THE Scripture Directory FOR CHURCH-OFFICERS AND PEOPLE OR A Practical Commentary UPON THE Whole third Chapter of the first Epistle of St Paul TO THE CORINTHIANS To which is annexed the Godly and the Natural Mans Choice upon Psal 4. vers 6 7 8. By Anthony Burgesse Pastour of the Church of Sutton Coldfield in Warwickshire LONDON Printed by Abraham Miller for T.U. and are to be Sold by Thomas Underhill George Calvert and Henry Fletcher in Pauls Church-yard 1659. TO THE READER THe sound Interpretation and Practical Application of Scripture for the Advancement of Holiness as it is the most profitable and pleasant part of our Ministerial Employment so it should be the Readers wisdome and diligence to Exercise himself most in the perusall of such Spiritual Helps As for Controversies to look on them like the Bryars and Thornes on the Ground even the Effect of original corruption So that to leave the Practical and Affectionate part of Religion for the Speculative and Disputative is to part with our sweetness and fatness to become a bryar Yet Experience doth too much confirm how great a depravation is herein upon the mindes of men naturally doting upon Questions Strifes of wordes wherein is no Edifying It is reported of a Philosopher That he would not be resolved in the doubts he had upon his mind that so he might not be deprived of that pleasure and delight which he found in seeking and searching out of truth Which is as if a feavourish man would not be cured of the drought or thirst upon him that so he might still enjoy the pleasure he findeth in drinking But Scepticism and inconstancy and such inordinate affectation of Opinions and Controversies is contrary to the sound constitution of Christianity which inclineth to a solid mind in Matters of Faith and to an holy mortified heart in respect of our conversation Now to bring such an holy and heavenly Establishment upon the soul the only way is to make a constant and diligent Improvement of Gods Word in all the happy and blessed Effects it causeth upon the soul He that doth thus is like the tree planted by the Rivers side that will not wither but bring forth its fruit in due season Among other Portions of Scripture I have selected this third Chapter of the first Epistle to the Corinthians for the peculiar subserviency and particular conduceableness it may have to heal such distempers which at this time infect many The Church of Corinth though immediately planted as a pleasant Eden by Paul himself yet quickly degenerated the envious one sowing tares amongst the good wheat For not only Godly Discipline was collapsed and Prophaneness in mens lives much increased but such factions and divisions were crept in amongst them that like the renting of the veil of the Temple their destruction was praesaged hereby did they not in time prevent it by having one heart and one way The sky being thus red did signifie the foul weather that was to ensue For as Aristotle observeth That the perpetual duration of things is to be attributed to the simple and quotidian course of the Sun from the East to the West but the generation and corruption of things to the Oblique motion of the Sun and Planets in the Zodiack So the preservation and continuance of Faith and Holiness in the Churches of God is under Christ to be attributed to the uniform motion of the Guides and Officers therein but all corruption of Doctrine and Discipline all generation of errors and vices to their oblique and different courses This Chapter then may be called The Directory of the Holy Ghost both to Officers and People in their respective deportments that so there may be a mutual edification It may be looked upon as a Pillar of Salt to season all other Churches It seemeth to have that Inscription of Senacharibs Tomb upon it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 By beholding of me take heed of pride in Gifts and Parts take heed of schismes and divisions set not up a Ministry against Christ nor yet oppose Christ to a Ministry These are to be composed with one another and not opposed Besides this general Matter there are also several Truths of great concernment contained in the Chapter especially the best VVine you meet with at last where is described the rich Treasure of every godly man There is an Inventory given in of all his Goods There is his Magna Charta confirmed Yea as the Devil once shewed the Glory of the world for a temptation so doth the Spirit of God here discover both the Glory of Heaven and Earth for the encouragement of the true Believer I shall not detain thee any longer with Prefacing but conclude Come and see Thine Anthony Burgesse March 18. 1658. THE CONTENTS OF THIS Practical Exposition ON THE Third Chapter of the first Epistle of St Paul TO THE CORINTHIANS Verse 1. ANd I brethren could not speak unto you as unto spiritual but as unto carnal even as unto babes in Christ Observ That the ignorance and sinfulnesse of a people are a just cause why faithfull and wise Ministers of the Word doe not sometimes preach of the more sublime and excellent points in Christianity p. 2 In what respects the peoples Ignorance is an impediment to the Ministers preaching p 3 In what respects the peoples Sinfulnesse is an impediment to the Ministers preaching p 3 Carnal It s several significations Observ That even among those who are truly and indeed of the visible Church of God there is a vast difference some are spiritual some are carnal some are men some are babes p. 5 What it is to be a spiritual man 7 What to be carnal or babes 8 Verse 2. I have fed you with milk and not with meat Observ 1. It must be the Prudence and Wisdome of the Minister to preach such matter and in such a way as the Hearers may receive good thereby p. 9 Observ 2. It 's necessary to acquaint People with the Principles of Religion before they go higher in Christianity 13 Considerations about the principles of Religion and the knowledge and ignorance of them 13 For hither to ye were not able to bear it neither yet now are ye able Observ That it 's a great sinne and just reproach to a people that have lived long under the means of grace if they have not got the due profit by it 17 The due profits and effects of the Ministry Intellectual and Practical ib. Verse 3. For ye are yet carnal 21 Qu. Why those that are godly for the main are called carnal ibid. Observ That the reliques of corruption which do abide in the godly ought to be an heavy burden to them against which they are daily to strive and combate ib. Considerations about the Saints infirmities and corruptions 22 And whence it is that they do not fully conquer sinne 23 And why God doth not cure his people at once 24 For whereas there is among you Envying and Strife and
consciences be not black or pale through guilt but that we be the sweet savour of Christ as Paul speakes it 2 Corinth 2.15 Now this cannot be unlesse they discover the falsenesse and weaknesse of any unjust aspersions Thus Christ himself when the Jewes talked of stoning him For which of my good works do you stone me John 10 32. And so the Ministers of God may plead Why are you become enemies and adversaries Is it because we convince of sinne we inform of duty we labour the eternal salvation of mens souls In such a case as this 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is no sinne though Aristotle make the affected vain glorious discourse of a mans self his fault Secondly When there arise false Teachers that under specious and fair words would draw away their people to errours and falsehoods it is then lawfull to justifie themselves This you shall observe very frequently in Paul The ground of saying this in this Text was that the people might not regard other foundations then he had laid And so in another place especially 2 Corinth 11.22 23. he doth at large reckon up both his excellencies and also his indefatigable sufferings for the Gospel sake and is very copious in it yet all this was no vain glory Why because it was in opposition to false Teachers who laboured to bring him into disesteem who endeavoured to represent Paul contemptible And this makes him exalt himself Thirdly When their is an undermining or open endeavouring to overthrow the very Office of the Ministry to make it common Herein also we see how men farre from any pride and wild fire have been zealously inflamed Numb 16.3 There some took upon them to invade the Priests Office Ye take too much upon you all the Congregation is holy as well as you Wherefore lift you up your selves above the people of God How did this fact provoke Moses that was the meekest man upon the earth and farre from self-seeking and revenge If these men die a common death the Lord hath not sent me And immediately the earth swallowed them up all and all that appertained to them Those that did sinfully strive to be as high as others God throweth them lower then others They lifted up themselves to Heaven and he casteth them lower then the earth Hence the Apostle Let a man account of us as the Ministers and Stewards of God 1 Cor. 4.1 Let a man he speaketh indefinitely though never so great a man so learned a man so gifted or gracious a man Thus you see there is a necessary cause of vindication when the Office it self is shaken Fourthly In these two general Cases which may comprehend all the rest they may set up their work and Ministry 1. When the glory of God is apparently concerned in their sufferings and debasement when it is plain that reproach and dishonour will redound upon God himself then it 's no modesty or humility to hold their tongue And the Reason is they are Embassadours and Messengers sent by God Now whatsoever reproach and scorn is cast upon them redounds to him that sent them And 2. When there is an evident utility and profit for the people Paul in many of his Epistles speaks so much about himself not that he regarded applause or had any carnal designes no he could appeal to God and had the testimony of his Conscience but it was for the good of Believers that they might not be seduced or led aside in damnable waies So that it is for your good and not ours if these things be spoken off But now here are Cautions in such self-justification First We must attribute nothing to our selves as of our selves Paul in this very Text speaks of the grace of God He is but the Trumpet that sounds not of it self but from the mouth that breatheth in it He is but the Pen of the Writer And therefore see how carefull he is in another place lest any man should think of him above what he ought to think 2 Cor. 12.6 Oh this is an admirable convincing way When what we say is still with the acknowledgement of grace and we are afraid men should look to our parts to our abilities more then to Christ himself Secondly It 's so to be done that it may plainly be seen we seek not any earthly greatness or glory of our own but only that Christ and his own way may be acknowledged We see Christ himself though he thought it no robbery to be equall with God yet looking upon himself as sent by the Father he saith I seek not my own glory Joh. 8.15 but the glory of my Father that sent me Oh admirable pattern for us to follow And when Paul had spoken of this authority and power he had and pressed them so to walk as that he might not come with a rod and was afraid he should come to them otherwise then they desired addeth Though we be accounted as Reprobates Cor. 1.2 Undervalue and despise us as you please yet if you be holy and keep in the truth I shall rejoyce in my debasements Lastly It must be necessarily not voluntarily even compelled to it Thus Paul when he had exalted his sufferings I speak as a fool you have complled me 2 Cor. 12.11 Could he have done his duty without it he would Especially you have a notable instance of Paul's modesty 2 Cor. 12. where being to relate some extraordinary Visions and Revelations see with what humility he doth it you cannot tell whether it was Paul or no I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago He had kept it silent all that while Certainly by this we see that whosoever God giveth extraordinary dispensations he fils the persons with much modesty They do not boast of them They do not despise others And thus John the Evangelist whereas the other when they speak of the Disciple beloved by Christ named him John himself doth not because he was the man Vse of Instrustion to people To take heed how the Devil or his Instruments ever seduce you so as to contemn or withdraw from the faithfull and powerfull Ministry of the Word No marvell the Devil assaults it because it is the only Engine to batter down his Kingdom I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning said Christ when he sent his Disciples to preach Luk 10.18 Certainly thou hast never got good by it or hast forgot it in that thou doest reject it Paul useth this Argument to the Corinthians that they should remember the proof of Christ speaking in him to themwards was not weak but mighty 2 Cor. 13.3 And let not this happily take thee off Thou hearest no more then thou knowest already I would come if every day I might have new things new questions and new opinions For what is this but to be weary of the old Bible and to desire a new To write the same things saith Paul to you it 's safe Phil. 3 1. It 's a safe and sound way to hear the
Ordinance Any duty without Christ is like the body without the soul the shadow without the substance Truly saith the Apostle our Communion and fellowship is with the Father and his Son Jesus Christ 1 Joh. 1.3 Thus Christ is said to come to us and sup with us By which phrases is implyed that the heart of a man should not rest in any duty and stay there but go to Christ in it As they that looked for Christs body were not content to see the linen where his body lay but did still seek after him It was not enough for the Church to be in the Garden where the Spices and Flowers did smell unless she found her Beloved there And thus it 's not enough to come to any duty to pray to hear to draw nigh in any Ordinance unless we meet with Christ himself But to whom are these things known Is it not with us as with little Children they can take a Book they look on it turn over the leaves but know not any of the sense of it Thus it is with many people they come to pray to hear to the Ordinances but to speak of Christ enjoyed by them to have spiritual Communion with Christ in them is such spiritual sense they understand not That was the great sinne of the Jews they rested in the Ordinances and duties of the Law and never looked out to Christ And against this the Apostle doth so vehemently dispute And thus we do with Ordinances of the Gospel people generally rest in the external performance of them and not on Christ in them aâ— if the Wise should be content with the Picture of her Husband not cariâ—g for the Husband himself The preaching of Christ as a foundation in this respect â—s of such practical necessity that all true godlinesse lyeth in this The Apostle speaking the quintessence of all godlinesse saith We are the Circumcision who have no confidence in the flesh but rejoyce in Christ Jesus Phil. 3.3 This is praying this is hearing this is the true performance of any religious duty when we have no confidence in them but rejoyce in Christ Jesus only Lastly We are to preach Christ not only as the foundation of our approaches to God but of all Gods gracious actions and visitations to us We are not only to come to God in Christs name but to expect that God will come to us through Christ God is in Christ reconciling the world to himself 2 Cor. 1.19 We are justified in Christ and saved in Christ All Gods gracious actions vouchsafed to us are founded upon Christ as the meritorious cause of them It 's rue the indeed predestination though it be in Christ for the accomplishment of all our spiritual mercies yet it was not for Christ This the Orthodox do well maintain by Scripture that Gods predestinating of us in the Original of it is wholly from the sovereign power and good counsel of God yea that Christ himself is the effect of Predestination from that good pleasure of his he gave his Sonne for us But then all the effâ—cts of Predestination Justification Adoption Remission Sanctification Salvation these all are bestowed for Christs sake They cost blood even the blood of his only Sonne ere we could be partakers of them Thus Christ joyneth Heaven and Earth together makes a Reconciliation between a provoked God and a sinfull sinner And this the Apostle considers when â—e saith That by him all things are reconciled in Heaven and in Earth Col 1.20 Thus you see Christ is a Fountain alwaies running We Ministers and you people may alwaies draw out there and yet the Fountain be never dry He is like those waters of Ezekiel that arise higher and higher In these an Elephant may swimme We may still discover more excellency more fulnesse in him The Queen of Sheba had no spirit to see Solomon in all his glory but behold a greater then Solomon here In the next place let us consider the Reasons why we Ministers are to lay no other foundation but Christ To make him all in all First It 's the main end and scope of the Scriptures only to exalt Christ and the end of the Ministry should be the same with the end of the Scripture All the Prophets before Christ they witnessed of the Messiah still they comforted the people with promises of his coming Abraham though so long before Christs Incarnation yet it 's said He saw Christs day and rejoyced Joh. 8.56 All those Sacrifices which were immediately â—t the beginning of the world did look to Christ they typified him Noah offered a Sacrifice and God did smell a sweet savour of rest Gen. 8. â—1 Alas Could the material Sacrifice do that God careth not for the Rammes and Bullocks upon the hils it smels there offensive but it was because of Christ Burnt Offerings and Sacrifices thou wouldst not have then said I Lord I come Heb 10.9 All those Rammes those Bullocks those Goats they all did typifie a Christ The people that then lived ought not to think that pardon of sin could be had by shedding of their blood Especially the Covenant of grace that God made with Abraham and renewed so many times did relate to Christ the seed in whom all Nations were to be made blessed And it 's good to consider how when the Church was in any great extremity the Prophets would then comfort it about Christ Isa 9. To us a Sonne is born And Isaiah 53. he doth as plainly prophesie Christs sufferings as the Evangelists relate it insomuch that some have called Isaiah the fifth Evangelist And the Prophet Micha He shall be our peace when the Assyrian shall come into our land Mich. 5.5 Thus then you see that all the Old Testament doth wholly tend to magnifie Christ and as for the New Testament that is wholly spent either in relating the History or the gracious Effects of Christ condemning all Doctrines and Opinions that would set up any thing in Christs room Secondly As the Scripture so Gods great purpose and counsell from all eternity was to set up Christ and to have him glorified Therefore would God take such a way as that by his Sonne all mercy should be obtained that so all honour glory and praise might be for ever given to him Hence it is that we read of God the Father sometimes appearing in a glorious manner and owning of him This is my beloved Sonne in whom I am well pleased viz. with man kind Mat. 3.17 hear him It 's disputed among Divines whether there could be any other way for our Redemption and Salvation but by him but who can tell what God absolutely may do or not do To be sure God hath determined on this way as that wherein the glory of the Father and of the Sonne may be more magnified If then God was pleased to have all glory given to Christ and to have him set up in all things it 's a great Reason we should honour him whom God would
