house as you walk abroad in the fields as you are employed in your callings or about any holy duty God seeth all thy thoughts what is going in and what is comming out there is never a thought in thy heart but God sees it how then can thoughts be free God will weigh the thoughts of men Prov. 16.2 Beloved what a fearfull day will that hee when God shall take his Scales and weigh no mans bodies and estates for then it may bee that rich men and fat and grosse men will out-weigh them that are better but he will take mens thoughts and weigh them hee will weigh their soules he will take mens good thoughts and put them into one scale and their bad earthly carnall and unprofitable thoughts into another scale and to try which weighes heaviest Now if thy earthly and sinfull thoughts weigh heaviest then down thou goest into eternall damnation Secondly as thoughts are not free from Gods knowledge so are they not free from Gods Word for Gods word can meet with them for it is lively and mighty in operation and is a descerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart Hebr 4.12 Doth the word of God discern the thoughts of mens hearts Then much more doth the God of this Word and therefore how can thoughts be free Thirdly and lastly they are not free from the condemnation of hell and damnation I am hee saith God that searcheth the hearts and reins and I wil give to every one of you according to his works or as some translations have it according to your thoughts Rev. 3.23 Now if God will so severely punish thoughts take heed then how thou tetainest any evill thoughts I should here give you some means in the use that so you might rid your selves from vain thoughts Means 1 First love the word of God if ever thou wilt come out of them prize the truth of God and labour to get thy mind and thoughts to beâ— set on better things and then the thoughts of the world and all vain things will vanish away This course the Prophet David took Psal 119.113 I hate vain thoughts but thy Law do I love How came it to passe that he hated vain thoughts namely by loving Gods Law if he had not loved Gods Law and those excellent things therein and set his heart on them hee could never have hated vain thoughts The way then to break of thy league with vain thoughts is to be in league with good thoughts Dost thou complain of vain thoughts in prayer in hearing the word in receiving of the Sacraments and art thou stuffed and filled with them that thou canst not think upon God and holy things thou dost here by bewray thine own rottennesse and corruption And therefore know that if thou lovest the Lord and his Word and didst set thy thoughts upon him thou wouldst never have them so much employed about such base things Secondly if ever thou wouldst rid thy heart of vain thoughts especially when thou art in holy action thou must goe unto God by prayer there is no greater bridle to restrain a man from vain thoughts then this consideration that hee is to goe to God I speak not this to the men of this world Carnall men who can rush into Gods presence hand over head without any fear or reverence they can set upon any duty without any preparation but I speak it to the godly man whose heart dreads and stands in awe of God Wilt thou let thy mind rove and run all the day on worldly things how then wilt thou call upon God Dost thou not know that this is the cause of thy dulnesse thy deadnes and wandrings of thy heart when thou art about any good duty namely because thou sufferest thy heart to be lashing out and roving abroad on the world all day no marvell if it keep his haunt at night and therefore thy heart being vain God will never hear thy prayer Job 35.13 God will never bear vanity Comest thou to God with a vain prayer God will never hear it Comest thou with a vain eare to the hearing of the Word God will never hear it or with a vain heart to the Sacrament God will not regard it Lay this seriously to thy heart if ever thou wouldst have thy heart to the duty thou art about busie thy mind upon good things for if thy heart be accustomed to vain and worldly things all the day it is no marvell if it returne to its haunt again at night Thirdly consider that you have not so learned Christ It is the Apostles argument Ephes 3. consider then what you have learned of Christ hath Christ taught you so hath Christ taught you such a love and given you such a liberty that you should love the world more then him and imploy and bestow all your thoughts wholly in seeking after vain things Hath Christ taught you such a faith as this Hath Christ taught you such a repentance as this to have your thoughts more upon the world then upon Christ to repent of sin and yet never forsake sinne Have ye so learned Christ Hath he not taught you such a faith as purifieth the heart such a sanctification as cleanseth the soul and the minde such an obedience as bringeth every thought into subjection unto himself Therefore if now thou shouldst still retain thy vain dead earthly and carnall thoughts it is not to learn Christ Christ teacheth thee no such doctrine nor giveth thee any such licentious libertie but thou learnest of the Devill and of thine owne heart for all evill and vain thoughts