a phrase taken from a man which makes love to a partie so the truth of God makes love to many a man it makes love to thy naughtie and corrupt heart and would plucke thee away from these things here below and would draw thee from thy base haunts and filthy lusts and sinfull courses and it would wooe and winne thy soule to take place in it that it may shew comfort to it the truth of God makes love to the world and the world will none of the truth Christ came to the world and the world received him not they were so farre from seeking a Saviour and comming to him that they would not receive a Saviour when hee came unto them Therefore know thou hast a heart that can hate the Lord Jesus Christ but thou hast not a heart to love him thou hast not a heart that can delight in his good Spirit thou hast not a heart that can take content in his rich grace The second reason why I presse this point is this I would discover the disorderly dealing of many poore Saints of God wâ—th their owne soules Many a poore childe of God labours extremely and takes great paines to worke his soule and bring his heart to love Christ he falls out with himselfe because he cannot love God and he is ready to curse himselfe hee cannot get his heart up to heaven where is more riches than is in the best riches of the world where is more honour than in the greatest honour upon earth where is more pleasure than in the greatest delight here below they labour and can finde no good successe they take paines but their worke doth not succeed prosperously the reason is this they doe not begin at the right end they worke the wrong way goe to the sea of love and goe to the sunne of righteousnesse and to the beames of Gods mercie which onely can worke thy heart to love God and delight in him doe not goe to thy cold earthly frozen heart and thinke to fetch love from thence thinke not to bring love to the promise but looke to receive love from the promise but it is the love of God towards thee that must draw love from thee to God againe It was the speech of Christ when he was to send the Comforter to his Disciples Iohn 16.14 He shall receive of mine saith the text and give it unto you marke the phrase all graces and all spirituall abilities are Christs goe thy wayes therefore and presse the Lord Jesus with this promise of his and say The truth is Lord the heart to love thee and delight in thee is thine and thou hast said thy Spirit shall take of thine and give to us therefore give to us of thine Lord that thou mayst receive of thine from us Our hearts cannot love nor delight in thy Majestie but it must come from thee give it to us therefore Lord that wee may give thee of thine owne Vse 2 The second thing I gather from this doctrine is this namely strong comfort and consolation to stay and refresh the hearts of those that have received this gracious worke What ever thy weaknesse be it skils not Is thy love in truth Is thy joy sound it is enough thy soule may bee comforted in that the Lord hath bestowed this gracious worke upon thee in any measure if thy love be in truth it will carry thee through all occasions in this pilgrimage of thine and bring thee to everlasting happinesse it is a ground of admirable refreshing to the soule that findes in his heart this love and delight in God The text telleth us a man by nature cannot doe this Therefore if thou hast this goe thy way cleare thy soule and blesse God for it and make much of it and say Thou hast more than all carnall men than all cunning hypocrites under heaven can have pretend what they will and professe what they please thou that hast the love of God in any measure though in much weaknesse thou hast more than they all This may refresh the hearts of many of you poore ones though haply many other things goe ill with you yet this appeares in the younglings of Christ though they cannot doe any thing for their Father yet they can love him it is a loving childe we say it can love the Father though it can doe nothing for him so you poore weake Christians that have small meanes little abilities haply thy understanding is not so deepe to fadome the mysteries of life and salvation thy tongue is not so glib to talke so freely and conferre so comfortably of heavenly things thou canst not be enlarged in holy duties thy understanding is marvellous blinde thy memory marvellous weake thy parts exceeding feeble so that thou art even ashamed of thy selfe and of what thou hast and dost But I aske thee this question Canst thou love Christ and reioyce in the Lord Jesus mee thinkes many a poore soule replies Yes I blesse the Lord that is all I have to uphold my heart withall I thinke all the profits and pleasures and friends in the world cannot draw my love from Christ it is my delight to love him and rejoyce in him Goe thy wayes then and the God of heaven go with thee this sparke is a sparke of that immortall Spirit of the Father which will never dye it is a worke of grace which will never leave thee it is a badge it is the cognizance and the proper liverie which the Lord Jesus Christ gives only to his Saints there was never a hypocrite under heaven that ever wore this God intended it not for them but those and onely those which the Lord hath effectually called and will glorifie with himselfe hereafter weare this and therefore thou that wantest all yet hast this comfort thy selfe with this in the want of all and say I love the Lord and the Lord knowes it and my soule knowes that I love the Lord Jesus I can say but little for Christ my understanding is weake I conceive not my memorie is weake I retaine not but yet the Lord knowes I love him and delight in him Yea and know thou it too and comfort thy selfe therein the Apostle provoâ—es us to love one another Iohn 4.7 because love comes from God now if the love to the brethren comes from God because wee see Gods image in them then the love of God hath a much more expresse worke in it therefore reason thus with your selves The time was that this wretched vile carnall worldly heart of mine could finde no relish in the promise I could not bring this naughtie soule of mine to entertaine the Gospell of grace nor the Spirit of grace but they were tedious and irksome to my soule but the Lord blessed be his name hath beene pleased to helpe me so that I can doe that which I never could doe I finde the Lords promise and goodnesse much more comfortable to me than all the corne and wine