was for his eternal torment They call such things the blessing of God and so indeed in themselves they are but to wicked men they are curses For as the godly mans afflictions come from Gods love Whom he loveth he chasteneth Heb. 12. so wicked mens mercies come from Gods anger Had God loved thee thou hadst had it may be more afflictions more wants and exercises Secondly Wicked men have not the world Because they are overcome by it the world hath them rather Therefore they are called as you heard the world as if their very souls as well as bodies were made of the dust of the earth whereas the godly have the world as if they had it not they have God and the world too they have Heaven and Earth too they do not prâ—â— the worse their duties are not the more thinne and distracted As Abraham and David these were rich and great men in the world yet if you reade Davids Psalmes you will finde his heart set on God above all these things Thirdly Wicked men have not the world Because they do not own and acknowledge God as the giver of all neither do they live to him but the things of the world are instruments to draw out their lusts to make them the more wicked They take the good creatures of God and abuâ—e them to wickednesse Therefore Rom 8. The whole creation is said to groan under them as being weary of them The very Air the very Earth is weary of them yea the timber in the house and the stones of the wall do witnesse against them they are by the things of the world made more wicked Lastly They have not the world Because they have not an holy contentation of mind They are not quiet or satisfied in their condition they have no true peace notwithstanding all their abundance and the reason is because they have not pardon of sinne and enjoyment of Gods favour with these and they are only blessed who are so Matth 5. Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth You see the whole earth is promised to a meek humble contented spirit whereas a wicked man is compared to the Sea that is alwayes foaming and never lieth still The Vse is two-fold 1. Of Comfort and Exhortation to the godly Comfort in what distresse and strait soever thou art in Say not I have not this I want this I am poor and miserable for thou hast Heaven and Earth onely set faith on work This is the hand to receive those treasures This faith is not a fancy it 's not a foolish imagination but a real investing of thee with all things But it 's of Exhortation also to have the world for thy spiritual use Take heed of the wickednesse of it We have not received the spirit of the world 2 Corin. 4. Oh it 's an excellent thing not to have the spirit of the world but of God! Vse 2. Of Instruction To shew the power and miserable estate of the richest and greatest men in the world that want godlinesse none is so poor so miserable as they Thou sayest this is thine and that is thine Alas because Christ and the Promise are not thine nothing is indeed thine If they be thine they are thy poison thy destruction thy damnation and thus they are thine Or Life We proceed to the third thing in order and that is the several Conditions or Estates we are in Life is yours and Death is yours Chrysostome and Grotius after him limit this to the life and death of the Ministers in the Church If they live enjoying their liberties and outward comforts it 's for you If they die if they lose their liberties and lives it 's for the Churches sake As Paul said He was willing to be a Sacrifice offered up for the Philippians faith Phil. 2.17 This is indeed a truth but as the world is a general so there is no reason but that we should take Life and Death in as General a sense And indeed this limited one may well come under the first enumeration Paul and Apollo all are yours At this time we shall treat of Life The Scripture speaks of a three-fold Life 1. Animal which is in beasts 2. Humane belonging to men as rational And 3. Supernatural or an heavenly life which onely deserveth the name of it The other being but shadows and dying lives Now we shall especially speak of this humane life being perfected with that supernatural life Observe That Godly men do onely live or The Godly onely doe make a spiritual use of their life Life is only theirs 1 Pet. 3.10 He that loveth life and would see good dayes let him refrain his tongue from evil let him eschew evil and do good Here you see the only way to live and to have good dayes is to avoid all evil and imbrace all good Hence Christ John 6. cals himself The bread of life and he giveth the water of life none liveth till they be united to him We shall insist on these things 1. That only godly men live 2. That wicked men though in the midst of all their jollity yet the Scripture doth not account of them as living persons And First The godly man only liveth Because he is united to God and Christ the fountain of life David doth often style God The fountain of life Psal 36.9 And in his favour there is life And in the New Testament especially by John Christ is made the Author of all life He is therefore compared to the Head and to the Vine If the members or branches be separated from these they die and wither presently as John 15. This is so frequent an assertion that we need not dilate on it If not a member of Christ there is no life in thee Aut es in membris aut in humoribus said Austin Thou art either among the members or the humours of the body of the Church Gal. 3.20 Paul said He no longer lived but Christ in him and the life he lived was by faith in the Sonne of God What did not Paul eat and drinke and enjoy the common Aire as we doe Yes this he doth not call his life Oh they live who no longer live but Christ in them Thy sense thy carnal reason thy corrupt affections thy worldly inclinations these no longer live but Christ in thee and his graces Secondly Onely the godly man liveth Because he hath a spiritual and a new life added to his animal life For as the soul is the life of the body so grace is the life of the soul Hence our Saviour cals all wicked men dead men Let the dead bury the dead Matth. 8.22 That is a strange expression but very true No dead corpse is more destitute of life and apprehension than their souls are of any heavenly motions any spiritual hungrings or thirstings All the merry and jolly men in the world they are dead men if living in their sinnes Therefore among the Pythagoreans who kept strict
which have brought them thither Do they not curse and blaspheme the day they were born and that ever they hearkened to Satans temptations Verse 23. And ye are Christs VVE shall now come down from this Text this Mount of Transfiguration concerning which every believer might say It is good to be here and pursue the other matter that is behind Where we may observe the Apostle in a Climax rising higher All things are yours you are Christs and Christ is Gods So that the highest round in this ladder reacheth to Heaven as Jacobs did and the lowest one is in the earth So that you may observe the Apostle now changing his speech before all things are yours all in the Church and in the world is yours Now he doth not also say Christ is yours but you are Christs whereby we see that as the former things spoken of were not for themselves but the godly so neither are the godly for themselves but Christ Thus we have the Apostle mixing water with wine lest it should be too much drunk off and so make giddy All things are yours there is your Priviledge but you are Christs there is your Duty even to see that what ever you are or can doe it be in reference to him Even as at the first God created all the world with the creatures therein for man but man for himself so all things are for the godly and the godly is for Christ We may then observe the difference in this expression and sense between the former and the later First When he said All these things were the godly mans he meant it of spiritual use only not of dominion and power but when he saith We are Christs the meaning is We are wholly his creatures he hath absolute dominion and sovereignty over us And then Secondly All the things are a godly mans he is the end of them but he is finis indigentiae he needs them and wants them he could not tell what to do without them but Christ is Finis assimilationis they are for him not that he needs them but that he might make them more perfect in communicating his grace and holinesse unto them Observe then That a godly man in all that he is or can doe is wholly Christs Ye are Christs The Apostle driveth it to this that therefore they should glory onely in him They are not Pauls or Apolloes but Christs and therefore in him onely must they glory and judge themselves compleat To understand this Let us consider in what respects the godly man is Christs And First He is bought and purchased by his bloud so that he oweth all his being comforts and priviledges onely to Christ 1 Cor. 6.19 20. Ye are not your own for ye are bought with a price So then well may the godly man be said to be Christs for he cometh to be his at a dear rate Never did King yet subject or master a servant at so dear a prize as Christ obtained thee He did undergoe all that agony and shamefull death to free thee from the bondage thou wert in and to make thee his For you must know the clean contrary was true of the godly before made Christs they were the Devils they were wholly his Of him and through him and to him they lived from him all their thoughts affections and actions were from him who ruled in their hearts and they were to him because they wholly did his work and advanced his kingdome But now Oh wonderfull and happy change they are brought out of the dark prison they were in all the chains and fetters upon them are taken off and now they have the robes of Christ put upon them and are made free indeed Consider then how the godly become Christs it is by shedding his bloud we were Satans captives before and now made Christs Oh then why should the godly live to sinne or Satan or the world any more Were they crucified for thee Have they obtained thee at so dear a price as Christ hath Secondly The godly they are Christs Because by his Spirit they are made new Creatures They have a new being For it cannot be that any should be Christs who live in the flesh and are carnally minded Therefore the Spirit of Christ communicateth unto them a new being gives them an heavenly nature enables them to mortifie sinne in all the lusts thereof For this is a true Rule Christs merit and Christs Spirit goe together Where his death is effectual his Spirit is efficacious None can say they are Christs by his death for them that may not say they are Christs by his Spirit forming and fashioning of them Hence they are said To have his Spirit to be in the Spirit to walke in the Spirit to be led by the Spirit Oh then let carnal and earthly men stand aloof off This matter as it doth not belong to them so they understand it not If thou art Christs his Spirit dwels in thee leades thee guides thee enables thee quickens thee So that there are very few who can challenge an interest in Christ after this manner Are not most men destitute of Christs Spirit For the Apostle Romans 18. saith That if the Spirit of Christ be in us then as that raised up Christ from the grave so it would raise us from sinne Thirdly They are Christs Because he is the Alpha and Omega the first and the last the beginning and the end He is the Alpha he is the AVTHOVR and FOVNTAIN of all the spiritual good we have compared theerefore to the Head that gives of its fulnesse to every Member and to the Vine from which every Branch deriveth its nourishment And the Apostle cals him The Authour and finisher of our faith Heb. 12.2 It 's he that giveth life and motion and all spiritual strength to us Now every effect is more the causes then it is its owne Seeing therefore thou hast no good but what thou hast received from Christ thou art wholly to depend on him as the streame is on the fountain as the light is on the Sunne for take them away and these immediately perish Thus he is the Alpha and he is also the Omega and end We are not to live to our selves but to him Paul saith Gal. 3.20 He doth not live but Christ in him All our graces are to carry us out of our selves to Christ our faith in Christ our love and affections to be pitched on Christ If we preach it is to set up Christ if we eat or drinke it is thereby to strengthen us that we may the better serve him if what ever we doe or what ever we suffer it is to promote the glory and honour of Christ Fourthly We are Christs in that all our Christian compleatnesse is in him Colos 1.19 It pleased the Father that in him should all fulnesse dwell And again Ye are compleat in him Colos 2.10 So Christ is said To be made unto us wisdome and righteousnesse and sanctification and
desired heartly nor is he indeed weaned and set loose from other things The New-Testament is full of such sad Instances Take Judas a famous Apostle eminent in Gifts and Miracles often in communion with Christ yet he never got his heart above the bagge all the Sermons all the Prayers all the conference with Christ did not make him ascend higher So that a mans duties and expressions may be high even when his heart is as low as the earth yea when corrupt ends may put a man upon zeal and fervency It 's a creature that gives fire to all this heat Thus the third kind of hearers that received the word with joy it was the deceivablenesse of the creature that undid them Demas cleaveth to the present world and that makes him forsake Paul either totally or in some special service If then an immoderate heart to the creatures may consist with duties gifts and many inlargements and much asistance in holy duties if these are not able to cast out these Jebusites no wonder the natural man cannot Fifthly That a natural man cannot set his heart higher then upon some creature appeareth in the true nature of Conversion For that is not only turning from sinne but the creature also Excessive love to lawfull things otherwise is no more consistent with grace then to unlawfull things For if any thing have thy heart but God let it be what it will be thou art yet a natural man When the Apostle Col. 3. discovered that the godly are risen with Christ he makes these Inferences First Set your affections on things above and not on things below And then Mortify your members which are upon the earth reckoning up several sinnes No man then is converted till he goeth out of all sinnes yea and all creatures and cleaveth to God himself Therefore the Command is to turn to God even to God he only is the terminus ad quem of our Conversion If a man leave off his grosse sinnes take upon him a religious Profession yet if he be not lifted above the world as well as his former sinnes he is not Converted It 's not to God even to God So that a man must be undone not only in respect of his sinne but all worldly hopes he must with the Prodigall begin to account the whole world but an husk as that which will do him no good if God be not his Father Therefore those in the Parable though invited to the Feast yet refused to come it was not any grosse sinne hindred them it was not unlawfull lusts that did outwardly entangle them but those creatures which might have been lawfully enjoyed and yet they have gone to the Feast also I have bought a Farm I have married a Wife These were not inconsistent with godlinesse but in the immoderate desire after them Oh is not this the Millstone about many a mans neck I have a Shop I have a Trade and I cannot come Oh then set this home upon thy self Hath thy Conversion taken thee off from all creatures as well as thy sinnes thou darest not love Husband Wife Houses or life it self more then God Thou doest esteem the favour of God and the light of his countenance above all these things Thou canst truly say with David as it followeth Thou hast put more gladnesse in my heart then they have had when their best things encreased Many a man steppeth from his sinnes but into the world and so falls short of Heaven The right understanding of true Conversion makes it plain that no natural man can go beyond the creature Sixthly It may be demonstrated from the restlesse and unquiet heart of every natual man that doth like the Bee fly from flower to flower to get some Honey but stayeth not long on one place So that these in the text will every day complain Who will shew us any good Should God grant them their desire and give them the good they would have yet that would not satifie still they would be craving still they desire something more As you see Haman though he had never so much honour yet the want of something still he desired made him tormented within himself Solomon writeth an whole Book to shew that all these things are vanity and vexation of spirit and though he set himself on purpose to find out happinesse in the creatures yet he grew weary of all Now certainly if a natural man could center his heart upon God could put into that Haven he would never suffer himself to be tossed up and down in tempests and stormes as he is never having any rest There is no natural man that is contented with any creature he enjoyeth Let him propound to himself such and such a condition if he had such and such advantages when he hath them he is as far from solid contentment as at first Zacheus his shooe can never fit Goliah's foot As a man would think that the Heavens seem to touch the earth at such a distance and if he should ascend such high mountains he could go no further but when he cometh there he seeth the Heavens as far from him as before And therefore the godly man whose heart is united and hath taken God for his Portion for his Shepherd for his all as David professeth he can lie down and sleep he can take his rest fearing nothing in the world So that godlinesse drawing the heart to God is the best Antidote against all discontents whatsoever He that can say God is better then ten Husbands then ten thousand creatures he is not disquieted but is the same in all conditions because his God his Father his Portion is alwaies the same As he in the Ecclesiastical Histiory when one brought him word his Father was dead he said Desine blasphemias loqui Pater enim meus immortalis est So thy Husband thy Wealth thy Friend thy Portion is the immorâ—al God who cannot die but it 's not thus with the ungodly He is like a tree in the wildernesse and like the dust blown with every wind So that the troublesome restlesse and discontented thoughts of every natural man argueth that he doth not and cannot ascend up to God Seventhly It 's demonstrated thus that if at any time natural men make their applications to God those very approaches do declare that they love something more then God For it might be an Objection Why cannot a natural man be above the creature Do they not in distresses in times of calamity seek unto God May they not fast and humble themselves It 's granted but even these duties demonstrate they have only a natural carnal heart making use of God only to satisfie their earthly desires Hos 7.14 God there by the Prophet complaineth that they did not cry unto him when they howled on their beds They assemble themselves for their corn and wine You see they were as carnal and as earthly in their Fast-daies and publique Humiliations as in their worldly affairs and
