sinners know who that God is they fight against this were enough to breed a mutiny in the devils camp Silly soules they are drawn into the field by a false report of God and his wayes and are kept there together with lies and faire tales but Christ is not afraid to shew his Saints their enemy in all his Power and Principality the Weaknesse of God being stronger then the powers of hell CHAP. I. Sheweth the Christians life here to be a continual wrestling with sin and Satan and the paucity of those who are true Wrestlers as also how the true Wrestlers should manage their combate THe words contain a lively description of a bloody and lasting war between the Christian and his implacable enemy in which we may observe First the Christians state in this life set out by this word wrestling Secondly the Assailants that appear in armes against the Christian who are described First Negatively Not flesh and blood Or rather comparatively not chiefly flesh and blood Secondly Positively but against Principalities Powers c. SECT I. First for the first the wrestling or conflicting state of a Christian in this life is rendered observable here by a threefold circumstance First the kinde of combate which the Christians state is here set out by 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which though it be used sometimes for a wrestling of sport and recreation yet here to set out the sharpnesse of the Christians encounter there are two things in wrestling that render it a sharper combate then others First wrestling is not properly fighting against a multitude but when one enemy singles out another and enters the list with him each exerting their whole force and strength against one another as David and Goliah when the whole Armies stood as it were in a ring to behold the bloody issue of that duel Now this is more fierce then to fight in an army where though the battel be sharp and long the souldier is not alwayes engaged but falls off when he hath discharged and takes breath a while yea possibly may escape without hurt or stroak because there the enemies aime is not at this or that man but at the whole heap but in wrestling one cannot scape so he being the particular object of the enemies fury must needs be shaked and tried to purpose Indeed the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies such a strife as makes the body shake again quia corpus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Satan hath not only a general malice against the army of Saints but a spite against thee John thee Joane he 'll single thee out for his enemy We finde Jacob when alone a man wrestled with him As God delights to have private communion with his single Saints so the devil to try it hand to hand with the Christian when he gets him alone As we lose much comfort when we do not apply the Promise and Providence of God to our particular persons and conditions God loves me pardons me takes care of me the water at the town-conduit doth me no good if I want a pipe to empty it into my cisterne so it obstructs our care and watchfulnesse when we conceive of Satans wrath and fury as bent in general against the Saints and not against me in particular O how careful would a soule be in duty if as going to Church or Closet he had such a serious meditation as this Now Satan is at my heels to hinder me in my work if my God help me not Secondly 't is a close combate Armies fight at some distance Wrestlers grapple hand to hand An arrow shot from afar may be seen and shunn'd but when the enemy hath hold of one there is no declining but either he must resist manfully or fall shamefully at his enemies foot Satan comes close up and gets within the Christian takes his hold of his very flesh and corrupt nature and by this shakes him Secondly the universality of the combate We wrestle 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which comprehends all on purpose you may perceive the Apostle changeth the pronoune 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the former verse into 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in this that he may include himself as well as them as if he had said the quarrel is with every Saint Satan neither feares to assault the Minister nor despiseth to wrestle with the meanest Saint in the Congregation great and small Minister and people all must wrestle Not one part of Christs Army in the field and the other at ease in their quarters where no enemy comes here are enemies enough to engage all at onee Thirdly the permanency or duration of this combate and that lies in the tense 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Not our wrestling was at first Conversion but now over and we past the pikes not we shall wrestle when sicknesse comes and death comes but our wrestling is the enemy is ever in sight of us yea in fight with us there is an evil of every dayes temptation which like Pauls bonds abides us wherever we become So that these particulars summ'd up will amount to this Point SECT II. The Christians life is a continual wrestling He is as Jeremy said of himself borne a man of strife or what the Prophet to Asa may be said to every Christian From hence thou shalt have wars from thy spiritual birth to thy natural death from the houre when thou first diddest set thy face to heaven till thou shalt set thy foot in heaven Israels march out of Egypt was in Gospel-sense our taking the field against sin and Satan and when had they peace not till they lodged their colours in Canaan No condition wherein the Christian is here below is quiet Is it prosperity or adversity here is work for both hands to keep pride and security down in the one faith and patience up in the other no place which the Christian can call priviledg'd ground Lot in Sodom wrestled with the wicked inhabitants thereof his righteous soule being vexed with their unclean conversation And how fares he at Zoar do not his own daughters bring a spark of Sodoms fire into his own bed whereby he is inflamed with lust Some have thought if they were but in such a family under such a Ministery out of such occasions O then they should never be tempted as now they are I confesse change of aire is a great help to weak nature and these forenamed as vantage-ground against Satan but think'st thou to flie from Satans presence thus No though thou should'st take the wings of the morning he would flie after thee these may make him change his method in tempting but not lay down his designe so long as his old friend is alive within he will be knocking at thy door without No duty can be performed without wrestling The Christian needs his sword as much as his trowel He wrestles with a body of flesh this to the Christian in duty is as the beast to the traveller he cannot go his journey
if they be not worth sending this messenger to Heaven truly they are worth little Thirdly consider that although the Christian be secured from a total and final apostasy yet he may fall sadly to the bruising of his conscience enfeebling his grace and reproach of the Gospel which sure are enough to keep the Christian upon his watch and the more because ordinarily the Saints back-slidings begin in their duties As it is with tradesmen in the world they first grow carelesse of their businesse often out of their shop and then they go behinde-hand in their estates So here first remisse in a duty and then fall into a decay of their graces and comforts yea sometimes into wayes that are scandalous A stuffe loseth its glosse before it weares The Christian the lustre of his grace in the lively exercise of duty and then the strength of it Secondly take heed of abusing this doctrine unto a liberty to sin shall we sin because grace abounds grow loose because we have God fast bound in his promise God forbid none but a Devil would teach us this Logick It was a great height of sin those wretched Jewes came to who could quaffe and carouse it while death look't in upon them at the windows Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we shall die They discovered their Atheisme therein But what a prodigious stature in sin must that man be grown to that can sin under the protection of the promise and draw his encouragement to sin from the everlasting love of God Let us eat and drink for we are sure to live and be saved Grace cannot dwell in that heart which drawes such a cursed conclusion from the premisses of Gods grace The Saints have not so learn't Christ The inference the Apostle makes from the sweet priviledges we enjoy in the Covenant of grace is not to wallow in sin but having these promises to cleanse our selves from all filthinesse of flesh and spirit 2 Cor. 7.1 'T is the nature of faith the grace that trades with Promises to purifie the heart Now the more certain report faith brings of Gods love from the promise to the soule the mote it purifies the heart because love by which faith works is thereby more inflamed to God and if once this affection takes fire the room becomes too hot for sin to stay there SECT VI. The fourth note and last is That it will abundantly recompence all the hardship and trouble the Christian endures in this war against sin and Satan that he shall be able when the war is ended to stand In mans wars all do not get by them that fight in them the gaines of these are commonly put into a few pockets The common souldiers endure most of the hardship but go away with little of the profit they fight to make a few that are great yet greater and are many times themselves turn'd off at last with what will hardly pay for the cure of their wounds or keep them from starving in a poor Hospital But in this war there is none loseth but he that runs away A glorious reward there is for every faithful souldier in Christs Camp and that is wrapt up in this phrase Having done all to stand Now in this place to stand imports three things which laid together will clear the point First to stand in this place is to stand Conquerours An Army when conquered is said to fall before their enemy and the Conquerour to stand Every Christian shall at the end of the war stand a Conquerour over his vanquish't lusts and Satan that headed them Many a sweet victory the Christian hath here over Satan But alas the joy of these Conquests is again interrupted with fresh alarms from his rallied enemy One day he hath the better and may be the next he is put to the hazard of another battel much ado he hath to keep what he hath got yea his very victories are such as send him bleeding out of the field Though he repulses the temptation at last yet the wounds his conscience gets in the fight do overcast the glory of the victory 'T is seldome the Christian comes off without some sad complaint of the treachery of his own heart which had like to have lost the day and betrayed him into his enemies hand But for thy eternal comfort Know poor Christian there is a blessed day coming which shall make a full and final decision of the quarrel betwixt thee and Satan Thou shalt see this enemies Camp quite broke up not a weapon left in his hand to lift up against thee Thou shalt tread upon his high places from which he hath made so many shots at thee Thou shalt see them all dismantled and demolished till there be not left standing any one corruption in thy bosome for a devil to hide and harbour himself in Satan at whose approach thou hast so trembled shall then be subdued under thy feet he that hath so oft bid thee bow down that he might go over thy soule and trample upon all thy glory shall now have his neck laid to be trodden on by thee Were there nothing else to be expected as the fruits of our watching and praying weeping mourning severe duties of mortification and self-denial with whatever else our Christian warfare puts us upon but this our labour sure would not be in vain in the Lord. Yea blessed watching and praying happy tears and wounds we meet with in this war may they out at last end in a full and eternal victory over sin and Satan Bondage is one of the worst of evils The baser an enemy is the more abhorred by noble spirits Saul feared to fail into the hands of the uncircumcised Philistines and to be abused by their scornes and reproaches more then a bloody death Who baser then Satan what viler tyrant then sin Glorious then will the day be wherein we shall praise God for delivering us out of the hands of all our sins and from the hand of Satan But dismal to you sinners who at the same time wherein you shall see the Saints stand with crowns of victory on their heads must like fettered captives be dragg'd to hells dungeon there to have your eare bored unto an eternal bondage under your lusts And what more miserable sentence can God himself passe upon you Here sin is pleasure there it will be your torment Here a sweet bit and goes down glib but there it will stick in your throats Here you have suitable provision to entertain your lusts withal Palaces for pride to dwell and strut her self in Delicious fare for your wanton palates houses and lands with coffers of silver and gold for your covetous hearts by their self-pleasing thoughts to sit brooding upon but you will finde none of these there hell is a barren place nothing grows in that land of darknesse to solace and recreate the sinners minds You shal have your lusts but want the food they long for O what a torment must
