shall finde rest unto our souls See Matth. 11.28,29,30 Whereunto his beloved Disciple bears witness out of his own experience saying For this is the love of God that we keep his Commandments and his Commandments are not grievous For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world and this is the victory that overcometh the world even our Faith Who is he that overcometh the world but he that believeth that Jesus is the Christ 1 John 5.3,4,5 There is then no bar or let to the keeping of Gods Commandments but the wicked world of sin which may be overcome by Faith in the Son of God and then Gods Commandments shall not be grievous but delightful unto us For what is easier or more delightful then to love and therefore this burden of Christs which he lays upon us is both light and sweet in general Psal 19.10 also 119.103 There is nothing that unites us more closely to God then love Rom. 8.35,36,37,38 Nothing is stronger and more victorious Cant. 8.6,7 Nothing is crowned with more vertues nor more omnipotent in the Lord see 1 Cor. 13. throughout Thus of the Duty to be done Perfecting holiness now concerning the way wherein it is to be accomplished or acquired 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the fear of God Which words may be three ways understood First Of that Obedience to Gods Commandments which is commonly called The fear of God Psal 111.10 112.1 Eccles 12.13 In which way the Lord hath promised to make us an holy people Deut. 26.17,18,19 Thou hast avouched the Lord this day to be thy God and to walk in his ways and to keep his Statutes and his Commandments and his Judgments and to hearken to his voice And the Lord hath avouched thee this day to be his peculiar people as he hath promised thee and that thou shouldst keep all his Commandments and to make thee high above all Nations which he hath made in praise in name and in honor that thou maist be an holy people unto the Lord thy God as he hath spoken Secondly The fear of God may be understood of a reverend and awful fear of Gods Righteousness and Judgments And so it is the posture we should always stand in while we are in our Christian race towards Perfection Phil. 2.12 Work out your Salvation with fear and trembling Which fear when perfect love is come is set aside 1 Joh. 4.17,18 For perfect love casteth out fear Thirdly It may be taken for a filial or conjugal fear of God and his goodness Hos 3.5 Afterward shall the children of Israel return and seek the Lord their God and David their King and shall fear the Lord and his goodness in the latter days And this fear as it is love in some good measure and degree so it is the way to that perfect love which is the fulfiling of the Law For the beginning augmenting and perfecting whereof I crave leave to speak a word or two to my Reverend Brethren of the Ministry by way of Avisa from this Proviso And I hope that I may say with Paul That I my self also am perswaded of you my Brethren that ye also are full of goodness filled with all knowledge and able also to admonish one another Nevertheless I have written the more boldly unto you in some sort as putting you in minde because of the Grace that is given to me of God Rom. 15.14,15 It is not unknown to you how Phineas the son of Eleazer that is as the name imports Confidence of face in or from Gods help obtained the Covenant of Peace and of the Everlasting Priesthood to wit by slaying Cozbi the lie or lying nature of Sin and Zimri or that disposition that rejoyceth therein Num. 25.6,7 Psal 106.30,31 Nor that if we will be Gods mouth we must take away the precious from the vile Jere. 15.19 Nor that we must stand in the Council of the Lord ere we can practise and hear his words Jere. 23.18 and much more before we can turn men from the evil way and from the evil of their doings Verse 22. Yea that the Law of Truth was in Levi's mouth and iniquity was not found in his lips and that he walked with God in peace and equity when he turned many away from iniquity Mal. 2.6 Onely mine earnest Prayer to God for my self and you is That whereas the Spies and Searchers out of the promised Land were of different mindes and did in conclusion run two contrary courses Joshuah and Caleb following the Lord fully as himself testifieth Numb 14.24 and encouraging the people to obey the Lord to stand firm in the Faith and so to set upon their enemies with courage and hope of victory but the other ten degenerating from the Faith and Obedience of God and drawing thousands after them by their pretence of difficulties yea of impossibility to subdue the Canaanites and to take possession of the promised Inheritance That none of us may be found in the number of the last named but all of us in the first though the smalest number for our Saviour saith That little of this Faith that God will avenge his elect on their spiritual enemies shall be found upon the Earth at his coming Luke 18.6,7,8 And mine humble suit unto you all is first That seeing God giveth some to be Apostles some Prophets some Evangelists and some Pastors and Teachers for the perfecting of the Saints and the edifying of the Body of Christ till we all come in the unity of the Faith and knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ that none of us discourage or retard the Saints in their progress by any pretended impossibility as those formerly did Eph. 4.10,11,12 Secondly Whereas Verse 14. the Apostle henceforth would have no men and muchless us to be children tossed too and fro with every wind of Doctrine by the cunning craftiness of men whereby they lie in wait to deceive That we take heed that we suffer not the Authors whom we read to impose upon us in this or any other kinde To the Law and to the Testimony if they speak not according to that it is because there is no light nor morning in them Isai 8.20 Thirdly To remember that the Apostle willeth that we speaking the truth in love may grow up into him in all things which is the Head even Christ from whom the whole Body fitly joyned together and compacted by that which every joynt supplieth according to the effectual working in the measure of every part maketh increase of the Body to the edifying of it self in love Ephes 4.15,16 For the end of the Law and Commandments is love out of a pure heart and a good conscience and of faith unfained 1 Tim. 1.15 Fourthly That with St Paul we preach Christ in the Saints the Hope of Glory warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus Colos 1.27,28 Fifthly That we pray earnestly under Hope for the perfecting of the Saints as the Apostles and holy Ministers of Christ did Eph. 3.14,21 Phil. 1.10 Colos 4.12 1 Thes 5.23 1 Pet. 5.10 Sixthly That neither the weak Brother may judge the strong nor the strong may despise the weak seeing we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ Rom. 14.10 Finally Let us all follow the counsel of St. Peter 1 Pet. 5.1,2,3,4 and pray for one another as the Apostle doth Heb. 13.20,21 for there are many Adversaries FINIS