arise from these three heads First from the variety and abundance of the thoughts of the world which our Saviour calls the cares of this world Seconly from the fountaine of corruption in mans heart the heart of man being alwayes like a sink naturally running with filthinesse or like a living quickset alwayes bearing so is it with the heart of man alwayes imagining vain thoughts Thirdly from the damned malice of the Devill and his fearfull suggestions and temptations both within and without the Devill is fitly called a tempter and trier for by these suggestions and temptations he feels and tries mens hearts and thereby knowing to what they are most inclined and which way they are soonest overcome accordingly he fits his temptations for to intrap them Now these thoughts are infinitely variable according to the constitution place quality passions affections and conditions of men as of the poor man in his beggery of the rich man in his abundance of the Minister in his calling of the Magistrate in his and so of all other men Now the whole world is not able to fill the heart how then shall we number the thoughts of it But for the better understanding we will rank them into these four heads to show how thoughts become vain 1. Materially mens thoughts are vain when the matter of them is vain 2. Formally when though for the matter they are never
confirmes it with an oath Therefore if the Lord sweare thou shalt not how darest thou how canst thou hope or think ever to enter into his rest This was almost fourty yeares before he died that the Lord made this oath against them and God knowes how many thousands of them fel short not only of the land of Canaan but also of the Kingdome of heaven So God took Ismael an hundred and seventeen yeares before he died twenty yeares God offered him grace and repentance but he would not take warning a mocker he was and a mocker he would be for he mocked Isaac when he was a child of six yeares old and no meanes would reclaim him before he heard the voice Cast out the bond-woman and her sonne Out with him saith God for he shall never be heire with my sonne this was an hundred and seventeen years before Ismaels death And so God took Saul five and thirty or six and thirty yeares before he died according to Josephus Chronology if it bee true howsoever hee took him divers yeares before his death for so the Scripture makes it plain 1. Sam. 15.20 The strength of Israel will not lie nor repent for he is not a man that hee should repent Therefore because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord the Lord also hath rejected thee from being a King And do not think that thou by thy prayers and crying God mercie canst ever alter him for his councell is immutable and hee is strong in his decree and cannot change Hitherto Grace and Mercie have been offered thee which if thou hadst embraced thou mightst have found mercy from the Lord and the Kingdome should have been established and confirmed unto thee but now it is too late for the strength of Israel cannot lie God took Esau fiftie yeares before his death for so long he lived after he sought the blessing with teares but he was a hunting when God was a calling he was following his prophanenesse when God was wooing him to repentance At last when he called for repentance and sought it earnestly yea his soule was carefull for to get it yet he could never obtaine it though hee sought it earnestly with teares fiftie yeares before he died Now if the Lord so severely punish contempt of temporall blessings O how will he punish the contempt of proffers of grace and salvation I tell you God will be more strict in revenging of this sinne then of any other sinne he will come with Martiall law against all those that contemne his Gospell Joh. 3.18 He that beleeveth not is condemned already Doth Christ preach repentance and salvation and the Kingdome of God and wilt thou not repent and beleeve Martiall Law beloved martiall Law hang him up for he is condemned already Even like a souldier that rebels against his General forsakes his Colours they doe not cast him into prison and stay for the Assizes or Sessions but give him Martiall Law even hang him up So if the Lord sound his Gospell in thine eares and offers thee conditions of peace knocking at the doore of thy heart by his Spirit and thou refuse to open to him thou art condemned already for the Strength of Israel cannot lie nor repent Oh therefore take heed now whiles his word sounds in thine eares while his Spirit secretly whispers in thy heart to thee open to him for else thou art condemned for ever Take notice then that God doth commonly give men a day and no man or Angel doth know how long this day lasteth To some it lasteth to their last gasp to some to their old age and to some it is cut off in their childhood God gave the Angels a day the which because they neglected they are reserved in chains of darknesse untill the great judgement day God gave Cain a day Genes 4. During all the time of this day though Cain sinned again and again and went on in his sinnes a great while yet he heard nothing but a still voice If thou do well Cain shalt thou not be accepted but if thou dost ill sinne lieth at the