his mouth and in the truth of his soule may say Not vnto me ô Lord not vnto me but vnto thy name giue the glory This is the sum the reason why the Lord hath thought good to commend the hearing of a Preacher and teacher aboue other courses for the calling of vs from the power of darknesse into the kingdome of his deare sonne is because it maketh most for the setting forth of Gods glorie which is the thing chiefly respected by him and for which he made all things euen to this very end that all being of him and through him and for him to him might be glorie for euer If it were left vnto man by his owne wisedome to find out God in the wisedome of God in the pride of his heart fearing his owne disparagement he would neuer make choise of preaching for we see how the world in the wisedom thereof doth euen scorne it but he would either drowne himselfe in the puddle of ignorance as the most do or else trust to his owne iudustrie as many do vpon whom this curse iustly falleth that they become vain in their imaginations and when they professe themselues wise proue meere fooles thinking they know much but yet knowing nothing as they ought to know If this reason cannot satisfie those who wil néeds haue a reason of Gods ordinance I know not what will satisfie them Once I am sure that as many as haue learned the first lesson of Christianitie to denie themselues and to vnderstand according to sobrietie they wil yeeld to this truth and by yéelding no doubt they shal haue comfort Now whereas we are thought to take too much vpon vs so often as we endeuor to make knowne the worth and excellencie of our office it is a méere slander for I hope we haue learned to preach not our selues but Christ Iesus and to account our selues no more then the Ministers by whom ye beleeue We confesse the increase to be the Lords we leaue the purifying and opening of the heart onely to him God forbid that we should dare as it were to encroch vpon the Lords right seeing we know that he is a iealous God and wil not giue his glory to another This is our opinion of our selues herein and if any man be so suspicious or so hardly conceited of vs that he will not otherwise be perswaded let him remember that Loue thinketh not euill And yet I must néeds adde this also that so is the Lord pleased to blesse the labors of painful Ministers in his Church that he douchsafeth them the name of Gods labourers nay which is more workers together with his grace and sauers of them which heare them The Lord for the gracing and crediting of the instrument and to preserue it from contempt attributeth that to it which is in his owne onely power to effect Tel me now whether this answer doth in your opinion silence this grand obiection Nymph A man would thinke that this which you haue spoken should stop their mouthes which are otherwise minded but yet they do replie and say that you doe much streighten the grace and power of God and seeme as it were to tye the working of Gods spirit which yet bloweth where it listeth to your tongues as though without preaching there were no saluation whereby you seeme also to cut them cleane off from any hope of heauen which either heretofore haue wanted or now enioy not the common and ordinary vse of preaching Epaph. It is no wrong done vnto the grace of God to limit it to those means which God in his wisedome hath set apart for the conueyance thereof vnto vs. When Paul was in his daungerous sea-voyage in the night there stood by him the Angell of God saying Lo God hath giuen vnto thee all that sayle with thee yet notwithstanding when as afterwards the mariners were about to flie out of the ship and had let downe the boate into the sea purposely to make escape Paul said to the Centurion and the souldiers Except these abide in the ship ye cannot be safe Did Paule herein streighten the almightie power of God in saying there could be no safetie without the staying of those mariners in the shippe Was the Lords hand shortened that he could not deliuer but by the skill industrie of those men Surely no but because Paul knew that God was not pleased otherwise to giue deliuerance therefore he said that vnlesse the mariners taried the company could not be preserued The learned do thus distinguish of the power of God it is an absolute power by with he can do infinite things which he will not do so Iohn said of him that he was able of the very stones to raise vp children vnto Abraham Againe it is an actuall or a working power which he executeth in the gouerning of the world and the things therein now when we speake of the power of God in this sense it may be truly said that he cannot vs that which he will doe So touching preaching we may say without any restraint of Gods power that except there be preaching men cannot be saued not that God is tied to the voice of man that without it he cannot saue but because the Scripture hath reuealed to vs that these things are linked together with an indissoluble knot praying faith hearing preaching sending There is no praying without faith there is no faith but by hearing there is no hearing to beget faith but of a preacher sent that is furnished with gifts frō aboue for the feeding of the flock of Christ depending vpon him with knowledge and vnderstanding If it shall be vrged as me thought you also touched it that we shal by this preiudice them who haue either liued died without