a spiritual war you shall reade of and that not a history of what was fought many ages past and is now over but of what now is doing the Tragedy is at present acting and that not at the furthest end of the world but what concernes thee and every one that reades it The stage whereon this war is fought is every mans own soul Here is no Neuter in this war the whole world is engaged in the quarrel either for God against Satan or for Satan against God It was a great question some yeares past Who are you for The not giving a good account to which hath cost many a life O my dear friends think solemnly what answer you meane to give to God and conscience when they in a dying houre shall ask every one of you Who art thou for 'T is an incomparable mercy that you are yet where you may choose your side It will not be ever so may be not a day to an end If once in another world you must then stand to your colours yet you may run from the Devils quarters and be taken into Christs pay The Drum beats in the Gospel for Voluntiers O the Lord make you willing in the day of his power I know you all would be on the surest side O what can you be sure of while under the devils Ensigne but damnation The curse of God cleavs to him and all that takes part with him O let not the little plunder spoil of sinful pleasures and pelf bewitch you still to follow his Camp What is that souldier better for his booty he gets in a fight who before he can get off with it is himself slain upon the place so many have been served in these wars if reports be true 'T is that thou must certainly look for The piece is charg'd and aime taken at thy breast which will be thy eternal death if thou persistest Gods threatenings will go off at last and then where art thou where but in hell where thy wedge of gold and Babylonish garment thy wages of unrighteousnesse will do thee little stead O Neighbours I am loath to leave you in the way where Gods bullets flie but I must have a word for you my Christian friends who have espoused Christs quarrel and are in the field against Satan My heart is towards you who have thus willingly offered your selves among the Lords people to his help against the mighty He can destroy him without you but he takes your love as kindly as if he could not God hath sent me as Jesse did David with this little present to you and the rest of my Brethren that are in his Camp May it be but to the strengthening of your hearts and hands in fighting the Lords battels and I shall blesse God that put it into my heart thus to visit you O hold on dear friends in your Christian warfare let none take the crown from you Whet your courage at the throne of grace from whence all your recruits of soule-strength come Send faith oft up the hill of the Promise to see and bring you the certain newes of Christs coming to you yea for you and assured victory with him Reade the exploits which Christs Worthies by faith have done and in their Conquests reade your own for in them he spake with us as the Prophet of Jacob. Be thankful for every victory you get and let not the houling wildernesse yet before you put the song of your praises for temptations past out of tune yet rejoyce with trembling as those who are still in your enemies countrey and must keep by the sword what you get by the sword Be sure you stand in close order amongst your selves These times give us too many sad examples of such who first fell from communion with their Brethren and then into the devourers hand straglers are soon snap't you will finde you are safest in a body Take heed of a private spirit let not only your particular safety but of the whole Army of Saints be in your eye and care especially that company in which you march Congregation I mean that souldier which can see an enemy in fight with his brethren and not help them he makes â—t but the more easie for the enemy to slay himself at last Say not therefore Am I my brothers Keeper God would not keep him that cared not to keep his brother Watch over one another not to play the Criticks on your brothers failings and triumph when he halts but to help him up if he falls or if possible to keep him from falling by a timely rescue as Abishai came to Davids succour Keep your rank and file We see what advantage Satan hath got in these loose times since we have learnt to fight him out of order and the private souldier Christian I mean hath taken the officers work out of his hands Harden your selves against the scandals which the cowardize and treachery of false brethren hath given you He is the right souldier that is not discouraged by those that run from or that are slain in the battel but still presseth on to victory though he goes to it over the backs of others that are killed upon the place In a word Disintangle your hearts what you can from the love of and distracting cares for this present world No man that warreth intangleth himself with the affaires of this life that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a souldier 2 Tim. 2.4 If it behoves any to have their Will ready made and their worldly interests set at some stay then surely the souldier if any souldier then the Christian Get but once your hearts mortified to the world and care rolled upon God for name estate and relations here and then you are fit to march whereever Christ will lead you The want of this hath made many run home to save their own private stake there when they should have been in the field for Christ And now my Christian friends march on not in the confidence of your Armour but in the power of his might who hath promised shortly to subdue Satan under your feet I have done only I must crave pardon of you for rending this part of the Treatise from the other which neither my little strength or leisure would suffer me to grasp at once But this having first put forth its hand in preaching can make no great breach upon that though it get the start a little in printing Let me therefore dear friends if God shall make this imperfect birth any way serviceable to your faith humbly desire that you would as continue to strive at the throne of grace for a blessing on my poor Ministery among you so also lift up a prayer that strength may be given to bring forth what of this yet is undeliver'd I do not send you thither where I intend not to meet you but shall desire grace to be found faithful in striving with you and for you that amongst
booty at the sacking of some town are spoil'd for fighting ever after CHAP. II. Of the Saints strength where it lies and wherefore laid up in God THe second Branch of the words followeth which contains a cautionary direction Having exhorted the Saints at Ephesus and in them all believers to a holy resolution and courage in their warfare lest this should be mistaken and beget in them an opinion of their own strength for the battel the Apostle leads them out of themselves for this strength even to the Lord Be strong in the Lord. From whence observe That the Christians strength lies in the Lord not in himself The strength of the General in other hostes lies in his troops he flâ—es as a great Commander once said to his souldiers upon their wings if their feathers be clipt their power broken he is lost but in the Army of Saints the strength of every Saint yea of the whole hoste of Saints lies in the Lord of hostes God can overcome his enemies without their hands but they cannot so much as defend themselves without his arme It is one of Gods names The strength of Israel 1 Sam. 15.19 He was the strength of Davids heart without him this valiant Worthy that could when held up in his armes defie him that defied an whole Army behaves himself strangely for feare at a word or two that drop't from the Philistines mouth He was the strength of his hands He taught his fingers to fight and so he is the strength of all his Saints in their war against sin and Satan Some propound a question whether there be a sin committed in the world in which Satan hath not a part but if the question were whether there be any holy action performed without the special assistance of God concurring that is resolved John 15.5 Without me you can do nothing Thinking strength of God 2 Cor. 3.5 Not that we are sufficient of our selves to think any thing as of our selves but our sufficiency is of God We Apostles we Saints that have habitual grace yet this lies like water at the bottome of a Well which will not ascend with all our pumping till God poure in his exciting grace and then it comes To will is more then to think to exert our will into action more then both these are of God Phil. 2.13 It is God that worketh in you to will and to do of his good pleasure He makes the heart new and having made it fit for heavenly motion setting every wheele as it were in its right place then he windes it up by his actuating grace and sets it on going the thoughts to stir the will to move and make towards the holy object presented yet here the chariot is set and cannot ascend the hill of action till God puts his shoulder to the wheele Rom. 7. To will is present with me but how to performe that which is good I finde not God is at the bottome of the ladder and at the top also the Author and Finisher yea helping and lifting the soule at every round in his ascent to any holy action Well now the Christian is set on work how long will he keep close to it Alas poor soul no longer then he is held up by the same hand that impowered him at first He hath soon wrought out the strength received and therefore to maintain the tenure of a holy course there must be renewing strength from heaven every moment which David knew and therefore when his heart was in as holy a frame as ever he felt it and his people by their free-will-offering declared the same yet even then he prayes that God would keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of his people and establish their hearts to him 1 Chron. 29.18 He adored the mercy that made them willing and then he implores his further grace to strengthen them and tie a knot that these precious pearles newly strung on their hearts might not slip off The Christian when fullest of divine communications is buâ— a glasse without a foot he cannot stand or hold what he hath received any longer then God holds him in his strong hand Therefore Christ when bound for heaven and ready to take his leave of his children bespeaks his Fathers care of them in his absence Father keep them as if he had said they must not be left alone they are poor shiftlesse children that can neither stand nor go without help they will lose the grace I have given them and fall into those temptations which I kept them from while I was with them if they be out of thy eye or armes but one moment and therefore Father keep them Again Consider the Christian as addressing himself to any duty of Gods worship still his strength is in the Lord Would he pray where will he finde materials for his prayer alas he knows not what to pray for as he ought Let him alone and he will soon pray himself into some temptation or other and cry for that which were cruelty in God to give and therefore God puts words in our mouthes Take words with you and say Hos 14.2 Well now he hath words put into his mouth alas they will freeze in his very lips if he hath not some heart-heating affections to thaw the tap and where shall this fire be had not a spark to be found on his own hearth except it be some strange fire of natural desires which will not serve whence then must the fire come to thaw the icenesse of the heart but from heaven The Spirit he must stretch himself upon the soul as the Prophet on the childe and then the soule will come to some kindly warmth and heavenly heat in his affections the Spirit must groane and then the soul will groane he helps us to these sighs and groans which turne the sailes of prayer He dissolves the heart and then it bursts out of the heart by groans of the lips by heavenly Rhethorick out of the eyes as from a flood-gate with teares yet further now the creature is enabled to wrestle with God in prayer what will he get by all this suppose he be weak in grace is he able to pray himself strong or corruption weak no this is not to be found in prayer as an act of the creature this drops from heaven also In the day that I cried thou answeredst me and gavest me strength in my soul David received it in duty but had it not from his duty but from his God He did not pray himself strong but God strengthened him in his prayer Well cast your eye once more upon the Christian as engaging in another Ordinance of hearing the Word preach't The soules strength to heare the Word is from God he opens the heart to attend yea he opens the understanding of the Saint to receive the Word so as to conceive what it meant It is like Samsons riddle which we cannot unfold without
can binde and he should take no care to effect this would it not be interpreted as a sleighting of his friends kindnesse Is it a small matter that God passeth over his Almighty power by promise to us and bids us make it as sure to our selves as we can by faith and we neglect this leaving the Writings of the promises unsealed on our hearts Secondly our obedience and comfort are strong or weak as our faith is on this principle First our obedience that being a childe of faith partakes of its Parents strength or weaknesse Abraham being strong in faith what an heroick act of obedience did he perform in offering up his Son his faith being well set on the Power of God he carries that without staggering which would have laid a weak faith on the ground No act of faith more strengthens for duty then that which eyes Gods Almighty power engaged for its assistance Go in this thy might said God to Gideon have not I call'd thee as if he had said Can I not will I not carry thee through thy work Away goes Gideon in the faith of this and doth wonders This brought the righteous man from the East to Gods foot though he knew not whither he went yet he knew with whom he went God Almighty But take a soul not perswaded of this how uneven and unstable is he in his obediential course every threat from man if mighty dismayes him because his faith not fixt on the Almighty and therefore sometimes he will shift off a duty to comply with man and betray his trust into the hands of a sorry creature because he hath fleshly eyes to behold the power of man but wants a spiritual eye to see God at his back to protect him with his Almighty power which were his eyes open to see he would not be so routed in his thoughts at the approach of a weak creature Should such a man as I flee said good Nehemiah Nehem. 