doore But when no meanes will prevaile but Cain will go on adding sinne to sinne and murder unto all the rest of his sinnes and so let go the season of mercy the Lords tells him from heaven that the day of grace is past the gate of mercy is shut against thee for thou art now accursed from the earth As if the Lord should say Before I gave thee a day of salvation and offered thee mercy but thou wouldst not accept of it but now I have clapt a curse upon thy soul that thou shalt never claw off So God gave Nineveh a day to repent Jona 3. Yet forty dayes and Nineveh shall be destroyed God gave the Fig-tree a day even three yeares before he would have it cut down God gave the old World a day of an hundred and twenty yeares during this time God sent unto them Noah a Preacher of righteousnes to call upon them to repent and so set it down also that his Spirit shall not alwayes strive with man but his time shall be an hundred and twenty yeares yet one writes that the Lord cut off twenty of the hundred and twenty yeares because of their iniquities which were so grievous and provoked him so much that they hasted him to come before he would have done In all this space if they had repented they should have found mercy from the Lord but when this time was gone and the day of grace was out the Deluge came in upon them and God by his judgments overthrew the whole World Object You my ask me when this day or season of grace doth end or cease Answ I answer that neither men nor Angels can tell but this I say it may be yet this day of grace lasteth unto thee now it may bee God speaketh whom to thy soul now it may be God warms thy heart and givs thee good purposes resolutions now it may be the Lord Jesus passeth by thee in a good thought and desire lay hold on it for thy day may cease this very night for ought thou knowest Luke 17.22 The time shall come saith Christ when you shall desire to see one of the dayes of the Sonne of man and shall not see it Now is the day of Christ upon you now is Christ offering and preaching himself to you but if you let this day passe thou mayst desire to have one of the drops of that bloud that hath been offered to thee and yet never have it thou mayst desire to feele one rap of that Spirit that hath knockt at thy heart and yet goe without it thou maist intreat for one dram of that mercy that hath been offered and thou hast rejected but it shall never be granted to thee God may clap that fearfull sentence upon thee Now henceforth never grow fruit more on thee never repentance come into thy heart more If now thou wilt not repent and be
while thou art in the way quickly Matth. 5.25 Now God is in the way with thee Christ and his Spirit are in the way with thee thou needest not now say who shall go up to heaven and bring downe the Spirit to thee Christs Spirit is now knocking at thy heart and now God offers his mercy to thee now thou art in the way now he calls unto thee to accept of his mercie now hee commands thee to take Christ now hear him caling to thy heart now he tenders grace unto thee imbrace it now receive Christ and make up thy peace with him remember the saying of the Apostle 2 Corinth 13.5 Examine your selves whether you be in the faith prove your selves Know you not your own selves how that Jesus Christ is in you except you be reprobates As if the Astostle should say I have been an Apostle to you this yeer and half I have preached thus and thus long unto you I have wrote one Epistle to you to reforme those abuses that were among you and now I write this second Epistle to declare the whole will and counsell of God to you Now cast up your reckoning examine your selves and make up your account see if you have gained Christ O I have Christ saith one I have Christ saith another I but prove it saith the Apostle and try your selves know ye not that by this time Christ is in you or else you be reprobates As if he should say if yet Christ be not in you and grace wrought in your hearts if yet you lie festring in your sins and go on in your wicked wayes it is to be feared you are reprobates either you or we are reprobates you for not obeying or wee for not delivering the truth of God unto you But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates verse 6. God forbid that this word should be ever spoken unto any soule in this Congregation but this let mee say is there any man here that goes on in his lusts and in his carnall course of life in pride security hardnesse of heart and impenitencie that hath not the soundnesse of grace he hath a fearfull signe and brand of a reprobate whose conscience is stifled it is a fearfull signe if he be not a reprobate before God yet he is one that is not approved but for the present in a wretched and miserable condition Now is the time of grace wherein God hath spoken to your souls remember that vengeance that is coming towards you if it be rejected now the Lords fatlings are ready his Oxen and Sheep are slain and laid upon the board Christ is sacrificed and his blood is shed and the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ is tendered to you you that have grace get more grace you that have no grace get grace and Christ and take heed of neglecting any opportunity of grace for that may come unto thee in one hour that will never come againe FINIS VAIN THOUGHTS ARRAIGNED At the Barre of Gods JUSTICE SET FORTH In a Sermon preached at Linton in Kent Septem 29. 