because we teach this holy truth of God That Jesus Christ in respect of his Godhead is of himself and is equal to his Father even because we teach this fundamental truth they say it is the highest degree of Atheisme and why Because say they common sense teacheth us that he only is the natural son of man who by generation receiveth his nature and substance of his father now say the Papists Bellarminus in prefat lib. 1. de Christo if Christ Jesus receive not his Godhead from his Father but be God of himself as you teach surely then say they he is not the true Son of God the Father and consequently God the Father is not a true Father and so say they by your Protestants doctrine you overturn and cut down the Father and the Son in the blessed Trinity and in this respect your doctrine is hereticall erroneous and tainted with Atheisme To this I answer Here mark how absurd and grosse they are in chargeing this upon us Their foolish conjectures in a matter of great weight and consequence doth plainly appear to be most grosse and most absurd In that in so great a Mysterie as this is the unspeakable and unconceiveable Sonship of the Son of God they would build it upon common sense and make the generation of man to be the pattern of it that as it is in the natural generation of man so it must be in the generation of the Son of God there being a greater difference between these two then there is between heaven and earth In the natural generation of men we know that the child begotten cometh from the Father by propagation but the eternal Son of God cometh not by propagation but by communication of essence and substance yea by communication of his whole essence and substance The eternal God begeteth his Son by communicating his whole essence and substance so that the Father is in the Son and the Son is in the Father and so it is not in the natural generation they are two distinct persons But to answer them more properly and more fully it seemeth that these Cavillers they cannot or they will not distinguish between the Godhead and the Sonship of Christ we hold and teach that the Godhead of Christ is of himself as well as his Father because the Godhead of the Son is not begotten no more then the Godhead of the Father but withall we hold and teach that the Sonship cometh from the Father and Christ is from the Father as he is the second person in the Trinity but as he is God he is of himself God of very God God coequal God coessential together with his Father this we are to hold and maintain and the Popish Cavils are of none effect nor nothing worth being but an idle shift to make application to our selves Is this a truth that Christ Jesus is true God very God as we see it is Vse Oh then how may the Church of God upon this ground comfort it self against all the Malitious and wicked enemies that do oppose it they of the Popish sort they brag of it that they are many that they are mighty they are rich they are great they are up in arms and they will prevail and their Pope shall be upheld say any man what he can to the contrary they will have their Masse their Indulgences Trentals and Dirges and uphold the Church of Rome and advance it in despight of all that say nay Even that Antichristian Whore of Babylon and Synagogue of Rome they will be advanced again in this Land see how fast they hold a lye in their right hand What can they do against the Lord Jesus the Head of his Church who is true God very God the mighty God Esay 9.6 they may oppose him and his Kingdome but can they paralel and match his power they bend their force against the Church of Christ but they shall not prevail for the Church of Christ is knit unto Christ who is the eternal and everliving God of infinite power able with the breath of his mouth to blow all these enemies of the Church of God into hell in a moment the Church of Christ is knit unto Christ and liveth in the life of Christ standeth in the strength of Christ it standeth in the strength of him that is the Creator of all the world can then the enemies of it prevail to the subversion of it they wrestle against heaven and the God of heaven and earth for with him hath the Church combination what then can they do against this bond and knot of unanimity who ever fought against him and prospered did ever any man lift up his hand against heaven and prosper no surely Again this may not onely yeeld matter of comfort to the Church of God in general but to every true member of it in particular the consideration of this that Christ is true God and very God may yeeld matter of comfort to all that in Christ for why they are knit to him who is the ever springing Fountain the tree that blossometh comfort who is able to take them out of his hand neither hell death nor the devil with all his Instruments And further this may chear thee up with this comfort that thou art one with him in whom is found all fulnesse and perfection not onely of power but of grace and mercy and favour and meeknesse and loving kindnesse they are knit unto him who is not only able to help them but willing to help and will never suffer them to perish it is the very argument of comfort which the Lord hath given unto us Joh. 10.30 I and my Father are one in the Verse before saith he none shall be able to pluck them out of my hand then he subjoyneth I and my Father are one one in substance one in power none shall be able to pluck them out of my hand And indeed it is no marvel that the Papists that teach that desperate Doctrine of doubting of salvation that a man cannot have any certain hope of salvation but must live in suspence of it it is no marvel that they teach that Christ Jesus is not God of himself for these two things do well suit and jump together we must doubt of salvation because Christ is not true God of himself a false assertion But let us learn to know that Christ Jesus is very God and it will yeeld us matter of comfort both in life and in death we are knit unto him who is full of power able to defend us against all oppositions he will bring us to the possession or life and glory in heaven even to the same glory in heaven where he is even at the end of the world when all creatures shall have their change then will the Lord Jesus shew his glory and bestow it upon those that are his true members he will suffer none of them to perish so saith the Apostle 2 Tim. 1.12 I know whom I have believed and
we labour to understand it aright and to make a right application of it and we are to take heed how we wrest the word of God by wronging and perverting of it to make the Word of God to serve our fantasies as the Usurer will seek out a place of Scripture to defend his Usury a foul and a fearful sin to make the word of God to speak according to our fantasies and conceits for this is the seed of all heresies whatsoever and therefore we must labour to understand the word aright But here may some object Object and say What would you have me to do that am a poor and unlearned man alas how should I come to a right understanding of the word of God and come to make a right application of it Many Scholers and many Divines are not able to reach into the Depth of it can I then that am a simple and unlettered man or woman To this I answer Answ Be thou careful thou that thus pleadest for thy self to use the means that God hath set up in his Church for the opening and unfolding of his Word and for thy guidance and direction in the way of truth and of love both towards God and man be careful in these means that is be careful in frequenting and using the ordinary meanes of the word the Ministery that God hath set up in his Church for thy direction Prov. 8.33 be thou careful to attend at the gates of wisdome be frequent in hearing the VVord of God opened and expounded and be sure to come to the hearing and reading of the Word of God with an humble heart that thy heart be not lift up with a conceit of thy own understanding but be emptied of all self-conceit and pride in respect of the pregnancy of thy own wit and to this joyn earnest and hearty prayer unto the Lord be attentive to the means that serve to open the word come to the hearing and reading of it with an humble heart and also be instant in invocation and calling upon the name of the Lord that the Lord would open thine eyes and ears and give thee the Spirit of Revelation of understanding do as David did Psal 119.18 Lord open mine eyes that I may behold the wonders of thy Law It is a worthy saying of an Ancient Divine saith he though there be many things in the Scripture hard to be understood difficult to reach into the depth of them yet whatsoever is necessary and needful to be known to salvation it is plainly set forth in the Scripture and easie to be understood to them that will read diligently mark attentively pray heartily and judge humbly come without any self-conceit of thine own wit come even as a fool to the Word of God in comparison of the wisdom of God revealed in it and then by this meanes we shall come to a right application of the Word of God and effectually understand and apply it Come we now to the Apostles reason all they are not Israel that are of Israel that is all they are not the true Israelites and elect and chosen seed of Abraham that are descended of Israel according to the flesh hence we are plainly taught thus much Doctrine That indeed all are not true Israelites that bear the name of Israelites or thus all they are not true Christians that have taken upon them the name of Christ and bear the name of Christians or thus all they that are in the visible Church and are of the visible Church yet they are not members of the true Church of God And for the further manifestation of this if we look in the Book of God we shall find that in all ages from the beginning there hath been some in the visible Church and of the visible Church that were not true members of the Church of God Thus it was in the dayes of Moses in the dayes of Christ and of the Apostles yea when the Church of God was in one Family in Abraham in Isaac and in Jacobs Family in Abrahams Family was an Ishmael as well as an Isaac in Isaac's Family an Esau as well as a Jacob and so in all ages and hence it is that Christ compareth the Church to a field that hath not onely good wheat but tares Matth. 13.26 and in the 47. and 48. verses Christ speaketh of some that said they were Jewes and were not they were Jewes by birth and nation but they were the Synagogue of Satan and in Revel 3.9 he saith some called themselves Jews and were not they were in the visible Church and yet they were not the true Church of Christ Reason Because all they that live in the bosome of the visible Church and make open profession of it they are not all such as God hath set apart to life and salvation though they be in the visible Church and of the visible Church and make the same profession yet indeed they are not true members of the Church 1 Joh. 2.19 where John saith they went out from us because they were not of us they did not truly believe in Christ and if they had been of us they would have continued with us but by this it appeareth that they were not of us because they have made a disjunction from us now to apply this Vse First of all this truth now delivered beareth witnesse strongly against the foolish conceit of the Separatists and what is their opinion They hold and teach That the visible Church is the body of Christ Jesus and all the members of the visible Church they are members of the mystical body of Christ they are partakers of the Spirit of Christ of the life of Christ and the grace of Christ Surely then it must needs follow that all the members of the visible Church are Gods children and heires of salvation yea then Cain and Ishmael and Esau and Saul and Judas they were the children of God and have obtained salvation If this were true that all that are partakers of the visible Church are members of Christ and heires of salvation it were easie to prove that these men were in the visible Church and of the visible Church and therefore by this reason are saved but how false it is to think that these men have obtained salvation any man that hath been exercised in the truth may easily see it they are mistaken in the Tenent and the ground of their error is this Whatsoever they find in Scripture spoken of the invisible Church the Catholike Church seen by the eye of faith they apply to the visible Church as it is said that the Church of God is a holy Nation a peculiar Priesthood they apply it to the visible Church and their definition is a hoch poch a mingling of the properties of the invisible Church and the visible Church together and an appropriating of them to the visible Church this is common both in their Writings and Conferences But come we now to lay the truth delivered a