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
which are easie and plain Principia luce suâ lucent they shine with their own light as the Sunne shineth with its own light you need not another Sunne to see it So that if these principles this light be put on the Candlestick held out in the Minâ—stry they of themselves do easily enlighten the whole house that is Suppose a man come with attention and faith for oportet discentem credere and principles cannot be proved but especially the sanctification of the Spirit of God is required So though the Sunne be never so visible if the eye be not prepared all is in vain to a blind man Now then supposing this Who can plead for that damnable ignorance in many people that have lived so many years where the Word hath been preached What can such say more than Heathens or Pagans that do all things to an unknown god as you heard and believe and worship they know not what I tell you such have not the first stone yet laid for any spiritual foundation What do such Bats and Owles in the Sunne-shine of the Gospel Oh if thou hadst lived in Sodome or Aegypt it had not been such a wonder but in Jerusalem to be so blind argueth thy case damnable Secondly The Word preached expects this effect not only to lay a foundation but to build upwards not only to plant but to grow Thus Ephes 4.13 the Offices in the Church are to bring us to a full stature in Christ Paul went up and down to confirm and increase where he had laid a foundation Where God gives talents he looks for increase The Ministry is a talent of which God will require a strict account So that it 's a just reproach to a people that live under the means if they be not out of the lower form if they have not left first and low principles rising to higher perfection As Paul doth sharply reprove the Hebrews for this want of growth Heb. 6. Oh then sit not down at the lower round in the ladder stay not at the bottome of the hill Christianity is a race There is work and work enough for thee Thus David prayeth His eyes may be opened to understand the wonderfull things of the Law Psal 119. His eyes were already opened and he had more knowledge than his teachars yet he prayeth as fervently to have his eyes opened as if he were a beginner and Eph. 1. Paul prayeth for those already enlightned that the Spirit of wisdome and illumination might be upon them What Paul said to Timothy Let thy profiting appear to all 1 Tim. 4.15 so say we you that hear and enjoy teaching Let your profiting appear to all Let all the world see there is a vast difference between living under no Ministry or a negligent Ministry and an instructing one If Corn should grow no better in improved grounds then in the barren heath it would be very strange To a blind man the day and night is all one he seeth as well at one time as another Oh fear thy self in a state of blindnesse to whom preaching and no preaching the Ministry and no Ministry is all one for thou makest no more progresse Thirdly A third Effect of the Ministry is To establish and settle in the truth to give a sound mind For through mens corruptions pride and vain-glory the Ministry as it may increase mens parts so accidentally increase their errours As April-showrs that make the flowers fresh and sweet so cause many croking frogs also This age doth testifie it If men get any knowledge any parts or abilities This is like new wine in old bottles it breaketh the bottles The sails are too big for the ship and so they are Doctores before they be Discipuli they are teachers of others before well taught themselves Now it 's a shame and a blame for any people to runne into erroneous Doctrines that enjoy a sound Ministry Mark that place Ephes 4.14 speaking of the Office of the Ministry one effect he mentioneth is That we should not be carried away as children with every wind of Doctrine Hence Ministers are called Guides and Shepherds and a great preservative it is to attend upon them and submit to them not with a blind obedience but as owning the institution of Christ and the way to keep from falshoods and this is not to preach our selves but your good It 's best for the sheep to keep to his faithfull Shepherd They are not infallible it's true much lesse art thou infallible therefore a blessing is to be expected in Gods order Lastly It is a shame to a people living under the Ministry of the Gospel a long while if they are not thereby furnished with abilities for those several personal duties that God requireth of them As for example Parents must bring up their children in the knowledge of the Lord. Private Christians are to have the Word dwell so plentifully in them that they are to admonish one another The Husband is to instruct his wife at home if she doubt of the things of Religion They are to instruct rebuke as occasion serveth Now how uncomely is it as we formerly shewed if thou a man so old so long hearing the Word preached canst not discharge these personal duties Oh the dreadfull account Oh the many duties God looks for at your hands which will not be expected from others In the next place Let us observe what a sinne it is if people are not able to bear or receive the practical operations of the Word For all knowledge if it be not after godlinesse is a tinkling cymbal The Word is not only the tree of knowledge but the tree of life also And First The Word is usually cloathed with this Majesty as to awe mens consciences to make them civil to cause them to forbear many grosse and rude wayes they were once accustomed unto Thus Johns Ministry though it did not convert Herod yet it made him do many things gladly The rocky and stony ground was a little mollified on the top to receive the Word though it was not soft at bottome The Word though it doth not soak to the bottome of mens hearts though it doth not enter so deep yet it thaweth above sometimes and men grow more civil This makes the wals fall down though it doth not take the City Oh woe then and again woe to that man to whom the Word hath not done so much as this but he is as prophane as a very beast as if he had lived in hell and not under the preaching of the Word which is called the kingdom of Heaven The wild beasts of the field they hide themselves when once the day begins to break forth And certainly prophane uncivil men should even call to the mountains and hils to cover them rather than be seen in such evil wayes Those that are drunk are drunk in the night saith the Apostle 1 Thess 5.7 and they are called works of darknsse Why then dost thou stumble in the
I am of Christ Thus they expounded it thinking it not matter of reproof for any to say they were of Christ and they say Pauls arguments would hold for this as much as they did against glorying in men For though Paul was not crucified for them yet Christ was Though they were not baptized into Pauls name yet they were into Christs But to answer this It 's true absolutely and simply it 's not a sinne but a duty for every believer to say he is of Christ To call no man Master but Christ therefore he is called a Christian because a worshipper of Christ And the Apostle 1 Cor. 3.22 useth this Argument The believers were not Pauls or Apolloes but on the contrary Whether Paul or Apollo c. all are yours but then mark he doth not say Christ is yours but you are Christs So for believers to say They are Christs is in the general a duty but that which the Apostle here reproveth is such a setting up of Christ as doth oppose the Instruments that Christ also hath appointed and that the Apostle blameth those who said They were Christs it's plain by the Context It 's told me by the house of Chloe That there are divisions and contentions This was a fault complained of And then he instanceth in the matter of the contentions I am of Paul I am of Apollo I am of Christ This is in the same manner reckoned as the former whereas if the Interpretation of the Ancients were true the expression must have been adversative But I am of Christ And then the Argument following is plain Is Christ divided viz. Is the Doctrine or Person of Christ divided Hath Peter one Christ Apollo another or these immediate pretenders another Christ Now these that set up Christ thus in a sinfull way may be either those that pretended immediate teachings by Christ for such were in the Apostles dayes therefore he bids them Try the Spirits or such who happily might have heard Christ himself teaching in his own person and so did wrest those Doctrines that Christ taught and yet in their sense made Christ the teacher of them both may be included Although I must adde That a further thing also is to be comprehended in this factious exalting of Christ vâ—z not only thereby to exclude Instruments but also to conclude that they only had Christ amongst them For this is the property of many Sects to appropriate Christ to themselves as if none had Christ but they Thus the Donatists did monopolize the word Christians to themselves Observe That although Christ onely is to be relied upon as the Head of his Church yet it is not his will that under this pretence wee should despise or contemne his Ministry and the means of grace he hath appointed So that this Text with the former doth excellently bound the spirit of believers that though they delight and rejoyce in the gifts and office of the Ministry reaping much spiritual benefit by it yet they are still to look up to Christ in the Ministry as the author of all increase And on the other side Though the Ministry can do no good without Christs teaching and it 's the Spirit that giveth grace not the Ministers yet we must not so immediately depend on Christ and his Spirit as to neglect the instruments and means he hath appointed Our Saviour cleareth this when in one place He sends his Disciples to preach commanding all to hear them And yet again Bids us call no man master upon earth Here is no contradiction but if a Christian be wise he may excellently compose them No man is to be called Master principally and authoritatively yet Christ hath appointed Teachers and Doctors by whom we are to believe So that it 's the errour and foolishnesse of men when they runne into extreams even as in the Doctrine of Grace and Free-will The Marcionites and Manicâ—ees they denied the Natural Liberty of a man and the Pelagians on the contrary the efficacious grace of God To understand this Consider That there are principal and efficient causes of grace and salvation and there are subordinate and instrumental and these must not be confounded A sound mind must not make instrumentals principals as ignorant people doe thinking the very Sacrament will save them Nor yet must we exalt the principal to exclude the instrumental as Enthusihsts do The Efficient Cause of all grace is attributed onely to God or the three Persons the Father Sonne and holy Ghost in their appropriated way So that it 's true Every good and perfect gift comes from God the Father of lights Jam. 1. No man can come to Christ unlesse the Father draw him John 6.44 And Christ saith He will draw all men to him John 12.32 He is the chief shepherd of our souls He is the truth way and life John 14.6 The Spirit of God also that leadeth into all truth that sanctifieth that inlightneth the mind So that when we have to do with a people that do rest upon outward meanes As some thinke the Ministers gifts the Ministers parts or the very coming of a Minister to them and praying for them while sick is enough to send them to Heaven To such hearers we are much to preach of the efficient principal cause of grace We are to cry Sursum corda we are to say as the Angel to the women looking for Christ in the Sepulchre He is risen Look up to Heaven so to such who rest upon external meanes and Instruments Why look ye downwards look upwards We see among the people of Israel yea and Christians in the New Testament too so great a pronenesse to relie on Instruments but as in civil things we must not relie on an arme of flesh so neither in Church matters on a tongue or mouth of flesh as the Ministers are In the next place There are Subordinate and Instrumental means of Grace which God though he could doe all spiritual things immediately for us and in us yet he hath obliged us to the use of them So that it is an high contempt of God and such may never expect the workings of his Spirit or virtue from Christ that doth not use those instituted meanes he hath appointed Now there is a three-fold Instrumental cause of Grace When we call them a Cause we mean not a natural Cause producing Grace by any inherent power as fire doth burn no but onely instituted Causes God in the faithfull use of these will worke Grace in us And they are three especially First There is the Scripture the Word of God This as it is written and consigned into a Canon is a Rule by which all must believe worship and live Insomuch that if a man pretend any Revelations or teachings which are not warrantable by this written Word he is to be held as accursed To the Law and to the Testimony Isai 8.20 Christ himself still directeth to the Scripture Paul directs Timothy to the Scriptures and
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
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
heart melting and bleeding He makes the rough and violent tame and mild Oh then in all our Preaching and soul-Administrations look up higher still cast your eyes upon God! Man doth not live by natural bread but by the Word of Gods mouth So neither by the Spiritual Bread O Lord make our hearts other hearts our affections other affections Thirdly God giveth the increase when he makes the Word preached to take root and setling in mens hearts Our Saviour purposely takes notice of this in his Parable of the Sower that went out to sow and the miscarriage of the most hopefull crop was because it had no rooting Mat. 13. While the Word is in the ear or floating only in the affections it 's like seed on the grounds Surface there will be no good of it till it take inward rooting This is called dwelling in a man Let the Word dwell in your hearts Col. 3.16 Let not our Sermons be as you your selves are pilgrims and strangers God many times threatneth the people of Israel to root them out of the Land as men do Trees and Plants which is an irrecoverable destruction when the root is pulled up there is no hope And one main cause was because the Word of God did not take any deep rooting in them Think it not then enough to hear it no nor to write it or repeat it or conferre of it but let it be rooted in thy vital parts If the ground you till and sow should yeild no more increase then thy heart doth to God thou wouldst give over thy labour as a vain thing And one main reason of this barrenness is those things go not home to your hearts they reach not to the inward parts Fourthly God giveth increase when he makes this rooted Word to grow For as there is in Corn first the blade and then the eare it comes to perfection by degrees So it is here the Word carrieth a man up by degrees towards Heaven he is first a dwarf then a gyant first a babe then a man first carnal then spiritual Oh! it 's much that thy profiting should no more appear But we see God even when he hath planted a Vinyeard hedged it in made the Clouds to drop on it yet it may bring forth wild grapes for grapes Isa 5.4 Oh! how angry is God with our Assemblies that doth not give this increase The Church sadly complained Why Gods angâ—r did smoak against the Sheep of his Pasture because of temporal dâ—solation Psal 74.1 But this is more terrible Now this growth that God giveâ—h it may be either Intensive or Extensive Intensive so God giveth increase when those graces that are already planted in the soul are made more lively and fervent This may be called a particular personal Increase Men are not only to enquire how God giveth increase in the general but how in particular to their souls Art thou made more believing more holy more humble then before The Children of God do not with that fear and trembling consider