should not agree that they may be like the witnesses that came against Christ who could not agree in their testimony Paul cast a bone of dissention between the Pharisees and Sadduces But when men love division and desire the continuance of it First to maintain that which is evill Secondly to aime at their owne ends not regarding what publike mischiefes come so their own private advantages may be served not caring what house be on fire so their eggs may be rosted if they may have some poor pedling private benefit by them 3ly Not caring what the divisions are whether against good or against evill so be it their turn may be served This is abominable and cursed is that man that wishes for or rejoyces in or seeks the continuance of divisions for these base ends Yea that man is not worthy to breath in so good a Land as England is who would not willingly lay downe his his life to cure the present divisions and distractions that are amongst us who would not desire with Nazianzen as formerly Jonah to be cast into the Sea himself so be it all might be calm in the Publique Oh cruell hard-hearted man who for his own private advantage is not sensible of the woful miseries of Church and State yea of that dreadfull dishonour to the name of God caused this day by our sad divisions miserable distractionsâ— just it were that such a man should be separated to evil and that his name should be blotted out from under heaven But if things were setled in Church and State some men should not have such liberties as now they have therefore they are willing enough to have our differences continued their plot is to lengthen them out First That which thou callest seeking to lengthen out divisions it may be God now accounts and will another day call seeking after the nearest union with himselfe and the firmest union of his Saints Secondly the liberties these men seek for are either evill or good If evill oh how dearly do they buy that which is evill with bringing the guilt of all that evil that comes from our divisions upon themselves you need not wish any enemy more evil upon his head then this certainly such a man hath load enough upon him But if those liberties they seek be good or but supposed by them to be so why then should they feare a right setling of things what ever is good can be no enemy unto good That Scripture Rom. 13. 3. is enough to keep their hearts from fearing the right ordered power of authority especially from fearing it so farre as by the feare of it to be driven into such a desperate guilt of wickednesse as this is to desire or endeavour the continuance of such publique mischiefe for their own ends Rulers saith the Text are not a terrour to good works but to evil wilt thou then not be afraid of their power doe that which is good and thou shalt have praise of the same Surely then the power was as formidable to any thing a christian heart could suppose good as now any power is like to be that we have to deale with Thirdly it is a sign of a very poor low unworthy spirit to think that any in whom thou hast any perswasion there is any feare of God or interest in Christ should have no higher thoughts for their support and encouragement in what they conceive good according to the mind of Christ but such as the hopes or desires of continuance of such wofull evils in the divisions of Church and State raiseth in them if they did believe that Christ took no more care of them then so but left them to such miserable supports as these are their condition were sad indeed 4ly If such basenesse of spirit as this is were ruling in them which hath in it the malignity of all the dregs of an evil spirit surely you would find it working in them in some other thing save only in that wherein they differ from you For certainly it is impossible but that man that is so left of God to such dregs of evill must needs break out to some other vile evils in a little time It were strange if such horrid wickednesse of a mans heart should break out in nothing else The Lord therefore be Judg between his servants and those men yea those men professing godlinesse who have such hard thoughts of them and the Lord convince them of all their hard speeches and hard writings in this thing CHAP. XI The fifth dividing Principle That every man is bound to professe and practice alwayes what he apprehends to be truth THis hath the greater strength because it comes under a shew of exact godlinesse I do not mean an hypocriticall shew but an appearance to mens consciences It is very dividing For first if while many things lye in mens owne thoughts they cause much strife within themselves their reasonings are very divers Though they have all the some tincture from the same affections and are swayed by the same ends then when these things come abroad before others who have not the same reasonings nor the same affections to give them such a tincture but reasonings and affections running quite another way nor the same ends to sway them but quite different to poyse them a cross way there must needs be much strife such divisions as will be hard to reconcile If men sometimes can hardly prevail with their own thoughts to agree notwithstanding the sway of their own affections and ends how are they like to agree with others whose affections and ends are so various from theirs Secondly if men doe presently professe and practice what they conceive to be right they must necessarily professe and recant recant and professe for in many things what they apprehend to be true at one time they suspect yea see cause to deny at another and what confusion disorder would there be in matters of Religion if continually by some or other there should be profession of things as true and good and calling the same things presently into question yea within a while denying and renouncing them And if not so then 3. If a man hath once made profession of what he conceives to be a truth differing from others if it proves to be a misapprehension there lies a great temptation upon him to stand out in it to strive to make it out to the utmost for nothing is more contrary to a mans nature then to acknowledg himself to be mistaken in his understanding and to lye down in the shame of rashnesse and inconsideratenesse in his actions therefore whatsoever mens own thoughts be within in their own spirits they had need take heed what they doe when they come to make open profession and practice what they apprehend and engage themselves thereby to maintaine there are not many who attaine to Augustines self denyall to publish retractations to all the world Now if a man through the strength of
another so as one would think it impossible that ever in this world there should have been that distance between them that now there is How often have we prayed Oh that once we might be blessed with such a mercy as to worship God according to his own mind that we might be delivered from conscience oppression from spirituall bondage Oh that we might be delivered from the inventions of men in the service of God that the Saints might joyn and serve the Lord with one shoulder There were never such hopes that the Saints should enjoy their prayers so as of late there hath been and yet never were they so divided as now they are they now seek to bring one another in bondage If five or six years since when many of us were praying together making our moans to God for that oppression we were under God should have then presented as in a Map such times as these are to our view could we have beleeved that it were possible that there should be such a distance in our spirits as now there is Fourthly our Divisions are very dishonourable to Jesus Christ were it that they darkned our names onely it were not so much but that which darkens the glory of Jesus Christ should goe very neere unto us I have read of Alexander Severus seeing two Christians contending one with another commanded them that they should not presume to take the name of Christians upon themselves any longer For sayes he you dishonour your Master Christ whose Disciples you professe to be It is dishonour to a General to have his Army routed and run into confusion The Devill seems to prevaile against us in these our divisions so as to rout us John 17. 21. 23. is a notable Scripture to shew the sinfulnesse of our divisions in the dishonour they put upon Christ and it may be as strong an argument against them as any I know in the Book of God Christ praying to the Father for the union of his Saints uses this argument O Father let this be granted that the world may beleeve that thou hast sent me And againe ver 23. Let them be perfect in one that the world may know that thou hast sent me If they be not united one to another in love and peace but have a spirit of Division ruling amongst them what will the world thinke surely that thou didst not send me that I who am their head their teacher and Lord never came from thee for thou art wisdom holiness and love if I had come from thee then those who own me to be theirs and whom I own to be mine would hold forth in their conversations something of that spirit of holinesse wisdome and love there is in thee but when the world does not see this in them but the clean contrary they will never beleeve that I came from thee those truths that I came into the world to make known as from thee O Father will not be beleeved but rather persecuted if those who professe them by their divisions one from another and oppositions one against another shew forth a spirit of pride folly envy frowardnesse therefore O Father let them be one as thou and I am one if this Petition be not granted how shall I look the world in the face I shall be contemned in the world what am I come down from thee for such glorious ends as indeed those were for which I came into the world and when I should come to attaine those ends for which I came shall there be such a carriage in those who doe professe my Name that by it the world shall perswade themselves that thou didst never send me O what a sore evill would this be surely any Christian heart must needs tremble at the least thought of having a hand in so great an evill as this is Fifthly Divisions are sinfull because they grieve the holy Spirit of God Ephes 4. 30 31. Grieve not the holy Spirit of God whereby ye are sealed to the day of redemption Surely there is no godly heart but will say O God forbid that I should doe any thing to grieve the good spirit of God it is the Spirit that hath enlightned me that hath revealed the great mysteries of God of Christ of eternall life unto me it is that Spirit that hath drawn my Soul to Jesus Christ that hath comforted it with those consolations that are more to me then ten thousand worlds the Spirit that hath strengthned me that helpes me against temptations that carries me through difficulties that enables me to rejoyce in tribulations the Spirit that is an earnest to assure me of Gods electing love the spirit thet hath sealed me up to the day of Redemption and now shall I be gâ—ily of so great a sinne as to grieve this blessed Spirit of the Lord If I did but know wherein I have grieved it it could not but make my soul to bleed within me that I should have such a wretched heart to grieve this holy Spirit by whom my soule hath enjoyed so much good I hope should for ever hereafter take heed of that thing I would rather suffer any griefe in the world to mine owne spirit then be any occasion of grief to that blessed Spirit of God But would you know what it is that hath grieved it and what it is that is like to grieve it further mark what followes ver 31. Let all bitternesse wrath anger clamour and evill speaking be put away from you with all malice And would you doe that which may rejoyce it Oh! God knowes it would be the greatest joy in the world for me to doe it then ver 32. Be ye kind one to another tender-hearted forgiving one another even as God for Christs sake hath forgiven you Sixthly these divisions doe grieve and offend our Brethren this should not be a light matter to us Christ accounts it a great evill to offend one of his little ones We may thinke it a little matter to give offence to some of Gods people who are poore and meane in the world so long as we have the bravery of it and the countenance of great men no matter for them But friend whatsoever slight thoughts thou hast of it Christ thinks it a great matter you may look upon them as under you the times favour you more then them but if you shall give them cause to goe to God to make their moanes to him of any ill usage they have had from you Lord thou knowest I was for peace to the uttermost that I could so farre as I was able to see thy Word for my guide but these who heretofore were as Brethren to me now their spirits are estranged their hearts are imbittered their words their carriages are very grievous and all because I cannot come up to what their opinions their ways are certainly this would prove very ill to you regard it as lightly as you will it may be when others carry themselves towards you