little nearer to our selves Is it so that all that live in the bosome of the Church are not members of the true Church of God Upon this ground learn we to take heed of a strong delusion that deludeth thousands in the world Many in the world have this conceit and are strongly possessed with it that because they have been bred and born in the visible Church they breathe in it and joyn with it and make the same profession that we do they partake in the holy Ordinances of God they come to the Ministery of the Word they have been partakers of the holy things of God the Word the Sacraments they come to the Table of the Lord therefore certainly they are true Members of the Church of God they are Christians true Christians and who shall say to the contrary and yet we shall find these men that thus believe their phantasies they are ignorant of God and of the truth of God and of the Word of God yea many of them though they be old men and women understand not the grounds of Catechisme nor the Fundamental points of Religion their hearts are full of unbelief and of Covetousnesse and of disordered passions of pride of lust of envy and anger they perform good duties in publick carelesly both in publick and in private never care to examine how they thrive in grace and goodnesse no not so much as perform the duty of prayer or if they do they perform it customarily and with dull and dead hearts they are asleep in hearing the Word and very untoward in performing of holy duties and yet they hold themselves to be in very good case they are good Christians why do they not come to the holy Word and Sacraments and yet are ignorant of the grounds of Catechisme The truth now delivered maketh known unto you that you are in the wrong yea in the case of Judas and Saul they were in as good case as thou art men may joyn themselves to the Church even to the visible Church of God and may participate in all the holy Ordinances of God and yet be no true members of the Church of God and therefore take we heed of deceiving our selves and be stirred up to labour not to rest in this formality labour to find your selves not only in the visible Church and professe the same truth but that we find our selves to be true Christians such as know God and obey the Gospel of Jesus Christ for the Apostle telleth us 2 Thessal 1.8 that Jesus Christ shall come in flaming fire rendring vengeance upon all that know not God and obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ yea let us never rest untill we find we be such as Nathaniel was Joh. 1.47 that we are true Israelites in whom there was no guile no coverers nor clokers of sinnes but that we are upright hearted both in regard of good things and also in regard of sinne for herein we must shew that we are upright and sound hearted if that in doing of good things we seek not the pleasing of men or of our selves to avoid the danger of the Law and such Sinister and by-respects but in a simple obedience unto God because God commandeth them and with a due respect to the glory of God And also in respect of sinne labour we to be sound hearted that there be no regarding of sinne Psal 66.18 If I regard wickednesse in my heart the Lord will not hear me if I cleave unto it so that there must not be in us any regarding of sin and cleaving unto it as by favouring of it either in our selves or in others or by lessening and cloking of sin or a little extenuation of sin oh we are guileful and deceitfull hearted if we do thus extenuate and lessen and cloke sin account some sins little and trifling but to resolve against it accounting them to be vile and odious yea we finding our selves to be guilty to be forward in the acknowledgment of our sin without covering and cloking of sin with God but soundly and freely and throughly acknowledging and confessing our sins and with a resolution to leave it and to break it off and confesse it with grief of heart if we be thus upright hearted we are true Christians and true members of the Church of God without this we can have no assurance that we are in the favour of God we may have a conceit that our sins are done away and that we are in the favour of God but we must labour to be sound hearted therein standeth the assurance of the pardon of our sins Psal 32.1 2. saith David Blessed is the man whose sinnes are forgiven and whose wickednesse is covered and then he subjoyneth as a qualification he is one that hath no guile in his heart Blessed is the man to whom the Lord imputeth not sin and in whose spirit there is no guile whereby we may demonstrate that we are in the number of those blessed people if there be no guile in our hearts Oh then labour we to perform holy duties not to please men or to please our selves but out of obedience to God not to cloke and cover sin and to say for breaking the Sabbath what is it so great a matter to set things in order against the next day On these are not sound hearted therefore if we would have comfort to our soules labour to be true Members of the Church VERSE 7. Neither because they are the seed of Abraham are they all children but in Isaac shall thy seed be called IN this Verse the Apostle maketh a distinction of the seed of Abraham and having affirmed that all they that are of the seed of Israel are not Israelites so here in this seventh Verse he instanceth in Abrahams Family and here the Apostle affirmeth how that not all they that came of Abraham by natural generation are the true seed of Abraham to whom the promise belongeth and this he doth in the first part of the verse Then in the second place the Apostle maketh known by way of opposition and of particular instance who were the true seed of Abraham to whom the promise belongeth namely Isaac which the Apostle putteth down in the words of Scripture alluding to that in Gen. 21.12 where we find the true seed of Abraham that should inherit the promise that God would call it was Isaac so that the reasoning of the Apostle considered with that place in Genesis may be thus illustrated why Ishmael was of Abraham as well as Isaac he was his son yet onely Isaac was the true seed and the true son of Abraham therefore all that are of Abrahams seed by carnal generation are not the true seed of Abraham children of God But now if any should object and say If Ishmael was the seed of Abraham then Ishmael was his child It is true but how according to the flesh the child of the flesh verse the eighth but Isaac onely was the child of the
evidence of the truth of God Answ for Christ saith John 3.36 He that beleeveth in the Sonne of God hath everlasting life He hath one foot within the gates of Heaven alreadie For indeede the life grace and holiness in this life shal be made perfect in Heaven and the life of the godly here in this world and of the Saints in Heaven is all one in substance differing onely in degree theirs is perfect ours is imperfect and the Apostle saith in Romans 8.1 There is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus so that the faith and grace of Gods Children is permanent and lasteth for ever and this Doctrine of theirs is a meere Antithesis or contrarietie to God and his Word 1 Peter 1.5 Gods Children are kept by the power of grace unto salvation doubtlesse Gods Children shal continue unto the end Gods grace shal never depart from them for he hath made many gracious promises to that end as namely these that God will put his fear in their hearts that shall never depart from me Jeremie 32.40 And that he having begun the work of grace wil perfect it in Philippians 1.6 And that Christ Jesus is not onely the Authour but the Consummator and finisher of our Faith Hebrewes 12.2 Let then the enemies of Gods Grace Papists or Anabaptists belch out their blasphemies they shal never be able to drive a Childe of God from this comfort that commeth by his effectual calling that he shall certainly be saved And I might further adde this as a third use Vse that seeing Gods effectual Calling is so sure and certain an evidence of our Election and salvation therefore men ought to make special account and reckoning of the preaching of the Word because it is the ordinarie means of Calling and of conveying grace and faith into the hearts and souls of men Romans 10.17 Faith cometh by hearing and therefore miserable is the case of all Recusants Papists Anabaptists and Familists that refuse to hear the Word and also all prophane Atheists that despise the preaching of the Word and also Carnal Gospellers that are wearie of the preaching of the Word it is a burthen unto them but to passe by this Again further observe we in the next place that the Apostle he rangeth the calling of God into these two sorts not onely Jewes who came of Jacob which was no strange thing because they had many excellent priviledges but also even us that are Gentiles of another Nation and People heathen Pagans such as were without the Covenant without God aliens from the Common-wealth of Israel dogs such as were not worthie of the name of a reasonable creature hence then the Conclusion is this That Gods effectual Calling of men out of the estate of nature into the estate of grace respects not mens persons it respecteth not any station Doctrine condition or qualification the excellency of the Jew is no help nor the basenes of the Gentiles no hindrance to Gods effectual calling the Lord calleth some high some low some rich some poore some masters some servants yea it is worth our marking that the Lord called some few among the Gentiles before Christs incarnation as Jethro Moses his father in Law Job Ruth and others that might be named in 1 Cor. 7.21 Art thou called being a servant thereby implying that the servants may be called aswell as care not for it and in 1 Tim. 6.2 The Apostle speaketh of believing masters so that some of all sorts and conditions are called and the ground is this Reason Because Gods grace is most free effectual calling respecteth not the qualification of men for if it were tied to the qualification of men then in all likelihood those persons should be called of God sooner then others who are of best disposition of best wit and understanding and best towardnesse those that are most civil in their carriage and most unblameable in their lives but it is not so for the Apostle saith the contrarie in 1 Cor. 1.26 God hath refused the rich and wise of the world and revealed his secrets to babes not to noble and great and learned men yea we finde in the dayes of Christ that Publicans and harlots were made to know the good things of God when the Philosophers among the Gentiles and the Scribes and Pharisees and Doctors among the Jews were passed by and passed over so that God respecteth not persons nor stations nor qualifications Vse 1 This being a truth surely then that cannot be true which some do hold and affirm that Gods grace and the effectual calling of men it is given unto men whom God seeth fit to receive it and able to use it If this were so then there should be a natural correspondencie in men answerable to the supernatural Will of God then there should be a power in nature to use the grace of God which indeed is an old rotten Pelagian heresie long agone rooted out of the Church of God Vse 2 This may yield a ground of sweet and of excellent comfort to such persons that are of poore and mean condition in the world of mean gifts of mean parts in respect of understanding here is a matter of sweet comfort for them for they are commonly despised of the men of the world that are of proud dispositions and indeed such is the cursed corruption of our hearts that men doe commonly exempt themselves from the hearing of the Word because they are silly and simple poore people alas say they it is for learned men for great men for scholars to heare Sermons we are poore unlettered men and women and so hereby they wrong themselves but marke what the Holy Ghost saith of Wisedome in Proverbs 9.9 10. VVho so is simple let him come to me and those that are destitute of wisedome and understanding let him eate of my bread and drinke of my wine And the Lord Jesus rejoyced in his Spirit when he considered that his Heavenly Father had hid the things that concerned his Kingdome from the wise and prudent and revealed them unto babes So then for to conclude art thou one that art a mean person and of simple understanding be not discouraged for Gods effectual calling is not revealed to rich and great men onely but whosoever attendeth to the voyce and call of God and to the Ministerie and preaching of his Word among the Gentiles As Solomon speaketh Proverbs 8.33 That doth beat the thresholds and trample in Gods House and be diligent and frequent in hearing the will of God assuredly shall in Gods due time be wrought upon and effectually called and be made a Member of the mystical Body of Christ Jesus Therefore doe not thou absent thy selfe from Gods Word but come cheerfully to it and hear upon all occasions VERSE 25 26. As he saith in Hoseah I will call them my People which were not my people and her beloved which was not beloved c. IN these two Verses our Apostle proveth the calling of the
him He appointeth the drops of rain to fall in this place and not in that so he doth cause the dew of his Word to fall upon the clay the Gentiles in Matth. 10.6 into the Cities of the Samaritans enter not and in Acts 16.6 7 we find that Paul and Timothy they were forbidden of the holy Ghost to preach the Word in Asia Yea when they had a mind to goe to Bythinia the Spirit of God would not suffer them but sent them to Macedonia Acts 16.9 Come over into Macedonia and help us so that the outward preaching of the Word it is vouchsafed to some and not to others as when Christ lived upon the face of the earth the bodily eyes of all men were not opened but onely some and others remaine blind some blind persons were left in their blindness And the dead bodies of all were not raised though some were at the death of Christ so dealeth the Lord with the minds and souls of men he onely out of his gracious pleasure doth open the minds of some men and make them to see know and understand and believe by the preaching of the Word according to his gracious pleasure therefore we may resolve upon it as a certain truth that God doth call men out of the estate of nature into the estate of grace effectually out of his free grace and mercy Vse 1 If this be so it is not then upon foreseen merit that God doth call men effectually and doth work upon them powerfully by his Spirit that is the error of the Papists they hold indeed that the election of God and consequently the revelation of the truth of God it is upon their merit foreseen because God doth foresee some worthiness in them we are to renounce this as a gross Popish errour yea the truth now made known unto us being duely considered and thought upon it beareth strongly against that position that is held by some that redemption wrought by Christ is universal that Christ died for all men universally without any exception of any Now not to stand upon this erroneous position which is a dangerous errour in the ground of it it making the sin of men the sins of the world death and hell to be stronger then Christ that Christ should die for all men and yet some of those men goe to hell a fowl and a gross errour besides this it cannot stand with the truth now delivered that Christ died effectually for all men without exception of any for if so be Christ did die for all men generally and universally then doubtless all are acquainted with it savingly as a benefit belonging to themselves such as are redeemed assuredly God doth bring them to the saving knowledge of their redemption Now this is not so the preaching of the Word and plain experience doth tell the contrarie for God out of his mere good will and pleasure doth call none effectually but such as are redeemed by Christ and so all men are not for then they should savingly be brought to the knowledge of their redemption but all are not so for as in the time of Christ all men that were blinde had not their eyes opened so all have not their minds enlightned and therefore universal redemption wrought by Christ is a meer fancie of the brain of man forged in hell and there is no truth in it to say that Christ died for all and if