Ministers cannot say yea and that such an instruction and such a promise in the Word did helpe him then you conclude that you are incurable But last of all let it be supposed that your case is worse than any bodies else Is there not a soveraigne Balme in Gods Word a Catholicon that will heale all spirituall diseases Gods Word is like himselfe to a beleever an Omnipotent Word Is any thing too hard for the LORD Neither is there any spiritual disease too hard for his Word When Christ healed the people with his Word did it not heale even such the like whereof were never knowne to be cured before They made no question whether he cured the like before Indeede Martha failed in this for she said of her brother Lazarus being dead LORD he stinketh for he hath beene dead foure dayes she conceived her brothers case to be desperate and that none in his case could be raised But Christ did blame her for want of faith and by his Word hee did as easily raise Lazarus from being dead so long as hee did cure Peters wiues mother sicke but of an ague It is not greatnesse of any mans distres whatsoever that can hinder from helpe and comfort but onely as then in curing mens bodies so now in curing and comforting mens soules nothing hinders the cure but the greatnesse of the unbeliefe of the party to be cured for all things are possible to him that beleeveth You will yet Reply indeed here lyeth the difficultie in the unbelife Well be it so If unbeliefe be your disease and trouble doe you thinke that God cannot cure you of unbeliefe as well as of any other sinne But know that if with him in the Gospell you feele your unbeliefe and complaine of it and confesse it unto GOD saying Lord I have cause to beleeve Lord I doe I would beleeve helpe thou my unbeliefe if withall you will waite untill GOD give you power to beleeve and to enjoy comfort in beleeving for faith maketh no haste this same is both to beleeve in truth and is a certaine meanes to increase in beleeving Wherefore let not Sathan nor yet a fearefull heart make you to judge your case to be desperate and remedilesse either in respect of Gods power or will though you yet be in distresse and doe feele in you much feare and unbeliefe Seeke to God and with patience waite the good time of deliverance and comfort and in due time you shall have helpe and comfort as well as any other There are yet some that feare God doth not love them because they have prayed oft and much but God rejected their prayers and hath not heard them There are many just causes why God may reject or at least not grant your prayers and yet may love your persons For first It may be you aske amisse either asking things unlawfull or asking things inconvenient for the present or in asking to have good things temporall or spirituall in that quantity degree which GOD doth not hold fit for you as yet or you aske good things to an ill end as to satisfie some lust as pride voluptuousnesse covetousnesse or some other or it may bee you might aske onely with a naturall desire or if with spirituall yet you did it but faintly without fervor or lastly though you failed in neither of the former yet you failed in this you were doubtfull you did not aske in faith you did not beleeve you should have the things so asked Whosoever doe thus faile in asking let them not thinke ever to receive any thing in favour from the LORD And it is a fruit of Gods love when he doth not answer prayers so made For it will cause you to seeke him and to pray to him in a better manner that you may be heard Secondly God doth many times in love and mercy heare his childrens praiers when they thinke he doth not God heareth prayers many wayes you must observe this else you will judge that he doth not heare your praiers when yet indeed he doth Sometimes yea alwaies when it is good for you he giveth the vâ—râ— thing which you pray for Someâ—â—â—â—s hee giveth not that thing which you aske but some thingâ—s good nay much better As when you aske corporall and temporall good things he denyeth to grant them but in stead therof doth give you things spirituall and eternall likewise when you aske grace in some special degree such as joy or comfort in God or the like it may please him not to let it appeare that hee giveth the same unto you but in stead thereof he doth enlarge your desires and he giveth humility and patience to wait his leisure which will doe you more good than that which you prayed for So likewise when you pray that GOD would rid and ease you of such or such a temptation God doth not alwayes rid and ease you of it but he in stead thereof giveth you strength to withstand it and keepeth you that you are not overcome by it thus Christ was heard in that which he feared so he said to the Apostle My grace is sufficient for thee Which is better than to have your particular request For now GODS power is seene in your weakenesse and God hath the glory of it and you hereby have experience of GODS power which experienceis of excellent use Likewise you may desire to have such or such a crosse removed yet God may suffer the crosse to remaine for a time but he giveth you stâ—ength and patience to beare it wisedome and grace to be lesse earthly and more heavenly minded by reason of it There was never any that with an holy and humble heart made lawfull requests according to the wil of Christ beleeving he should be heard but though he were a man of many failings in himselfe and did discover many weaknesses in his prayer was heard in that hee prayed either in what he did ask or in what he should rather have asked either in that very thing or in a better I would have you leave objecting and questioning whether God love you Consider this Hath hee not loved you that hath given his onely be gotten Sonne for you and to you who hath washed you with his bloud having given him to dye for your sinnes and to rise againe for your iustification and hath hereby translated you into the kingdome of his deare Sonne having also given unto you to beleeve in his Name hereby making you his children inheritours with the Saints in light What greater signe can there be of greater love of God towards you And what better evidence can you have of Gods love in justifying of you then the evidence of your faith whereby you are iustified SECTION 5. A removall of false feares rising from doubtings whether they have faith and are Iustified ALL men will grant that if they were sure that they
that if hee offer grace to day who can tell whether he wil offer it to morrow Or whether he will offer it again Who knoweth whether God will take him from the meanes of Salvation or will take the meanes of Salvation from him All this our holy and wise God hath revealed in his Word to make men wise to take the opportunity and time of grace while it is offered Wherfore whosoever have let slippe their first times offers of grace have sinned plaied the fooles egregiously for which they have cause to be much humbled But for you to conclude hence that the date and time of your conversion is out hath no sufficient ground For it is not possible for you to know that your time of conversion is past all recoverie But you shold rather for the present time beleeve and hope that it is not past Indeed to presume to put off receiving grace untill to morrow is foolish and dangerous but if God give you time till to morrow that you live and it can be said to day so long as you yet live and the externall meanes of Salvation are not taken from you either in their exercise or out of your remembrance but you doe yet live to heare what God hath commanded you to doe and to heare what good things hee yet offereth unto you with Christ or if the meanes be taken from you or you are detained from them by sicknesse c. so long as you yet live to call to remembrance what God hath commanded you to beleeve and doe you cannot say the time is too late If you would yet condemn your selves for refusing grace heretofore and would be now willing and desirous to accept of it Moreover would you now with all your heart use the meanes of Salvation and indevour to beleeve and repent if you thought it were not too late And doth it grieve you that you have let slip the opportunitie And would you gaine and redeeme that lost time if you knew how Then I dare in the name of God assure you that the date of your conversion is not out It is not too late for you to turne unto the Lord. While it is to day I may boldly say harden not your heart which if you doe not you must know that now is an acceptable time now is the day and time of your Salvation At what time soever GOD doth send his Minister unto you by whom GOD doth beseech you they intreating you as now I doe in Christs stead that you would be reconciled to GOD this is the acceptable day if you will be intreated by them The day wherein GOD will accept of you is not past Moreover at what time soever and by what meanes soever any man shall humble himselfe for sinne and aske grace the date of Gods acceptance of him is not out Learne this in the example of Manasses and many other who had refused grace in their yongertime yet were converted in their age You have Gods expresse words for it who saith From the dayes of your fathers that is for a long time Yee are gone away from mine ordinances and have not kept them Returne unto me and I will returne unto you saith the Lord of Hoasts That place in the Proverbes rightly understood doth not contradict any thing which I have said nor yet serve for that for which it is alledged For by refusing there he meaneth a constant and obstinate refusing of wisedomes counsell untill such time that God hath broughtsome misery on them theÌ„ they should call upon him By calling upon him in that place is not meant a hearty praying with godly sorrow for sin making request for pardon and for grace but a crying or howling rather like those in Hosea under the sense of Gods judgements praying in truth onely to be eased of it For at what time soever a sinner shall repent GOD will turne to him And whosoever looketh towards Christ the true Temple shadowed forth by the materiall Temple at Ierusalem and confesseth his sinne and asketh pardon God will pardon for so hath he promised But may not a man pray too late and seek repentance in vain as Esau did who found no place of repentance though he sought it carefully with teares Did not the foolish Virgins seeke to enter into the Bride-chamber but were not admitted And doth not our Saviour say many shall strive to enter in and shall not be able No man can aske grace and forgivenesse of sinnes too late if he aske for grace and power against sin heartily But a man may aske a temporall blessing or the removall of a temporall evill when it may be too late As for Esaus carefull seeking of repentance you must understand it not of his owne repentance from his prophanenes and from other dead workes but of his Father Isaacks repentance he would have had his father to change his minde and to have given him the birth-right which was already bestowed upon Iacob Read Gen. 27. 34. 38. Whereas the foolish Virgins did assay to enter into the Bride-chamber when the doore was shut know that this is a parable and must not be urged beyond its generall scope which is to shew that formall professors of Christianitie such as have onely a forme of godlinesse without the power of it they although they will not live the life of the righteous yet they could wish their end might be like theirs And because of their outward profession of Christs Name in this life they securely expect eternall life but because before their death they did not provide the oyle of truth and holinesse therefore at the day of Iudgement they shall be disappointed of entering into Heaven which in the time of their life they did so much presume of The like answer may be given unto that place alledged out of Luk. 13. 24. Yet unto that place more may be said You mistake when you say that Christ saith many shall strive to enter and shall not be able He saith Strive to enter in at the straight gate for many I say to you shall seeke to enter in and shall not be able he doth not say many shall strive to enter There is great difference in the signification of the Greeke words and so there is betweene striving and seeking signified by them Seeking imports onely a bare professing of Christ such as is shewed in giving the name to Christ comming to Church hearing the Woâ—d and receiving the Sacraments For thus did the men spoken of by our Saviour who are said not to be able to enter But to strive to enter is to doe all these and more it is to strive in seeking for him that they take up their crosse and follow him they give their hearts to him as well as their names they are heartie and sincere in Praying Hearing Receiving they strive to subdue their lusts which offend Christ
it were with a forced wil and constrained yeelding against the will but howsoever it may be with much opposition and conflict yet you must so beat downe the opposition that when you give consent you bring your will to doe it readily and freely with thankfull acknowledging your selves much bound to CHRIST all the dayes of your life for that he wil vouchsafe to make you such an offer When consent is rash faint and not free this will not hold for good any long time but when your consent is advised compleate and free out of true love to CHRIST as well as for your owne benefit the knot of marriage betwixt Christ and you is knit so fast that all the lusts of the flesh all the allurements of the world and all the powers of Hell shall not be able to breake it By this which hath beene said touching the nature of Faith many who thought they had faith may see that yet they have none For they onely beleeve in generall that there is a Christ and a Saviour who offereth grace and salvation to mankinde and hereupon they presume This generall faith is needfull but that is not enough it must be a perswasion of Gods offer of Christ to a man in particular that the will in particular may be induced to consent There must likewise be that particular consent of will and accepting of CHRIST upon such tearmes as he is offered They that receive Christ aright enter into the marriage covenant resolving to forsake all other and obey him and to take up his crosse and to indure all hardnesse with him and for him as shame disgrace povertie hatred and spite in the world and all manner of misusages this they consent to and resolve upon for the present and from this time forward for the whole time of their life which things many neither did nor intended to doe when they gave their names to Christ they onely received him as their Iesus one by whom they did looke to be saved and honored looking that he should endow them with a faire ioynture of heaven but they did not receive him as their Lord. In doing thus they erred in the essentials of marriage For they erred in the Person taking an Idoll Christ for the true Christ They erred in the forme of marriage they tooke him not for the present nor absolutely for better for worse as we speake in sicknesse and health in good report and ill report in persecution and in peace forsaking all other never to part no not at death Wherefore Christ doth not owne these foolish Virgins when they would enter the Bride-chamber but saith I know you not For because there was no true consent on their part they had no faith and their contract or marriage with Christ was only but in speech but was