Selected quad for the lemma: heart_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
heart_n	believe_v	faith_n	knowledge_n	2,274	5	6.8185	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A57540	Ohel or Beth-shemesh A tabernacle for the sun, or, Irenicum evangelicum : an idea of church-discipline in the theorick and practick parts, which come forth first into the world as bridegroom and bride ... by whom you will have the totum essentiale of a true Gospel-church state according to Christs rules and order left us when he ascended ... : published for the benefit of all gathered churches, more especially in England, Ireland and Scotland / by John Rogers ...	Rogers, John, 1627-1665?; Rogers, John, 1627-1665? Challah, the heavenly nymph.	1653 (1653)	Wing R1813; Wing R1805; ESTC R850	596,170	655

defend it by arguments out of Scriptures that art not convinced of it by the Word and Spirit and perswaded in thy very heart that thou art in the right yea though all the world yea the Angels of Heaven should say against it be fully perswaded your good meanings and mindes will not serve turn nor yet the gray Colliar-like implicite faith of Papists which believe as the Church believe they say And this is the most you have from your Irish Catholicks at this hour and yet ask them what the Church believes why they will say as we believe and what do ye believe why as the Church believes and that is they know not what But such a simplex conversio is all we can get from most of them talk a day together with them But a Christian must be able to maintain his doctrine and to warrant his opinion and judgement whether in doctrine or discipline by the Word Isa. 8 20. Or else saith the Prophet there is no light in them That is else they want understanding which ought to be rightly informed and inlightned as a beginning imperant saith Par upon Rom. 14. and they want the will too well sanctified and made pliant as a beginning obsequent and e●cequent and then ere you are aware your soul will be set on the chariots of Amminadib as we may show in the next Chapter For conscience carries thee out sweetly and with a sure testimony within thee that white stone when by good arguments out of the Word thou art assured That thou art in the Lords way of worship when thou canst comfortably and cordially say as Rom. 14.14 I know and am perswaded by the Lord Jesus Not I think or it is very likely but I am sure upon certain and infallible Scriptures and I do stedfastly believe it in my heart O then thou wilt prove a stout Champion for the truth indeed and darest stand for it when thou knowest thou art right Thou knowest it first for thy faith and perswasion is in a sense subjective seated in thy knowledge and understanding as in the subject thy opinion or perswasion is according to thy apprehension and understanding wherefore in order to your full perswasion of and satisfaction in this way of Christ or Gospel-fellowship you shall do well 1. To examine your knowledge of the Scriptures concerning this way 2 Pet. 1.19 have ye searched the Scriptures and do you finde them to bear a clear testimony to this truth doth the Word in your judgement and understanding warrant and witness to this way of worship as the way of Christ And to this Gospel-fellowship as the Gospel order then you will well do to walk in it fear not yet discouragements or troubles you must meet with in it let them not daunt yee do you your duty and let God alone to defend ye and to do ye your good When our Saviour bad Peter with the rest throw their nets in for a draught of fish why they had many discouragements for all night long they had thrown in and lost their labors Nevertheless at thy word saith Peter I will let down the net So should we say though our friends will be offended our persons hated our names traduced our injuries great our enemies many and multitudes of discouragements that we must be sure and look for it aforehand though the skies are very calm at this present that we shall meet with yet for all that At thy Word O Lord we will enter into this way so we have but Christs word and warrant for it we may be confident and couragious and fully satisfied But to further this direction those that would enter into this way must 1. Be well instructed and informed of the order of the Gospel in primitive times what manner of fellowship they finde the Word to hold forth in the Apostles days and some hundred yeers after them that is before the Church was deflowred and defiled with humane inventions dregs and devices whilest the pattern was in the Mount and the institution of Christ was the onely Canon-law and liberty As the Apostle would 1 Cor. 11.24 25. bring them to consider the first institution so doth Christ about divorcement bring them to the beginning and first institution and that divorces were not lawful Christ proves that they were not so from the first Matth. 