towards good Now the affections of the soule that doe respect evill are especially three if any evill be comming first feare is a watchman and the heart trembles and shakes and gives in Hence comes palenesse in the face because feare goes downe into the very castle of a man which is the heart and then sorrow greeves and mournes and laments under the weight of that evill wee feare evill to come but we sorrow for evill that is come Thirdly hatred that carries it selfe with a kinde of indignation and takes up armes against that evill feare is preventing sorrow feeling hatred opposing any evil that comes Now these three affections that goe from evill have been wrought upon in contrition and humiliation namely when the Lord the eye of a poore sinner discovers unto him that hell is gaping for him and the God of justice preparing vengeance for him the soule staggers and shrinks in the apprehension of it then the Lord lets in the fire of indignation into the soule and makes the soule feele that before he threatned and then the soule grieves and because his sinnes have beene so tedious unto him his heart is brought to a hatred and indignation against those evils So that if any evill or provocation or temptation come to a soule broken if the old loose companions old corruptions old swearing old blaspheming old dalliances come to call upon the soule let us have our fill of love untill the morning let us take up our old delights when these call the soule and would plucke the soule home againe unto them then these foure fence the soule against all those inchantments in so much that when the drunkard seeth his company comming towards him hee thinkes that is my plague that is the man and his perswasions and counsels hee remembers his old corruptions and his old horrors and his old burthens and heavie loads that lay upon his heart and the soule hates the drunkard and will not yeeld to his perswasions they so fence the way that the voice of sinne cannot be heard it may call and call but the doore is shut they stop the currant that no streame of distempers may prevaile any more this now is done before so that now wee come to the second worke So there are other affections that carry the soule unto good if there be any good propounded or offered then there are foure other affections that the will sends out to entertaine that good hope and desire looke for the good that is absent hope saith I marvell it comes not desire saith I long after it when the goodnesse is neere then love welcomes it and delights in it and joy rejoyceth and all these hope desire love and joy all bring carry and convey all the good to the will which is the great commander of the soule Love and joy tell the will We have found much goodnesse and taken great delight and much content in the goodnesse and mercy of the Lord. The truth is wee have taken delight in sinne and base courses but oh the comfort but oh the consolation and goodnesse of mercy you cannot have a better good than mercy Then saith the will We will have grace mercy wee will rest here Thus wee see how the head and the foot of the affections doe come on to embrace that good now the understanding doth stand sentinell all the while and discovers all the good and musters up hope and desire and love and joy and these foure are the maine wee must meddle with all the other went from evill and they have their proper worke before we doe not hate and sorrow for mercy wee doe not feare to receive mercy but wee feare and withdraw our selves from sinne and corruptions that we may entertaine the call of mercy Thing 2 There is the promise of grace and mercy in Christ a fulnesse of mercy which doth so powerfully and effectually draw the soule by this good that it brings all these affections after it Therefore in this fulnesse of mercy and goodnesse of God there are these particulars that like so many claspes draw all these faculties to God to follow and close with God for their good The promise is a true one and truth is that which marvellously pleaseth the understanding as a mans palate tastes meat so the understanding tastes words There is nothing so pleasing to the understanding as the truth of God Now of all truth there is none like the truth of a promise therefore the evidence of it doth cleere the judgement and the certainty of it doth establish the judgement of a poore sinner Eph. 1.13 The promise of God is a good word Heb. 6.5 therefore as the truth of the Gospell fils the understanding so there is a goodnesse in the promise of grace and mercy which will answer all and satisfie all the faculties of the soule as in the good word of the Lord mercy is a proper object of hope that it may be sustained a proper object of desire that it may be supported there is a proper object for a mans love and delight that they may be cheered nay there is a full