they are strangers to a good conscience so are they strangers to a most good God who will be so far from blessing them that he will surely curse them and give such timerous and fearfull persons which want the fire of zeale their part in the lake that burneth with fire and brimestone which is the second death Rev. 21.8 Rev. 21.8 A Childlike heart can never be patient under Gods dishonour though he is alwaies silent under his displeasure Moses was coole in his owne cause but hot when Gods credit lay at stake When the children of Israel had wrought folly in the golden Calfe the zeale of God did so eat him up that he could as well containe fire in his bosome as be patient when Gods glory suffer'd Oh therefore try your selves upon this Note and before you find your selves more bold for God be not so bold as to boast of a good conscience 4. Note of a good Conscience is to love a Conscientious Teacher and Instructer he desires not to live under a cold man-pleasing ministry which preaches liberty not strictnesse of conscience which soweth pillowes under mens armeholes and cryeth peace peace so that none departeth from his evill way The good conscience desireth such a Preacher who is not shaken with feare nor seduced with flattery whose voice is the voice of a cryer his sound as the sound of a trumpet Vsai 58.1 his words like sharp nailes and piercing goads Eccl. 12.11 Heb. 4.12 his preaching an heart-pricking his dividing of his Text and matter the dividing asunder of soule and spirit of the joints and marrow Such we find amongst the Prophets that cryed aloud and did not spare to tell the people of their transgressions and the house of Judah of their sins Such were amongst the Apostles who were sons of Thunder and threatned judgments against the wicked and rebellious Yea Christ himselfe who had the tongue of the learned to speake the word in season to him that was weary Isai 54.4 was also as a polished shaft Isai 49.2 and his mouth as a sharp sword his eyes as a flame of fire and his comming into the Temple none was able to abide he was as a Refiners fire and Fullers soap Mal. 3.2 Isa 11.4 and with the breath of his lips he did slay the wicked Is 11.4 Such are the Teachers that a good conscience loveth and delights in But our age can no more endure this kind of preaching then the Israelites could endure the shrill sound of the Trumpet sounding louder and louder He. 12.19 and that terrible fire and that voice of words which they desired they might heare no more Christs Ministers now are become Antichristian say they their doctrine only legall though indeed they trace Christ and his Apostles and observe their method who first commanded Repentance to be preached Lu. 24.47 and then remission of sins to be promised and Paul drawes all his doctrine unto these 2 heads first repentance towards God the second faith in Jesus Christ Act. 20.21 Yet men are now become so tender that they will not have their Dalilahs toucht you may not come unto them as the good Samaritan with wine to search and cleanse but only with smooth oyle to heale and comfort it must be all the riches of Christ and a naked faith in Christ If you touch with Obedience you are legall and Phisitions of no value But let me tell such as follow such Doctors their cause is dangerous when the blind lead the blind Isa 9.16 you can easily conclude what will follow The leaders of this people cause them to erre and they that are lead of them are destroied Wherefore would you be assured that your conscience is a good conscience do not with Ahab hate Micaiah nor with Ananias smite Paul do not vilify those whom God doth honour I meane zealous honest and consciencious ministers who labour in the word and doctrine and are examples to the flock in faith and love in spirit and purity if you do we are bold to challenge you for men of an evill conscience but on the other side if you honour them as men sent of God and highly esteeme them for their workes sake and readily obey their wholsome doctrine following them as they follow Christ you may then safely conclude we are assured we have a good conscience Last Note of good Conscience is universall Obedience This is an excellent distinguishing note between truth and error a good and an evill conscience God calls for this saying in all things that I have commanded you be circumspect Exod. 23.13 Caute estote 1. magna God will have conscience to be good to all persons Act. 24.16 and good in all things Heb. 13.18 and to be good at all times attentione servate vatabl It must be our exercise daily to keep a conscience void of offence both towards God and towards man He that hath a good conscience his heart is moulded into obedience his will is cast into Gods will He is ready to do what God commands and to leave undone what God forbids Like the slower that opens and shuts with the Sun So it opens to God and shuts to sin He desires to do Gods will on earth as the Angels do it in heaven readily sincerely constantly Let us now try our selves by this note and we shall find a good conscience to be very rare we may run with Jeremie to and fro to find such a man Jer. 5.1 we may goe into many families townes parishes perchance misse him at the last The prophane and vitious will