we rest upon this we shall finde a deceiving ground of comfort Howsoever some will say how shall we comfort a poor soul a prisoner that is to be executed but by telling him Christ died for all upon what ground No Christ died not for all Again is it so that God worketh freely upon the minds and souls of men out of his free grace and mercy Oh then such as find themselves to be in Vse 2 the number of the called of God and throughly wrought upon by the power of the preaching of the Word that are brought to the saving knowledge of God in Christ they are bound to acknowledge the riches of his free grace and mercy and be thankful unto God for the same Consider it thou that hast good evidence of thy effectual calling that art transformed and changed and brought into a new mold and fashion consider with thy self that many are left in their natural ignorance and unbelief yea many are given over to Popish superstitions many living in the same place frequenting the same means hearing the same sermons sitting in the same seat with thee they remain ignorant in their blindnesse of minde and hardnesse of heart but God hath given thee not onely his Word and Gospel preached but a heart enlightned to receive it therefore thou hast cause to magnifie the mercy of God for this blessing of all blessings And learn thou to break out and say Lord what am I that thou shouldest vouchsafe unto me such a mercie I see thousands in their natural estate and ignorance I was born and brought forth in sinne like other men and have increased and multiplied my sinnes exceedingly my unthankefulnesse is great and my unworthinesse greater and yet thou hast vouchsafed mercy unto me above many thousands Lord thou art gracious and merciful unto me Thus we ought to be stirred up our selves to magnifie the mercie of God in that many thousands are given to Popish superstition and God hath given thee a flexible heart to his Word Oh thou canst not be sufficiently thankful for so great a favour As he saith also in Hosea I will call them my people which were not my people and her beloved which was not beloved COme we now to the very words of the text to enter into the bowels of it In these words as I have shewed you we have a double description of the Gentiles First of their estate before their calling when they were not the people of God by nature Secondly of their condition after their Calling that they were now become the people of God and beloved of the Lord hence then first of all appeareth the estate of man by nature as yet unconverted and not wrought upon by the Spirit of God through the preaching of the Word and Gospel hence the Doctrine is this Doctrine That men who are in their natural estate as yet not effectually called and as yet not wrought upon by the Spirit of grace by the preaching of the Word and Gospel are in a miserable estate and condition they are not the people of God nor beloved of God so saith the Text and we find that that the Scripture setteth out the miserable estate and condition of men in their natural estate by many notable speeches in Rom. 5.6.8 it is said that they were sinners in a high degree ungodly yea enemies unto God and unto Christ such as are in their natural estate they are enemies unto God and there is open defiance between God and them and they may look that the Lord shall deal with them as a professed
the great Lord and King of heaven and earth and God hath promised to do good to them and to their posterity for many generations Exod. 20.6 To shew mercy unto thousands to them that love him Psal 112.2 The generation of the righteous shall be blessed yea they are his Jewels Mal. 3.16 Vse 1 See then for the Use of this in the first place see I say and take we notice of the great force of true piety of what account it is with the Lord it 's sufficient to get honour not onely to those that have it with all that are able to judge aright but also to their kindred and to their posterity and such as be of kindred or any way allied unto good and godly men may rejoyce in it and after an holy manner boast of it that they are the kinsmen of such worthy servants of God or that they are the children of such godly parents yet so as that by the example of their kindred they be stirred up to tread in their steps and to become holy and religious themselves otherwise that honour will turn to their shame as Solomon saith Prov. 16.31 Age is a crown of glory when it is found in the way of righteousnesse so to be descended of good and godly parents is a crown of glory if it be set on the head of such as are godly and religious otherwise it is a dishonour to them and without Gods mercy shall encrease their condemnation and on this ground let parents learn how they may estate their children in that which may be for their honour and best good namely thus they are to labour to bring themselves within the Covenant of grace and to become holy and religious themselves and then though they cannot derive their holinesse to their children because they beget them not as they be holy men but as men simply by the power and strength of nature yet by vertue of the Covenant God will be good to their children Gen. 26. we read of many blessings promised to Isaac and why because saith the text vers 5. Abraham his father obeyed the voyce of the Lord. Holinesse in the Parents seales up Gods favour not onely to themselves but to their children also This cannot raking and scraping together of wealth do it is a common saying but a wicked and cursed saying Happy is the child whose father goes to the Devil It is rather a comfort to the children when they can remember that their parents are or have been godly and in the favour of God they may then say as Jacob said Gen. 32.9 Lord thou hast been or thou art the God of my father good and gracious to him shew thou mercy to me his child according to thine own sweet promise Last of all Is it an honour and dignity to be of the race or kindred of Vse 2 such as have been holy servants of God and to be the children of good and godly Parents what an honour then is it to be the children of God and to be born of God and to be the adopted sons and daughters of God without question that is the highest degree of honour that can be vouchsafed to any worldly men esteem it a great honour to be of the race or kindred of Noble men and great men in the world but alas it is but a shadow or rather not so much as a shadow compared to the true honour of the least or meanest of Gods Saints They are the adopted sonnes and daughters of God the great Lord and King of heaven and earth they are brethren to Christ heires to the Kingdom of heaven they have Angels for their guard all things for their good and the whole world is theirs and this honour ought to affect our hearts and we are to be ambitious in seeking this honour above all things in the world Now further it is not to be passed by without noting that the Apostle here saith the Jewes who lived in his time at the time when he writ this Epistle were the posterity of the holy Patriarks and no doubt they were then able to fetch their pedegree from those holy Fathers and to prove themselves to be the seed and children of Abraham and to come of his line as they alledge for themselves and brag of it to Christ Joh. 8.33 VVe be Abrahams seed and verse 39. Abraham is our father yea doubtlesse they could then shew a perpetuall succession of their high Priests from Aaron to the time of Christ yet for all this they were rejected and were not the true Church of God the Jewes now rejecting Christ and refusing to imbrace the faith and doctrine of the Gospel are not the true Church of God though they be descended from Abraham and from the holy Patriarks and though they can derive their pedegree from them See then I note it to this purpose the vanity and weaknesse of that argument that is used by our adversaries the Papists that forsooth the continual succession of Bishops is an evident argument of the true visible Church and they will needs have their Romish Synagogue to be the onely true Church because as they say their Pope is the successour of Peter and they have had a continual ordinary succession of Bishops Pastours and Doctors from the time of the Apostles which indeed is a vain brag and can never be proved it is questionable whether Peter ever sate as Bishop at Rome And the Popish Church hath no succession from the Apostles for many hundred yeares after Christ at the least for five or six hundred years And admit they could shew a continued succession of their Bishops from the time of the Apostles without interruption yet that is but a sandy and a weak ground to build the truth of their Church on unlesse they can also shew a continual succession of true doctrine and that their Church hath succeeded the Apostles in truth of doctrine for indeed they cannot be said to succeed them whose doctrine they renounce An outward succession of persons in any place without succession of true doctrine from the Apostles which the Papists cannot shew is nothing worth It helpeth not the Bishop of Rome to have as they say Peter for their predecessour and that they are his successours so long as they swerve from the true Doctrine of Peter and are become such grosse Idolaters that personal succession if they could prove it can nothing avail them It followeth verse 5. and of whom concerning the flesh Christ came that is of which Jews Christ also descended concerning the flesh as touching his humane nature This is also added as further matter of honour and dignity to the Jewes that Christ came of them concerning the flesh as touching his humane nature that he that was the Sonne of God and that from all eternity should have the same Ancestors and Progenitors with them Whence we see then Doctr. That the Jewes are a very Honourable people having many excellent priviledges and prerogatives
God by nature and by essence God of himself equal to his Father indeed as Christ Jesus is the second Person in the Trinity and in regard of his Sonship he is from his Father begotten of him from all eternity as he is the Son But in respect of his Godhead he is God of himself equal to his Father the Apostle here affirmeth it that he is true God and very God and not onely barely affirmeth it but backeth his affirmation by two special epithets and titles to prove it First he is over all he is over all persons and over all things he being Creator over all Coloss 1.16 By him were all things created visible invisible Thrones Dominions Principalities and Powers Secondly he is said to be blessed for ever which is also an epithet title and attribute of God Rom. 1.25 the Gentiles turned the truth of God into a lye and worshipped the creature and forsook the Creator blessed for ever and this holy truth of God hath not only ground and footing here but in other places of Scripture Joh. 1.1 In the beginning was the word and the word was with God and that word was God even before the world was or had a being he was God yea the Evangelist saith that by it all things were made and without it was made nothing that was made he putteth it down both affirmatively and negatively and in Joh. 8.58 Christ saith Before Abraham was I am a title and an attribute proper and peculiar to God alone Exod. 3.14 I am hath sent me unto you not I was before Abraham but I am Philip. 2.6 the Apostle saith that Christ even before his incarnation was in the form of God and he thought it no robbery to be equal with God he knew it to be no wrong nor usurpation to be equal with God It were no hard matter at large to prove this truth as by the predictions and foretellings of the holy Prophets of God which are spoken of Jehovah in the Old Testament and in the New Testament we find applyed to Christ and also by the works that are proper to God and peculiarly appropriated to God and cannot be but of a Divine Nature these are given to Christ as to make the world to know the hearts of men and forgive sins yea by the many and wonderful Miracles that he wrought beyond the power of man man was not able to perform the like which his enemies could not chuse but acknowledge that therein appeared a Divine power all this doth demonstrate unto us the truth of Christs Godhead Yet before I come to make use of it I hold it needful to answer some Cavils which are brought even against this very text that now we have in hand for some wrangling spirits in the world do stretch their wits to wrong this Text and say that Christs Divine Nature is not proved out of this Text which to my understanding is as clear as any in the Book of God Cavil For thus they Reason say they Not every one that is called God in Scripture is therefore the God of heaven and earth for Magistrates are called gods Psal 82.1 God standeth in the assembly of gods and in the sixth verse I have said Ye are gods And again in that it is ascribed unto Christ to be over all that title belongeth unto Christ not by nature but by donation it is a donative given him from his Father in Phil. 2.9 where it is said God hath highly exalted him and given him a name over all names so that blessed for ever is a title given him of his Father and belongeth to God the Father and they alledge Rom. 1.25 and in 2 Cor. 1.3 11.31 where blessed for ever is given to God the Father And therefore this place is no clear evidence and proof of the Godhead of Christ thus they seek to put out the clear light of the truth But they are easily answered Answ First of all it is true indeed Magistrates are gods they are said to be gods not properly but figuratively and by resemblance and by way of similitude they bear the Image of God and stand in the Room of God in regard of their power and authority Note And it is worth our marking we shall find that the name and title of God is never in Scripture given to any one singular person to any one individual I have said you are gods but never said I have said thou art a god or if it be it is with a limitation to a certain sense as God saith to Moses I have made thee a god thou art a made god In my place thou art a god to Pharaoh Again Magistrates in Scripture are never said to be God over all but Christ is here said to be God over all which proveth that he is the great and mighty God the King of heaven and earth he is God over all Oh but they say this title over all it belongeth not to Christ by nature but by donation and guift They are deceived and the ground they build upon is not a good foundation For in Philip. 2. you shall find there that the Apostle speaketh of the exaltation of Christ as he is the Mediatour so he hath a name by guift he hath a name given him over all names according to his humane Nature but he is God over all by Nature and that appeareth in Joh. 3.31 He that is come from on high is above all still the Evangelist saith he is above all and over all so that he hath that properly by nature Now touching the phrase the last thing that they alledge blessed for ever which they say is never given to any but to God the Father it is true it is usually in Scripture given to God the Father yet not by way of exclusion not exclusively not so as that the Son and Holy Ghost are shut to be blessed for when it is given to God the Creator as in Rom. 1.25 it is not onely to God the Father but even therein also is Christ included because by him are all things created Joh. 1.3 Col. 1.16 For the work of Creation is a work of the whole Trinity so that notwithstanding this allegation and Cavil it is still a truth That Christ Jesus is God true God very God God by nature God by being God of himself equal to his Father Come we now to the Application I might bend the force of this truth against the opinions of the Arians Vse and Mahumethists that have along time blasphemed Christ but their old rotten opinions have been sufficiently confuted by the Ancient Divines of our Church But take we notice of this truth to this purpose It serveth to clear the Doctrine of our Church from a vile slander and blot that the Papists seem to blemish it withal The Papists are so impudent and shamelesse that they stick not to charge our Doctrine to be tainted with no lesse then the highest degree of Atheisme in this respect
