but that is not absolutely considered For the Devils cannot trust â—n him neither may wicked men yet God is able to help them to save them but relatively as a Father as reconciled Therefore Christ Mat. 6. makes this the ground of all the trust his Disciples must have because their heavenly Father is in Heaven So that till we have these perswasions of God as a Father we are but as so many vagabond Children that know not where to have relief The Child because he hath a Father never takes care what he shall eat or drink or put on because his Father will provide all these for him Fifthly We adde That this Faith must depend on God in a lively and strong manner as David's was at this time or Abraham's when he considered not the dead Womb or did so much as stagger within himself For if thy Faith be weak if it be fainting and languishing though thou maist have support yet not such prevalent peace within thee Thou art in a Combate not in a Triumph David at another time is like Sampson without his strength he saith All men are lyers He thinketh God had forsaken him So that unlesse Faith be very vigorus though thou maiest be preserved in thy afflictions they shall not quite overwhelm thee yet thou wilt not have this peaceable frame Now the Children of God should think it not enough to rub through their troubles with agonies and Combates but with joy and quietnesse Grieve because thy heart is so much as disquieted say Oh weak wretch that I am that I cannot be as much at ease as if I had no affliction at all There remain two more Propositions to explicate this Doctrine And First When we say Faith doth thus quiet and compose the soul you must take two Cautions to season this First That Faith doth not this principally of it self for that is but a grace or habit created and infused into the soul And therefore as all other graces needs the continual quickning and asistance of Gods Spirit so likewise doth Faith Hence our Saviour prayed for Peter that his Faith might not fail Implying that grace of it self would wither and decay as well as any other if God did not preserve it Therefore the Apostle Peter doth fully expresse the manner of Faiths Influence into this Perservation 1 Peter 1.5 It 's the power of God that doth principally and efficiently keep us only it 's through Faith We are not then to conceive as if Faith of it self had such an inherent efficacy that by it's sole jurisdiction it would command the soul and say as God did at the first Let there be light and there shall be light No Faith it self needs the daily quickening of Gods grace as well as other graces Yea this grace would sooner decay then others because of the hearts contrariety to it making a man to live above the Principles of sense and common reason Insomuch that it 's no wonder to see a man love God be patient in afflictions these though not wrought by the power of nature yet have a conviction from the light of nature but so hath not Faith The second Caution is That we do not think as if we could believe it our selves as if by our own humane strength we could obtain such a peaceable frame of heart No If it could be so then David at other times and that it may be in farre lesse extreamities would not have been dejected as he acknowledgeth himself to be Neither would that man have prayed to Christ to Help his unbelief if he could have helped it himself And the experience of the godly doth abundantly confirm this in what agonies they are plunged how grievously tormented Oh how desirous to quiet their hearts They Pray they Meditate they Read and all cannot compose their souls Now if their hearts were subject to their power as the Winds and Waves are to Christ they would never endure such Conflict within This argueth therefore that it 's not in mans power to put forth such strong vigorous Acts of Faith no more then we can command the Heavens to give rain It 's God that must both plant and water and give the encrease Lastly The truth of this Doctrine doth extend even to those great Afflictions and Calamities we are in and that because of our sinnes We can evidently see what sinnes they are that have provoked God to give such a bitter stroke our own hearts testifie unto us and this argueth the greater work of Faith For happily it might be granted That in such Afflictions and Temptations which befall us for Gods cause and for righteousnesse sake we may be full of such joy and sincerity as the Apostle saith James 1. Count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations And thus the Martyrs they could and did with David lay themselves down to sleep in their dark Dungeons and that the very night before they were to burn at the Stake But you will say How can this joy and confidence hold in such Calamities as fall upon us wholly because of our sinnes we behold Gods anger and our folly hath brought this on us Now in such troubles If we humble our selves unto the Lord for our sinnes and bewail them we may have such Calmes of spirit For this was David's case The Prophet had told him afore-hand that this should fall out Because of his Adultery and Murder his conscience cryed aloud in the midst of his military noise yet for all that he could thus set himself to his quiet rest How the vigorous Actings of Faith do quiet the Heart These things premised Let us consider How these vigorous actings of faith do thus quiet and appease the heart And First In that faith doth in the first place carry us out to rely on Christ as a Mediatour whereby all our iniquities and sinnes are done away If then sinne and guilt be removed out of the way there cannot be any trouble For as if there had not been sinne the earth would not have brought forth briars and thornes So neither were it not for iniquity eating into the conscience there would not be the least fear and trouble upon the heart This is the wind that makes so dreadfull an earthquake at last Wonder not then if Davids faith did compose his soul in respect of that outward danger for it had before removed a greater evil the guilt of sinne was now blotted out David is not in that case as when he cryed out that his bones were broken and that God sets his sinnes before him Oh that is a wofull condition when the guilt of sinne and afflictions both meet together when outwardly we have no hope and inwardly no hope But this faith doth in the first place It obtaineth reconciliation with God it seeth Pharaoh and his great host drowned in the sea and then it doth easily over-look other afflictions for the favour of God is able to sweeten all calamities Thus it was with Paul he
can be expected from a Church consisting of such Men speak of Houses where the Devils walk where spirits haunt men dare not dwell there I tell thee That a Family where ignorance and prophaneness is nourished is an house not only haunted but even possessed by Devils And how canst thou eat sleep and live in such a place Fourthly In the primitive times there were a rank of people that were called Catecumini as we said before Candidati or Competentes such who being converted from Paganism were not yet fully instructed in the matters of Religiâ—n and therefore they had time to get knowledg before ever they were admitted to Church-Communion And answerable to this there was a Catechist one whose work and office it was to instruct such before they were Baptized Thus you see how carefull in Antiquity they were that they might have no ignorant persons among them And certainly as in all Arts there are Principles which must be learned before they can come to Conclusions so it 's here in Religion And oh that we could see this Knowledge brought in amongst people To be a Christian is to be anointed and this Vnction teacheth us all things Joh. 2.20 viz. necessary to salvation Fifthly Principles of Religion largely so called are of two sorts either Corrupt Idolatrical and Heretical or true Sound and Consonant to the Scripture Now there are many in the world are too forward to infuse poysonous and dangerous Principles so great a matter is it to consider what men are seasoned with at first either privately or publiquely Thus many are infected with Popish and superstitious Principles many with erroneous and false Doctrines and these foundations being laid it 's very difficult ever to remove them As the vessel is first seasoned or the tree at first planted so it is likely to continue The Apostle cals those Jewish Ceremonies the beggerly elements Gal. 4.9 or Principles of the world Why so because the superstitious Teachers made them the first Elements the Principles the foundation of all and therefore they thought all Religion was taken away if they were removed And thus you have divers persons they have indeed some Principles of Religion but they are Popish and Superstitious such as put out the Knowledge of Christ and the Scriptures And It 's a two-fold labour as Socrates said to a perverted Disciple of his to teach them for they must first be untaught their erroneous Principles and then must be instructed in the truth Oh then look to this that thy Principles about Religion be not false ignorant and superstitious ones Sixthly The true Principles of Religion are reduced to severall heads and are both short and easie but necessary to be known The Doctrine about God and Christ and our selves which is the Credendum The Doctrine about Faith and Repentance which is the Agendum And about things to come which is the Sperandum About God we are to believe That he is and a rewarder of those that seek him About Christ This is eternal life to know Jesus Christ Joh. 17.2 and the holy Ghost for we are Baptized in his Name About our selves the desperate pollution of our natures the hainousness of sinne the aggravation of the curses of the Law The things to be done are Repentance which driveth out of our sins and Faith which driveth out of our own righteousness But because these are Divine Works therefore a man must be regenerated and born again And this Principle Christ insisted on to Nicodemus Joh 3. The things to come are The Resurrection of the Body The immortality of the Soul The Day of Judgment The Heâ—ven and Hell provided for the godly and the wicked These Principles are plain and easie not to flesh and blood but in respect of the manifestation of them They are laid down clearly in Scripture None without horrible impudency can deny them Indeed there are many sublime Disputes about the Trinity and about Christs Incarnation but these are not necessary to be believed by every one Oh then how great is thy ingratitude God hath made the necessary things easie and plain and yet thou art not acquainted with them If God had commanded some greater matter of thee If he had required all thy time all thy study thou wast obliged to have done it How much rather in things of so easie apprehension But now when we say These divine Principles are easie you must take heed of two mistakes 1. We do not mean that the divine Faith and Belief of them is easie to flesh and blood no but they are easie supposing the grace of God in respect of other particulars in Religion For otherwise To believe with a Divine Faith viz. by the Spirit of God inabling upon divine Authority which is only true Faith is the immediate work of Gods Spirit Therefore Faith though it be but Historicall and not saving is the gift of God When we desire a Knowledge and Faith of these Principles we mean not such a Faith as most men have a Faith of custom and humane education a Faith because they are brought up in such a Religion but upon Judgment and Knowledge grounded upon the Scripture That which is usually called the Colliars Faith To believe as the Church believes Is the Husbandmans and the Tradesmans and the rich mans and the poor mans Faith too much in the world So that as Christ saith His yoke is easie and yet also it is very hard Easie to the heart sanctified but grieveous to the unregenerate So it is here The Principles of Religion are easie and plain to the mind inlightned but they are either foolishness or absurdities to the greatest Scholar that is if hâ—s heart be not opened And thus Paul found himself derided and called a Babler amongst the Athenians 2. We do not mean that the bare saying of the Principles of Religian by heart and rote is the true believing and knowing of them As the Child is not said to be fed with milk unless it swallow it down and be nourished by it So neither can they be said to believe the Principles of Religion unless they do with understanding apply them and receive them into their hearts But this is all that most attain unto they can tell you God made them That Christ is their Saviour That they must repent of sinne But these things are by meer rote They learn them as formerly in Popery they learned their Prayers in Lattin they knew not what they prayed for so neither these what they do believe Now the Grounâ—s for Instruction in these Principles are First Because God accounts of no zeal nor devout affections if they be not the fruit of Knowledge Thus Christ told the woman that was so zealous for her Fathers worship Ye worship ye know not what Joh. 4 22. Though God once accepted bruit beasts as a Sâ—rifice to him Yet now saith the Apostle let 's offer up our selves a reasonable Sacrifice Rom. 12.1 The Jew had a zeal but