otherwise it must needs therefore enrage others at them The good uses that we are to make of our Divisions WHy may not meat come out of the eater and sweet out of these bitter things The Heavens can draw up salt vapours from the Sea and send them down againe in sweet refreshing showres Why may not heavenly hearts change the very nature of these sowre brinish things and make them sweet to themselves and others This is the excellency of grace it does not only preserve the soule from the evill of temptations but it gets advantage by them it turnes the evill into good Luther upon the Galat. c. 5. v. 17. hath a notable expression to set forth the power of grace By this a Christian sayes he comes to be a mighty workman and a wonderfull creator who of heavinesse can make joy of terrours comfort of sinne righteousnesse of death life And why may not I adde of division and contention peace and union Wherefore First by these Divisions men may come to see the vilenesse and the vanity of their own hearts what were the thoughts of men heretofore Oh had we but liberty and opportunity to be instrumentall for God we hope we should improve all to the uttermost for him now God hath granted these to us we abuse them we grow wanton we jarre one against another we are like some Marriners who are calme in a storme But storme in a calme Surely every man is vanity The untowardnesse of the spirits of those who heretofore longed after ordinances freed from these defilements they mourned under when they have their desires in great measure satisfied discovers so much evill in the hearts of men that it justifies those whom themselves have had hard thoughts of men who seemed carnall and naught that you looked upon as very evill men of bitter spirits against good men you thought such things apparently argued them void of grace and yet when you are got into Church-fellowship that way of freedome that your soules mourned after a long time now though you be joyned in covenant one to another yet if your brethren differ any thing from you though they be otherwise godly what a bitternesse of spirit is there in some of you against them what pride what frowardnesse doe you manifest against them Oh what a poor creature is man if once he gets power and liberty what a deale of filth appears in him we may learn by this to have charitable thoughts of some of whom we have had hard thoughts before we see if these men have any grace grace may be in a mans heart lying under much corruption Secondly learne to be humbled for that dishonour which comes to God by these divisions thou spendest thy time in vexing and fretting at in crying out against these breaches but when was thy heart broken with the dishonour that God hath by them Thirdly let these divisions confirme us in the maine and settle us there more then ever for do we not see that those many sorts of men who are divided who oppose one another much yet they all joyn in the things of the greatest consequence they all witnesse against the common enemy This sayes Nazianzen is the greatest argument of the truth that it is not overcome by time neither can enmity one against another put out that little sparke of the love of it that is in us c. If a mans house stands after many shakings of strong windes he concludes the foundation is good this satisfies him though some tiles be shaken off Fourthly let us blesse God who hath carryed on the work of Reformation thus farre notwithstanding our divisions we were afraid that these differences not so much betweene the good and bad but betweene the good and good would have undone all and yet behold the Lord beyond our thoughts how infinitely beyond our deserts hath carryed on the work hitherto so as it gets ground though it be not so speedily brought to an issue as we would have it Fiftly let us hence raise our hopes in this that Satans time is not long his raging and foming so violently doth evidence it to us Surely Christ our Prince of Peace is at hand he will tread down Satan under our feet shortly Sixtly let us from these stirs without be put upon the labouring to make and to confirm peace within Oh consider is the breach between man and man so grievous how grievous is that which is between God and the Soul I find it hard and doubt whether it be possible to be at peace with men in this world I find them of such froward peevish selfish wilfull spirits even many who seem to be good men otherwise but God gives many encouragements to poor souls to come unto him he is a God of love and mercy he delights not to grieve the children of men to crush under his feet the prisoners of the earth he is willing to be reconciled to sinners there is nothing that his heart is more set upon then reconciliation with wretched sinfull souls Oh that in these sad dayes of miserable dissentions I might be blessed with the comforts of the reconciliation of my soul with God! if this were I hope I should be able contentedly to bear and with strength to pass through all those heart-sadning evils caused by these breaches and dissentions there are amongst us This were a good use indeed made of such evill things if mens contending with you shall thus further your peace with God what he once said of Adams sin it was Faelix peccatum a happy sin because it occasioned so much good in Mans Redemption So I may say of that strife and contention there is among us it is faelix contentio a happy contention that God hath turned to so much good unto you I have read of Robert Holgate who was Arch-Bishop of York because he could not peaceably enjoy his small living in Lincolne-shire in regard of the litigiousnesse of a neigbouring Knight comming to London to right himselfe he came into the favour of King Hen. the 8. and so got by degrees the Archbishoprick of York he thought he got well by the litigiousnesse of this Knight but if the strifes of men shall put thee upon those providences and duties which shall be so blessed unto thee as to further thy getting into the favour of the high God and the enjoyment of the soule-satisfying sweetnesse there is in peace with him what cause shalt thou have of admiring free grace which hath brought to thee so great a good from so great an evil and if these strifes have been a meanes to move thy heart Godward for thy making thy peace with him let them also put thee on still to further to confirme to settle to maintaine thy peace with him VVhen the winde and storme rises the Traveller plucks his cloak the closer about him these dividing times are stormy times labour to get your souls to the harbour under shelter labour to make sure
of that one thing necessary the more strangely men looke upon you let your hearts be stirred up to seek with the more strength the face of God that you may never look upon it but with joy You hear harsh notes abroad such things as grieve you at the heart labour so much the more to keep the bird alwayes singing in your bosome 7. If your peace be made with God blesse God for it It is a great mercy for a man in these times of trouble to have rest in his own spirit while others are tossed up and down in the waves of contention you sit quietly in the Arke of a good conscience blessing the Lord that ever you knew him and his wayes 8. Labour to make up your want of that good and comfort you heretofore had in Christian communion with a more close and constant communion with the Lord who hath been pleased to speak peace unto you Although I have not that comfort in communion with the streams yet I may find it fully made up in the fountain 9. By way of Antiperistas let us labour to be so much the more united with the Saints by how much we see others to be divided Men make void thy Law sayes David therefore doe I love it above gold We use to put a price upon things that are rare what makes Jewels to be of that worth but for the rarity of them Unity hearty love sweetness of communion among brethren is now a very rare thing a scarce commodity let us prize it the more and you who do enjoy it bless God for it 10. The more confused broken and troublesome we see things to be the more let our hearts be stirred up in prayer to God putting him in mind of all those gracious promises that he hath made to his Church for peace and union Lord is it not part of thy Covenant with thy people that thou wilt give them one heart hast thou not said that they shall serve thee with one shoulder hast thou not told us that thou wilt make Jerusalem a quiet habitation that thou wilt take away violence that there should be no pricking bryar nor grieving thorn 11. Those whose consciences can witnesse to them that it hath been their great care not to enwrap themselves in the guilt of these divisions but they can appeale to God that they have endeavoured after peace so far as they could with a good conscience let them bless God for this mercy it is a great deliverance to be delivered from the guilt of those divisions Deut. 33. 8. Of Levi he said Let thy Vrim and Thummim be with thy holy One whom thou didst prove at Massah and with whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah Massah signifies tentation and Meribah contention Places and times of contention are places and times of tentation Now if God shall prove us at those places in those times and we be found upright this will bring a blessing upon us At those waters where the people murmured contending even with God himselfe Aaron though there was some weaknesse in him yet kept himselfe from being involved in the guilt of that sinne of contending with God And Sol-Jarchi with other of the Hebrewes say that the Levites were not in that sinne neither which they thinke that place Malachie 2. 5. refers unto My covenant was with him of life and peace for the feare wherewith he feared me and was afraid before my name The feare of God was upon Levi at that time he dared not contend as then others did and therefore my covenant of life and peace was and is with him We have been these three or foure yeeres at these waters of Massah and Meribah God hath tryed us How happy are those who have held out who have kept their consciences free upon whom the fear of God hath been and through that feare of his have walked before him in the wayes of truth and equity The blessing of the Covenant of Life and Peace be upon them for ever CHAP. XXXI The Cure of our Divisions VVHat gracious heart is not cut asunder with griefe for those sore and fearfull evils that there are in and come from our divisions and is not even the second time cut asunder with carefull thoughts in it selfe what may be done to heal them Mat. 6. 25. Christ forbids that carking care that cuts our hearts when it is in matters concerning our selves yea for our lives 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 take no thought for your life so it is in your bookes but the word signifies Doe not take such thought as should cut your hearts asunder so v. 28. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 why doe you divide your hearts and ver 31. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and ver 34. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 again But though this charge of Christ be doubled and doubled againe against our carefull dividing cutting thoughts about our selves yet for the uniting the hearts of the Saints together for the good of the Church this heart-cutting care is not onely allowed but required 1 Cor. 12. 25. That there should be no schisme in the body but that the members should have the same care one for another The words are That the members may care the same thing one for another and that with dividing cutting care that there might be no schisme in the body The word that is here for care is the same that in the former places in the 6. of Mat. is forbidden The expressions of my thoughtfull cares about this work is the subject at this time When I set my self about it my heart doth even ake within me at the apprehension of the difficulty of it There are some diseases that are called opprobria medicorum the disgraces of Physitians because they know not what to say or doe to them or if they do any thing it is to little purpose If there be any soule-disease that is opprobrium Theologorum the disgrace of Divines it is this of contention and division How little has all that they have studied and endeavoured to do prevailed with the hearts of men What shall we do Shall we but joyn in this one thing to sit down together and mourn one over another one for another till we have dissolved our hearts into teares and see if we can thus get them to run one into another Oh that it might be what sorrow soever it costs us We read Judges 2. 12. 3 4 5. the Lord sent an Angell from Gilgal to the men of Israel who told them how graciously he had dealt with them yet they had contrary to the command of God made a league with the inhabitants of the Land for which the Lord threatned that they should be as thorns in their sides When the Angell spake these words to the children of Israel the people lift up their voice and wept And they called the name of that place Boehim a place of tears Their sin was too much joyning joyning in league where God