be in the matter of justification and sanctification but to answer more fully I hope the Papists will not deny but that Abraham and David had as well Moral works as Ceremonial works if they do they deny the plain truth of God and yet the Apostle saith Rom. 4.4 5 6. These two holy men they were not justified or saved by any thing done by themselves but even by the faith of Jesus Christ being imputed unto them for righteousnesse Object 2 Again say the Papists we grant they were justified by faith why then Faith is a work and therefore works have some stroke in the Justification of a sinner I answer Answ It is true faith is a work it is a work of God Christ calleth it so Joh. 6.29 when the Scribes and Pharisees say what shall we do that we may do the works of God Christ saith believe in God that is a work of all works the best work but we must know that faith doth not justifie as it is a work no not by the worth and goodnesse of faith the very act of believing justifieth not for the vertue and goodnesse of it but it justifieth relativè as an instrument or hand applying and taking hold of the Lord Jesus Christ and so doth faith justifie apprehending Christ as the matter of Justification Yet further they object say the Papists in the places alledged where Object 3 there is an opposition between grace and works the Holy Ghost meaneth works of nature such as are done by the strength of nature and not of the works of grace no these two may well stand together works that come from the grace and Spirit of God and grace these two may well stand together in the matter of salvation To this I answer Answ I beseech you consider with me that place in Ephes 2.8 9. where the Apostle saith by grace you are saved through faith and that not of your selves it is the gift of God then he subjoyneth not of works lest any man should boast of what works doth the Apostle speak of works of nature no such matter but works done by the power of grace how may that appear in the tenth verse he saith we are his workmanship created in Christ Iesus to good works plainly teaching us that the works he speaketh of are works done by us framed anew in Christ Jesus by the power of his Spirit and grace we being in Christ made new creatures so to leave the Papists Is it so That Gods eternal election of his chosen before all time and Vse 2 effectual calling in time is merely and onely of Gods free grace and favour and not of the works of men upon this ground we must learn our Lesson and duty howsoever we are bound to the doing of good works of all sorts and kinds within the compasse of our place and callings both duties of piety to God duties of love equity mercy and justice to men and are bound to be rich and plentiful in all good works for necessary uses that they may be fruits of faith evidences of Gods love and favour unto us in Christ testimonies of our thankfulnesse unto God for his mercy and necessary antecedents to God before the reward of life and glory in heaven so that good works are necessary yet mark the Lesson howsoever we are thus bound to good works yet we must renounce the merit of them take heed that we rest not upon the merit of good works we must renounce all trust and confidence in them and stick onely and wholly to the free grace of God for our justification our comfort here and happinesse hereafter all from the beginning to the consummation from predestination to glorification is all of the free grace and favour of God Many silly ignorant people there be that say they hope to be saved but ask them the question how you shall have a blind answer by their good dealing by their good serving of God and by their good prayers they are just and true and by this means they hope to be saved they have no other ground but that which is merely natural Popish and carnal and doth shoulder and thrust out the free grace and favour of God alas if there were no other way to come to heaven but by our good dealing and good serving of God woe be unto us for then no flesh shall ever be saved no mere man shall ever come to heaven if all our happinesse depend upon our own goodnesse all our comfort were at an end For the best of our works are stained like menstruous clouts your hearing the Word our preaching and prayer they are but as menstruous and filthy clouts and have many imperfections cleaving unto them and herein learn a trick and subtilty of Satan if Satan cannot prevail with a man to be abominable and vile in his life to be a debauched creature but that he will live civilly and orderly and will be doing good things then he will temper with him and stirre him up to be conceited of his goodnesse and to rest upon it as the ground of comfort when a man doth avoid the bloody-faced sins of the world then the devil maketh him to think he is a right honest man and make that the ground of salvation but this is as pleasing to the devil as a lewd and a wicked course of life for assuredly the trust and ground of comfort in any thing done by us shall assoon bring a man to hell as the most vile and debauched course of life Oh then trust perfectly to the grace of God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 1 Pet. 1.13 the word is very significant and signifieth soundly holily and solidly trust to the free grace of God for if thou trust upon any thing else it will plunge thy soul into the bottomlesse pit of hell yea if we rest upon the grace of God though the Lord do afflict and bring us under in grievous afflictions yet happy are we we are built upon the free grace of God and he will never take his grace and mercy from us as he saith to David 2 Sam. 7.14 15. if thy son sin against me I will correct him with the rods of men but my mercy will I never take from thee thou art in a blessed estate that resteth upon the mercy of God VERSE 12. It was said unto her The elder shall serve the younger IN this Verse our Apostle putteth down the speech of God unto Rebekah which we read of in Gen. 25.23 the Holy Ghost in that Chapter telleth us that Rebekah having conceived twins two children in her womb and feeling the children to strive in her womb she went to ask counsel of the Oracle of God touching that matter and the text saith God gave her this Answer two Nations are in thy womb Rebekah two manner of people shall be divided out of thy bowels and the one people shall be mightier then the other the elder shall serve the younger these were the very words of
Oh take heed thou use not thy wealth as they do but the more bountiful the Lord is in pouring his blessings upon thee the more humble thou art the more holy thou art the more thy heart is inlarged with righteousnesse and in walking before God and in all thankfulnesse yea thereby thou art made ready and fit for every good work thy heart is not lock't up to choak the seed of the Word in thy heart but they open thy heart and thy hand and make thee ready to every good work to reflect upon the poor members of Christ the more thou hast the more abundant thou art in good works then certainly thou mayest conclude that God hath blessed thee with thy wealth and they are testimonies of Gods love to thee and God hath manifested his love unto thee which he bare before the world was and thou mayest certainly conclude God loveth thee indeed As it is written I have loved Iacob and hated Esau LEt us now proceed unto farther matter offered unto us from this testimony of the Prophet I have loved Jacob and hated Esau here cited by the Apostle and here we see that God did not onely love Jacob for the time present but also loved him from everlasting hence I observe thus much briefly Doctrine That Gods chosen they were alwaies beloved of God there can be no time given wherein Gods chosen were not beloved of God God loved his chosen before they had a being in the world yea before the world was and we cannot possibly prescribe a time when God loved not his chosen or when he began to love his chosen no his love was from everlasting Reason For as all other things were ever present unto God things past things present things to come they were all present unto him from everlasting he did look upon them uno intuitu with one full sight so were his chosen as many as belonged to his election he loved them before the foundations of the world was so that no time can be given wherein God began to love his chosen Object I but some may say doth not the Scriptures point out that though Gods children be now beloved of God yet there was a time when they were enemies of God as in Rom. 5.10 yea doth not the Apostle say in the Ephes 2.3 that they were children of wrath how can it be then that no time can be pointed out when they were hated of God It is true indeed the Scripture doth note out this unto us Answ that they are by nature children of wrath as well as others and we are to believe it to be a truth That Gods chosen before their effectual calling and conversion are enemies to God and God is an enemy unto them before their effectual calling and conversion in respect of sin and because of sin which is opposite and contrary to good and to God himself which is good yet even then Gods chosen are beloved of God in regard of election and even then God loveth his elect before their effectual calling as his elect uncalled and with that degree of his love which he beareth to his elect uncalled yea God maketh it appear manifestly that he loveth them as his elect uncalled in that he giveth unto them in time true repentance for if he did not love them he would not give them repentance and therefore they were then beloved of God as his elect in time to be called and he doth work upon them in time saving grace true conversion true faith and sanctification which are things tending to life and salvation and doth he give these to reprobates as testimonies of his love to them he loveth not no certainly he doth not and therefore certainly we may resolve upon this That God loveth his elect from everlasting and no time can be given when he loved them not Upon this ground it followeth that the Anabaptists and other such Vse 1 erring spirits are deceived in that they hold this as their tenent that God doth purpose and decree the salvation of some before the world was but God doth onely then actually choose them when he seeth faith and repentance in them For if this were true surely then God loveth not any sinner to life and salvation till he seeth repentance in them which is clean contrary to the truth of God now delivered That no time can be given wherein God loved not his chosen This being so that no time can be given wherein God loved not his chosen Vse 2 surely then upon this ground we may conclude to our comfort we being such that belong to Gods election that Gods love shall be continued unto us for ever as Gods love unto us unto life and salvation hath no beginning but is eternal so also it shall be without end as we cannot point out the time of beginning no more can we of the continuance but as God hath loved us from everlasting so doubtlesse he goeth on not only within his own blessed Majestie but in his love to us he goeth on continually without alteration or shadow of changing Joh. 13.1 whom he loveth he loveth unto the end so that this may be a ground of sweet and excellent comfort to as many as find themselves wrought upon by the Spirit of God and find Gods love shed abroad in their hearts that Gods love is everlasting for the beginning and continuance of it Now proceed we further I have loved Jacob and hated Esau here we see that as Gods love to Jacob was the cause of Jacobs advancement and preheminence so Gods hatred to Esau was the cause of Esau's servitude and subordination hence I might stand to shew that Gods hatred is the soveraign and chief cause of all evils of punishments that befall the wicked in this life and hereafter though sin be the next and subordinate cause yet the soveraign the main the chief the grand and Mother cause is Gods hatred but this I will not stand upon but rather note out the particular application of Gods hatred against Esau and observe we to that purpose it is here said God hated Esau that particular person Esau which being understood as before expounded affordeth unto us this conclusion That God hath from everlasting certainly decreed the rejection of some particular persons among men even of Esau and of such as Esau was Doct as God from everlasting decreed the election of some to life and salvation so hath he also decreed certainly the rejection and refusing of others for even as he loved the one so he hateth the other And this ground of truth hath evidence and proof of it in other places of Scripture in the 1 Thess 5.9 saith the Apostle he hath not appointed us to wrath but that we should obtain salvation by the means of Jesus Christ thereby implying that some are appointed of God to wrath and in his eternal counsel God hath appointed that some shall never come to life and salvation and in 1 Pet. 2.8 the Apostle