whole Ship He perfidiously denieth his Master with terrible cursings and execration We need not tell of David and others The Apostles how often did they discover their carnal frame of heart by contentions about honour and primacy Thus you see 〈◊〉 â—â—â—ven in the godly there are not only sparks and seeds of sinne but through negligence and carelesnesse they may notably backslide and fall into the hands of the Philistims into the handâ— of grosse sinnes It is greatly disputed Whether the sinnes they may fall into may be called reigning sinnes Some learned men say I some say No But they may be reconciled by a true explication of the word reigning for they do not so reign as to have full possession with plenary delight and constant content Indeed David did deliberate and wilfully consent to accomplish his wickednesse so that for the present there was no actual resisting in him yet there was the life of grace radically in him he was kept by Gods power and the promise against his own will And thus in regard of that dominion of sinne for a while it might be said to reign but because this was not perpetual grace quickening of him to recover again it is justly said not to reign Now because such sinnes may arise and carry the whole man away captive therefore the godly are exhorted To watch and pray 1 Pet 4 7. Yea constantly to pray That God â—ould not lead them into temptation Whereas if there were no tinder within upon which the sparks of temptation falling would presently blow up there need to be no fear of any temptation In the next place Let us consider Whence it is that the godly do not fully conquer sinne For if you respect Christ he is greater than the Devil and if you respect grace that is more efficacious than sinne How then should any lusts passions or motions abide in us Now the efficient grounds are these And then the final grounds shall be mentioned afterwards The efficient first Because original corruption which is the fountain of those streams is not wholly dried up We cannot expect the streams should be dried when that is not Marvel not then if the godly are carnal diffident earthly froward for that which nourisheth these is not destroyed Though Samsons hair be cut off yet it is not pulled up by the root There is the law of sin in the members as well as the law of God written in their inward parts So that there cannot but be those sinfull affections and corrupt desires stirring in thee these noisome vapours cannot but exhale as long as that filthy lake or bogge is within thee 2. The Spirit of God by which we come to mortifie these corruptions doth not put forth its full power It 's a free agent Rom 8. If ye through the Spirit mortifie So that by the Spirit of God we come to conquer and subdue sinne Now this is not in our power no more than the Apostles could miracles when and how much they listed though there be some difference between miraculous gifts and sanctification If the Spirit of God did come upon thee in the full measure of sanctification then thou wouldst of a leper become all over clean but Christ only received the Spirit without measure It 's stinted to thee thou seest more and more to be daily done in Christianity 3 Therefore doth corruption remain Because the instrument of Sanctification and Mortification that also is imperfect and weak Act. 10. Faith purifieth the heart Rom. 11. Faith receiveth the fatnesse of the Olive-tree Ephes 3. Christ dwels in the heart by faith Heb. 11. All those glorious works of righteousnesse were done by faith So that if our faith be weak the effects of it also will be weak and that every mans faith is weak appeareth Because we know but in part and so can adhere and apply but in part Lastly Therefore doth corruption abide in us Because the Law of God is spiritual pure and exact This is not an efficient ground so much as occasional to discover and manifest that this sour leaven still is in us The Law of God requiring the whole man an universality of the Subject and Object and of Degrees and of Time which it's impossible for us to do therefore the transgression of the Law makes it to be sinne If the Law have not forbidden weak love weak faith it had been no more sinne than weak health or weak strength It had been a languor or penalty only as the Papists say not truly and formally a sinne In the next place Observe the final grounds Why God who is thus able to bid us be whole at once Or as Christ whom he cured corporally he cured perfectly he wrought no half-cures why should he not do thus in spiritual healings as Castalio urgeth 1. Because God intends in this life to glorifie evangelical grace and the righousnesse of the Gospel by faith as the Epistles of Paul abundantly witnesse Now if we had a righteousnesse of our own works how could it be imputed without works How could we with Paul account our own righteousness dung and drosse for the righteousnesse of Christ by faith if ours were gold Oh then how wise should the godly man be Dost thou discover thy foul noisome heart Dost thou tremble to see so much of the flesh in thee Take the advantage to glorifie the grace of the Gospel say thou needest Christs robes all the day long for thy nakednesse 2. God suffers these reliques in us that there may be daily exercise for faith patience and other graces so that these are left to increase the crown of glory not to diminish it The people of Israel used themselves to warlike exercises they were to be taught the use of the Bow because their enemies were not totally subdued so that therefore God would have these things to try thee that thy spiritual valor and fortitude may the more appear Tempests and winds discover the skill of the Mariner Thou mayest turn these clods of earth into chaines of pearl 3. That we might not be puffed up in our selves nor others lift up by admiration For as the Heathens when they saw the viper fall off from Pauls hand and not hurt him changed their minds thinking they were gods but while the viper at first was on them they thought vengeance pursued him Thus when men see vipers cleave to thee as others thou hast thy infirmities thou hast thy weaknesses then thou art low in thy own and other mens eyes Lastly These thorns are still in thy side that Heaven may be the sweeter Lift up your heads for your redemption draweth nigh Then it will be no more a vile mortal body or a corrupt diseased soul Then pride unbelief dulnesse will be no more a trouble thou wilt be no longer in the valley but upon the Mount Vse 1. Of Instruction to the people of God that they should not despair under the discovery of daily infirmities I do not encourage
affected wisdome of the world without either miraculouâ— signes or scientifical demonstrations either of which would much perswade men Fourthly and lastly It 's the perpetual invariable means God hath appointed to the worlds end When the Ministery and Preaching shall cease then shall all this world with the things therein cease Thus Eph. 4. it 's there said to continue till Christs coming and Paul's direction about the Ministery must be kept till the coming of Christ The former dispensation is altered he hath taken away Priests and Levites the sacrifices and Altars but he will never take away Pastors and Teachers and Sacraments and these must abide as long as there is a Church on the world Vse of Examination It 's the Ministery this is the ordinary necessary appointed menans for faith and other graces Why then is it that it hath not been so to thee Oh it would be an heavy trouble to thee thou wouldst think God had some extraordinary jugement upon thee if thou couldst have no cloaths to warm no food to nourish thee no creature be that to thee for which it is appointed But behold a greater judgement then this no Ministery doth convert thee no Preaehing begets faith or repentance in thee In the Apostles times What multitudes were converted by the Word Yea in the first times of Reformation from Popery How many did not only receive the truth in their minds but grace in their hearts they were not only converted from Popery and superstition but from prophaness and impiety But now alas to whom is the power of God made known Certainly the Word is the same Gods arm is as strong as ever but men by their wilfull ignorance by their unthankfulness and rebelling against the light have sinned away the presence and power of God from the Ministery and then if God go not along with us Alas what can we do Oh that you who are hearers would deeply lay these things to heart God saith his Word is an enlightning Word a sanctifying cleansing Word Why is it not so to thee Why art thou no more reformed then where there is no Preaching no Ministery at all The same cursing swearing the same lusts pride covetousness and ignorance Is not all this because God doth not appear in his own Ordinances Oh men without hope How desperate is such mens condition for if the Ministery cure thee not what will cure thee Woe be to thee if the Word that is so effectual and operative to others be not also to thee Who is Paul and who is Apollo but Ministers by whom ye believed even as the Lord gave every man The third thing in order to be discust is the noble Effect whereof the Ministry is said to be an Instrumental Cause viz. Ye believed Faith is one of the most eminent Common-places in Divinity It 's the Sanctum Sanctorum in this spiritual building It s the fat in that spiritual Sacrifice we offer to God And because of the spiritual and most sublime nature of it it is least understood by the natural man I shall not at this time handle all the main particulars about it because the holy Ghost intends it not in this place Onely take notice that in stead of all the work of grace repenting reforming he nameth believing because this is Initial and Introductory to all the rest The word Faith or Believing is of a very large and fruitfull signification but it 's impertinent at this time to trouble you with it Observe That Faith is the great and eminent grace which God by the Ministry works in some hearers Thus upon Christ and the Apostles preaching still this is recorded And many believed Insomuch that Faith is said to come by hearing Rom. 10.17 The Scripture indeed sometimes speaks of faith as prerequisite to make the Word profitable Who hath believed our report And the Word profited them not because it was not mixed with faith Heb. 4.6 Here we see unbelief doth obstruct and hinder the savoury effect of the Gospel But that is finally in those that pâ—rish but in those that shall be saved God in his due time will by the Word preached work faith viz. enlighten their minds and open their hearts to entertain it To open this Doctrine Let us consider the Nature of Faith and that is usually said to consist in three acts whether they be all essential or some only I shall not here determine The first is Knowledge and understanding This is eternal life to know thee and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent John 17.3 Yea it 's a strong and powerfull conviction of the mind Hence it 's called The substance and evidence of things Heb. 11.1 Believing in the soul is compared to the corporal seeing of the body To say a blind faith is as great a contradiction as to say a dark Sunne or a cold fire If it be faith it doth see the ground of its belief Indeed faith cannot comprehend the matter we believe the Doctrine of the Trinity the Incarnation of Christ are like the dazelling Sunne to our Bats-eyes but though faith cannot comprehend the matter believed yet it knoweth the ground why it doth believe in those places of Scripture and the testimony of Gods Word which saith It is thus and thus Oh then How farre are many from being believers For ignorance covers their souls as darknesse did the Chaos at the first The very principles of Religion the total ignorance whereof doth damn a man yet is like a veil upon most mens eyes Oh then consider that knowledge and understanding is the necessary way to let in faith or rather is a beginning and part of it If thou hadst lost thy eyes or wert smitten with corporal blindnesse How much would it affect thee But now thou hast unbelief and spiritual blindnesse yet it doth not break thy heart Say no more thou believest in Christ thou believest in God if thou knowest not what Christ and God is Though ignorant people are full of their devotion yet because it 's without knowledge and faith it 's as abominable as a Sacrifice without eyes Secondly But knowledge is not all How many Atheists are there that know much and understand the points of Religion yet believe not Therefore the second Act of Faith is to Assent to give credit to them as true and this indeed we mean and Scripture also means this most commonly when it speaks of believing the Word of God that is giving a firm and sure assent to it as true Hence that expression Faith is the substance Heb. 11.1 that is by faith we make those things that are future really subsist as it were in our souls as if present Thus Faith makes Heaven and Hell present The Apostle excellently describes it They behold not the things temporal or seen but the things eternal which are not seen 2 Cor. 4 18. Thus Moses is said to have an earnest eye of faith fixed upon the reward and that is an act
of faith Heb. 11.26 And in this respect most fail They do not firmly assent to the Doctrine of Gods Omnisciency of a Day of Judgement of giving an account of every evil word Did they believe these things as the Word of God which cannot deceive which cannot be false how dared they live in such professed impieties But the fool hath said in his heart there is no God Psal 14.1 No Judgement no Heaven no Hell If an humane faith can set men so much on work when yet all men are lyars what shall not a divine faith do Thirdly That which is the compleat and formal act of faith is a resting on Christ a receiving of him a coming to him Hence are those emphatical expressions which are in no humane Authours 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 To believe in God in Christ and this act of faith is expressed by words of resting rolling the soul waiting and expecting by receiving imbracing A godly man is called a member of Christ and faith is the ligament and that which uniteth a branch in the Olive-tree faith is that whereby we receive fatnesse of it So that the power and life of faith lieth in this that it gives up the soul to Christ and receiveth Christ in the soul hereby it is said Christ dwels in our hearts by faith Ephes 3.17 And this act is only in the godly This is the difference from all hypocrites they are said to believe they know they give credit to many things and this works some slighty affections but they are not united to Christ they cleave not to him so as to to be made one with him They receive him not both as a Mediatour and as an Head to whom they will conform and live as Members answerable to such an Head This then is the marrow and the soul of faith when a man so knoweth so assents as thereby he is incorporated into Christ receiving of his virtue and influence so that all is Christ as it were I no longer live but Christ in me and the life I live is by faith in Christ saith Paul Gal. 2.20 Now this faith thus described hath glorious Effects and also many Properties we will select some of many As First The noble effect of Faith ad intra is to receive the righteousnesse of Christ and thereby to make it ours by which means faith is so often said to justifie and we are justified by faith And Paul did so exceedingly desire to be found not in his own righteousnesse but by that of faith in Christ Phil. 3.9 This is the hand to put on those glorious Robes to cover our nakednesse This is the eye by which we look upon that exalted Serpent to be healed It 's not repenting sorrowing reforming no nor martyrdom it self that hath this honour which faith hath neither is this for any dignity or worth of faith but because it 's an instrument to receive the righteousnesse of Christ which no other grace can be So that as the child new born presently moves it lips and mouth for the brest to be sucking there So the new born spiritual Infant immediately goeth out of its own works it 's own righteousnesse and desireth to be found in Christ onely This way of believing is very paradoxal and hidden to a guilty conscience Cain did not know it Judas was not acquainted with it and thereupon eternally perished A second Effect of Faith ad intra is to receive virtue and power from Christ to subdue our corruptions to conquer our sinnes so that faith is the instrument of Sanctification as well as Justification Thus we are Members and Christ is the Head branches and he the Vine and as these are nourished and enlivened bringing forth fruit by having sap and virtue from the head or tree so are we supplied with virtue and efficacy for all imperfections by faith from Christ In so much that the excellent ready way to conquer any sinne to subdue any passion or unruly affections is by Faith to apply Christ to the soul If the branch would flourish it must not depart from the tree but still be ingraffed closer to receive power and thus thy way to overcome any noisome temptation is not to keep off from Christ to be discouraged by unbelief but the more sensible thou art of thy weaknesse and infirmities to lay the faster hold on Christ But oh how hard is it ere many of the children of God come to learn this good way They lie discouraged in their combate and conflict with sinne they are ashamed of their hypocrisie their guile Oh they are so unworthy and so wretched that they dare not come neer Christ and this hinders them Even as Peter out of a preposterous humility would not let Christ wash his feet but saith Christ If I wash thee not thou shalt have no part in me John 13.8 And then Peter saith Not my feet but my whole body also Oh when thou comest to know how acceptable it is to God and how comfortable to thy own self In the midst of all weaknesses and failings still to catch hold on Christ then thou wilt be inamoured with it saying How foolish and ignorant have I been Even like a beast and an enemy to my own good Therefore if thou art at any time overtaken with a sinne cast not away thy faith also That is as if a souldier because he hath received a blow should throw away his weapon by which he might offend his enemy If by thy doubts and diffidence thou art kept off from Christ how canst thou ever get power against sinne But let us come to the Effects ad extra For all say they believe all are confident in Christ for their salvation there is no man though prophane and abominable but he saith he believeth in Christ with all his heart Therefore there are Effects of faith ad extra in the outward man from which this Faith can never be separated no more than heat from fire or light from the Sunne As First It purifieth a man inwardly and outwardly from all filthiness He that truly believeth he cleanseth himself from all filthiness of flesh and Spirit Having these promises let us cleanse our selves 2 Cor. 7.1 and we have not them to make use of but by saith especially that is to our purpose Act. 15.9 Purifying their hearts by Faith which is seen in a great manner by cleansing away that dross that mudde which is in every mans heart every mans heart is a filthy poisoned noisome fountain and faith cleanseth it purifieth it Thus John also He that hath this hope which is a necessary companion of faith purifieth himself even as God is pure 1 Joh. 3.3 Come then thou who speakest of thy faith What is thy heart thy life are they clean Thy heart men cannot enter into that may be a cage of unclean birds that may be a den of thieves their pride covetousness uncleanness may lodge and none in the world condemne thee for