6.11 He was newly come from the throne of grace where he had called in the help of the Almighty verse 9. O God strengthen my hands And truly now he will rather die upon the place then disparage his God with a dishonourable retreat Secondly the Christians comfort increaseth or waines as the aspect of his faith is to the power of God Let the soule question that or his interest in it and his joy gusheth out even as blood out of a broken vein It is true a soule may scramble to heaven with much ado by a faith of recumbency relying on God as able to save without this perswasion of its interest in God but such a soule goes with a scant side-winde or like a ship whose masts are laid by the board exposed to winde and weather if others better appointed did not tow it along with them Many feares like waves ever and anon cover such a soule that it is more under water then above whereas one that sees it selfe folded in the armes of Almighty power O how such a soule goes mounting afore the winde with her sailes fill'd with joy and peace Let affliction come stormes arise this blessed soule knows where it shall land and be welcome The Name of God is his harbour where he puts in as boldly as a man steps into his own house when taken in a shower He heares God calling him into this and other his attributes as Chambers taken up for him Isa 26. Come my people enter into thy Chambers God calls them his and it were foolish modesty not to own what God gives Isa 45.24 Surely shall a man say in the Lord have I righteousnesse and strength that is I have righteousnesse in Gods righteousnesse strength in his strength so that in this respect Christ can no more say that his strength is his owne and not the believers then the husband can say my body is my own and not my wives A soule perswaded of this may sing merrily with the sharpest thorne at its breast so David Psal 57.7 My heart is fixed my heart is fixed I will sing and give praise What makes him so merry in so sad a place as the Cave where now he was he will tell you verse 1. where you have him nestling himselfe under the shadow of Gods wings and now well may he sing care and fear away A soul thus provided may lie at ease on a hard bed Do you not think they sleep as soundly who dwell on London-bridge as they who live at White-hall or Cheap-side knowing the waves that roare under them cannot hurt them Even so may the Saints rest quietly over the floods of death it selfe and feare no ill SECT 3. Vse 1 Is the Almighty power of God engaged for the Saints defence surely then they will have a hard pull the Saints enemies I mean who meddle with them that are so far above their match The devil was so cunning he would have Job out of his trench his hedge down before he would fall on but so desperate are men they will try the field with the Saints though incircled with the Almighty power of God What folly were it to attempt or sit down before such a City which cannot be block't up so as no relief can get in the way to heaven cannot In the Churches straitest siege there is a river which shall make glad this City of God with seasonable succours from heaven The Saints fresh-springs are all from God and it is as feasible for sorry man to stop the water-courses of the clouds as to dam up those streams which invisibly glide like veins of water in the earth from the fountain-head of his mercy into the bosome of his people the Egyptians thought they had Israel in a trap when they saw them march into such a nook by the sea-side They are entangled they are entangled and truly so they had been irrecoverably had not that Almighty power which led them on engaged to bring them off with honour and safety well when they are out of this danger behold they are in a wildernesse where nothing is to be had for back and belly and yet here they shall live fourty yeares without trade or tillage without begging or robbing of any of the Neighbour-nations they shall not be beholden to them for a penny in their way what cannot Almighty power do to provide for his people what can it not do to protect them against the power and wrath of their enemies Almighty power stood between the Israelites and the Egyptians so that poor creatures they could not so much as come to see their enemie God sets up a dark cloud as a blinde before their eyes and all the while his eye through the cloud is looking them into disorder and confusion And is the Almighty grown weaker now a dayes or his enemies stronger that they promise themselves better successe No neither but men are blinder then the Saints enemies of old who sometimes have fled at the appearances of God among his people crying out Let
faithful Creatour Secondly improve this Almighty power of God and thy interest therein in temptations to sin when thou art over-powered and fliest before the face of thy strong corruption or fearest thou shalt one day fall by it make bold to take hold of this attribute and re-inforce thy self from it again to resist and in resisting to believe a timely victory over it The Almighty God stands in sight of thee while thou art in the valley fighting and stayes but for a call from thee when distressed in battel and then he will come to thy rescue Jehoshaphat cried when in the throng of his enemies and the Lord helped him much more mayest thou promise thy self his succour in thy soul-combates Betake thy self to the throne of grace with that promise Sin shall not have dominion over you and before thou urgest it the more to help thy faith comfort thy self with this that though this word Almighty is not exprest yet it is implied in this and every promise and thou mayest without adding a title to the Word of God read it in thy soul sin shall not have dominion over you saith the Almighty God for this and all his attributes are the constant seale to all his promises Now soule put the bond in suit fear not the recovery 't is debt and so due He is able whom thou suest and so there is no feare of losing the charge of the suit and he that was so gracious to binde himself when he was free will be so faithful being able to perform now he is bound only while thou expectest the performance of the promise and the assistance of this Almighty power against thy corruptions take heed that thou keep under the shadow of this attribute and condition of this promise The shadow will not cool except in it what good to have the shadow though of a mighty rock when we sit in the open Sun To have Almighty power engaged for us and we to throw our selves out of the protection thereof by bold salleys into the mouth of temptation The Saints falls have been when they run out of their trench and hold for like the conies they are a weak people in themselves and their strength lies in the rock of Gods Almightinesse which is their habitation Thirdly Christian improve this when opprest with the weight of any duty and service which in thy place and calling lies upon thee Perhaps thou findest the duty of thy calling too heavy for thy weak shoulders make bold by faith to lay the heaviest end of thy burden on Gods shoulder which is thine if a believer as sure as God can make it by promise When at any time thou art sick of thy work and ready to think with Jonas to run from it encourage thy selfe with that of God to Gideon whom he call'd from the flaile to thresh the mountains Go in this thy might hath not God call'd thee fall to the work God sets thee about and thou engagest his strength for thee The way of the Lord is strength Run from thy work and thou engagest Gods strength against thee he 'll send some storme or other after thee to bring home his runaway servant How oft hath the Coward been kill'd in a ditch or under some hedge when the valiant souldier that stood his ground and kept his place got off with safety and honour Art thou call'd to suffer flinch not because thou art afraid thou shalt never be able to bear the crosse God can lay it so even thou shalt not feel it though thou shouldest finde no succour till thou comest to the prison-door yea till thou hast one foot on the ladder or thy neck on the block despair not In the Mount will the Lord be seen And in that houre he can give thee such a look of his sweet face as shall make the blood come in the gastly face of a cruel death and appear lovely in thy eye for his sake He can give thee so much comfort in hand as thou shalt acknowledge God is aforehand with thee for all thy shame pain thou canst endure for him And if it should not amount to this yet so much as will bear all thy charges thou canst be put to in the way lies ready told in that promise 1 Cor. 10.13 Thou shalt have it at sight and this may satisfie a Christian especially if he considers though he doth not carry so much of heavens joy about him to heaven as others yet he shall meet it as soon as he comes to his Fathers house where it is reserved for him In a word Christian relie upon thy God and make thy daily applications to the throne of grace for continual supplies of strength you little think how kindly he takes it that you will make use of him the oftner the better and the more you come for the more welcome else why would Christ have told his disciples Hitherto ye have ask't nothing but to expresse his large heart in giving loath to put his hand to his purse for a little and therefore by a familiar kind of Rhetorick puts them to rise higher in asking as Naaman when Gehazi asks one talent entreats him to take two such a bountiful heart thy God hath while thou art asking a little peace and joy he bids thee open thy mouth wide and hee 'l fill it Go and ransack thy heart Christian from one end to the other finde out thy wants acquaint thy selfe with all thy weaknesses and set them before the Almighty as the Widow her empty vessels before the Prophet hadst thou more then thou canst bring thou mayest have them all fill'd God hath strength enough to give but he hath no strength to deny here the Almighty himselfe with reverence be it spoken is weak even a childe the weakest in grace of his family that can but say Father is able to overcome him and therefore let not the weaknesse of thy faith encourage thee No greater motive to the bowels of mercy to stir up Almighty power to relieve thee then thy weaknesse when pleaded in the sense of it The pale face and thin cheeks I hope move more with us then the canting language of a stout sturdy beggar Thus that soule that comes laden in the sense of his weak faith love patience the very weaknesse of them carries an argument along with them for succour CHAP. V. Wherein is answered a grand Objection that some disconsolate soules may raise against the former Discourse Object O But saith some disconsolate Christian I have prayed again and again for strength against such a corruption and to this day my hands are weak and these sons of Zerviah are so strong that I am ready to say all the Preachers do but flatter me that do poure their oyle of comfort upon my head and tell me I shall at last get the Conquest of these mine enemies and see that joyful day wherein with David I shall sing to the Lord for delivering me out of the
up in a dead stock and none to be the better or can you say that he is wanting to you in his love and mercy are they not ever in exercise for your good Is the eye of providence ever shut No he slumbers not that keeps thee or is it one moment off thee No The eye of the Lord is upon the righteous He hath fixed it for ever and with infinite delight pleaseth himself in the object When was his eare shut or his hand either from receiving thy cries or supplying thy wants nay doth not thy condition take up the thoughts of God and are they any other then thoughts of peace which he entertains A few drops of this oyle will keep the wheel in motion That ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil THese words present us with the reason why the Christian souldier is to be thus compleatly arm'd That he may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil The strength of which argument lies in these two particulars First the danger if unarm'd the enemy is no mean contemptible one no lesse then the devil set out as a cunâ—ing Engineer by his wiles and stratagems Secondly the certainty of standing against all his wits and wiles if we be thus arm'd That ye may be able to stand As no standing without armour so no feare of falling into the fiends hands if arm'd To begin with the first the Saints enemy the devil described by his wiles 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 properly the methods of Satan 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies that Art and order one observes in handling a point we say such a one is methodical Now because it shews ingenuity and acutenesse of wit so to compose a discourse therefore it is transferr'd to expresse the subtilty of Satan in laying of his plots and stratagems in his warlike preparations against the Christian Indeed the expert souldier hath his order as well as the scholar there is method in forming of an army as well as framing an argument The Note which lies before us is The devil is a very subtile enemy The Christian is endangered most by his policy and craft he is call'd the old Serpent The serpent subtil above other creatures an old Serpent above other serpents Satan was too crafty for man in his perfection much more now in his maimed estate having never recovered that first crack he got in his understanding by the fall of Adam And as man hath lost so Satan hath gained more and more experience he lost his wisdome indeed assoon as he became a devil but ever since he hath increast his craft though he hath not wisdom enough to do himself good yet subtilty enough to do others hurt God shewes us where his strength lies when he promiseth he will bruise the head of the Serpent his head crush't and he dies presently Now in handling this Point of Satans subtilty we shall consider him in his two main designes and therein shew you his wiles and policies His first main design is to draw into sin The second is to accuse vex and trouble the Saint for sinne First let us consider the devil as a tempter to sin and there he shews his wily subtilty in three things First in choosing the most advantagious season for tempting Secondly in managing his temptations laying them in such a method and forme as shews his craft Thirdly in pitching on fit instruments for his turne to carry on his design CHAP. I. Of Satans subtilty to choose the most advantagious seasons for tempting FIrst he shews his subtilty in choosing the most proper and advantagious seasons for tempting To every thing there is a season Solomon saith Eccl. 3.1 that is a nick of time which taken gives facility and speedy dispatch to a businesse And therefore the same Wise man gives this reason why man miscarries so frequently and is disappointed in his enterprizes because he knowes not his time Eccl. 9.11 He comes when the bird is flowen A hundred souldiers at one time may turn a battel save an army when thousands will not do at another Satan knowes when to make his approaches when if at any time he is most likely to be entertained As Christ hath the tongue of the learned to speak a word in season of counsel and comfort to a doubting drooping soule so Satan shews his black Art and hellish skill in speaking words of seduction and temptation in season and a word in season is a word on its wheels I shall give you a view of his subtilty in special seasons which he chooseth to tempt in The first season he takes to tempt in is when newly converted No sooner is this childe of grace the new creature borne but this Dragon poures a flood of temptation after it He learnt the Egyptians but some of his own craft when he taught them that bloody and cruel baptisme which they exercised upon the Israelitish babes in throwing them into the river assoon as they were borne The first cry of the new creature gives all the legions of hell an alarm they are as much troubled at it as Herod and Jerusalem were when Christ was borne and now they sit in Councel to take away the life of this new born King The Apostles met with more opposition and persecution in their latter dayes when endued with larger portions of the Spirit but with temptations from Satan in their former when young Converts as you may observe in the several passages recorded of them Satan knew grace within was but weak and their supplies promised at the Spirits coming not landed and when is an enemy more like to carry the town then in such a low condition and therefore he tries them all Indeed the advantages are so many that we may wonder how the young Convert escapes with his life knowledge weak and so soon led into an errour especially in divided times when many wayes are held forth one saying Here is Christ another There is Christ and the Christian ready to think every one means honestly that comes with good words as a little childe who hath lost his way to his fathers house is prone to follow any that offer him their conduct Experience of what he knows little and if Adam whose knowledge so perfect yet was soon cheated being assaulted before he was well warme in his new possessions how much more advantage hath Satan of the new Convert in whom he findes every grace in so great an indisposition to make resistance both from its own weaknesse and the strength of the contrary corruption which commonly in such is much unmortified which makes it act with more difficulty and mixture as in a fire newly kindled where the smoke is more then the flame or like beer newly tunn'd which runs thick so that though there appear more strength of affection in such that it works over into a greater abundance of duty then in others yet with more