19.4 7 8. So in great and rich promises the Lord is pleased to foretel the restauration of his people as at first Jer. 33.7 11. so Acts 3.19 21. To teach us what we are to look for that is things as at first holiness fellowship doctrine discipline as at first and we should ask after Jer 6.16 The good old way quam primum verum optimum that is the true way for truth is older then error and error is nothing but the excrement and corruption of truth The Primitive practise and order of Christs Church is to be s●t before us for our satisfaction because it is as a pattern to all succeeding ages 2. Be also well informed of the order and practise of our Churches now in these days Sit down sayes Mr. Bartlet and compare our present stations with the first order of the Gospel and see wherein we fall short and blush and be ashamed Ezek. 43.11 12. and then come out of Babylon But for this I refer the Reader to the former Book Thirdly Then when ye have found out in your judgements and beleefe a Church-society in Gospel-order and are fully perswaded of it and doe finde it in your heart that you are prepared and ordered for it doe not delay entring into it but be sure first it be into such a society and Church-communion of Saints as you see and that upon Scripture grounds you judge to come up nighest to Rule and closest to the Primitive patterne and practise which yee shall do well very diligently to look out for And fourthly observe the motions of the spheres and all the particular becks of providence how things joyne together and so fittly concur for your admittance into this Church-way for as holy Sibs saith fitting occasions and suiting of things well together doe intimate Gods will and Gods time And indeed all Providences have their language to Gods people and they minde their Call cleare when Providence makes the way for them For indeed Gods Providence runs along like waters in a Brook where every little peble hath a language in it therefore wee shall doe well to understand them For as wrong reading spoyles the sense so will the not reading of Gods Providences to a full period and stop But thus far for the first Direction Secondly Be sure ye have no confidence in the flesh Phil. 3.3 neither in your selfe i. e. your own wit parts gifts or the like thereupon to run rashly into this way rather upon a presumption out of pride vain-glory selfe-love or curiosity then upon well-grounded

many nice indirect and unprofitable questions or the like Now for orders sake and the peace of the Church when they have appointed whom to speak for the Church the person formerly propounded enquired of and now to be admitted is called in His name is called and prayer made for direction from above that they might have a discerning spirit in this great work to put the Lords difference between holy and unholy sheep and goats and remembring promises made as in such cases This done the person to be admitted doth express his earnest desire of entring and so is to be received upon a threefold Testimony Negative and Affirmative The first is When he is propounded and no body can object against the person propounded which is desired of any that can and upon what grounds For Acts 9.26 though Paul assayed to joyn himself to the Church yet so long as the Disciples were afraid of him and did question him and were in doubt of him he was not received Wherefore he is propounded to them all to know who can object any thing as Mr. Dudley Fenner said before But further 2. Another testimony of him is from others who can give him a testimony upon their own knowledge and for how long if there be any Church-member whose testimony is most valid can so do it will do well as Rom. 16.1 Col. 4.12 13. whose testimonies are many times writ down and upon record for future use if need be Or else such as testifie from the mouths of others as those that the Church sent out to enquire of him giving in their best information and experience of the person and this faithfully and especially touching his unblameableness in conversation as much as may be But 3. For a further and fuller and most satisfactory testimony that comes from within the person to be admitted being desired for the Churches satisfaction to make an account of his faith and of the work of grace upon his heart he does so as we have said before and shall show in the next Chapters what manner of confessions are made or experiences produced But now if enough be not spoken to the satisfaction of all he that hath any doubts doth ask some question for his satisfaction and none can deny that liberty Now this testimony is for the most part most sweet and useful indeed and deserves to be registred Some of the most special that I have met with and written down I shall instance in in the Chapters following and often times from a gracious heart they come undeniably before they have done Although we grant that some are very imperfect in utterance and cannot express themselves so well as others that it may be are most gracious precious Christians Then one of these ways we take either to get what we can from them by asking them some easie questions and that discreetly too and yet such as are useful for that season and so receiving such broken and imperfect answers as they give though they be but words dropping sweetness and savoring of grace yet put together may make weight and will signifie something well-spelled I remember once in Dublin a sister propounded to be admitted as before was thus quaeried with by the Churches appointment and answering at first very fearfully and uncertainly so that some were unsatisfied and desired that she might be past by for this present till the next meeting not daring to put her by because she was an approved godly Christian in life But when she heard this she burst out into tears bitterly before the Church and amongst many other words which argued a broken heart Sir saith she to me then present it was but the last Lords day saith she you preaching over the water said Christ called us freely without any such qualifications first and that he said Joh. 6. that those that come to him he would in no wise put by and upon these promises I am come the Word