preaching or those who enioy it not now I answer that it is one thing what God can do where the meanes is wanting another thing what he will doe where the means is supplied When the people of Israel were in the wildernesse and were destitute of the vsual helpes of tillage the Lord gaue them bread from heauen to eate but as soone as they came into the promised land the Man ceased neither had the children of Israel Man any more Euery man was then to fall to his worke and not to hope by those extraordinary meanes to be releeued To strengthen the faith of Hezekiah the Lord sayd to him Thou shalt eate this yeare such as groweth of it selfe and the second yeare such things as grow without sowing but in the third yeare sow ye and reape and plant c. He that those two yeeres being expired had trusted to the former courses neglecting husbandry out of al doubt he might haue bene starued and yet before he that had called Gods power to furnish them with foode without sowing into question had bene worthy to be punished In the
do with peace is not at any hand to be giuen way vnto It is méet for a Preacher to take héed that he breake not the bruised reed nor quench the smoaking flaxe so it is méete also to beware how he taketh the childrens bread and cast it to whelpes The course warranted to vs by the Scripture is this first to indeuour the softening of our hearers hearts by bringing them to the fight and sense of their owne wretchednesse before we aduenture to apply the riches of Gods mercie in Christ Iesus The preaching of the Gospell is compared by our Sauior himselfe vnto the sowing of seed as therfore the ground is first torne vp with the plough before the seede be committed to it so the fallow ground of our harts must first be broken vp with the sharpnesse of the law and the very terror of the Lord before we can be fit to entertaine the swéet séede of the Gospell They who desire as liuely stones to be made a spirituall house euen the habitation of God by the spirit must yéeld themselues to be squared and hewne and smoothed by the well applying of the law that so they may become fit to be coupled together with the rest of the building and to grow vnto an holy temple in the Lord. We must haue our mouths stopped by the law and in our owne féeling stand culpable before God and euen as it were concluded vnder sinne before we can be admitted to thinke our selues to haue any the least interest in the glad tidings of the Gospell To preach mercie and grace vnto them which feele no néed of mercie and know not the worth of grace is no better then to cast pearles before swine and to expose the louing kindnesse of God vnto contempt The person that is full despiseth an hony combe saith Salomon and what doth a proud Pharsee or a churlish Nabal or a scoffing Ismael or a politique Gallio care to heare of the breadth and length depth height of the loue of God in his son Iesus The doctrine of that nature is as vnfitting such vncircumcised eares as the snow the sommer and the raine the haruest Vnto the horse belongeth a whip to the asse a bridle a rod to the fools back So long as mē wil be like an horse and a Mule which vnderstandeth not and manifest their folly by hating knowledge and by making a mocke of sinne what other thing should they haue but that which of right belongeth to them Let the soule be once humbled brought to hunger and thirst after righteousnesse then a word in season wil be as the cold waters to a wearie traueller as good newes from a farre countrie then will mercie be as welcome as the raine vpon the mowne grasse as the showers that water the earth Besides we find it true by common experience that the greatest part are so dead in sin that if a Preacher should deale after some such mild fashion as old Eli dealt with his sons his sermō will be but like a dreame when one awaketh the hearer happily when he is gone will think he heard somthing but he knoweth not what and because he was reprooued but softly he wil imagine that he sinned but sleightly so wil let al slip as easily as it came gently So that a man that intendeth to do any good in this frozen generation he had néed to be rather Boanerges one of the sons of thunder then Bar-Ionah the son of a doue In the Prophet Ieremy we read that the word of the Lord is like an hammer now if you adde that to it which Salomon saith that the words of the wise are like nailes it wil follow thence that he which is a wise maister-builder in the Lords house and a workman that needeth not to be ashamed when he handleth this same hammer of the word he will be sure to driue the nails of his exhortations to the head that they may leaue some impression in the hearts of those which heare him Well then this is the substance of my opinion in this point I would haue a preacher to preach peace and to ayme at nothing more then the comfort of the soules of Gods people yet I would haue him withall frame his course to the manner of Gods appearing to Elijah The text saith that first a mightie strong wind rent the mountaines and brake the rockes then after that came an earthquake and after the earthquake came fire and after all these then came a still and a soft voice After the same manner I would not haue the still and mild voice of the Gospell come till the strong tempest of the law hath rent the stony harts of men hath made their bellies to tremble and rottennesse