in it but they joyned Malcham that is their King The worship and service proper to God hath been too much divided between God and the Kings of the Earth but here it 's probable is meant their Idoll to which they gave a Kingly power over them their Idoll Moloch had his name from hence I have read of Redwald King of the East Saxons the first Prince of his Nation that was baptized in the same place worshipped Christ and set up an Altar to worship his Idols Many mens spirits lye like that Haven Acts 26. 12. towards the Southwest and Northwest two opposite points Surely their spirits must needs be very winding and crooked which lye towards such opposites This dividing with God is very wicked what communion hath God with Belial How can you partake of the Table of the Lord and the Table of Devills 1 Cor. 10. 21. And lest they should thinke it a light thing thus to divide with God hee adds vers 22. Doe we provoke the Lord to jealousie are we stronger then he It is a great provoking of God and a fighting against him thus to divide in his worship To think that God should accept of such a dividing is to make him cruel like that Harlot 1 King 3. 26. who was content to have the child divided Let it be neither mine nor thine but let it be divided Gods worship is as deare to him as any child can be to the most tender-hearted mother in the world When Darius would have divided with Alexander No sayes Alexander there can be but one Sun in the Firmament If we will be dividing with God he will cast off all 2 King 17. 33. it is said they feared the Lord and served their Idolls but vers 34. it is said they did not feare God God accounted a divided feare no feare at all Verse 16. it is said They left all the Commandements of the Lord their God and made them molten Images If they give any part of Gods honour to molten Images he acknowledges no honour at all given to him he accounts all his Commandements to be left So Jer. 32. 23. They have done nothing of all that thou commandest them to doe and vers 30. The children of Israel and the children of Judah have onely done evill before me God is infinite and hath all excellency in him therefore he must have the whole heart Idols doe not challenge so much because they have not an universall excellency a piece of worship is enough for them our hearts estates liberties all wee are or have are more Gods then our owne Cyrus tooke Babylon by dividing the River The Devill soon surprizes us if he can but divide our hearts The reason why heathen Rome rejected Christ from being of the number of their gods when such a thing was tendred to their Senate was Because say they if we receive him to be a God he will suffer none of our other gods if we take in any other new god we may yet retain still our old ones but if we take this Jesus all our old ones must be abandoned Many at this day reject Christ upon this ground The Romanists since thinke they can take in Christ for a God and yet divide between him and other gods their Religion is made up of divisions between God and their graven Images between Christ the Mediator and Saints and Angels between the Word and their owne Traditions between Divine Institutions and Humane Inventions 1 King 18. 21. Why halt ye between two opinions Wee must not be voluntary Cripples to halt between two Why are you dismembred in your hearts and your opinions so Josephus in his History mentioning that place That is observable when the Prophet put that question to them the Text saith The people held their peace their mouths were stopped they had not a word to say for themselves If any thing be pretended for this dividing it is that trouble may be prevented exactnesse in Religion through Reformation giving up our selves wholly to God and his truth hath a shew of bringing much trouble with it Hence men winde and shift about and doe what they doe by halves It was a notable speech of Calvin to those who were offended with troubles they met with in the work of Reformation If wee could be content with halfe a Christ sayes he our worke would more easily goe on we could soone bring about what wee would have we should not meet with so much opposition but nothing but a whole Christ will serve our turne But it is necessary that all things be reformed at once No Affirmative Precepts doe not binde to all times but Negative doe therefore it is necessary at all times that there be no mixture of evill with any good we doe that our Mediocrity be not Medium participationis but Medium abnegationis between two extreams which are evill but not partaking of any evill no good thing is moderated by mixture of evill but by removing from it something that is evill that hath already mingled it selfe with it But must God have all our hearts so as we may not let them out at all to any thing else If wee let out our hearts to any thing but in subordination to God then we divide between God and that thing sinfully but though we do let out our affections to other things yet if it be in subordination to God so farre as God is in those things and we may be led nearer to God by them this is no dividing between God and other things but an uniting all in God and enjoying God in all The Saints are instructed in this mistery of godlinesse they know how to give God the whole heart and yet to enjoy the comforts of wives and children and estates and callings as much as any in the world they have that heavenly skil to unite all in God and enjoy God in all God is all in all unto them in their enjoyments of all good whatsoever but if our hearts be let out to any thing otherwise then thus they go a whoring from God and will certainly vanish in their own folly This is contrary to that singlenesse to that onenesse of heart promised as a blessing of the Gospel Many of you complaine of barrennesse here is the reason your hearts are divided were the stream of your hearts wholly after God it would runne strongly and bear down opposition before it you would be fruitfull in all the wayes of holinesse How fruitful and gloriously usefull would men in publike place be if their hearts were single and one for God did they only care to honour God in their duty and leave the care of protection of and provision for themselves and state to God Let not mens hearts be cut be divided with their cares and fears about consequences and successes their wisdom should be how to work all about for God not how handsomely to contrive that God may have part and themselves part
may cause one to hold fast an errour yet it does not put upon proud scornfull turbulent behaviour When a man by reason of his conscience it may be the weaknesse of it differs from his brethren hee had need carry himself with all humility and meekness self-denyal in all other things he should be willing to be a servant to every man in what lawfully he may that thereby he may shew to all that it is not from any wilfulnesse but meerly the tenderness of his conscience that he cannot come off to that which his brethren can doe whom yet he reverences and in his carriage towards them shews that he yet esteems them his betters but if a man that is weak very much beneath others in parts and graces shall carry himselfe high imperious contemning and vilifying those who differ from him and be contentious with them There is great reason to think that the corruption is in the will rather then any where else if there should be some conscience yet in these men their heart-distempers may justly forfeit their right of pleading their consciences Those who oppose them if they doe it in a Christian way may justifie what they doe before God if God should call them to an account and say why did you deal so with such men who professed they were put upon what they held and did by their consciences If they can answer thus Lord thou knowest we were willing to have dealt with them in all tendernesse if we could have seen conscientiousness in their carriage but we saw nothing but scornfulness pride imperiousness turbulency conceitednes we could see nothing of the Spirit of Jesus Christ acting them in their way this their carriage perswaded us that the sinfulnesse was got rather into their wills then their consciences 5ly When a man is not willing to make use of meanes to inform his conscience not of those meanes that are not against his owne principles but goes on peremptorily and stoutly Surely when we see many of our Brethren differing from us our respect to them should gain so much at least from us that if there by any means left unused for the further trying our opinions or informing our judgements we should make use of that meanes a conscientious heart will doe so The sixt note added will seale up all when a man by reason or Scripture is so put to it as he must either renounce his errour or flye from some of his own principles he will rather deny his principles then yeeld himselfe convinced of his errour yea when those principles are of great moment The man that doth thus is the man spoken of Tit. 3. 11. that is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 condemned of himselfe An Heretick after the first and second admonition reject because he is selfe-condemned wee must not reject every man that erres in every little thing no not after two or three admonitions that was a prelatical tyrannicall rule but he must be an Heretick and erring so grosly as he is self-condemned in his errour and such a man suffers not for his conscience when he is rejected but for sinning against his conscience But who can know when a man is condemned of himselfe the judgement of a mans owne conscience is a secret thing This is the strength of this hold the Devil gets into he thinks he gets so deep that you cannot get to it to find him out and as for Gods displeasure who knows their consciences these men will venture that But by this Scripture Tit. 3. it is clear that a mans conscience may be so far seen into as there may be a judgment passed upon a man that he is a self-condemned man To what purpose otherwise serves this Scripture it is not like this Heretick would acknowledg that he was self-condemned but yet the Apostle makes this the ground why he should be rejected As if he should say You see he wil go against his own principles against what his conscience tells him is truth meerly to maintain a wicked Heresie that he is infected withall let him therefore plead what he will reject him for his own conscience condemns him and GOD is greater then his Conscience and knowes all things The third thing that is to be done to a man who pleads his conscience for evill is the great snare and danger he brings himself into is to be declared to him that by giving way to let evill into his conscience he puts himself into such a condition as whatsoever he doth he must needs sin against God so long as he holds his errour Evill gets into the consciences of many very easily because they think the dictates of their consciences will be sufficient to bear them out in what they doe but they are deceived for an erroneous conscience does not bind you sin notwithstanding your conscience bids you do it and if you goe against this erroneous conscience you sinne too what a miserable snare is this you had need look to your selves then and take heed what you let into your consciences The fourth thing is to charge him and if it be in a matter of consequence to adjure him in the Name of God who is the searcher of the hearts of men and will judg them at the great day accordingly that he deals plainly and sincerely not to dare to put a pretence upon that which he knows his conscience cannot justifie him in if there be indeed any conscientiousness in the man this will startle him But it may be this will not prevail wherefore in the fifth place whatsoever a man holds though his conscience be never so much taken with it yet if it cannot stand with the power of godliness but destroys it if this man be in a Christian society after all means used to reduce him if he still perseveres in it he is notwithstanding his conscience to be cast out of the society of the Saints this is not a little matter if a man hath any conscience in him it cannot but be a dreadfull thing to him If poyson be got into a glass and you cannot wash it out the poyson and glass too is to be thrown into the sinck Such a man as this is with the conscience that he hath is to be thrown upon the dung-hill If a man by his wickedness cuts himself off from the mysticall body of Christ the Church may cut him off from his visible he hath forfeited his Church-priviledger Sixtly If the errour with the profession of it be destructive to the State and he cannot be reclaimed he may likewise be cut off from it or at least deprived of the priviledges of it and benefits by it notwithstanding his plea of conscience This justifies the cutting off Jesuites and Priests who teach people that the Crown is at the dispose of any forraign power by which also subjects may be freed from their Allegiance A Reverend Divine of ours in a Treatise upon the powring out of the 7.