Whether God gives the Ministry such increase to their particular or no. Oh it 's a sad thing to see the decayes and abatements that are even of godly mens graces When God is the same God the Word is the same Word there is as much cause to grow as ever Consider lest thou live in such sinnes that make God cause the Ministry to be barren to thee Or else it may grow extensively and so God giveth increase when the Word spreads it self further to moe persons or Nations Those that do not mind or regard heavenly things do now lay them deeply to heart and the people that sate in darknesse have now light shining on them Thus our Saviour compared the Gospel to a grain of mustard-seed Mat. 13.13 the least of all seeds which yet in time grow very great and Gods power and goodnesse hath been very remarkable herein making the Word to thrive and prosper in those parts and amongst that people where the earthly or material sword could make no entrance In these respects God giveth the increase The work may be of men but the successe is of God Now the Grounds Why God onely giveth increase may be First Because even in natural blessings and outward mercies successe is attributed to God not to men much more in spirituals Thus the Psalmist attributes to God That the ridges are full of corn that cattel are fruitfull and do not miscarry God he keeps the key of Heaven and gives earthly blessings as he pleaseth Thus the blessing of the Lord that makes rich Prov. 10.22 And the battel is not many times to the strong or the race to swift or wealth to the wise Eccl. 12.9 but all is as God orders it If then these ordinary mercies which are wholy natural are only by God he gives life he gives wealth he gives strength how much more doth this hold in supernaturals Secondly God only can give increase Because he onely hath the supream power and dominion over mens hearts We are teachers to the ear God is a teacher of the heart God is the onely searcher of the heart he knoweth the thoughts and inward affections of men and so God only maketh and fashioneth the hearts of men Let us then look up with more earnest prayer to God that his Spirit would move upon these waters Not only the Law but the Gospel is but the letter meerly and the administration of death if the Spirit of God doth not enliven it Lord if thou hadst been here my brother had not died saith she to Christ So Lord if thou art in the Sermon thy power and thy presence then it had not so often miscarried Object But you may say If God give the increase Why then doth not the Word bear fruit in every place Are any hearts too strong for the Lord Cannot he turn a wildernesse into a Paradise Hath not he the key to open the hearts of men and none can shut them Answ I answer A people by their sinnes may provoke God to depart from his Ordinances The Temple in Jerusalem was dedicated unto God and he made a gracious promise to be there present yet the Jews did so long rebel against him that he wholly left the Temple and would no more answer them by Vrim oâ— Thummim Lay then the blame where it is say not If we had lived in the Apostles dayes had seen their miracles certainly we should have increased in all grace but we have not such preaching as then was we have not such miracles we have not Apostles Oh it was not those great things that wrought grace but God by them and the same God can do it by weak and unlikely means Conclude then If the Word then be not a Word of life a soul-saving Word to thee t is for some sinne or other upon thee Thou hast grieved the Spirit of God God is angry with thee and therefore thou art like the mountains of Gilboa upon
6.1 God forbid See with what indignation and disgrace he speaks it God forbid Oh then farre be thou from drinking down such deadly poison as to think because grace is free thou art also freed from duty There is such a pestilential corruption in mans nature that makes use of grace to patronize sinne To harden and embolden a man in evil because God is gracious Oh know God is not gracious but a consuming fire to such In the next place consider Why the godly are so sensible of Gods grace And First This is the final Cause of all the good that God doth enable us unto This is all he looks for We cannot adde to God any more happiness then he hath We cannot make him more blessed All that we can do is to acknowledge his grace to publish this to all the world Thus Eph. 1. That we should be to the praise of the glory of his grace And again That we should shew forth the power of him who hath called us out of darkness into his marvellous light 1 Pet. 2 9. So then it was a very heavy and grievous sinne if the people of God should not abound and be diligent herein for this is all God looks for for this he made us he converted thee he opened thy eyes turned thy heart to him Secondly The Children of God are endowed with an ingenuous free and excellent spirit Therefore they cannot but confess by whom it is they have obtained grace If he said of humane learning Ingenuum est It 's an ingenuous thing to confess by whom thou hast profited How much more have the Children of God this ingenuity Thirdly The reall sting smart and danger they have been in makes their heart full and mouth full of the grace of God Paul that was so neer Hels mouth for him to be saved all the world could not make him hold his tongue but he must publish the grace of Christ Men that have been in the deep in the Whales belly in the Lyons mouth for these to be delivered they must sing of grace speak of grace and plead for grace Oh then fear the less thy heart is affected with Gods grace that the less it hath been affected with the greatness of sinne Fourthly They are an humble debased people in themselves They have low thoughts of all that they do And therefore it is that they are so precious with God He dwels in the Heavens and in the humble heart Isa 57.15 Be ye cloathed with humility 1 Pet. 3.5 That must be a garment all over us And wherein is humility more seen then in giving all to God Fifthly They must needs acknowledge grace because they have the experience how hard it is to do any thing spiritualy and upon heavenly grounds And therefore if they are ever inabled thereunto they cannot but exalt grace Nothing is done graciously and acceptably unto God unless it be from a sanctified nature and divine principle and unless it be from a heavenly and divine motive from God and to God Now natural men never consider the gracious doing of any thing and therefore do not extol grace Sixthly To praise and exalt the grace of God it 's a very profitable and advantagious duty also It 's two waies profitable 1. It procures more grace and mercies from God James 4.6 He giveth grace to the humble The only way to have new mercies is to acknowledge the grace of God for the mercies It 's an heathenish thing to sacrifice to our own nets and our own power Tully said It was a foolish thing to thank God for our vertues because they were in our own power But he was ignorant of the Scripture 2. This acknowledging of grace will enlarge a man and make a man more willing and ready in all the waies of God It 's like oyl to the wheele It 's like wings to the bird Duties done with the spirit of praise and thanksgiving have great life and vigour in them Now I shall adde one Caution corrupt Doctrines and Opinions in Religion may much coole this duty of giving thanks I shall instance in some As First The denying of Original sinne is a great Ingine against the grace of God When Paul would raise up the Ephesians to confess Gods grace that had quickned them he tels them they were dead in sinne and by nature the Children of wrath Ephes 2 So David when he would extoll Gods mercy in pardoning he goeth to the very iniquity he was conceived in Psal 51. Secondly The maintenance of free-will dâ—th much detract from free grace It 's strange that any should hold this when the Scripture doth in so many places make man by nature a corrupt tree from whom no good thing can come Thirdly That the Law is not to be preached no not for Direction or Obligation Whereas Christ and Paul do often press this Lastly Vniversal Redemption As if God and Christ did no more for one then another Vse of Direction Would you be a people capable of this duty Then study the Law of God Apply it to your souls Oh see what curses are due to you How often you fail intreat God to affect you with the danger and damnable estate you are in Then how of often will thy mouth be opened to set up the grace of God Be ashamed if thou art sensible of temporal mercies and not spiritual Feel thy self dropping into Hell apprehend thy self a very Cain or Judas unless Gods grace doth interpose Vse of severe Reproof of that presumption and carnal confidence men put in their works and in their duties Oh be afraid to be found in any good thing thou hast done Shall David be afraid of his secret sinnes and errors which he understands not Shall Paul be afraid though he knew nothing by himself and darest thou hope or think to be saved by any works thou hast done Thou knowest not Christ Thou art not acquainted with the Gospel According to the grace of God given unto me as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation c. This Text you heard was partly Declaratory and partly Exhortatory Declaratory and therein was considerable the Person described by his office metaphorically As a master builder 2. The quality A wise master builder 3. His effect or action Have laid a foundation 4. The efficient cause of all this ability According to the grace of God given unto me This latter hath been dispatched already I come now to consider of that work or Ministry performed by Paul expressed likewise in that continued Metaphor which he had begun I have laid the foundation The plain meaning is obvious he acquainted them with the fundamentals of the Gospel that which they never heard of before or knew nothing of he did first instruct them in As Rom. 15.20 Paul was carefull not to build upon another mans foundation which was To preach the Gospel where Christ had not been named There is no difficulty in the words only a
erroneous person therefore is not presently convinced in his own conscience of his false way he may as the Antichristian party is be delivered up to believe a lie To call light darknesse and darknesse light Even as the distempered palate may call sweet things bitter So then though errours in Doctrine be stubble and trash yet they are not thought so by the Authors of them The Manichees called Manes Manicheus because he did 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 they commonly commend their falshoods as the precious rare and unheard of truths of Christ Secondly When the Apostle cals these errours hay and stubble he doth not speak of fundamental errours neither but such as are consistent with and built on the true foundation They do not damne the Authour of them but they make his salvation difficult He shall be saved but by fire For as for those Doctrines that race up the foundations Peter cals them damnable heresies 2 Pet. 2.1 Paul reckons them with Idolatries Witchcrafts and all the grosse sinnes that palpably exclude from the Kingdome of Heaven Gal. 5.21 Yea if an Angel from Heaven should bring such a Doctrine we were to hold him accursed Gal. 1.8 9. And all the faithfull are commanded Not to bid such an one God speed John 2. Epist As John the Apostle would not wash himself in that Bath where Cerinthus the Heretique had been So that these expressions of hay and stubble are onely for lesser errours But those that are in Folio as it were they are poison They are the venome of the red Dragon They are like the Plague that strikes dead into Hell quickly without a speedy recovery So that as all sinnes are not alike so neither are all errours And we are to make a difference between those that are fundamental Circa-fundamental and Super-fundamental as a man may so say As in sicknesses some are mortal and deprive of life immediately others are not so In the second place Let us consider why the Apostle cals errours by such names wood hay and stubble First Because of the vilenesse and contemptiblenesse of them Men if they did understand the Scripture and walk by that Rule would no more regard them than the straw under their feet as we say For as the true Doctrines of Christ were compared to gold because of their precious and excellent nature so errours are called stubble because of their base and vile nature In the Old Testament the names of Idols were names of contempt and scorn Baal-Phegor and Baal-zebub and thus here the sinfull opinions that men deliver are straw and stubble Secondly The Apostle describeth the Idolatry of the Heathens under this aggravation Rom. 1. That they turned the Image of God into an Oxe that eateth hay and truly all that love and delight in errours doe so They who should be after the Image of God delighting in precious and heavenly truths make themselves like the beast that eats hay Vitiated and corrupted stomacks will eat trash and so distempered minds and corrupted will receive falshoods Secondly It 's compared to hay and stubble for the levity and uncertainty of it What solidity hath a straw that is blown up and down with every winde Now the lightnesse and uncertainty appeareth in three things 1. It cannot abide the touchstone it cannot endure to be tried Straw cannot endure the fire The thief or he that doth evil hateth the light saith our Saviour John 3.20 Counterfeit and base coin cannot abide the touchstone whereas the Apostles when they preached they were willing to have their Doctrines tried by the Scripture and the Bereans are commended for making such an enquiry Acts 17.11 The Owls and the Bats cannot endure the day As soon as errour is detected it is confuted whereas the precious truths of God they grow more excellent and glorious by the trial of them The wheat loseth nothing by winnowing the iron by filing By all the errours and heresies that ever have been truth hath gotten the advantage As the ark was the more lifted up to Heaven by the waters 2. It 's uncertainty is seen in the divers shapes and moulds it hath denying and affirming As Tertullian of the Peacock Multicolor versicolor nunquam idem tamen semper idem Thus erroneous Doctrines are alwayes in new dresses in a new garb as they are necessitated by truth How often was Pelagianism interpoluted Therefore the Apostle cals the dealing of such persons who use to sow these tares 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ephes 4.14 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a slight jugling yea and bewitching Gal. 3.1 making such things to appear to the sense that have no subsistence Thus among the Arians both the Eusebiusses were in crafty and divers dresses sometimes for the Orthodox sometimes against them And Pelagius did four times change his opinion about Grace or rather his expressions At first he denied grace then he made nature grace then the outward preaching of the Word grace then granted the grace of remission of sinne Thus he did gratiae voâ—abulo uti ad frangeâ—dum invidiam So that herein the levity and uncertainty of falshoods doth appear that they are divers and strange Doctrines strange to the Word and divers and disagreeing among themselves 3. It 's uncertainty is seen that it doth never stay till God in mercy to his Church put a period to it Therefore false Doctrines are compared to a Gâ—ngrene 2 Tim. 2.17 you know that spreads and spreads till it hath even consumed the body And thus it is with errour it spreads from one to another and not only so but this young Serpent will grow up to a Dragon in time Arius una scintilla fuit was but one spark and yet he-set the whole world on fire Wicked men shall grow worse and worse one errour draweth on another When a man begins to tumble down the hill it 's hard staying ere he come to the bottom And therefore when thou once beginnest to wander from the truth fear thy self thou wilt presently be in a wildernesse yea thou wilt be like an Hazael in time Those opinions and blasphemies thou wouldst once have trembled and quaked at thou wilt excuse and defend Experience hath â—â—en too true but very sad of this in all ages of the Church Thirdly Errours are compared to hay and stubble For the uselesnesse and unprofitablenesse of them They are but fig leaves to cover our nakednesse and that will appear in these particulars 1. They do not truly inform and enlighten the mind Truth is light and doth inform and instruct the mind but all errours do bring more darknesse so that while they think they know more then they did they know lesse Hence they are said to be men of corrupt minds 1 Tim. 6 5. and deluded or deceived Oh what a dreadfull thing may this be for thee to think thou hast more light than ever when it may be thou art in more darknesse than ever To thinke thou art in a nearer way to