hath called me and Christ hath called me and bid me come and I must come without any worthiness in my self and shall I now be put by With that poor heart her passage was stopt with tears for a while which drew tears from the tender hearts of divers in the Church who observed a great deal of grace thorough these weeping words and yet her bold challenge of the promise and of an interest in the Church Christs Body upon as free account without any formal qualifications as she had an interest in Christ the Head having the like call c. though there might be a mistake in such an apprehension for qualifications are requisite in this external union that are not in the internal we must take Christ on his terms and the Church on hers yet I say as when the Sun shines through a watry cloud so she appeared gracious and amiable in the eye of the Church and upon debate her love faith zeal obedience and grace appearing to the satisfaction of all this tender soul was received I remember Master Fenner in his Sermon called Christs Alarum to sinners mentions a story of Demosthenes That when a man came and told him how a Neighbor had abused him and beaten him uttering it coldly and carelesly and spoke it as if he dreamed Demosthenes answered the man That he could not believe it No! saith the man in a passion do you not why he took me thus and held me here and struck me thus and thus the man acting it now zealously c. And do ye not saith he call this beating will you not believe it yes saith Demosthenes now I believe thee for now thou speakest as if it were so indeed So many will hardly believe any to be a Christian but such as can word it well and speak and act zealously but let them take heed of grieving tender hearts in expecting too much from them after the formal way of speaking least they should send any away that keep not touch to their fancy and form For as Dell saith and it is true It is a most pestilent doctrine to make things necessary that are not so for God regards not the form time or circumstances of such things as to him but they are left to us to be used according to the wisdom and discretion of the Church without tyes upon the spirits of any It is not the form but the faith nor the appearance but the power of godliness which we are to eye and own and which God does eye and own In the mean time seeing the Church whilst she is with men and dwells with flesh and blood must use some external rites which are not absolutely necessary by which the Church is nothing sanctified nor satisfied and things meerly of outward order and decency Yet let her be sure to observe these rules 1. To order none of them as of necessity or as if they were enough to take in

in two or three considerations As First that all Saints are Sons and Daughters of light and therefore have liberty to lay by what is dark to them for as Psal. 39. ult in the Lords light they see light not in mans light they cannot see with other mens eyes Therefore they have a liberty of rejecting or refusing whatsoever they find not agreeable to the revealed minde of Christ And whatsoever is asked of them or accepted from them as matter of faith and they are required to obey or yeeld submission to they must and will have Gods word to give it them the Gospel of Christ to hold it out to them or else they returne a blanke to it or a negative answer 1 Thess. 5.22 Col. 2.20 21 22 1 Joh. 4.1 2. Act. 17.11 Gal. 5.1 and will have none of it that hath none of Christs Commands for it wherefore it is with them as it was with the Beraeans they search the Scriptures whether they can finde such things so or no. Children of day they see where they goe but them of darknesse doe not Act. 17.23 1 Joh. 2.11 they goe they know not whither but at a venture doe as others doe whilst the Saints of God walk warily wisely knowingly c. yea and armed with light too Rom. 13.12 being round about swallowed up as it were in a clear truth which they are able to defend and maintaine having put on the armor of light 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 instruments weapons of light too for defenc● The word of God which conquers them they use to conquer others with and in such cases as these are as to the Doctrine and Discipline of Christ the Saints had need to be clear for they shall meet with many adversaries oppositions enemies hot strong sturdy and lusty and that will with full blows and violent buffets and arguments use all means to assault wound and knock them down therefore I say they had need to have the armour of light on against the time they are to meet their storming angry raging adversaries else they will soon yeeld and faint therefore it is that nothing should be urged upon them which is darke to them For as darknesse is caused by the absence of the Sun so is darknesse in the minde and upon mens spirits when they finde not Christs the Sunnes light to shine in their hearts and to give them the knowledge and when they finde not in the Gospel that forme opinion or practise which others urge to them and would presse upon them then they are in the darke which ought not to bee thrust upon any Saint or Brother that is to be received For first wherein they are in the darke they are disconsolate whilst those that live in the light walk in the day and doe what is cleare to them out of the word of God and doe it chearfully freely comfortably and indeed confidently And the conscience is cleared and rejoyces in such practises as are approved by day-light and are cleared in the understanding and proved by the