there might be the exercise of love charity forbearance meekness long-suffering of one towards another Christ bids us charges us to be at peace amongst our selves If we should say O Lord Jesus wouldst thou have us be at peace one with another there are many things in thy Word that we and our Brethren have different apprehensions of for though blessed be thy Name the great necessary things of salvation be clearly revealed yet many other things are so dark to us that through our weakness we cannot all of us see the same thing Now is it thy mind O blessed Saviour that one man who conceives himself to understand the truth and that it may be rightly compell another to his judgement And dost thou also require that wee must not bring our judgments to our Brethrens till thy light brings them How then is it possible that we should be at peace one with another Do not all Divines say There are some things in Scripture wherein the Elephant may swimm some things where the Lamb may wade matters of Discipline are acknowledged by all not to be revealed with such clearnesse but that truly conscientious upright diligent men may not be able in many things to see the mind of Christ in them And to what end hath Christ done this think you 2ly Compulsion in such things as we are speaking of is to straine Justice so high as to make it summa justitia which is the degeneration of it As Physitians say of the uttermost degree of health it is a beginning of sickness If Justice be wound up a peg too high it breaks Though Justice were to be managed by the most holy wise self-denying and meek men upon the earth yet there would be much danger in winding it up to the highest for it is administred by men full of infirmities to men full of infirmities therefore God will not have it strained too high he will rather have charity to be above Justice then Justice to be above charity This I have out of Luther though he was a man of a fiery spirit he could tell how to contend where there was cause yet in an Epistle that he writes to the Divines of Norimberg upon occasion of dissentions risen amongst them he hath this passage Judgement must serve not rule over charity otherwise it is one of those four things that Solomon says troubles the earth namely a servant ruling or the Maid heire to her Mistresse if therefore you would have peace sayes he charity must rule over justice you must not suffer justice to rule over charity 3ly If men goe upon this principle they will be in danger of opposing truth as well as falshood and compelling to falshood as well as to truth for in matters doubtful controversal amongst good and peaceable men it is not easie to have any such grounded confidence as to be out of all danger of mistake there is more confidence needfull in a thing that we impose upon others then in what we practice our selves If a thing be to us rather true then otherwise we may lawfully do it but this is not enough to be a ground for the imposing it upon others who cannot see it to be a truth in such a case we had need be very sure The weak drislings of our probabilities guesses opinions are not enough to cause the stream of another mans conscience to stop yea to turne its course another way especially considering that in such things we have oftentimes misgiving thoughts our selves yea and not long since we were confident that what wee now condemne was true and what we now are ready to enjoyn others we then did as confidently condemn There must be great care taken that when we seek to pluck up tares wee plucke not up the wheat also this may be understood of things of truths and falshoods as wel as of persons we may be mistaken in the one as well as in the other Pluck not up the tares Christ does not sorbid casting out any wicked men from the Church but as Hierome hath it in those Countries tares were very like the wheat therfore take heed says Christ what you do in plucking up when you have to deale with men whose condition is any way doubtful be sure they be hypocrites or else meddle not with them do not pluck them up upon every surmise because you think they are not right for then you may pluck up a wheat as well as a tare he may prove to be a godly man therefore you had better let tares grow If you do but thinke that such men are not right you were better let them continue in the Church then by venturing upon them to be in danger to pluck up the wheat Thus in respect of things good or evill there are some things apparently evill they are rather thistles and bryers then tares we may freely pluck up them but other things though perhaps they may prove evil yet they have some likeness to good so as you can hardly discern whether they be good or evill Now saith Christ take heed what you do then do not out of eagerness oppose all evill to get out every tare pluck out some wheat too what if that you oppose with violence as evill prove to be good you had better let forty tares stand then pluck up one wheat Fourthly If men take this power upon them to compell men to do whatsoever they conceive good and to deny or forbear whatsoever they conceive evil they take more power upon them then ever the Apostles took The government of the Saints under the Apostles was a great deale more milde sweet gentle then this The rule the Apostles went by Phil. 3. 15. was Let therefore as many as be perfect be thus minded and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded God shall reveale even this unto you neverthelesse whereunto wee have already attained let us walke If any should be otherwise minded then I or the other Apostles God will reveale it in due time we will not force him only let us walke up to what we have attained This rule Zanchy saith Augustine would repeat a thousand time and Chrisostome hath a good note upon this place he does not say God will bring them to it if they be otherwise minded but God wil reveal it noting the love and goodness of God to those who are otherwise minded excusing them that it was not through wickedness but for want of knowledg that they did otherwise Acts 15. where the Apostles and Elders were met together the furthest they would take upon themselves was to lay no other burden but those necessary things The false teachers put a yoke upon them which was such a burthen that neither they nor their fore-fathers could bear v. 10. yet it was no juridicall authority that these had over them surely the yoke they put upon them in the judgments of all was but doctrinall But for us say the Apostles we finding what the
as much as any for if men will not enter into covenant if they hold another kind of government in the Church differing from them they will not receive them nor communicate with them I would all our controversie lay here surely wee should soon agree Whosoever doth as you say cannot be justified in so doing some men it may be through an earnest desire of promoting what they conceived to be the mind of Christ have been too rigid in their dealings with their Brethren What hath been said will shew the evill of their practice as well as of others As for entring into Covenant It is true there is such a practice in the Congregational Churches and a Covenant either explicite or implicite I think all acknowledg that is there must be some agreement to joyne those together in a body who formerly were not joyned to make them to be of such a society to have power in it with others for the choise of Officers in this Congregation and to be under the care charge of those Officers more then Members of another congregation what shall joyn them if not at least some mutuall agreement to joyn in one body for such spirituall ends as Christ hath appointed this body for the very nature of a society that is embodyed carries this with it and any farther then this I know none requires as necessary Indeed the more explicite this agreement is the more is the edification Surely there is no Christian but will acknowledg that the more one Christian opens his heart to another and binds himself to walk in the ways of Christ with another the more comfortable it is and helps to edification and upon this ground doe the Congregationall Churches practice this Suppose any godly man shall come and desire to joyn with any of them but withall tell them that for his part he yet cannot be convinced by any thing he can find in Scripture that this way of convenanting is required if the Church cannot satisfie such a man being godly in their practise yet desire to know of him whether hee be willing to joyn with them in all the ordinances of Christ so farre as he knows a meere affirmative to this is a covenant sufficient to joyne him with them The more fully he expresseth this to them it would be the more acceptable Now then why is it that there is such a noise every where in exclamations against Church-covenant when it is nothing but this which how any gracious heart upon due consideration can be against I cannot see And this is not only our present opinion but that which ever since we knew any thing in that way upon all occasions we have held forth But what do you say to the other If a man who you believe is godly yet not being convinced of your way of Government but rather thinks the Presbyteriall Government to be the way of Christ would you receive such a man into communion with you If any godly man whose conscience is not satisfied in that way of Government yet is so cast by Providence as he cannot joyne with those Churches where there is that Government he thinks to be Christs and because hee is desirous to enjoy what ordinances of Christ he can therefore tenders himself to one of these Congregationall Churches Such a man should be received to these Ordinances he sees to be Christs if there be nothing else against him but meerly because after all due means yet through weaknesse he cannot see Christs minde in some other ordinance Christ doth not lay so much upon the ordinance of Government as to exclude all his Saints all their days from all other Church-ordinances if through weakness they cannot be convinced of that Now let one who is in a Congregational way and connot see Christs mind in the Presbyterial Government yet come to one of those Churches and say he would gladly in all his ways see the mind of Christ and enjoy all his ordinances but he cannot see that a Minister who takes only the charge to feed by Word and Sacraments one Congregation yet should with others have the charge of ruling an hundred or more and till he be convinced otherwise he cannot in his practice acknowledg that Government to be Christs would you yet receive such a one to communion with you in all other Church-ordinances If you would I make no question then but if we well understood one another and were of quiet spirits we might live together in peace Let not miscarriages in particular men or Churches in thingâ— of this nature hinder our peace what we say ought to be suffered in us we professe to be our duty to suffer that or any thing of the like nature in others and where there hath not been that brotherly and Christian forbearance as ought to be there hath been sinne committed against Christ but let not this hinder brotherly and Christian agreement amongst our selves or any other Churches of Christ 4ly Evills that are small or uncertain or come by accident must rather be suffered then any good that is great certain and per se should be hindered We must take heed that in our zeal to oppose evill we hinder not a greater good If opposition of evill lies so far out of your reach as you cannot come at it but by hindering much good you must be content then to let it alone Lastly if the evils be such as only can be removed by super-natural means we must not use violence for the removing of them though God hath such authority over us as hee may justly punish us for not doing that which we are unable to do by the strength of nature yet one man hath no such authority over another The power that God hath given a Magistrate is but a naturall help at the most therefore it can go no farther then to help us in a naturall way to do what we are able to do by a natural power when it hath gone so far there it must rest I shall refer the Learned to Zanchy upon the fourth Comment where they may see more about this CHAP. X. The fourth dividing Principle Division is the best way to maintaine Dominion THis is Machiavels principle Divide regna When Division is got into such a Principle as hath not only in the bowels of it that is something to foment it by what may be drawn from it but when the principle carries division in the very face of it not collaterally or by consequent avowing it but directly immediately justifying it then it grows strong indeed who can stand before it When this is brought down to the people it is expressed by that Proverbiall speech It is good fishing in troubled waters The divisions of the times are our advantages Some mens ends are best served when church and State are most divided They never had such comings in as now they have It is true it may be desired that men in evil things