was 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Martyrdome Christ died a Martyr as well as a Mediatour because by his blood he witnessed Gods truth You see then how deare his truths are to him And the Psalmist among other arguments useth this It 's time for thee Lord to work for men have made void thy Law Psal 119.126 And though it be but the least Commandment yet if any man shall teach men to breake it he shall be called the least in the Kingdome of Heaven that is he shall be none at all in the Church here as some expound and of Heaven hereafter Matth. 5.19 Know then that not only prophane lives but corrupt Doctrines do provoke God Secondly It 's necessary there should be a time because of the people who belong to Gods grace that they may see their errours and bewail them That they may redeem the time by pulling down their hay and stubble and building gold and silver Thus Luther and all the first Reformers alas they had a long time built hay and stubble till God opened their eyes and then they were as much for truth as once against it How could the people of God come out of Babylon if this day were not And if there be so much joy for reducing one straying Sheep how much more of wandering Shepherds Lastly In respect of men hardened in their errours that their obstinacy may appear the more That when they will not see though the day appear who then can justifie them Thus the Pharisees the proper builders of hay and stubble yet Christ tels them He came into the world that they might not see Their blindnesse was the more increased by his light Vse of Admonition To embrace those daies of light and Revelation which God brings into the world Do not dote upon thy own Opinions thy old corrupt Doctrines and Worship It 's no longer night the day appeareth It 's true such a day is very terrible to men who are wholly corrupted with their errours As Mal. 3. The Prophet speaking of his coming to purify the sons of Levi cryeth out Who may abide the day of his coming It 's as terrible you heard as the Day of Judgment to them Certainly to superstitious and idololatrical persons the day of Reformation is a terrible day They cannot abide the purity and holinesse of it Do not dispute but wisely observe when God causeth such daies to arise upon thee thy blindnesse will be the more inexcuseable Because it shall be revealed by fire and the fire shall try every mans work of what sort it is We now proceed to the manner or Instrument by which the Day of God shall declare it and that is by fire This is the place that hath raised much fire of contention while Expositours differ about the interpretation of fire Austin as you have heard thought it one of Paul's hard places to be understood and is so modest that he professeth he had rather learn from others then dictate any thing himself This Text the Papists make the chief place for Purgatory therefore Bellermine lib. 1. de Purga cap. 5. is very large in the explication of this place calling it as difficillimum for tilissimum c. one of the most difficult places of the whole Scripture and yet most profitable because the Catholiques build their Ecclesiastical Doctrines on this place viz That there are venial sins and that there is Purgatory Indeed he doth in part Orthodoxly expound the fire in this verse saying Herein we do not dissent from Calvin and Martyr but he would establish it on verse 15. Of which in its time But it 's well that if there be such a fire it 's only of hay and stubble and will not last long By Purgatory fire they mean a severe punishment though not altogether so terrible as Hell in which place they go that are good for the main but yet have many sinnes cleaving to them from which they were not purged in this life If you ask for a text of Scripture some say It cannot be proved by Scripture but only it 's a Church tradition Others as Bellarmine labour to prove it by Scripture but by very obscure texts such as these are Now necessary things to Faith or Salvation are some where or other laid down plainly in Scripture But that this is only a probatory fire and not a a purgatory as they hold appeareth by this clear Argument They hold that only wicked actions shall come into the purgatory fire but the Apostle makes all actions good or bad to come under this fire The fire shall try every mans work If it be gold or precious stones it must be tried by fire as well as hay or stubble whereas purgatory fire is only for hay and stubble And this sufficiently clears the place from any such corrupt glosse which would build hay and stubble even from that very text that threatens fire to such Doctrine But it 's not enough to confute a false interpretation unlesse we give a true What then is meant by fire And First We will take it for granted though some think otherwise that fire is used in the same sense by the Apostle in these verses It 's revealed by fire The fire shall try Yet â—o as by fire Three times the Apostle nameth fire and it 's not likely that in so short a space he should use it in different senses Taking it therefore for one and the same fire let us consider how the Scripture useth the word fire and I shall not reckon up all the significations but what respects to this in my Text And 1. Fire signifieth the wrath and anger of God Why is thy anger kindled like fire And God is a consuming fire Heb. 12.29 2. For the Effect of Gods anger tribulations and punishment When thou walkest through the fire Isa 43 2. 3. It 's used for any thing that will try and examine That as the fire tryeth the gold but consumeth the drosse so whatsoever way God takes to examine that is fire Thus Psal 66.10 Thou hast tryed us as silver is tryed And Gods Word is said to be like gold seven times tryed in the furnace Psal 12 6. Especially Zechar. 13.9 4 More particularly it 's used for Gods Word because that doth try and discover all false waies Jer. 5.14 I will make my â—ords in thy mouth fire saith God to Jeremiah For fire hath light and heat in it both these try First Light Every thing that is manifested is manifested by the light Ephes 5.13 Secondly Heat Calor separat heterogenea Heat separateth the drosse from gold Now the Word of God is light and heat 5. Fire is used for temptations afflections The precious tryal of your faith by fire 1 Pet. 1.7 Count not the firey tryal a strange thing 1 Pet. 4.12 Mark 9.29 Every Sacrifice shall be sâ—ltâ—â—â—ith fire That is as some expound it Every man that would be acceptable to God he must have salt to season him and this
though all flesh and the flower thereof doth perish It 's true indeed Davids grace and Peters grace in the fiery tryal of sinne seemed to be quite extinct but they were as the trees in winter which have life in the root though no signes of life appear by fruit or leaves If therefore you see any who seemed to have been regenerated by the Word totally Apostatize and fall off take the Scriptures saying up They went from us because they were not of us Joh. 2.19 No true Starres can indeed fall from Heaven meteor's may Thus not only the truths we preach but even you that are Hearers ought to be our work and an abiding work The Apostle cals the Corinthians his Epistle to be seen and read of all men 2 Cor. 3.2 You are to be as walking Sermonâ— and no temptations or persecusecutions yea The gates of Hell are not to prevail over you Mat. 16.18 The forgetfull or unprofitable Hearer doth as much as lies in him to make the truths of God of no more durable operation then humane figments Now to this Doctrine there is an obvious and palpable Objection How can we say that the true and Orthodox building in Christs Church will abide all stormes Do we not read frequently that in the Church truth hath been condemned errour owned All those Martyrs that lost their lives for the truths of God were they not condemned as heretiques Hath not errour alwaies found more upholders then the truth Was not the Lord Christ condemned and that by a Council of the Priests and Elders of Jerusalem Was not the whole world turned Arrian And in our forefathers daies was not the Aegyptian darknesse of Popery covering the whole world Was not the Masse Transubstantiation and Image worship set up as the principal truths of God And are there not men that write the time will come when the Word Trinity Co-essential or Consubstantial shall be as much hated as Masse and Transubstantiation To this Objection we Answer That those matters of fact cannot be denyed and yet the Doctrine is true for those oppressions and overwhelmings of the truth were but for a while The truth of God did abide the fire even then and afterwards prevailed more then ever The Sunne for a while may be in an Eclipse and hidden by black cloudes but at last it's light doth prevail We do not say that in every place and at every time truth alwaies is extolled and errour condemned but in time it will be It 's with the truths of Christ as it was with Christ himself he seemed to be overcome by his adversaries he was dead and buried yet he had a glorious Resurrection and Ascension So that as God would not suffer his holy one to see corruption so neither will he let his holy Truths But as in Christ his bones by Gods providence were not to be broken the seat of strength so neither can the bones of Truth be The Apostle saith The Day shall declare it that is the time appointed by God 2. This abiding or decaying must not be judged by carnall reason but by the eye of Faith It 's enough that to the godly and Believers though but a few truth is acknowledged though the greater part of the world vote for an errour Christ himself was not owned for the Messiah but by a very few that had the eye of Faith the greater part denyed him To every mans eye the Sunnne is lesse then the whole world but to art it is farre bigger That therefore is said to abide the fire which indeed and to the eye of Faith doth so Wisdom is justified of her Children Mat. 11.19 3. We told you Though the day of Judgement was not principally intended yet we could not wholly exclude it neither And then the truth and sound principles of faith will abide when errours shall call for the mountains and hils to cover them Vse 1. Of Exhortation to us Ministers Seeing we are builders How behoveâ—lliâ— it to build such sound solid matter that will abide Oh that this Text were written in the heart of every one that undertakes to maintain or preach any thing in Religion It is a Babel or Jerusalem thou buildest and God will discover so at last But Secondly Of Instruction what you hearers should be such in whom the truths we preach should live and abide How can we say All flesh is grasse but the Word of God abideth for ever in your hearts Nay rather the Word and all preaching withereth as the grasse and the works of sinne and the world abide for ever with you Well know this that whatsoever we preach out of Gods word it is of everlasting abode it will go to the grave with you it will go to Hell or to Heaven with you Do you forget it never so much that will not forget you The Word will judge and condemn you And how can that be but because it will be alive and come forth at that great day against thee Verse 15. If any mans work shall be burnt he shall suffer loss but he himself shall be saved yet so as by fire THis Text containeth the contrary event of the foolish builder to the wise We would think hay and stubble should be no such great matter that God would not much stand upon such small things But this Text will sufficiently inform to the contrary In the words then consider The evil worke supposed and the sutable Reward threatned The evil worke supposed is to be such that cannot endure the tryal but will be burnt If any mans Doctrine be hay and stubble which cannot endure the fire but will immediately be burnt Then there is a two-fold reward even resembling that of an hell There is Poena damni a punishment of losse 2 Sensus He shâ—ll be saved but so as by fire There is no difficulty in the former For though it may be thought to referre to the work yet it is farre more probable that it doth relate to the person whose work it is So that as metal cast into the fire loseth its dross and so cometh out lesse then it was thus it shall be with him he shall be afflicted yet so that it shall turn to his good But the later is much vexed And First You see the Apostle speaks not of fundamental Heresies such as are damnable in their nature and carry the party without repentance to destruction but of such as are consistent with salvation Learned men apply it to the Gnosticks the famous Heretiques of those times who did not deny Christ but superstructed many evil and sinfull Doctrines upon this rock or foundation In the second place They are such as make a mans salvation very difficult Even as you have an expression of a righteous man A righteous man is scarcely saved 1 Pet. 4.18 For this phrase So as by fire is a proverbâ—al expression to denote the extream danger a man is in and yet escapes as those three Worthies in the fiery furnace
erre or be of this or that opinion is no great matter is as much as to say faith is no great matter the truths of the Scripture are no great matter It was well said of Austin Veritas Christianorum est incomparabiliter pulchrior Helenâ Graecorum The Christians truth is more lovely than the Grecians Helena for whom there was much strife Hence the Apostle commands us To strive earnestly for the faith once dâ—livered to the Saints Jude v 3. Thirdly They endanger salvation Because all errours come from a damnable cause Gal. 5.20 Heresies are said to come from the flesh as opposite to the Spirit and therefore are reckoned in the same Catalogue with grosse sinnes So that if you go to the first fountain you shâ—ll find errours in Doctrine and loosnesse in practice boâ—h came from the same ground they are both fruits of the flesh though they be different streams yet they are united in one â—pâ—ing Though they may struggle one with another yet both are twins in the same womb Oh what an antidote would this be against these soul-infections that are abroad to think that errours and ungodly practices come both from the same fountain They are all fruits of the flesh and therefore have a damnable cause Fourthly Errours in judgement endanger salvation Because they lead into sinfull and dangerous practices In Philosophy we are â—old of the great connexion that is between the understanding will and affâ—ctions Now the understanding that is the Sunne in this firmament and if that be in an Eclipse you know that evils are portended thereby The understanding is the counsellour and if that be corrupt the will and affections must be very sinfull and unruly Vse of Admonition To take heed we be not led aside with any errour or corrupt Doctrines You see death is in these things as well as in lusts yea if the mind be corrupt all else will be corrupt If the eye be dark the whole body will be dark Errours will breed loosnesse and prophanenesse of life They are a disease in the choisest part of a man and know it is not thy wisdome thy care can preserve thee It 's the Spirit of God through his Word that leadeth us into truth Christ is the truth the way and the life John 14.6 The greatest learning and knowledge will not keep a man learned men have been Heretiques but two things will especially keep us 1. Humility and lowlinesse of mind To such God giveth grace To babes and sucklings he revealeth himself And 2. An holy conformity to Gods will so farre as we know When we do not detain truth as a prisoner in our lives Doct. 2. Whereas you see an eminent Officer in the Church building but hay and stubble is yet hardly saved We may hint this Doctrine though not insist on it That every godly man though never so eminent yet is very difficultly saved If hay and stubble will put us to such danger what then will evident poison If these errours of the mind which are so hardly prevented what will the constant lusts and daily infiâ—mities even of all men Which makes the Apostle Peter say The righteous man is scarcely saved 1 Pet. 4.18 Which although some understand of a temporal salvation he is very hardly delivered from those temporal afflictions that fall out in this life yet by consequence it reacheth to eternal salvation Hence is that command To work out our salvation with fear and trembling Phil. 2.12 Yea Paul who had one foot in Heaven yet he said He kept under his body lest while he preached to others he himself should be a reprobate 1 Cor. 9. ult Now the Grounds of these truths are First From the exactnesse and strictnesse that is in the way to Heaven Godlinesse is on the high hill as he placed virtue Strive to enter in at the strait gate Luke 13.24 Be in an agony yea how strait is it as in Matth 7 14 by exclamation few do enter therein To lay out the nature of a godly man or godlinesse from Scripture-rules would be almost like Tullies description of a perfect Orator or Plato of a Commonwealth Our Saviour speaking of the difficulty of a rich man to be saved that is one who trusteth in them as one Evangelist saith Mar. 10.24 The Disciples cry out Who then can be saved They do not say What rich man but who can be saved because every man hath something or other be trusteth in as well as the rich man in his riches Secondly The difficulty doth appear from that remainder and relique or corruption that is in every man which is in danger to break out Our Saviour bid hiâ— Dâ—sciples Beware of drunkennesse and surfeting though they seemed to be â—arre from it Luke 21.34 Paul how doth he mourn under the powerfull vigor of sinne still abiding in him Rom. 7. Yea the Apostle speaking of a combate in all The Flesh lusteth after the Spirit and the Spirit against the Flesh Gal. 5. So that by this means he is in constant danger of being undone There is heart against heart affections against affections c. Thirdly There are many afflictions and tribulations which God brings on his people and they do much endanger Did not God break out upon Aaron Eli David and Moses very dangerously as if he would have cast them quite off and therefore the Apostle brings in the difficulty of the righteous mans salvation upon that Judgement must begin at the house of God 1 Pet. 4.17 So that if we consider the tempests and rocks in the sea of this world it 's a wonder any can come to the haven Vse of Exhortation Be quickned up to more exact strict and diligent walking If Paul that knew how to abound and want and to do all things who was like a gyant running his race and yet hardly gets to Heaven Where wilt thou appear Hear what he saith I presse forward I forget what is behinde if I may attain to the prize of the high calling Oh then how inexcusable is thy negligence thy dissolutenesse Is thy life a striving an agony Art thou like one in a combate and conflict By this we may see the number of men that shall be saved is very few there are so few that strive that pray that work with fear and trembling that are violent for the Kingdom of Heaven and get it by force Verse 16. Know ye not that ye are the Temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you THe Apostle though he alter his Metaphor yet continueth in the same matter In the verses before he compared the Church of Corinth to a building here he sheweth what kind of building it is even a sacred holy building The Temple of God So that as in the Temple of old which was consecrated to God whosoever did bring in any unclean and unconsecrated things to the Temple he did pollute it and was to be punished thus all corruptions in Doctrine Worship or