to that there is no truth in them they are lying spirits and I may justly say to such as Abraham said to the rich man in hell Luk. 16.29 thy friends have Moses and the Prophets let them hear them so we have the writings and the words of the Apostles and holy Prophets of Jesus Christ and God speaketh unto us therein there is the Oracle of God and we must give leave and liking to them and not upon the fancies of men that say such and such a day shall be great disasters Oh but say some these things sometimes come to passe It may be so in Judgment they come to passe because men give ear unto them what saith the Lord by Moses Deut. 13.1 2 3 4 5. If a lying prophet or a dreamer of dreames do tell you of strange things and they come to passe believe him not for the Lord doth it to try you and it is the just hand of God to bring it upon you because we give ear and liking to them Again observe we the Apostle bringeth these words of Moses I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy to prove that God was not unjust in loving Jacob and hating Esau he having denyed this with a God forbid he subjoyneth presently as a reason to prove it For he saith to Moses I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy A man would think this were a strange kind of clearing God from injustice is not God therefore unjust when he loveth Jacob and hateth Esau without cause because he saith I will have mercy because I will hath God no other reason to give But we must learn to acknowledge that this is the soveraign power of the great God of heaven and earth that his will must be reason enough to rest upon and this is the true obedience that is acceptable and pleasing to his holy Majestie Doctr. That Gods will and pleasure and his appointment touching all things that are in the Word and touching the ordering and disposing of all things and coming of all things to passe in this world it is holy just and good and it cannot be taxed as unholy and unjust though we cannot dive into the depth of it the will of God that is holy just and good though we cannot comprehend the depth of it And the reason and ground is Because it is the very nature of the Will of God he doth all things Reason 1 most freely and justly as in Ephes 1.5 He hath predestinated us to be adopted through Christ Jesus in himself nothing out of himself according to the good pleasure of his will Again secondly the will of God is the square and rule of all goodnesse Reason 2 and righteousnesse whatsoever God willeth it is good because he willeth it but whatsoever is in Scripture is agreeable to the will of God is good and whatsoever dissenteth from the will of God it is evil so that upon this ground Gods will and pleasure it is holy just and good and cannot be taxed with evil because he willeth it How is the good will and pleasure of God just and holy in respect of sin for he doth appoint it else it could not be in the world Object It is true sin could not be in the world unlesse God did appoint it Answ and yet Gods appointment is good God willeth the being of sin in the world not simply as it is peccatum sin but as it is a pupishment for some evill foregoing and so he maketh it to serve for the manifestation of the glory of his Justice in this respect the being of sin is good and so God who is able to bring light out of darknesse good out of evil he doth righteously and willingly permit evil Upon this ground we must learn to lay aside all reasonings of the flesh Vse against the will and appointment of God touching all things that come to passe in the world we must learn not onely in our words but thoughts also to justifie the will of God as holy and just in respect of the being and coming to passe of every thing in the world But to apply this a little nearer and to another purpose to teach us that as we must justifie the working will of God so we must justifie his signifying will in his Word whereby he doth signifie his mind to acknowledge that to be holy just and good yea we must learn to esteem and to hold every Commandement of God every denunciation threatening and every promise of God that we find in the holy book of God to be holy just and good Rom. 7.12 And it is a sure sign of grace when we can acknowledge the wisdom of God in his Word and every Commandement of God to be holy and righteous as when a man can justifie the Commandement of the Sabbath the Commandement against uncleannesse usury or any Commandment that doth crosse and thwart and contradict our sins whatsoever that we can say Lord thou art just and upright in thy Commandements howsoever I am sinfull this is a sign of a sanctified soul whereas every worldling will be disputing against every Commandement of God and will pick a quarrel with them at the Commandement of the Sabbath that requireth we should not think our own thoughts speak our own words nor do our own works on that day Esay 58.13 Oh saith the carnal man may I not walk to Taverns and Ale-houses and talk of matters of the world this is too strickt and rigorous And so in the matter of apparel whereas the Lord requireth our apparel should be modest befitting such as fear the Lord Oh say they this is too strict if I should not follow the fashions of the world I should be accounted as an Owl and as no body in the world thus they wrangle and cavil against the Commandements of God but they that do justifie the Word of God as holy and true though it meeteth with our dearest lust yet we subscribe unto Gods Commandements this is a signe of true grace in our hearts Oh therefore labour to subscribe unto the Commands of God if we will be assured of grace For he said to Moses I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy And I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion Object VPon occasion of these words I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy A blasphemous Heretick did hold That mercy was not a natural property in God but an act of the will of God Because that Moses bringeth in the Lord saying I will have mercy upon whom I will And thus he reasoneth God doth alwaie suse his natural properties such as be essential in God they are in exercise and he useth them continually but saith he mercy whereby God doth offer grace unto sinners and pardon of sin unto man is not alwaies exercised and shewed forth as namely to all sinners impenitent And the Apostle affirmeth that God hath mercy upon whom he will And so the Apostle
Objection in the beginning For the Papists they say eluding the evidence of this text in this manner It is not in him that willeth or runneth after the flesh and according to Nature but by your leave say they it is in him that willeth and runneth by Faith which is grounded upon Gods mercy may agree with Gods mercy A poor shift and thus they seek to shift off the Evidence of this text directly contrary to the meaning of the Holy Ghost in this place For the opposition here is not between man willing and running after the flesh and mans willing and running by faith they are not here opposed But mark the opposition it standeth thus Between mans willing and running and Gods shewing mercy these are the things that be here opposed and set in Contradiction one to the other mans willing and running in a good way and in the way of sanctification and salvation and the Lords shewing of mercy so that neither the willing of good nor the working of good by any though a regenerate person is the thing that is available to election or salvation As in 2 Tim. 1.9 The Apostle there denyeth that either himself or any other true believer and regenerate person that they were either called or saved by their own works for saith he He hath called and saved us Not according to our own works but according to his own grace whether they were works natural or supernatural so also in Titus 3.4 5. verses he saith in the fourth verse when the bountifulnesse and love of God appeareth then in the fifth verse he subjoyneth not according to the works of righteousnesse which we have done but of his own mere mercy he saved us so that the willing or working of good is not the cause of any mans election or salvation The Reason is Because the goodnesse which is in the will of man Reason and the goodnesse which is in the works of man it proceedeth from Gods election it is an effect and a fruit of it It proceedeth from that root and so is the fruit of holinesse and righteousnesse as the Apostle saith expresly in Ephes 1.4 God hath chosen us in Christ before the foundation of the world was laid that we should be holy so that holinesse followeth Gods eternal election And therefore the willing or working of good by regenerate persons cannot possibly be the cause of Gods eternal election it being the effect for it is not possible that the same thing can be the cause of the same thing and the effect in one and the self-same thing For Application First of all this meeteth with that opinion which Vse 1 some do hold That it is of God a man may be saved But that men are saved That particular persons amongst men come to be saved that is of themselves This do some hold and affirm And it is their tenent That the possibility of the salvation of man that it is possible for men to be saved that is of God But that this possibility becometh profitable and effectual to some men that is of their own free will A foul and a grosse errour directly contrary to the truth now handled and delivered unto us if it be so that the possibility of the salvation of man becometh profitable to some particular persons amongst men from the freedom of their own will surely then it must needs be from the goodnesse of their own will and from their well-willing And then a believing soul a soul that shall be saved and now is in the state of grace and of salvation hath ground to boast of in himself And may lift up himself even against God himself in ostentation and may thus magnifie himself say unto God Lord that there was any possibility for me to be saved it was of thee I freely confess it but that this possibility proveth not an impossibility to me as it doth to many thousands in the world that was my own doing I did that of my self That I could be saved the thanks of that belongeth to thee Lord but that I am now in the state of grace and salvation And that I am sure to be saved the thanks of that belongeth to me my self For thy love to me was no more then to them that are damned till my willingnesse to receive grace and faith put a difference between me and them till the inclination of my soul made me thine I might for all thy love have been damned eternally as well as Cain Judas Saul or any other Reprobate had not I out of the righteousnesse and freenesse of the freedom of my own will chosen grace it was not of thee Lord but of my self that I chose grace And damnation had been mine had I not of my own free and voluntary will chosen and used grace Oh beloved is not this intolerable and monstrous pride and ambition thus in ostentation for a man to lift up himself against God Is this a thought to come into any Christians heart no it is to be renounced For this boasting and ostentation doth naturally follow upon this their tenent that they teach the possibility of salvation cometh from God but that that possibility cometh into Act is of mans free will And this ought by every Christian to be abjured renounced and cast away as blasphemous erroneous and false Vse 2 Again This being a truth that no mans willing or doing of good is the cause of election or salvation Then let this teach us to take heed that we ground not our salvation upon any thing willed or done by us be it never so good yea though it proceed from the root and radix of true sanctifying grace It is mere madnesse in the Papists enemies to Gods grace to ground their hope of salvation as they do upon the performance of those good things that God requireth of them so far forth as they are able to perform them thus they ground their hope of salvation Now they so grounding their hopes they have no reason in the world to hope for any good at the hands of God for who seeth not unlesse he be wilfully blinded and blindfolded by his own self-love self-will and self-conceit who seeth not I say how far short we come of doing those good things we ought to do either in the state of nature or in the state of grace And the Papists themselves to joyn with them when they deal against that comfortable and holy truth of God that is held and taught in our Church That a Child of God may in time of this life be infallibly assured of our own salvation the Papists when they deal against this holy and comfortable truth then they plead and say alas we are frail and we are weak creatures and we fail in the manner of doing good duties and therefore we cannot assure our selves of salvation What say they do you say we may be assured of our salvation upon our faith and doing good duties Alas we are full of imbecillity