they began to be reserved and so strange and at last quite fell off from one another from former love and friendship and then every little thing caused grudgings between them Ninthly Self sets mens wits on work in all cunning craftinesse to fetch others about to their own ends and this goes as much against a mans spirit as any thing When he comes to discern it no man can abide to be circumvented to be as it were rid upon to be made serviceable only to another mans ends the more cunning there is in it the more odious and abominable it is to a mans spirit when it comes once to be perceived a man cannot bear it Crooked windings are the goings of the Serpent But if a man shall not onely seek to make use of another to serve his own turne by him but after he hath done that then to cast him off to shift for himselfe this is so provoking a thing as it make breaches irreconciable 10. When one is for Self in his wayes he teaches another to be so in his As a man by conversing with the froward learns to be froward so many who have heretofore had plain hearts full of love sweetnes yet by being acquainted much with selfish politique men learn to be so too I see how he hooks in himselfe in every thing fetches about this way and that way but still gets it to come to selfe I perceived it not at my first acquaintance with him and then my heart was let out to him fully but now I see every man is for himself and why should not I be so too and what then is like to become of the publique Surely this selfishnesse is very vile in the eyes of God God hath made us members of a community the Universe is maintained by union therefore the creatures will venture the destroying themselves in going contrary to their natures rather then there should not be union in the world that which they do in a natural way we should do by the strength of reason much more by grace Philosophers say there cannot be a vacuity in the world The world could not stand but would be dissolved if every part were not filled because Nature subsists by being one if there were the least vacuity then all things should not be joyned in one there would not be a contiguity of one part with another This is the reason that water will ascend when the ayre is drawn out of a pipe to fill it this is to prevent division in nature O that we had but so much naturalnesse in us that when we see there is like to be any breach of union we would be willing to lay down our self-ends to venture our selves to be any thing in the world that is not sin that we may help to a joyning O foolish heart that in such a time as this art selfish when the danger is publike As in a storm when the Ship is in danger if every Mariner should be busie about his own Cabbin dressing and painting that what infinite sottish folly were it and is it not our case It were just with God to leave thee to thy self hereafter if thou wilt look so much to thy selfe now Ezek. 22. 16. And thou shalt take thine inheritance in thy selfe in the sight of the Heathen and thou shalt know that I am the Lord This is in a way of threat as appears if you compare it with vers 14 15. Woe to us if God leaves us to our selves I have heard of a story of a fool being left in a chamber and the door locked and all the people gone he cries out at the window Oh my selfe my selfe O my selfe nothing else came from him but O my self Such fools have we amongst us now nothing but Selfe is in their thoughts their hearts and endeavourt The Apostles complaint Phil. 2. 21. may justly be ours All seeke their own not the things which are Iesus Christs Their own things that is says Chrysostome their pleasure and their security their temporal commodities their profits their honours So others why are not the comforts the safeties the honours of the Saints the things of Christ doth not Christ own them Are they not under his protection and care Ans Yes and he would own them more if we owned them lesse the more we deny them the more hath he a care of them we may by our giving them up to the honour of Christ make them to be amongst the number of his things and then they would be precious indeed but by desiring them using them rejoycing in them in reference to our selves Christ accounts them not amongst his things things of a higher nature are his things the glory of his Father the propagation of the Gospel the spiritual good of his people and the things of eternall life they are his things let us make his things ours and he will make our things his CHAP. XVIII The third Dividing Distemper Envy ENvie is a squint-eyed foole Job 5. 2. Envie stayeth the silly one Jam. 3. 14. If yee have bitter envying and strife in your hearts Envy is a bitter thing and causes strife and makes that bitter too So vers 16. Where envying and strife is Gal. 5. 20. Hatred variance emulations wrath strife seditions heresies envyings 1 Cor. 3. 3. There is among you envying strife divisions Envy made divisions between Angels and men it was the fist sinne not the first born of the Devill but that which tâ—rned Angels into Devils The first heart-division amongst men was between Gain Abel and what caused it but envy Who can stand before envy she is subtil undermining dares not appear at the first but if she cannot be satisfied with her under-works then she flings â—ends frets and fights uses violence seeks to raise a contrary faction fals on any thing in the world so be it mischief may be done let become of Gods glory of service to the publike of saving souls rather then that steem respect and honour that otherwise might be had should not be obtained all must come under all must be serviceable to this base lust rather then the glory of an envious man must be eclipsed God himself and his blessed Truth must be darkned O hideous wickednesse and high impudence against the God of Heaven Envy divides in Counsels in instruments actions in all proceedings she will make use of good to oppose that which is good if she cannot raise evil men to oppose good she will seek to get good men to oppose she would make God contrary to himselfe she would strike at God with his owne sword Phil. 1. 15. Some preach Christ out of envy As Envy makes use of good for evill so God makes use of this evill for good Many seek to excell in preaching or otherwise by this means and sayes S. Paul Howsoever I doe rejoyce and will rejoyce If Envy cannot reach others by imitation she will reach them by calumniation Zoilus the common
slanderer being asked why he spake evil of such and such men Because sayes he I can doe no evill to them If there be any good done that she seeks to blast together with the instruments of it if any evil that she rakes into and feeds upon like that Bird Ibis in Africa that eats Serpents Luther sayes envious men feed upon the dung of other men they are like flies that love to be upon sores Erasmus tels of one who collected all the lame defective verses in Homer and passed over all that were so excellent When you see a man seeking to rake and gather together all he can of any distempers disorders mistakes miscarriages by hear-sayes letters or any way so be it he may fill up his dung-cart and for the good the graces or gifts of God in men those are laid aside or slightly passed over if at all mentioned it is with some dirt mingled Surely this is an envious man fitted for strife and debate whom God permits to be an affliction to his people in raising up a spirit of strife and contention and causing divisions amongst them like the Kite who passes over faire Medowes and pleasant fields not regarding them till she meets with a carrion there she fals and fastens now she is upon her prey where she would be How pleasant is it to some men to hear of or find out evil in others whom they doe not love To say no worse you know how it hath been an old practise to seek to get any thing by reports or any other wayes that might blast the professors of Religion and how glad were they how did it please them at the heart if they could meet with any thing that might serve their turne This is a very shamefull distemper some men will upon occasion confesse they fear other men and others that they love not other men or that they contemn others but no man will acknowledge that he envies others there is too much shame in this to be owned by any The impiety and wickednesse is not lesse it is a monstrous wickednesse for a man to complaine of God that he made the world no better and yet such wickednesse there is in some mens hearts but what is it then to complaine of and quarrel with God that he hath made the World or any part of it so well This the envious man doth An envious man cannot endure to see others better then himselfe or to have more respect then himself It is reported of Licinius an intimate familiar with Constantine the Great who also married his sister but fell off to be a desperate enemy against Christians alledging this to be the reason because in their Assemblies they prayed for Constantine and not for him Envious men whether they deserve respect or no yet if others have it and not themselves they rage and are mad There is no vice but hath some kind of opposition to some other as covetousnesse to prodigality c. but Envy only opposeth that which is good and all good therefore there is nothing in it but evil and an universal evil Gulielmus Parisiensis brings in Gregory saying That all the poyson in the old Serpent is in this sinne as if it had emptied it selfe of its poyson and vomited it in this sinne so much venome there is in it Is it not a very evill thing that in mens opposition against what they see others desire they should give this reason why it should not be suffered because if it be the greater part of the most godly people in all places will joyn with it This brings to mind what I have read in Ecclesiasticall History in the Second Century The Emperour Adrian would have build a Church for the honour of Christ void of Images because such was the custome of the Christians but his friends disswaded him saying If he did so all men would forsake the Temples of the gods and become Christians I find in that learned piece of Voetius Desperata causa papatus a notable story of Rayâ—erius a Popish Inquiâ—â—tor he exclaims against the Waldenses those poor men of Lioâ—s as he calls them He sayes there was never any more pernicious Sect then that and I pray why He gives 3. reasons First That it is very ancient Some say says he it hath continued from the time of Sylvester others from the times of the Apostles Secondly It is so generall there is scarce any Countrey but this hath got into it Thirdly whereas others are guilty of blasphemy against God upon which they are abhorred these appeare to be holy men they live justly their beliefe of God is right they believe all the Articles in the Creed We can finde no fault with them either for their lives or for their Doctrine onely they are against the Church of Rome in which the people are ready to joyne with them These are strange accusations for do not they themselves make all these the signs of the true Church and yet are these poor men so vile because such things are found amongst them Surely it is Envy that imbitters the spirits of men against others because they see in them those things which they cannot but acknowledg to be good and herein the great evill of Envy that malignity of it by which it causeth such great contentions does appear they are angry they can find no evill in them whereby they may get advantage against them The holy Ghost say that envy is rottennesse to the bones the same learned man Guliel Paris applyes this to such as are chief in Church and Common-wealth who are as it were the bones the strength the support of the societies whereof they are Envy says he is often found amongst them and it is rottennesse to them This vile sin hath caused a rot in many men of eminent abilities and places who might otherwise have done much service for God his people in Church and Common-wealth oh it is a michievous sin Take away envy says Augustine and what is mine you have take away envy and what is yours I have We read Acts 11. of Barnabas that hee was a good man and fuâ—l of the holy Ghost and he was a man of a cleaving disposiâ—ion of an uniting temper ver 23. He exhorted them that with full purpose of heart they would cleave to the Lord This man was free from envy for the Text sayes when he had seen the grace of God he was glad He rejoyced in and blessed God for the grace he saw in his Saints Do you envy for my sake says Moses I would to God all the people of the Lord did prophesie Moses was a fit man for publike service who was so void of envy No men are so fit for publike employment as such who can bles God that he is pleased to make use of others as wel as yea beyond themselves It was a good speech of that gracious holy old Disciple Mr. Dod lately deceased I would to God says he I