it but Faith would quickly dispossess these and make it clean for Christ to dwell in And then thy life How pure is that Dost thou talk of believing in Christ when thou hatest purity makes a scoff and a taunt at it I tell thee if thou didst believe thou wouldst be pure and strict also As Saul that went with no good will to the Prophets when he came to them the Spirit of God sell on him and he prophesied also Thus thou that art a malicious enemy a prophane scoffer at purity and holiness should the Spirit of God once fall upon thee thou wouldst become pure and strict also Know then a man can no more carry faith in his heart and this not reforme his life then oyntment about him and that not discover it self Secondly Where there is a true lively Faith that will make a stout though wise confession of the truth when God doth require it Rom. 10.10 With the heart man believeth with the mouth confession is made to salvation and the Apostle We believe therefore we speak 2 Cor. 4.13 Indeed there is a faith about some disputable poinâ—s in Religion that are not essential to salvation that the Apostle bids a man have it to hâ—mself Rom. 14. but for the main points the owning or not owning whereof is the owning or not owning of Christ Our Saviour speaks terribly to the not confession herein He that shall not confesse me before men though before a croâ—ked and perverse generation him will not I confesse before my Father nor the holy Angels Mark 8.38 Thirdly Where faith is there it will carry a man out to the ready performance of all obedience justice temperance liberaâ—ity equity and every good worke The Apostle James Jam 2. doth at large shew That that man is but a vain man and an hypocrite one who cousens his own soul that thinketh by faith to be saved when this is not incarnated and manifested in all godly conversation Yea faith puts all graces on working as Heb. 11. That seemeth to be the great wheel that sets all others on going Lastly He that doth truly believe is not discouraged from his duty because of any trouble or persecution in the world Christ prayed for Peter That his faith might not fail him No danger no fears could have drawn him into sinne had faith been active It was faith made Moses chuse reproaches and persecutions rather than the glory of Aegypt A man that liveth by sense and by worldly advantages he cannot but with the Chamelion turn into every colour of that object which is by him because worldly fear reigneth and ruleth in his heart but Faith that overcomes the world If it conquer Devils and Hell much more the world Yea it makes a man rejoyce in tribulations Vse of Examination Hath the Ministry had this effect to make you believe Oh you will say Who doubts of that Are we Atheists Do you make Pagans and Infidels of us Consider there is a great difference between the Title Name and Profession of a Believer and the reall Efficacy of it It 's said Simon Magus believed because he outwardly professed so yet he was in the state of gall and bitterness It 's said John 2. ult That many believed but Christ would not commit himself to them because he knew what is in man Therefore Do you really believe all that the Scripture saith And if so How darest thou lie swear deal unjustly No you flatter your selves The Faith of these things would make you tremble yea roar out Oh! What shall I do to escape this great wrath Therefore set Faith more on work from day to day I am no Atheist I am a Christian I believe a Day of Judgment Why then live I thus But Ministers by whom ye belived even as the Lord gave to every man We are come to the last Particular observeable in this Verse and that is the Efficient Cause of this Ministry and Service in the Church with the variety of the Gifts of those that are employed therein Even as the Lord gave to every man This the Apostle addeth still to take off all from the Instruments and give it to God They are indeed Pipes to conveigh Gods grace but they can no longer runne then this Fountain fils them They are indeed spiritual Trumpets to give warning of Gods wrath approaching but they cannot breathe forth any sound but what the mouth of the Lord doth first breathe into them So that although the Church of God in respect of the several Gifts God bestoweth on her Officers be like the Queens Daughter cloathed all in needle and embroidered work Even as the Kings Daughters were wont to go in parti-coloured cloathes Yet all this Ornament and comeliness is put upon her by God alone So that every Minister hath a peculiar Gift yet so as all comes from above from God to him Doct. That God hath given several Gifts and Abilities to the Ministers of the Church and thereby makes use of them all for his glorious ends The Apostle doth in many places delight to compare the Church to a mans body where there are several parts and every part hath its peculiar Office There is the eye the hand the foot and though all are not equally eminent yet all are equally necessary But 1 Cor. 12.4 5. you may see this excellently described I here are diversities of Gifts and of Administrations but all from the same Spirit the same Lord and all is for the same end The manifestation of the Spirit is to profit withall Whatsoever Abilities and Gifts God hath given they are not for vain ostentation They are not for humane applause but for use to profit withall Insomuch that if any man should should use his parts his abilities to propagate errour or to strengthen men in wickedness they did greatly abuse the good Gifts of God and turn wholesome meat into poyson To open this Doctrine you may consider That the Gifts of God to the Church are as to our purpose of two sorts Sometimes the very Office and Function it self is called a Gift To be an Apostle to be a Pastour to be a Teacher is a Gift Thus Ephes 3. Yea Christs Ascension He gave Gifts to men As Kings at their Coronations distribute large and plentifull gifts And what are these Gifts Apostles Evangelists Pastours and Teachers Thus the very Office is a Gift and that a great one too More then all temporal mercies though the ungratefull world cannot think so Thus the Psalmist speaking of the Word of God and the Ministry given to the Jews he addeth He hath not done so to every Nation Psal 147.20 Alas for temporal mercies he had he gave them peace quietness and plenty all aboundance and filled them with good things but this was nothing to the Ministry of the Word And certainly no plenty no quietness no abundance is a mercy equall to the Gospel Therefore Amos threatned the famine of the Word as more terrible
in vain are taken up in the New Testament as well as the Old And experience teacheth us That where Christ is preached and the Gospel in a glorious manner promulged yet it 's but dead preaching to many This voice doth not make them come out of the grave of sinne onely herein the Law and the Gospel differ that the matter of the Law pressed will condemn us none being ever able to fulfill it Yea the godly cannot do all things the Law requireth and so the Law is a killing letter to him But the Gospel that comes with a moderation where the graces of Gods Spirit are though weak and imperfect there through Christ their weaknesse is forgiven So that the preaching of the Gospel to a soul oppressed for sinne is like the year of Jubilee to poor servants and indebted prisoners Howsoever then the preaching of the Gospel is said to be the ministration of life and of the Spirit 2 Cor. 3. yet that is not to be understood simply of it self but as accompanied with the power of God Hence the Gospel is said to be the power of God to salvation Rom. 1.16 the power of God not of man It 's not mans wisdome that our faith is grounded on Thus much for what the Apostle meaneth not What he positively meaneth or inferreth are First That it 's not in the power or choise of the Minister to make it effectual He cannot bid or command the Word to work as he pleaseth for then the guilt of all mens souls and the damnation of all would lie upon us As our Divines say to the Papists when they brag The Pope hath the Keyes of power above all things not only in earth but in purgatory Why then doth he suffer those souls to lie tormented there as he doth So it would be here Why are any damned Why do any lie in their sinnes if the Ministry by its own power could convert them No the Ministers of God they can only pray they can mourn and grieve in secret to see the miscarriage of the Word and the wilfull resolution in men to destroy their own souls they can mourn over the dead but they cannot recover them to life Secondly The Apostle by this intends that both the Ministers and the people should keep themselves in their due bounds The Ministers though never so eminent though never so much applauded by a numerous company of Disciples yet they cannot make one black hair white They cannot say of any people obeying the Gospel That we by our own power have made such believe It 's true they are said to be Fathers and to beget men to the truth but that is only instrumentally and metaphorically by external application of the Word not internal power for so we have onely one Father in Heaven Pride and ambition do easily breed in the most eminent parts as worms in the sweetest fruit but when they shall consider that they are nothing and God is all this is a good way to humble them and then the people hereby are also taught much moderation Some mens persons they are apt to admire Not such a man in the world Oh but what a great God is there in Heaven without whom this man is nothing This is spiritual Idolatry and that worship which is to be given to Christ only you give to instruments Lastly In making the Ministry nothing and God all The Apostle would have both Minister and people in their Ministry to have our hearts and eyes up to Heaven As the Bird after every drop of water it sips looks up presently to Heaven so shouldst thou Lord what the Minister hath spoken what he hath pressed oh set it home with a blessing Cause it to come like rain upon the new mowed grasse Oh the carelesse and prophane hearing that is every where This makes God give no increase you matter it not you believe not you tremble not under it you do not earnestly pray about it If a man have a leg or arm to be cut off oh you desire all you meet with to pray about it Why because it may cost him his life How much rather about every Sermon every Duty that is preached shouldst thou pray and again pray Oh it may be the damning of my immortal soul to miscarry therein Quest But how may we addresse our selves to hear and to the Ministry so that God may make them something to us Answ To be made something is when the Word doth greatly wound thy heart or comfort thee when it makes a noise and a pain at thy very bowels when it makes thee sick at the very heart when it makes thee cry out Oh me a wretched sinner what have I done Whither shall I go Ah wretch that I am In what a wofull condition am I plunged Sinne is on one side hell on the other the wrath of God above me and all the curses of the Law round about me Then it 's something then our words fall like hot burning coals upon your consciences you cannot sleep nor rove but tremble under it Now this will be done these wayes First Make it a real and conscientious matter to pray unto God to give increase As to the woman our Saviour said According to thy faith so be it unto thee So according to thy prepared prayer saith God this Sermon and this duty shall be blessed unto you As your cruise is fitted so will God pour in oil If we then complain that the Ministry works no more notable effects that it makes no more transcendent alterations judge whether the blame lie not on thy own self Prayer is that which moveth with God Prayer is that in which the Sermon rolled produceth sutable operations The Word of God is a two-edged sword but prayer maketh it penetrate that sets God on work and God sets his Word on work A man much in prayer is alwayes much in profiting As the Preacher is to pray Christ prayed much in the night as he taught much in the day so the hearer he also must pray much Secondly Exercise strong and divine acts of faith this will make the Ministry something to thee The Word profited not because it was not mingled with faith Heb. 4.2 or as some interpret because by faith they were not mixed as it were with the Word they were not incorporated into it and who hath believed our report Rom. 10. Faith is that which comes at first by hearing and then afterwards makes hearing profitable The Atheism and unbelief which is on mens hearts make the Word without efficacy such are prophane mockers As you see they despised the Prophets that often said The burden of the Lord the burden of the Lord. Men believe not the things preached to be Gods truth that they are Gods word that they will be made good whether they will or no they are living words and sure words and faith only layeth the first foundation of this spiritual building believe the threatning and thou darest