not owne such good conscience and the Civill Justitia and formall Hyprocrite care not These two last have high conceits of themselves but yet upon tryall will be found too light First the civill man thinks well of himselfe because he is kind unto his neighbour defrauds no man but payes every man to a penny and as for the poor needy he is open handed ready to supply their wants at all times and therefore doubts not but his conscience is very good but let me tell thee thou civill man thou art much deceived if thy Conscience were good thou wouldest be holy to God as well as upright to man how is it that thou art so ignorant in the things of God and of thine own salvation that thou makest no conscience of prayer in thy Familie of reading the Word of hearing it preached unto thee no conscience of an Oath of a lie and of keeping the Sabbath day surelie if thy conscience be not good to God as well as to man it is void of goodnesse Secondly The formall Hypocrite is as high if not higher in his conceits of self worthinesse He is one that labours to know God and to serve him both publikely in the Congregation privately in his Familie hee is a professed onimie unto Ignorance and prophanes and prayseth God that he is not as other men and
them both namely a conscience truely parified and truly pacified Meanes Now followes the meanes both to purify and pacify conscience 1. For the purifying of conscience it is the part of every one professing Christ to consider that his conscience naturally is defiled Tit. 1.15 and that there is a necessity of taking off this defilement if we would be saved namely the ignorance error and hardnesse of conscience wherewith it is polluted The principall meanes are two 1. The first means to effect it Principall meanes is the bloud of Christ by this bloud we must have our hearts sprinkled from an evill conscience Heb. 10.22 9.14 This is a singular way to have our Consciences purged from dead works to serve the living God 2. Meanes is the Spirit of Christ This is that mundifying water mentioned Ezek. 36.25 I will sprinkle cleane water upon you and ye shall be cleant from all your filthinesse These two Christs bloud and Christs spirit will cleanse the foulest sinner and the most defiledst conscience Paul writing unto the Corinthians tells them what filthy creatures they were 1 Cor. 6.9.10 namely Fornicators Idolaters effeminate abusers of themselves with mankind Theeves Covetous Drunkards Railers Extortioners and then shewed them by what meanes they were cured and cleansed namely by the blood and spirit of Christ v. 11. But ye are washed but ye are sanctified but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God This is the refiners fire and fullers sope Mal. 3.2 this is that hysope which will make us as white as snow yea more white then snow Ps 51.7 Other meanes there are which though not comparable to the first yet as subservient are likewise requisite to this purifying of Conscience namely the Word Faith Repentance Lesse principal meanes 1. The Word Now are ye cleane saith Christ through the word that I have spoken unto you John 15.3 That is to say the word accompanied with the power of my Spirit 2. So Faith is of a cleansing nature it will purge the heart and cleanse the conversation Act. 15.9 3. And as for repentance we find that when Judah had defiled her selfe with sin God calls her to repentance as a way of cleansing Wash ye make you cleane put away the evill of your doings from before mine eyes cease to do evill learne to do well and then though your sins be as scarlet they shall be as white as snow Is 1.16 Thus you see how a defiled conscience may be purified 2. Next followes how conscience may be pacified Consider first of all what it is that troubles conscience Meanes It must be one of these three either sin or Sathan or Gods anger It was sin that so troubled Paul the law in his members that warred against the law of his mind that so disquieted him that it made him to cry out Rom. 7.24 O wretched man that I am who shall deliver me 2. It was Sathan that winnowed Peter and withstood Jehoshus 3. Gods anger that so molested David as to make him cry out Lord rebuke me not in thy wrath neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure there is no soundnesse in my flesh because of thine anger Therefore unto such as are troubled with the sight of their sin the assaults of Sathan or sence of Gods displeasure if their consciences be unquiet because of these either one or all be carefull in the use of such meanes as God hath ordained for pacifying conscience Now that I may not be tedious remember what were the meanes to purifie conscience and thou shalt find the very same meanes will pacify conscience I told thee before that the bloud of Christ and the Spirit of Christ as principall 2. The word faith and repentance as lesse principall These would make a defiled conscience to become pure So now I must tell thee againe to make thy conscience quiet thou must have 1. The bloud of Christ Paul tels us that Christ by the bloud of his Crosse Col. 2.20 i. e. by his bloudy oblation made upon the crosse hath made peace and reconciled all things Now rightly to understand this Text you must know that by sin heaven and earth