to enter into their bones and to cry with that good king Hezechiah O Lord it hath oppressed me cōfort me or at the least because our auditories are mixt consisting of men of diuers humors it shall be good for him to deliuer his doctrine with that caution that neither the humbled soules may be affrighted with the seuerity of Gods iudgements nor the profane and vnrepentant grow presumptuous by the aboundance of Gods mercie Nymp. Indeed I am verily perswaded that this course which you haue named is the best for to this best agree those properties of the word which the Apostle makes mention of to wit Sharpnesse and entring through to the diuiding asunder of the soule and the spirit and discerning of the thoughts and intents of the heart But yet in the world this is a course that men like not of Epaph. No maruell for as I haue in part told you before in the beginning of our Conference it is the greatest enemy vnto that which men loue best and that is their owne sinne vntill God be pleased to put a new spirit within mens bowels and to take the stonie heart out of their bodies there is nothing that they do hate more then to be reformed But the truth is that though no reproofe for the present seemeth to be ioyous but grieuous yet at the length when men are better aduised he that rebuketh shall find more fauor then he which flattereth with his lips Yea and the time will come that those who cannot suffer wholesome doctrine will curse the day that euer they knew or heard those sweet-tounged chaplaines and soothing Zidkijahs which haue sowed pillowes vnder their armeholes and haue caused them to erre by their flatteries and they wil also crie shame vpon those whō they now thinke too cholericke censorious that they did not speake more throughly vnto them therfore whatsoeuer mens acceptance is it is best for vs to order the matter so by speaking directly to the reproofe of sin that we may be pure from the
and all their studies and endeuours to the seruice of the church and do so long after their people from the very heart roote in Iesus Christ that for their spiritual furtherance they could beteame to deale euen their owne soules vnto thē such I say through the blessing of God vpon their holy labours do so increase in iudgement and in zeale and haue such a doore of vtterance opened vnto them to speake the mysterie of Christ that as they themselues placing a kind of felicity in the doing of their dutie find in themselues a certain facultie in that heauenly exercise so the Church of God committed to them is instructed by their soundnesse of doctrine and whetted on by their zealous exhortations So that to say that sound preaching is for the peoples behoofe and not frequent preaching is a méere collusion presupposing that which is most false namely that soundnes of doctrine and oftenesse of teaching cannot go together How litle I approue of rash aduenturing vpon this kind of exercise that which I haue spoken formerly may witnesse and how small reason there is to separate these two profitable preaching and often preaching I referre it to any indifferent iudgement Nymph But because some that are reputed learned affirme that often preaching is not so much for the peoples profite shew me I pray you some good reason to the contrary that I may be able both to preuaile against mine owne backwardnes when I beginne to grow weary of diligent hearing and to prouoke others also when I shal behold them as it were glutted with multitude of sermons Epaphr There is a certaine disease which we are all more or lesse infected with our Sauior Christ calleth it slownes of heart this euill sicknesse being accompanied with a kind of spirituall sléepinesse and lethargie maketh vs as it were a very lumpe of fluggishnesse slow in attention slow in vnderstanding slow in remembring slow in practising First for attentiō we sée it by euery days experience how like the most of our hearers are vnto the idols of the heathen of whom the Psalme saith that they haue eares and heare not It is true that Elihu sayd to Iob God speaketh once or twise one seeth it not many excellent things are spoken which we obserue not we heare generally with the hearing of the eare so that we haue all need to haue that of the Prophet often vrged He that heareth let him heare that so we might endeuour to fetch vp our hearts to our eares that one sound may at once pierce thē both this is our slownes in attention there is nothing that is heard more idly then that which ought to be listened vnto most carefully Secondly for conceit vnderstāding our slownes therin equalleth our slothfulnes in the former many points are taught that with as much plainnes as is possible in which notwithstanding he that speaketh seemeth as it were a Barbarian vnto vs. That same natural man which perceiueth not the things of the spirit of God sometimes beareth too great a stroke within vs somtimes also God permitting it for our better hūbling the god of this world blindeth our minds that the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ cānot shine vnto vs. The blind man whō Christ healed at Bethsaida when his sight began in some degrees to be restored being asked if he saw ought he looked vp and said I see mē walking as trees he saw at the first not distinctly but after a confused maner I apply it thus we are all by nature blind in the best things and because