righteousnesse of God in him aâ— the soules feares doubts and discouragement and objections vanish and Christ is beleeveâ— in and lived upon with thankfulnesse aâ— joy Obs Which knew no sin Christ was wholly free from sin personally Luk 1 35. inherently Heb. 14. 5. and actually Joh. 8. 40. Obs Seeing Christ is so holy and so qualified as he is there is no reason why we should doubt of the sufficiency meritoriousnesse and effectuallnesse of that which Christ hath done for us Heb. 10. 10. 14. Obs That we mâ—gâ—t be made Whatsoever Jesus Christ hath done and suffered was for those whose fins were laid upon him and are fully pardoned by him Rev. 1. 5. Rom. 5. 19. That we might be made the Râ—ghteousnesse of God There is a twofold Righteousnesse according to the diversity of his nature the one uncreated and infinite which is the Righteousnesse of the Deity the other is created and finite which is the Righteousnesse of the humanity the first is infinite and therefore incommunicable the latter is the Righteousnesse of God also because it is in him who is not onely man but God So then Obs Christs Righteousnesse is the Righteousnesse of God The Righteousnesse which freeth a sinner from the curse of the Law is a perfect Righteousnesse Heb. 1. 8. Heb. 10. 3. see Job 33. 24. Obs Mans best Righteousnesse is imperfect it cannot justifie him
manifest that he was dead indeed Mat. 27. 59 60. Acts 13. 29. Hâ—s humiliation went no further then his life his death was the last act of his obedience He humbled himselfe and became obedient unto the death even the death of the Crosse Phil. 2. 7 8. In his humiliation his life was taken from the earth Acts 8. 33. Death put a stop to his humiliation it went no further then his life His lying in the grave was no part of his obedience therefore no part of his humiliation and therefore no part of satisfaction he had a command to dye but none to lie in the grave Joh. 10. 18. 12. 49. Also how could Christ obey when he was dead or did he suffer when he was dead if he did not suffer when he was dead he did not satisfie then when he was dead his humiliation and satisfactâ—â—n consists in his suffering you should have alledged for proofe the Word of the Lord the thoughts of men are vaine The record and testimony of God is truth and the highest authority and only will beare sway in the hearts and consciences of those that love the Lord. For your generall Orthodox Divines we thought they were more divine then other men we fell downe at your feet we thought we could not worship you enough unlesse we shut our eyes and suffered our understandings to be led captive by you if you said to us stand we durst goe no further we were content to see by your eyes and to call things after your names when wee did see any light if you told us it was darknesse wee beleeved you till we found you deceived us Know you not that matters of Religion are to be tryed by the Scriptures onely If an Angel from heaven teach otherwise we reject and detest it It s a poore shift in the want of Scripture to alledge the saying of men in Religion we are to heare none but God Isa 8. 20. The testimonies of men are no proofe all men are lyers in them we do not beleeve Psal 116. 11. Cease from men Isa 2. 22. They doe or may deceive Wee cry nothing but the Word of God in matters of Religion the word we imbrace without men if the Word say it we beleeve it and not else therefore speake Scripture we pray you doe no more scare us with such great words wee know many call you Orthodox and others that differ from you Heretickes you call your selves Divines but why is it because you are exercised in matters divine or because you are made partakers of the divine nature if so then many tradesmen may be called Divines as well as you seeing the Reason is the same Gods being is onely divine Concerning the Intercession of Christ he saith Intercession is an act p. 204. In his intercession he intreateth p. 194. It s his praying for us in heaven p. 176. 179. 185. 189. Intercession is asking p. 339. Christ by his own prayers seconds the cry of his bloud p. 253. Jesus shall intercede for the pardon of them p. 246. The 17. of John is a pattern and instance of his intercession for us in heaven p. 24â— Ans The 17. of John declares Christ spake words in his own person and then the summe of that you say is this That Christ in his person now he is glorified speaks words to God for us c. 2. If it be so then there is no perfection in glory for where perfection is there needs no words God is perfect so is Christ in glory and must Christ speak words to God that God might know his minde and so prevaile is this sutable to a condition of glory in which is perfection 3. Your words imply that God the Father loveth us lesse then Christ that he need to be prayed and intreated c. But Christ is so far from needing any to pray and intreat him that he prayeth and intreateth God for us which cannot be because they are one 1 Joh. 5. 7. Therefore equall in love God the Father is said to Elect us give us to Christ and send Christ to dye for us God is as well pleased with us as Christ is and he loveth us as well as he loveth Christ Christ saith Thou hast loved them as thou hast loved me thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world Joh. 17. 23 24. The Father himselfe loveth you Joh 16. 26. 27. He of himselfe without intreaty loveth us God cannot love us more nor lesse then he doth his love is infinite without beginning or end that which is infinite is not capable of being greater or lesser and it s the more glorious because it is so his knowledge cannot be greater nor lesse then it is the same may be said of his love he never began to know to will to love they are one in God God is love it s his being 1 Joh. 4. 16. I can say in a holy reverence and confidence in the satisfaction of Christ in admiration and thankfulnesse if God can condemne me let him he cannot deny himselfe the eternity and certainty of the Saints happy estate lesseneth not his love when we conceive of him in the highest eminency we can still we come short we cannot reach it Such knowledge is too wonderfull for me it is so high I cannot attaine unto it Psal 139. 6. O the depth of his wisdome and wayes they are past finding out Rom. 11. 33. Christs bloud speaketh Rev. 6. 9. Heb. 11. 4. So the bloud of sprinkling speaketh within us better things then that of Abel Heb. 13. 24. It speaketh peace to the conscience But he saith Intercession is a praying for us in heaven p. 180. There be many heavens Deut. 10. 14. The kingdome of heaven is within you Luk. 17. 21. The Church is called Heaven Rev. 12. 7. Mat. 11. 12. The ayre is called heaven 1 Kings 18. 45. The heaven of heavens cannot containe God in him wee live move and have our beeing 2. Christ ever liveth to make intercession for us in us The Spirit it selfe maketh intercession for us Rom. 8. 26 27. Christ the Father and Spirit are one The Spirit of Christ which was in them 1 Pet. 1. 11. The Lord is that Spirit 2 Cor. 3. 17. The Spirit of your Father speaketh in you Mat. 10. 20. Rom. 8. 34. 3. Christ is our advocate and intercessor in respect of that which he did for us in his own person when he was upon the earth before he suffered when he poured out his soule unto death and made intercession for us Isa 53. 12. Holy Father I pray that thou keep them from evill I pray not for these alone but for them also which shall beleeve in me Father I will that they which thou hast given me may be with me where I am that they may behold my glory c. Joh. 17. 9. 11. 15. 19. to 26. 4. Christs intercession holds forth the continuation of the efficacy of the vertue and fruit of Christs sacrifice