never Legall nor consummate By this which hath beene said others who have Faith indeed may know they have it namely if they so beleeve the Covenant of Grace established in Christ that with all their harts they accept of him and it so that they will stand to it on their parts as they are able and rest on it so farre as it concernes Christ to fulfill it For this is Faith Vnto this some fearefull soules will reply If we have not Faith except unto assent to the truth we doe also receive Christ offered with a deliberate entire and free consent to rest on him to be ruled by him and to take part with him in all conditions then we doubt that we have no Faith because wee have so hardly brought our selves to consent and finde our selves so weake in our consent and have beene so unfaithfull in keeping promise with Christ Truth fulnesse and firmenesse of consent of will to receive Christ may stand with many doubtings and with much weakenesse and sense of difficultie in bringing the heart to consent For so long as there is a law in your members warring against the law of your minde you can never doe as you would If you can bring your hearts to will to consent and obey in spite of all oppositions this argueth heartie and full consent and a true Faith Nay if you can bring the heart but to desire to receive Christ and to enter into Covenant with GOD made mutually betweene God and you in Christ and that it may stand according to the offer which he maketh unto you in his Word even this argueth a true and firme consent and maketh up the match betweene Christ and you Even as when Iacob related the particulars of an earthly Covenant into which he would have Laban enter with him Labans saying I would it might be according to thy word gave proofe of his consent and did ratifie the Covenant betwixt them If you can therefore when God tenders unto you the Covenant of Grace willing you to receive Christ in whom it is established to enter into this Covenant If I say you can with all your heart say to GOD I would it might be according to thy word The Covenant is mutually entred into and the match is made betwixt CHRIST and you And whereas it doth trouble you that you cannot be so faithfull to Christ as your Covenant doth binde you it is well you are troubled if you did not with all make it an argument that you have no Faith for in that it heartily grieveth you that you cannot beleeve nor performe all faithfulnesse to Christ it is an evident signe that you have faith You must not think that after you are truly married to Christ you shall be free from evil solicitations by your old lovers Nay sometimes a kinde of violence may be offered by spirituall wickednesses unto you so that you are forced to many evils indeede against your will as it may befall a faithfull wife to be forced by one stronger then she yet if you give not full consent unto them and give not your hart to follow them your husband CHRIST will not impute these rapes unto you Yet let none by this take liberty to oftend Christ in the least thing for though Christ love you more tenderly and more mercifully than any husband can love his wife yet know ye he doth not doâ—e on you he can see the smallest faults and sharply though kindly rebuke and correct you for them if you doe them presumptuously But he esteemeth none to breake spirituall wedlocke so as to dissolve marriage but those whose hearts are wholy departed from him and are set upon and given to something else If you thus looke into the nature of faith I speake to a soule troubled for sinne you may know and feele that you have it 3. You may know a lively faith likewise by most certaine consequents and effects I meane not comfort and joy which are sometimes felt and through your fault sometimes not but by such effects which are more constant and more certaine and may be no lesse felt than
joy and comfort if you would feele for them Amongst many I will reckon these First you may know you have Faith by your feeling and opposing of the contrary if you feele a fight and conflict betweene beleeving and doubting fearâ— and distrust and in that combat you take part with beleeving hope and confidence or at least desire heartily that these should prevaile and are grieved at heart when the other get the better If you feele this doe not say you haue no feeling Doe not say you have no faith This conflict and desire to have faith gaue proofe that the man in the Gospel who came to Christ to cure his child had faith I beleeve Lord saith hee Lord helpe my unbeliefe Doe not say as I have heard many this man could say I beleeve but we cannot say so I tell you if you can heartily say Lord helpe my unbeliefe I am sure any of you may say I beleeve For whence is this feeling of unbeliefe and desire to beleeve but from Faith Secondly You may know you have Faith I speake still to an afflicted soule which dareth not sinne wittingly for that you wil not part with that Faith which you have upon any termes I will aske you that have given hope to others that you doe beleeve that yet doubt you have not truth of faith hope in God only these questions and as your heart can answer them so you may judge Will you part with that faith and hope which you call none for any price Would you change present states with those that presume they have a strong Faith whose consciences do not trouble them but are at quiet though they live in all manner of wickednesse Or at best are meerely civilly honest Nay would you if it were possible forgoe all that faith and hope and other graces of the Spirit which you call none at all and returne to that former state wherein you were in the dayes of your vanity before you did indevor to leave sinne and to will to indevour to settle to Religion in earnest Would you lay any other foundation to build upon then what you have already layd Or is there any person or thing wheron you desire to rest for Salvation and direction besides Christ Iesus If you can answer no but can say with Peter To whom shall wee goe Christ onely hath the words of eternall life you know no other foundation â—o lay then what you have laid and have willed and desired to lay it right you resolve never to pull downe what you have built thogh it be but a little It is your griefe that you build no faster upon it By this answer you may see that your conscience before you are aware doth witnesse for you and will make you confesse that you have some true faith and hope in GOD or at least hope that you have For let men say what they will to the conttary they alwaies thinke they have those things which by no meanes they can be brought to part with Thirdly If you would have feeling and proofe of your faith and Iustification feele for it in the most certaine effect which is the exercise of your Sanctification Doe you feele your selves loaden and burthened with sinne Doe you feele your hearts â—ke with sorrow for sinne And with all do you feele your selves to be altered from what you were Doe you now beare good will to Gods Word and Ordinances And doe you desire the pure word of God that you may grow in grace by it Doe you affect Gods people therefore because you thinke they feare God Is it your desire to approve your selves to God in holy obedience And is it your trouble that you cannot doe it Then certainly you have Faith you have an effectuall Faith For what are all these but the very Pulse breath and motions of faith If you feele grace to be in you it is a better feeling then feeling of comfort for grace in men of understanding is never severed from effectuall Faith but comfort many times is for that may rise from Presumption and false Faith Grace onely from the Spirit and from true Faith SECTION 6. A removall of feares rising from doubting of Sanctification IT is granted by all that if they be truly Sanctified then they know that they have Faith anâ— are iustified But many feare they are not Sanctified and that foâ— these seeming reasons First some feare they are noâ— Sanctified because they doe noâ— remember that ever they fâ—â— those wounds and terrours of conscience which are first wroughâ— in men to make way to Conveâ—sion as it was in them who weâ—â— priâ—â—â— aâ— heart at Peters Seâ—… mon and in S. Paul and the Iaylor Or if they felt aâ—â— terrâ—… they feare they we but certaine flashes and for runners of Hellish â—â—â—ments liâ—â— those of Cain and Iudas As it is in the naturall birth with the mother so it is in the spirituall birth with the childe There is no birth without some travell and paine but not all alike Thus it is in the new birth with all that are come to yeares of discretion Some haue so much griefe feare horror that it is intolerable and leaveth so deepe an impression that it can never be forgotten others have some true sense of griefe and feare but nothing to the former in comparison which may easily be forgotten There are causes why some have or at least feele some more some lesse 1. Some have committed more grosse and more hainous sinnes than other therefore they have more cause and neede to have mâ—re terrour and heart-breaking than others 2. God doth set some apart for greater imployments than others such as will require a man of great trust and experience wherefore GOD to prepare them doth exercise such with greatest tryals for their deepe humiliation and for their more speedy and full reformation that all necessary graces might bee more deeply and more firmely rooted in them 3. Some have beene religiously brought up from their infancie whereby as they were kept from grosse sinnes so their sinnes were subdued by little and little without any sensible impression of horror Grace and comfort being instilled into them almost insensibly 4. Some by naturals constitution and temper of body are more fearefull and more sensible of anguish than others which may cause that although they may bee alike wounded in conscience for sinne yet they may not feele it all alike 5. There may be the like feare and terror wrought in the conscience for sinne in one as well as another yet it may not leave the like lasting sense and impression in the memory of the one which it doth in the other Because God may shew himselfe gracious in discovering a remedy and giving comfort to one sooner than to the other As two men may be in perill of their lives by enemies the one as soone as hee seeth his danger seeth an impregnable
which also doth minister unto you matter of assured hope and comfort Another will say I doe even faint in my troubles and in my feares and I am ready to give over all what shall I doe What would you have me to doe Your case is not singular many other have beene and are in this case It is no otherwise with you than it was with the Psalmist and Ionah Doe as they in that their fainting did First give not over but remember God call upon him give him no rest Secondly trust on him and wait untill you have comfort That holy man of GOD said My flesh and my heart faileth but GOD is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever Likewise Ionah â— said I am â—ast out of thy sight yet I will looke againe toward thine holy Temple And againe when my soule fainted within mee I remembred the Lord and my prayer came up unto thee into thine holy Temple that is as if he had said unto God I prayed unto thee in the name of Christ and thou didst heare me When you walke in the darkenesse of affliction and inward discomfort Hee to whom God gave the tongue of the learned to speake a word in due season to him that is wearie giveth you counsell and whose wil you in this state of yours follow if not his his counsel is this saying Who is among you that feare the Lord and obey the voyce of his servant that walketh in darkenesse and hath no light Let him trust in the name of the Lord and stay upon his God Marke it He that feareth and obeyeth yet may bee in darkenesse and have no light what darknesse is this but that spoken of vers 4. viz. an afflicted wearie soule without light of comfort And men thus distressed must trust in the Lord and stay on their God Yet these poore soules who whether they should be sharply reproved or pitied more is hard to say I am sure they deserve both will yet object strongly It is true they that feare God and obey him may trust in the Lord and stay upon God And he hath made most rich promises to theÌ„ that know him that doe feare and obey him See here is promise with condition saith one I must feare the Lord I must obey him I know God will doe his part if I could doe mine but these I doe not what warrant then or ground have I to looke for comfort or any thing at Gods hand for his promises belong not to me I know well that with this doubt the Devill doth much perplexe the afflicted soules of many of Gods dearest children and by it keepeth off all the remedies which Gods Word can afford so that they cannot fasten and doe them good For the propositions of the Word are easily assented unto but all the matter lyeth in the application of them to the wound It is still put off and keepe his Commandements there he promiseth with Condition here he absolutely promiseth those on whom hee intendeth to bestow these blessings that he will put his feare in their heart that they may be capable of them And which is more to the end that men might repent beleeve and live godly which is the Condition to which the promise of forgivenesse and Salvation is made God declareth that he hath raised Christ and exalted him to be a Prince and a Saviour for to give this faith and repentance that their sinnes may be forgiven and their soules saved by him I pray consider well whether al these promises of this sort be not made absolutely on GODS part and without any Condition on mans part Wherefore whereas God hath made many excellent promises of free and great rewards as to heare the prayers and to fulfill the desire of them that feare him and to give life and glory to them that beleeve obey him and that do hold fast the confidence and the rejoycing to the end you see that here are promises of the first sort made with a kinde of Condition But that GOD will give his people both to will and to doe these things required in the condition he hath absolutely promised as hath beene clearely proved If you yet reply and say are not these latter promises made under condition of our well using the outward meanes thereof such as hearing of the Word prayer c. GOD indeede commandeth these meanes to be used and if we performe them aright God will not faile to blesse the good use of these meanes but this well using them is not in our owne power neither is it a Condition for which God is necessarily bound to give Faith and to plant his feare in our harts any otherwise than by his promise but it is a Condition by which he hath ordained ordinarily to give these graces to al which in the use of them shall waite upon him for them For both the giving of his word and the giving us minds to heare the Word and the opening of the heart to attend and the convincing and alluring the heart to obey hang all upon those absolute promises They shall be all taught of God and the rest before mentioned Wherefore let none of yeares thinke that without hearing praying and the right using of Gods ordinances they shall ever have faith and the feare of God wrought in them or shall ever come to Heaven For wee are commanded to pray heare c. and that in Faith or else we can never looke to receive any thing of the LORD And doing what lieth in manspower in the right using the meanes of Saluation is of great consequence although it be not a sufficient cause to move GOD necessarily to give grace For I am perswaded that the best should have more grace if they would doe what in them lay continually to make good use of the outward meanes of grace and the worst should be guilty of lesse sinne if they would doe what in them lay to profit by the good use of the said meanes And the neglect or abusing of the means is sufficient cause why God should not onely withhold grace but condemn men for refusing it But some will yet say let all which hath beene said be granted I finde that God hath not fulfilled these his absolute promises to me for I doe not yet feare God and obey How can I hope How can I choose but feare my estate Let this for the time be granted that God hath not planted his feare in your heart c. as yet May hee not doe it hereafter Sith hee hath made unto you such excellent promises to fulfil them without condition on your part but that you should onely use the meanes and waite Will you not give him leave to fulfill them in his owne time And will you not waite and be glad if they may be fulfilled at any time Times and seasons of Gods communicating his graces are reserved