satisfactory sufficiency of all good in the Gospell that so the will of a man may take full repose and rest therein Therefore the Lord saith Come unto me all that are weary and heavy laden come hope and desire and love and will and heart they answer We come all the mind saith Let me know this mercy above all and desire to know nothing but Christ and him crucified let mee expect this mercy saith hope that belongs to me and will befall me desire saith Let me long after it nay saith love let me embrace and welcome it let me delight in it saith joy nay saith the heart let me lay hold on the handle of salvation here we will live and here we will dye at the footstoole of Gods mercy thus all goe minde hope desire love joy the will and all lay hold upon the promise and say Let us make the promise a prey let us prey upon mercy as the wilde beasts doe upon their provision Thus the faculties of the soule hunt and pursue this mercy and lay hold thereupon and satisfie themselves herein Hence wee will raise these two points Doct. 1 That the word of the Gospell and the word of the Spirit goe both together this is grounded in the Text they must first heare then learne heare the Gospell and learne by the Spirit Doct. 2 That Gods Spirit gives speciall notice of Gods acceptance to an enlightned soule and that is the first voice of the Spirit to the understanding Now to the first doctrine Doct. 1 The word of the Gospell and the worke of the Spirit alwayes goe together the point is grounded in the Text after this manner they must first heare then learne heare by the word and learne by the Spirit The hearing of the Gospell without the Spirit is nothing else but a beating of the ayre and a
a matter of complement and indifferencie No no I may call it the very wheeles of faith upon which faith is carried for all this while faith is a sowing into the soule Looke as it is with a waggon knocke off the wheeles and all lyes in the dust so take away this desire and faith is in the dust the tenour of all the promises run upon this the thirstie they are invited the hungrie they shall be satisfied nay not onely so but observe further the necessity of this when desire comes all good workes goe forward and our hearts are not only set upon the dutie but the dutie is crowned and credited by this desire It is like the mill damme the fuller the damme is the faster the mill goes so get but desire and all will goe forward the more desire the more paines in seeking after grace this gives a crowne and a credit to all our actions thou prayest haply halfe an houre it is not thy tongue that the Lord accepts but thy desire thou performest many duties outwardly God cares not for that he lookes only at thy desire to approve thy selfe to God in those duties this is the thing that gives credit to all our actions Meanes 3 The third meanes is this labour to spread forth the excellencie of all the beautie and surpassing glorie that is in the promises of God Looke wisely daily and judiciously upon them as occasion serves and when thou seest that admirable and incomparable vertue and beautie that is in Christ and in the precious promises and canst but view them in their proper colours Oh they will even ravish thee and quicken up thy desire If a man carry a packe of never so rich commodities and never opens them no man will have a desire to buy Or if a man have a cabinet full of never so precious jewels if he doe not unlocke it no man will be stirred with a desire after them Even so it is with the promises all those unsearchable riches that are in the Lord Jesus and all the comforts both of this life and that which is to come they are all shut up in the promises Now set open the Gospell and unlock the cabbinet of the promises and then the soule will earnestly desire the same I tell you God is a God of comfort and all the promises are yea and Amen in the Lord Jesus Christ read them daily and examine the excellencie and beautie therein that so thy heart may be brought to prize them and the comfort arising thence Thy soule is discouraged there is mercie to comfort thou wantest grace there is grace to quicken thee See the worth thereof more fully Luke 24. When Christ came and walked with the two disciples that were travelling towards Emaus Luke 24.32 opened Did not our hearts burne within us say they while he opened the Scriptures the Latine word signifieth to burne with desire But how came this they did not talke a word and away but the Lord Jesus Christ opened the Scriptures to them the riches of grace and salvation were unlocked and by Christ opened and then their hearts burned againe with desire Oh that Christ and that mercie and that pardon c. So view thou the promises of Christ and grace and salvation you doe not see the value and riches that are therein but if you will but talke and conferre about them your hearts will burne with desire doe not cast an eye and be gone doe not looke over a promise and away no wonder though your hearts are not affected because the excellent things therein contained are not opened and propounded to you Meanes 4 In the fourth and last place after all this thou must know that it is not in thy power to bring thy heart to desire grace thou canst not hammer out a desire upon thine owne anvill digge thy owne pit and hew thy owne rock as long as thou wilt that is a worke out of thy abilitie and strength Nay let all the Angels in heaven and all the Ministers on earth provoke thee yet if the hand of the Lord be wanting thou shalt not lift up thy heart nor step one step towards heaven therefore I beseech you marke and acknowledge this and goe to him who is