an All-wise God that cannot be out-witted and therefore will in the end but pay the workmen in greater damnation The foolishnesse of God is wiser then men yea then the wisdome of men and devils that is the meanes and instruments which God opposeth Satan withal What weaker then a Sermon who sillier then the Saints in the account of the wise world yet God is wiser in a weak Sermon then Satan is in his deep plots wherein the State-heads of a whole Conclave of profound Cardinals are knock't together wiser in his simple ones then Satan in his Achitophels and Sanballats and truly God chooseth on purpose to defeat the policies of hell and earth by these that he may put such to greater shame 1 Cor. 1.21 How is the great Scholar ashamed to be baffled by a plain Countrey-mans argument thus God calls forth Job to wrestle with Satan and his Seconds for such his three friends shewed themselves in taking the devils part and sure he is not able to hold up the cudgels against the fencing-Master who is beaten by one of the scholars God sits laughing while hell and earth sit plotting Psal 2.4 He disappointeth the devices of the crafty he breaketh their studied thoughts and plots as the words import Job 5.12 in one moment pulling down the labours of many yeares policy Indeed as great men keep wilde beasts for game and sport as the fox the boare c. so doth God Satan and his instruments to manifest his wisdom in the taking of them It is observed that the very hunting of some beasts affords not only pleasure to the Hunter but also more sweetnesse to the eater Indeed God by displaying of his wisdome in the pursuit of the Saints enemies doth superadde a sweet relish to their deliverances at last He brake the heads of Leviathan in pieces and gave him to be meat to his people After he had hunted Pharaoh out of all his formes and burrowes now he breaks the very braines of all his plots and serves him up to his people with the garnishment of his wisdom and power about CHAP. IX An Account is given how the All-wise God doth out-wit the devil in his tempting of Saints to sin wherein are laid down the ends Satan propounds and how he is prevented in them all with the gracious issue that God puts to these his temptations Quest But how doth God defeat Satan and out-wit his wiles in tempting his Saints Answ This God doth by accomplishing his own gracious ends for the good and comfort of his people out of those temptations from which Satan designes their ruine this is the noblest kinde of Conquest to beat back the devils weapon to the wounding of his own head yea to cut it off with the devils own sword thus God sets the devil to catch the devil and layes as it were his own counsels under Satans wings and makes him hatch them Thus the Patriarchs help't to fulfil Josephs dream while they are thinking to rid their hands of him To instance in a few particulars SECT I. First Satan by his temptations aimes at the defiling of the Christians conscience and disfiguring that beautiful face of Gods image which is engraven with holinesse in the Christians bosome he is an unclean spirit himself and would have them such that he might glory in their shame but God out-wits him for he turneth the temptations of Satan to sin to the purging them from sinne they are the black soap with which God washeth his Saints white First God useth the temptations of Satan to one sin as a preventive against another to Pauls thorn in the flesh to prevent his pride God sends Satan to assault Paul on that side where he is strong that in the mean time he may fortifie him where he is weak Thus Satan is befool'd as sometimes we see an army sitting down before a town where it wasts its strength to no purpose and in the mean time gives the enemy an advantage to recruit and all this by the counsel of some Hushai that is a secret friend to the contrary side God who is the Saints true friend sits in the devils Councel and over-rules proceedings there to the Saints advantage He suffers the devil to annoy the Christian with temptations to blasphemy atheisme and by these together with the troubles of spirit they produce the soule is driven to duty is humbled in the sense of these horrid apparitions in its imagination and secured from abundance of formality and pride which otherwise God saw invading him As in a family some businesse falls out which keeps the Master up later then ordinary and by this the thief who that night intended to rob him is disappointed had not such a soule had his spirit of prayer and diligence kept awake by those afflicting temptations 't is likely Satan might have come as a seducer and taken him napping in security Secondly God purgeth out the very sin Satan tempts to even by his tempting Peter never had such a conquest over his self-confidence never such an establishment of his faith as after his foule fall in the High Priests hall He that was so well perswaded of himself before as to say Though all were offended with Christ yet would not he how modest and humble was he in a few dayes become when he durst not say he loved Christ more then his fellow-brethren to whom before he had preferr'd himself what an undaunted Confessour of Christ and his Gospel doth he prove before Councels and Rulers who even now was dash't out of countenance by a filly maid and all this the product of Satans temptation sanctified unto him Indeed a Saint hath a discovery by his fall what is the prevailing corruption in him so that the temptation doth but stir the humour which the soul having found out hath the greater advantage to evacuate by applying those means and using those ingredients which do purge that malady cum delectu Now the soule sure will call all out against this destroyer Paul had not took such pains to buffet his body had he not found Satan knocking at that door Thirdly God useth these temptations for the advancing of the whole work of grace in the heart One spot occasions the whole garment to be washed David overcome with one sinne renewes his repentance for all Psal 51. A good husband when he seeth it rain in at one place sends for the Workman to look over all the house This indeed differenceth a sincere heart from an hypocrite whose repentance is partial soft in one plot and hard in another Judas cries out of his treason but not a word of his thievery and hypocrisie The hole was no wider in his conscience then where the bullet went in whereas true sorrow for one breaks the heart into shivers for others also SECT II. Secondly Satan by tempting one Saint hath a mischievous design against others either by encouraging them to sin by the example of such a one or discouraging them
all its Royalty may be paved with the sculls as I may so speak of devils Vse 2 Secondly this gives a strong cordial to our fainting faith in the behalf of the Church of Christ If all the devils wits and wiles will not serve him to overcome one single souldier in Christs Camp much lesse shall he ever ruine the whole Army These are dayes of great confusions in the Christian world and the chief feare of a gracious heart is for the Ark lest that should fall into the enemies hand and when this Palladium is taken the City of God his Church be trod under the feet of pride I confesse Satan seems to get ground daily he hath strangely wrigled into the bosomes and principles of many who by the fame of their Profession and zeal had obtained in the opinion of others to be reckoned among the chief of Christs Worthies in their generation He hath sadly corrupted the truths of Christ brought a dis-esteem on Ordinances that by this and as a judgment for this the wombe of the Gospel is become in a great measure barren and her children which hang upon her breasts thrive not in love and holinesse as of old when the milk was not so much nor that so spiritfull he hath had advantage by the divisions of the godly to harden those that are wicked into a further disdain of Religion and by the bloody wars of late yeares to boile up the wrath of the Popish and profane crue to a higher pitch of rage and fury against Christs little remnant then ever so that if ever God should suffer the sword to fall into their hand they are disciplin'd and fitted to play the bloody butchers on Christs sheep above their fore-fathers neither are they so crest-fallen but that they can hope for such a day yea take up some of those joyes upon trust afore-hand to solace themselves while the rest follow And now Christian may be their confidence together with the distracted state of Christs affaires in the world may discompose thy Spirit concerning the issue of these rolling Providences that are over our heads but be still poor heart and know that the contest is not between the Church and Satan but between Christ and him These are the two Champions Stand now O ye Army of Saints still by faith to see the All-wise God wrestle with a subtil devil If you live not to see the period of these great confusions yet generations after you shall behold the Almighty smite off this Geliah's head with his own sword and take this cunning hunter in the toile of his own policies that saith which ascribes greatnesse and wisdom to God will shrink up Satans subtilty into a nigrum nihil a thing of nothing Incredulitiment diabolum quasi leonem qui fide fortes despiciunt quasi vermiculum Bern. Unbelief feares Satan as a Lion faith trends on him as a worme Behold therefore thy God at work and promise thy self that what he is about will be an excellent piece None câ—n drive him from his work The Pilot is beaten from the helme and can do little in a storme but lets the ship go a drift The Architect cannot work when night drawes the curtaine yea is driven off the Scaffold with a storme of raine such Workmen are the wisest Counsellours and mightiest Princes on earth A pinch may come when it is as vain to say Help O King as Help O beggar mans wisdom may be level'd with folly but God is never interrupted All the plots of hell and commotions on earth have not so much as shak't Gods hand to spoile one letter or line that he hath been drawing The mysteriousnesse of his Providence may hang a curtain before his work that we cannot see what he is doing but then when darknesse is about him righteousnesse is the seat of his Throne for ever O. where 's our faith Sirs let God be wise and all men and devils fools What though thou seest a Babel more likely to go up then a Babylon to be pull'd down yet believe God is making his secret approaches and will clap his ladders on a sudden to the walls thereof Suppose truth were Prisoner with Joseph and errour the Courtier to have its head lift up by the favour of the times yet doest not remember that the way to truths preferment lies through the prison yea what though the Church were like Jonah in the Whales belly swallowed up to the eye of reason by the fury of men yet doest not remember the Whale had not power to digest the Prophet O be not too quick to bury the Church before she be dead Stay while Christ tries his skill before you give it over bring Christ by your prayers to its grave to speak a Resurrection-word Admirable hath the Saints faith been in such straits as Josephs who pawn'd his bones that God would visit his brethren willing them to lay him where he believ'd they should be brought Jeremiah purchaseth a field of his Uncle and payes down the money for it and this when the Caldean army quartered about Jerusalem ready to take the Cisy and carry him with the rest into Babylon And all this by Gods appointment Jer. 22.6 7 8. that he might shew the Jewes by this how undoubtedly he in that sad juncture of time did believe the performance of the Promise for their returne out of captivity Indeed God counts himself exceedingly disparaged in the thoughts of his people though at the lowest ebbe of his Churches affairs if his naked word and the single bond of his Promise will not be taken as sufficient security to their faith for its deliverance VERSE 12. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against Principalities and Powers against the Rulers of the darknesse of this world against spiritual wickednesse in high places THe words are coupled to the Precedent with that causal particle For which either referres to the two foregoing verses and then they are a further reason pressing the necessity of Christian fortitude in the tenth verse and furniture in the eleventh or else to the last words of the eleventh verse where the Apostle having descried the Saints grand enemie to be Satan and described him in one of his attributes his wily subtilty he in this further displayes him in his proper colours not to weaken the Saints hands but waken their care that seeing their enemy marching up in a full body they might stand in better order to receive his charge Where by the way we may observe the Apostles simplicity and plain dealing he doth not undervalue the strength of the enemy and represent him inconsiderable as Captains use to keep their souldiers together by slighting the power of their adversary no he tells them the worst at first If Satan had been to set out his own power he could have challeng'd no more then is here granted him See here the difference between Christ dealing with his followers and Satan with his Satan dares not let