implied 2. Repentance cannot be Evangelical and filial without Gods love in Christ Judas did repent the Scripture cals it so but because there was only gall in it and no honey only horrour and terrours and no faith to allay those waves Therefore his very repenting and despairing was a grievous sinne So then to preach such a repentance as driveth from God filleth the heart with cursed horrours and hated of God and thereby to runne to hils and mountains to cover us from God Or to put a man upon such penal and afflicting labours to the flesh that may satisfie and appease God This is to bid men bring wild and sour grapes for sweet This is to preach from Christ not to preach Christ But repentance truly preached is to have our sorrow for sinne accompanied with faith in the promises and a resting upon tht bloud of Christ Thus as it is in repentance so in every grace When we preach it we preach Christ because by him we only have ability to do it and through him only have acceptation and as we said though the Ministers in every exhortation do not thus name Christ yet this is to be supposed Lastly We do not transgresse this Text no not when we preach the Law the threatnings the torments of hell because these are to drive us out of our selves to make us see our own poverty and wickednesse that so Christ may be the more welcome Christ himself though sometimes he cals the heavy loaden to him in a meek way yet when he hath to do with such as trusted in their own righteousnesse and found no need of his Mediatorship he cals them Hypocrites he bids a woe to them he threatens them with hell And Paul tels you in his own experience he had never come to prize Christ to esteem him had not the Law discovered sinne to be out of measure sinfull then he died then he was undone then Oh miserable man that I am who shall deliver me What shall I doe And thus Peter converted three thousand by conviction of a particular sinne they had committed viz. the murder of Christ and the aggravation of it and this pricked them at heart And so Paul being called to preach of faith in Christ to Felix he presently preacheth about righteousnesse and temperance because Felix lived in the two contrary vices and also of the Judgement to come Thus he would have brought Felix to the esteem of Christ So that to preach the Law in the purity of it in the cursing nature of it to preach hell and the eternal torments thereof is necessary because this is to make way for Christ This is to put iron in the fire that so being softened it may be put into any fashion Thus we have removed the Objections and shewed you That though other things are to be preached besides Christ yet reductively all things are brought to him at last They are but as the rivers that come from the Sea and empty themselves therein I shall conclude thiâ— Text with shewing you The great advantages that people have who are built on Christ First They are a sound stedfast people not carried away as the chaff and straw is with every wind of Doctrine Heb. 13. Jesus Christ the same yesterday and for ever and then followeth Be not carried about with divers and strange Doctrines The Connexion is thus made by some The truth of Christ the Doctrine of Christ is still the same And therefore do you retain the same stedfast faith Oh when men are not built on Christs Doctrine but their own opinions their own conceits they have Reubens curse Vnstable like water Col 2. They that fell to the worshipping of Angels and Saints did not hold the head Look then to what thy faith thy soul is bottomed upon whether Christ be thy teacher or thou be thy own teacher Now this stedfastnesse and immoveablenesse of those that are founded on Christ appeareth in their resisting of the violence of persecution and the subtilty of heresies In the one the Devil is a roaring Lion In the other he is a glistring sliding Serpent The one is like the violent wind to the traveller that by force would pull off his garments The other like the hot Sunne-beams that by degrees maketh him throw them away Oh this is excellent comfort in the winnowing to be found wheat and not chaff in the fire to be gold and not drosse God you hear in this Text will have a fire to try all mens doctrines and if it be stubble and hay it will quickly be consumed My sheep hear my voice and a stranger they will not hear or follow John 10.5 Secondly A people built on Christ will not be formal and customary in religious duties resting upon the performance of them but carried out to Christ himself Oh who can bewail this enough How are all duties of Religion but as the picture without a substance as a body without the soul They pray and hear and hear and pray but close not with Christ in these things Thus as Rehoboam for the golden vessels that were in the Temple put in materials of brasse So whereas the people of God in their spirituality fervency and heavenly mindednesse had their hearts up to Christ Now they think all is done with the external labour of the lips or bowing of the body We may say to you thus affected in your duties as they that were looking for Christ in the Sepulchre He is risen he is not here As false teachers that brought in the works of the Law and the duties of the Law did put these in stead of a Christ so do Christians make their Duties their Ordinances their Performances a very Idol-Christ to save them but those that are built on Christ know better Thirdly Those that are setled and founded on Christ they have spiritual strength and holy vigour communicated to them in the wayes of godlinesse For though Christ be here called a foundation and that giveth only support yet in other places he is the root of the Vine the Head which denotes more than a meer foundation viz not only supporting but conveying all grace and lively nourishment to the godly heart whereby they grow up and increase to more degrees of holinesse Now this is a wofull spectacle to see a people the same both for knowledge and life they were many years ago no more understanding in heavenly things no more growth in faith in zeal in communion with God Even as the picture on the wall that is still the same not one cubit is ever made to the stature thereof Lastly Those that are built on Christ receive of the Spirit of Christ in all the works of it A spirit making thee pray with groans unutterable a convincing a sanctifying spirit or sealing and assuring spirit An auditory destitute of Gods Spirit is like a Golgotha a place of dead mens skuls or rather dead hearts They savour no spiriual duty priviledge or motive The
rejected Tit. 3.10 Those then are nearest to perdition who after Admonition and Information do still continue refractory Lastly Of all those who defile the Temple and are marked out for perdition Antichrist it is and his party that are the great defilers of Gods Temple He is alled The man of Perdition 2 Thes 2.3 both actively and passively Actively because he is a means to destroy so many thousand souls and passively because he is appointed by God to remarkable destruction Take heed therefore thou art not found in the number of that Antichristian society which is marked out by God for destruction Come out of Babylon least you be partakers of her plague Rev. 18.4 If you ask why God should be thus provoked by corruptions in truth or worship the Reason is plain Because his Glory is more immediately interrested in these things Practical godlinesse and obedience are acceptable but his truth and his worship are that which immediately relate to him Herein his jealousie is said to be drawn out Vse of Admonition Pray and take heed you fall not from your stedfastnesse and be led aside with the errours of the wicked You see here is no dallyance no wantonnesse allowed in this matter God will destroy Art thou not afraid of Gods wrath of Gods vengeance If it were but the anger of a man or the persecution of a man it might be endured but God who is a consuming fire he will never bear this He will not endure this This Text would be like a flaming sword to keep men from false and erroneous waies if duly considered This is that which undoeth us people are either very sottish and stupid not regarding any thing of Religion at all or if they do they do not with that sobriety that humility that fear and trembling addresse themselves to know Gods truths as they ought to do There is a prophane proud unmortified frame of heart upon us and then then no wonder we defile his Temple Him shall God destroy This is the punishment threatned to the Temple-defilers and though but two words God destroy yet both have their weight There are many evils and calamities that yet are not a destruction that is the utmost of all paenall evils and then it 's a destruction from God whose wrath is like himself Incomprehensible It 's not man but God shall destroy Now what this destruction is we have told you not an annihilation of soul and body as Socinians would have it not a Physical destruction but moral viz. depriving the wicked man of all happinesse and comfort We have handled this relatively already as it is the Portion of the Temple-defilers I shall now consider it absolutely Eternal wrath and damnation is described here under the name of destruction which is the reward of every wicked impenitent man whether his sinnes be intellectual or bodily And the Doctrine I shall raise is That Eeternal Damnation is the Destruction of a man It 's the undoing of a man for ever This Doctrine or Truth hath a sting in it and because men are generally so bruitish and feared in their evil waies I do the rather pitch upon it because truths that are of a more sublime nature do not so easily penetrate Let us then improve this Eternal Damnation is the Destruction of a man It 's the eternal undoing of a man To clear this consider First That it is the Scriptures way to represent Hell and Damnation under all those evils that are most terrible to sense as on the contrary Heaven is described by such nams as do usually delight most men Hence it 's called a Kingdom and a Crown of Glory and a City paved with precious stones These are condescending expressions to us who are apt to apprehend nothing great and admirable but what is so to sense and were not our natural corruption so greatly prevailing over us such Scripture baites would soon take us As it is thus for Heaven so for the contrary Hell and eternal damnation is described by all such terrible Objects that the very naming of them should fill us with great horrour and do not think these are vain scare-crows no these expressions do no more represent to the full the torment and pain of the damned indeed then a painted fire doth a reall burning fire Whatsoever the Scripture saith of this destruction of wicked men doth not arise up in the least manner to the torment indeed Therefore that the meditation and preaching of this subject may be profitable set Faith on work believe there is such a state of destruction coming upon impenitent men that all the undoing we can have in this life is nothing to that eternal undoing Let Faith warm and heat thy heart with this and it will work wonderfully to thy reformation If to die be a thing of terrour what is eternal death What is eternal destruction If skin for skin and all that a man hath he will give for his life how much rather for this eternal life Secondly This destruction consists in two things The good it 's privative of And The evil it 's positive of Schoolmen call it the punishment of losse and the punishment of sense The Scripture brings in God inflicting both in that terrible sentence at the Day of Judgment Depart from me into eternal fire Mat. 25.41 Depart from me there is the privation of all good Into eternal fire there is the position of all evil and misery Divines have disputed which is the greatest evil of these two but Chrysostome answers The privation of Gods face is farre worse then all the torments in Hell That Depart from me is more terrible then eternal fire Certainly seeing such a destruction is coming how much doth it concern all to watch and pray about it Descendamus in infernum viventes ne descendamus morientes said Bernard Let us descend into Hell while alive by meditation lest we really descend thither when we die But singularia sunt quae pungunt Let us therefore consider What losse it is First that this destruction doth consist in And First It 's the losse of God in whom only is all happinesse Depart from me At his right hand are pleasures for evermore Psal 16.11 To be with God and to enjoy him is that happinesse which eye hath not seen nor can the heart of a man conceive For such as God himself is such is the enjoying of him He is the bonum in quae omnia bona bonum quo nihil melius cogitari potest The Jehova The beings of all created comforts that are scattered up and down and parcelled in creatures with their several imperfections are united and conjoyned in him in transcendent perfection only To represent what God is and the enjoyment of him would be to empty the Ocean with a shell Then do we best esteem of him when we judge him inestimable Now our destruction lyeth in being deprived of all that good which God would have been to us Oh
farre surpasseth all their morality First then let us shew Wherein the faith of a Christian commanded by the Scripture doth farre surpasse all humane knowledge and science which men by nature do glory in And First Faith doth surpasse all humane sciences in the dignity of the subject The matter about which a Christians faith is exercised doth farre transcend all that about which humane knowledge doth exercise it self For the highest that they could reach unto is only to the knowledge of natural effects produced by natural causes And if any could prove these by the former this they called a demonstration Though some men say No man ever yet gave a demonstration à priori quoad se but quoad nos So then all the excellent wisdom of the world hath been only to consider the nature of sublunary things or to discourse about the nature of the heavenly bodies and their motions and if they did arise to consider of a God the Maker of these it was in a very uncertain doubtfull way Hence the Apostle speaks of them Acts 17.27 that they were as men in the dark feeling after a thing to find it as the Sodomites smote with blindnesse felt for the door This is all our humane wisdome can help us to but now by faith we have the supernatural mysteries of salvation revealed unto us The Scripture tels us Of a God in Christ reconciling man to himself of mans original misery of Christ the Mediator Alas how poor and contemptible are the highest notions even of Plato though called Divine when you come and read Paul There are such admirable and heavenly truths revealed in Gods word that all humane wisdome was no more able to find or apprehend such things then a dwarf could reach to the Heavens If we then consider the dignity and worth of that subject which the Scripture revealeth and faith is exercised about dirt is not more inferiour to precious pearls than humane knowledge to faith Secondly Faith differs from all their humane science in respect of the excellency of the end For the end of all Scripture wisdom is to bring us to eternal life The Scriptures are able to make us wise to salvation 2 Tim. 3.15 The things of Christ are said to be written That believing we might have eternal life John 20 31. There was never any humane knowledge could teach a man to be eternally happy Platoes Divinity and Aristotles Morality though they have the words of happinesse and have large discourses about it yet wanted the thing it self Oh then let us blesse God for Scripture-wisdome for the treasures of knowledge revealed there Learn of David How wonderfully was he affected with Gods word What light and wisdome did he attain unto thereby The Scriptures will teach thee such a blessednesse and such a way to blessednesse that could not enter into thy heart to conceive before the light thereof came into thee Thirdly Faith doth surpasse all humane knowledge in its certainty and infallibility A man that believeth the truths of God revealed in the Scripture hath more certain knowledge then all the more wise and learned men of the world For the object of faith being Gods testimony and his Divine Authority it 's as impossible for faith to be deceived as it is for God to lie Hence it 's called The full assurance