word of Christ. And Secondly darknesse hinders sight tenebrae a tenend and tenebra est visus impeditiva and so doe such opinions and practises which are pressed upon us without the word of Christ without the light and not in the beams of the Sunne those brethren cannot see other things often-times that are swallowed up in them Who are more blinded as to the most spiritual objects and discoveries then your greatest formalists that are most hot high stirring pressing their owne formes opinions judgements especially in things doubtful and indifferent and such things as are left indifferent and such things as are left in the darke without the word O! how bitterly are they besotted incensed against the more subtle oriental spiritual and most splendent truths color omnibus unus thus were the Pharisees and so Isa. 29.10 and Joh. 9.39 Thirdly they know not how to walke when they are in the dark est gressus prohibitiva nor whether they are right or no And Fourthly they walke in feare for so much as they are in the darke est timoris incussiva and so they cannot but bee faint and fearfull of that opinion practise or forme which they finde not in the word of God And Fifthly est casus inductiva it is dangerous and they are liable to fall then when they are forced or induced to do that which they see not warranted in the word but left in the dark too and who then would as was said before give a brother such occasion to stumble and fall Sixthly est verecundi● diminutiva this night-opinion or practise or forme whatsoever it be which any are brought into makes them many times too immodest tooth and naile unguibus dentibus to fight for and act for what the word warrants not As the night that makes night-walkers too bold in immodest formes and appearances and practises sutable thereto So O sad some of your formalists you will finde have the Whores forehead harlots-dresse and are too bold as blind Bayard and confident for such formes opinions practises and wayes which have none of Gods word to give life or light to them and yet how hot are some for Antichristian orders and customes which were the light up and did the Sunne shine in their Horizon they would even blush to owne and be ashamed to shew their heads for Now all these and many more inconveniencies would be unavoidable consequences of such practises as to presse our opinions or judgements upon any of the Saints and upon such conditions to admit of them into Communion which God forbid should be in our thoughts hereafter For let us doe as we would be done by and let every one walke that is a childe of Light in the light and liberty of his owne conscience for better it is to follow even an erring conscience when it cannot bee informed and corrected then to doe against conscience But thus for the first Consideration Secondly Consider what is the glory and beauty of Sion which shall be shortly the joy of the whole earth is it not variety in unity and into unity The Church militant is the image or figure of the Church triumphant and all her Ordinances Orders Forms of Discipline and Doctrine are no more nor lesse then a shadow of what is to come in the Jerusalem which is above Gal. 4.26 wherefore the word Jerusalem in the Heb. is of the duall number to teach us as the Cabalists confesse there is an heavenly as well as earthly Jerusalem● and the taking away of the letter jod out of J●rushalaim 2 Sam. 5 13. teaches the earthly Jerusalem is but the shadow and the shadow vanishes away into the substance which is that that is above Thus the Apostle intimates in Col. 2.17 speaking before of many Ordinances of Circumcision Baptisme Sabbath-dayes c. which are all sayes he but

to be quite cut off and parted asunder but afterward being hurried through with that headlong and furious force I had strength to stay a little beyond it and to perpend the perplexible perill which I was in I stood as one amazed or rather as one that knew not whether he were alive or dead I knew not how to beleeve my self lesse then a dead man and afterward at least mortally and deadly wounded if not desperately and deplorably eut in twain Oh! how I stood trembling and tumbling in my thoughts untill the vitall bloud which was fled for the hearts defence began to disperse again and to go quietly to their own homes and then I looked about and turned me to the gate-way but the appearance was pass'd away the sword gone and vanisht whilest I was left alone the rest running away in a labyrinth of fears without any wound without but deeply and wofully wounded within and never si●hence to the praise of Gods grace as I know of have I had such extravagant preposterous expressions passed from me But Good God! What was thy will herein Thou who art not tyed to means or order best orderest and disposest of all things for thine owne design and glory and so this was I am sure but what it was I know not yet it left a lasting impression upon me and the scar is yet to be seen in my heart though the wound be healed But alas How long and lamentable I lay afflicted and in continuall fears after this Every thunder and lightning I look'd upon as my fate and sent for me and then would I fall to my Prayers and saying my Creed and Commandements and to my Sermons as fast as might be that I might be found wel-doing at least if not as a charme to defend me or a challenge to God by virtue of them to keep and blesse me this I remember was my great comfort to consider some did not do thus but altogether sl●ghted holinesse duties and did live wickedly and carnally in