There is nothing got by scuffling with God but blows or worse If he say he will afflict thee no more 't is even the worst he can say 't is as much as if he should say he 'll be in thy debt till another world and there pay thee altogether But if he means thee mercy thou shalt hear from him in some sharper affliction then ever He hath wedges that can rive thee wert thou a more knotty piece then thou art Are there yet the treasures of wickednesse and the scant measure that is abominable saith God to Israel what uncorrigible though the Lords voice crieth unto the City bidding you hear the rod and him that hath appointed it See what course God resolvs on v. 13. Therefore will I make thee sick in smiting of thee As if he had said my other Physick I see was too weak it did not work or turne your stomack but I will prepare a potion that shall make you sick at heart Secondly It reproves those who seem to wrestle against sin but not according to the Word of Command that Christ gives There is a Law in wrestling which must be observ'd 2 Tim. 2.5 If a man also strive for Masteries yet is he not crowned except he strive lawfully He alludes to the Romane games to which there were Judges appointed to see that no foule play were offered contrary to the Law for wrestling the prize being denied to such though they did foile their adversary which the Apostle improves to make the Christian careful in his war as being under a stricter Law and Discipline that requires not only valour to fight but obedience to fight by order and according to the Word of Command Now few do this that go for great Wrestlers First some while they wrestle against one sin embrace another and in this case 't is not the person wrestles against sin but one sin wrestles with another and 't is no wonder to see thieves fall out when they come to divide the spoil Lusts are divers Tit. 3.3 and 't is hard to please many Masters especially when their commands are so contrary when pride bids lay on in bravery lavish out in entertainment covetousnesse bids lay up when malice bids revenge carnal policy saith conceal thy wrath though not forgive When lust sends to his whores hypocrisie pulls him back for shame of the world Now is he Gods Champion that resists one sin at the command of another it may be a worse Secondly some wrestle but they are prest into the field not Voluntiers their slavish feare scares them at present from their lust so that the Combate is rather betwixt their Conscience and Will then them and their lust Give me such a sin saith Will No saith conscience it will scall'd and throwes it away A man may love the wine though he is loath to have his lips burnt Hypocrites themselves are afraid to burne In such Combates the Will at last prevails either by bribing the understanding to present the lust it desires in a more pleasing dresse that conscience may not be scared with such hideous apparitions of wrath or by pacifying conscience with some promise of repentance for the future or by forbearing some sin for the present which it can best spare thereby to gain the reputation of something like a reformation Or if all this will not do then prompted by the fury of its lust the Will proclaims open war against conscience sinning in the face of it like some wilde horse impatient of the spur which pricks him and bridle that curbs him gets the bit between his teeth and runs with full speed till at last he easeth himself of his Rider and then where he sees fattest pasture no hedge or ditch can withhold him till in the end you finde him starving in some pound for his trespasse Thus many sin at such rate that conscience can no longer hold the reines nor sit the saddle but is thrown down and laid for dead and then the wretches range where their lusts can have the fullest meal till at last they pay for their stollen pleasures most dearly when conscience comes to it self pursues them and takes them more surely by the throat then ever never to let them go till it brings them before Gods Tribunal Thirdly others wrestle with sin but they do not hate it and therefore they are favourable to it and seek not the life of sin as their deadly enemy these wrestle in jest and not in earnest the wounds they give sin one day are healed by the next Let men resolve never so strongly against sin yet it will creep again into their favour till the love of sin be quenched in the heart and this fire will never the of it self the love of Christ must quench the love of sin as Ierome excellently Vnus amor extinguit alium This heavenly fire will indeed put out that flame of hell which he illustrates by Ahashuerus his carriage to Vashti his Queen who in the first Chapter makes a decree in all haste that she comes no more before him but when his passion is a little down chap. 2. v. 1. he begins to relent towards her which his Councel perceiving presently seek out for a beautiful Virgin on whom the King might place his love and take into his royal bed which done we hear no more of Vashti then and not till then will the soules decree stand against sin when the soule hath taken Christ into his bosome SECT IV. Secondly to the Saints seeing your life is a continual wrestling here on earth 't is your wisdom to study how you may best manage the combate with your best enemy which that you may do take these few directions First look thou goest not into the field without thy Second my meaning is engage God by prayer to stand at thy back God is in a league offensive and defensive with thee but he looks to be called Did the Ephraimites take it ill that Gideon called them into the field and may not God much more as if thou meanedst to steal a victory before he should know it Thou hast more valour then Moses who would not stir without God no though he sent an Angel for his Lieutenant Thou art wiser then Iacob who to overcome Esau now marching up turnes from him and falls upon God he knew if he could wrestle with God he might trust God to deale with his brother Engage God and the back-door is shut no enemy can come behinde thee yea thine enemy shall fall before thee God turne the counsel of Achitophel into foolishnesse saith David Heaven saith Amen to his prayer and the wretch hangs himself Secondly be very careful of giving thine enemy hand-hold Wrestlers strive to fasten upon some part or other which gives them advantage more easily to throw their adversary to prevent which they used First to lay aside their garments Secondly to anoint their bodies For the first Christian labour to put off the old man which
is most personal that corruption which David calls his own iniquity Psal 18.23 This is the skirt which Satan layes hold of observe what it is and mortifie it daily then Satan will retreat with shame when he sees the head of that enemy upon the wall which should have betrayed thee into his hands Secondly the Romane wrestlers used to anoint their bodies so do thou bathe thy soul with the frequent meditation of Christs love Satan will finde little welcome where Christs love dwells love will kindle love and that will be as a wall of fire to keep off Satan it will make thee disdain the offer of a sinne and as oile supple thy joynts and make agile to offend thy enemy Think how Christ wrestled in thy quarrel sin hell and wrath had all come full mouth upon thee had not he coped with them in the way And canst thou finde in thy heart to requite his love by betraying his glory into the hands of sin by cowardise or treachery say not thou lovest him so long as thou canst lay those sins in thy bosome which pluck't his heart out of his bosome It were strange if a childe should keep and delight to use no other knife but that wherewith his father was stabb'd Thirdly improve the advantage thou gettest at any time wisely Sometimes the Christian hath his enemy on the hip yea on the ground can set his foot on the very neck of his pride and throw away his unbelief as a thing absurd and unreasonable now as a wise wrestler fall with all thy weight upon thine enemy though man think it foule play to strike when his adversary is down yet do not thou so complement with sin as to let it breath or rise Take heed thou beest not charged of God as once Ahab for letting go this enemy now in thy hands whom God hath appointed to destruction Learne a little wisdome of the Serpents brood who when they had Christ under their foot never thought they had him sure enough no not when dead and therefore both seale and watch his grave Thus do thou to hinder the resurrection of thy sin seal it down with stronger purposes solemn covenants and watch it by a wakeful circumspect walking Vse 3 This is ground of consolation to the weak Christian who disputes against the truth of his grace from the inward conflicts and fightings he hath with his lusts and is ready to say like Gideon in regard of outward enemies If God be with me why is all this befallen me why do I finde such struglings in me provoking me to sin pulling me back from that which is good Why doest ask The Answer is soon given because thou art a Wrestler not a Conquerour Thou mistakest the state of a Châ—istian in this life when one is made a Christian he is not presently call'd to triumph over his slaine enemies but carried into the field to meet and fight them The state of grace is rhe commencing of a war against sin not the ending of it rather then thou shalt not have an enemy to wrestle with God himself will come in a disguise into the field and appear to be thine enemy Thus when Jacob was alone a man wrestled with him until breaking of the day and therefore set thy heart at rest if this be thy scruple Thy soule may rather take comfort in this that thou art a wrestler This strugling within thee if upon the right ground and to the right end doth evidence there are two Nations within thee two contrary natures the one from earth earthly and the other from heaven heavenly yea for thy further comfort know though thy corrupt nature be the elder yet it shall serve the younger Vse 4 O how should this make thee Christian long to be gone home where there is none of this stir and scuffle 'T is strange that every houre seems not a day and everyday a year till death sounds thy joyful retreat and calls thee off the field where the bullets flie so thick and thou art fighting for thy life with thy deadly enemies to come to Court where not swords but palmes are seen in the Saints hands not drums but harps not groanes of bleeding souldiers and wounded consciences but sweet and ravishing musick is heard of triumphing Victors caroling the praises of God and the Lambe through whom they have overcome Well Christians while you are below comfort your selves with these things There is a place of Rest remains for the people of God You do not beat the aire but wrestle for a Heaven that is yonder above these clouds you have your worst first the best will follow You wrestle but to win a Crown and win to wear it yea wear never to lose it which once on none shall take off or put you to the hazard of battel more Here we overcome to fight again the battel of one temptation may be over but the war remaines What peace can we have as long as devils can come abroad out of their holes or anything of sinful nature remains in our selves unmortified which will even fight upon its knees and strike with one arme while the other is cut off but when death comes the last stroak is struck this good Physician will perfectly cure thee of thy spiritual blindnesse and lamenesse as the Martyr told his fellow at the stake bloody Bonner would do their bodily What is it Christian which takes away the joy of thy life but the wrestlings and combates which this bosome-enemy puts thee to Is not this the Peninnah that vexing and disturbing thy Spirit hath kept thee off many a sweet meale thou mightest have had in communion with God and his Saints or if thou hast come hath made thee cover the Altar of God with thy teares and groans and will it not be a happy hand that cuts the knot and sets thee loose from thy deadnesse hypocrisie pride and what not wherewith thou wert yoak't 'T is life which is thy losse and death which is thy gaine Be but willing to endure the rending of this vaile of thy flesh and thou art where thou wouldest be out of the reach of sin at rest in the bosome of thy God And why should a short evil of paine affright thee more then the deliverance from a continual torment of sins evil ravish thee Some you know have chose to be cut rather then to be ground daily with the stone and yet may be their pain comes again and canst thou not quietly think of dying to be delivered from the torment of these sins never to return more And yet that is not the half that death doth for thee Peace is sweet after war ease after pain but what tongue can expresse what joy what glory must fill the creature at the first sight of God and that blessed company none but one that dwells there can tell Did we know more of that blisseful state we Ministers should finde it as hard a work to perswade Christians to be