oh how does it delight the traveller when he goeth forth â— and truly such were the serene countenances of our brethren towards us but within a while the clouds over-cast the sky looks lowring gusts of wind arise yea thunder-bolts of terrible words flye about our eares and the flashes of their anger strike upon our faces Tantae ne animis coelestibus irae Unconstancy is evill and a cause of division Stoutnesse is evil and a cause of division A man must not be one thing one day and another another day not like a weather-cock carried up and down with every wind neither must he be wilfull and stout not like a rusty lock that will not be stirred by any key Now then how shall we know when a man is neither fickle nor stout For except some rules of discerning be given this temptation may be before me I must not be fickle unsetled and unconstant I will therefore stifly stand to maintain what I have professed You may know whether your ficklenesse be avoyded by true setled constancy of spirit or by stoutnesse by these five notes First true constancy and setlednesse of spirit is got by much prayer and humiliation before the Lord Establish me Lord with thy free spirit unite my heart to feare thy Name When after thy heart-breakings and meltings and heart-cryings and pourings forth Lord shew mee what thy will is in this thing keep mee from miscarrying let me not settle upon any errour instead of the truth but what is thy truth fasten my soule in it that what ever temptations come I may never be taken off from it Tell God in Prayer what the thing is and what hath perswaded thy heart to embrace it open thy heart fully to God in all thy aimes and if by this meanes the heart be fixed now it is delivered from ficklenesse and not faln into stoutnesse 2ly Where true constancy is attained by the Spirit of God and not by the stoutnesse of thine owne there is exercise of much grace and growing up in grace as faith humility love meeknesse patience c. 1 Pet. 3. 17 18. Take heed ye fall not from your stedfastnesse but grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ Hearts stout and wilfull are dry and saplesse 3ly If the more a man hath to do with God the more setled he is in his way when he hath the most full converse and sweetnesse of communion with God he is then the most fully setled satisfied established in such a truth which he before conceived to be of God Many men are very stiffe and wilful unmoveable when they have to deal with men they seem then to be the most confident men in the world but God knows and their consciences know when they solemnly set themselves in the presence of God and have the most reall sight of God and have to deale most immediately with him then they have ms-giving thoughts they have feares that things may not prove so sure as they bore others in hand they apprehended them to be But if Gods presence and thy dealings with him confirms thee in this thy conscience may give thee an assurance that as thou art not fickle and wavering so not stout and wilfull 4ly When there is a proportion in mens constancie if a man be resolute and constant in one thing but very fickle and easily turned aside in others there is cause to suspect his constancy is rather from stiffnesse then from grace for grace works proportionably through the whole soule and in the whole course of a mans life 5ly If the more reall the presence of death and judgment appear to a man the more setled he is in that way this likewise may be a good evidence to him that his setlednesse in such a way is right CHAP. XX. The ninth dividing Distemper A spirit of jealousie The tenth A spirit of contention The eleventh Covetousnesse The twelfth Falsenesse ENvy strife railings evill surmisings 1 Tim. 6. 4. Strife and evill surmisings are neer of kin If contentious men can get nothing against their brethren they will surmise there is something if they can find nothing in their actions to judge they will judg their hearts if there be nothing above-board they wil think there may be something under-board from thinking there may be something they will think it is very likely there is something and from likely there is they will conclude there is Surely there is some plot working But this is against the law of Love for it thinketh no evill all the good that they see in their Brethren is blasted by their suspition of evil Love would teach us rather by what appears to judg the best of what appears not then by what appeares not to judg the worst of what appears Suspition is like some jelly stuffe that is got between the joynts if the bone be out of joynt and any jelly be got in though it be but a little soft stuffe it will hinder the setting of the bone I confess in these times because we have been so extreamly deceived in those who have been used in publike place in whom we so much confided there is a great deal of reason that we should be very wary of men and believe till we have very good grounds of confidence with trembling I remember Melchior Adam in the life of Bucholcerus tels of a witty counsel of his to his friend Hubnerus who being to goe to the Court to teach the Prince Electors children at their parting I will give you says he one profitable rule for your whole life he lissening what it should be I commend saith he to you the faith of the Devills At which Hubnerus wondring Take heed sayes he how you trust any at the Court beleeve their promises but warily but with feare you may feare they will never come to any thing But in the mean time while we are thus fearful of one another while we cannot trust one another we cannot joyn one with another I have read of Cambyses he did but dream his brother should be King of Persia and he put him to death Many amongst us do but dream of men with whom our hearts are not that they have some plots working and how do our spirits work against them Groundlesse jealousies arise from much baseness in our owne hearts Those who have no principle of faithfulnesse in themselves are suspitious of every one but as for those who suffer causelesly in this thing let them be of good comfort God will reward them good for what evill they suffer Wee read Numb 5. 28. that if a man were jealous of his wife so that he brought her to the tryall by drinking the water of jealousie if she were clear she should not onely be freed from hurt by that water but she should conceive seed if she went barren before the Lord would recompence her sorrow and trouble shee suffered by her husbands
false opinion as if he had the malignity of those thousand evill things in his spirit I finde our Divines who have been of peaceable spirits have condemned very much this fastening of dangerous consequences of mens opinions upon those who hold the opinions and yet whose hearts are as much against such consequences as possibly may be deduced from them as any In their giving rules for peace they advise to take heed of this as a thing which makes Brethren who are different in their opinions unlikely ever to become one Davenant sayes It is abhorrent to charity and right reason that any because of consequences from what he holds neither understood nor granted by him should be thought to deny or reject a fundamentall Article which he firmly beleeves expresly asserts and if he were called to it whould seale the truth of it with his bloud Truer and more gentle sayes he is the judgment of that great and peace-making Divine Bucer who sayes It is our part not to look at what may follow from an opinion but at what followes in the consciences of those who hold it The eleventh dividing Practice To commend and countenance what we care not for in opposition to what we dislike WHen such as professe godlinesse shall make much of wicked men shall commend them joyne with them embrace them yea be well pleased with the bitternesse boisterousnesse boldnesse of their daring spirits because there may be use made of them against those men and wayes they differ from this is an evill which brings guilt upon themselves and makes the division between them and their Brethren very great If your hearts be right and your cause be good you need not make use of any thing that is evill to comfort your hearts or to maintaine your cause The Lord will not be beholding to the evill the bitternesse of mens spirits for the furtherance of his cause and why should you God will not take the wicked by the hand neither shouldest thou Are not your spirits strengthned against your adversaries when you see them calling in Papists and all manner of the refuse of men wicked and treacherous Can you thinke that these are the most likely to maintaine the Protestant Religion and the liberty of the Subject Why doe you seek to strengthen your selves by stirring up vile men to joyne with you such as heretofore your hearts were opposite to How comes it to passe you can close so lovingly now You can smile one upon another and shake hands together How comes it to passe you doe rejoyce the hearts of evill men they encourage you and you encourage them Those unsavoury bitter expressions that come from them you can smile at and be well pleased with because they are against such as differ from you blow up that sparkle of ingenuity that heretofore hath been in you lay your hands upon your hearts bethinke your selves is it the Spirit of Jesus Christ that acts us in such a way wherein we are Surely this is not the way of peace but of division and confusion The last dividing Practice The Practice of Revenge WHen any provoke you you say you will be even with him there is a way whereby you may be not even with him but above him that is forgive him Practising revenge is the way to continue divisions to the end of the world such offend me therefore I will offend them and therefore they offend me againe mee againe and I them and so it may run in infinitum they deny mee a kindnesse therefore I will deny them and therefore they will deny mee so these unkindnesses run on endlesly divisions will have a line of succession where will it where can it stop if this be the way of men Paulus Fagius in his Notes upon Leviticus cap. 19. v. 18. sayes If Reuben should say to Simeon Lend me thy Axe and he should answer I will not the next day Simeon hath need of an Axe and he comes to Reuben and sayes I pray lend me your Axe and Reuben answers No you would not lend me yours yesterday the Jewes accounted this to be Revenge There is much more malignity in our revengefull practices one upon another then this Basil invelghing against requiting evill for evill in his tenth Sermon speakes thus to a revengefull heart Doe not make your Adversary your Master doe not imitate him whom you hate be not you his looking-glasse to present his forme and fashion in your selfe Revenge God challengeth to himselfe as his presume not to encroach upon Gods proprietie to get up into Gods seate and doe his worke thou hast enough to doe of thine owne And it is very observable how God stands upon his challenge of revenge as his owne as that which he by no meanes will suffer others to meddle with in those Scriptures where this is mentioned the challenge is doubled yea sometimes trebleâ— as Psal 94. 1. O Lord God to whom vengeance belongeth O God to whom vengeance belongeth So Nahum 1. 2. The Lord revengeth the Lord revengeth the Lord will take vengeance on his Adversaries Heb. 10. 30. Vengeance belongeth to me I will recompence saith the Lord and againe the Lord will judge his people You must not think revenge to be so light a matter How unbeseeming are revengefull practices to Christian profession Many of the Heathens were above such things Plutarch reports of Phocion That when he had done notable service for the Athenians yet was put to death by them but being asked a little before his death whether he had any thing to say to his sonne Yes sayes he that I have I require of thee my sonne that thou never wishest ill to the Athenians for this they doe to me How farre are most of us from this we can hardly passe by an ill looke without revenge but if we conceive our selves to be wronged in words or actions then revenge rises high such things must not be born A Gentleman of very good credit who lived at Court many yeeres told me that himselfe once heard a great man in this Kingdome say He never forgave man in his life and I am moved the rather to beleeve it to be so because I have been told by some other Gentlemen that the same man would when he was walking alone speake to himselfe and clap his hand upon his breast and sweare by the Name of God that he would be revenged hee would be revenged and that she who lay in his bosome was wont to sit alone and sing to her selfe Revenge Revenge O how sweet is Revenge If they get power into their owne hands and are so uxorious as they must needs give way to have things managed according to the will of their revengefull wives what peace what security is there like to be Sir Walter Rawleigh in his History of the World tells of the sad case of the Lacedemonians when Nabis having power in his hands having a wife Apega a woman full of