the flesh Heb. 12.10 He saith That the Lord chastneth us to make us partakers of his own holiness and the Apostle 1 Pet. 1.16 commanding us to be holy as the Lord is holy doth prescribe both the true kinde and right degree of holiness for which we should labor at which also the Apostle aims when he prayeth thus 1 Thes 3.12,13 And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one towards another and towards all men even as we do towards you to the end he may establish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God even our Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his Saints Yea the eternal life it self to which we are chosen in Christ Jesus is principally the perfection of holy love as we heard before out of Ephes 1.4 Which thing also David affirms Psal 133.3 For there he commanded the blessing and life for evermore Secondly If any Athenians in our days should ask as those did in former times Acts 17.19 May we know what this new Doctrine whereof thou speakest is St John the Beloved Disciple will give them satisfaction therein 1 Joh. 2.7,8 Brethren I write no new Commandment unto you but an old Commandment which ye had from the beginning the old Commandment is the Word which ye have heard from the beginning Again a new Commandment I write unto you which is true in him and in you because the darkness is past and the true light now shineth 2 Joh. Vers 5 6. Now I beseech thee Lady not as though I wrote a new Commandment unto thee but that which we had from the beginning namely that we love one another And this is love that we walk after his Commandments This is the Commandment that as ye have heard from the beginning ye should walk in it Thirdly It serves to answer many Cavils and Objections made by scrupulous men As first Is not this Popery because the Papists hold Perfection Answer Though the Papists want no Errors yet they hold there is one God a Trinity of Persons Two Natures in Christ's own Person his Threefold Office his Twofold Estate of Humiliation and Exaltation and many more Orthodox and Primitive Heads of Doctrine But nothing ought to be called or accounted Popish which was taught by the Prophets the Apostles and Christ himself as this Doctrine was both clearly and frequently held forth by all of them But is it not Pelogian Doctrine Indeed Pelagius taught That man could of himself fulfil the Law of God to whom Augustine answereth Let him adde these words That he can do it by the Grace of God and we consent But is it not Arminianism No for Arminius held the contrary and herein are they Arminions who are otherwise minded Fourthly It serves to check and overthrow their Error who affirm the Law of God to be impossible to be fulfilled by the Saints in this life though assisted by the Grace and Spirit of Christ who also do usually for that end affix and attribute such a rigor to the Law as the Lord hath no where ascribed unto it For not onely the Apostles but Christ himself doth affirm That the whole requiring of the Law yea and of the Prophets also is fulfilled in the love aforesaid see Matth. 22.38,39 Rom. 13.8,9 Ow no man any thing but to love one another for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the Law For this Thou shalt not commit adultery Thou shalt not kill Thou shalt not steal Thou shalt not bear false witness Thou not covet and if there be any other Commandment it is briefly comprehended in this saying Thou shalt love thy Neighbor as thy self Therefore love is the fulfilling of the Law See Gal. 5.13,14 Nor let any Reply that here the Apostle speaks onely of the Commandments of the second Table for the true love of our Neighbor is always founded in the love of God And as this last presupposeth the former so the love of God is accompanied with the love of our Neighbor 1 John 2.5 But whoso keepeth the Word of God in him is the love of God perfected 1 John 5.1,2 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him By this we know that we love the Children of God when we love God and keep his Commandments Now if this were imposble to be done the Law of God were eo nomine unjust and tyrannical For Pharaoh is condemned by God and man for laying such commands upon the Israelites as they could not possibly perform Exod 5.6,7 For the further refuting of this opinion we might produce the contrary judgment of all the Greek and Latin Fathers of which take these few for the present Justin Martyr in Quaest Respons ad Orthodoxos But what is the total Justice or Universal Righteousness according to the Law To love God above himself and his neighbor as himself which is not impossible to men who apply their hearts thereunto for that saying By the works of the Law shall no flesh be justified The Apostle doth not therefore alleadge it because we cannot do impossible things but because we will not do that which is possible Do not blame the Lord for he demands nothing impossible saith Chrysost de Paenit Hom. 8 See Basil upon Psal 118. Hieronymus in Expos Symbol ad Damasum August in Psal 56. Nor would God command this if it were impossible to be done of man Idem de tempore Serm. 61. Neither could God command any thing which is impossible because he is just nor will he condemn any man for that he could not do because he is pious and good Idem de tempore Serm. 191. We detest their Blasphemy who say That God hath commanded any thing that is impossible to man Concilium Arausicanum according to the Catholick Faith we believe That all who are baptized having received Grace may and ought by the help and the co-operation of Christ to fulfil all things that belong to Salvation if they will faithfully endeavor or labor thereunto Thirdly By way of Correction this serves first to reprove all unbelief that is found in men to the contrary see what the Lord saith of the unbelieving Israelites who were rendred unbelieving persons who were indisposed to enter upon the holy Land of Promise being deterred by the pretenders of impossibility to overcome the Canaanites and scale and beat down their Cities Numbers 13 and 14 Chapters Unto whom sware the Lord that they should not enter into his rest but to them who believed not So then they could not enter in because of unbelief Heb. 3.18,19 Secondly This serves to reprehend them who look for Life and the blessing of the Promises and yet stand at a stay and make not progress towards perfection Revel 3.2 Be watchful and strengthen the things that remain that are ready to die for I have not sound thy works perfect before God Thirdly It rebukes