were set at variance and the creatures in them but by Christ there is unity set not only betwixt God and man but also betwixt men and the Angels that are in heaven as also the creatures that are upon the earth now if Christs bloud be such a Catholicon to take off all enmity beween God and man between men and Angels in heaven men and creatures on earth and to make peace then let us acknowledge it an excellent means to pacify conscience This was typified in the bloud of the Pascall lamb where this bloud was sprinkled upon any door-post there was peace and security against the destroyer So where the bloud of Christ is sprinkled upon the soule their conscience is at peace and hath security against all the remaining guilt and corruption of sin the rage of Sathan danger of Gods displeasure This bloud givves the soule all boldnesse to enter in into the holiest of all by a new and living way Heb. 10.19 and gives us assurance before God 2. Meanes to pacify conscience is the spirit of Christ As his bloud is the procuring cause so his spirit the producing cause For this cause Christ and the holy Ghost are called by one and the same name because their end and businesse is the same namely to procure peace to the soule They both are called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or Advocates Christ is our Advocate and and the spirit is Gods Advocate Christ is our Advocate to the father to procure us peace The spirit againe is Gods advocate to us to produce peace As the one prevailes with God for granting peace so the other prevailes with us to entertaine peace See this cleared in 1 Joh 2.1 If any man sin we have a Paraclete with the father Jesus Christ the righteous Here Christ is our advocate againe Joh. 14.16 I will pray the father and he shall give you another Paraclete In this place the holy Ghost is Gods advocate so you plainly see how the bloud and spirit of Christ must make up this true and full peace Now for the causes or meanes lesse principall and subservient as the word faith repentance First the word it is a word of reconciliation and pacification Thus Peter to Cornelius and his company tells them ye know saith he the word which God hath sent to the children of Israel Act. 10.36 preaching peace by Jesus Christ which is Lord of all Now as the Scripture in generall may be said to be a word of peace so more especially the Gospell This is called the word of peace The Author of it the Prince of peace The minister the Messenger of peace Rom. 10.15 and his preaching the gospell the ministry of reconcitiation 2
in battell-array to fight with those strong subtile sedulous Goliahs which come out to upbraid Gods little Champion They I meane the Divell and his Agents viz the world and the flesh will not only rage but raigne not only assault but take your soules captive at their will Therefore as you love your owne soules and the welfare of them unto all eternity Get unto you the whole armour of God Eph. 6. 13. Be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might Give no faire Quarter unto foule tempations make up speedily every Breach between God and your owne consciences and let not conscience loose its Tendernesse but shun every evill and the appearance of it 6. Let thy life be the life of faith Saith Paul the life that we now live in the flesh we live by the faith of the Son of God who loved us and gave himselfe for us Keep fresh the sense of his love and alwaies acknowledge a continuall need of his Bloud Spirit and Intercession and how much you are beholding and ingaged unto him Labour to draw and derive from Christ by the powerfull attractive force of faith spirituall ability sufficient for every dayes worke Act your faith dayly in the promises of grace and strength Go unto Christ still for his wisdome to counsell you for his righteoussness to cover you for strength to resist temptations for the shoulder that must beare our Crosses for ability to performe all duties as duties 7. Resolve with david Ps 101. that you will not know a wicked person i.e. approve of him If out of your families have not fellowship with them but reprove them if in your families let them not abide within your doores but remove him or her as persons most infectious and dangerous We have sins enough and too too many of our owne therefore let us not encrease them by a base connivency at others mens sins Especially avoid that generation of men whose grand designe it is to undermine the Gospell to ruine the Ministry and to robb them of that maintenance which is due unto them by the law of God and by the Law of Nature and by the law of Nations These croaking frogges have overspread our Aegypt so that they have made it stinke with their damnable Opinions devilish practises They creep into houses and lead aside silly women 2 Tim. 3.11 and by their faire speeches deceive the hearts of the simple Rom. 16.18 And shall if it were possible deceive the very elect Mark 13.22 8. Affect a faithfull and powerfull Minister who doth carefully look both to himselfe and his Doctrine Adscribe neither too much nor too little to your Teachers Neither despise them nor deify them as the manner of some is Esteeme him not as a principle Author but as a subordinate Actor not as a Lord