this later way of Gods Spirit as formerly you heard dwelling in us is most comfortable and most to be regarded though the other be more admired The former did especially belong to the Church in its first plantation Hence Acts 2. we reade of the accomplishment of that glorious Prophecy Joel 2. To pour out his Spirit c. but now these miraculous operations are ceased Vse of Instruction What Congregations and what manner of persons we ought to be To be meer men cometh farre short of being spiritual men we ought to be above sense and all humane principles Take the most refined men for morality and civility the choisest for all humane abilities yet without the Spirit of God they are no more than Adams body till life was brethed into him no more than those bones in Ezekiel till the Spirit of God gathered them together Oh that our Congregations consisted of spiritual men Paul complained He could not preach to them but as carnal The Spirit of God would lift thee up to other affections other desires As the Spirit took some mens bodies and lifted them up into the air so would it doe to the soules of men they had the Spirit of God who said Our conversation is in Heaven They had the Spirit of God that did look for the coming of Christ They had the Spirit of God who had prayed with groanes unutterable and who had joy unspeakable But oh we poor worms and not spiritual men cold clods of earth destitute of Gods Spirit And that the Spirit of God dwels in you We have heard what this inhabitation of Gods Spirit in his Church doth imply and how he may be said to dwell in us In the next place let us consider the special Workes and Effects of Gods Spirit in his Church For therefore partly hath he the name Spirit because of that power and efficacy he hath in the Church Hence he came downe in a mighty rushing winde and cloven tongues of fire So that he is called the Spirit internally and externally internally for his personall character whereby he proceeds from the Father and the Sonne Externally because of those admirable effects and demonstrations of his presence in the Church Now I shall not speak of these operations which he hath as God in creating and conservating of the world but what are more peculiar to the Church in which sense he is called The Spirit of Christ Romans 8.9 because Christ by his death did purchase such gifts and graces for his people the efficient whereof in an appropriated manner is the Spirit of God And First The very ministerial functions and abilities to discharge them are of the Holy Ghost in the Church For although Ephesians 4.11 it 's said That Christ after his Ascension and triumph over Death and Hell Gave gifts unto men Even as great Emperours when they ride in glorious triumph after a final Conquest over their enemies use to distribute large favours and many bountifull signes of honour yet because upon his Ascension he promised the Spirit of God in his absence as the divine Vicar of Christ therefore 1 Cor. 12. we find all operations and diversities of them attributed to the holy Ghost And Acts 25. the holy Ghost is said To make those overseers in the Church of Ephesus So that what Church-officers or what Church-ordinances or order we have and what Gifts and Abilities likewise there are to discharge them These are all of the holy Ghost and of the holy Ghost three wayes 1. In respect of their Institution and being For although it 's by man that such and such persons are elected and ordained to this or that Office yet the Office of it self is of the holy Ghost They are not the Institutions of men nor may men appoint some Church-officers which God hath not because their end is wholly supernatural As it 's said 2 Cor. 12.28 God hath set in his Church such Officers even as he hath set the Sunne and starres in the firmament so that all Officers lawfully called are of the holy Ghost either immediately as at the beginning or else mediately by the order and designation of the Church And as for their gifts it 's plain the extraordinary and miraculous gifts in the primitive times were from Gods Spirit The Scripture often attributeth them to it Only now it may be doubted Whether we can say that the gifts and the abilities that Ministers have now are from the holy Ghost because they are got by humane study and industry And is there any more required to understand the Scripture than any other humane Authour Plato or Aristotle Those cursed wretches Julian and Porphyrius who wrote against the Scripture they understood what they were so invective against yet it cannot be thought they were inabled by the holy Ghost Now to answer this even those natural abilities and humane indowments that men obtain by study are a gift of God they are a blessing which we see God giveth to some and not to other It 's Gods mercy thou art not a natural fool a mad man but when thou hast more understanding and better intellectual abilities than other thou hast a greater gift from God than others Hence in our very ordinary phrase we say such an one hath an excellent gift in his memory in his elocution c. And the Scripture is clear James 1.17 Every good and perfect gift cometh from the Father of lights which is to be understood universally both of naturals and supernaturals And what hast thou thou hast not received 1 Cor. 4. Hence in the Parable all abilities whether gracious or natural are called Talents and are given by one Master That is the first thing even those excellent abilities which the greatest Heretiques and enemies to the Christian Religion had were of God though the sinfull use of them came from the Devil and their own corrupt hearts They were talents of gold and they made Idols of them 2. As the gifts and abilities Church-officers have are from God so the right understanding of the Scripture and believing the sense contained therein is in a more particular manner a gift of Gods Spirit For although the Spirit of God doth not give us the sense and meaning of the Scripture in an extraordinary manner viz. without the knowledge of the tongues the comparing of places together c. yet in and by these means the Spirit of God doth help us to understand the Scripture I do not here speak of a saving knowledge of the sense of the Scripture but a meer literal knowledge of the meaning thereof This is plain by the Apostle No man can say that Jesus is the Lord but by the Spirit 1 Cor. 12 3 The very historical believing of Scripture truths is from the Spirit of God So that here is required a more peculiar and particular assistance of Gods Spirit in ministerial abilities for the opening of the Scripture then for any humane Authour because the matter
the only wise God he sees their thoughts to be vain He seeth that Ahitophels that Tullies that Pharaohs thoughts even when they intend to deale wisely are vaine Let men applaud them yet God derideth them 2. The Lord knoweth the thoughts 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 their reasonings their choisest acts of the understanding their best and most accurate Discourses all their Logick as it were to be a meer fallacy And then Lastly To be vain to be fruitlesse to be empty they make empty webs all the day long Domitian the Emperour is derided for spending time in catching of flies and yet as vain and foolish are all the thoughts and projects of every natural wise man So that what Motto the wise man would write upon every creature Vanity of vanity all is vanity So the same may be upon all the best thoughts meditations and counsels of the wisest men and if a mans mind be vain every thing else in him must needs be vanity for this is the salt that seasons a man and if that hath lost its seasoning 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 become a fool all is likewise foolish Observe That the choisest and best thoughts of the wisest men are vaine We may consider man in a three-fold capacity 1. Politicè as a political creature endued with civil wisdome and so is part of a society and thus his thoughts are vain 2. Ethicè as he is to walk according to the Rules of reason which sound and rectified nature doth guide a man in and thus he is vain 3. Theologicè as he is to look up to Heaven to obey God and to aim at supernatural happinesse And in this sense especially he is a most vain empty man and to this the Apostle relateth To open the Doctrine let us consider In what sense the Scripture useth the word vain and you shall see them fitly applicable to the wisest mens thoughts that what is said of mans body may also be true of his soul Every man at his best estate is altogether vanity Psal 39.5 And First That is said to be vain which is empty and void of that worth and excellency which ought to be within Thus a fool is called often a vain person because he is empty of that solid judgement and reason which ought to be in a man Hence foolish persons are compared to empty straws that are blown up and down with every wind because they have no weight in them Nabals name and his nature agreed he was a fool The word comes of a root that signifieth to wither As the withered branch hath lost all its sap and juice so a fool hath And thus the thoughts of all men naturally are empty void and destitute of true wisdome They knew not wherein true happinesse doth consist or what is the way that looketh to it they do not provide for eternity they consider not that upon this moment depends eternity they look not out to the best and choisest things in the first place all that inward juyce and sap of spiritual wisdom is taken from them Secondly That is said to be vanity which seemeth to have great happinesse and content in it but indeed it 's the clean contrary A vain thing is that which hath a goodly appearance but inwardly hath no profit As those apples of Sodome so much spoken of Thus Eve called her son Abel vanity because she thought that before she had brought forth the man the feed that should break the Serpents head but finding him to be without the Image of God and devoid of all holinesse subject to mortality she called him Abel as deceived in her expectations And thus it is with all the thoughts of the wisest in the world they think at first they have possessed a man brought forth that which will accomplish all their desires but upon experience they see it is an Abel it 's vanity So that as Solomon tels us of a vanity in all earthly comforts in riches and pleasures because though they have a goodly appearance yet there is indeed no substance no solidity like the thorns which have white flowers but thorns Thus it is with the best and choisest thoughts and projects of the wisest men they have a goodly lustre you would think such wise men could not but be happy their expectations are raised but the issue doth deceive them Call us not Naomi but Marah may they say Thirdly Vanity in the Scripture is often applied to a lie Every man speaks vanity to his neighbour that is a lie Psal 12.2 And thus the thoughts of the most wise are a lie Let God be true and every man a liar Rom. 3.4 All thy thoughts are so many lies Now a man is a liar two wayes 1. To himself And then 2. To others To himself all his thoughts are a meer lie They promise such happinesse glory and felicity to themselves and in the mean while they are very lies they prove as the Land-flood as a reed a man leaneth on The rich man that said Thou hast many goods laid up his thoughts were so many lies Those proud thoughts of Tyre and Sidon that set her heart as God and said No evil should come near them were nothing but lies And if this were only in temporal and fading things the deceit would not be so dangerous but it 's in spiritual things also All mens thoughts naturally are concerning the goodnesse of their heart the purity of their wayes the happinesse of their condition but in all things they lie most damnably What a dangerous lie was that of Laodicea who said She was rich and cloathed and wanted nothing when indeed she was naked miserable and wanted all things Revel 3.17 All the Pharisees thoughts whereby they trusted in their own righteousnesse and justified themselves were nothing but lies And thus John Baptist reproved the Jews for their vain thoughts Thinke not to say within your selves we have Abraham to our father Mat. 3.9 The thoughts of men are never more dangerously vaine than when they please themselves about their good condition as to spirituals that all is well with them that God loveth them these are lying vain thoughts Again The thoughts of all men naturally are lies actively in respect of others They are full of falshood and dissimulation there is no truth or sincerity in men as David complaineth Psal 12. And the Prophet Isaiah complaineth Every one is an hypocrite the best is a liar Isa 9.17 That as the sheep runneth to the briars to shelter her self in a storm but they prove a lie because they tare her in stead of defending her Thus it is with all men therefore he is said to be cursed that puts his trust in men Jer. 17. For unlesse men have godlinesse and so are made sincere and unfeigned there cannot be any trust in them Hence are those Rules of wise men Nemini fidas in teipso spes tuas pone Fourthly Vanity is often in Scripture used for that which is
the whole world is for a godly man What wealth what honours what health is necessary and needfull he is sure to have He that dwelleth by the Ocean he hath all the water in the Sea for his use though it 's not necessary he should make use of it all He that hath the use of any thing hath the thing Again if a man have never so many things and do not use them he hath them not As the great rich men of the world Habent ne fruantur non ut fruantur The having of them keeps them from enjoying of them as he said In opem me copia fecit and they are not theirs for use because they are theirs in possession Thirdly The world is a godly mans as his shop and place of service It 's that wherein he works and labours for God It 's the great shop for mankind to do that work God hath appointed them It 's the great vineyard in which God hath set every man to work This is the via the other is patria This world is for doing the world to come for receiving And our Saviour spake many Parables to this purpose that he giveth all talents he be ruâ—â—eth every man with several oportunities and they must improve them they must be merchants in making the best for God And we are the more to attend to this because we have but a day the night cometh and none can work Oh that this were considered by us The world is a working place for Heaven all that is to be done must be done here when thou art taken out of this world all thy work is done for Heaven Then thou art to receive a reward Take heed either of speâ—â—ing thy talent upon sinne and in the service of Satan or hiding it in a napkin to do nothing with it We see what toil and labour men take for the things of this world But labour for the meat saith our Saviour which perisheth not John 6.27 There are eternal riches and treasures Oh that our hearts were more upon these things One thing is necessary they chuse the better part who neglect all things to enjoy God Fourthly The world is a godly mans Inne or lodging place It 's a provision God makes for a season till they are ripe for Heaven Thus the godly are often compared to pilgrims and strangers and Abraham Heb. 11. with the Patriarchs though they had the promise of the world yet they were as pilgrims and declared it by all they did That they sought for a City of Gods own making which abideth for ever So that the whole world is but a with-drawing room for the godly They are as travellers in an Inne who are not inordinately affected with the good things there neither will they spend all they have there but still look to their homes And truly this sheweth the excellent frame of godly men though they are in the world yet not of the world John 17. As we see the vapours though they arise out of the earth yet they ascend and follow the motions of the Heavens Thus it is here though the godly are in the world yet their affections desires and motions of heart are according to heavenly directions The wicked are in the world as their proper place their center they would never goe out of it but the godly seek for another Countrey Fifthly The godly have the world as the Stage or Artillary-yard a place of Exercise wherein all their graces are to be drawn out by the opposition therein Even as Paul 2 Cor. 12. said There was given him a thorn in the flesh and it 's given to the godly to suffer How is that Because these exercises and oppositions they are to discover and draw out the godlinesse and power of believers As some among the Romans were put to many fights and exercises to prove their valour Thus the godly is in the world as a souldier in the camp or in the battel Our Saviour John 15.18 tels his Disciples of the hatred and opposition they shall meet with in the world if they were such as the world would have the world would love them but because they do not conform to their wayes therefore they are persecuted and driven up and down Look upon the world as a place of Exercise do not think to find it otherwise than an Aegypt to thee It will therefore be thy wisdome to get the rich spoils of it as from an enemy To be quickned to the height of all thy graces by how much more the combaâ—e and conflict thou hast is exceeding great The greatnesse of the tempest will discover the great art of the Pilot. Sixthly The world is a godly mans Because all things therein are sanctified and made clean to his use When Adam tell we lost our dominion and being our selves unclean every thing becometh unclean to us Tit. 1.15 To the pure all things are pure but to the unbelieving all things are defiled You see then that to wicked men nothing is pure though they have great estates great honours yet nothing is clean to them Though they have a civil right to such things yet wanting the sanctified use of them every thing becomes defiled to them So that every thing they touch is pitch every thing they eat is poison there is a spiritual leprosie upon them Because without faith it 's impossible to please God Oh if there were no other sense then this that all things to the godly are sanctified and clean in their use this were admirable Having faith thou art reconciled to God and so thy eating thy drinking thy buying thy selling all thy actions are accepted of Thus you see how the world is a godly mans The Objection then is Why have the godly the least possession of it if they have the sanctified use of it Doth not David complain That wicked men have the fatnesse of the earth Did not Christ tell those who profered their service That the Foxes had holes and the Birds nests but the Sonne of man hath not where to lay his head Matth. 8.20 And can the Disciple be above his Master Doth not Paul tell us of his hunger nakednesse and all kind of straits How are these promises any thing but golden delusions To answer this you must know That even those wicked men who are said to have the world at their will yet they have not the world indeed they have it not as the godly men The little that the righteous hath is better than great treasures of the wicked Psal 37.16 For First Whatsoever the wicked man hath he hath it in wrath it cometh from Gods anger God is angry with the wicked all the day long And Heb. 11. Without faith it 's impossible to please God Those that are heirs of the world have it by walking in the faith of Abraham Think you Dives that fared so deliciously every day had all his wealth in a mercy No it was for his punishment it