onely able to worke this desire in thy soule It is the complaint of Christians and they mourne under it and it is a great miserie Oh they are troubled because they cannot fetch a good desire from their owne soules and one falls another sinkes and a third shakes and they are overwhelmed with discouragement And their complaint is this What a wretched heart have I Object Grace No no the world I can desire the life of my childe I long for that nay every trifling profit and pleasure my soule covets it and I say with Rachel Let me have honour or else I dye But I cannot buckle my heart nor worke this vile nature of mine to bee carried after and long for the unconceivable unsearchable riches of the Lord Jesus Christ And will the Lord shew mercie to me Shall I attaine any favour either here or hereafter Answ Marke the deceit in this case desires grow not in your garden they spring not from the root of your abilities you cannot frame your soules nor order your spirits to desire Christ no struggle while thy eyes sinke in thy head and thy tongue falters when thou prayest and yet thou shalt not procure any longing desire after Christ whiles the world stands desire comes from the quickning vertue of the spirit Therefore seeke to God and confesse In truth Lord I cannot it is not in my power I have not any sufficiencie to frame my heart to this desire I expect it not from my selfe it is not this vile and sinfull soule it is not this wicked base wayward heart of mine that can lift up it selfe it is earthly and heavie but it is thou O Lord from whom come all our desires it is thou that must worke it it is thou that hast promised it good Lord quicken thou this soule and inlarge this heart of mine thou only art the God of this desire none of thy Saints that ever panted after and longed for thy mercie David himselfe had it not in his owne power and sufficiencie it must come from thy power and thy promise and thy grace and blessing Now good Lord worke this in the heart of thy poore servant I would faine have a desire Lord from heaven thus hale downe a desire from the Lord and from the promise for there only you must have it this is the course whereby you may partake of this desire from the hand of the Lord. When the Church was lazie and sluggish and would not rise Cant. 5.4 the hands of her beloved dropped mirrhe upon the handle of the doore and this raised and pulled up the heart of the spouse and she lingred after him and followed him and pursued him and her heart was quickned and inlarged to
nor receive it from any creature under Heaven further than the Father sends downe some beames of his love to kindle this in us further than the blessed Spirit of God is pleased to blow these sparkes when they are kindled further than the Lord Iesus Christ is pleased by the power of his merits to feed these sparkes of love thus blowne in our soules It is almost impossible that any man in his naturall estate should be so deluded as to thinke hee can love the Lord or delight in him 1 Tim. 1.13 14. opened The Apostle Paul tels us plainly hee was a persecutor and a blasphemer and injurious Paul could doe this and thou haply canst doe this thou canst be a blasphemer against Jesus Christ and thou canst be a persecutor of Jesus Christ but Paul cannot beleeve in Christ nor love the Lord Iesus how comes hee to this Why the grace of our Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and love which is in Christ Iesus marke that As if hee should say it was Gods abundant grace that over-powerd my unfaithfull heart and made it faithfull It was Gods abundant grace that over-powerd my stubborne injurious heart and made it a loving heart But how comes this that the grace of the Lord was abundant in faith and love Why it is in Christ saith the text from Christ this faith was rooted from Christ this love was kindled As if he had said I could persecute and blaspheme and despise and cast off God and his grace I was a wretch a villaine that I could doe But that I should love the Lord being injurious and that I should beleeve the Lord being unfaithfull this was from Christ alone In experience we finde it the ball must first fall upon the ground before it can bound up againe and returne from the ground So the Lord Jesus must dart in and fling in this love of his into the soule before the soule can rebound in love and joy backe to him againe We must receive the Spirit of love from God 2 Tim. 1.7 before the Lord can receive any spirituall and holy love from us In a word what the Lord spake in some case to the Jewes is true of every man naturally I know that you have not the love of God in you Iohn 5.42 As if he should say you know not your selves you thinke you have hearts inlarged to God and you pretend great kindnesse to God but you are deceived in your soules and cozened in your corrupt natures for I know full well that the love of God is not in you I pursue the point the rather for these two ends First it discovers and confutes the carnall conceits of a company of carnall Gospellers that pretend they doe not delight to set out themselves in shew so much and they doe not heare and pray and fast so much as these and these doe But say they as for the soundnesse of our love to the Lord Jesus wee defie any man in the world that speakes against us they finde no difficulty in the matter to love the Lord they are certainly perswaded they doe that Therefore if the Minister shall presse upon them and challenge them of want of love to God and his grace they flie in a mans face presently What not love the Lord Jesus Christ why then it is pitie a man should live upon the face of the earth