but a Steward not as a Master but a Minister and yet account him more then an ordinary Servant even a man of God A servant of the most high God that sheweth you the way of Salvation Look on him not only as a Seer but Over-seer a Steward of Gods high secrets a messenger of the Lord of Hostes by whose Embassage peace is concluded and reconciliation ministerially made up between God and man He is Gods mouth to you by preaching and your mouth to God by praying On that in speciall place standeth before God and ministreth to him upon earth as the Angels do it in heaven Woodnots Aphorisms 1. Cens. p. 42. The Jewes say that he that dieth in the displeasure of his Rabbi shall never be forgiven in this world nor in the world to come i.e. of his teacher that hath the charge of his soule Therefore take heed you fall not out with your Teacher whome the most wise God hath thought fit to make your Pastor forsake not the Levite as long as thou livest upon the earth Deut. 12.19 Doe not desire such a Teacher as thou mayest rule him but such as may rule you Magistrates are chosen to governe the people not the people to governe them So Ministers you are not to command them but obey them Therefore obey them that have the Rule over you Heb. 13.17 And submit your selves for they watch for your souls as they that must give an account that they may do it with Joy and not with greife I beseech you in the bowels of Christ let Death and Judgement possesse your most serious thoughts waite for the one and provide for the other Dye daiely with Paul and you shall dye well Have thine end ever in thine eye and sweeten the bitter cup of Death by a dayly preparation Get your tackling all in readinesse that you may faile over the Sea of mortall miseries in safety and security to the Port of happinesse You shall all of you ere long lye gasping for death on your dying beds and there lye grappling with the King of feares attended with Terrors Therefore as you love your soules let the whole course of your lives be a conscionable preparative to dye comfortably Look on every day as your last So live that you may say with David Though I walke through the Valley of the shaddow of death I will not feare Oh that you would be wise and consider your latter end before you go downe to the chambers of death whence you shall never returne Would you dye willingly would you dye well Then get a part in Christ a Title to him an Interest in him Worke out your salvation with feare and trembling Give all diligence to make your calling and election sure So live that you may not be ashamed to die So number your dayes that you may apply your hearts to true wisdome So cast up your Accounts that you may give them up with joy and not with greife Judge your selves for your daiely Deviations and you shall not be judged condemne your selves and you shall not be condemned 10 Lastly Let this little Book be in your hands heads and hearts Let a good conscience be written on your soules with Characters indelible never to be razed out so that when death shall appeare thou mayest be able to say I have lived in all good conscience before God untill this day Now whereas dull spirits are more quickned by Examples then Precepts This place hath had a great advantage above other places adjacent Mr. John Southmead who is now a glorious Saint in heaven and his Soule made happy with the Spirits of just men made perfect You know he was an old Disciple and served his Master faithfully in his generation for many yeares zealously striving for the inlargment of the Kingdome of Christ and demolishing the Kingdome of Satan A great Curb he was to prophanesse witnesse his great paines and travell in overthrowing those Heathenish sports and pastimes which were too common even upon the Lords day God made him the Instrument to abolish Wakes Revells Maypoles and May-games with their Apurtenances Fidlers and superfluous Ale-houses not only in
so concludes that he hath a good conscience But I must tell thee thou Hyporite thou art as much deceived as the former Tit. 2.12 The Grace of God that bringeth salvation teacheth thee to be righteous as well as holy If thy conscience be good how isit that thou art so deceitfull in bargaining so false in promising so unfaithfull in paying what is thy dishonest religion better then the civill mans irreligious honesty you both come short of a good conscience and if you thus persist will come short of heaven all true happinesse let me threfore advise you to beware of others harmes look upon Saul Jehu Hered and the high priests These in their owne eyes were very conscionable men 1 Sam. 14.34 Saul will not have the people to sin against the Lord in eating with the bloud Jehu will be Zealous for God in rooting out Ahabs posteritie Mark 6.26 Herod makes conscience of his Oath to Herodias the HIgh Priest will not put the price of bloud into the treasury See and behold a Messe of Notorious Hypocrites ahd these been syncere their consciences would have been good to all in all and alwaies If saul had truly made conscience of beast bloud he would not have been so prodigall of mans bloud as to destroy 85. of the Lords priests that wore the lynnen Ephod If Jehu had truly made conscience of pulling downe Ahabs