and weaknesse and cannot have any assurance It is true indeed if so be that our hope of salvation stood built upon the weak ground of our own good works But mark their subtilty when they speak against the Doctrine of our Church they plead imbecillity and weaknesse But when they plead for their own Doctrine then they say they ground their hope of salvation upon the performance of the good things God requireth of them so far forth as they are able to perform them what a madnesse is this in them thus to contradict themselves And beloved to apply it to our selves are there not many amongst us as mad as the Papists foolish ignorant sots That thus reason I know I must love God above all and my neighbour as my self And if I do my best endeavour to do these things I hope God will be merciful unto me and I shall go to heaven what is this but to make our own working of good the ground of our salvation and to ground the hope and certainty of heaven upon their own well doing Their conclusion is so simple and so foolish that upon loving God and their Neighbour they shall come to heaven maketh that the ground of their salvation It is true indeed that the willing and working of good coming from a right radix they be the fruits and assurances of our salvation but if we build our salvation upon our best good works yea upon saving and justifying faith or the best good thing we can perform we delude and deceive our selves neither our well willing nor well working is not the cause or ground of our salvation It is the rule of Christ himself Luk. 17.10 when we have done all that we can do and all that the Lord hath commanded us to do if it were possible yet we must say we are unprofitable servants And we must say so not onely for modesty sake as the Papists do absurdly glosse upon that text for modesty and humilities sake say they we must say so why beloved the Lord Jesus doth not teach us to lye And to say that which is not true for modesty sake no but he teacheth us to speak the truth for indeed it is so that for all our well willing and well doing we are unprofitable servants yet we must take heed that we do not hereupon cast off all care and endeavour of well doing no we are carefully and conscionably to do all that we can do that is good And know that working of good coming from the root of saving and sanctifying faith it is profitable and necessary to heaven for it is the beaten high way to eternal life and salvation it is a testimony of our obedience and thankfulnesse to God for his mercy And it is a means to set forth the glory of God and maketh much for the illustration of it And it is a proper mark of a true Christian it is a fruit ever flowing from saving and justifying faith and it is a necessary antecedent of the promises of eternal glory in heaven yet if we do advance this doing of good beyond this strain to merit salvation we do built it upon a rotten and unsound foundation Now further observe we the Apostle maketh an opposition between mans willing and running and Gods shewing mercy Hence I might note these particulars First of all that Gods mercy is the sole and whole and al-sufficient cause of mans election and not mans well willing or working good either foreseen as the Arminians teach or the present act and being And secondly that Gods free grace and the merit or works of men do not concur and meet together in mans salvation as the Papists teach But these things I have handled before And hence note we in a word thus much In that the Apostle saith that the eternal election and salvation of some amongst men is not in men themselves but in God that sheweth mercy Hence observe That the eternal salvation of men is laid up in the merciful powerful Doctrine and gracious hand of God It is laid up in the power of God which is essential with God himself Col. 3.3 the Apostle telleth the Colossians that their life is bid with Christ in God And hence God is said to be the Father of glory Ephes 1.17 because glory is as it were begotten of him And in 1 Tim. 6.5 the Apostle saith he onely dwelleth in immortality The Lord which hath eternal life and glory he doth give it to whom he will and he will give it in his due time and therefore he will certainly give it to his chosen Vse Then what a ground of sweet and excellent comfort is this to every one that findeth himself to be in the number of Gods chosen Hast thou good evidence of it that thou belongest to Gods election Oh then consider thy eternal happinesse which is laid up not in the hands of any creature no it is laid up in the hands of a gracious and powerful God and no enemy whatsoever can wrest it out of his hands if it were committed to thy own trust then thou hast just cause to doubt whether thou couldest keep it or no nay a thousand to one thou wouldest lose it Adam in his state of innocency being trusted with it wittingly and willingly lost it but thy salvation is kept by him who is able to keep it 2 Tim. 1.12 And not the force fraud or subtilty of the Devil or world without can fetch it from God who is the Author of it and keeper of it no nor our own flesh can prevail to the overcoming of him Oh then if thou hast evidence of thy salvation comfort up thy self let the Devil and the world spit their malice and use all the means they can they cannot possibly deprive thee or dispossesse thee of it for it is in the keeping of a powerful Creator and they cannot take it out of his hand How then may a child of God cheer up himself upon this consideration VERSE 17. For the Scripture saith unto Pharaoh Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up that I might shew my power in thee And that my name might be declared through all the earth Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy And whom he will he hardeneth IN these two Verses the Lord sheweth by the Apostle that he is just in casting off some men and rejecting of them The Apostle having cleared God from the imputation of injustice in choosing some to life and salvation and passing over others out of his own free will though they were all one in regard of nature because the Lord hath absolute power and free liberty to shew compassion to whom he will Now the Apostle cleareth God from being unjust in rejecting of some particular persons of equal estate and condition with the elect in regard of nature every way equal unto them in themselves And the Apostle proveth the Lord not to be unjust in so doing by a testimony of
throughout all the earth That is the praise and glory of my power and my Justice appearing in the destruction of thee so mighty a King might be published and might be spread abroad in every part and corner of the world and might be every where spoken of in every part and corner of the world So then thus conceive the meaning of the Apostle in these words as if he had said For God said in his written Word in his holy Scripture unto Pharaoh Exodus 9.16 For this very cause for this very purpose have I with-held my grace and hardned thy heart a fruit following the rejection of thee and I have stirred up my messengers to come to deliver my judgements unto thee and have caused thee not to profit by my judgements and my messengers and I have caused thee to harden thy heart and to exalt thy selfe against me that I might make thee to see and feel the force of my hand and of all my power in the bottome of the Sea and that all other my people and all in the world may see and take notice of thy destruction and my power in destroying so mighty a king Come we now to matter of Observation and Doctrine and first of all observe the Apostle here he speaketh and alledgeth Scripture as he had done heretofore and as he doth frequently and often in this Chapter to ground the matter that he hath in hand upon the Scriptures hence followeth this conclusion Doctrine That the Scriptures the written Word of God hath sufficient ground touching all fundamental Truths of God It is a sufficient rule and ground to guide us in all things and all matters both of Faith and of good life the holy Scriptures they doe contain in them all things needful to be known to be believed and to be practised of us to life and salvation to this purpose is that in 2 Tim. 3.16 17. where the Apostle Paul saith to Timothy Thou hast known the holy Scriptures of a childe which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through the faith of Iesus Christ For the whole Scripture is given by inspiration and is profitable to teach to improve to correct in righteousness and to make the man of God absolute and perfect in every good work it is able to make a man intire in godliness I know the Cavil of the Papists against this clear evidence of Scripture for they seek to illude the evidence of this Text in this maner It is true indeed say they the Apostle saith the Scripture is profitable but where doe you finde he saith it is sufficient A meer shift and easily answered for the Apostle saith not barely that the Scripture is profitable and there stay himself and goe no further but he doth point out unto us to what use it serveth it is profitable and it is profitable to to teach to instruct and to improve and to make a man absolute and intire in every good work Is it not then sufficient a foolish cavill so in the 15 verse of the same Chapter saith the Apostle the Scripture is able to make a man wise unto salvation Is not the Scripture then sufficient it is able to bring a man unto Heaven and yet say the Papists it is not sufficient certainly it cannot be denied but that the whole Scripture containeth all things needful to life and salvation and to make a man to come to Heaven would any man desire more sufficiencie then this the reason is Reason Because the written Word of God it is the breath of the holy spirit of God so saith the Apostle it is given by inspiration from whom from the Devil No from the holy Spirit of God the holy Ghost And in the Scripture Gods will is made known unto his chosen and as I have often said Gods Word is his Epistle and love-letter sent unto his children to guide them in the way of life and salvation Psalm 119.105 It is a lanthorn to their feet and a light unto their paths to guide them in every step they tread as a lanthorn and light doth guide a man in dark and obscure places so doth Gods Word guide them in the way of life and salvation And hath God bestowed upon his Church and chosen a guide insufficient that is not able to lead them to Life and salvation but to suffer them to wander into by paths of errors and sinnes no it is blasphemous so to think for the holy Scripture doth contain all things needful to be known and practised both for life and manners Wickedly then deal the Papists in this in that they joyne to the written Applicat 1 Word of God their own unwritten traditions their unwritten verities to make up and supplies as they imagine the imperfection in the holy Word of God the Word is not a sufficient rule unless the unwritten verities of the Church be joyned to it what is this but to offer injurious dealing to the great Lord of Heaven and earth and to his Word that we must supply his wisedome as insufficient with something of mans foolish brain Is the Scripture the written Word of God sufficient to guide us in all Vse 2 matters of Faith and good Life and in all things necessarie to be known to salvation learn we then to acknowledge it so to be and learn we to cleave fast unto it as the onely sufficient rule to guide us in the way that leadeth unto Life and salvation in all matters of Faith and good manners and take heed we be not carried away from the Truth of God 2 Thess 2.2.1 either by spirit by letter or by word or to speak plainly take heed we be not deluded neither by vision nor revelation besides the Word of God as the Anabaptists and Familists teach nor by the traditions of Rabbins and great learned men neither by the writings of those that are ancient Fathers and Doctours For this is an ancient device of the Papists to wrest into the Church such and such speeches tenents and bastardly writings and father them upon the ancient Fathers and Doctors of the Church thereby to draw men to errour and sinne Now we know not how soon we may be tried in this very kind and therefore it concerneth us we had need to look unto it and to hold fast to the written Word of God And take heed we admit not of everie thing whatsoever or whosoever bringeth it under what counterfeit soever they offer it Though a great Rabbine or a great Doctor bringeth it yet if we find him to swerve and dissent from the written Word of God and have no ground nor footing there disclaim it For this is that they triumph in they have they think the great Rabbins and learned men of the world and above all take heed of practising what they teach contrarie to the written Word of God Object I but some will say how shall I be certain that the Scripture is Scripture you tell me that I must
that howsoever cruel tyrants do whatsoever God hath appointed to be done and as God in his secret counsel hath set it down yet in that regard they are not justifiable they are not free from blame in so doing But they are wicked damnable and sinfull they intend not the will of the Lord but they intend the wicked humour of their hearts and that expresly against the Law of the Lord therefore justifiable they are not Vse 1 Let not the wicked enemies and persecutours of the Church of God think that they are excusable and free from blame and sinne in their hard dealing and crueltie with the Church of God because they doe nothing but what God hath appointed for they mind no such matter they intend onely the doing of the will and lust of their own hearts and so they remain wicked and sinful God can make Judas the executioner of his own will and he did make him the actor of his Decree in betraying of Christ and yet Judas still remaineth the child of perdition and wicked enemies persecutours of the Church of God they are but rods in the hand of God as in Esay 10.15 And when the Lord hath whipped his children for a time then he throweth the rod in the fire of his wrath and everlasting vengeance Again doe wicked enemies of the Church of God no more then God Vse 2 hath appointed to be done Then the serious consideration of this may be a ground of sweet and excellent comfort to the members of the Church in particular and to the whole Church in general when they are vexed by injurious indignities of wicked Opposers when the Church and people of God are hardly dealt withall by the hands of wicked persecutours remember this to their comfort howsoever their enemies doe execute their crueltie to satisfie their own lusts yet herein they are but executors of the purpose and will of God they doe but act the purpose of God and what the Lord hath commanded they are but the rodde in the hand of the Lord to be dealt withall as God pleaseth and not to doe as they list for if it were so they would utterly root them out but when the wicked enemies of the Church of God doe their uttermost and wicked rage then they are but instruments used by the hand of the Lord for the executing of his will and appointment and when the Lord hath so done he will ease himself and his children of them and they cannot go beyond the will and the appointment of the Lord though they be raging mad in the executing of their crueltie when they come to the full point and period they must not nor cannot go any further he hath stirred them up by his will and eternal Counsel and he can keep them within the limmits and compasse of his own will and what he hath appointed them to doe that they shall doe and no more though they would burst in sunder in Esay 10.24.25 the Lord sweetly speaketh to this purpose having before given the Assyrians charge to destroy then in the 24. verse he saith Oh my People be not afraid of Ashur for all this for he shall but smite thee with the rod and lift up his staffe after the manner of Aegypt and for a very little small time but he shall be consumed in my anger and destroyed in my wrath howsoever they may scourge thee for a time