for God is many times best pleased with your services when through an humble sense of your failings you are displeased with your selfe for them Yea if when you have wrastled and contended with God in praier you are forced to goe halting and limping away with Iacob in the sense of your infirmities yet be not dismaied for it is a good signe that you haue prevailed with God as Iacob did God useth when hee is overcome by praier to work in them that do overcome some sense of weakenesse to let them know that they prevaile with him in prayer not by any strength of their own or by any worthines of their prayer when they have praied best but from the goodnesse of Gods free grace from the worthinesse of Christs intercession by whom they tender their praiers and from the truth of his promise made unto them that pray If it were not thus many whē they haue their harts desire in prayer would ascribe all to the goodnes of their praiers and not to the free grace of God and would be proud of their owne strength which in truth is none at all CHAP. IV. How to walke with God the whole day after it is well begunne SECTION 1. VVHen you haue thus begun the day by prayer by your selfe thus making your peace with God craving his gracious presence to goe along with you and for you that day you must then conscionably according to the nature of the day be it one of the sixe dayes or the Sabbath and Lords day apply your selfe to the businesse of that day whether it be in acts of Religion or of your personall calling or in any other workes belonging unto you as you are superiour or inferiour in Family Church or Common-wealth whether it be also in acts of bodily repasts recreation or sports doing all as in Gods sight And because all lawfull businesse is sanctified by the Word and Prayer and for that it is part of your calling as you are Master of a Family to gouerne your people in the feare of GOD and to teach them to live godly therefore it is your part to take the fittest time in the morning to call them together and pray with them before which prayer it will be profitable to read the Scripture in order with due reverence taking also opportunities in al fit times to instruct them in the principles of Religion oft whetting the Word upon them If it be a working day Betake your selfe ordinarily to the worke of your particular calling For whosoever hath no calling wherby hee may be profitable to the society of man in Family Church or Common-wealth or having a lawfull calling doth not follow it he liveth inordinately God never made any man for play or to doe nothing And whatsoever a man doth he must doe it by vertue of his calling receiving warrant from it else hee cannot doe it in faith without which no man can please GOD. Besides whosoever is called to Christianitie hath no way to heaven but by walking with GOD in his personall and particular calling as well as in his generall calling 1. That you may doe this first be sure that the thing wherabout you labour either with head or hand be lawfull and good 2. Be diligent and industrious for the sluggard and idle person desireth but hath nothing but the diligent hand maketh rich 3. Let there be truth plainenesse and equity in all your dealings with men Circumvent and defraud no man Make not your own gaine the waights and measures to trade by I will propound unto you sealed waights and rules according to which you must converse with all men 1 Consider your neighbours good as well as your owne Weigh unpartially with your selfe what proportionable commoditie in common estimation according to the times your neighbour is like to have for that which you receive of him For you must love your neighbour as your selfe In whatsoever you have to doe with men you must not looke onely to your owne advantage but to the benefit also of your neighbour 2 Observe the Royall Law the Standard of all equitie in this kinde Whatsoever you with a rectified judgement and honest heart would that men should doe unto you doe you even so unto them for this is the Law and the Prophets 4. Be provident that you let not slip your opportunities and take heed lest in these evill times you be circumvented by fraud and falshood and be insnared by unnecessary Suretiship 5. Whereas in every calling there is a mysterie and for the most part each calling and condition of life hath its speciall sin or sinnes which the Devill and custome for gaine or credit sake amongst wicked men hath made to seeme lawfull yea hath put a kinde of necessitie thereupon which cannot bee shunned but with exposing a mans selfe to losse or censure Looke you narrowly by the light of the Word and by experience to finde out that or those sinnes then be as carefull to avoid them SECTION 2. Concerning Superiours and Inferiours THere are other works also such as concerne you as you are a superiour and in authoritie or as you are inferiour and subject either in Familie Church or Common-wealth in doing whereof you must take GOD along with you following the directions of his Word and Spirit 1. As you are a Superiour first walke worthy of all honour and due respect carrying your selfe in your place with such holines wisedome gravitie justice and mercy keeping such a meane betweene too much rigour and remisnesse betweene straining your authoritie too farre and loosening it too much that those under your charge may have cause both to feare and love you 2. Wait on your office and be watchfull over your charge with all diligence and faithfulnesse using all good meanes to containe them in their duties of Godlinesse and honesty which is the onely end why God hath set you over them The meanes are 1 Goe before them in good example Examples of Superiours have a kind of constraining power working powerfully and insensibly upon inferiors 2 Pray with and for them 3 Command onely things lawfull possible and convenient and onely those to which the extent of your authority from God and man doth allow you 4 As much as in you is procure for them the meanes and put them upon the opportunities of being and of doing good 5 Prevent likewise and remove all occasions of their being and of doing evill 6 Protect and defend them as much as lyeth in you from all wrongs and injuries 7 When they doe well incourage them by letting them see that you take notice as readily of their well doing as of their faults and so farre as shall be fit let them have the praise and fruit of their well-doing 8 When they doe evill rebuke them with more or lesse heat of anger according to the greatnesse of
from the marriage-bed and the like Thirdly Abstaine from all worldly labour as upon a Sabbath day for worldly busines the cares thereof doe as well as worldly delights distract the thoughts and hinder humble devotion and a ceasing there-from giveth a full opportunitie to holy imployments the whole day Therfore the Iewes were commanded to sanctifie a fast And that yearely Fast called the day of Atonement was upon perill of their lives to be kept by a forbearance of all manner of worke Now albeit the Ceremonials of that day are abolished in Christ yet forbearing worke as well as meate and drinke being of the substance of a Fast doth remaine to bee observed in all such as may properly be called Religious Fasts Thus much for the outward fast you must be as strict in observing the inward Begin the day with prayer according as I directed you to doe every day but with more than ordinary preparation with fervency and faith praying for Gods special grace to enable you to sanctifie a fast that day according to the Commandement Then apply your selfe to the maine worke of the day which hath these parts 1 unfained Humiliation 2 Reformation together with Reconciliation and 3 earnest Invocation The soule is then humbled the heart rent and truly afflicted when a man is become vile in his owne eyes through conscience of his owne unworthinesse and when his heart is full of compunction and anguish through feare of Gods displeasure with godly sorrow and holy shame in himselfe and anger against himselfe for sinne These affections stirred doe much afflict the heart To attaine this deepe humiliation know that it is to be wrought partly by awakening your Conscience through a sight of the Law and apprehension of Gods just judgements due to you for the breach of it which wil break your heart and partly by the Gospell raising up your heart to an apprehension and admiration of the love of God to you in Christ which will melt your heart and cause you the more kindely to grieve and to loath your selfe for sin and withall to conceive hope of mercy whence wil follow reconciliation reformation and holy calling upon God by prayer To worke this Humiliation there must be First Examination to find out your sinne Secondly a Accusation of your selfe with due aggravation of your sinne Thirdly Iudging and passing sentence against your selfe for sinne Sinne is the transgression of the Law and revealed will of God Wherefore for the better search and finding out of your sinne you must set before youthe glasse of the Law for your Light and Rule And if you have not learned or cannot beare in minde the heads of the manifold duties commanded or vices forbidden then get some Catalogue or Table wherein the same are set downe to your hand which you may reade with pausing and due consideration staying your thoughts most upon those particular sinnes whereof you finde your selfe most guiltie If of those many that are you doe not meete with one more fit for this purpose or which you shall like better then use this Examinatorie Table in manner as Followeth But expect not herein an enumeration of all particular sinnes which is beyond my skill nor yet of all the heads of duties or kindes of sinnes which would require a volumne but of those which are principall and most common yet hereby if your Conscience be awake it will be occasioned to bring to your thoughts those other not mentioned in the Table if you bee thereof guiltie The first Table of the Law concerneth duties of love and pietie to God the performance whereof tendeth immediately to the glory of God and mediately to the salvation and good of man The first Commandement concerneth the setting up of the onely true God to your selfe to bee your God Examining your selfe by this and so in the other Commandements thinke thus with your selfe Doe I know and acknowledge the onely true GOD to be such a one as hee hath revealed himselfe in his Word works namely One onely Infinite Immateriall Immutable Incomprehensible Spirit and Everlasting Lord God having beeing and All-sufficiencie in and from himselfe One who is simply full of all perfections and uncapable of the least defect being Wisedome Goodnesse Omnipotencie Love Truth Mercy Iustice Holinesse and whatsoever is originally and of it selfe Excellent The only Potentate King of Kings Lord of Lords of whom through whom and to whom are all things The Father Sonne and holy Ghost God blessed for ever Amen Doe I Beleeve his Word in all things related commanded promised and threatned therein and that his holy and wise Providence is in all things Have I Him and his Word in continuall remembrance Doe I esteeme and exalt God in my heart above all so that it doth humbly adore him at the very mention and thought of him making my selfe to be nothing in mine owne eyes yea esteeming all creatures to bee nothing in comparison of him Have I given religious worship to him onely Have I beleeved in him and in him onely Have I sworne by him as there hath beene cause and by him alone Have I prayed onely unto him and have I sought to him and to obtaine helpe of him only by such meanes as he hath appointed giving the glory and thanks of my being and well-being and of al other things which are good unto him Is my Conscience so convinced of the truth Authority of God that it holdeth it selfe absolutely bound to obey him in all things that it doth incite to that which is good restrain from that which is evill encourage me in well-doing and check me when I doe ill Is my will resolved upon absolute and unfained obedience to doe whatsoever God commandeth to forbeare whatsoeuer hee forbiddeth to subscribe to whatsoever he doth as well done and have I borne patiently all which either by himselfe or by any of his creatures hee hath inflicted upon me Have mine affections beene so for God that I have loved him with al my heart loving nothing more than him nothing equally to him Doe I hate every thing that is contrary to him Hath my Confidence beene onely in him and my expectation of good from him Have my desires beene to him and for him longing above all things to have communion with him Hath it beene my greatest feare to offend him or to be severed from him Hath it beene my greatest griefe and shame that I have sinned against him Have I reioyced in God as in my chiefe Good Hath mine anger risen against whatsoever I saw crosse to his glory Have I beene zealous for God And have I made him the utmost end of all mine actions Hath my whole outward man as tongue senses and all other active powers of my body been readie to professe the true God and to yeeld obedience to his will Or contrariwise Am I not guilty of denying of God in word in workes or at least in heart