exceeding sinfulness of our divisions The Aggravations of the sinfulnesse of our Divisions FIrst That we that are Christians should be thus divided it were not so much if we were Heathens our divisions are against the very character of Christianity Hereby shall ye know that ye are my Disciples if ye love one another sayes Christ Love and Unity are Christs badge the Armes of a Christian whereby he shewes of what House he is But by these divisions of ours what doe we but rend the very Armes that Christ hath honoured us with and cast them under our feet Secondly that we who were so lately in bondage should upon the beginning of our deliverance thus fall out one amongst another one from another one upon another for us who are newly come out of prison who have upon us still the very smell of our prison garments the sores of our necks by reason of those yokes that were lately upon them are not yet healed and yet we thus presently fight one with another this is uncomely and very sinful Thirdly The union of our enemies is an aggravation of the sinfulness of our division s how great a shame is it that they should joyne better then we have they stronger bonds of union then we Psal 83. 5. 6. we read of ten or eleven sorts of men who could all agree in that which was evill the Text sayes They consulted together with one consent it is in the Hebrew with one heart there was Edom the Ishmaelites the Moabites the Hagarens Gebus Ammon Amaleck the Phylistines with the inhabitants of Tyre Assur is joyned with the children of Lot these were of severall opinions and wayes in matters of Religion and yet could joyne I remember GreGregory Nazianzen in one of his Orations makes a bitter complaint of this Who is there sayes he that is of a right mind that doth not deplore the present state of things Who can find out expressions to set out this calamity of ours that theeves and robbers tyrants and whoremasters should be at peace amongst themselves yet we cannot be at peace Revel 17. 13. we read of ten Kings of the earth that they are of one minde to give their power to the Beast and to make war with the Lambe shall not we be of one mind to fight against the Beast for the Lambe Fourthly that such as God hath joyned in so many bands of union should so divide as we do as the bands of old acquaintance of deare friendship in former times that fellow-sufferers that such as are related nearly brethren sisters kinsmen kinswomen such as live in the same family as are of the same society the same calling such as have received much good one from another yet that now they should be thus divided and thereby the occasions of so much evill one to another this is a sore and a grievous evill Luther in an Epistle of his to his friend Spalatinus tells him that if he must perish he would not that the Emperour Charles should have a hand in it out of respect to him but let me rather sayes he perish by those of Rome for I know sayes he what misery followed Sigismund the Emperour after the death of John Husse Although we should desire that we might be no occasion of evill to any yet if it must needs be better a thousand times that the evill fall upon wicked men and those who are at the greatest distance from us then upon those who are godly and so neare unto us Fiftly that such as agree in so many things yea in all things necessary â—o salvation yea almost if not in all the Doctrinall part of Religion yet because of some few things of lesser moment there should be such a fearfull breach as now there is this makes the account we are able to give of our breach the worse and our sin the more And this is the evill spirit of some they could wish our divisions were in greater things that they might justifie their opposition so much the more Sixtly the sinne is great because it is Heart-division if it were Head-division difference of judgment it were ill but not so ill Jer. 4. 18. Their wickednesse is better for it reaches to the heart This makes the wickednesse of our divisions bitter the heart commands the head but the head cannot command the heart 7. They are the worse because they break not so much as they doe wounds that take ayre grow much worse then those who are kept closed It is an ignorant foolish speech that some please themselves with when they are provoked vent abundance of choler in bitter wicked language When I am angry say they I must vent what I have within it is better to let it out then to keep it in Indeed if the breaking of it out did make it to be lesse within then it was before as the corruption of a sore is when it breaks out then there were some reason in what you say but it is otherwise As the more you act grace the more it increaseth so the more you act sinne the more it increaseth And besides Heart-corruptions when they break forth they dishonour God in a publike way whereas when they are kept in the dishonour to God is but between God and your selves 8. That our divisions are in the presence of wicked men that we should discover our shame before them Gen. 13. 7. the Text sayes There was a strife between the herdmen of Abraham and the herdmen of Lot and the Canaanite and the Perizite dwelt in the land Their strife was the more vile because it was before them Let us remember when we are striving that the Canaanite and Perizite dwell in the Land It is not safe sayes Nazianzen to be trust him that hates a Christian with the hearing any thing against a Christian 9. Our divisions are long continued divisions nothing can quiet us as if they were irreconcileable There is sayes Nazianzen a satiety in all things amongst men but in contentions in meat in drinke in singing in all things otherwise most delightfull but men have never adone in mischieving one another We are like cocks who are easily set a fighting and when they are in they will never leave till they kill one another 10. The late Covenant that should be a means to unite us is made a meanes of widening our divisions by making false interpretations of it by drawing the sense of it to what may serve mens turnes by charging men of perjury because they come not up fully to what they would have them by which abuse some seek to make it to be a very snare to their brethren 11. We are thus divided at such a time as this the most unseasonable for divisions that ever was in the world For First it is a time of affliction It was sad with the Children of Israel when they were in the wilderness to meet with fiery Serpents to sting them while we are
bellum that Souldier is a murtherer that sheds bloud not in reference to peace The Swords and Ensignes of Souldiers should have this Motto upon them Sic quaenimus pacem Thus we seek Peace Hercules his Club was made of the Olive the emblem of Peace The ninth joyning Principle No man shall ever be mine enemy that is not more his owne then mine yea more the enemy of God then mine IF a man offends me meerly through weakness this is his affliction in this he is neither an enemy to himself nor me he mourns for it and I will pitty him in his mourning he is more troubled for what he hath done then I have cause to be for what I have suffered If he offends willingly and purposely he is his own enemy more then mine When Latimer was cousened in buying a commodity his friends telling him how he was cheated of his money he fell a mourning for him that had cheated him He hath the worst of it sayes he If my heart rises against a man in this and I seek to oppose him in his way it may very well be interpreted to be out of love to him for my heart rises against his enemy I oppose his enemy even himself but an enemy to himself more then to me he hath hurt me a little but himself more I am troubled a little for the wrong I suffer but more for the evill he hath done If his wayes be enmity to God I will oppose him because I love God and no farther then wherein I may manifest my love to God rather then hatred of him When Servetus condemned Zuinglius for his harshness he answers In other things I will be milde but not so in Blasphemies against God Let us keep our enmity within these bounds and the peace of God will not be broke The tenth joyning Principle I had rather suffer the greatest evill then doe the least IF when others wrong you you care not what you do to right your self This is your folly and madness Such a one hurt me and I will therefore mischief my self he hath pricked me with a pin and I will therefore in an anger run my knife into my side If in all we suffer we be sure to keep from righting our selves by any wayes of sin there will not be much peace broke Such an one is thine enemy and wilt thou of one enemy make two wilt thou also be an enemy to thy self yea a greater enemy then he or any man living can be to thee for all the men in the world cannot make thee sin except thou wilt thy self The eleventh joyning Principle I will labour to do good to all but provoke none A Father hath not so much power over his child as to provoke him Col. 3. 21. Fathers provoke not your children to wrath Surely if a man hath not this power over his child he hath it not over his friend his neighbour much less his superiour yet how many take delight in this Such a thing I know will anger him and he shall be sure to have it Oh wicked heart dost thou see that this will be a temptation to thy brother and wilt thou lay it before him dost thou not pray for thy self and for him Lord lead us not into temptation we should accout it the greatest evill to us of all the evill of afflictions to be any occasion of sin to our brother but what an evil should this be to us to provoke our brother to sin if we will needs be provoking then let the Apostles exhortation prevaile with us Heb. 10. 24. Let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works Let us not consider one another in a way of curiosity and emulation to envy or find fault with one another from whence frowardness pride hatred dissentions factions may arise saith Hyperius upon the place but consider one another so as we may further the good of one another so as to make one another quick and active in that which is good The twelfth joyning Principle Peace with all men it is good but with God and mine owne conscience it is necessary BUt how will this joyn us one to another Answ Very much both as it holds forth the goodness of peace with all men and as it carryes the heart strongly to the making and keeping peace with God and a mans own conscience This peace with God and a mans own conscience will so sweeten the heart that it cannot but be sweet towards every one a man who hath satisfaction enough within can easily bear afflictions and troubles that come without When Saul had made great breaches between God and his soul and in his own conscience then he grew to be of a very froward spirit towards every man before his Apostacy he was of a very meek and quiet spirit but this sowred his spirit and made it grow harsh rugged and cruell This is the cause of the frowardness of many men and women in their families and with their neighbours there are secret breaches between God and their own consciences The thirteenth joyning Principle If I must needs erre considering what our condition is here in this world I will rather erre by too much gentlenesse and mildnesse then by too much rigour and severity MAns nature is more propense to rigour then to lenity but the account of overmuch lenity is easier then of too much rigour Men who are of harsh sowre spirits themselves are ready to think that God is so too As the Lacedaemonians because they were of a warlike disposition they represented their Gods all armed But God is love there is anger and hatred in God as well as love but God is never said to be anger or hatred no not justice it self but he loves that expression of himself to the children of men God is love If God intended that all things amongst men either in Church or Common-wealth should be carryed with strictnesse of justice he would rather have governed his Church and the World by Angels who have right apprehensions of justice who are themselves perfect altogether free from those evils that are to be punished then by men whose apprehensions of justice are exceeding weak unconstant partiall as often false as true and have much of that evill in themselves that they judge in others The last joyning Principle Peace is never bought too deare but by sin and basenesse VVE use to say We may buy Gold too deare and so we may Peace but whatsoever we pay for it beside sinne and baseness we have a good bargain Suidas tells of the Emperour Trajan that he would cut his own cloaths to binde up the wounds of his Souldiers We should be very pitifull to souldiers who are wounded to keep us whole We should binde up their wounds though it cost us dear but especially our care should be to bind up those wounds that by divisions are made in Church and Common-wealth and well may we