of hope Heb. 10.22 And we believe therefore we speake 2 Cor. 4.13 How could the holy Martyrs witnesse those divine truths even to death had they not been possessed with full and sure knowledge of those things they died for whereas if we look into all humane knowledge there is very little certainty insomuch that some have expresly affirmed Nihil scitur yea that that also was not known and what little certainty they have appeareth by the contrary and different opinions in all their main points Fourthly Faith doth more establish settle and quiet the heart of men then all humane wisdome Solomon observeth a vanity and vexation of spirit even in all humane knowledge but now faith doth establish settle and satisfie the soul Heb. 11.1 It is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen Those that want faith are said to be double-minded men Jam. 1. inconstant as the waves of the Sea Oh the anxiety and perplexities that meer humane knowledge hath cast men into And so those who have no other bottome than the Authority of Church or the power of men to believe These are reeds shaken up and down with every wind Their faith is upon ambulatory and moveable considerations wheras faith makes a man like Christ The same yesterday and to day and for ever Lastly The Christian faith is above all philosophical knowledge Because of the strong and mighty effects it hath to convert the heart and reform the life Acts 15 9. Purifying their hearts by faith How can ye believe when ye seek glory one of another said our Saviour John 5.44 Yet these humane Gnosticks did only aim at glory though Philosophers call them the Liberal Arts yet they could not set them free from their lusts whereas Christ John 8.32 said If my Word abide in you you shall be free indeed Never did humane knowledge make such wonderfull converts and work so great a reformation as the Christian saith hath done And although we have now too many who say they do believe and yet do such things as many of the Gentiles would be ashamed of yet these men have not faith indeed but the name and title of it for as much as faith though but like a grain of mustard-seed would bid such mountains of lusts be removed into the Sea In the next place The moral or practical wisdome of the world cometh farre short of Scripture-wisdome For First The most knowing men were ignorant of original sinne which yet is the fountain of our calamity The Heathens indeed bewailed the mortality and misery of man but they know not our natural pollution the ground of all Yea we see Paul himself though a Pharisee was not acquainted with that Law of sinne within him till inlightned by the Word Rom. 7. Now if men know not their disease or the cause of it they can never be cured So that whatsoever precepts about living well they delivered yet they built on a sandy foundation they did not dig deep enough Secondly All humane wisdome and prudence knoweth not how to mortifie and forsake sinne upon true grounds because they were ignorant of Gods Spirit Rom. 8.13 If ye through the Spirit do mortifie sinne They did not crucifie the body of sinne nor bewail it because it was sinne but for humane respects as it did hinder the publique or as it was prejudicial to their glory and fame but they overcame one lust by another Thirdly All earthly prudence cometh short of this wisdome because it 's circumscribed within the bounds of this world and this life It looketh out no further whereas the Scripture giveth directions for
to come in this life they are of two sorts Either 1. Mercifull and good things Or 2. Grievous and sad things For God can quickly turn a fair day into thunder and tempest Job felt a suddain alteration upon himself which was from the richest in the East to become the poorest in a moment Now both these kinds are the godly mans mercy No evil that is truly so can befall him But I shall not pursue these particulars for that will coincide with the former matter I shall therefore treat of it in a more general way Observe That all things which are to come or may fall out hereafter are a godly mans mercy and advantage This Doctrine speaketh the height of happinesse and comfort to the godly for there is no greater temptation we are subject unto then to be tormented about what may fall out hereafter Though for the present it be never so well yet we forethink our possible miseries as David One day I shall fall by the hand of Saul 1 Sam. 27.1 So that many times needlesse troubles about what is to come takes away the enjoyment of the present mercies we have But here we see the Text giving such a cordial to the godly that he may go and take his rest wholly relying upon the Lord for come what can come or will come nothing can come amisse it will be a mercy an advantage to him Now that this Doctrine is true I may prove à posteriori from such signes and effects that do evidently demonstrate the people of God are quietly to sit down with this conclusion Though the Lord only knoweth what will come upon me yet I know it will be only for my good For First It appeareth by this The Scripture commands the godly to avoid all distrustfull and distracting cares about what will be that he should quietly compose himself committing all to his heavenly Father who knoweth all he hath need of So that as little children are cheerfull and play never troubling themselves how they shall subsist and what if such miseries arise Thus ought the godly Matth. 6.34 Take no thought for to morrow for the morrow shall take thought for the things of it self q.d. God will then provide when other conditions other exercises come Do not thou distract thy self God will then upon any new trial or exercise come in upon thee to help and deliver See here then the blessed estate of a godly man he is commanded to shut out all distrustfull cares for the future he is to cast his burden upon the Lord whatsoever shall befall it will be well with him Secondly They are to perswade themselves that nothing shall fall out that can separate from Gods love And what a support is this Rom. 8. Paul there is triumphing and that not for himself but for all the people of God who are justified What shall separate us from the love of God in Christ Shall things present shall things to come vers 38. Is not this to bring the people of God up into the Mount of transfiguration Whatsoever shall befall thee before thou diest yet nothing shall separate between Gods love and thee Though it should come about that no friend love thee none in the world will own thee yet God will own thee Certainly this may rejoyce the heart of the godly if any thing hereafter might divide between God and thee might deprive thee of God and part thee from him then thou mightest tremble and quake fearing the worst is not past but when all is thus provided afore-hand that thou art sure to be in Gods love be thy estate never so disconsolate this may keep up thy heart Thirdly The godly concerning all future things may thus also conclude That there is no evil no temptation that shall fall upon them but he will give strength to bear and give a way to escape You have a Text more precious than the gold of Ophir to this purpose 1 Cor. 10.13 God is faithfull who will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able but with the temptation will make a way to escape Doth not this Text speak to the heart of some godly people Oh they lie under sad temptations heavy exercises are upon them such as the world knoweth not and they are afraid these will overwhelm them they shall never get out it will undo them But what saith the Text God will not suffer you to be tempted above measure and he will make a way to escape See then thy fears thy unbelief makes thee go contrary to the Text. Thou sayest thou shalt never be able to bear it God saith I will lay no more upon thee then thou art able Fear saith I shall never escape this never overcome this Faith saith he will make a way to escape Now whether wilt thou believe God or thy own fearfull heart Oh then let the godly that are tempted and lie in deep waters that are like Jonas swallowed up in the whales belly take this Text and hide it in their heart so they will not fear what will be to come Fourthly For things to come they have this promise That in all outward things God will never leave them nor forsake them Thus things to come are theirs for they have this promise And Heb. 13.5 the Apostle urgeth this against covetousnesse and to be content with what they have God will never leave thee nor forsake thee Now this temptation many times troubleth at least some godly persons they are afraid they or their posterity may be brought to wants they fear poverty may come upon them as an armed man especially they know not what they shall do in old age if God should let them live till they should lose their sight or their limbs or their parts what should become of them To live a burden to themselves or others Aristotle hath a wicked Position That all decrepit old men should be thrown down a steep hill headlong and be killed as being a burden to a Commonwealth Old people are many times a burden to wicked young people Therefore God commands us Not to despise our mother when she is old Prov. 23.22 Now we shall see David himself tempted about his old age Psal 71.19 When I am old and gray headed forsake me not Thus you see what wants or straits especially what decayes of grace the godly may fear they shall not have the same vigour and strength not the same memory and judgement But the Scripture gives a good promise Psal 92.14 They shall bring forth fruit in old age So Isa 46.4 To your old age I am he and even to hoary hairs I will carry thee He will have as much care of thee as a mother of a child in her arms Well then you see in that God hath said he will never leave or forsake us we need not fear poverty want the diseases and miseries of old age for these things are ours Fifthly The people of God may be perswaded of their
tryumphs over all imaginable adversaries but why is he thus confident Because there is no condemnation to such as are in Christ Jesus If then the Sunne arise the dark night will be quickly dispelled and so if the light of Gods favour doth arise the feares and troubles which arise from outward exercises are quickly dissipated If then thou complainest thy strength is so small every temptation is ready to blow thee down as certainly the least puff will hurl a man down if faith be not lively the Damsels charging of Peter to be of Christs company made him curse and swear and fearfully apostatize here was no such great cause he was not arraigned imprisoned sentenced to die but this temptation blew down a strong Oak which teacheth us that a little calamity may throw us to the ground if faith be not lively and a great one cannot if faith be vigorous If I say thou complainest of thy weakness thy feares Let faith in Christ as a Mediatour be more powerfully put forth Secondly Faith doth quiet and compose the spirit by impetration or obtaining of God such a spirit For as you heard seeing it lyeth not in the power of man to give himself such a sweet blessed frame No he would give a world for it if it lay in his power it can only be obtained by application unto God Now that which most prevaileth with God is faith Whatsoever you ask believing you shall have it It 's faith only that makes the omnipotent God work for thee and in thee so that when we say faith makes the heart thus still and quiet you must not think it comes from faith as a natural cause as the fire burneth but morally by prevailing with God This is the grace that God doth so honour if we trust on him if we rest on him then God promiseth to give rest and peace to our soules Insomuch that it 's a Christians duty above all things to keep up the grace of faith to attend to that lest the whole kingdome be lost when that is lost for God is to us as we believe so God works for us as we trust in him so that our distrust makes God to be as no God or as an Idol-god having eies not to see us or hands not to help us Gods power will not communicate it self but upon believing as Christ told Mary Said I not unto thee if thou wouldst believe thou shouldst see the glory of the Lord That glory was to make Lazarus dead your dayes and stinking in the grave to live again Now no less glorious alterations and changes will God work upon thee if thou trust in him for hereby Gods fidelity goodness and power is engaged and he will never deceive those that wholly rely upon him You see then why faith put forth in a lively manner can thus quiet the soul Because it 's the condition to which God doth make glorious promises Thirdly Faith doth instrumentally compose the soul because by it other graces are also set a work and so the more purified and cleansed the soul is from all corruption the clearer the heart is As the clearer the spring is then though it be moved and stirred yet for all that the streames will be pure Thus it is with a godly man when his heart is sanctified cleansed and adorned with grace then though he is plunged into tribulations instead of discontent impatience grudgings and murmurings instead of dejections and disquietness there is joy thankfulness and heavenly mindedness as if Juniper or sweet herbs be thrown into the fire the fiâ—e draweth out their sweet smel or as the wind blowing upon the sweet flower makes it smell more fragrantly Thus also when afflictions fall upon the godly faith having purified their hearts there do runne forth admirable and sweet breathings of the soul That faith exciteth other graces appeareth Heb. 11. Where all those glorious acts of grace which those Worthies abounded in are attributed unto their faith Lastly Faith lively exercised must thus serene the heart of a man because it doth suggest many noble and excellent arguments which do abundantly quiet and establish the soul Faith is argumentative it is very ingenious to find out all those Considerations which the Scripture affoards Now the Scripture is like the Apothecaries shop that can furnish with all cordials As First Faith argueth from Gods giving of Christ every thing else that is as necessary for us as Christ is Thus the Apostle Rom. 8. If he hath given us Christ how shall he not with him give all things else He doth not say some things but all things and then the expression how shall he not implyeth that it is a most absurd and irrational thing to think otherwise Now then faith doth thus quiet the soul Be not afraid or troubled the God that afflicts thee is he that hath given Christ to thee Now if ever God would have refused thee it would have been in this Know then that these afflictions these troubles they are good for thee they are necessary to humble thee to make sinne bitter they are as necessary in their kind as Christ was in his kind It cannot be want of love that these exercises are upon thee for is not Christ the great pledge of Gods love to thee Therefore faith turneth the heart of a man from that which is grievous and vexing to that which is pleasing and comfortable Though God giveth not this or that outward mercy yet he giveth Christ the fountain and original of all Secondly Faith represents God out of his word in some Attributes chiefly above others insomuch that the heart of a man being thereby lifted up to heaven to God himself it cannot be disturbed by things below As the Bird while soaring aloft in the heavens is not skared with this fear and that noise so while faith beareth up the heart to God and makes abode with him it 's not disquieted It 's the looking upon the waters that make giddy if we look up to the heavens they cannot disturb the brain Now these things in God doth faith powerfully improve First The wisdome of God that whatsoever the Lord doth it cannot be done wiser Therefore he is called the only wise God Now what wonderfull comfort may be suggested from hence That there is no affliction no temptation though never so heavy but it cometh and is ordered by infinite wisdome If thou hadst the disposing and ordering of all things it could not be done more wisely then it is nay thy own love to thy self if wise would order this affliction to come upon thee For do not you see a man whose parts of body are gangreend yet because he is wise though he loveth his ease yet willingly resigning himself to have those parts cut off for the good of the whole So that is one of the most comfortable considerations which faith supplies the heart with that whatsoever temptation is fallen upon thee the wise God hath ordered it so