drunkennesse disobedience Sabbath-breaking and severall sins every day which I was so farre from grief at and weeping over that I in my heart rejoyced in it that I was in more hopes then they and as I fancyed my self better then they and should receive more favour But all this while like an Israelite in Egypt I work'd for life and my services were my Saviours and I would to my brothers sisters and School-fellowes and companions to take occasion to talk of heaven and hell and what a hard thing it was to be saved For some time after this is Malden where I was boarded and put to the Free-school I had a certain dream which by the consequence proved a praevision of what is now come to passe it was on a night about the time when the Spaniards and Hollanders had a scuffling and a kinde of Naumamachy upon the Downes for then some talking of that fight fill'd me full of fears and in the night my dream was that fire rain'd as I may say or rather powred down round about and looking where I was I thought it to be without the Coach-yard gate of my Fathers house and I was frighted to see nothing but fire looking upward and round about praying for deliverance none came nigh me round about by a good space but flaming else I thought in all places and I could see none exempted wherefore being afflicted for my Father and our family I fell on my knees for them and I thought I continued so long ere I could be heard but was at last bid to arise and look and then I thought the fire fell not so fast on my Fathers house as it did before but by little and little abated till I awaked Now although this dream had seised much upon my spirits yet I made no other account of it then of a fancy till five or six years after in the Isle of Ely meeting with Dr. Draiton D. D. he declared to me for severall reasons that this must be more then a meer dream as working of fancy and that something was to come which I should finde this to predemonstrate instancing in some of the like kinde which himself his wife and others had met with as warnings and predictions and therefore he wished me in no case to slight or contemn it for that he was confident it did shew some fiery and angry dispensation upon all our family and my father and the rest should lye under some trouble by the times or otherwise and my self should be set free and at this liberty to pray for them and that by degrees they should be recovered and brought out and the fire abate which interpretation more fully by farre from his own mouth is for the most part verified at this day But all this while I was labouring for life exceedingly formall and I did much covet to know the things of God and therefore wished oft I were but a Minister such a one as Mr. Fenner is or Mr. Marshall or Mr. Hooker or my Father or some other that was eminent that I might attain to their knowledge and then I thought I should do abundance more for God as if God were beholding to me for my obedience and I would then I thought be sure to get salvation as if I could then easily do it Thus a poor creature I continued for severall years together and if you knew but half what I have met with in that time you would say I was a poor creature indeed as any alive for I kept to my self many fast-daies and would eat nothing heard read sang Psalmes meditated used Soliloquies and prayed many times a day and what not and yet at last despaired even to the depth what by often thoughts of hell reading Drexellius upon eternity and then thinking of endlesse easlesse and remedilesse torments and what by frequent frights as before and what by my Father once preaching on the fool in the Gospel Luk. 10.20 Thou fool this night will I take away thy soul then whose shall those things be that thou hast provided Whence he handled a point of the folly of men to lay up here and forget heaven and shewing that heaven came not with ease on a down bed but many shall strive hard to enter and shall not be able and that except you exceed the righteousnesse of the Scribes and Pharisees Mat. 5.20 you shall in no case enter into the kingdome of heaven What with these and other things I was almost in the bottomelesse abysmes of torments I took the Bible to look these Scriptures read them over and over and over again but the more I read the more I roar'd in the black gulf of despair where I was cast so deep as to me and others I seemed sometimes past all recovery I prayed fasted mourn'd got into corners yea many times being I was ashamed to make my case known I have ran into barnes stables house-of

shall be fruitfull Col. 1.10 Hosea 14.8 So every Saint and Member must eat of the Fruits of all out of all i. e. that grows out of every one yea of the least lowest darkest and most undershadow and meanest Member or Brother of the Church for every one shall bring in of his Fruits and none be hindred and every ones Fruits shall be in due season Ps. 1.2.3 and none before the time Mal. 3.11 but all ripened by the Sun and then every one will be desirous of them Micah 7.1 My soul desired the ripe fruits sayes the Prophet himselfe 8. Man in Paradise was forbidden the Tree of Knowledge v. 17. But of the tree of Knowledge thou shalt not eat of it for in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely dye which words are full in Hebr. you shall not eat of it that is not eat out of it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as if the Lord should 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 poynt out with his finger the Tree he forbad if thou eatest thereof thou shalt not