your selfe in Covetous Adulterous Revengefull Ambitious or other wicked thoughts you act that in your minde and phantasie which either for feare or shame you dare not or for want of opportunity or meanes you cannot act otherwise 4. When you are alone be sure that you ordinarily be well and fully exercised about something that is good either in the works of your calling or in reading or in holy meditation or prayer For whensoever Satan doth find you idle and out of imployment in some or other of those works which God hath appointed he will â—ake that as an opportunity to garnish you for himselfe and to imploy you in some of his works But if you keepe alwaies in your place and â—o some or other good worke of your place you are under Gods speciall protection as the Bird in the Law was while she face upon heregs or yong ones keeping her owne nest in which case no man might hurt her I have already shewed how you should behave your selfe as in Gods sight both in prayer and in the works of your calling I wil write some thing for your direction touching reading and Meditation SECTION 2. Of Reading BEsides your set-times of reading the holy Scriptures you shall doe well to gaine some time from you vacant houres that you may read in GODS Booke and in the good bookes of men First when you read any part of the word of God you must put a difference betweene it and the best writings of men preferring it farre before them To this end 1 Consider it in its properties and excellencies No word is of like absolute authority holinesse equity truth wisedome true elegancie power and eternity 2 Consider this Word in its ends and good effects No booke that aimeth at Gods glory and the salvation of mans soule like this none that concerneth you like to this It discovereth your misery by sinne together with the perfect remedie It propoundeth perfect happinesse unto you affordeth means to worke it out in you for you It is mighty through GOD to prepare you for grace It is the immortall seed to beget you unto Christ It is the milke and stronger meate to nourish you up in Christ It is the onely soulephysicke to recover you and to rid you of all spirituall evils By it Christ giveth spiritual sight to the blind hearing to the deafe speech to the dumbe strength to the weake health to the sicke yea by it he doth cast out Divels and raise men from the death of sinne they beleeving it as certainly as he did all those for the bodies of men by the word of his power while he lived on the earth This Book of Goâ— doth containe those many rich Legacies be queathed to you in that last Will and Testament of God sealed with the bloud of Iesus Christ our Lord. It is the Magna Charta and Statute-booke of the Kingdome of heaven It is the booke of Priviledges and Immunities of Gods children It is the word of grace which is able to build you up and to give you an inheritance amongst all them that are sanctified For it will make you wise to salvation through Faith in Christ â—esus making you perfect throughly furnished unto all good workes Wherefore as when you heare this Word preached so when at any time you read it you must receive it not as the word of man but as it is in truth the Word of God then it wil worke effectually in you that beleeve Secondly when you read this Word lift up the heart in prayer to God for the Spirit of understanding wisedome that your minde may be more and more enlightned and your heart more more strengthned with grace by it For this Word is spiritual containing the secrets hidden things of GOD in a mysterie which as the bare letter doth signifie is as a booke sealed up in respect of discovery of the things of God in it to al that have not the helpe of Gods Spirit so that none can know the inward and spirituall meaning thereof powerfully and savingly but by the Spirit of God Thirdly read the Word with an hunger and thirst after knowledge and growth of grace by it with a reverent humble teachable and honest heart beleeving all that you reade trembling at the threats judgements against sinners reioycing in the promises made unto and the favours bestowed upon the penitent and vpon the godly willing and resolving to obey al the Commandements Thus if you read blessed shall you be in your reading and blessed shall you be in your deede The holy Scriptures are thus to be read of all of every sort and condition and of each sex for all are commanded to search the Scriptures as well the Laytie as the Cleargie women as well as men yong as well as old all sorts of all Nations For though the Spirit of GOD is able to worke conversion and holinesse immediately without the Word as he doth in all those infants that are saved yet in men of yeares the holy Ghost will not where the Word may be had worke without it as his instrument using it as the hammer plow seed fire water sword or as any other instrument to pull downe build up plant purge cleanse For it is by the Word both read and preached that Christ doth sanctifie all that are his that he may present them to himselfe and so to his Father without spot or wrinkle a Church most glorious And whereas it is most true that those which are unlearned and unstable doe wrest not onely hard Scriptures but all other also to their destruction Yet let not this as Papists would inferre cause you to forbeare to read no more then because many surfeit and are drunke by the best meats and drinkes you doe forbeare to eate and drinke But to prevent misse-understanding and wresting of Scriptures to your hurt doe thus 1 Get and cherish an humble and honest heart resolved to obey when you know Gods will If any man will doe his will saith Christ he shall know of the doctrine whether it be of God 2 Get a cleare knowledge of the first Principles of Christian Religion beleeve them stedfastly And indevor to frame your life according â—nto those more easie known â—criptures where on these prinâ—iples and first Oracles of God â—â—e grounded For these give â—ight even by the first entrance â—nto the very simple This doe â—â—d you shall never be unlearned 〈…〉 the mysteries of Christ nor â—et unstable in his wayes 3 Be â—uch in hearing the Word inâ—â—preted by learned and faithfull â—inisters 4 If you meet with place of Scripture too hard for 〈…〉 presume not to frame a sense it of your owne head but take â—tice of yourignorance admire â—e depth of Gods wisdome susâ—nd your opinion
and take the first opportunity to ask the meaning of some or other whose lips should preserve knowledge Let no colourable pretence keepe you from diligent reading of Gods Booke for hereby you shall be better prepared to heare the Word preached For it layeth a ground-worke to preaching making way to a better understanding thereof and to â—…ter â—eeping it in memory â— also to enaâ—le you to try the Spirits and Doctrines delivered even to try all things and to keepe what is good 1. In reading mens writings reade the best or at least those by which you can profit most 2. Reade a good booke thorowly and with due consideration 3. Reject not hastily any thing you reade because of the mean opinion you have of the authoâ— Beleeve not every thing yoâ— reade because of the great opinâ— on you have of him that wrote it But in all bookes of faith and manners try all things by the Scriptures Receive nothing upon the bare testimony or judgement of any man any further then hee can confirme it by the Canon of the word or by evidence of reason or by undoubted experience alwayes provided that what you call reason and experience be according unto not against the Word If the meanest speake according to it then receive and regard it but if the most judicious in your esteeme yea if he were an Angell of GOD should speake or write otherwise refuse and reject it Thus much for privat reading Onely take this Caution You must not thinke it to be sufficient that you read the Scriptures and other good Bookes at home in private when you shall by so doing neglect the hearing of the Word read and preached in publike For God hath not appointed that reading alone or preaching alone or prayer or Sacraments should singly and alone save any man where all or more then one of them may be had but he requireth the joynt use of them all in their place and time And in this variety of means of salvation God hath in his holy wisedome ordained them to be such that the excellency and sufficiencie of the one shall nâ—t in its right use keepe any from but leade him unto a due performance of the other each serving to make the other more effectuall to produce their common effect namely the Salvation of mans soule Indeed when a man is necessarily hindred by persecution sicknesse or otherwise that he cannot heare the Word preached then God doth blesse reading with an humble honest heart without hearing the Word preached But where hearing the Word preached is either contemned or neglected for reading sake or for prayer sake or for any other good private dutie there no man can looke to bee blessed in his reading or in any other private dutie but cursed rather Witnesse the evill effects which by experience we see doe issue thence viz. Selfe-conceitednesse Singularity in some dangerous opinions many times a rending away from the Church by Schisme yea too oft a falling away into damnable Heresies and Apostacie SECTION 3. Of meditation VVHen you are alone then also is a fit season for you to be taken up in holy meditation For according to a mans meditations such is the man The liberall man deviseth liberall things the Churle the contrary The godly man studieth how to please God the wicked how to please himselfe In meditation the minde or reason of the soule stayeth it selfe upon some thing conceived or thought upon for the better understanding thereof and for the better application of it to a mans selfe for use In meditating a right the mind of man exerciseth two kind of acts the one direct upon the thing meditated the other reflect upon himselfe the person meditating The first is an act of the contemplative part of the undâ—rstanding the second is an act of Conscience The end of the first is to enlighten the mind with knowledge the end of the second is to fil the heart with goodnesse The first serveth I speake of morall actions to finde out the rule whereby you may know more clearely distinctly what is truth what is falshood what is good what is bad whom you should obey what manner of person you should be and what you should doe and the like The second serveth to direct you how to make a right and profitable application of your selfe and of your actions to the Rule In this latter are these two acts First an examination whether you and your actions bee according to the Rule or whether you come short or are severed from it giving true judgment of you according as it doth finde you The second is a perswasive and commanding act charging the soule in every faculty understanding will affections yea the whole man to reforme and conforme themselves to the Rule that is to the will of God if that you finde your selfe not to be according to it which is done by confessing the fault to God with remorse praying for forgivenes returning to God by repentance reforming the fault through new obedience This must be the resolution of the soule And all this a man must charge upon his soule peremptorily commanding himselfe to endevour the doing of them When you meditate joyne all these three acts else you shall never bring your meditation unto a profitable issue For if you onely muse and studie to finde out what is true what is false what is good what is bad you may gaine much knowledge of the head but little goodnesse to your heart If you onely apply to your selfe that wheron you have mused and no more you may by finding your selfe to bee a transgressour lay guilt upon your conscience and terrour upon your heart without fruit or comfort but if to these two you lay a charge upon your selfe to follow GODS counsell touching what you should beleeve doe when you have offended him if you with all bring your heart to a resolution through GODS grace to be such an one as you ought to be and to live such a life for hereafter as you ought to live then unto science you shall adde conscience and to knowledge you shall joyne practice and shall fill your selfe full of comfort Observe Davids meditations you shall finde they come to this issue His thoughts of God and of his wayes made him turne his feete unto Gods testimonies The meditation of Gods benefits made him resolve to take the cup of salvation and call upon the name of the Lord and to pay his vowes When he considered what God had done for him and thence inferred what he should be to God againe he saith to his soule My soule and all that is in mee prayse his holy Name When hee in his meditation found that it was his fault to have his soule disquieted in him through distrust he chargeth it to wait on GOD and raiseth up himselfe unto confidence I will meditate on thy precepts saith
and hope in him whence as by Conduit-pipes you shall more and more partake of his fulnesse even grace answerable â—…ace in kinde though not â—…sure for though yoâ—…apable of the fulnes â—…ghtnesse of Christ in whose mouth was found no guile Yet you shall have a measure of uprightnesse proportionable to your faith For as the branch partaketh more of the vine so it draweth more sappe and beareth more good fruit Eightly You must with an holy jealousie of the deceitfulnesse of your hearts examine your selfe often not onely of what you have done and now doâ— but of the manner how what moveth you and why as you may see before in the marks of uprightnesse Lay your selfe oft to the rule of uprightnesse scil the will of God and finding your selfe faulty study and assay to amend and be upright and that to the utmost of your power Ninthly Exercise that measure of uprightnesse which you have and be more thankefull for the little you have than discouraged as many are because they have no more If you finde your selfe upright be abundantly thankefull and resolve to keepe and increase it by all meanes Keep your heart thus with all diligence then as all other graces so this of uprightnesse will increase in the using Tenthly and lastly use the meanes of all meanes the Catholicoâ— for all graces which is Prayer Thinke not to gaine uprightnesse by the power of your own might but in the sense of your insufficiencie repaire oft to God by praier even to him who made your heart in whose hands your heart is who best knoweth the crooked windings and turnings of your heart who onely can amend set straight your heart Who because he delighteth in an upright hart and hath commanded you to seeke it in the humble use of his meanes will assuredly give it Thus David Renew O Lord a right spirit within me And Let my heart be sound in thy Statutes CHAP. XIII Of lawfull care and of freedome from taking thought SECTION 1. NOw when you have had a holy care to walke with GOD in uprightnesse according to the foregoing directions It remaineth that you free your selfe of all other care and that you rest holily secure in God enioying your most blessed peace with him according to that golden saying of the Apostle Be carefull in nothing c. Philip. 4. 6 7. For understanding hereof know that the Greeke Noune and Verbe which signifie care or to take care are taken indifferently in Scripture either for lawfull or unlawfull care Now because unlawfull care is more care than GOD requireth Our last Translators of the Bible whensoever there was neede to expresse a difference betweene it and lawfull care doe render it Carefulnesse to bee carefull or to take thought As in this place and Matth 6. 25. Matth. 10. 19. Luk. 10. 41. 1 Cor. 7. 32. and elsewhere But when these words must be understood of a Lawfull care they are translated Care not carefulnesse or to be carefull As 1 Cor. 12. 25. 2 Cor. 11. 28. Phil. 2. 20. 1 Pet. 5. 