they doe love him and they will love him all the world shall not perswade them from the loving of Christ Oh poore silly creature it is a great argument that thou never hadst this love to God because thou sawest no hardnesse to get it It is an argument thou never didst expresse any delight in Christ because thou thinkest it an easie matter to delight in him Most men thinke it a matter of nothing what not love the Lord Jesus Christ why who cannot love Christ Who cannot I say neither thou nor I nor any man under heaven can love Christ by any power in himselfe Nay let me speake peremptorily thou art as able to save thy owne soule nay thou art as able to redeeme thy soule without Christ as thou art able unlesse the Lord by the Almightie helpe of his Spirit-inable thee to love the Lord Jesus Christ Nay marke what I say you that love Christ and yet doe nothing for him but pretend great kindnesse inwardly how ever you expresse not your selves in outward appearance I tell thee if a man might have happinesse by it if he might have heaven laid downe upon the naile as wee say if he could love Christ I say upon these conditions if thou hast but nature in thee thou wouldst never goe to heaven thou wouldst never be happie No no it will cost thee more than that comes to it will cost thee much paines it will cost thee many prayers and many teares before that day come It is not an easie matter to love the Lord Jesus the Father from heaven must learne you that you must goe to another manner of schoole than ever you have beene at yet if ever you learne this lecture thou mayst pray till thy eyes sinke in thy head and till thy heart failes and yet thou canst not love Christ unlesse the Spirit inable thee thereunto Thinke of this you that thinke it is nothing to love the Lord Jesus Christ If it were nothing but to talke of love and to complement with the Lord Jesus to make a cursie to Christ and to make a leg to the Lord and yet hate him inwardly then it were an easie matter indeed it is nothing to buckle to him in this fashion and in the meane time oppose him and the power of his grace but to entertaine and welcome a Saviour sutable and agreeable to the worth of him this nature will not cannot doe it is the worke of the Lord. Observe it I beseech you I say as nature cannot doe this so nature will not doe it first nature cannot doe it 1 Iohn 1.5 God is light and in him is no darknesse Ephes 5.8 saith the text at all and Ye were darknesse but now are light in the Lord A man naturally is nothing but darknesse and God is nothing but light a man by nature is nothing but unholy and God is nothing but holy Now darknesse will resist light and not give way to it and wickednesse will oppose holinesse and not give way to the same this is thy condition thou hast an ignorant carnall blinde heart and God is light pure and holy and thou canst resist a Saviour but not entertaine him doe what thou canst Nay further as a man cannot naturally doe this so in the second place I say he will not doe it The Apostle affirmes of the Thessalonians That they would not receive the love of the truth 2 Thess 2.10 opened that they might be saved he doth not say They would not receive the truth but they would not receive the love of the truth It is
heart from obedience but the understanding from the acknowledgement of the truth which â—he Devill himselfe confesseth Lord what hearts â—ave these men and what distempers are in their â—pirits who will not doe that which the Devill â—imselfe will doe Passage 2 Nay in the second place looke how they behave themselves when they come into Christs presence doth not that man hate a man that cannot endure to be in his sight and enjoy communion with him if Christ come amongst these and presse into the societie of them in the presence of his children their hearts are transported with infinite indignation against the appearance of grace in the lives and against the appearance of holinesse in the courses of those which are the servants of the Lord observe this they that hâ—â—e poore Christians for the holinesse and grace which they have received from Christ they haâ—e Christ more and holinesse more fearfull is the case of such and their condition lamentable Oâ— that they would at last goe home and parley with their owne soules and reason with their hearts after this manner and not suffer themselves any longer to be deluded say thus to thy soule I have beene heretofore deluded and I have deceived my selfe I pretended I hated such men because they were dissemblers and hypocrites no no I hate the picture of grace much more grace a selfe in them if a man cannot endure the picture of a man much lesse can he endure the person of that man so is it with the soule I beseech you be at last convinced of it and say I hate the shew and forme of godlinesse in Gods children but I hate the vertue and power of godlinesse muâ—â— more if I hate the beames of the sunne I haâ— the sunne much more if I hate the sonne for the fathers sake I hate the father much more if I hate a Christian because Christ hath humbled and brought him home then I hate Christ infinitely then I hate his Spirit infinitely then I hate his grace infinitly much more if I hate the lanthorne for the lights sake then I hate the light much more a thiefe cannot endure a lanthorne if it be a light lanthorne if it be a darke one haply hee can away with it but if it be a light lanthorne hee loathes the lanthorne and hee loathes the man that brings it but he hates the light much more than the lanthorne so is it with every sinfull opposer of the practice and profession of Gods grace a Saint of God hath a