they are spiritually discerned of our selues we cannot see them now when it pleaseth that God which commandeth the light to shine out of darknes to shine in our hearts we haue at the first but as it were a certain glimpse of heauenly matters the precise exact knowledge is not by and by attained Thirdly touching memory how great weaknes there is in it I cal euery mans conscience to witnes Indeed we see how surely and how long men can remember matters of the world The vncharitable and malicious man will remember an euill turne many a yeere wayting still an oportunity to reuenge it The old man hath so fresh an impression of the toyes vanities of his youth that he wil make you as perfite a relation of them with euery circumstance as if they had bene done but yesterday The couetous worldling though perhaps he can neither write nor reade nor hath any to keepe his reckonings yet he can remember all his bargaines all his conditions in bargaining all his dayes and houres places either for the payment or receipt of any thing The young man or woman can soone learne without book many a ballad or idle Loue-song tending to the increasing or stirring vp of vncleannesse and so it fareth in other particulars But come now to matters of religion piety alas how true is it that the conceipt of them is as soone gone from our minds as the sound from our eares When Dauid enquired of Ahimaaz comming from the camp touching Absolom his answer was I saw a great tumult but I knew not what Like to this will be the answer of a great many when at their returne frō the house of God they are demaunded touching the particulars there deliuered they will say they saw a man speaking and heard the noise of his voice and beheld his gesture but they know not what they can tell litle of that which was vttered by him Lastly for slownesse in practise it is long before after long hearing we are brought to incline to a good dutie and yet after some good disposition to it there are so many delayes and so many pul-backes yea and after a reasonable beginning so many fallings backe and so much waxing weary of well doing that we are too well like Salomons sluggard who it may be maketh many offers of rising yet whilest he crieth Yet a litle sleepe a litle slumber the time stealeth away and his vineyard is all growne ouer with thornes for want of husbandry This is our drowsie sicknes of slownesse of heart The best ordinary remedy against this disease is often preaching as you shall see if you well examine it Continuall calling vpon at last through a kind of importunitie will win vs to attention Often repetition of the same points will both cleare the vnderstanding and settle the iudgment also It grieueth me not saith Paul to write the same things to you and for you it is a sure thing That which after many times deliuery is stil committed to forgetfulnesse yet at the last it is laid vp in the mids of the hart and by the negligence and backwardnes of many yeeres yet in the end the words of the wise Preacher being like goades is drawne vnto some cōfortable perfection If oftē preaching may lawfully be comcomplained of
cōdemned for the supposed misdemeanor of them which preach God forbid Is any mā so vnwise as to disobey a warrant comming apparently frō a man of authority because the Constable or Tithingman is a naughty fellow that bringeth it Who then but either a foole or a froward hart wil tread the holy doctrine of God vnder his feete because he is a man of no good cariage that deliuereth the same Thirdly men are to consider this also that all are not Ministers which are so called neither all true Preachers come frō God that stand vp in the pulpit for in these corrupt times many are crept into the Church of God by the window whom God did neuer set apart to that holy seruice now it is vnpossible but that such as these though they may a long time couer their double iniquity vnder a dissembled sanctitie yet at last breake out into extremities Now it is against common reason to turne their miscariage into the generall disgrace of all honest Ministers There be many counterfeit dog-leaches and pretenced Surgions that hauing gotten a litle Rubarbe or Balsamum and some few words of art run about the country and beguile the people and cozen them of their mony purging their purses and scouring their bags vnder colour of clensing their bodies searching their sores Shal we say therefore that al Phisitions though they be neuer so well learned neuer so well experienced neuer so conscionable and wary in their courses of administring are cozeners and that it were pittie but the countrey were rid of them all it were an indignitie once to imagine it There is no profession but it hath as it were a certaine scumme and there are some that make shew of it that are altogether vnworthy of it Shall the vilenesse vnbeseeming cariage of those that are but the refue and as I may so speake the taile of an honest profession be cast into the face of all the rest that belong vnto it Reason it selfe sayth it is vnméete And men would soone yéeld to this were it not that the diuell hath taught them to be wise in any thing sauing in religion to fauor any profession sauing that of the ministery Men are herein like vnto many Lawyers who if you put them a case without naming the parties will tell you truly what is law but whē they vnderstand who they be whō the matter