Idols he would not have left Jeroboams Calues If Herod had truly made conscience of an Oath he would not so easilie have granted John Baptists head unto his Herodias If the High priest had trulie made conscienceof taking the price of bloud they would not have beene so readie to give a price for bloud as 30 peices to Iudas to betray his Master but as they sowed so they reaped They sowed sin and reaped shame and so shall all that answer Gods commands in parte but not in whole If therefore thou wilt beapproved of God approve thy selfe to God in an universall Obedience be good to all be good in all or not good at all and thus much of this first use namely the use of Triall 2. Use is for reproofe unto the ignorant and prophane who though they never tryed nor yet intend to try themselves by these fore-mentioned Notes or marks yet will boldly tell you they have a good Conscience But will you know upon what ground they build this bould Assertion Answer It is upon a very false ground and upon a very sandie foundation That is upon the stillnesse and quietnesse of their Conscience Though they sweare lye steale oppresse be drunke and act uncleanesse and all manner of villanie yet their conscience doth not molest or trouble them They do not check or say unto them what hast thou done Jer. 8.6 and therefore are ready to blesse themselves to be most happie and to condemne others whose consciences do trouble them to be most unhappy But let me tell such that Quietnesse or unquietnesse are no infallible cha\racters of a good or evill conscience possible it is that a quiet Conscience may carrie a man merrilie to Hell and on the other side an unquiet Conscience may carrie a man crying to Heaven The one may never dreame of Hell afore they fall into it The other never be assured of Heaven before they have the possession of it The old world were eating and drinking revelling and making merry when the floud came and swept them away Zimri and Cosbi in the very Act of uncleannesse were thrust through with a Iavelin and how many in these unhappy warrs have suddenlie perished and come to a fearfull end when they dreamed not of it Their drunken health being their last draught their blasphemeous Oaths their last words so that we may trulie say they went merrily to Hell Againe on the other side if men professing Christ may dye without assurance and yet be saved as Mr Chambers in Leicester who cryed out that he was damned Perkins Hildersham and Francis Spira who would change his Condition with Cain Sanl and Judas If such might be saved as some in Charity think then may we say and that safelie that some go crying unto heaven Wherefore my Advise to such is not to presume upon a still and quiet conscience but to see from whence this stilnesse quietnesse ariseth if from a true knowledg of Gods holinesse and their owne vilenesse if from a true sight and sence of thier sin and an unfained humiliation for the same with an Assurance of Gods free pardon in Christ then is their peace and quietnesse of the right kind such a Quietnesse as neither doth nor can accuse them but gives a Comfortable testimonie of their holy walking before God since their conversion Examples of such we find in Obadiah who told Elijah 1 Kin. 18.12 Heb. 11.5 Hujusmodi conscientia est instarferae alicujus quae quādin dormit videtur esse cicur neminē laedit Sed excitata in bominem involat dilacerat Sic conscientiacauteriata aegritudine aliâ graviore vel ctiam morte appropinquante excitaturà Deo truculenta suâ immanitate hominē terret Alst Thecl Casuum c. 2. that he feared the Lord from his youth and Enoch who before his translation had from God more then an ordinary Testimony that he pleased god so Paul I Have lived saith he in all good good Conscience before God untill this day these had good Consciences indeed such as speak peace with Gods allowance But if thy quietnesse or stilnesse which is in thee do arise out of an Ignorance of God and of thy selfe not knowing the mind and will of God and how Crosse their waies and workes have been unto the same Or if out of impenitency not regarding sin nor humbling thy selfe for sin Then let me tell thee thy conscience is not good but evill thy quiet conscience is a sleepie Conscience a dull and drowsie Conscience and if not timelie prevented will prove a dead a seared a caute rised conscience 1 Tim. 4.2 though for the presentit sleep like a churlish mastife and neither bite nor barke yet at last it will be awakened and fly in thy face and tare thee as the Divell did the man in which he entred Mark 9.22 He rent him and threw him into the fire Belshazer was drinking wine in Bowles But there came out Fingers on the wall and his countenance changed Dan. 5.5 When the eye of your conscience shall be opened and thou shalt see a dismall hand-writing against thee hell gaping and the just Judge preparing Vengeance for thee what prodigious horror will surprize thee hadst thou a world of worlds in thy possession thou wouldst count them of too small Value to purchase a freedome from these first fruits of Hell As a member that is Benumb'd with sleepe is senlelesse and seems to be voide of all life But yet when it gathers blood and awakens againe it Shoots and pricks and feeles as big