rush candle light of Gods grace and purity and uprightnesse and he carries this among a company of blasphemers and opposers of God and his grace now when they see this light of holinesse they hate the man that beares it much more holinesse it selfe which is in him for which hee is so opposed anâ— resisted To this ranke also belongs your poore ignorant carnall creatures and civilized carnall Gosâ—elers however they will not doe what these â—en doe yet they will approve of what they doe poore silly things that know nothing of God and grace and can doe nothing against the truth of God of themselves though they are not brought to this height of wickednesse to be profeâ—â— opposers against that which is holy yet they will joyne sides with the wicked and what they doe they commend and applâ—â—d and approve of â—f a poore Christian be banded from one place to another to the losse of his liberty and griefe of his heart nay say these poore deluded creatures and carnall gospellers it is no matter they must be more holy than others and they must be more precise than others it is no matter now see what they get by it these men now approve of what a company of persecutours doe and their heart is the same though they do not do the same they are guilty of it because of their approvement of it as the Scribes and Pharisees conspired against our Saviour the souldiers they took our Saviour Pilat he condemned our Saviour now the poore crowd they cried below Crucifie him crucifie him they did not condemne him nor take him but they were guilty of crucifying Christ because they gave their consent and approvement thereunto as S. Peter saith Ye have crucified the Lord of life so there are a company of poore creatures Acts 2. you know you old poore husband and your old poore father though poore fooles they can doe nothing against the Gospell yet it doth their hearts good when it is opposed and they say it is well it is pitty but it should be so I tell thee thou aâ— guilty of opposing Christ as well as he that persecutes Christ marke what Christ saith to the Scribes and Pharisees Your Fathers slew the Prophets and you build their sepulchers that is thâ—â— approved the practices of their fathers so thâ—â— looke as it is with a campe there are some leadâ—â— and commanders and there are some souldiers and there are others which are followers of thâ— campe and carry the baggage now though 〈◊〉 be not leaders and captaines and souldiers yet all are of the same campe so there is a great long traine in the Devils campe there are some leaders and profest opposers of Christ which the sunne is wearie to behold and the earth is weary to beare these are the souldiers and captaines and commanders and poore ignorant creatures and carnall gospellers that follow the baggage they are of the black guard too though they are the taile of the armie yet they are of the armie of the Devill and they are all young Satans though their talents bee not so long and their clawes so sharp as others are they have not learned the skill to make a prey of a poore man as others have but yet they will approve of that which others doe consider this then all ye that stand in open defiance against Christ all you that joyne sides with and give a kinde of allowance to such ungodly courses you are guiltie and found tardy in this case though the sinne be not yours by action yet you make it by approvement thus the open enemy to Christ is gone as also the poore ignorant creature and carnall gospeller and civilized person who though the will not doe a thing yet it is rost meat to him to see it done Ranke 2 The second sort that comes here to bee reproved are glozing neuters these also love their sinnes more than Jesus Christ and love not him in truth these are those that halt betweene two opinions your linfie-woolsie men as we speake in the proverb these tame fooles that will doe no body no harme providâ—d that no man hurts them the highest pitch of these neuters is this that they may procure safety among all men and gaine some respect amongst the best they wish all should doe well but their resolution is this they will not trouble themselves nor be troublesome to others they say hurt comes by medling and he that meddles lest
and peevishnesse but the Lord Christ will not cast thee away if thou come to him he will never doe it Object 4 Let me adde a fourth motive I confesse saith the soule there is no want of willingnesse on Gods part but I have a heart which cannot beleeve what is that to me to see provision of mercy and have no heart to receive it Oh this unwilling and distrustfull heart it cannot beleeve Answ If I finde a cure in the promise for this then I hope you will yeeld therefore know that the Lord hath provided in the promise a meanes whereby thou mayst bee made to beleeve and thou shalt be able to beleeve first that sufficiencie which is in the promise and which God intends for thee Now the Lord strikes up the match 2. Things and that the Lord doth this it shall appeare if you consider the manner of Gods worke in two things First God the Father in the promise gives an humble broken hearted sinner into the hands of â—esus Christ that hee may make him able to beâ—eeve Secondly he gives Jesus Christ into the hands of a poore sinner that hee may take him and receive mercy from him Now though thou canst not beleeve yet if Jesus Christ take that heart of thine in hand he can and will make thee beleeve This was the end of his office and comming Iohn 6.44 No man commeth unto me except the Father draw him and I will raise him up at the last day I will make him beleeve and in the grave I will love his