concerneth then they change their opinion and the law is altered So in the world ask you any man of cōmon vnderstanding this questiō whether it be meet that all of a trade or company should be chalenged because some such or such are worthy to be punished he will tell you there is no reason for it but come to particulars touching preachers thē he is of another mind he wil be ready to say that al Christs disciples were naught because Iudas was a diuel because he it may be knoweth some two or 3. sir Iohns or some other perhaps of better note in the eyes of the world but yet scarcely worthy of their places to be climing with Diotrephes or embracing this present world with Demas or carying themselues insolently with Pashur or otherwise kéeping bad rule with him who imagining that his master doth defer his coming begins to smite the seruants and the maidens and to eate and drinke and to be drunken by and by he concludeth that they are all naught and voweth that he will neuer beléeue any of them for all their shewes of holinesse Fourthly for the further cleering of this point this is also to be considered that Ministers and Preachers do not thinke themselues freed from common infirmities or endued with some greater power or larger priuiledge against sin then others therefore euery slip is not by by to be taken hold of as the maner is and to be turned to the blemishing of a whole profession He is said to be a man of vpright conuersation not who slippeth neuer for who is he that can vnderstand his faults but he who by his seldome slips and by his not continuing in any one knowne euill sheweth himselfe to be a man that vnfainedly desireth to haue his cariage such as becometh the Gospel of Christ Lastly mark this also you shal find it true those who are euer harping vpon this string touching the liues of preachers let thē be vrged to particulars you shal perceiue that either their euill speaking is occasioned by such kind of Ministers as I before named or else if they haue any exception against any of the better and painfuller sort it is such which if it be well examined and throughly looked into will be found rather to sauor of malice in the speaker then to argue any great error in the accused I told you I should be long in this point but now I haue done vnlesse you haue ought further to vrge therein Nymph The most that I haue to say is that men of the world that shall heare this Plea of yours will straightway say that you can speake well for your selues and that though you aggrauate other mens sins vpon occasions yet you can salue vp matters that concerne your selues and helpe to couer your owne infirmities Epaph. The diuell doth well answer his name for there is nothing can be so wel spoken but he and his can cauil at it for mine owne part I striue with my self to speake vnpartially The profession I must loue because God hath called me vnto it yet were I not of it God hath taught me to honor it because the feet of them are beautifull which bring glad tidings of peace And howsoeuer many do so far exalt themselues in their birth in their riches in their wisedome in their personage and bloud that they think it a disparagement vnto them to consecrate all their life to the ministerie of the Gospell yet as Christ himselfe disdained not the title of a Minister so among all the titles of kingdomes and countries this was to that great King the most honorable Solomon the Preacher I must therefore as a Minister but especially as a Christian endeuor to maintaine the credit of the ministery And yet I am not so caried away with a humor of magnifying the profession but that I do see and bemone both mine and other mens imperfections I know that though it be true that we are many times slaundered by soule mouthes yet we often faile and giue great offence euen vnto those that feare God who depending vpon vs are either grieued in heart or which is worse grieuously mis-led by our want of watchfulnesse ouer our selues And I heartily beg of God so to stablish vs in euery word and good work that while we liue we may be an example to them that beleeue and when we haue finished our course the people may haue cause to remēber vs to follow our faith considering what hath bin the end of our
conuersation Nymph My heart saith Amen vnto your good praier and God forgiue vs our backwardnes in that we make so seldom mentiō of you which are our Ministers in our prayers vnto him But now to the next exceptiō which is against the hearers the common saying is that there are none vsually so bad as these Puritanes for so in their ignorance not knowing truly what a Puritane is and in their malice seeking to disgrace honest men they terme euery mā that makes conscience of hearing the word for the building of himself in holy faith they are nothing but a pack of hypocrites men that are not to be trusted for all their faire shewes holy horses and the like names of disgrace which hell can inuent and out of this puddle of reprochfull speeches against the louers of preaching they gather vp filth to cast into the face of preaching it selfe Epaph. This exception and that which went next before are so wel like that they do easily appéere to haue had one father euen the diuel who was a slanderer from the beginning but blessed be God that it is no matter of any great difficultie to discouer euen the deepenesse of Satan to be meere