envious man would think thus would I have God no better to me then to such an one Should I be willing to have the Lord deal with me as I desire to others this might change him It 's related of Nero an envious cruel man That he would sometimes bewail there were none of those terrible judgements in his time as in former ages That there were no suddain earthquakes no violent plagues and such sore demonstrations of Gods wrath well might be called clay and blood mingled together 2. It opposeth that admirable goodness in Christ Oh come with admiration and read and consider the life of Christ and his death and you will see envy is as direct contrary to him as the Serpent to the Dove Consider what he was and yet how debasing himself for our sakes He thought it no robbery to be equall with God Phil. 2. for it was his due being of the same essence with him so that he might alwayes have declared that infinite Majesty but he willingly doth obscure this Sunne in a cloud this Divinity in a vail of flesh and when he doth not take the nature of Angels but man even then he doth act the condition of the great and mighty and honoured men of the world but of the most contemptible a worme and no man yea see how good to us to those that hated him envied him how destitute of a place to lay his head in that supported all the world by his power at his death how abused scorned reproached and handled in the most ignominious and scurrilous manner Oh admire all this you that hear and believe Had there been any gall in this Dove any envy in Christ would he have emptied himself thus to make thee full Would he have become poor to make thee rich Oh then if envy at any time stirre in thy heart say Did Christ do thus Was he of this temper and it must need fill thee with confusion 3. The grace of love and charity is often prayed for and that by Christ himself that his people might have it he prayeth for nothing so earnestly as that It is made the sign and symptome of Christs Disciples not by miracles not by prophesies but by love shall all men know Christs Disciples It is a duty enjoyned also for faith hath the preeminence in the upper region of justification so love in the lower of sanctification now the nature of the grace of love is to have idem velle and idem nolle to make all good things and all bad things common yea the soul of the lover is not where it animateth so much as where it loveth Love seeketh not her own love envieth not love is not puffed up 1 Cor. 13.4 5. Oh then if as in the Temple every thing was covered with gold so among Christians every word and action should be covered with love Let all your things be done with charity 1 Cor. 16.14 Then what a damnable sinne is envy which breaks these silken cords when these hellish motions of envy stirre in thee cry out for the Spirit of love Oh say this is none of Christs Spirit this is not a Gospel Spirit As love is the fullfilling of the law so envy is the dissolution of it and as Moses and the Prophets hang upon love so they do all fall to the ground where envy is if then there were but these three objects to look on God Christ and Charity it might make a man to abhorre to take this toad of envy in his breast But Secondly There is still further abomination in this sinne for it 's the very lively image of the Devil There is nothing so like the Devil as an envious man with his hornes to push at every one and his cloven foot to make divisions and wranglings This you heard this wisdome viz. whereby men make strifes and envyings is said to be divelish Jam. 3.15 Oh then What accord hath Christ with Belial Why art not thou ashamed to look God or good men in the face that hast this divelish temper in thee As the Bafilisk doth so hate man that they say he will take the very picture of him if he can Thus the envy and malice of the Devil is so great against God that because he cannot vent himself upon God therefore he doth upon man made after Gods image and although it be no profit to him yea an encrease of his torment to tempt man to sinne and to damne him yet he delights to do it Other sinnes of Drunkeness and Uncleanness turn men into Beasts but this of envy doth into Devils insomuch that an envious man in the constant full power of it I speak not of motions and temptations is farther off from godliness then a beastly prophane man Thirdly This sinne of Envy is a mother-sinne a fountaine-sinne There is no wickedness in the world but this sinne will conceive it and bring it forth Through envy they stoned Paul through envy they murdered Christ all the persecutors of Christians did burn with envy themselves before they burnt the Martyrs at the stake Hence Jam. 4.5 the Apostle alledgeth that place The spirit within us lusteth to envy aiming at that Gen. 6.5 The imagination of the thoughts of the heart are only evil and that continually Now he nameth not the general but particularizeth in envy as that which is the cheif cause of many sinnes For where envying and strife is there is confusion and every evil work Jam 3 16. Nay not only personal private evils are in the womb of this but all publique miseries commonly begin from this spark of envy A Commonwealth is made a field of bloud through the envy of ambitious men the Church is cut inpeices like the Levites wife through envy of ecclesiastical persons insomuch that we may say all Kingdomes and Churches in some respects have died of this disease this hath cut all the nerves whereby any society is compacted together Oh therefore pray we that God would have out this incendiary and Boutefeu from all Churches and States The Devil is called the enemy Mat. 13.15 and therefore the envious one that came and sowed tares so that all the tares of discord dissensions and different opinions are sowed by the envious one that grudgeth at our peace and unity Fourthly This sinne is a just torment to him that commits it When a sinne is a sinne and a punishment it 's the more deadly sinne now this of envy it 's a very gibbett a very rack to him that is moved with it he is like one possessed with the Devil that formeth that is thrown into fire and water his heart is a very hell he hath a torturing within him as if so many Devils were pulling of him The Heathen observed it saying That the greatest Tyrants that ever were never found out a greater torment And certainly if the motions and stirrings of envy in the godly be like so many Scorpions stings in them what are they to wicked men where envy
together were spent in libelling and in accusations of one another till Constantine took all the papers and burnt them We might tell you of the other great Council of Constantinople against Nestorius with what factions carnal policies and sinfull animosities Nestorius and his party did strive against the Orthodox But of this enough We see how prone these worms are to breed in the sweetest roses Satan is busie in this way God put enmity between the Serpent and the womans seed and he labours to put enmity between the womans seed among themselves Now let all these divisions be what they will publique or personal Civil or Religious they come from sin and tend to confusion Now God he is the God of order and of peace not of confusion 1 Cor. 14.33 In the next place What makes division or faction And 1. That is when men promote any false or wicked way against truth and godlinâ—sse We see all parties brand one another with divisions and factions The Papist cals the Protestant a Sectary and that though a Metropolitane and saith The leaving of their Church that had so much Antiquity and Vniversality was a schisme The Metropolitane he maketh all those guilty of schisme whether Bishops or Presbyters that recede from obedience to him as appeareth in a late Book Hammond of Schisme But it 's not the calling or the branding of any with the name of schisme that makes the thing so but you must consider the cause and the matter If Elijah and some few with him will not bow their knees to Baal nor will not go with the multitude of Idolaters this is no sinfull division or faction When Arianisme like a deluge did overflow the Church the Orthodox who were called Eustathiani from Eustathius the President in the Council of Nice and a valiant Champion for the Truth had their private and secret meetings not daring to communicate in the publick worship with the Arians yet no sound man in judgement will brand these with schisme If the people of God come out from Babylon and separate from their uncleannesses this is no schisme or faction but a duty God commanded them So that before we charge any with this crime we must alwayes consider the Cause and the Matter who hath the truth who hath Gods Cause otherwise men are hereticks and schismaticks to one another and so they judge by partiality not by the Rule Neither is it enough for men to say they have Scripture or to alledg Scripture for that may be wrested to their destruction but the true sense and meaning of it which is attained by those that walk humbly in Gods way and use those means God hath appointed in his Church If therefore a man plead against the Idolatries the impieties and falshoods of other men This is no faction if so Paul himself who condemneth these had been the most factious man in the world For who more zealous than he in Christs way against the superstitious Pharisees and those who pleaded the Law for Justification Secondly Faction and division is seen when though the matter be true or good they strive for yet they do it not in a godly orderly way He that striveth is not crowned unlesse he strive lawfully 2 Tim. 2.5 A good intention even in a good matter without good order is not warrantable The Disciples that would have fire come down from Heaven knew not what spirit they were of Vzzahs sudden punishment for the touching of the Ark should make us look not only to a duty but to the order of a duty The Apostle layeth down this injunction We must not do evil that good may come on it Rom. 3.8 And he saith of those teachers that would make such constructions from his Doctrine That their damnation was just The Apostle by the similitude of members in the body doth shew how every member should keep to his own office A third thing in Division is When men do not keep to their proper places to their Offices If the foot will be the eye if the hand will be the head here is a monster not a comely body The Apostle Paul is very large in this and oh that this age would observe it To teach every member in the body to keep to its own Office and to its own Calling not to take one anothers operations but to convey their mutual nourishment one to another in their proper way In what a blessed Unity and comely Order would the Church of God be if every member would do its proper work The Apostle calling so much for humility and modesty and not to think of our selves above what we ought to do fore-saw how hard a matter it would be for Christians to keep up Unity and Concord among themselves Fourthly Thus it 's division and faction when the affections and passions of men are scured and imbittered with any carnal distâ—mpers so that this sinne doth affect the heart and spirit of a man and then it breaks out into actions Though men should be in a good way and are for the truth and glory of God yet if they do this in anger and passion and frowardnesse of heart here is a sinfull division upon them though for the matter and way it self they be right Gods righteousnesse and truth needeth not our passions So that all these or any of these is enough to make the divisions in the Text here forbidden In the next place What are the Causes that make these the efficient causeâ— First The ignorance of men as long as men know but in part have not perfection in the understanding and this breedeth difference of opinions and difference of opinions difference of affections The Apostle chargeth the wresting of the Scripture to mens destruction upon their ignorance In which Epistle are many things hard to be understood which the ignorant or unlearned wrest 2 Pet. 3.16 Thus our Saviour told them They erred about the resurrection because they knew not the Scripture Mat. 2.29 So that those who have but a slighty flatry-knowledge in matters of Religion they presently runne into wayes of division These are children easily seduced Secondly Self-confidence and arrogancy When men think those abilities or that worth is in them which indeed is not This makes them bold and distracting of the Church Thus Corah Dathan and Abiram they said Num. 16.3 All the Congregation is holy They thought there was as much in every person as in the Priests whom God had set apart for that office Oh what an excellent patern is that to all which David giveth O Lord I have not lifted up my self too high or to things above me Psal 131.1 It was an excellent speech of Ambrose Heretiques with Scripture are like David in Sauls armour they are too heavy too weighty for them in stead of defending themselves they are wounded with it Hence the Apostle commands us not to mind high things Rom. 12.16 viz. which are above our power or capacity We are all