7. and elsewhere The Care which is Commanded and Carefulnesse which is forbidden differ thus Care is an act of wisedome taking up the understanding facultie chiefly whereby after that a man hath rightly iudged what hee ought to doe what not what good hee is to pursue and what evill is by him to be shunned or removed he accordingly with more or lesse intention and eagernesse of minde as the things to be obtained or avoyded are greater or lesse is provident to finde out and diligent to use lawfull and fit meanes for the good and against the evill and that with all warinesse and circumspection that hee may omit nothing that may further him nor commit any thing that may hinder him in his lawfull designes Which when hee hath done he resteth quiet and careth no further castall care of successe vpon God to whom it belongeth expecting a good issue vpon the vse of good meanes yet resolving howsoever to submit his will to Gods will whatsoever the successe shall be Carefulnesse is an act of feare and distrust taking up not onely the head but chiefly the heart to the very dividing and disturbance thereof causing a man inordinately and over-eagerly to pursue his desires perplexing himselfe likewise with doubtfull and fearefull thoughts about successe Lawfull care may be called a provident care and care of the head Carefulnesse may bee called â— distrustfull care a carking â—are or a taking thought of the â—eart This prevident care is not only â—awfull but necessary For without it a man cannot possibly be â—ecure nor can have hope of â—ood successe This provident care is commended to you in the examples of the most industrious and most â—rovident brute creatures and â—â— the examples of the most pruâ—ent men As of Iacobs care of his safetie how to escape the rage of his brother Esau Of David and Salomon in preparing and building the Temple Of Saint Pauls care of the Churches of the Corinthians care and study to reforme themselves of the good Noble womans care to entertaine the good Prophet of the Good wives and good houswives care of well ordering and maintaining her Family The like you have in the examples of the care of godly unmarried men and women whose care was how to please God and that they might be holy both in Body and Soule and of Mary who cared for that one thing needfull Moreover you are Commanded this provident care namely To study to bee quiet to be no busie body not idle but to labour iâ— a lawfull calling the thing that iâ— good Also to Walke honestly towardes them that are without To indevor so to walke towardâ— Gods people that you keepe the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace To provide for your owne To give diligence to make your calling and election sure To study to maintaine good workes But amongst all you are commanded chiefly to seeke the kingdome of God and his righteousnesse as the best meanes to rid you out of all unlawfull care The properties of prouident care are these First the subiect or seat wherein provident lawfull care resideth is the head for that is the seat of understanding wisdome discretion fore-cast But carefulnesse is chiefly seated in the heart Secondly provident godly care is alwayes about good and lawfull things it hath a good object and good matter to worke upon and to be conversant about propounding alwayes some good thing to bee the end which it would compasse It is not a care about evill as how to make provision for the flesh to fulfill the lusts thereof like the Carefulnesse of Amnon to defile his Sister Tamar nor like Ahabs and Iesabels carefulnesse for Naboths Vineyard and life Nor yet like Absoloms carefulnesse how to usurpe his Fathers Kingdome nor like Hamans how
unconceivable so the time of it is indeterminable it is everlasting and hath no end Consider this with the former and it cannot be denyed but that the peace of God doth every way passe understanding CHAP. XV. Touching the removing of presumption an impediment to Peace IF you would enjoy this happy Peace you must first remove and avoyd the impediments Secondly you must use all helps and furtherances which serve to procure and keepe it I reduce the impediments unto two heads First A false opinion and hope that all is well with a man and that all shall be well with him in point of his Salvation when yet indeed God is not reconciled to him Hence will follow a quietnesse of heart somewhat like to peace of Conscience which yet is but a false peace Secondly Causelesse doubting and false feare that a mans estate touching his salvation is not good albeit God be indeed at peace with him Hence followeth trouble and anguish of heart some-what like unto that of Hellish despaire disturbing his true peace Either of these doe hinder peace The first hindereth the having The second hindereth the feeling and comfortable enioying of peace It hath beene an old device of Satan when he would keepe any man from that which is true to obtrude upon him that which shall seeme to be true but is false Thus he did in the first calling of the Iewes and to mee is more than probable will doe at their second calling When hee saw they had an expectation of the true Christ he to divert and seduce them from the true Christ setteth up false Christs Even so in the matter of peace If he can so delude men that they shall content themselves with a false Peace hee knoweth that they will never seeke for that which is true It is a common practice with the Devill to endevour to make all that are not in state of grace to presume that they are Also such is his cunning and malice that when any man is in the state of grace he will cast all the doubts and perils hee can to make that estate doubtfull and discomfortable to vexe and to wearie him if hee cannot drive him to despaire knowing that if he could drive him into hold him in utter despaire he were as certainly in his power as if hee did presume Now the Heart of man so farre as it is Vnsanctified being deceitfull above all things is most apt to yeeld to Satan in both these cases Whence it is that there are very many which bragge of much peace and yet have least of it And many feare they have no peace who yet have much of it Wherfore the Rule is Beleeve not either your deceitfull heart or the Devill when they tel you either that you are in state of salvation or in state of damnation But beleeve the Scripture what it saith in either You may know when these perswasions come from your deceitfull heart or from the Devil thus First If the meanes to perswade you to either be from false grounds or from misapplication of true grounds Secondly If the conclusions inferred from either perswasion be to keep you in a sinful course and to keep you or to drive you from God as to make you think that you need not be so strict in godlinesse or that now it is in vaine or to late too turne seek unto GOD then it is from Satan and from a deceived heart and you must not beleeve them But if these perswasions be from a right applicatioÌ„ of true grounds and doe produce these good effects to drive you to God in prayse or prayer and unto a care to please God they are from his gracious Spirit The false Peace and evill quiet Conscience doth arise from these three causes First from Grosse ignorance of the danger wherein a man lyeth because of sinne whence followeth a blind Conscience Secondly from Groundlesse security and presumption that all shall be well with him not withstanding that hee knoweth hee hath sinned and knoweth that sinne is damnable whence hee hath a deluded Conscience Thirdly from Obstinacy through delight and custome in sin whence commeth senslesnesse of Conscience which is a seared Conscience Wheresoever any of these evils raigne albeit God hath said there is no peace to the wicked that is no true peace yet such feare no evill but promise to themselves peace and safetie like those of whom the Prophet spake who had made a covenant with death and with Hell were at an agreement Yea though they heare all the Curses against Sinners which are in Gods booke denounced against them yet will blesse themselves in their owne heart and say they shall have peace though they walke in the stubbornnesse of their hearts But whosoever is thus quiet in himselfe through a false peace it is a signe that the strong man keepeth the house and that he continuing in this fooles Paradise is not farre from sodaine and fearefull destruction from the Almighty Whosoever therefore would have true peace of GOD must beware of these three impediments First Hee must know and be throughly convinced that by nature by reason of Adams first transgression which is justly imputed to him and because of his owne inherent wickednesse of concupiscence and of actuall sinnes of omission and commission both inthought word and deed he is in state of sinne and condemnation having God for his enemie yea is an heire of wrath and of eternall vengeance of Hâ—lâ— fire According to that of the Apostle All have sinned and are become guiltie before GOD and have come short of the glorie of God Ignorance of danger may give quiet to the mind for a time but it can give no safetie Is not he foolishly secure that maketh himselfe merry in a ruinous house not knowing his danger untill it fall upon him Whereas if he had known it he should have had more feare and disquiet but should haue beene in lesse perill Secondly let no man presume upon weake and false grounds that he shal escape the vengeance of hell or attaine to the joyes of heaven Now how weakely and vainely many doe ground their hopes and from thence their peace shall appeare by that which followeth 1. Some thinke that because God made them surely hee will not damne them True if they should have continued good as hee made them God made the Devil good yea an excellent creature yet who knoweth not that he shall be damned If God spared not his holy Angels after that they became sinfull shall man thinke that hee will spare him A sinfull man shall be judged at the last day not according to what he was by Gods first making but as hee shall bee found marred and made naught by the Devill and by his owne lusts When Iudah became a people of no understanding it is said He that made them will shew
heaven Meere Oratory in some patheticall Preachers when they speake of matters dolefull and terrible will move the affection and draw teares from some hearers Likewise a plaine powerfull downright conviction of the certainty of Gods wrath denounced and sense of some just judgement of God may wring forth some teares some humiliation yea some kind of reformation Did not Felix tremble when Saint Paul reasoned of Righteousnesse Temperance and Iudgement to come Did not Ahab humble himselfe when the Prophet denounced Gods iudgements against him and against his house Did not the Israelites oft when they were in distresse and when God did not onely warne them with his Word but smote them also with his rod returne and seeke earely after God And whereas they say they tasted of the heavenly gift of the good Word of God and of the powers of the world to come they may know that such is the sweetnesse of Gods promises and such is the evidence and goodnesse of Gods truth in the glad tydings of Salvation that the common gift of the Spirit going with it all the forementioned feelings may be wrought in men altogether destitute of saving grace For did not the seede sowen in stony and thoâ—nie ground goe thus far Did not those mentioned in the Hebrewes who notwithstanding all this might fall away irrecoverably attaine to thus much Now if men not in state of grace may goe so farre as hath been proved then it must not be marvelled that even such with Herod may also reforme many things For an hypocrite may have not onely a kinde of illumination but a kinde of sanctification which may for the time worke a kinde of change in him so that hee may leave many evils and may doe many good things hee may forsake bad company and keepe good yet this man may be in no better estate then hee out of whom the evill spirit did goe which returned with seven other more wicked than himselfe or then the Sow that was washed A Pharaoh also and a Simon Magus in their feare may desire a Moses and a Peter to blesse them and pray for them That cursed Balaam could wish that hee might dye the death of the righteous he would seeme not to transgresse for an house full of gold and though faintly telleth God that if it did seeme evill in his eyes hee would goe backe againe Yea further it is possible for a man without saving grace even out of meere selfe-love either when hee smarts or is ashamed for some foule sinnes or is afraid of Hell or when by the sweete allurements of the Gospell hee is affected with an admiration of heauen and heavenly things I say it is possible for him not onely to wish freedome from punishment and enjoyment of eternall glory as the end but may desire power against sinne and grace to doe well as the meanes but how onely as from a flash of lightning suddenly come and as suddenly gone like the sluggards longing but when he commeth to be taught the mystery of godlinesse and is put upon the spirituall workes of holinesse as the cutting off the right hand and the denying himselfe for Christ then he will none of it he conceiveth like those Discipies in Iohn that they are hard sayings Who can heare them For their good wishes were not from a setled deliberate will out of true hatred of sinne and out of love to God and goodnesse therefore they were but slight and unconstant Moreover the best men yea the best Ministers may have a very good opinion of an hypocrite David esteemed highly of Achitophel the Disciples never suspected Iudas For they seeing a good outside being also charitable and not able to see the heart doe alwayes judge the best and thinke men to be changed renewed when sometimes it proveth otherwise They mistake when they say they are changed and reformed if still they retaine any bosome and beloved sinne as Herod did To change-sinnes one sinne into another is no change of the man for hee that changeth the prodigality of his youth into Covetousnesse in old age remaineth a notorious sinner before God as well now as then conceive the like of all other likewise to forbeare the act of any sinne because they have not the like power occasions temptations or meanes to commit sinne as in former time this is no change sin in these respects hath left them not they it For true conversion and repentance doth consist of a true and through change of the whole man as well in one part as another whereby not onely some actions are changed but first and chiefly the whole frame and disposition of the heart is changed and set straight to God ward from evill to good as well as from darknesse to light And whereas naturally a man is earthly minded and maketh himselfe his utmost end so that either he onely mindeth earthly things or if hee mind heavenly things it is in an earthly manner and to an earthly end as did Iehu if this man have truely repented and is indeede converted he becommeth heavenly minded he maketh GOD and his glory his chiefe and furthest end in so much that when he hath cause to minde earthly things his will and desire is to minde them in an heavenly manner and to an heavenly end If you would judge more fully and clearely of this true change See at large the description and signes of uprightnesse before delivered Chap. 12. Last of all there are many presume that although as yet they have no saving faith in Christ nor sound repentance that God will give them space and grace to repent and beleeve before they dye Whence it is they have peace for the present These must give mee leave to tell them that they put themselvs upon a desperate hazard and adventure First who can promise unto himself one minute of time more than the present sith every mans breath is in his nostrils ready to expire every moment Besides the Spirit saith God doth bring wicked men to desolation as in a moment And againe Hee that being often warned hardeneth his necke shall suddenly be destroyed without remedy 2 Suppose they may have time yet whether they shall have grace to beleeve and repent is much to be doubted For the longer repentance is deferred the heart is more hardned and more indisposed to repentance through the deceitfulnesse of sinne And it is a just judgement of God upon such as are not led to repentance by the riches of Gods goodnesse forbearance and long-suffering that he should leave them to their impenitent hearts that cannot repent so treasuring up unto themselves wrath against the day of wrath Custome in sinne doth so root and habituate it in man that it will be as hard for him by his owne will and power to repent hereafter hee neglecting GODS present call and