simplicitie First then for this touching the hypocrisie of our hearers it is but a meere slander for to the glory of God be it spokē there are many of those that reuerence this so much contemned course of preaching who haue not onely a shew of godlinesse but do also feele the power thereof and are careful as they beleeue in God so to shew forth good works so that their liues do adorne the doctrine of God our Sauior yea and which is the cause of the so great malice of the vngodly euē reproue the leudnes of the irreligious Secondly suppose it to be so as it may well hypocrites mingling themselues with the soundest Christians that some of those which cary a face of holinesse and zeale loue to the word do notwithstanding hold fellowship with the vnfruitfull workes of darknesse liuing after the lusts of men and running with the wicked to the same excesse of riot yet who is able to say that euer they receiued any encoragemēt by preaching so to do Hath that taught them any such matter and not rather the cleane contrary Let malice speake if it be not constrained for very shame to kéep silence Doth the preacher perswade any man to be an vsurer an oppressor a hard dealer a drunkard a whoremaster or the like Nay it is well knowne that it testifieth to one other that the Lord is auenger of al such things that for them his wrath commeth vpon the children of disobedience These two things namely the falshood of the exception and the bad consequence of it if it were true may stop their mouthes which vse it but you told me as I remember that there be sundry arguments of this kind I pray you let vs heare them no doubt you shal see them all when they are arraigned and brought to receiue their trial at the Tribunall seat of Gods word to be condemned for lying vanities and to be no more able to stand before it thā the Philistins Dagon could keepe his shrine though no doubt he was fast nailed to it when the arke of Iehouah came in place Nymph The next exception is of a larger scope and fighteth against you with the generall wretchednesse of this last generation You shall see it in it owne likenesse that you may the better iudge of it It commonly runneth thus in former times when there was lesse preaching and the Scripture was more geason then now it is the world they say was much better there was more loue more hospitalitie more truth more mercie more good dealing amongst men then is to be found at this day so that whereas there is now much lawing much contention much oppressing much cruelty and sinnes of the like nature al this is layd vpon the backe of preaching this is the leauen that hath put the whole world out of taste this is also a peece of Dagon stump I make no doubt but the Lord hath furnished you with weapons mightie through him to cast downe holds and euery high thing that is exalted against the knowledge of Christ Iesus Epaph. I perceiue the Diuell much doubteth the ruine of his kingdome and therfore though preaching amongst men is thought to be but wind yet he féeleth his state begin to totter with the power of it so that he doeth stretch his wit and set his pollicy on worke and spareth for no engines to beat downe that which he shal neuer be able to ouerturne And that as we haue seene hitherto so I doubt not but we shall further sée it in the examination of particulars For those elder times as men call them first it is to be noted that it is true indeed that many of those who liued in thē were in the eies of men very commendable for those morall vertues as they are termed of hospitalitie of bountie of humanity of plain dealing the like the reason was this Satan let them alone in these things because he did hold them captiue at his will in the principal Though he doth hate these specialties in their owne nature being an vtter enemie to all goodnesse yet he was content to giue way in those lesser things so long as he could nuzle them in ignorance of God and of his word which he well knew was both hold enough for himself and sufficient inough also to blemish and disgrace all those reputed vertues before God But now the light of knowledge being come into the world and spreading it self further by the more common vse of preaching Sathan secretly perswadeth many that it is enough for them to haue knowledge though they neglect practise he laboreth also by killing mens care to shew themselues forward in these duties of ciuilitie to lessen the credit of the Gospel to haue matter of slaunder against the knowledge of Gods truth Secondly to speake more specially of this last and worst age of the world if it be well vnderstood preaching may be sayd to be the occasion though not the naturall cause of the extreame wretchednesse thereof according as Paul sayth that sinne tooke occasion by the commaundement and when the commaundement came sinne reuiued and grew out of measure sinfull Now the preaching publishing of the truth may be sayd to be the occasion of much euill in these last times in two respects first because of the fuller discouery of sin In the dayes of former ignorance many of the same grosse sins were which now are but either they were smothered in the darknesse of the times or if they were a litle discried yet they were reputed nothing so odious But althings when they were reprooued of the light became manifest for it is light that maketh all things manifest so that now sin being seene