doth divide the whole Ministerial employment in two parts planting and watering so it attributeth the cheifest and noblest of all to God without whom the other abilities are in vain The fat in the offerings was to be given to God and God gives the fat to us in spiritual services the soul and life of all is expressed in this word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it is one word in the Greek but our English Translatours and so the Latin read it giving the encrease The Metaphor is easie As the Gardiner sets his herbs waters them but he cannot make them grow he cannot make the least flower that is though he hath never so much skill Thus it is here though they be Ministers of Seraphical affections and Cherubinical knowledge yet they cannot make the Word to prosper and to encrease in the hearer it 's God doth that Isa 55.10 Isa 61.11 There you have such similitudes so that this latter part is an admirable direction to look above the abilities above the parts and gifts of men We think Oh if we have such a Ministery all would be well whereas Apollo and Paul cannot give encrease Observe That it's God only who can and will give encrease and spiritual success to the Ministerial labours in the Church God that at first said to the earth which had no more natural power of it self then a stick or peice of wood Increase and bring forth fruit doth also speak to such exhortations instructions to convince and convert when there is no inward strength in them and therefore howsoever the preaching of the Word be compared often to rain that falls on the ground and makes the grass to grow yet there is this difference The rain workes by a natural power as a natural cause but the Word of God only as an instituted and appointed cause by him Did it work naturally all that hear would be converted every Sermon would work like those of the Apostles that brought home so many To open this Consider First That though God only gives the encrease yet it is only in and through the Ministery We must not make such cavils What use is there of Preaching What need of the Ministery Men will be as prophane and as ungodly as ever till God change the heart for you may as well urge What needs the Husbandman plow or sow or prepare the ground it 's God only that blesseth it No God hath instituted means to which he hath bound us and those that will not hear Paul planting or Apollo watering may justly expect God will give no encrease Therefore the Apostle foresaw that great evil of forsaking the Assemblyes the Ordinances and bids them take heed as the forerunner of Apostacy Heb. 10.25 26. If you take a tree from the River side where it grew and brought forth fruit and plant it in a wilderness it will quickly wither Secondly As God giveth the encrease only so the time when and the persons on whom is wholly at his good pleasure The Lord makes the Word prosperous at one time and not another sometimes it cometh like fire into the bosome it burneth thee all over at another time thou findest no operation To some people it 's like the leaves of the tree in the Revelation it 's the healing of the Nation it 's the healing of people it makes the ignorant to know the prophane to become holy it mollifieth the hard heart it turneth a wilderness into a garden But to another people it 's like salt that hath lost its savour or that maketh a place more barren it maketh no relish no tast no alteration You would wonder a people should sit so long under the beames of the Sunne and be no more coloured by it preaching and no preaching is all one to him this is the Lords doing it should be not only marvellous in our eyes but dreadfull to our ears To some it is given to know and understand but to others not Mat. 13.11 Now let us consider why God only giveth the encrease and then the ends that God hath in this First God only can give the encrease because he only hath a soveraignty and power over the heart Others may speak to the ear propound Arguments to perswade but to change the heart to perswade the heart indeed that God only can who made the heart Thus Noah prayeth or prophesieth God perswade Shem to dwell in the tents of Japhet God perswade him or God will perswade him we translate it enlarge as if he should say all the men of the world all Arguments cannot till God overpower his heart Gen. 9.27 So Ezek. 36.36 I will take away the heart of stone and give an heart of flesh No Potentate no Emperour can say I will give a man another heart He may force the body but not change the heart Hence it is that the Scripture atttributes all the work of grace to Believe to Repent only to God Oh then lift up your hearts on high in every Sermon Look up to those Hils to Heaven from whence comes Conversion When the Apostles wrought Miracles they looked up to God and the people they glorified God They were convinced none could do such things but God And so we Ministers are to look up to God and you people that God may be glorified Secondly God only can give the Increase because the Increase is of spiritual and supernatural consideration It 's altogether Heavenly Now there is no proportion between humane abilities and heavenly graces There is no disposition Inter ordinem naturae ordinem gratiae The order of nature and the oder of grace All that the most able Ministers can do is within the compass of nature but the fruits being Heavenly must come otherwise As in man though a Child hath his body from the Father yet the soul comes immediately from God because it 's of an immaterial and immortal substance Thus also Faith and Repentance being immaterial Graces though the Minister may prepare and dispose the Subject yet the working of them is only from God It 's true indeed that the Parts and Abilities of one Minister may be objectively better for Conversion and more likely for profiting then another They may propound stronger Arguments to convince the Conscience They may set those Arguments home with greater life and vigour as Apollo was said to be potent in the Scripture Thus one Minister may exceed another in Glory as one Starre doth another Yet God only is the efficient Cause of every good and perfect Gift Thirdly Therefore God only giveth the increase because of the deep pollution that is in every man who is not only blind and deaf but dead Now to what purpose is an eloquent Pathetical Oration to a dead man David that did with so much affection weep over dead Absalom yet could not bring him to life So that the Preachers of the Word differ from all the humane Oratours Greek and Latin They might by their eloquence
and affections perswade their Hearers for it was about Civil and Moral matters about which men had understandings naturally able to perceive and wils naturally able to choose the things perswaded But Preaching is about those things to which man hath no understanding to believe nor no heart to receive But God must give the hearing ear and the seeing eye else we miscarry So you are not to come to Sermons as to humane Orations Your own understanding your own natural Parts are enemies and Adversaries to good and holy things of God There are two Parts of wisdome said Lactantius The former to understand what things are false 2. The second to know what things are true We are to be untaught undeceived before we come to know heavenly things So that all is of God both the Word to be heard and the Ear to hear Both the Word to be believed and the heart to believe In the next place Let us consider the Ends Why all increase must be of God only And that is To preach Humility both to the Preacher and to the People The Apostle carrieth it wholly for this end That he that glorieth may glory in the Lord. And That no flesh should glory in his presence First The Minister That Peter who had so many thousands converted by his Sermon that Paul who was so exalted by God that he might not be lifted up above measure For alas What have they done It 's God that gives the increase It hath been the rock upon which many have splitted themselves that they have had followers and admirers The Manichees said their Master did 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 pour out Manna The Donatists would swear By the head of Donatus as people do solemnly By God to shew how they reverenced him Now that man though greatly exalted by God may be humble he hath reserved all success to himself It 's not thou that hath made the blind to see or the lame to go It 's God that teacheth to profit And it 's said They shall be all taught of God Joh. 45. viz. Converted because man he gives the Ministry and outward service only Hence it is that God makes many eminent Preachers as he did some eminent Women go barren They see not the fruit of their labours they have spent themselves in vain They go Childless to the grave They cannot say Behold me and the Children whom thou hast given me Again Secondly It teacheth the People also to glorify God not to rest in the parts and gifts of men As Michal said Now God will bless me because I have a Levite in the house So we are apt to say Now we shall go to Heaven Now we shall have salvation because we have such Preaching It is not enough to be affected with and admire the gifts of Ministers They may ravish you they may greatly move you but you resting on these meerly find no success at all As it is said We do not know Christ after the flesh 2 Cor. 5.16 After humane considerations So neither are we to know the Ministry or preaching after such carnal respects That is admirable preaching that is an excellent Sermon which God makes spiritually to prosper in thy soul Thirdly Therefore God only gives the success that so we may seek and pray to him and do all those things that God may be pleased with We may easily provoke God to turn Bread into Stones and a pleasant Poole into a Wilderness Now that God may give increase do these things First Bewail by-past unthankfulness and unfruitfulness O Lord How often have I been an hearer How long have I gone to Sermons Yet What a barren wilderness is my heart I say bewail this For nothing provokes God more to curse the Ministry unto thee then unfruitfulness The ground that often receiveth rain and bringeth no fruit is nigh unto cursing Heb. 6.7 Why is Isaiah sent with that dreadfull Message Isa 6. To make mens eyes blind and their hearts fat that they might not be converted but because seeing they did not see and hearing they did not understand Secondly Love that Preaching which will more discover thy self to thy self Which will acquaint thee with thy own deformities As sore eyes are afraid of the light so many men have so much guilt within and live in so many secret corruptions that they dare not have the Word come with all its might upon them No wonder then if God bless it not with increase when thou lovest it not and bringest it not home to thee Can the plaister cure if thou art afraid to lay it to the sore They that are delivered up to Antechrist were so punished because they did not receive the truth in the love of it 2 Thes 2.10 Yea the very Heathens were delivered up to those unnatural lusts because they detained the truth in unrighteousness Rom. 1. How then will God punish thee who hatest and kickest at those things that would convert thee Am I become your enemy because I tell you the truth saith Paul Gal. 4.16 Those things that have the best operation have many times the unpleasant taste Oh say then let the Sermon smite me let it tell me of all that ever I did I shall love it the better Thirdly If thou wouldst have God give the increase come not prâ—possessed with thy own righteousness with thy own good heart Our Saviours preaching had no success though in him were the Treasures of all wisdome because his Hearers were those that justified themselves The humble he will teach his way Laodicea that thought she wanted nothing was furthest from cure Do not think I am well enough already I need no change Say oh my soul What art thou come hither for to day Is it not to see that evil and folly in thy flesh thou never perceivedst Art thou not yet to lay the very foundation of godliness It makes all out of order Use 1. Is it God that giveth the increase Then we Ministers are not to be inordinately cast down if people receive no diuine stamp on them If we water not If we plant not then wo be to us But when both is done yet if there be no increase that is our misery not our sinne God will give to every Minister according to his work not according to his success I have laboured more aboundantly saith Paul He doth not say he had success more then all others Did not the Prophets yea Christ himself complain for want of this spiritual increase It cannot but grieve us to see people damn themselves Yet How can we hinder a wilfull people from destruction Vse 2. To the people Sigh and mourn unto God in earnest Prayers for this increase How terrible will it be if the want of profiting be in your selves You do not what God would have you If the Patient distemper himself wilfully all the Physick in the world cannot cure him Know there is some heavy curse why after all the planting and watering yet God gives
this means they who are indeed of this building of this field they are more happy then all others in the world for God is in covenant with them To them only God is their God and they his people And when the Psalmist had spoken of all external felicity saying Happy are the people that are in such a case he addeth Yea happy are the people whose God is the Lord Psal 144.15 So then we cannot name a greater Prerogative and Priviledge then to be in such a relation all that God hath is their's his wisdom power and goodness Only by the way take notice that many are externally of this husbandry this building that are not internally and therefore such have not the Promises made good to them in all respects How hardly can we say of many people They are Gods building Yea they are rather the Devils Den and his Hell But more of this hereafter Fourthly It supposeth care love and protection This floweth from the other Propriety causeth care and love among men What cares a man for another mans Field another mans Corn but he looketh to his own He weedeth that he fenceth that he keepeth that from all violence And this certainly should encourage the godly in their conflict with sinne Oh! they complain of the weeds thornes that grow up in their heart that choak the good seed let them remember they are Gods as well as their own and it belongs to him It 's for his honour and glory to have these thornes pulled up It makes for Gods praise that thy heart be a room swept and kept clear for him to lodge in Oh! urge this in Prayer O Lord am I not thy husbandry Is not my soul thy building Why then lieth it thus ruinous Why is it neglected by thee It 's not only my comfort my happiness but thy glory and honour is interested in this Come we in the next place to consider the several similitudes And First Ye are Gods Husbandry Take notice that he doth not here speak of the invisible and mystical Church of Christ but as they were a visible Church at Corinth As there was a visible company of men openly and publiquely professing the Faith of Christ and joyning together in an external Communion in holy Ordinances Here is much in this for it sheweth how all our particular Congregations should be what manner of Societies even such as are Gods Husbandry Gods Tillage Building and House This is the great truth that people should hearken after that they walk worthy of such glorious Titles and Relations This Relation of being Gods Husbandry implieth something on his part and many things on ours On his part First That he finds all people of themselves like a barren wilderness and fruitless desert The Curse upon the ground is fulfilled in them to bring forth nothing but briers and thornes All the things of grace and godliness are not only above our natures but contrary to them Even as if a man should see a piece of ground like the very rocks that no Husbandry could ever do any good on it The same are all people when the Word comes at first to them In other expressions it 's called raising up Children to Abraham out of stones And as wild beasts delight to be in the wilderness that is their habitation Thus are all men till converted by the Word so many wild beasts carried away with bruitish lusts in the wilderness of the world which makes the Scripture compare them so often to such things Oh then bewail the roughness and obstinacy in thy heart to what is godly Secondly It supposeth that grace and godliness is wholly planted by God in their souls for this floweth from the other Seeing we are such a barren wilderness what fruit can ever be expected from us All the fruit then of righteousness and godliness doth come wholly from him We of our selves stand like so many rotten fruitless trees to be cursed by God and cut down for the fire but it 's the grace of God that works the beginnings and increase of all godliness in them Marvell not then if you see a people under the sweetest and best seasons of grace to be yet barren and unprofitable for this fruitfulness is only of God Oh we would wonder that a people who know so much who hear