poore body and not lose so much as his â—shes but will preserve them there and raise him up from thence and at last I will bring both body and soule to honour and make both happy in Heaven for ever for Christ his sake thinke on this earnestly that every broken hearted sinner is given to Christ as if God the Father had said Oh my Sonne looke well to such a man he lives in a base world and hath many corruptions in his heart but looke thou to him Iohn 10.16 Other sheâ—pe I have which are not of this fold and these I must bring home saith Christ there are many of Gods people called and converted but there are many yet which are in the gall of bitternesse and I know such a drunkard and though hee bee a woolfe now yet he is one of my sheepe and him I must bring home It doth my heart good to thinke that there is many an enemy of Jesus Christ and many that hates grace and goodnesse many a wretched drunkard many a covetous and uncleane wretch that shall bee brought home One goes up and downe this way and another that way as a company of poore sheepe that wander up and downe one falls into this ditch another into that and another in such a grove so there is many a poore sheepe that goes away from God and all goodnesse the Lord give us hearts to pitty them howsoever God hath opened your eyes and brought your hearts and my heart home to himselfe yet there are many other sheepe that as yet goe from God Oh what a blessed mercy is this If Christ hath once undertaken for you hee will seeke you out wheresoever you are The Lord seekes you out many times in the congregation you might come home then if you would well the Lord will make the fire of hell to flash upon the conscience of a man and drag him home but it is no matter which way the Lord brings him home so he come to heaven at last Iohn 17. Thou gavest them to me and I have given them eternall life There is no more difference than this the Father gives the sheep to Christ and saith looke to him and Christ saith you are given to me take you everlasting life betweene you and take eternall glory I give it to you as freely as ever God the Father gave your soules to me Secondly God the Father gives Jesus Christ to the poore soule and saith I give thee him freely with his bloud and all his merits his grace and goodnesse Oh saith the poore sinner blessed be God that Jesus Christ hath undertaken for me and that God the Father hath given mee Christ but alas I cannot pay the price I am notable to purchase the pearle as in a marriage when the parties are both agreed if there bee a quarrell about the feffment all breakes off so it is in this case the soule is now inabled to rest upon Christ but what will the Lord require for I am base and poore well saith God the Father I will not sell my Sonne but I give him to thee and thou must not thinke to purchase him Ioh. 19.26 27. when Christ would commend Marie to the care of Iohn hee saith Woman behold thy sonne and to Iohn he saith Behold thy mother so God the Father saith to Jesus Christ My blessed Sonne behold that poore broken humbled sighing sinner behold thy sonne take him for thy owne and thou poore sinner behold thy Saviour take him to thy selfe and the soule receives that gift at the hand of God the Father Ioh. 10. So God loved the world that he gave his only begotten Sonne c. that is God so set his heart upon those whom he would save that hee gave Jesus Christ to bee received from him and to doe all good for them according to all their necessities thus I hope the heart hath no starting holes the promise is sufficient saith the soule if I had it and God sadly intended it therefore I may take him and God hath given Christ the care of me to make me to beleeve now the will is fully perswaded and saith to hope and desire and all the other affections here is good enough and come hope expect it for ever and come desire here is mercy enough that thou hast desired and come love and joy here is that mercy whereof you have felt the sweetnesse nay saith the will let us rest here and settle our selves upon the freenesse and favour of the mercy of God in Jesus Christ as our Saviour said to the Disciples Ioh. 6.27.28 Will you also goe away oh saith Peter whither shall we goe thou hast then words of eternall life the world cals and our lusts call and pleasures call and the more they call for our hearts the more wee cry after thee out Christ whither shall we goe if not to thee for there is none so gracious none so mercifull to sinners none so ready to doe all good for us and as there is sufficient in the promise and as here is sufficient in thee and enough for sinners so upon thy mercie we will hang upon thee our Saviour wee will live and dye and upon the promises will we put our selves to receive all the comfort and good they will affoord and upon this will we feed for ever Thus much for the opening of the point Vse 1 The first use is for information to rectifie our