of the world John 14. Princes have their thrones where they sit in state Satan hath his Rev. 2.13 Thou dwellest where Satan hath his throne and that such a one as no earthly Prince may compare few Kings are enthroned in the hearts of their subjects they rule their bodies and command their purses but how oft in a day are they pull'd out of their thrones by the wishes of their discontented subjects But Satan hath the heart of all his subjects Princes have their homage and peculiar honour done to them Satan is served upon the knee of his subjects the wicked are said to worship the devil Rev. 13.4 No Prince expects such worship as he no lesse then religious worship will serve him 2 Chron. 11.15 Jeroboam there is said to ordain Priests for devils and therefore he is call'd not only the Prince but the god of this world because he hath the worship of a god given him Princes such as are absolute have a Legislative Power nay their own will is their law as at this day in Turkey where their Laws are writ in no other Tables then in the proud Sultans breast thus Satan gives law to the poor sinner who is bound and must obey though the Law be writ with his own blood and the creature hath nothing but damnation for fulfilling the devils lust 't is call'd a Law of sinne Rom. 8.2 because it comes with authority Princes have their Ministers of State whom they employ for the safety and enlargement of their Territories So Satan his 2 Cor. 11.15 who propagates his cursed designes therefore we reade of doctrine of devils Princes have their Arcana Imperii which none knowes but a few Favourites in whom they confide thus the devil hath his mysteries of iniquity and depths of Satan we reade of which all his subjects know not of Rev. 2.24 these are imparted to a few Favourites such as Elymas whom Paul calls full of all subtilty and childe of the devil such whose consciences are so debauched that they scruple not the most horrid sins these are his white boyes I have read of a people in America that love meat best when 't is rotten and stinks The devil is of their diet the more corrupt and rotten the creature is in sinne the better he pleaseth his tooth some are more the children of the devil then others Christ had his beloved disciple and Satan those that lie in his very bosome and know what is in his heart In a word Princes have their Vectigalia their tribute and custome so Satan his Indeed he doth not so much share with the sinner in all but is owner of all he hath so that the devil is the Merchant and the sinner but the broker to trade for him who at last puts all his gaines into the devils purse time strength parts yea conscience and all spent to keep him in his throne SECT II. Quest But how comes Satan to this Principality Answ Not lawfully though he can shew a faire claim As First he obtained it by Conquest as he won his crown so he weares it by power and policy But conquest is a crack't title A thief is not the honester because able to force the traveller to deliver his purse and a thief on the throne is no better then a private one on the road or Pyrate in a Pinnace as he boldly told Alexander Neither doth that prove good with processe of time which was evil at first Satan indeed hath kept possession long but a thief will be so as long as he keeps his stollen goods He stole the heart of Adam from God at first and doth no better to this day Christs Conquest is good because the ground of the war righteous to recover what was his own which Satan cannot say of the meanest creature 'T is my own Secondly Satan may lay claim to his Principality by Election 'T is true he came in by a wile but now he is a Prince elect by the unanimous voice of corrupt nature Ye are of your father the devil saith Christ and his lusts ye will do But this also hath a flaw in it for man by law of Creation is Gods subject and cannot give away Gods right by sin he loseth his right in God as a Protectour but God loseth not his right as a Soveraign Sin disabled man to keep Gods Law but it doth not enfranchise or dis-oblige him that he need not keep it Thirdly Satan may claim a deed of gift from God himself as he was bold to do to Christ himself upon this ground perswading him to worship him as the Prince of the world Luke 4.5 6. He shewed unto him all the Kingdomes of the world saying All this will I give thee for that is delivered unto me and to whomsoever I will I give it Where there was a truth though he spake more then the truth as he cannot speak truth but to gain credit to some lie at the end of it God indeed hath delivered in a sense this world to him but not in his sense to do what he will with it nor by any approbatory act given him a Pattent to vouch him his vice-Roy not Satan by the grace of God but by the permission of God Prince of the world Quest But why doth God permit this Apostate-creature to exercise such a Principality over the world Answ First as a righteous act of vengeance on Man for revolting from the sweet Government of his rightful Lord and Maker 'T is the way that God punisheth rebellion Because ye would not serve me with gladnesse in the abundance of all things therefore ye shall serve your enemies in hunger c. Satan is a King given in Gods wrath Chams curse is mans punishment a Servant of servants The devil is Gods slave man the devils Sin hath set the devil on the creatures back and now he hurries him without mercy as he did the swine till he be choak't with flames if mercy interpose not Secondly God permits this his Principality in order to the glorifying of his Name in the recovery of his Elect from the power of this great Potentate What a glorious Name will God have when he hath finished this war wherein at first he found all possessed by this enemy and not a man of all the sons of Adam to offer himself as a Voluntier in this service till made willing by the day of his Power this this will gain God a Name above every name not only of creatures but of those by which himself was known to his creature The workmanship of heaven and earth gave him the Name of Creatour Providence of Preserver but this of Saviour wherein he doth both the former preserve his creature which else had been lost and create a new creature I mean the Babe of Grace which through God shall be able to beat the devil out of the field who was able to drive Adam though created in his full stature out of Paradise and may not all the
a Courtier who doth not only obey but thank his Prince that he 'll employ him Need'st thou be long in resolving whose thou art did ever any question whether those were Jeroboams subjects who willingly followed his command Hos 5.11 Alas for thee thou art under the power of Satan tied by a chaine stronger then brasse or iron thou lovest thy lust A Saint may be for a time under a force sold under sin as the Apostle bemoans and therefore glad when deliverance comes but thou sellest thy self to work iniquity If Christ should come to take thee from thy lusts thou wouldest whine after them as Micah after his gods Thirdly to whom goest thou for protection as it belongs to the Prince to protect his subjects so Princes expect their subjects should trust them with their safety the very bramble bids Iudg. 9.15 If in truth ye anoint me King then put your trust under my shadow Now who hath thy confidence Darest thou trust God with thy soule and the affaires of it in well-doing Good subjects follow their calling commit State-matters to the wisdom of their Prince and his Councel when wrong'd they appeal to their Prince in his Laws for right and when they do offend their Prince they submit to the penalty of the Law and beare his displeasure patiently till humbling themselves they recover his favour and do not in a discontent fall to open rebellion Thus a gracious soule follows his Christian calling committing himself to God as a faithful Creatour to be ordered by his wise Providence If he meets with violence from any he scornes to beg aid of the devil to help him or be his own Judge to right himself No he acquiesceth in the counsel and comfort the Word of God gives him If himself offends and so comes under the lash of Gods correcting hand he doth not then take up rebellious armes against God and refuse to receive correction but saith Why should a living man complain a man for the punishment of his sin whereas a naughty heart dares not venture his estate life credit or any thing he hath with God in well-doing he thinks he shall be undone presently if he sits still under the shadow of Gods promise for protection and therefore he runs from God as from under an old house that would fall on his head and layes the weight of his confidence in wicked policy making lies his refuge like Israel he trusts in perversenesse when God tells him In returning and rest he shall be saved in quietnesse and confidence shall be his strength he hath not faith to take Gods Word for his security in wayes of obedience And when God comes to afflict him for any disloyal carriage in stead of accepting the punishment for his sin and so to own him for his Soveraign Lord that may righteously punish the faults of his disobedient subjects his heart is fill'd with rage against God and in stead of waiting quietly and humbly like a good subject till God upon his repentance receives him into his favour his wretched heart presenting God as an enemy to him will not suffer any such gracious and amiable thought of God to dwell in his bosome but bids him look for no good at his hand This evil is of the Lord why should I wait on the Lord any longer whereas a gracious heart is most encouraged to wait from this very consideration that drives the other away Because 't is the Lord afflicts Micah 7.6 Fourthly whom doest thou sympathize with he is thy Prince whose victories and losses thou layest to heart whether in thy own bosome or abroad in the world What saith thy soul when God hedgeth up thy way and keeps thee from that sin which Satan hath been soliciting for If on Christs side thou wilt rejoyce when thou art delivered out of a temptation though it be by falling into an affliction as David said of Abigail so wilt thou here Blessed be the Ordinance blessed be the Providence which kept me from sinning against my God but if otherwise thou wilt harbour a secret grudge against the Word which stood in thy way and be discontented thy designe took not A naughty heart like Amnon pines while his lust hath vent Again what musick do the atchievements of Christ in the world make in thy eare when thou hearest the Gospel thrives the blinde see the lame walk the poor gospellized doth thy spirit rejoyce in that houre If a Saint thou wilt as God is thy Father rejoyce thou hast more brethren borne as he is thy Prince that the multitude of his subjects increase so when thou seest the plots of Christs enemies discovered powers defeated canst thou go forth with the Saints to meet King Jesus and ring him out of the field with praises or do thy bells ring backward and such newes make thee haste like Haman mourning to thine house there to empty thy spirit swolne with rancour against his Saints and truth or if thy policy can master thy passion so far as to make faire weather in thy countenance and suffer thee to joyne with the people of God in their acclamations of joy yet then art thou a close mourner within and likest the work no better then Haman his office in holding Mordecai's stirrup who had rather have held the ladder this speaks thee a certain enemy to Christ how handsomely soever thou mayest carry it before men Vse 2 Secondly blesse God O ye Saints who upon the former trial can say you are translated into the Kingdome of Christ and so delivered from the tyranny of this usurper There are few but have some one gaudy day in a year which they solemnize some keep their birth-day others their marriage some their manumission from a cruel service others their deliverance from some imminent danger here is a mercy where all these meet You may call it as Adam did his wife Chavah the mother of all the living every mercy riseth up and calls this blessed this is thy birth-day thou wert before but beganst to live when Christ began to live in thee the father of the Prodigal dated his sons life from his returne This my son was dead and is alive It is It is thy marriage-day I have married you to one husband even Christ Jesus said Paul to the Corinthians Perhaps thou hast enjoyed this thy husbands sweet company many a day and had a numerous off-spring of Joyes and comforts by thy fellowship with him the thought of which cannot but endeare him to thee and make the day of thy espousals delightful to thy memory 'T is thy manumission then were the Indentures cancell'd wherein thou wert bound to sin and Satan when the Sonne made thee free thou becamest free indeed Thou canst not say thou wast borne free for thy father was a slave nor that thou boughtest thy freedome with a summe By grace ye are saved Heaven is setled on thee in the promise and thou not at charge so much as for the writings drawing
All is done at Christ his cost with whom God indented and to whom he gave the promise of eternal life before the world began as a free estate to settle upon every believing soul in the day they should come to Christ and receive him for their Prince and Saviour so that from the houre thou didst come under Christs shadow all the sweet fruit that grows on this tree of life is thine with Christ all that both worlds have falls to thee All is yours because you are Christs O Christian look upon thy self now and blesse thy God to see what a change there is made in thy state since that black and dismal time when thou wert slave to the Prince of darknesse how couldest thou like thy old Scullions work again or think of returning to thy house of bondage now thou knowest the priviledges of Christs Kingdomes Great Princes who from basenesse and beggery have ascended to Kingdomes and Empires to adde to the joy of their present honour have delighted to speak often of their base birth to go and see the mean cottages where they were first entertained and had their birth and breeding and the like And 't is not unuseful for the Christian to look in at the grate to see the smokie hole where once he lay to view the chaines wherewith he was laden and so to compare Christs Court the divels prison the felicity of the one and the horror of the other together But when we do our best to affect our hearts with this mercy by all the inhancing aggravations we can find out Alas how little a portion of it shalwe know here this is a nimium excellens which cannot be fully seen unlesse it be by a glorified eye how can it be fully known by us where it cannot be fully enjoyed thou art translated into the Kingdome of Christ but thou art a great way from his Court That is kept in heaven and that the Christian knows but as we far countreys which we never saw only by map or some rarities that are sent us as a taste of what grows there in abundance Vse 3 Thirdly this Christian calls for thy loyalty and faithful service to Christ who hath saved thee from Satans bondage Say O ye Saints to Christ as they to Gideon Come thou and rule over us for thou hast delivered us from the hand not of Midian but of Satan Who so able to defend thee from his wrath as he who broke his power who like to rule thee so tenderly as he that could not brook anothers tyranny over thee In a word who hath right to thee besides him who ventur'd his life to redeem thee that being delivered from all thine enemies thou mayest serve him without feare in holinesse all the dayes of thy life And wee it not pity that Christ should take all this pains to lift up thy head from Satans house of bondage and give thee a place among those in his own house who are admitted to minister unto him which is the highest honour the nature of men or Angels is