so much that have clouds so often raining on them should yet be like so many stones and rocks Oh this is the wrath and judgment of God to be trembled under it For he makes one to grow and not another He causeth grace to spring up in one and not another Thirdly This supposeth that God likewise giveth all the seasons and opportunities of growth and fruitfulness As the Gardiner he looketh to his times when he must water the Plants lest they die The season of the year helpeth to grow as well as the nature of the soil Annus non ager fructificat Hence God when he is angry he threatneth that he will command his clouds not to rain Isa 5. God threatens it as the greatest judgment to deprive a people of the Ministry and sâ—ason of grace how low and slight thoughts soever people have of it Observe that place Ezek. 7.26 Mischief shall come upon mischief one calamity upon another And what then They shall seek for a Vision of the Prophet but the Law shall perish from the Priest Thus Amos 8.11 When God will make a people a barren and desert Nation then he makes those spiritual heavens like brasse and iron Oh then know that as the natural seasons and times are of his appointment so much more the gracious ones On our parts who are the field to be tilled there are these things First A willingness to have the Word of God prepare and wound our souls even tearing our heart to pieces that so the Word as seed may fructifie This is that the Scripture cals plowing up the fallow ground Jer. 4.3 That is when the Law and Threatnings of the Word enter into our very bowels is like the Plough that makes deep furrows in the heart Oh then that the secure confident and quiet heart that hath thus many years layen quiet and at ease feeling no grief nor trouble may at last be wounded and cut assunder This is not an acceptable pleasing work to you but very necessary it is Could the ground be sensible it would feel the plow making torments and rents in the bowels of it Thus it is here the Law of God the Word of God that comes like a two-edged sword in thy bowels that bloweth like a strong tempest and shakes thy sinnes at the very root Oh expect not healing and peace and comfort till you have been thus disquieted Do not then quarrell at the Word of God but rather bless him for the power of it when it changeth the whole face of a Congregation filleth thee with many sad and anxious thoughts sends thee home enquiring Lord what shall I do What will
Aggravation of hidden and covered wickednesse First All the secret and hidden thoughts affections and purposes of the heart God will one day make manifest to the whole world The heart of a man that is the womb wherein all those serpentine and venemous lusts of mens hearts are begotten and bedded and for want of a Summers warm day these snakes many times do not creep out Men do not accomplish the wickednesse of their hearts because they want opportunities for shame or fear of men but God hath a time when all that heart-malice heart-adultery heart-murder shall no longer be kept close So in that place mentioned He will make manifest the counsels of the hearts 2 Cor 5.10 That as there are a world of flies and motes in the air which we never see till the Sunne-beams arise so there are thousands and thousands of proud unclean covetous and malicious thoughts and purposes lodging in mens hearts which the world never knows but God will one day have Heaven and Earth take notice of them Oh then what a curb should this be to thy heart to thy thoughts Thou thinkest they are free you may think what you will No God will manifest and jâ—dge thee for these things Good Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart 2 Chron. 22.23 It 's the property of a godly man though he commit no outward wickednesse yet to mourn and humble himself for his secret thoughts Oh what a beast what a Devil was I for thinking so What if God should discover those imaginations to all the world When Gehezâ— had taken gifts of Naaman Elisha discovering it rebukes him sharply saying Is this a time to buy fields and orchards 2 King 5.26 Why saith he thus to Gehezi Because it was in Gehezi's thought and purpoâ—e to enrich himself And Christ doâ—h often reprove the Pharisees for their wicked thoughts they had when yet they did not manifest them Oh then remember your thoughts are the first-born of your soul and your soul is much as they are they shall noâ— alwaâ—s be hid Every mans brest shall be according to that mans wish to have a glasse there that all may see and read what is therein Secondly All the impure and unclean works of the flesh committed in secret these also shall be made manifest The Scripture speaks of the hidden things of dishonesty 2 Cor 4.2 And the adulterous waiting for the twi-light As also the whores wiping her lips pretending even Religion paying her vows when she hath been committing her leudnesse And again the Scripture saith That it was a shame to speak of what was dâ—ne by some in secret Ephes 5.12 Oh how greatly doth the Land mourn to bear such unclean persons Thou walkest abroad boldly in the day time thou comest to Church and performest the duties of Religion But Oh the secret hidden wayes of uncleannesse thou runnest into The wals of the chamber the timber in the house will bear witnesse against thy wanton and lascivious carriages Thou doest these things secretly but God will reward them openly Hence he saith Whoremâ—ngers and adulterers God will judge Heb. 13.4 Why God Will not men judge them in this world And will not God judge other sinners as well as these But therefore he saith God will judge them because such sinnes are carried so closely so craftily that none but God can find them out Oh therefore let all such tremble who have been or are guilty this way let them judge themselves that God may not judge them All things are open and naked to the eyes of God and shall one day be to the whole world then it will no longer be smothered up yea in thâ—s world God many times doth so terrifie the hearts the consciences of unclean persons that they themselves out of very horrour and to have ease are forced to confesse it Prov. 5.14 Oh know that heart of thine that now burneth with hot lusts will if not timely converted burn like hell with tormenting flames and be consumed with gnawing worms Thirdly The hidden works of thieving and stealing and unjustly taking away of other mens goods will one day be manifest Stollen things though sweet in the mouth will prove gravel in the belly yea thou wilt be forced to vomit all up again Onesimus ran away from his master Philemon and stole some of his goods from him now the Apostle writeth an Epistle on purpose to him concerning this matter and the holy Ghost thought it good to have it recorded as part of the Canonical Scripture though he would think the matter were but light for it is to assure Philemon of Onesimus his repentance for what he had done and that he would be indeed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 hereafter though he had not been so before and that wherein he had wronged him he would forgive it and set it upon Pauls score Achan stole a wedge of gold Josh 7.21 and God would not let all Israel alone till it was discovered for a wedge of gold is a tongue of gold as it is in the original and indeed it did speak and cry aloud against Achan and so all the things thou hast craftily and falsly taken from others thâ—y have a tongue with them they many times talk to thee in thy conscience and cry to God to be delivered to their true owners This is a secret work of wickednesse that God will manifest Fourthly There is a hidden work of unrighteousnesse which is not plain stealing but it 's crafty and artificial cosening in thy trading and commerce with others You shall not find them grosly cosen you but they have mysteries in their trade and crafty over-reachings These are secret works of iniquity which God will also manifest You know a notable place Hos 12.7 8. The balance of deceit was in his hand and he was become rich yet he should find no iniquâ—ty in him that was sinne they should not discover he dealt unrighteously they could not prove he dealt falsly Oh then let such who trade who buy and sell in the world take heed that for worldly gain they do not circumvent or go beyond their brother This be assured of that in such sinnes of injustice there can be no pardon till there be restitution or a prepared heart for it The first thing that troubled Zacheus when he was converted was his wronging of others If I wronged any saith he I restore him fourfold Luke 19.8 God is a righteous God and he loveth righteousnesse Oh then take heed of over-reaching this way Thou bringest such money or goods home and thou thinkest this will help my wife my family this will enrich me and thou doest as the Eagle that catching flesh from the altar had a live coal cleaving to it which when she came to her nest set nest and young ones on fire The curse of God is like a secret moth eating into such things Fifthly Carnal and worldly policy to have earthly greatnesse and power and honour in the world
God Doth not God require we should love him with all our might all our strength So that he will not allow any love to any thing else but him Indeed when we desire any creature in subordination to him as a meanes of glorifying him and thereby brought nearer to God this is not a-against God The Schoolmen say That it 's the same gracious habit of love that carrieth us out to love God and our neighbour because of him and so it is of every creature else As we say such a great House is such a mans Now though he have many servants dwelling there yet we say it 's his House not the Servants because they are for and under him Thus if God do chiefly dwell in our hearts then though we love other things yet because this is wholly in reference to God we may truly say We love none but him But now when the love of the creature opposeth God makes us contrary to him or makes us love him or holy duties the lesse then we are to conclude That this cannot stand with godlinesse So that not only grosse sinnes practised but any creature habitually and excessively delighted in above God is also incompatible with it Thirdly Take heed of this estate because it 's a wofull snare and temptation to thee He that is inordinately affected with any earthly comfort this will upon all occasions bring him into the foulest sinnes that can be imagined He will do any thing damn his soul over and over to obtain it As Judas because he was immoderately set upon gain he betrayeth Christ though he was admonished of it though he was told in particular he was the man Though heard what a fearfull condition such a man was in that should betray Christ yet nothing can stop him but he will satisfie that corrupt appetite of his Oh then take heed again and again of such an inordinrate appetite It will be thy poyson and damnation It will one time or other put thee upon such horrrible actions as will make the hearts of others to tremble when they hear it yea such as thou wilt abhor before they are committed As it was in Hazael Am I dog said he that I should do so And truly it is very sad when God by his Providence shall suffer such advantages for thy lust to fall out us Judas had a bagge Hazael a Kingdom all which were like spaâ—kes to that tinder The Devil findes the room then garnished and swept for him Let a man professe never so much love to God and be never so forward in Religion yet if he be not mortifyed to every creature there will come a fire from without and consume this bramble Fourthly This is a fearfull estate because the word of God though preached never so powerfully and pressed over and over again yet it cannot do any good while such a temper is on thee This is the Dalilah that will alwaies entice thee Intus existens prohibet alienum You see even in our Savious preaching though none ever taught as he did Though this was accompanied with astonishing Miracles yet the Pharisees who loved the world and the glory of men they derâ—ded him Yea our Saviour told the very Disciples themselves Joh. 5.44 How can ye believe if ye seek glory of one another And therefore at another time he took a little child setting him before them that if they did not become like such they could never enter into the Kingdom of Heaven As long therefore as any thing sits too close to our hearts we cannot be Christs Disciples You see those hearers that went so farre as to receive the Word with joy and to bring forth some fruit yet it was the deceivablenesse of riches that did choak all Never then expect that any Ministry or any Preaching should ever do good to thee while this or that creature is so enammouring of thee Fifthly Take heed of this creature-affection because it 's a tormenting sinne It is not only a sinne but a torment and vexation withall Some sinnes bring a sweetnesse with them though they leave an Hell hereafter but this sinne for the most part brings an Hell with it What man is there inordinately afected to any thing that you may not call the Devils Martyr he endureth and suffereth so much He is under many vexations and through many tribulations he goeth to Hell In what a fiery Furnace was Haman though exalted so high above others And doth not Solomon the wise man pen an whole Book to inform of this that all is but vexation of spirit And what the Apostle speaks of one particular is true of all 1 Tim. 6.9 Those that will be rich they fall into many temptations and peirce themselves through with many cares They are as one Martyr in Gods cause that was by his Scholars stabb'd all over to death by Penknives Thus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Insomuch that if you could see the naked soul of any man inordinately affected to the creature you would see it all over wounded and scourged full of tormenting cares and fears never in any quiet or safe content at all Oh then consider what an enemy thou art to thy self Godlinesse would be great gain to thee It would make thee glad and rejoyce in the Lord It would teach thee how to have all things and how to want but while thy heart is vassalized thus to the creature no quietnesse can be in thy bones And what a folly is this to be miserable here and miserable hereafter Sixthly They are miserable who are thus craving after worldly good things because the Scripture represents all these things but as vanity As that which is a meer lye Called therefore often a Shadow which the foolish child catcheth at as some reall substance when it is but as was said a black nothing Therefore you see Solomon expostulating after this manner Why dost thou set thy eyes upon that which is not Prov. 23.5 That which at another time the wise man saith It answereth all things and calls it a defence yet here he saith It is not Even as the whole Creation may be said to be non ens comparatively to God And therefore God is called Jehova He is said to be I am what I am All creatures have not a being comparatively to him If then the best and most usefull of creatures be such a nothing to God even whole Nations are but as a drop or dust yea they are said to be lesse then nothing Isa 40.17 What folly is it to leave the Fountain of all happinesse and to catch after the shadow Oh then let the godly soul which enjoyeth God when tempted by the creature to immoderate love say as the Fig-tree and Olive-tree Shall I leave my sweetnesse Shall I part with my happinesse and blessednesse I have in God and go and tear my self with bryers For so indeed when we seek to the creatures for refuge in any distresse we do with the