faile to dye thou shalt surely dye which is in Hebraisme too 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 moriendo merierie 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 thou shalt dye with dying thou shalt dye the death that is necessarily and unavoydably and most miserably thou shalt know 't is a fearfull thing to sin in Paradise so in Church-Fellowship therefore the command is interdicting and prohibiting the tree of Knowledg So are the Saints Members in the Churches forbid the tree of Knowledge that is humane Wisdom carnal Reason and Policy affectation of Word Gifts habituall Parts of Learning subtile Sophistry and all such forbidden fruits in Paradise so in the Churches Col. 2.8 That none spoyle you through Philosophy Arts and Sciences nor corrupt you with humane Wisdome 1 Cor. 1.20.21 2 Cor. 1.12 which Aegypt and Babylon did and yet do abound in but the Lord hath promised to destroy and bring this Wisdome to nought Isay. 29 14. And that the deafe shall hear and the blind see Isay. 29.18 The things and visions of the booke which the learned can't read in v. 11. Because 't is sealed to him but the spirit of the Lord shall reveale them to Babes And those that see not shall see whilst those that see shall be made blind Therefore let the Saints take heed of that Tree whose Fruits if they live upon them and prefer them for so Man did will be accursed to them Jer. 17.5.6 For cursed is the man that makes flesh his arm whose heart departeth from the Lord for he shall be like the heath in the desart and not see when good commeth This is a Curse indeed as full as the Fig-tree had and this dreadfull Curse is full of wrath for and to them that prefer and feed altogether on humane Parts habitual Gifts Wisdome Learning or the like for by these the Old Man who must fall gets to be enthroned and Christ and Truth justled out of doors not that we deny an use yea and sometimes a great use too that may be made of Parts Learning humane Knowledge habituall Gifts c. For if there were no use at all to be made of them then they were not to be there then this Tree of Knowledge should not have been set in Paradise at all much lesse in the midst of the Garden but this we say that though they may be suffered yea seen heard handled yet they must not be eaten fed on before the Tree of Life to live on or to be nourished by them O no! but feed on the Tree of Life Eate down the Fruits of the spirit the Graces Learning Wisdome of the spirit to live on to be quickned nourished comforted by and to have them consubstantiated into you So that the other fruits are not first to be feed on but to be looked on and to be used as Servants to the Tree of Life and by the bye therefore woe be to them that prefer the tree of knowledge before the tree of life it is that which is here forbid and is accursed with a most dreadfull sentence and doome upon it and they fall fowlest and most irrecoverably that fall by eating the fruits of the tree of knowledge viz. selfe-wisdome and parts c in preferring of these by Sathan's subtill insinuations before the tree of life Let all Churches and Members look to it then For they are under a desperate curse that do so and when they do Julian like Apostatize they are the most hurtfull unholy violent and unexecrable Enemies to Christ and his Gospel 9. The Serpent got even into Paradise it's selfe and presently pitcht upon the tree of knowledge to tempt the Woman and so the man with the fruits of that tree and the Woman seeing 't was to be desired to make one wise Gen. 3.16 Sayes the Text took it c. So Sathan that subtill Serpent creeps into the best Churches at some hole or other and appears in their Congregations as Job 1.6 where God sees him when men can't and so even in Judas in Christs little fellowship he crowded in and so in Jude 4 Gal. 2.4 and when they are at the best and busi●st duties he 'l be sure to tēpt them that subtilly with wonderous art and cunning winding himselfe into the heart of one or other to tempt them to forbidden fruits and he usually gets up into the tree of knowledge i. e. by carnall reason humane wisdome c. to do it He oftentimes presents the fairest side of the fairest fruits of this Tree to tempt poor souls with And he sets upon the weakest vessels to seduce them with a supposition of Gifts Parts humane Wisdome Learning and the like that these will make them wise and as Gods c. O sad miserable sad souls that are so deceived by the fair shows of Gifts as to prefer them before graces Wherefore let all Members and Churches be warned hereby For Sathan is got in to tempt some of the weakest of them Therefore sayd Paul to the Church of Corinth 2 Epist. 11.3 I fear least by any means as the Serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety so your mindes should be corrupted by his cunning Acts 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 from the plain simplicity that is in Christ Wherefore let us all beware and believe graces more then gifts the tree of life is better for food then the tree of knowledge the spirit is better then the flesh and Christ to be preferred before the Creature or creature-parts and appearances And know that none are wise but the Saints the Churches and Saints are able to out-see all the Vniversities of the Earth in altissimis causis rerum Christ is their Wisdome 1 Cor. 1.30 Et dignoscitiva directiva in him they are wise 1 Cor. 4.10 and learned the learned of God are brought up in the Universities of Christ the Schooles of the Prophets indeed excelling all in