capable of and that thou shouldest after all this be found to have a hand in any treasonable practice against thy dear Saviour surely Christ may think he hath deserved better at your hands if at none besides Where shall a Prince safely dwell if not in the midst of his own Courtiers and those such who were all taken from chains and prisons to be thus preferr'd the more to oblige them in his service Let devils and devillish men do their own work but let not thy hand O Christian be upon thy dear Saviour But this is too litle to bid thee not play the traitour If thou hast any loyal blood running in thy veines thy own heart will smite thee when thou rendest the least skirt of his holy Law thou canst as well carry burning coales in thy bosome as hide any treason there against thy dear Soveraign No 't is some noble enterprise I would have thee think upon how thou mayest advance the Name of Christ higher in thy heart and world too as much as in thee lies O how kindely did God take it that David when peaceably set in his throne was casting about not how he might entertain himself with those pleasures which usually corrupt and debauch the Courts of Princes in times of peace but how he might shew his zeal for God in building a house for his worship that had rear'd a throne for him 2 Sam. 7. And is there nothing Christian thou canst think on wherein thou mayest eminently be instrumental for God in thy generation He is not a good subject that is all for what he can get of his Prince but never thinks what service he may do for him Nor he the true Christian whose thoughts dwell more on his own happinesse then the honour of his God If subjects might chuse what life stands best for their own enjoyment all would desire to live at Court with their Prince But because the Princes honour is more to be valued then this therefore noble spirits to do their Prince service can deny themselves the delicacies of a Court to jeopard their lives in the field and thank their Prince too for the honour of their employment Blessed Paul upon these termes was willing to have his day of coronation in glory prorogued he to stay as companion with his brethren in tribulation here for the furtherance of the Gospel This indeed makes it opera pretium vivere worth the while to live that we have by it a faire opportunity if hearts to husband it in which we may give a proof of our real gratitude to our God for his redeeming love in rescuing us out of the power of the Prince of darknesse and translating us into the Kingdome of his dear Son And therefore Christian lose no time but what thou meanest to do for God do it quickly Art thou a Magistrate now it will be soon seen on whose side thou art if indeed thou hast renounced allegiance to Satan and taken Christ for thy Prince declare thy self an enemy to all that bear the name of Satan and march under his colours Study well thy commission and when thou understandest the duty of thy place fall to work zealously for God Thou hast thy Princes sword put into thy hand be sure thou use it and take heed how thou usest it that when call'd to deliver it up and thy account also it may not be found rusty in the sheath through sloth and cowardise besmeared with the blood of violence nor bent and gap't with partiality and injustice Art thou a Minister of the Gospel thy employment is high an Ambassadour and that not from some petty Prince but the great God to his rebellious subjects A calling so honourable that the Son of God disdained not to come in extraordinary from heaven to perform it call'd therefore the messenger of the Covenant yea he had to this day stay'd on earth in person about it
he had said I knew the time if Paul had been come to town and newes spread abroad in the City that Paul was to preach you would have flock't to hear him and blessed God for the season but then you were poor and empty now ye are full you have got to a higher attainment Paul is a plain fellow now he may carry his cheere to a hungry people if he will we are well apaid And when once the heart is come to this 't is easie to judge what will follow Secondly this trusting to the strength of grace will make the soule bold and venturous The humble Christian is the wary Christian he knows his weaknesse and this makes him afraid I have a weak head saith he I may be soon disputed into an errour and heresie and therefore I dare not come where such stuffe is broach't lest my weak head should be intoxicated the confident man he 'll sip of every cup he fears none no he is stablish't in the truth a whole team of hereticks shall not draw him aside I have a vain light heart saith the humble soule I dare not come among wicked debautch't company left I should at last bring the naughty man home with me but one trusting to the strength of his grace dares venture into the devils quarters Thus Peter into the rout of Christs enemies and how he came off you know there his faith had been slain on the place had not Christ founded a retreat by the seasonable look of love he gave him Indeed I have read of some bragging Philosophers who did not think it enough to be temperate except they had the object for intemperance present and therefore they would go into Taverns and Whore-houses as if they meant to beat the devil on his own ground but the Christian knows an enemy nearer then so which they were ignorant of and that he need not go over his own threshold to challenge the devils He hath lust in his bosome that will be hard enough for him all his dayes without giving it the vantage ground Christian I know no sin but thou mayest be left to commit it except one It was a bold speech of him and yet a good man as I have heard If Clapham die of the plague say Clapham had no faith and this made him boldly go among the infected If a Christian thou shalt not die of spiritual plagues yet such may have the plague-sores of grosse sins running on them for a time and is not this sad enough therefore walk humbly with thy God Thirdly this high conceit of the strength of thy grace will make thee cruel and churlish to thy weak brethren in their infirmities a sin that least becomes a Saint Gal. 6.1 If any one be overtaken you that be spiritual restore such a one with meeknesse but how shall a soul get such a meek spirit It follows considering thy self lest thou also be tempted What makes men hard to the poor they think they shall never be so themselves Why are many so sharp in their censures but because they trust too much to their grace as if they could never fall O you are in the body and the body of sin in you therefore feare Bernard used to say when he heard any scandalous sin of a Professour Hodie illi cras mihi He fell to day I may stumble tomorrow SECT II. The second way a soule may be proud of his grace is by resting on it for his acceptance with God The Scripture calls inherent grace our own righteousnesse though God indeed be the efficient of it and opposeth it to the righteousnesse of Christ which alone is called the Righteousnesse of God Rom. 10.1 Now to rest on any grace inherent is to exalt our own righteousnesse above the righteousnesse of God and what pride will this amount to If this ware so then a Saint when he comes to heaven might say This is Heaven which I have built my grace hath purchased and thus the God of Heaven should become tenant to his creature in Heaven No God hath cast the order of our salvation into another method of grace but not of grace in us but grace to us Inherent grace hath its place and office to accompany salvation Heb. 6.9 but not procure it This is Christs work not graces When Israel waited on the Lord at Mount Sinai they had their bounds not a man must come up besides Moses to treat with God no not touch the Mount lest they die thus all the graces of the Spirit wait on God but none come up to challenge any acceptance of God besides faith which is a grace that presents the soul not in its own garments But you will say what needs all this where is the man that trusts in his grace Alas where is the Christian that doth fully stand clear and freely come his off his own righteousnesse he is a rare Pilot indeed that can steere his faith in so direct a course as not now and then to knock upon this duty and run on ground upon that grace Abraham went in to Hagar and the children of Abrahams faith are not perfectly dead to the Law and may be found sometimes in Hagars armes witnesse the fluxe and refluxe of our faith according to the various aspect of our obedience when this seems full then our faith is at a spring-tide and covers all the mountains of our fears but let it seem to wain in any service or duty then the Jordan of our faith flies back and leaves the soule naked The devils spight is at Christ and therefore since he could not hinder his landing which he endeavoured all he could nor work his will on his person when he was come he goes now in a more refined way to darken the glory of his sufferings and the sufficiency of his righteousnesse by blending ours with his this doctrine of Justification by faith hath had more works and batteries made against it then any other in the Scripture Indeed many other errours were but his slie approaches to get nearer to undermine this and lastly when he connot hide this truth which now shines in the Church like the Sun in its strength then he labours to hinder the practical improvement of it that we if he can help it shall not live up to our own principles making us at the same time that in our judgement we professe acceptance only through Christ in our practice confute our selves Now there is a double pride in the soule he makes use of for this end the one I may call a mannerly pride the other a self-applauding pride First a mannerly pride which comes forth in the habit and guise of humility and that discovers it self either at the soules first coming to Christ and keeps him from closing with the promise or afterward in the daily course of a Christians walking with God which keeps him from comfortable living on Christ First when a poor soul is staved off the promise by the sense
must deliver thee up when that comes Even when thy strength is firmest and thou eatest thy bread with a merry heart that very food which nourisheth thy life gives thee withal an earnest of death as it leaves those dregs in thee which will in time procure the same O how unavoidable must this evil day of death be when that very staffe knocks us down to the grave at last which our life leans on and is preserved by God owes a debt both to the first Adam and second to the first he owes the wages of his sin to the second the reward of his sufferings The place for full payment of both is the other world so that except death comes to convey man thither the wicked who are the posterity of the first Adam will misse of that full pay for their sins which the threatening makes due debt and engageth God to perform The godly also who are the seed of Christ these should not receive the whole purchase of his blood which he would never have shed but upon the credit of thar promise of eternal life which God gave him for them before the world began This is the reason why God hath made this day so sure in it he dischargeth both bonds The third branch of the point follows That it behoves every one to prepare and effectually to provide for this evil day which so unavoidably impends us And that upon a twofold account First in point of duty Secondly in point of wisdome First in point of duty First it is upon our allegiance to the great God that we provide and arme our selves against this day Suppose a subject were trusted with one of his Princes castles and this man should hear that a puissant enemy was coming to lay siege to this castle yet takes no care to lay in armes and provision for his defence and so 't is lost how could such a one be clear'd of treason doth he not basely betray the place and with it his Princes honour into the enemies hand Our souls are this castle which we are every one to keep for God We have certain intelligence that Satan hath a design upon them and the time when he intends to come with all his powers of darknesse to be that evil day Now as we would be found true to our trust we are obliged to stand upon our defence and store our selves with what may enable us to make a vigorous resistance Secondly we are obliged to provide for that day as a suitable return for and improvement of the opportunities and meanes which God affords us for this very end We cannot without shameful ingratitude to God make waste of those helps God gives us in order to this great work Every one would cry out upon him that should basely spend that money upon riot in prison which was sent him to procure his deliverance out of prison And do we not blush to bestow those talents upon our lusts and Satan which God graciously indulgeth to deliver us from them and his rage in a dying houre what have we Bibles for Ministers and preaching for if we mean not to furnish our selves by them with armour for the evil day In a word what is the intent of God in lengthening out our dayes and continuing us some while here in the land of the living was it that we might have time to revel or rather ravel out upon the pleasure of this vaine world Doth he give us our precious time to be employed in catching such butterflies as these earthly honours and riches are It cannot be Masters do not use if wise to set their servants about such work as will not pay for the candle they borne in doing it And truly nothing lesse then the glorifying of God and saving our soules at last can be worth the precious time we spend here The great God hath a greater end then most think in this dispensation If we would judge aright we should take his own interpreration of his actions and the Apostle Peter bids us count that the long-suffering of the Lord is salvation 2 Pet. 3.15 which plate he quotes out of Paul as to the sense though not in the same forme of words which in Rom. 2.4 are these Or despisest thou the riches of his goodnesse and forbearance and long-suffering not knowing that the goodnesse of God leadeth thee to repentance From both places we are taught what is the minde of God and the language he speaks to us in by every moments patience and inch of time that is granted to us It is a space given for repentance God sees as we are death and judgement could bring no good news to us we are in no case to welcome the evil day and therefore mercy stands up to plead for the poor creature in Gods bosome and begs a little time more may be added to its life that by this iudulgence it may be provoked to repent before he be called to the bar Thus we come by every day that is continually superadded to our time on earth And doth not this lay a strong obligation on us to lay out every point of this time unto the same end 't is begged for Secondly in point of wisdome The wisdom of a man appears most eminently in two things First in the matter of his choice and chief care Secondly in a due timing of this his choice and care First a wife man makes choice of that for the subject of his chief care and endeavour which is of greatest importance and consequence to him fools and children only are intent about toys and trifles They are as busie and earnest in making of a house of dirt or cards as Solomon was in making of his Temple Those poor bables are as adequate to their foolish apprehensions as great enterprises are to wise men Now such is the importance of the evil day especially that of death that it proves a man a fool or wise as he comports himself to it The end specifies every action and gives it the name of good or evil of wise or foolish The evil day of death is as the end of our dayes so to be the end of all the actions of our life Such will our life be found at last as it hath been in order to this one day If the several items of our life counsels and projects that we have pursued when they shall then be cast up will amount to a blessed death then we shall appear to be wise men indeed but if after all our goodly plots and policies for other things we be unprovided for that houre we must be content to die fooles at last And no such fool as the dying fool The Christian goes for the fool in the worlds account while he lives but when death comes the wise world will then confesse they mis-call'd him and shall take it to themselves We fooles counted his life to be madnesse and his end to be without honour But how is he now numbred among the