Fifthly Present good things are a godly mans Because they are accompanied with the love and favour of God which is infinitely more than the good things themselves Non tam donis quam à Deo datis That all these good things are the effects of Gods favour and gracious reconciliation through Christ this makes them ours in an eminent manner When God gave Abraham such large worldly revenues and withall said He himself would be his great reward Gen. 15.1 This was the fulnesse of happinesse And so you may see David accounting it when he esteemeth more of Gods favour the light of his countenance and justification of his person more than all his victory and successe which he had To have these good things and Christ also to have these mercies and the light of Gods countenance is to have the fulnesse of earth and Heaven also And this is the reason why a little that a righteous man hath is better than great treasures of the wicked because he hath Gods favour and his love with it A good conscience is a continual feast Now no man hath a good conscience but he who is reconciled with God through Christ and doth enjoy the pardon of his sinnes which is evidenced by his repentance and forsaking of them but no wicked man is thus he may have a stupified conscience not a good conscience he may be at ease not be tormented and disquieted within but yet have no solid joy Lastly These prosperous events are theirs Because God giveth contentation of spirit The blessing of the Lord maketh rich and he addeth no sorrow with it Prov. 10.22 Many men have these outward mercies but then many thorns grow up with them There is so much gall in their honey that all the sweetnesse is gone This contentation is also accompanied with a faithfull dependance and stedfast trusting in God for present provision Hence we are directed to pray for our daily bread which implieth a present provision fit for us in every state We come now to the second sort of present events and those are tribulations and afflictions There are none of these present troubles upon thee though grievous and burdensome but it is for thy good Though the Apostle saith No affliction for the present seemeth joyous but grievous Heb. 12.11 Yet truly for the very present though not to thy sense yet to thy judgment it ought to be joyous Hence Jam. 1. we are commanded To count it all joy when we fall into divers temptations Now they may well be called ours First Because they come from Gods gracious love to us That same love which is the fountain of all thy earthly comforts is also the cause of all thy earthly afflictions It 's the same hand that doth stroke thee and strike thee What a comfortable passage is that Heb. 12.6 Whom I love I chasten and if ye were without chastisement ye were bastards and no children David also affirmeth Ps 119.15 Out of very faithfulnesse thou hast afflicted me So that in this dead Lion thou mayest find honey Even out of this Rock may come refreshing waters What a stay should this be to thee Why art thou dejected Why doest thou cry out that none is like thee Thy trouble thy blacknesse thy tribulations are for thy advantage as much as all the mercies thou ever enjoyedst Go to the fountain from whence they came and that is nothing but precious love Secondly They are thine for the blessed and heavenly effects they work on the godly so that they could not be so well without them Now of many excellent effects Consider 1. They are to humble us for sinne to make us feel how bitter it is to go out of Gods way And is not this lesson of great consequence Mich. 7.9 I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I have sinned against him And I opened not my mouth because thou Lord didst it Psal 39.9 So that the bitternesse of sinne makes it terrible and grievous to them Now they cry out What have I to do with sinne any more What profit have I of such sins that now do so wound me 2. Another end is To make us more vigilant for the future to preserve us against future temptations We have been burnt already the rod of the Almighty hath been already on our backs and can we entertain such stinging vipers again Oh they remember the wounds the desolation and darknesse of soul they were plunged in Thirdly These afflictions are ours Because they are exercises to draw out our graces our faith our patience our heavenly mindednesse and thereby our crown of glory is greater Thus the Apostle saith These light and momentany afflictions work an eternal weight of glory 2 Cor. 4.17 And afflictions are called The precious trial of our faith 1 Pet. 1.7 As gold to the fire as winnowing to the corn as washing and rinsing to the foul cloaths the same are tribulations to a godly man These are the file to get off all their rust These are the waters of Noah to raise the Ark up higher to Heaven Thus you see the bitterest event every day is thy good and happinesse thou art blessed full and blessed empty blessed laughing and blessed mourning blessed having all things and blessed having nothing Vse of Terrour to wicked men They are in such a state that whatsoever befals them makes them more sinfull and so more miserable Thy good things thy evil things they all tend to make thee more evil It 's like drink to the Dropsie It 's like oyl to the flames if God give thee plenty and abundance of these things Oh then judge not your selves happy by having these things but by the sanctified use of them Every night thou mayest make up thy accounts and say my soul is the worse for this and that to day Wicked men will not believe that all things are thus a snare to them but the event will shew it Vse 2 Of Comfort and again of comfort to the godly Whatsoever is come upon thee though never so sudden never so great and terrifying this is from love and with love Or things to come all are yours We now come to the last particular in the last Enumeration Or things to come By things to come Some we told you understood the Revelations and Prophesies that were about things to happen in after ages But we are to take it as largely as the words beare Now the things to come are of two sorts First What is to come in this life For no man knoweth what may befall him ere he dieth or at death which made the Heathen say that knew not this Text Ante obitum nemo foelix c. Or else they may be future things in the world to come For God doth keep the best wine till the last The godly have but clusters of grapes here they come into the Land of Canaan it self hereafter Now of both these future things we are to speak and for the things that are
my self but he sent me But especially John 7.16 My Doctrine is not mine but his that sent me he that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory Here you see Christ acknowledging that the Doctrine he preached as a Minister and Mediatour was not his Yea if we speak of his humane Nature that invented it not because that was a finite creature though united personally to an infinite Person Oh what an admirable instance is this of modesty Christ speaks not preacheth not of his own but from the Father How should we Ministers then not preach our own fancies our own imaginations but the Doctrine delivered in Scripture How would this bridle up a deal of bold ignorance now in the world Men would not be so forward to teach before they have well learned themselves Christ speaketh nor of himself And consider that connexion vers 18. He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory When we are not contented with Scripture-doctrine with truths delivered there but bring of our own it 's only to seek vain glory and applause in the world Thirdly That Christ is wholly Gods appeareth in that as the Doctrine he preached was the Fathers So he sought not his own glory did not exalt himself but the Father John 8 29. I do alwayes those things that please him And vers 54 If I honour my self my honour is nothing So John 17.4 I have glorified thee on earth Thus in all that Christ did and suffered it was only to glorifie and advance God his Father For alas in respect of himself he was of no reputation Under what reproach contempt and scorn did he live So that all might easily see it was not his own glory he looked at but the glory of the Father And this also is an excellent President for humility and modesty and self-denial The Apostles also when they did work wonders so as the people were ready to make Gods of them They rend their cloaths because of such blasphemy and say It is not they but Christ who inabled them to do these things Act. 14.11 Yes how ready are we to say these are our parts our gifts Fourthly That Christ is wholly Gods appeareth In that obediential resignation of himself to do Gods will Let I come to do thy will O God And he would be baptized because hereby he would fulfill all righteousnesse And John 17.4 I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do Insomuch that Christ is said to become under the Law So John 6.38 I came down from Heaven not to do my own will but the will of him that sent me Therefore John 18.18 Gods will laid upon him to die for his people he cals it a Commandment And John 12.49 He gave me a Commandment So that we see the duty of a Mediatour to do and suffer what was required of us was laid on Christ by Commandment and it was truly and properly Obedience that which he did in fulfilling of it Now in all this truth there are these things admirable First The love of God and the love of Christ God so loved the world So The Apostle could not give an How it was such a So that could not be expressed When Abraham offered his only sonne for a Sacrifice God said Now I know thou lovest me How much rather when we see Christ dying and suffering all those agonies and miseries for us may we say now we know God loveth us Shall the Psalmist so admire Gods love in giving man the beasts of the field that he crieth out What is man that thou art so mindfull of him Psal 8.4 How much rather may man stand astonished at this love of God in giving Christ Well may God be said to be love it self for he is the fountain of all this honey Who may if repenting though a Blackmoor sinner doubt of Gods love in pardoning when he hath done the greater Which is greater to give a Christ or to pardon sinne And then The love of Christ is no lesse admirable for him to give his life for us sinners and enemies herein he did 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 set forth his love in a most exemplary manner Jonathans love to David is much commended but what is that spark to this flame Oh how can the poor doubting and unbelieving sinner question forgivenesse doubt whether Christ will accept of him or no when he seeth Christ do so much for him already Fear not the worst of death and hell is over Secondly In this admire the self-denial of Christ that he layeth aside the exercise and manifestation of all that divine glory he had and became contemptible of no reputation for us The Apostle aggravateth this Phil. 2. When it was no robbery to be equal with God yet he became such a worm and no man for us This is so great a mystery viz. Christs condescension for our good that the Angels though he be not their Mediator though he took not their Nature on him yet they desire to look 1 Pet. 1.12 and search into this truth as being ravished with it Oh what an example is here for us of self-denial and preparednesse to part with all at his command Lastly In this it 's admirable The humble and ready obedience of Christ Doth Christ any way gain-say this commandment of God Doth he murmur at it Doth he begin to repent of his undertaking No but in all things giveth up himself to be a willing Sacrifice he bids the Law in its curses and the wrath of God in all the effects fall upon him As Saul runne his Spear at David but missing him it stuck in the wall Thus the anger and wrath of God emptying it self violently misseth us and fals on Christ What a willing expression is that Loe I come to do thy will O God! Heb. 10.9 Vse 1. Is Christ thus Gods Then we see that the Mediatory Kingdome of Christ is for a further end it is that at last God may be all in all Not but that Christ shall alwayes remain God and man and all glory shall be given to Christ who hath brought us into Heaven but this actual administration shall then cease The damned in Hell can no more plead Christ they cannot urge his death any more for now that gracious dispensation is ceased there is no more oil no more water to refresh It 's now as desperate as if there never had been a Christ thy estate and the Devils is now both alike Oh then let wicked men that need Christ awaken and look about them while a Christ may be had while a Christ is ready to do good the time will be when he shall not actually as a Priest or Prophet or King dispense such mercies any more 2. Is Christ thus wholly Gods Then what self-denial what humility and modesty should we learn hence Shall Christ not seek his own glory Shall not he seek to please himself Shall not he exalt his own will Why then are we so apt to magnifie our self-glory
buâ— shew the worlds glory yet to shew here is to give to enjoy to make them to partake of it As Psal 60.3 Thou hast shewed thy people hard things which was the making of them to drink the Wine of astonishment Even as to see Heaven to see death is to partake of them Observe That no Natural or Vnregenerate Man can lift up his heart any higher then unto a worldly Happinesse and content in the Creature When you have in the most powerfull and moving manner discovered spiritual duties and the necessity of Conversion to God yet they matter it not they will say Who will shew us any good That as it is with the Swine though Pearles and precious Flowers be thrown unto her yet she trampleth them under her feet and desireth her draffe and the loathsome mire so it is with them To bring this coal of fire into your bosome let us consider several Propositions First That herein lyeth the general Character of those two Citizens which Austin speaks of one who builds up Babylon and the other who builds up Jerusalem That the one doth frui utendis and uti fruendis but the other is clean contrary The whole world consists of two sorts of men the one who are of the world the other though in the world yet not of it As John 17. Believers are said to be given to Christ out of the world As a man may be in England who is not yet an English-man he cannot speak the language he cannot conform to the custom and manners of the Nation Thus it is here the godly they are indeed in the world and are of it also in respect of natural propagation but not by divine Regeneration As the Fowles though at first God created them out of the waters yet they fly up into the Heavens and delight to be soaring in the air Thus it is with the Regenerate man he is now made a new creature old things are past away and his affections are set upon things above This earth is turned into fire But the wicked man he like our body of the earth is earthly even his very soul is in a spiritual sense so and their love to the creature is the predominant quality and so like a stone he falls into this center Now Austin of old did fully expresse the contrary inclination of these two That the wicked man doth frui utendis that is he doth enjoy as his utmost end and terminateth his appetite in such things as his utmost happinesse which only he is to use as meanes to a further end As if the Israelite should have made the Wildernesse instead of the Land of Canaan to him This is the crooked and perverse inclination of the soul wholly contrary to that Image of God which man was made in So that the very Heathens could observe that though God made man with a countenance caelumque tueri yet they cried out O curvae in terris animae caelestium inanes The body is upright but the soul is bowed down like the bodies of beasts like wormes and Serpents that crawle on the ground And therefore the wicked are the Serpents seed not only because of enmity to the godly but because they lick up and live upon the dust of the earth even upon earthly things Every wicked man he makes some creature or other to be as a God and so the ultimate end to him To clear the hainousnesse of this wretched temper consider Secondly That all the good things which the creatures do afford unto us they are but as meanes to carry us to a further end They are but as the rounds of the Ladder not to stand upon but thereby to ascend higher even to Heaven So that as the world is a Glasse to represent the invisible Attributes of God his Wisdome Goodnesse and Power thus all the comforts we can have by any creature they are to be as so many mementâ—es that there is a better and more universal good and that we have the creatures to use only not to enjoy Thus the Apostle 1 Cor. 7. They that buy as if they bought not they that use the world as not abusing it Some expound abuti as it is sometimes taken for valdo uti but howosoever he abuseth it that doth not use it as if he used it not with an holy weaned affection from it Hence then to enjoy any creature setting it in Gods room in the heart is a direct breach of that first Commandement Thou shalt have no other gods besides me And for this reason covetousnesse is called Idolatry Col. 3 5. Insomuch that every natural man hath one thing or other on which he commits Idolatry and therefore doth as highly offend God as he that worships stocks and stones giving divine adoration to them The Scripture cals that The abominable thing Thus it is when the heart of a man is fastned upon any creature as the ultimate scope and end of his desires we may say to him Oh do not this abominable thing Yea this Idolatry is more dangerous by how much it is the more secret and hidden in the heart And as the Papists have invented a world of subtile distinctions to make their Idolatry lawfull no lesse subtile is the heart of man in this soul Idolatry Thirdly Take notice that there is an higher and grosser sort of unregenerate men then happily this expression will comprehend and that is those who make such things as are formally and expressly evil the good things they would have shewed to them Such are all grosse and prophane sinners who live in the daily practice of some loathsome sinne These are a degree higher in wickednesse then those in my text though they may be reduced to them for here the Psalmist speaks of such things as are lawfull and good in themselves Honours Wealth humane greatnesse comfortable Relations these are good things in themselves and to say Who will shew us them in a mortifyed and subordinate manner to God had been no sin But when they come in competition with Gods favour they had rather have them then Gods light of his countenance this demonstrateth impiety But as for the prophane man his appetite is more corrupted for he cals evil things good he loveth those things excessively which he is not to love at all The other loveth Honey but he eateth too much of it and that kils him this eateth Poyson and feedeth of that one drop whereof is immediately mortal But to these I shall not enlarge my self Fourthly Consider this That the Schoolmen do well place in every sinne a a two-fold respect There is the Aversion from God and the Conversion to the creature For seeing the soul cannot like the earth hang upon nothing but it must have some Object or other to satiate it self with if it hath not God it hath the creature Now as soon as ever it turneth to the creature it turneth its back upon God I speak of the sinfulnesse of man