yet in my anger shall he be destroyed Thus the wicked enemies of the Church of God doe thus execute their wrath upon the Church of God yet they can goe no further then God hath appointed and when they have done Gods Will then he will cast the rod into the fire 1 Pet. 4.17 the Apostle saith Though afflictions begin at the the House of God certainly it shall not rest nor abide there but from thence it shal be removed unto the enemies of the Church and then the Lord doth vouchsafe ease and comfort and delivery to his people then from the rage of enemies then doth God bring plagues and troubles and vexations upon the heads of the enemies of the Church Proverbs 11.8 The righteous escapeth out of trouble and the wicked cometh even in the place they change places one with the other the righteous are taken out of the stocks and they are put in the prison with the wrath and vengeance of the Lord yet let us know to our comfort when the rage and violence of the enemie is come to the full height then is the ruine of the enemy near at hand and come to the full and deliverance near to the Church of God See it in the estate of the people of God in Aegypt when Pharaoh dealt with most crueltie against them and was in the greatest rage in Exodus 3 7 8. saith the Lord I have seen the trouble and oppression of my people and now I will help them So that if so be the Lord should suffer the bloudy minded Papists that are our mercilesse and cruel enemies if he should suffer them to over top us and to have a hand over us which God prevent but if that they should deale hardly with us then take notice of it to our comfort they neither can nor shall doe any thing but what God will have them to doe no not a haires breadth in the exercise of their crueltie for when their rage is most violent and they most mad then is their utter destruction near then Antichrist falleth finally and then is our deliverance near at hand And therefore let this be thought upon to our comfort it will be a means to strengthen us against all discouragement though they be fierce and cruel against us for when they are in their pride then destruction cometh to them and ease and delivery to us For the Scripture saith unto Pharaoh For this cause have I stirred thee up that I might shew my power in thee NOw proceed we to farther matter of this speech to Pharaoh For this cause have I stirred thee up that I might shew my power in thee that is as I shewed you that I might make thee see and feel the force of my power in thy utter destruction and in thy utter ruine and overthrow in the bottome of the Sea The Lord still hardened the heart of Pharaoh that he might shew his power in the utter destruction and overthrow of him as we see in this Text so that from hence we may gather Doctrine That when God withholdeth his grace from men and hardneth their hearts then his purpose is to destroy them The purpose of the Lord is their destruction when he hardneth their hearts we may see it in Elies sonnes 1 Sam. 2.25 The Lord had a purpose to destroy them because they did not yield obedience to the voice of their Father therefore the Lord determined to destroy them by a violent death as we may reade in the 4. Chapter the 11. verse So when the Lord with-holdeth his grace from men that
and sin and this being so then what can carnal reason say against it the prophanest wretch hearing this that God did decree to reject some out of fore-sight they would continue obstinate and rebellious in their wilful sins and then to harden them surely the prophanest wretch in the world must needs be silent and glorifie the Justice of God in leaving of such persons to themselves and so to harden them even mans reason can go thus far that then there was just cause why God should complain and no cause of this Objection even in the sense reason and understanding of man because if man will be wilful in sin it is just with God to harden them And so they put aside the absolute decree of God and make it to depend upon the obstinacy of man so that we see they quite cut away this Cavil and leave no place for it and so they pervert and quite overthrow the purpose of this text but this which they alledge is false for this is that which reason doth stumble at and cannot conceive that God should harden mens hearts and then complain of their hardening that God out of his own mere will and pleasure hardeneth them and then punisheth them for hardening this cannot possibly but be unjust this is the stumbling block of the carnal reasoning of man this is that which maketh carnal reason to rise up and insult against God why doth God complain when he doth of purpose harden men so that the Arminians reasoning and this Objection cannot stand together Come we now to stand upon this carnal Objection more particularly why doth he yet complain That is as I shewed you in the opening of the Text doth God harden whom he will why doth God then blame threaten and punish them what reason hath the Lord so to do seeing they are hardened according to his will and so the fault and blame lyeth upon the will of God Here we see how ready mans carnal reason is to put off the blame from themselves and to lay it where it ought not to lye and so consequently we may hence note thus much Doctrine That men naturally use to put off the blame of their sinnes from themselves and they commonly seek to lay the blame and fault thereof upon something out of themselves yea sometimes upon God himself and say that he is in the fault of them This we find was the practice of our first parents so ancient is it as from the beginning of the world for when Adam had sinned and God cometh to call him to account for his sin we see Adam putteth off the blame of his sin from himself to his wife and in her to God himself for he saith Gen. 3.12 The woman which thou gavest me gave it me and when he came to the woman she put it on the Serpent so that here is a putting and posting off of the blame from one to another Adam to his wife yea to God himself and she to the Serpent and we beloved have sucked the same milk and drawn out the same poyson and this corruption we have naturally every one by nature will seek to shift off the blame of their sins from themselves As to appeal to our own experience common experience sheweth it Do not some when they are convinced of sin lay the blame upon the times which they live in saying Oh we live in a hard time and we must do according to the time some again on their callings and conditions of life Oh they are of such and such a calling and vocation that they cannot keep a good conscience they must lye and swear and deceive as others do or else they cannot possibly keep open shop some upon the provocation of others they were provoked to it and some upon the Command and example of others such and such a one did the like and his example led me to it or such a one commanded me as if a Master comand his servant to lye he is excusable because his Master commanded him And some lay the fault upon their destiny it was my chance my lot my evil fortune I was ordained to such a sinne And some lay the blame upon the Devil and say they had not become guilty of Whoredome Adultery Murther and the like but that the devil owed them a spite and now he hath paid them home and thus they seem to post off their sin upon others either upon the time their callings the provocation example and command of others or upon their evil fortune and the devil himself they care not where so they may draw their own neck out of the collar yea sometimes Gods own children are hardly brought to this to lay the fault of their sin where it ought to lye they will say Oh I was too blame wretch that I was I was drawn unto it by such and such a mans company and so they seek to extenuate and to lessen their sins and to put off the blame from themselves But beloved take we notice of it Vse and learn we to lay the blame of our sins where the blame ought to lye Do not belye the devil It is true indeed that the age and the time wherein we live the callings and conditions of life the provocation example and command of others and the devil may be occasions of sin unto us but causes they are not for the cause and the root of sin is from our selves the cursed corruptions of our hearts and the vile lusts of it that is the very ground cause and root of sin and were it not for the vile corruptions in our selves neither could the devil nor the world nor any thing draw us to the practise of our sin if we were freed from that vile cursed inmate our own corruption that lodgeth and abideth in our hearts we could never be drawn to any sin therefore let this teach every one of us to learn to lay the fault and blame of our sins upon our selves and not upon any thing else Again further this Cavil and this reasoning of the flesh it is farther to be considered together with the proof of it in the words following for who hath resisted his will As if the carnal Reasoner should say thus That men are hardened it is the will of God it should be so God hardeneth whom he will and Gods will cannot be resisted none can stand against his will and so men that are hardened they are hardened unavoidably out of necessity for they must be hardened whom God will harden and therefore they cannot justly be blamed or taxed Now then from hence ariseth this Question to be discussed Whether men are excusable and free from blame Quest and not to be taxed for their hardnesse and for the sins they commit and fall into by reason of their hardnesse because Gods will is that they are hardened and Gods will is irresistible and cannot be withstood and so they are hardened unavoidably and of necessity are they then to be
not refuse it saying let God work his will but use the means carefully Again Is this so that Gods will doth determine and limit mans will Vse 2 consider then hast thou used the means and got some assurance of Gods good will unto thee in Christ Jesus Oh then comfort thy self upon this ground Gods good will unto thee cannot be frustrated let the world let sin and let all the enemies of salvation do what they can thou shalt not perish Gods will is revealed unto thee and thou hast assurance of it therefore thou maist resolve thou shalt never be pulled away for the will of God cannot be made void and so thy salvation is built upon a sure ground more firme and stable then heaven and earth it standeth upon the good will and purpose of God this wee see that Gods will is irresistible and cannot be withstood so that this point may yeeld much comfort to those that are assured of salvation that they shall certainly be saved for the will of the Lord cannot be made frustrate 1 Pet. 1.8 VERSE 20. But O man who art thou that replyest against God Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it why hast thou made me thus OUr Apostle now falleth upon his Answer to the Cavil and to the objection of mans Reason propounded in the Verse foregoing And the answer unto it is twofold 1. Personally and 2. Really his personal answer to the Cavil and carnal Reasoner is in the 20 and 21 Verses his Real answer is in the two verses following in the 22 and 23. Verses First of all touching the personal answer wherein he doth check the presumption of the Carnal Reasoner and laboureth to take down his pride and swelling by bringing him to a consideration of his own basenesse and nullity to God saying O man what art thou that reasonest against God rebuking and checking his insolency and pride wherein we may observe the person reproving and the party reproved noted unto us in these words O man c. then he amplifieth this reproof of his of the Carnal Reasoner by a comparison and a similitude and by that he sheweth what a Carnal Reasoner is As if so be a peece of wood framed by the Carpenter should rise up and quarrel with the Carpenter for framing of him to this or that purpose or the Iron rise up and quarrel with the Smith why he did beat him to this or that fashion were not this insolency and pride in the creature Hereby implying that man being framed of God ought not to question and to dispute with God and say Why hast thou made me hard-hearted Then hereupon the Apostle directeth a particular instance adding weight and force unto this similitude and comparison namely upon the power of the Potter over the clay shall the clay rise up against the Potter hath not the Potter power over the clay to make one vessel to honour and another to dishonour And thus standeth the Reason as the clay may not reason the cause with the potter for making out of the same lump one vessel to one use and another to th' other for the potter hath full power and authority over the clay to frame of it what vessel he thinketh fit so man is not to question God man is not to quarrel with God or to call him to account for framing of him thus or thus for the Lord hath absolute power to dispose of man even at his own good will and pleasure some to honour and some to dishonour So that in the 21. verse God is compared to a potter and man to the clay that is wrought upon by the potter and as it is lawful for the potter to frame out of the same lump of clay one vessel for better use and service at the Table and another for baser use in the Chamber you know what I mean so and much more is it lawful for the Lord to frame out of the same lump of earth one man for salvation and another for damnation and dishonour so standeth the Apostles reason and so much for the general matter of these two Verses the 20. and 21. verses Now to enter upon these two verses more particularly something is needful to be spoken touching the sense and meaning of these words and first of the 20. verse O man saith the Apostle who art thou that speakest against God O man here the Apostle speaketh marvellous emphatically he putteth it down with a great emphasis and hereby he calleth man to a consideration of his own basenesse as if he had said O thou man what art thou or who art thou consider with thy self thou man thou carnal Reasoner that takest upon thee to quarrel with God why thou art a vile base wretch a lump of earth a piece of clay a worm lesse then a worm nothing in comparison of the great Majestie of God Darest thou quarrel against the will and counsel of the Lord art thou so malapert so saucie so shamelesse so far past all shame as to call into question the will and doings of the holy God to call him to account and to bring him within the compasse of thy carnal reason O man full of impiety do but consider and premeditate what thou art a base wretch and what the Lord is the great God of heaven and earth and then judge what a malapert saucinesse it is in thee Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it Why hast thou made me so do but consider with thy self were it not an unbeseeming thing that a piece of Wood or some such like thing framed by the hand of some cunning Artificer should rise up and say Why hast thou made me thus thou art but a bungler were it not preposterous and a monstrous thing in Nature And what is it but as absurd and grosse for thee to argue and reason the cause with God thy Creator thy Maker touching his disposing of thee according to his will and say O Lord why hast thou made me thus or thus herein thou hast shewed thy self a bad workman So that we may easily conceive the meaning of the Apostle in this verse to be thus as if the Apostle had said But O thou carnal Reasoner what art thou a man and therein consider who thou art being a man and thou shalt find thy self to be a base man a vile man a worm and lesse then a man nothing in comparison of the great God and darest thou then question God and cavil against the holy will of the Lord art thou so audacious so bold so malapert as to quarrel with him darest thou that art but a silly worm make thy carnal arguments against God do but think with thy self were it a meet thing in nature for a piece of wood to rise up against him that hath formed it and to say to the Mechanical Artificer why hast thou made me of this base fashion thou art but a bungler it is much more grosse for thee to