bravely upon halfe of that means which he had So there is never a poore Christian Note this which trades in a Christian course but hee hath a faire estate and may live like a man One promise is enough to make a man live comfortably all his dayes though hee were in never so much want but if hee bee cast behinde hand and goes downe the winde with comfort and joy and sinks because of his pride and distempers and vexation the fault is not in the estate for the Lord left him very well he had a childes portion hee had an heart to feare God and love God as David saith O be mercifull unto me as thou usest to 〈◊〉 to those that love and feare thy Name the fault was not in the promises that they could not nor in his faith that it would not helpe him but he let the promises lie by they came into the table but he never cast them up neither did hee husband then aright hee had a world of comforts and consolations that would have given a man liberty in prison and honour in shame and disgrace and comfort in the time of distresse but hee did not husband them Therefore be advised to doe as the trades-man doth hee will not spend of his stocke but live of his trading So I would have every Christian to make a living of his faith whatever strength thou needst fetch it from grace in Christ and what ever comfort thou wantest fetch it from Christ but live by faith and make a good living of it too and then thou dost improve the promise aright bring but an empty beleeving heart with thee and the oyle will never faile and the meale in the barrell will never decay but continually supply thee as it did that poore widow So goe with an humble heart to the promises and husband it well and thou maist draw life and grace from the promises till doomes day And thus in generall Quest But how shall a man be trained up that he may get this skill of living by faith Answ Every man hath his owne shifts and trickes and lives by his owne devices and the devill hath enough of them in the world that lives this life but the best life of all is little looked after Note Now for the answer know thus much that there are three particulars necessary for the training up of the heart to learne this skill of living by faith How to live by faith First wee must labour to get matter for our faith to worke upon Secondly wee must labour to fit faith for the worke Thirdly wee must labour to order our faith aright in the worke Particul 1 First we must provide matter for our faith to worke upon for this wee see ordinarily if a workman want matter to worke upon either a Carpenter or the like hee must needs cease his worke and he can goe no further and if a mans worke failes how can hee provide for his family This is the complaint of poore people now adayes that they have no worke So it is in a Christian course many poore Christians that are newly set up and are not afore-hand in the world they want even matter for their faith I meane some are ignorant and cannot read and some have not meanes and a preaching Minister and others have but small parts and cannot heare and little doe they retaine of what they doe heare Now because they want the promises of God understood and remembred and rightly applied therefore they live marvellously poore though they might live marvellously comfortable in the world and now they have a word of comfort and sometimes the advice of a friend and they have faith but they want matter for their faith to worke upon and therefore they are scarcely able to uphold their soules in trouble Now the matter of our faith is in the whole Word of God Where the matter of faith is as it is with the Bee in gathering hony as the spider gathers poison out of every flower so the Bee gathers hony out of the same flower and out of the sweetest flower there shee suckes most hony and the Word of God the sharpest course and the fearfullest plagues denounced a gracious heart will gather some good by it and a man hath need of these but above all the sweet of the promises of the Gospell and the sap and sweet therein and the bloud of the Lord Jesus Christ that is communicated thereby Oh the faithfull soule sucks most there Now that wee may provide matter for our faith three rules are to bee observed which are commonly observed in all provisions Rule 1 First they provide and lay in in season timely as soone as they can When to provide matter for our faith this is the practice of him that would husband his estate wisely his care is to buy at the best hand So I would have a good Christian to store up all the good promises of God Remember this first in all the good Word of God seasonably I meane when all thy parts and abilities are strong and nature is able to fight it out while the Faire day of Gods favour lasteth and while the Word and Sacraments are dispensed this is the best time to lay in the promises of God that we may not want them when wee have use of them it is a marvellous weake nay a preposterous course when a man is weake his eyes dim and his heart and strength faileth and he is ready to give up the ghost then to lay in grace and provision of mercy and then for him that hath hated a Minister and loathed the meanes of grace and abused the patience and long suffering of God Oh then to have a Minister come to him and have a promise in the day of persecution then for a man to bethink himselfe of the comforts and promises of the Gospell and when a man should spend on the promises then to get it this is but ill husbandry the better way is this now to be buying at every turne and this is the reason why our Saviour saith Oh if thou hadst knowne in this thy day the things that belong unto thy peace while the Word and thy life and the Sabbaths and the ordinances last this is thy day we know not how soone God may take all from us Oh the estate of the poore Palatinates if it be true that we heare of them they have lost all the meanes of grace and they have idolatry now amongst them and there the enemies force them to goe to masse against their consciences and they cannot see a good Minister nor a good Christian but they weepe to consider the times that once they had therefore let us labour to be wise in the Lord now while the Faire is and consider how God deales with his children Psal 48.9 Wee have thought of thy name O Lord in the midst of the table It is spoken there of the goodnesse of God