1629. By that Reverend and painfull Minister of the Word WILLIAM FENNER B.D. Sometime Fellow of Pembroke Hall in Cambridge and late Parson of Rochford in Essex London Printed by T.R. and E.M. for J.S. A SERMON OF Mr. WILLIAM FENNERS Preached at Linton Septem 9. 1629. PHIL. 3.18 19. For many walk of whom I have told you often and now tell you weeping that they are the enemies of the Crosse of Christ whose end is destruction whose belly is their God whose glory is their shame â—nd who mind earthly things THE Apostle in the closure of this Chapter setteth out unto us a twofold kind of life First the life of the godly and that 1. by way of Exhortation verse 17. Brethren be followers together of me and mark them which walk so as you have us for an example 2. By way of declaration verse 20. But our conversation is in heaven whence also we look for the Saviour even the Lord Jesus Christ Then secondly hee sets forth unto us the life of the wicked which walked otherwise then the Disciples and Apostles of Christ walked in these words read unto you The Apostle warned those wicked men again and again but they would not take warning neither did they think themselves so bad as he made them and therefore they thought they should speed well enough he preached to them in the Pulpit and wrote unto them though he were six hundred miles and more distant from them and that weeping too that they are enemies to the Crosse of Christ whose end is destruction whose God is their belly who mind earthly things The words may be constâ—ued two wayes either as being meant 1. Of severall wicked men as first of Heterodox walkers such as walk contrary to the Apostles 2. Of wicked persecutors of the Gospel enemies to the Crosse of Christ 3. Of Drunkards and hypocrites whose God is their belly 4. Of Ambitious and proud persons whose glory is their shame and 5. of covetous and carnall minded men who minde earthly things or as Chrysostom expounds the words and so it seems is the meaning of them to be meant of one sort of men who mind earthly things they are such as walk otherwise then the Apostle walked Who are they that mind earthly things they are enemies of the Crosse of Christ Who are they that mind earthly things Whose hearts and affections run more after the things of this life then after the crosse of Christ Their God is their belly Who are they that mind earthly things and think only how to increase their living and enlarge their estate and make them sure unto themselves their glory is their shame Who are they that mind earthly things that give their hearts the flower of man and their affections the flower of their soules unto the world and unto the base things of the world still they are they that mind earthly things which set either their loving thoughts or their carking and caring thoughts or their fretting and vexing thoughts or their eager covetous and vain thoughts on earthly things they are they that walk otherwise then the Apostles of Christ walked These are those that are enemies to the crosse of Christ whose God is their belly whose glory is their shame who mind earthly things whose end is destruction Hence then will we observe this point Doct. That those whose minds and hearts run habitually on earth and earthly things their end must needs be destruction Jerem. 6.19 Heare O earth saith God behold I will bring evill upon this people even the fruit of their thoughts because they have not hearkened unto me but rejected my Law Wherein we may see 3 things 1. That the curse of God is the desert of cursed evill vain thoughts 2. That the plague and curse of God is the event of evill and vain thoughts evill thoughts do not onely deserve Gods plagues but also bring them
3. Here is notice given to all the world Heare O earth as if he had said here is a reckoning that you little dream of I will bring a plague upon you not onely for your idolatry for your whoredome and fornication but even for your vaine thoughts Prov. 24.9 The thoughts of the wicked are sinne the Lord doth not only condemne the actions and courses of wicked men but sets his curse upon their very thoughts Sinne is of an homogeneall nature of which every part of a thing is the whole every piece of stone is stone for it hath the nature of the whole even so it is with sin the least part of sin the least thought of sin the least shiver of sin is sin and abominable before God Reas 1 The reasons why those whose hearts and thoughts run habitually on earth and earthly things must needs end in destruction are 1. That mans end must needs end in destruction that never repents Now so long as a mans thoughts runne usually and habitually on the things of the world that man never repents repentance not onely cleanseth the outside of man but the inside also even the heart repentance goeth as farre as the Law of God goeth where the word of God begins there repentance must needs begin now the word of God begins and strikes at the heart as saith the Apostle The word of God is sharp and