finite his sinne being the erring act of a creature cannot every way be infinite Wherefore such an act or transgression cannot in it selfe be unpardonable by a Creator a God who is every way infinite SecoÌ„ndly Consider that the price to satisfie GODS justice namely the death of CHRIST even the precious bloud of God the onely begotten Sonne of God doth exceed all sinne in infinitenesse of satisfaction of GODS justice and wrath due for sinne For if Christs death be a sufficient ransome for the sinnes of all Gods Elect in generall then much more of thine in particular whosoever thou be and how great and how many sins soever thou hast committed Thirdly Know that the mercy of God the forgiver of sinnes is absolutely and every way infinite For mercy in God is not a qualitie but is his very nature as is cleare by the description of his Name proclaimed Exod. 34. Which rightly understood and beleeved taketh away all the objections which a fearefull heart can make against himselfe from the consideration of his sinnes First He is mercifull that is he is compassionate and to speake after the manner of man is one that hath bowels of pittie which yerne within him at the beholding of thy miseries not willing to punish and put thee to paine but ready to succor and doe thee good But I am so vile and so ill deserving that there is nothing in mee to move him to pittie mee and doe me good 2. Hee is Gracious whom he loveth hee loveth freely of his owne gracious disposition who saith I even I am hee that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine owne sake and will not remember thy sinnes And when God saith hee would sprinkle cleare water upon sinners and that hee would give them a new heart c. hee saith not for your sakes doe I this saith the Lord God That you should be sensible of your owne misery and then in the sense thereof that God may be enquired after and sought unto for mercy is al which he looketh for in you to move him to pitty and mercy and such is his graciousnes that he will worke this sense and this desire in you that he may have mercy But I have a long time prouoked him 3. He is long-suffering to you-wards nÌ„ot willing that you should perish but that you should come to repentance but waiteth still for your repentance and reformation that you may be saved Yea But I am destitute of all goodnesse and grace to turne unto him or doe any thing that may please him 4. He is abundant in goodnesse and kindnesse he that hath beene abundant towards others heretofore in giving them grace and making them good his store is no whit diminished but he hath all grace and goodnesse to communicate to you also to make you good Yea but I feare though God can yet God will not forgive me and give me grace 5. Hee is abundant in truth not onely the goodnesse of his gracious disposition maketh him willing but the abundance of his truth bindeth him to bee willing and doth give proofe unto you that he is willing He hath made sure promises to take away your sinne and to forgive it and not yours onely but reserveth mercie for thousands Beleeve therefore that God both can and will forgive you Yea but my sinnes are such and such and such bred at the bone â—â—numerable hainous and most â—â—ominable I am guilty of sins 〈…〉 all sorts 6. He forgiveth iniquity transâ—ession and sinne He is the God â—hat will subdue all your iniâ—uities and cast all your sinnes â—â—to the bottome of the Sea Yea but I renew my sins daily 7. I answer out of the Psalm His mercy is an everlasting mercie his mercy endureth for ever He biddeth you to aske forgivenesse of sinne daily therefore hâ— can and will forgive sinne daily yea if you sinne Seventie time seven in a day and shall confess it to God with a penitent heart he will forgive for he that biddeth you be so mercifull to you brother will himselfe forgive much more when you seeke unto him I But I have not onely committed open and grosse sinnes both before since I had knowledge of GOD but I have been a very Hypocrite making profession of GOD and yet daily commit grievous sinnes against him 8. What then Will you say your sinnes are unpardonable God forbid But say I will follow the Counsell which GOD gave to such abominable Hypocrites I will wash mee and make me cleane I will by Gods grace wash my heart from iniquitie and my hands from wickednesse by washing my selfe in the Laver of regeneration bathing myselfe in Christs bloud and in the pure water of the Word of truth applying my selfe to them and them to me by faith Say in this case I will heare what God will speake And know that if you will follow his counsell Isa 1 18. If you wil hearken to his reasoning and embrace his gracious offer made to you in Christ Iesus the issue will be this though your sins have beene most grosse reiterated double dyed even as crimson and sear let they shall be as wooll even as white as snow God will then speak peace unto you as unto other his Saints onely he will forbid you to returne to folly For not onely those which committed grosse sins through ignorance before their conversion as did Abraham in Idolatry and S. Paul in persecuting noâ— yet onely those which committed grosse sinnes through infirmitie after their conversion as did Noah by drunkennesse and Lot by incest also and Peter by denying and forswearing his Master Christ Iesus obtained mercy because they sinned ignorantly and of infirmity But also those that sinned against Knowledge and Conscience both before after conversion sinning with an high hand as Manasses before and in the matter of Vriah David after conversion they obtained like mercy and had all their sinnes forgiven Why are these examples recorded in Scripture but for patterns to sinners yea to most notorious sinners of all sorts Which should in after times beleeve in Christ Iesus unto eternall life Be willing therfore to be beholholding to God for forgivenes beleeve in Christ for forgivenes which when you doe you may be assured that you never yet committed any sin which is not and which shal not be forgiven For was it not the end why Christ came into the world that he might save sinners yea chiefe of sinners as well as others Was he not wounded for transgressions viz. of all sorts Is it not the end of his comming in his Gospell to call sinners to repentance What sinners doth hee meane there but such as you are who are laden and burdened with your sinne Doth hee not say if any man sinne marke if any man we have an advocate
with the Father Iesus Christ the righteous Who by being made a curse for you hath redeemed you from the curse of the whole Law Therfore from the curse due unto you for your greatest sinne Consider this againe can the sinne of a finite creature goe beyond the pardon of an infinite Creator Can a sinne in some sense finite deserve beyond the satisfaction of a price for value every way infinite Howsoever it is impossible for a notorious sinner yea for any sinner by his owne power or worth to enter into the kingdome of Heaven Yet know what is impossible with man is possible with God Is any thing too hard for the Lord Hee can alter and renew you and give you faith and repentance he can make these things possible to you that beleeve yea all things are possible to him that beleeveth I you will say if I did beleeve Why what if yet you doe not beleeve It is not hard with him you comming to his meanes of faith you harkening to the precepts and promises of the Word considering that the God of truth speaketh in them I say it is not hard for him in the use of these meanes to cause you to beleeve Wherefore neither greatnesse of sinne nor multitude of sinnes should because of their greatnes and multitude make you utterly despaire of salvation or feare Damnation When once you can beleeve or but will and desire to obey beleeve the greatest matter of feare is past I know if you never had sinned you would not feare damnation Now to a man whose sinnes are remitted his sinnes though sin dwell in him are as if they were not or never had beene For they are blotted out of Gods remembrance I even I am he saith God that blot out thy transgressions for my names sake and will not remember thy sinnes And who is like thee saith the Prophet that pardoneth iniquitie c. hee will have compassion upon us he will subdue our iniquities and will cast all our sinnes into the bottome of the Sea A debt when it is paid by the Surety putteth the principall out of debt though he payd never a peny of it The holy Ghost speaketh most comfortably saying that God doth finde no sinne in them whose sinnes are pardoned In those dayes and at that time saith the Lord the iniquitie of Israel shall be sought for and there shall be none and the sinnes of Iudah and they shall not be found but how may this be he giveth the reason for I will pardon them whom I reserve If you beleeve that God can pardon any sinne even the least you have like reason to beleeve that God can pardon all yea the greatest for if God can doe any thing he can doe every thing because he is infinite He can as easily say thy sinnes are forgiven thee all thy sinnes are forgiven thee as to say Rise and walke He can as wel save one that hath beene long dead rotten and stinking in his sinne as one newly fallen into sinne For he can as easily say Lazarus come forth as to say Damsell I say to thee Arise Lastly to make an end of removing this fear I ask thee who art troubled with the greatnesse of thy sinnes past and with feare that they can never be pardoned how stand you affected to present sinnes Doe you hate and loath them Doe you use what meanes you can to be rid of them Are you out of love with your selfe and humbled because you have harboured them to GODS dishonour and your owne hurt And doe you resolve to returne from your evill wayes and to enter upon an holy course of life if God shall please to enable you and is it your heartie desire to have this grace to be able And are you afraid and have you now a care lest you fall wittingly into sinne then let Satan and a fearefull heart object what they can you may say though my sinnes have beene great and hainous for which I loath my selfe and am ashamed yet now I see that they were not onely pardonable but are already through the rich mercy of God pardoned For these are signes of a new heart and a new minde Now to whomsoever GOD giveth the least measure of saving grace to them hath he first given pardon of sinne and will yet abundantly pardon For he saith Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts and let him returne to the LORD and he will have mercy upon him and to our God for he will abundantly pardon SECTION 3. Removing the feare that riseth from doubts that God will not pardon THere are others who make no doubt of Gods power they beleeve hee can forgive them but they feare yea peremptorily conclude that hee will not pardon them and that because they be Reprobates as they say for they see no signes of Election but all to the contrary I answer these thus When your Consciences are first wounded with a sense of Gods wrath for sinne it is very like that before you have beleeved and repented you cannot discern any signes of Gods favour but of his wrath for as yet you are not actually in state of grace and in his favour And oft-times after a man doth beleeve though there be alwaies matter enough to give proofe of his Election yet hee cannot alwayes see it If you be in either of these estates conceive the worst yet you have no reason to conclude that you are Reprobates It is true that God before the foundation of the world fully determined with himselfe whom to choose to Salvation by grace to which also hee ordained them and whom to passe by and leave in their sinnes for which he determined in his just wrath to condemne them But who these be is a secret which even in point of Election the Elect theÌ„selves cannot know untill they be effectualâ—y called nay nor being called untill by some experience and proofes of their faith holines they do understand the witnesse of the Spirit which testifieth to their spirits that they are the children of God and doe make their Calling Election which was alwayes sure in God sure to themselves But in point of reprobation namely that God hath passed them by to perish everlastingly in their wickednesse no man living can know it except he know that he hath sinned the sinne against the holy Ghost that unpardonable sinne For God calleth men at all ages and times some in their youth some in their middle age some in their old age yea some have beene called at their last houre Now let it be granted that you cannot by search into your selves finde the signes of effectuall calling which yet may bee in you though your dimme eies cannot perceive them Nay suppose that you are not yet effectually called here is no cause for you utterly to despaire and say you are Reprobates How know you