tyed to one place more then to another as if one place were more holier then another Indeed in the time of the Old Testament as you may see in Deut. 16. there was a place whither the Tribes of Israel should resort three times in a yeare and come to worship God publickly in that place and that was the Cittie of Jerusalem Matthew 4.5 Called Sancta Vrbs the Holy Cittie and the whole Land must goe to worstip there But now in the time of the New Testament all places are alike Holy and men may offer up a pure Offering to the Name of God in any place so saith the Apostle in 1 Timothy 2.8 I will that men lift up pure hands unto God in every place even pray in every place And this was foretold by the Prophet in Zephaniah 2.11 That in every place men should worship the Lord of Hosts yea in all the Iles of the Heathen and all the Nations of the world not to be tied to Hierusalem So then upon this ground appeareth the folly and absurditie of Popish Pilgrimages and in particular their going a Pilgrimage to the Holy Land of Jude aand Cittie of Hierusalem why Holinesse is not inherent in the ground or in the walls of Hierusalem no Hierusalem was a Holy Cittie in regard of the pure and true worship of God but now that failing and taken away and given to other people that is no more holy then other places of the world therefore it is absurd for them to go to the Holy Cittie in Pilgrimage but to leave them There be many amongst our selves that are justly to be blamed who either out of their grosse ignorance or blind and Popish superstition ascribed Holinesse more to one place then to another and tie the presence of God more to one certaine place then to another as in the Church the places of publicke Assemblies Oh they think those places are farre holier then other places and thereupon if they have occasion to goe through Pauls or other Churches when there is no publick service yet they drop down upon their knees to a piller and there poure out their prayers this is grosse and blind superstition for distinction of place is now gone a man may as well poure out his prayers with Divine thoughts and pure hands as well in the market and in the field as in the Church I confesse the places of publick meeting the Churches are more convenient for comlinesse and Orders sake for publick worship but they poure out their private prayers in a publick place out of the time of publicke worship Holynesse is not in the place but in the company and the worship there performed but the place is not holy in the time nor out of the time of exercise no more then any other place Again we see further the Lord here setteth out the calling of the Gentiles to the estate of grace by the excellent dignitie and worthinesse of it What are they being called why in all places and in all Nations the Children of the Living God an excellent dignitie so then the point from hence is this Doctrine That it is a matter of great honour and of excellent dignitie for men to be called to the estate of Gods Children such as are indeed wrought upon and brought out of the estate of Nature into the estate of Grace and made the Children of God they are wonderfully dignified to this purpose speaketh the Evangelist John 1.12 As many as received him meaning Christ to them he gave power or rather priviledge and prerogative to be the sonnes of God not power signifying power and strength of free will to be made Gods Children as the Rhemists note upon that place but the priviledge honour and prerogative that they have being the Children of God there is no service to the service of the King of Heaven it was as much as the Prodigal desired Luke 15.19 Father I am not worthie to be called thy sonne make me one of thy hired servants Yea God hath no need of the service of men he hath thousands yea ten thousand thousands of holy and glorious Angels to wait and attend upon him and to be at his beck Daniel 7.10 But for men to be made not onely the servants of God but to be made his Children by Adoption and Grace it is an advancement exceeding great and wonderful Moses was a faithful servant in the House of God yet nothing comparable unto Christ who ruled in the House of God as his sonne Hebrewes 3.5 6. What was Abrahams eldest servant Eleazar to his youngest sonne nothing And what was Joab the servant of David though a man of great place and authoritie in comparison of Solomon the sonne of David No Solomon reckoneth of it as a special honour Proverbs 1.1 Solomon the sonne of David so that it is a greater honour to be the Sonne of God and it must needs bee so Because men who are made the Children of God what are they of themselves Reason 1 Base and miserable wretches and sinneful yea children of wrath children of the Devil and God who maketh them his Children what is he Surely he is a most Holy Glorious and highest Majestie and according to the Dignitie of the Person of the Father so is the honour of the Childe the Childe of a Prince or Noble man is more respected then the Childe of a baser man and that worthily and hence David being moved by his fellow servants to become the sonne in Law of Saul 1 Samuel 18.23 saith Seemeth it a small thing unto you for me to be sonne in law to a King Did holy David a man worthily deserving at the hands of Saul think it a great matter to enter into aliance with Saul and shall not we think it a wonderful honor for us that are base and vile men to be made the sons and daughters to the great God of Heaven and Earth Men being made the Children of God they are the heirs of God every Reason 2 Childe of God is an heire so saith the Apostle in Romans 8.17 If we Children we are also Heires yea they are made joynt-heires and co-heires with the Sonne of God and they shall one day share with him in Life and Glory Therefore it followeth undeniably that it is a great honour and dignitie to be a Childe of God yea a greater honour and dignitie then if they were advanced to be the heires of the greatest Monarch in the world We see then upon this ground the vain and blinde conceit of the world Vse 1 and worldlings touching the happie and blessed estate of Gods Children for they are so farre from thinking it is an advancement that they account it the basest thing in the world to be the Children of God yea they account them to be most vile and contemptible persons in the world they judge of them by their outward appearance they see not that grace that lieth hid either under that excellent grace of humilitie or else
the same Chapter he telleth them that there should false teachers arise and then in the second Verse he saith many shall follow after them as we see in woful experience let an Anabaptist or Familist arise and you shall see multitudes follow after their damnable wayes and speak evil of the way of truth in Matth. 7.13 14. Christ telleth us of a multitude and an heap of people which enter in at the wide gate and broad way that leadeth to destruction but few there are that find the narrow wicket and strait way that leadeth to salvation so that a multitude of people may bear the name of Gods people and yet few are true repentant sinners and why so Because the Spirit saith Matth. 20.16 Many are called but few are Reason 1 chosen many have the outward calling but onely Gods Elect are effectually called and hence it is that Christ saith his flock is a little flock Luke 12.32 indeed the elect of God ara a little flock in comparison of the multitudes of the Reprobates though they be numberlesse in themselves Reason 2 Because many of those that live under the Gospel they content themselves with a drowsie profession an empty shadow void of life and power that they care not for the substance and pitch saving grace and saving repentance they respect not nay is there not many of them that live under the meanes of grace that respect better Infidelity and Atheisme to be of no Religion at all and many have their hearts taken up with cares of this world they have stony and thorny hearts so that the good seed of the Word cannot enter into them but they choak it and as we read in Luke 8.4 to the 9. of four sorts of grounds there were but one of them good of honest sound and good hearts we have but a small number yea take we but a view of men in the world and of particular places how many ignorant persons how many common swearers and contemners of God and of all goodnesse how many filthy persons how many proud persons setting themselves forth in vanity of attire shagg hair'd persons Usurers and covetous persons shall we find to one true sound upright-hearted Christian 't were nigh a thousand to one so that it is a certain truth That a multitude of people may have the true worship of God and yet few of them repent and be saved How absurd and grosse is it then for the Papist to stand so much as they doe upon their number and multitude for the grounding of their Religion Multitudes say they follow our Religion therefore it is the true Religion this is but a weak and an unsound ground for men to build Religion upon Multitudes yea in all Societies in all Fellowships and Families for the most part the greatest number is the worst number and therefore to say their Church is the true Church because multitudes flock unto it is a mere shadow without substance but to leave them Vse 2 Is it so that a multitude of people may follow the Church of God and be in the Church and yet not in the estate of grace and of salvation Then it concerneth every one of us to look unto it and to labour to find our selves in the number of those few When one said unto Christ Luke 13.23 Lord are there few that shall be saved the Lord Jesus answered him not directly to his curious question but in the 24. verse Strive to enter in at the strait gate that will yeeld thee true comfort So if so be repentant persons such as are in the state of grace be but few when there are heaps and troops and multitudes of such as onely bear the name of Gods people labour thou then to be of that small number what will it avail us to say we have born a part with thousands in hearing the Word prayer and performing holy duties what will it avail us to say we have been at a Sermon with thousands and yet continue in ignorance and in hardnesse of heart No Christ telleth us Luke 13.24 that many shall say Lord we have eaten and drunk at thy Table we have preached in thy name and flocked to hear thy Word with troops and thousands and wilt thou reject us being a great multitude but then in the 27. verse Christ shall say Depart from me ye workers of iniquity I know ye not and then they shall be shut out of heaven with a multitude so that it is but a shallow and sandy ground for us to say we come to the hearing of the Word with thousands unlesse we labour to be of the number of repentant sinners Vse 3 And beloved give me leave to apply this a little nearer If this be so It is then no good plea for any one to say I doe no other but that which many professours doe I see many professours they will be medling with the matter of Usury yea many Preachers doe warrant it yea many professours make no bones of wantonnesse of lasciviousnesse and of dancing yea they teach their children to dance as Job saith Job 21.11 their sonnes and their daughters dance yea many professors go beyond the bounds of modesty and sobriety in the matter of meat and drink both in regard of excesse and curiosity wonderful excessive and exceeding curious none so curious as the professours yea many professors ordinarily and usually follow the fashions every idle fashion they have their foretops and locks and carelesse ruffes and their short wastes up to the arm-pits and broad brim'd hats with garters hanging to the ancles and their Roses and â—et these persons have the name and account of holy men and holy women Dost thou think that this plea will bear thee out either in the Court of Conscience when thy Conscience is grapling and conflicting with sin or when thou standest before the Judg of all the world no if so be thou so thinkest thou deceivest thy selfe for I tell thee such professors as thou speakest of may hang their profession upon the hedge as a rotten rag for any soundnesse there is in them although they bear the name of professours and would be thought to be some body and to give them their due they are tongue-Christians excellent in their words and can speak of the matters of God and of salvation to good purpose and yet follow every new fangled fashion and if thou follow them thou shalt but discover the vile unsoundnesse and rottennesse of thy own heart but a few of them are true repenting sinners and go labour thou to get into the number of those that are mortified Christians for those are the onely sound Christians Labour thou to be in the number of those that are sincere and keep themselves unspotted of the world and do even hate the garment spotted by the flesh if any thing savour of the flesh they dare not use it but away with it to the dunghill and what though they say thou art a mopish fool and a