children of God and his lot is among the Saints therefore have we erred from the way of truth Wisd 5.4 5. The place is Apocryphal but sinners will finde the matter of it Canonical 'T is true indeed Saints are out-witted by the world in the things of the world and no marvel neither doth it impeach their wisdome any more then it doth a Scholars to be excell'd by the Cobler in his mean trade Nature where it intends higher excellencies is more carelesse in those things that are inferiour as we see in man who being made to excel the beasts in a rational soul is himself excelled by some beast or other in all his senses Thus the Christian may well be surpast in matters of worldly commerce because he hath a nobler object in his eye that makes him converse with the things of the world in a kinde of non-attendance he is not much careful in these matters if he can die well at last and be justified for a wise man at the day of the resurrection all is well he thinks it is not manners to be unwilling to stay so long for the clearing of his wisdom as God can wait for the vindicating of his own glorious Nature which will not appear in its glory till that day when he will convince the ungodly of their hard thoughts and speeches of him Then they shall till then they will not be convinced Secondly a wise man labours duly to time his care and endeavour for the attaining of what he proposeth 'T is the fool that comes when the market is done as the evil day is of great concernment in respect of its event so the placing of our care for it in the right season is of chief importance and that sure must be before it comes There are more doors then one at which the messenger may enter that brings evil tydings to us and at which he will knock we know not we know not where we shall be arrested whether at bed or board whether at home or in the field whether among our friends that will counsel and comfort us or among our enemies that will adde weight to our sorrow by their cruelty We know not when whether by day or night many of us not whether in the morning noon or evening of our age As he calls to work at all times of the day so he doth to bed may be while thou art praying or preaching and it would be sad to go away profaning them and the Name of God in them possibly when thou art about worse work death may strike thy quaffing cup out of thy hand while thou art sitting in the Alehouse with thy jovial mates or meet thee as thou art reeling home and make some ditch thy grave that as thou livedst like a beast so thou shouldest die like a beast In a word we know not the kinde of evil God will use as the instrument to stab us whether some bloody hand of violence shall do it or a disease out of our bowels and bodies whether some acute disease or some lingring sicknesse whether such a sicknesse as shall slay the man while the body is alive I meane take the head and deprive us of our reason or not whether such noisome troubles as shall make our friends afraid to let us breath on them or themselves look on us whether they shall be afflictions aggravated with Satans temptations and the terrours of our own affrighted consciences or not who knowes where when or what the evil day shall be therefore doth God conceal these that we should provide for all Cesar would never let his souldiers know when or whither he meant to march The knowing of these would torment us with distracting fear the not knowing them should awaken us to a providing care It is an ill time to calk the ship when at sea tumbling up and down in a storme This should have been look't to when on her seat in the harbour And as bad it is to begin to trim a soul for heaven when tossing upon a sick bed Things that are done in a hurry are seldome done well A man call'd out of his bed at midnight with a dismal fire on his house-top cannot stand to dresse himself in order as at another time but runs down with one stocking half on may be and the other not on at all Those poor creatures I am afraid go in as ill a dresse into another world who begin to provide for it when on a dying bed conscience calls them up with a cry of hell-fire in their bosomes But alas they must go though they have not time to put their armour on And so they are put to repent at leisure in hell of their shuffling up a repentance in haste here We come to the Application of the Point CHAP. VII The Application of the Point Vse 1 FIrst it reproves those that are so far from providing for the evil day that they will not suffer any thoughts of that day to stay with them they are as unwilling to be led into a discourse of this subject as a childe to be carried into the dark and there left It is a death to them to think of death or that which leads to it As some foolishly think they must needs die presently when they have made their Will so these think they hasten that sorrowful day by musing on it The meditation of it is no more welcome to them then the company of Moses was to Pharaoh Therefore they say to it as he to Moses Get thee from me and let me see thy face no more the seare of it makes them to butcher and make away all those thoughts which conscience stirs up concerning it And at last they get such a mastery of their consciences that they arrive to a kinde of Atheisme it is as rare to have them think or speak of such matters as to see a flie busie in Winter Nothing now but what is frolick and jocund is entertained by them If any such thoughts come as prophesie mirth and carnal content these as right with their hearts are taken up into the chariot to sit with them but all other are commanded to go behinde Alas poor-spirited wretches something might be said for you if this evil day of death and judgement were such entia rationis as had no foundation or being but what our fancies give them such troubles there are in the world which have all their evil from our thoughts when we are disquieted with the scorns and reproaches of men did we but not think of them they were nothing but thy banishing the thoughts of this evil day from thy mind will be a poor short relief Thou canst neither hinder its coming nor take away its sting when it comes by thy slighting it Thou art like a Passenger in a ship sleep or wake thou are going thy voyage Thou doest but like that silly bird who puts her head into a reed and then thinks she is safe from the
us flee for the Lord fighteth for them Whereas there be many now a dayes will rather give the honour of their discomfitures to Satan himself then acknowledge God in the businesse more ready to say the devil fought against them then God O you that have not yet worne off the impressions which the Almighty power of God hath at any time made upon your spirits beware of having any thing to do with that generation of men whoever they are Come not near their Tabernacle cast not thy lot in amongst them who are enemies to the Saints of the most High for they are men devoted to destruction God so loves his Saints that he makes nothing to give whole Nations for their ransome He rip 't open the very wombe of Egypt to save the life of Israel his childe Isa 43.3 Vse 2 Secondly this shews the dismal deplorable condition of all you who are yet in a Christ lesse state you have seen a rich mine open'd but not a penny of this treasure comes to your share a truth laden with incomparable comfort but it is bound for another coast it belongs to the Saints into whose bosome this truth unlades all her comfort see God shutting the door upon you when he sets his children to feast themselves with such dainties Esay 65.13 My servants shall eat but ye shall be hungry my servants shall drink but ye shall be thirsty God hath his set number which he provides for He knows how many he hath in his family these and no more shall sit down One chief dish at the Saints board is the Almighty power of God This was set before Abraham and stands before all his Saints that they may eate to fulnesse of comfort on it But thou shalt be hungry He is Almighty to pardon but he will not use it for thee an impenitent sinner thou hast not a friend on the bench not an attribute in all Gods Name will speak for thee Mercy it self will sit and vote with the rest of its fellow-attributes for thy damnation God is able to save and help in a time of need but upon what acquaintance is it that thou art so bold with God as to expect his saving arme to be stretcht forth for thee Though a man will rise at midnight to let in a childe that cryes and knocks at his doore yet he will not take so much paines for a dog that lies howling there This presents thy condition sinner sad enough yet this is to tell thy story fairest for that Almighty power of God which is engaged for the beleevers salvation is as deeply obliged to bring thee to thy execution and damnation What greater tie then an oath God himself is under an oath to be the destruction of every impenitent soul That oath which God sware in his wrath against the unbeleeving Israelites that they should not enter into his rest concernes every unbeleever to the end of the world In the Name of God consider were it but the oath of a man or a company of men that like those in the Acts should sweare to be the death of such a one and thou wert the man would it not fill thee with feare and trembling night and day and take away the quiet of thy life till they were made friends What then are their pillows stuft with who can sleep so soundly without any horrour or amazement though they be told that the Almighty God is under an oath of damning them body and soul without timely repentance O bethink your selves sinners is it wisdome or valour to refuse termes of mercy from Gods hands whose Almighty power if rejected will soone bring you into the hands of justice and how fearful a thing that is to fall into the hands of Almighty God no tongue can expresse no not they who feel the weight of it Vse 3 Thirdly this speaks to you that are Saints indeed Be strong in the faith of this truth make it an Article of your Creed with the same faith that you beleeve there is a God beleeve also this Gods Almighty power is thy sure friend and then improve it to thy best advantage As First in agonies of conscience that arise from the greatnesse of thy sinnes flie for refuge into the Almighty power of God Truly Sirs when a mans sinnes are displayed in all their bloody colours and spread forth in their kâ—lling aggravations and the eye of conscience awakened to behold them through the multiplying or magnifying glasse of a temptation they must needs surprize the creature with horror and amazement till the soul can say with the Prophet for all this huge hoast There is yet more with me then against me One Almighty is more then many Mighties All these mighty sinnes and devils make not one Almighty sinne or an Almighty devil Oppose to all the hideous charges brought against thee by them this onely attribute As the French Ambassadour once silenced the Spaniards pride in repeating his Masters many titles with one that drowned them all God himself Hosea 11.9 when he had aggravated his peoples sinnes to the height then to shew what a God can do breaks out into a sweet promise I will not execute the fiercenesse of mine anger and why not I am God and not man I will shew the Almightinesse of my mercy Something like our usual phrase when a childe or a woman strikes us I am a man and not a childe or woman therefore I will not strike again The very considering God to be God supposeth him Almighty to pardon as well as to avenge and this is some relief But then to consider it is Almighty power in bond and Covenant to pardon this is more As none can binde God but himself so none can break the bond himself makes and are they not his own words that he will abundantly pardon Isa 55. he will multiply to pardon as if he had said I 'le drop mercy with your sinne and spend all I have rather then let it be said my good is overcome of your evil It fares with the gracious soul in this case as with a Captaine that yields his Castle upon gracious termes of having his life spared and he safely convey'd to his house there to be setled peaceably in his estate and possessions for all which he hath the Generals hand and Seal on which he marcheth forth but the rude souldiers assault him and put him in feare of his life he appeals to the General whose honour now is engaged for him and is presently releeved and his enemies punisht Thou mayest poore soule when accused by Satan mollested by his terrours say It is God that justifies I have his hand to it that I should have my life given me assoon as I laid down my armes and submitted to him which I desire to do behold the gates of my heart are open to let the Prince of peace in and is not the Almighty able to performe his promise I commit my selfe to him as unto a