the brethren when hee breathed out threatning was as he himselfe saith mad against them Was hee at that time a Reprobate Did hee not afterwards being coÌ„verted so love GODS people that he could be content to spend and be spent himselfe for them So many thousands whose consciences for the present may justly condemne them of not loving those that be zealous and indeed Gods children may yet love them hereafter as dearly as their owne soules Some will yet say certainely we are Reprobates For we have according to the command of the Apostle tryed whether we be in the faith or no and whether Christ be in us but we finde neither the Apostle saith we know these to be in us else we are Reprobats 2 Cor. 13. 5. By Reprobate in this place is not meant one that is not elect one whom God in his just judgment past by and ordained unto wrath For none of the Elect can before their conversion know by any search that they are in the faith or that Christ is in them For that cannot bee knowne which yet is not Many are not converted untill they be thirtie fortie or fiftie yeares old Will you say these in their younger yeares were Reprobates You may say they then were in state of condemnation and children of wrath but no Reprobates Besides a man must not bee said not to be in the faith and not to have Christ in him because he doth not know so much For many have faith and are in Christ yet do not alwaies know it The word Reprobate because it is ordinarily understood by our common people for a man ordained to condemnation is too harsh except its true meaning were expressed and the Greeke doth not necessarily inforce it Yet I confesse it is a terme proper enough if it were not in our English almost appropriated to the former sense These words now rendred except ye be Reprobates may as I judge rather be translated thus Except you be unapproved or except you be without proofe namely of your being in the faith and of Christs being in you whereof you outwardly make profession Howsoever it bee translated for in this I submit my selfe to the Church let any that is judicious observe the matter therin handled and the Metaphor taken from Goldsmiths in trying of mettals and they shall finde it must bee understood in tâ—hs sense The Corinthians did question the lawfulnesse of Pauls calling to his Apostleship therefore they require of him to give them a proofe of Christ speaking in him His answer is to this purpose as if he should say I will goe no farther to seeke a signe or proofe of Christ speaking in mee then to your selves Hath not the Word and Gospell of CHRIST beene powerfull by my Ministery to convert you and to beget faith and to forme Christ in you Looke into your selves try if you have not faith and if Christ be not formed in you If you find this I need no other proofe of my calling nor of Gods power and grace blessing me in my calling But if upon tryall you cannot finde that you are in the faith c. you are unapproved Christians Either you have yet onely a meere forme of Christianity and like false coyne or Reprobate silver are but hypocrites and counterfeits or if you be Christians in truth yet you are inexperienced Christians and without proofe of it to your selves But whether you finde that you have faith or no c. I trust and am assured that both I the rest of Christs Ministers with me shall approve our selves to be true and faithfull Ministers of Christ though in the account of the false Apostles and of some of you wee bee as Reprobates or unapproveable that is such as in your opinion cannot give proofe of CHRIST speaking in us Our late excellently learned and reverend Translators ver 7. translated the same word in the affirmative Approved wherefore the privative particle being added the translation may well be unapproved or without proofe or refuse Some may Reply if I find upon tryall that I am a counterfeit and as Reprobate silver may I not then judge my selfe to be a Reprobate No. For first you may erre in judging of your selfe Secondly if you do not erre you can judge only this that yet you are not in state of grace but in the use of the meanes you may be God can as well convertian Hypocrite as a Pagan For though now you be drosse and refuse you may ere long be pure Gold For God in making vessels of honour doth more than all earthly Kings and all their Goldsmiths can doe For they by their prerogative setting their stampe and by their Goldsmiths skill can make currant coyne and rich Vessels if that they have pure mettall to worke upon But they cannot make good mettal of base stuffe or can make gold of brasse But such is the force of Gods Word and Spirit that whereas they finde you base and drossie stuffe they by imprinting the Character and stampe of Gods Image upon your hearts doe metamorphise and transforme you into the same Image from glory to glory even as by the Spirit of the Lord. As soone as you are truly touched and annointed with this Spirit you shall become good Gold and Silver vessels of honour fitted for the LORDS use whereunto you were pre-ordained There are yet others object fearefully saying that they are cast-awayes and that God will not have mercy on them and that because now it is too late they have passed the time and date of their Conversion they therefore will not use or at least have no heart in using GODS meanes to convert them such as prayer reading hearing the Word c. Nor yet willingly will suffer others to pray either with them or for them and all because they think it is now too late and in vaine mistaking this and such other Scriptures Because I have called saith GOD and you have refused they shall call on mee and I will not answer And because they thinke they sinne when they pray and heare the Word and that the more means is used to save them their condemnation shall be the more increased Thus Satan a fearefull heart deludeth many It must be acknowledged that God would have all men walke and worke while they have light because the night will come when no man can worke And whilst it is called to day hee would have every one returne and accept of grace offered and not to harden their hearts against it And our Saviour bewaileth Ierusalem because they did let slip the day of their visitation All which doth shew that God hath his set period of time betweene his first and last offer of grace which being passed hee will offer it no more and that justly because they took not his offer when they might And this time is kept so secret with God
was felt witnesse your owne experience for before the hammer and fire of the Word was applyed to your hearts you had no sense of it and never complained thereof You must not call a heavie heart a hard heart you must not call a heart wherein is a sense of an indisposition to good a hard heart except onely in â—omparison of that softnesse which is in it sometimes and which it shall attaine unto when it shall bee perfectly sanctified in which respect it may bee called hard Whosoever hath his will so wrought upon by the Word that it is bent to obey GODS will if he knew how and if he had power this man whatsoever hardâ—esse hee feeleth his heart is soft not hard The Apostle had a heart held in and clogged with the flesh and the law of his members that it made him to thinke himselfe wretched because hee could not bee fully deliverd from it yet wee know his heart was not an hard heart Amongst those that are sanctified there remaineth more hardnesse in the heart of some than in others and what with the committing of grosse sinnes and a cursorie and slight doing of good duties and through neglect of meanes to soften it the same mens hearts are harder at one time than at another of which they have cause to complaine and for which they have cause to bee humbled and to use all meanes to soften it But it is false and dangerous hence to conclude that such are not in state of grace because of such hardnesse in the heart For as GODS perfectest Children on earth know but in part and beleeve but in part So their hearts are softened but in part SECTION 7. Removall of feares rising from doubts about falling from Grace THere yet remaine many who though they be driven up into so narrow a corner that they cannot reply to the answers given to take away their false feares and doubts but they are inforced to yeeld that they find that they now are or at least have beene in state of grace they now see they have beleeved and have beene and it may bee now are sanctified yet this they feare that they either are already fallen or shall not persevere but shall fall away before they dye Touching falling away from grace first know that of those that give their names to Christ in outward profession there are two sorts The first sort are such who have received onely the common gifts of the Spirit as first illumination of the mind to know the mystery of Salvation by Christ and truâ—y to assent unto it Secondly Together with this knowledge is wrought in them by the same spirit a â—â—â—hter impression upon the affections which the Scripture calleth a taste of the heavenly gift and of the good Word of GOD and of the powers of the world to come By these gifts of the Spirit the souâ—es of these men are raised to an abilitie to doe more than nature and meere education can helpe them unto carrying them further then nature or art can doe by working in them a kinde of spirituall change in their affections and a kinde of reformation of their lives But yet all this while they are not ingrafted into Christ neither are deepely rooted as the Corne in good grouÌ„d nor yet are throughly changed and renewed in the inward man they have at best only a formâ— of godlinesse but have not the power thereof Now these men may and oft doe fall away not onely into some particular grosse sinnes of which they were sometimes after a sort washed but into a course of sinning falling from the very forme of godlinesse and may so utterly loose thoâ—e gifts received that they may turne Papists Anabaptists or may fall into any oâ—her Heresie and in the end become very Apostates yet this is not properly a falling from grace It is onely a falling away from the common graces or gifts of the Sâ—irit and from those graces which they did seeme to have and which the Church out of her charitie did judge them to have but they fall not from true saving grace for they neuer had any For if ever they had beene indeed incorporated into Christ Iesus and had beene sound members of his body and in this sense had ever beene of us as the Apostle Iohn speaketh then they should never have departed from us but should no doubt have continued with us The second sort of such as have given their names to Christ are such as are indued with true iustifying faith and saving knowledge and are renewed in the spirit of their minde whereby through the gracious and powerful working of the sanctifying Spirit the Word maketh a deeper impression upon the will and the affections causing them not onely to taste but which is much more to feed and to drinke deepe of the heavenly gift and of the good word of GOD and of the powers of the world to come so as to digest them unto the very changing and transforming them by the renewing of their mindes and unto the sanctifying of them throughout in their whole man both in spirit soule and bodie so that CHRIST is indeed formed in them and they are become new creatures being made partakers of the divine nature Now concerning these It is not possible that any of them should fall away either wholly or for ever Yet it must bee granted that they may decline and fall backe so farre as to grieve the good spirit of GOD and to offend and provoke God very much against them and to make themselves guiltie of eternall death They may fall so farre as to interrupt the exercise of their faith wound their Conscience and may loose for a time the sense of Gods favour and may cause him like a wise and good father in his iust anger to chide correct threaten them making them beleeve hee will turne them out of doores never to receive them into his heavenly Kingdome untill by renewing their faith and repentance they returne into the right way and doe recover GODS lo-ving countenance towards them againe That you may understand and beleeve this the better consider what grace God giveth unto his elect and how and from what they may fill also you must observe well the difference that is betweene the sinning of the regenerate and unregenerate together with their different condition wherin they stand while they are in their sinnes In the first act of Conversion I speake of men of yeeres and discretion GOD by his Word through his holy Spirit doth infuse an habit of holinesse namely an habit of Faith and all other saving graces this every childe of GOD receiveth when he receiveth that holy annointing of the spirit that which the Scripture calieth the Seede remaining in him Secondly God by his gracious meanes and ordinances of the Gospell doth increase this habit and these graces Now because every man
to be at his owne disposing not at ours It should be your care onely to be present at GODS Ordinances and when you reade or heare the Word or will of God to indevour to beleeve and obey it As when hee saith Thou shalt love the Lord thy GOD with all thy heart Thou shalt beleeve in the name of the Lord thy God and trust in his Name Thou shalt obey the voyce of the Lord thy God and serve him and such like Attend to the Word heedfully and because this Word is infallibly true and excellently good bring your thoughts and heart to beleeve and to approve it and say within your selves these are true these are good this I ought to doe this I would beleeve and doe Lord helpe mee and I will doe it O that my wayes were directed to keepe thy statutes In such like agitations and reasonings of the reasonable soule it pleaseth GOD to give his grace both to will and to doe his Commandements But secondly doe not say that you have not faith and the feare of God and love to him all which God of his free grace promised as you heard to you absolutely which graces are indeed the conditions fore-going the reward promised when as in truth you have them For what kinde of duties be these thinke you Are they Legall which require perfect exact and full degrees of faith feare and love Or are they not Evangelicall Such as doe require truth in all these and doe not exact ful perfection in degrees If you have desire if you can desire to feare him which is the scantling of the feare of Gods people as Nehemiah calleth it so if you desire to beleeve and will to obey in the inmost longing of your soul according to the measure and strength of grace in you this according to the Tenour of the blessed Gospell of our Lord Iesus Christ is true and acceptable through Christ for whose sake GOD doth accept the will for the deede in all such cases wherein there is truth of will and endevour but not power to doe Furthermore if you thinke that it is your well doing that must make you acceptable to God you are in a proud and dangerous errour Indeede God will not accept of you if you doe not indevour to doe his will but you must propound to your selfe another end than to be accepted for your well-doing You must doe your dutie to shew your obedience to God and to shew your thankfulnes that God hath pleased and doth please to accept you in his Sonne Christ and that it is your desire to be accepted through him But I would have you which are pressed with the load of your sinnes looke neerely judiciously and impartially into your selfe it may be you have more faith feare of God and obedience then you are aware of or then you will be knowne of Can you grieve and doth it trouble you that you have so little faith so little feare of GOD and that you doe shew so little obedience and is it your desire and indevor to have more and to doe as well as you can though you cannot doe so well as you should then you have much faith feare and â—bedience For to grieve for little â—aith feare and obedience is an â—videntsigne of much faith feare â—nd obedience For whence is â—his trouble and griefe but from Gods saving graces And to â—rieve for little sheweth that you â—ong for and would have much Let this suffice to be a full answer to the principall doubts whereof fearefull hearts will â—ake no answer Never yeeld to your feares waite on God still â—or resolution of your doubts in â—is best time For it is not man that can but it is God that both â—an and will speake peace to his people not onely outward but inward peace In the meane time though you can have no feeling comfort in any of GODS promises yet consider God in the Lord and that Christ is Lord of all you are his creature you owe to him all obedience wherefore you will as much as you can keepe your selfe from iniquity and you will strive to doe his will let him do with you as hee pleaseth yea though he kill you or though he give you no comfort till death you will trust in him and will obey him and it is your desire to rest and hope in him as in your Redeemer then whether you know that God is yours or no I am sure he knoweth you to be his this is an argument of strong faith And you are upon a sure ground The foundation of God remaineth sure The Lord knoweth his and who be they Even all that professing his name depart from iniquitie And whosoever in his heart would he in truth doth depart from iniquity Something remaineth yet to be answered Many say that doe what they can they are assaulted still so thicke with temptations that they cannot have one houres quiet What of that Doth this hinder your peace with God that the Devill the World and your lusts Gods sworne enemies are not at peace with you So long as you have peace of Sanctification in this degree that the faculties of soule and body doe not mutinie one against the other but hold a good correspondencie in joyning together against their fleshly lusts which fight against the soule you are in good case I meane when the Vnderstanding Conscience Will and Affections are all willing to doe their part against sinne their common enemy Not but that you shall find a sensible warring opposition in all these while you live here even when you have most peace in this kinde but how The unsanctified part of the understanding is against the sanctified part of the understanding and unsanctified will against the sanctified will and so in all other faculties of the soule flesh in every part lusteth against spirit in every part spirit in every part lusteth against flesh in every part For as every sanctified part hath the spirit so it hath likewise the remaines of the flesh fighting one against the other Now if that your faculties and powers be ruled all by one spirit you have a good agreement and good peace within you notwithstaÌ„ding that the flesh doth so violently warre against this spirit For this warring of sinne in your members against the spirit the warring of the spirit against sinne argueth clearely that you have peace with God and this warre continued will in time beget perfect peace But let no man ever looke to have peace of sanctification perfect in this life For the best are sanctified but in part Wherefore let no man professing Chrisâ— think that he shal be freed from temptations and assaults risinâ— from within or comming from without so long as he liveth in this world Are not Christians called to be Souldiers Wherefore wee must arme our selves that we may stand by the power of Gods might and quit our selves like