powerfull sharper then any two-edged sword piercing to the dividing asunder of the soule and spirit the joynts and marrow and is a discerner of the thoughts of the heart Heb. 4.12 Now then if the word of God strike at the thoughts of the heart then repentance must goe and teach so farre to reforme and amend the things of the heart or else he never repents Let a man sweep his house never so much yet it is not clean so long as there remains one Cob-web in it so if thy heart be swept from drunkennesse whoring and swearing and yet if the old Cob-web of vain thoughts remain in any corner of thy heart not washed out nor swept down thou hast not as yet repented Oh Jerusalem saith God by his Prophet wash thy heart from wickednesse that thou maist be saved how long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee Jer. 4.14 Mark how the Lord inforceth his exhortation see how he backs his counsell that thou maist be saved as if he had said thou canst not be saved unlesse thou wash thy heart from vain thoughts how long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee He doth not say why doe vain thoughts come in thee for they will come into the best most holy heart but how long shall they lodge within thee If but vain thoughts do lodge in man take up their nest in his heart if a man let his thoughts dwell upon vain things and hee give way unto them and use them as his market trade and recreations hee cannot be saved it is an emphaticall kind of speech as if the Lord should say O Jerusalem thou never considerest this and thus he doth as it were pity and compassionate them in their blindnesse and ignoranâ—e and horrible besottednesse that think that thought is free Beloved when the Lord comes to reckon with the world he will not only reckon with them for their pounds and shillings for their hundreds and thousands of sinnes for their murders whoredomes blasphemies c. but he will call them to account for their least sinnes the pence and farthing sinnes even their very thoughts agree with thine adversary quickly while thou art in the way lest he deliver thee up to the Jaylor and thou be cast into prison thou shalt not come out untill thou hast paid the utmost farthing thou must deliver up thy farthing as well as thy pound sinnes or else thou never agreest with thine adversary When the Lord by his prophet calls upon his people exhorting them to repentance he willeth and exhorteth them to change their thoughts Esay 55.7 Repentance is the change of the thoughts according to the English Proverb I have changed my thoughts Look unto thy feet when thou goest into the house of God Eccles 5.1 Thou canst never go to the House of God without thy feet the thoughts and affections of the heart are the feet of the soul and thou canst never go to God without them and therefore if thy heart and affections run habitually on earthly things thou didst never repent and so thine end is damnation Reas 2 The second reason is that mans end must needs be destruction that hath no Christ in the world now so long as thy thoughts run habitually on earthly things thou hast no Christ It is not enough for a man to hang on Christ for many a man doth so and yet is cut off from Christ and perisheth for ever thou must not onely hang upon Christ but thou must also get into Christ As in the old world when the deluge came and the waters increased so greatly that the mountaines and high hils were covered with them and the people could not save themselves by getting unto the tops of the mountains no question but many seeing the Ark swim above the water did climb up and hang upon the sides of the Ark thinking to save themselves yet none of them were saved but those that were gotten into the Ark so many a man will catch hold of Christ but his hold will be gone and he perish for ever unlesse he get into Christ Now a man can never get into Christ unlesse his heart bee purged from vaine thoughts For Christ when he entreth into a man cleanseth his heart from vain thoughts 2 Cor. 10.5 If Christ once come into the heart he will set up his throne there he will hold up his Scepter of Righteousnesse in it when Christ cometh see what a work hee will make in the heart he will not suffer a proud thought to remain there to upbraid him he will not suffer ever a sinfull lust to stand up to beard him but he will cast down every imagination and all high things that exalt themselves and he will bring every thought into subjection unto himself Therefore if thy thoughts run after the lusts of thy owne heart thou hast no Christ in thee for Christ beloved will never dwell in a foule house I know there is no wheat without some darnell no gold without some drosse no wine without some lees so there is no man but hath some sin no man so clean but hath some defilements of sin upon him therefore if a man have not his cleansing grace of Christ in him cleansing the heart from vain things there is no Christ in him for Christ will never dwell in a foule heart Now beloved the very vain thoughts of a man defile him as Christ saith Matth. 7.21 22 23. Out of the heart proceedeth evill thoughts and they are they that defile a man All these not onely murder and adulteries and uncleannesses and all