the Lord takes this Mat. 24. 49. 50 51. that evill servant who begins to smite his fellow-servants provokes his Lord against him so as to come upon him with such severity as to cut him asunder and to appoint his portion with the Hypocrites 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 he will dichotomize him divide him in two he by his smiting his fellow-servants makes divisions but his Lord will divide him It may be he pretends that his fellow-servants do not do their duty as they ought as if he were more carefull of the honour of his Lord then others who are of a different way from him But in the meane while he inveighs against others smiting them with the tongue and otherwise as he is able He sits at full Tables eats and drinks of the best with such as are carnall and sensuall but they are great men to have their countenance is brave this is extreme sutable to a carnall heart who yet keeps up a profession of Religion hath some forme of godlinesse he is afraid to lose his fleshly contentment therefore he smites those who stand in his way Thus divisions and troubles are made in Gods family The Lord the master of it will reward accordingly he will divide such by cutting them asunder and appointing them their portion with the Hypocrites 5. One Faith What though we agree not together in some things of lesser moment yet we agree in one faith Why should we not then keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace The agreement in the faith one would think should swallow up all other disagreements We should rather blesse God for keeping men found in the faith then contend with them for lesser mistakes When the Pharisees Acts 23. 9. understood that Paul agreed with them in that great doctrine of the Resurrection they presently overlooked his other differences saying We finde no evill in this man Our Brethren agree with us in more Fundamentals then this and yet we can finde evill in them and aggravate their evill beyond what it is and improve it all we can against them This is worse then Pharisaicall Master Calvin in his Epistle to our Countreymen at Frankford fled for their lives in witnesse to the truth yet miserably jarring and contending one against another there to the scandall of all the Churches of God in those parts begins his Epstle thus This doth grievously torment me it is extremely absurd that dissentions should arise amongst brethren exiles fled from their countrey for the same faith and for that cause which alone in this your scattering ought to be to you as a holy band to keepe you fast bound together Their contentions were about Church-worship 6. One Baptisme We are baptised into Christs death and is not that to shew that we should be dead to all those things in the world that cause strife and contention among men Our Baptisme is our badge our livery it furthers somewhat the unity of servants that they weare all one livery 7. One God Though there be three persons in the Divine Nature and every person is God yet there is but one God here is an union infinitely beyond all unions that any creature can be capable of the mystery of this union is revealed to us to make us in love with union Our interest in this one God is such a conjuction as nothing can be more Josephs brethren Gen. 50. 17. looked upon this as having very great power in it to make up all breaches to heal all old grudges After their Father was dead their consciences misgave them for what they had done to Joseph they were afraid old matters would break forth and that Joseph would turn their enemy now how do they seek to unite Josephs heart to them We pray thee say they forgive the trespasse of the servants of the God of thy Father and the Text sayes Joseph wept when they spake unto him Oh this was a heart-breaking speech to Joseph The servants of the God of my Father Shall my heart ever be stranged from the servants of the God of my Father The Lord forbid This offence indeed was great but their God is my God he was my Fathers God this argument had more in it to draw Josephs heart to them then if they had said We are your brethren we came from the same loynes you did True that is something but the servants of the God of thy Father is much more Let us look upon all the godly though they have many weaknesses though they have not carryed themselves towards us as they ought yet they are the servants yea the children of our God and of our fathers God let this draw our hearts to them If they be one with us in their interest in one God let them be one with us in the affections of our heart to love them delight in them and rejoyce in communion with them One God and Father Mal. 2. 10. Have we not all one Father hath not one God created us why do we deale treacherously every man against his brother Job 31. 15. Did not he that made me in the wombe make him and did not one fashion us in the wombe Is it seemly that one mans children should be alwayes contending quarrelling and mischieving one another do you thinke this is pleasing to your Father It followes in that 4. of Ephes who is above all and through all and in all You have enough in your Father to satisfie your soules for ever whatsoever you want other wayes he is above all he that is so glorious and blessed infinitely above all things hath put honour enough upon you that he is your Father why will you contend and quarrell about trifles He hath absolute authority to dispose of all things as he pleaseth let not the different administrations of his to some in one kinde to some in another be matter for you to contend about And he worketh in all Those gifts and graces especially that are in his children are his workings that some have more then others it is from his working You may see the workings of your Father in the hearts of your Brethren He is in all Men may have children in whom little or nothing of their Father appeares but God is in all his children notwithstanding all their weaknesses therefore our hearts should be in them and with them This Scripture is one of the most famous Scriptures for the union of the Saints in one that we have in all the book of God You will say If indeed we could see God in such if we could see grace and holinesse in them our hearts would close with them but we see not this 1. Take heed thou dost not reject any from being thy brother whom Jesus Christ at the great day will owne for his and God the Father will call Child 2. Suppose thou canst not be satisfied in their godlinesse yet the gifts of the Spirit of God that are in them should cause some kind
this where the patience and quietness of spirit is very much tryed and that is when a servant meets with a harsh rugged cruell master that abuses him very injuriously if any thing would put ones spirit into a rage one would thinke this would do it No saith the Apostle such must be the command you must have over your spirits as you must patiently bear this and he grounds it upon this For hereunto were ye called 1 Pet. 2. 21 22. But though husbands and wives should live at peace though they suffer one from another though servants should put up wrongs from their masters yet it followes not that the like patience should be required in us when we are wronged by our equals by those to whom we have no such band of relation to tye us Yes this argument of calling is strong in this case also 1 Pet. 3. 8 9. Love as brethren be courteous not rendring evill for evill or railing for railing but contrariwise blessing knowing that ye are thereunto called The tenth Consider the presence of God and of Christ OUr God our Father our Master our Saviour stands by looking on us It is a most excellent passage that I finde in an Epistle of Luther to the Ministers of Norimberg There were great divisions amongst them he writes to them that he might pacifie their spirits one towards another Suppose sayes he you saw Jesus Christ standing before you and by his very eyes speaking thus unto your hearts What do you O my dear children whom I have redeemed with my blood whom I have begotten againe by my Word to that end that you might love one another Know that this is the note of my Disciples Leave this businesse ye wholly cast it upon me I le look to it there is no danger that the Church should suffer by this though it should be stilled yea though it should dye but there is a great deale of danger if you dissent amongst your selves if you bite one another Do not thus sadden my spirit do not thus spoile the holy Angels of their joy in Heaven am not I more to you then all matters that are between you then all your affections then all your offences What can any words of a brother can any unjust trouble penetrate your hearts stick so fast in you as my wounds as my bloud as all that I am to you your Saviour Jesus Christ Oh that we had such reall apprehensions of Christ looking upon us speaking to us The eleventh Consider what account we can give to Jesus Christ of all our Divisions WHen Christ shall come will you stand before him with scratched faces with black and blew eyes 1 Thes 3. 12 13. The Lord make you to increase and abound in love one towards another and towards all men To what end To the end saith the Apostle he may establish your hearts unblameable in holinesse before God even our Father at the comming of our Lord Iesus Christ with all his Saints It will be a sad thing to be found in our divisions at the comming of Jesus Christ Mat. 24. 50. the comming of Christ is mentioned as a terror to those who shall but begin to smite their fellow-servants We may wrangle stand out one against another in our contentions now but it will not be so easie to answer Jesus Christ as it is to answer one to another In the Name of Jesus Christ I now speak unto you yea as from him charge you let no reason move you to contend with dissent or seperate from your brethren but that which you are perswaded in your conscience and that after due and serious examination will hold out before will be approved of Jesus Christ at his comming The twelfth Let every man consider his owne weaknesses YOu are ready to take offence from others within a while you are as like to be offensive to others There will be as much need they should beare with you as now there is you should beare with them The Common Law of those who intend to live at peace one with another is Veniam petimus damusque We desire pardon and we doe pardon The thirteenth Let us consider our mortality IT is but a little time we have to live shall the greater part of it nay why should any part of it be ravel'd out with contentions and quarrels I have read of Pompey that upon a time passing over divers hils where there lived many people in caves but their order was that the man lived in one cave and the wife in another he asking the reason they said In those parts they live not long therefore they desired that the little time they did live they might have peace and quiet which they had found by experience they could not have if man and wife lived constantly together Though the means they used for their quiet was sordid yet the good use they made of the shortnesse of their lives was commendable Virgil sayes if swarms of Bees meet in the ayre they will sometimes fight as it were in a set battell with great violence but if you cast but a little dust upon them they will all be presently quiet Sprinkle upon your hearts the meditations of death that within a while this flesh of yours will be turned to dust this will quiet you The fourteenth Consider the life of heaven THere is and will be perfect agreement there We are here as Bees flying up and down from flower to flower all day but at night they come all into the same Hive That is a place where Luther and Zuinglius will well agree Shall not we whom God from all eternity hath ordained to live co-heires in heaven to joyn together in praises there agree together here on earth CHAP. XXXIII Joyning graces 1. Wisdome THe deepest Seas are the most calme so men of the deepest judgements are most quiet A man of understanding is of an excellent spirit Prov. 17. 27. or thus is of a coole spirit for so the word signifies his spirit is not heat with passion there is a coole dew of examination and deliberation upon his spirit he weighs the circumstances consequences and issues of things he orders and disposes of things so as jarres contradictions and oppositions are prevented The wisdome that is from above is pure peaceable gentle and easie to be entreated Jam. 3. 17. Reason and Wisdome have a majesty in them and will force reverence Let Passion reverence the presence of Reason sayes Basil as children doing things unseemly are afraid of the presence of men of worth 2. Faith 1. THis unites us to Christ and God and in them to one another 2. Faith commits all causes all feares injures to God 3. Faith layes hold upon and improves those gracious promises that God hath made to his Churches for union Faith sues out the Bond. 4. Faith is able to descry the issue of troubles and afflictions Though Sense sayes It will not be Reason It cannot be yet