your actions to the Rule though rightly propounded The Scripture must also rectifie you in this For many a one erreth in this also saying my actions and condition are according to the Rule or not according to the Rule When indeede they are otherwise than they judge For every mans owne spirit so farre as it is sinfull is apt to give a false Testimony of it selfe David said he was cut off from God when hee was not The Laodiceans thought themselves in good state when Christ saith they were wretched and miserable Now that you may not erre either in the Rule or application of your selfe to the Rule you must use all good meanes to have your judgement rightly informed in either point and then be willing to judge of your selfe as you are and of your peace with God as it is I told you that the holy Scripture must bee your guide in judging what you should be and what you are I meane the Scripture rightly understood Now to attaine a right understanding of the Scripture and abisitie to judge your selfe by it whether you bee in state of grace from the knowledge whereof commeth peace looke backe unto Chapter 8. Se ion 2. taking unto them these following directions 1. Observe a difference and distinction in true Christians both in their different manner of calling estate after calling Some called in infancie as Samuel and Iohn Baptist Some in middle and old age as Abraham and Zacheus Some called without sensible terrors of coÌ„science as those before mentioned Some with violent heart-ache and anguish as S. Paul and the lay our In some these terrors abide longer in some a shorter time And after Conversion all are not of like growth and strength Some babes weake in judgement and affections Some strong men strong in grace generally but strong also in corrupâ—ion insome particular Some old men so well grounded in knowledge and confirmed in resolution that no lust getteth a head to prevaile in them Also one and the same man may be sometimes in spirituall health and strong somtimes under a temptation weake and feeble sometime can pray c. and have comfort sometime not Now none must conclude he is no Christian because hee is not in every thing like others noâ— at all times like himselfe 2. Trust not your owne iudgement of sense in your owne ease whosoever would understand and be wise according to Scripture must deny himselfe and not leane to his owne sense or wisedome but must be a foole that he may be wise you must bring your conceits to be ordered and framed by the Scriptures You must not presume to put a sense of your owne into the Scripture but alwayes take the sense and meaning out of it It is presumption of a mans owne opinion and stiffenesse in his owne conceits which marreth all in this case And whence is this but from his folly and pride Oh if you who are troubled in Conscience could be every way nothing in your selves you would quickly be something in God and you should quickly know it If you would be humbled and not nourish this pride in you you should quickly know your state with comfort I know many of you will wonder that I should charge you with pride you judging your selves to be so base and vile Wel for all that I will now prove to your faces that it is humility you want and if it were not that you were proud you would judge of things otherwise than you doe For first you cannot beleeve in CHRIST you say because you cannot obey him and bee dutifull as a good wife to him If you could obey then you could beleeve that he were yours and you his whereas you must first beleeve in Christ and take him for your husband and beleeve he is your husband before you can obey him Can a woman or should a woman obey a man and carry her selfe towards him as to her husband before that shee beleeve that hee is her husband If you could obey as you should Oh then you thinke CHRIST would love you It were well if you could love CHRIST and obey him it is your dutie But to thinke he will not save you because you have no goodnesse or worth in you to cause him to love you is not this from hence you would be some thing in your selfe for which Christ should cast his love upon you Christ marrieth you not because you were good but that hee might make you good that you might know him c. But you doe not see this his worke in you that he hath made you good therefore you doubt I answer though it may be in you yet Christ will not let you see it because you will not beleeve that hee is yours and you his Bring your heart to this and you have reason for it for the Father giveth him and he giveth himself to you in the Word and Sacraments then you will love him and obey him abundantly Is not she a proud and foolish woman that may have a Kings sonne upon Condition that shee will strip her selfe of all her own proper goods and let him endow her at his pleasure yet still shee will be whining and discontented with her selfe because shee hath nothing of her owne to bring to him for which hee should love her But you will still say Christ hath not endued you with so much grace as to be able to doe as you should Content your selves If you would but see that he hath married you to himselfe you then would use the meanes which hee hath appointed whereby he giveth his graces you would be thankfull for what you have you would pray wait his pleasure for more relying on his wisedome for how much and when If you doe not thus then in this you shew your selves proud in that you preferre your owne wisdom before his Let it be supposed that you are not proud standing upon termes of having any goodnesse in you for which Christ should love you but you would with all your hearts bee all that you are in him and would be beholding to him for taking you poore and â—asâ— as you are Is there no other pride thinke you but when you doe thinke well of your selves or would bee thought well on for your goodnesse Yes there is another pride which is as daÌ„gerous in this case of causlesse doubting and that is to bee too well conceited of and to bee wedded to your owne knowledge and to your owne opinion in judging your selves Vnderstand it in this particular The holy Scriptures give you to understand I speake still to such onely as with all their soules would please GOD yet can feele no comfort that your state in point of Salvation is good And Gods experienced children yea his faithfull Ministers who dare not lye for God much lesse to ease you they according to the Scriptures doe assure you that your state is not as you say
excellency of Christian Experience 126 127. F An answer to them that question their Faith because they want feeling 590 Many doe not feele they have Faith because they feele not for it 603 How a man may know that he hath Faith 621 Reasons why many without cause thinke they have no Faith 584 Many presume they have Faith but have none 614 Reason for which many thinke they have Faith but have not 463 Who may Fall from grace and how 683 A regenerate man may Fall farre backe but not quite away 685 Grounds of difference betweene the Fals of men truly sanctified and others 688 Whence it is that a true Convert cannot Fall quite away from grace 695 Of Religious Fasting 68 A generall Reason of Fasting 72 Reasons why the body must be afflicted in Fasting 73 Reasons why the soule must be afflicted in Fasting 74 Who are to keepe a publike Fast 76 Who may keepe a private Fast 77 How oft we must Fast 78 How long we must Fast 80 Preparation to a Fast 82 How to keepe a Religious Fast 84 c. What to doe when a man is interrupted in his private Fast 142 Motives to oft Fasting 143 Directions what is to be done after a Fast 145 Cautions touching Fasting 146 Needful fear before coÌ„version 485 Holy Feare after conversion 486 Causlesse Feare 488 The kindes of causlesse Feares ibid Strange effects of Feares rising from naturall distempers 489 There is some difference between the regenerate in those Feares which arise froÌ„ melaÌ„choly others 490 Difference betweene those Feares which arise chiefly from melancholy and those which arise from trouble of conscience ibid Grounds of false Feares 495 Feare of punishment must be turned into trouble for sinne 498 Feares of sinning against the holy Ghost removed 527 Feare that because the heart condemneth God will condemne much more removed 529 Feare of being reprobates removed 531 Feare that God will not have mercie because they have let passe the time of their Conversion removed 540 Feares arising from doubts of Gods love removed 576 c. Feares through conceit of being in worse case than any other removed 561 Feares that God loveth them not because they thinke their prayers are reiected removed 576 Feares from doubting of faith removed 581 Feares of not being sanctified because they thinke they were never sufficiently humbled nor have repented removed 626 Reasons why some feele more sense of Feare and horror in their first conversion than others 627 Feares that a man is not sanctified because he is pestered with worse thoughts than ever removed 637 Feares of not being sanctified because of falling into grosse sinnes removed 656 Feares that they are not sanctified because of sense of dulnesse and deadnessein spirituall duties removed 665 Feares of not being sanctified because of sudden dulnesse after fresh feeling comforts removed 670 Feares of not being sanctified because out-gone by others removed 671 Feares of not being sanctified because of hardnesse of heart removed 677 Feares of falling away from grace removed 681 c. Feares taken from thinking the heart is deceitfull removed 727 Feares from present fainting removed ibid Feares because we doe not our part removed 729 Feare from want of such graces where of God hath absolutely promised removed 676 Feares through want of peace of Sanctification removed 744 G Convincing reasons to prove that there is a God 647 God doth never wholly forsake his children 566 Once and ever in state of Grace 685 Reasons why man being once in state of grace can never fall quite from it 701 Reasons why many thinke they have lesse grace now than in their first conversion but mistake 714 H What is the cause of Hypocrites well-doing 341 Disswasives from hypocrisie 361 365 Meanes against hypocrisie 373 Grounds of false hope discovered and removed 444 I Meanes to strengthen the Inner man 133 Rules to direct Inferiours 62 Causes of error in Iudging of a mans state 754 Of Iudging and condemning of a mans selfe 126 L ATable of Duties commanded and of Vices forbidden in the Morall Law 90 c. No man must abuse Christs lenity 620 Signes to know when God giveth good things in love 265 Directions for sanctisying the Lords day 147 M What Meditation is 195 The distinct acts and parts of Meditation 198 Rules for meditation 202 Cautions about the matter of meditation 203 Motives perswading to meditation 211 Meanes of Mortification 131 O When it is that a man obeyeth out of conscience and love to Christ 340 Weakest performance of duties is lesse dangerous than whole omissions 551 P A description of Christian Patience 286 Inducements to patience 286 287 Meanes of Christian patience 288 Vpon what grounds arguments may be taken to worke the heart to patience 291 292 What peace is in generall 414 The peace of GOD explained and magnified by the opening of Philip. 4. 6. 7. 415 The different sorts of peace of God 421 Reasons proving the excellency of the peace of God 432 The impediments of peace 437 Whence presumption and false peace doth arise 441 Signes of false hope and false peace 476 An excellent helpe to peace of conscience 765 Meanes to get and keep true peace ibid How to know in time of peace to hold out in time of persecution 725 How to be kept from dastardly feare in time of persecution 723 Reasons of due preparation of the heart to prayer 32 How to bee disposeà in the act of prayer 35 God heareth prayer many wayes 578 Cautions to be observed in preparation and in prayer 37 Signes of distempered thoughts thorough worldly businesse to prayer 42 Remedies against distempered thoughts in preparation and in prayer 43 How to know when thoughts of worldly businesse are distractfull in preparation in prayer 45 Remedies against the said distractions in preparation and in prayer 47 Pride is a manifest hinderance of Christiâ—â— Comfort 764 765 Grounds of presumption discovered and removed 437. unto 481 Rules of holy carriage in prosperity and when men have good successe 245 246 Good effects of prosperity 247 Doubts of Gods love because men prosper removed 559 Presumption of Gods love because they prosper removed 448 Presumption ariseth either from false grounds of hope or from true grounds misapplyed 442 Presumption that God will save a man because he made him removed 444 Presumption of escaping Hell because men thinke they have it in this life removed 445 Presumption they shall ever be wel because hither to they have escaped evill removed 446 Presumption they shall be saved because as great sinners as they have bin saved removed 450 Presumption of Salvation by Popes Pardons pennance and merit of workes removed 452 Presumption of salvation because God is mercifull removed 454 Presumption from universall Redemption removed 456 Presumption of Salvation because as men thinke their faith and repentance is good when it is not removed 462 Presumption of repenting hereafter removed 475 R How to read the Word profitably 187 Who must