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
filled with God Thirdly Those can only desire the light of Gods countenance that do renounce their own righteousnesse That do not justifie themselves or put confidence in their own righteousnesse Commonly there are none more ignorâ—nt and stupid about this glorious priviledge then the civil pharisaical and formal men who placeth all their trust in the good works they do Those affections and that hope which should be placed on God they are apt to put upon their own seeming righteousnesse Hence Mat. 5.3 our Saviour pronounceth those blessed that are poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven And the Virgin Mary magnifieth God in her Song Luk. 1.53 He hath filled the hungry with good things and the rich he hath sent empty away Not only the prophane man who trampleth this Pearl under his feet but even the formall civil man is a great stranger to this petition This favour is wholly a strange thing to him and all because he is full of himself He makes his good heart his good workes a god a saviour to him and so no wonder if he seek not up to Heaven and desire light from thence Yea in godly men it is thus that the more debased and self emptyed they are the more is their fellowship with God The more do they place their happinesse in beholding of him As you see it was with Paul Who laboured more then he yet Who undervaluing all his graces more then â—e And all this was that Christ might be wholly exalted Oh then know that there is nothing doth so much bolt out this glorious light from shining into thee as self-confidence as self-righteousnesse And this is the reason why God doth so many times withdraw his gracious presence from his own Children that they are in the dark and cannot see any grace and the least spark of heavenly fire within themselves and all because they are apt to be lifted up They must have these thornes in the flesh else they would depend too much upon their own strength and their own graces And when they have been thus humbled then at last they come to esteem Gods favour more then ever as Paul's passengers after a stormy black time rejoyced to see the Sun more then ever Fourthly Such only can esteem the light of Gods countenance who are a spiritual and an heavenly people who have the holy Image of God repaired in them He that is of the earth is earthly and speaks earthly things Joh. 3. but he that is of Heaven is heavenly Such as we are in respect of our spiritual constitution such are our operations and our inclinations No wonder then the natural man desireth not the favour of God for he is in a corrupt and sinfull estate and so can desire nothing but what is suitable thereunto Whereas on the otherside he that is made heavenly he that hath an holy frame of heart the motions of his soul ascend upwards still As you see by David How often doth he professe the breathings the longings and thirstings of his soul after God He cryeth aloud that he hath nothing in Heaven and Earth but God He makes God his Portion his Shepherd his Refuge his Hope his all things unto him Whence is David thus carried out to the favour of God but because of an heavenly heart within There could not come such sweet fragrant smells but because his heart was like a spiritual Garden You see all like desireth and delights in that which is like And if a godly man love to see the face and have the company of another godly man how much more must he desire God himself Oh then complain of that heavy lumpish earthly heart of thine that doth not often say My heart breaketh for the longing after God at all times As the Hart desireth the waters so pants my soul after thee O God If thou complainest that thou hast affections for every thing but God thy heart is taken with every comfort but him Oh bewail this dull and sinfull frame Thou wantest heavenlynesse Thy heart and conversation is not in Heaven Fifthly Such only pray for the light of Gods countenance as live by Faith and are affected with things as revealed by the Scripture It 's as impossible for a man living wholly by sense and upon worldly Principles to rejoyce in the favour of God as a worm that crawleth on the ground to delight in the Sunne Faith is that noble grace which is like Wings to the soul to make it fly up to Heaven We see it in Paul What was that which so raised up his heart to Christ What is that which made him to sit with Christ in heavenly places What is that which is the substance of things hoped for to every Believer but Faith We are all lame cripples till Faith heal us And this is the reason why all worldly men have no more sense of this divine Benefit then the very bruit beasts because they are wholly strangers to the life of Faith For it 's not the bodily eye that can see the face of God neither hath God any bodily face or eyes but these things are wholly spiritual And therefore as the deaf ear cannot be affected with melodious musick so neither can a natural heart discern of this light of Gods favour Oh then acquaint thy self with Faith This is a Prospective-Glasse that will discover such Objects to thee that of thy self thou couldst not apprehend Faith makes us to behold the glory of Gods favour We are starke blind till Faith open our eyes Sixthly Such onlâ— can esteem the favour of God who have had the experience of the sweetnesse and excellency of it A man that hath not tasted Honey knoweth not how sweet it is Therefore David calls upon the men of the world to taste and see how good God is If the natural man ever had any experimentall feeling of Gods favour and his love then he would quickly have another heart be of another mind Then he would sell all to get this Pearl But all the while men are unregenerate they know no other good then that of the creature It hath never entred into their hearts to conceive what it is to have the face of God shine upon his people Insomuch that all the invitations and allurements are in vain untill God be pleased to come into the soul and discover his sweetnesse and consolations to him The experienced Christian that hath often drank of this Wine still remains thirsty and desirous after more For whereas the having of earthly things doth satiate and at last nauseate a mans heart so that he hath enough in this heavenly enjoyment of God he never hath enough but the more he hath tasted of it the more hungery he is still Alwaies praying with David Oh when will he come to me When those in the Canticles asked the Church which was so ravished with Christ preferring him above ten thousand What is thy beloved more then others it was an Argument they
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
that these very considerations which should take them off from such security through their corruptions they further themselves in See this notably described Esa 22 12 13. When God call'd to weeping and mourning there was eating flesh and drinking wine the clearn contrary And what moved them even the sad condition they were in Let us eat and drink for to morrow we shall die Oh why not rather Let us mourn and humble our selves for we shall die But they are desperate They will take their pleasures while they may they know not how soon they may be deprived of them Such as these are filled up with desperate prophanenesse That as Saul and his Armour-bearers did desperately throw themselves upon the Spear to kill themselves Thus do these men laugh and drink and will have their pleasures though they know death will deprive them of all Such men are said to make a league with hell and the grave They will do well enough for all this Or rather they think they shall be damned their conscience secretly whispers that to them therefore they will have their pleasures while they can O miserable and wretched men wo be to such that ever they were born Fourthly This prophane security differeth from spiritual confidence in respect of the Author and efficient cause For it 's plain who giveth David this holy quietnesse it 's God that maketh him dwell confidently it 's God that commands rest and ease to the soul whereas this carnal security cometh wholly from the Devil It 's he that lulleâ—h them asleep Our Saviour discovered this in that parable when he said While the strong one kept the house all things were in quiet You would wonder to see a man curse and swear and follow all the pleasures of his heart yet that he can lay himself to sleep that he should not think his chamber would be as â—ull of Devils as Pharaoh's was full of frogs That he should not cry out Oh I dare not sleep for fear this night the Devils fetch my soul to hell Now all this carnal security in his spirit ariseth from the Devil who is said to reign in the hearts of the children of disobedience It 's he that filleth the soul with spiritual madnesse As when he possessed the bodies of men he threw them into the fire and water and made them cut and launce their bodies without any grief at all the like he doth upon the souls of men hurrying them into beastly wicked and ungodly waies and by that meanes even into hell it self as he did the Herd of Swine when he entred into them carrying them violently into the Sea What was it that made Judas so desperately betray innocent blood though he had so much warning so many admonitions to the contrary Though some were stricken down with amazement yet nothing will stop him The Devil did drive him The Devil had entred into his heart even as he did also fill Ananias his heart So that as you see it 's with godly men when filled with the holy Ghost they would boldly confesse Christ though they endured all torments for it Thus when the Devil hath possession of mens hearts and the Lord leaveth them to his temptations then they are mad and obstinate they scoff and mock at the Day of Judgment As the Apostle Peter tels us of such prophane mockers Where is the day of his coming Are not all things as they were 2 Pet. 3 4. Thus like Leviathan they laugh at the Spear and as the Prophets hearers because he so often preached the burden of the Lord therefore they took it up by way of scoff The burden of the Lord The burden of the Lord. Thus do they about hell and damnation Fifthly Carnal security differeth from this heavenly confidence in respect of the Concomitants and Companions For though David had this great quietnesse of soul knowing God would help him yet he doth carefully use all the meanes God hath appointed He doth not presume or tempt God but he prayeth to God and flyeth for his safety and getteth all the possible succour he can So in that grand assurance and confidence which the people of God have about their eternal happinesse there is also an holy fear and trembling Therefore the Apostle exhorts to work out their salvation with fear and trembling And Paul himself who had so much confidence as to say Who shall separate us from the love of God in Christ yet he kept under his body lest when he had preached to others he himself should become a reprobate 1 Cor. 9.27 But as for the wicked carelesse man he promiseth himself all happinesse and future good though he sit still and stirre not a foot towards Heaven yea though he go in the contrary path yet he flattereth himself as if that were the way to happinesse Vse of Terrour and we To all those Laish and Laodicean spirits who sit at ease and say They are rich and want nothing when indeed they are poor and miserable and want all things Oh turn your joy into sorrow Go out with Ephraim and let God see you smite upon the breast and strike upon the thigh crying out Oh what have I done Oh mad wretch that I am merry and jolly when in the Devils dungeon when in the chains of darknesse when upon the very borders of Hell It may shortly be no more said such an one is eating and drinking but his body rotting in the Grave and his soul roaring in Hell The Reason of the Saints Confidence is That God alone is their Preserver Shewing also the Waies and Meanes by which he doth Preserve them PSAL. 4.8 For thou alone doest make me dwell in safety IN these words we have a Reason why David hath such confidence it 's not from any carnal and outward Motive but only from divine consideration For in this also might be shewed the difference between carnal security and holy quietnesse The one is a fruit of a godly and diligent obedience to the Law of God and so is a fruit of the Promise as Prov. 3.23 24. You may see there a notable Promise for rest safety and sleep to such as follow Wisdomes Advice And Dâ—vâ—â— found God faithfull in his Word Psal 127. For so thou givest thy Belâ—vâ—â— sleâ—p But all earthly security ariseth from some temporal hopes they loâ—â— at in their dangers and therefore while they look for peace God makes calamity to arise on the suddain as 1 Thes 5.3 When they say peace and safety then suddain destruction shall arise as of a woman with Child and they shall not escape Suddainly in the midst of their mirth and jollity will their inevitable destruction arise David therefore hath a more firm and immoveable Rock and that is Gods Power and Preservation Which is expressed in The Effect of it And The solitary Efficiency of it The Effect is To dwell in safety David though now in banishment and had no House of his own to lay his head in
when in the Battell was taken by his enemies and they ready to kill him yet he cryed unto the Lord and God moved their heart to depart from him 2 Chron. 18.31 So in the thievings and robberies in the world it 's God that diverts men from designing and doing mischief to such Families While the people of Israel wenâ— up to keep their Feast at Jerusalem he ordered mens hearts so That none should desire their Land Exo 34.24 Vse of Thankfulnesse to God in all these common Preservations Every day every morning and evening thou hast cause to wonder at his Power and Goodnesse under all thy temptations What befalls another God tells thee what might come to thee Oh therefore do not take thy life and health God giveth thee and spend it upon the Devils service Remember Thou livest upon Gods mercy if he withdraw for a moment any suddain evil may fall upon thee â‚ FINIS An ALPHABETICAL TABLE A Admiration OF Admiration of Ministers Persons when sinfull p. 48 Afflictions How Afflictions effect good in a man p. 179 181 Agreement The Motive of Agreement is Godlinesse p. 33 Agreement among the wicked easily broken doth not alwaies denote a true Church p. 41 Protestants Agree in Fundamentals p. 41 B Babes BAbes in Christ p. 5 Babes directed p. 8 Backbyting Of Backbyting p. 35 Building Gods people are his Building p. 118 The Scripture is the foundation of this Building p. 141 Of a two-fold Building upon the foundation p. ibid. How a Minister must take heed how he builds on the foundation p. 142 Of their Building Gold Silver Precious Stones p. 157 Boasting Of Boasting in men p. 265 See Glorying C Carnall CArnall its several significations p. 5 In what sense a godly man may be said to be Carnall p. 21 Ceremonies Of Ceremonies p. 11 Causes Causes of Grace Principal and Subordinate p. 59 Principal the Ministry p. 68 Efficient the Spirit of God ibid. Church The Churches Duties p. 20 Of Church-Government p. 84 Of the Holinesse of Churches p. 118 The matter of a Church ibid. The Church of God is his Temple p. 193 The Churches Priviledges Relations and Titles should be a spur to duty ibid. The Churches Riches enumerated p. 270 Christ Christ justly exalted p. 30 As the Foundation p. 21 145 Christ may be sinfully set up and how p. 58 What it is to preach Christ p. 145 153 The Godly and all they can do are Christs p. 294 Christians Christians should â—â—ve as those that are more then meer men p. 42 Contention Contentions argue men to be so farre carnal p. 33 Contentions are two-fold Good â—vil p. 34 36 37 The cause of sinfull strife p. 34 The Effects of it in Civil Religious Matters p. 35 36 The Aggravations of this sinne p. 36 D Damnation OF Damnation p. 222 Death Death the godly mans advantage p. 282 Deacon Deacon the word used diversly p. 66 Defile Defilers of Gods Temple with corrupt Doctrine p. 216 Difference Difference between Christian and Christian in respect of their Knowledge and Graces p 5.22 Discipline Discipline how severe in the Primitive times p. 7 Divisions The sad Effects of Divisions p. 99 Direction for Times of Division ibid. Difficulty The difficulty of the salvation of those that are most godly p. 192 Divinity Divinity contains a two-fold Matter 1. Fundamentals and 2. Conclusions from them E Encrease THe Encrease and successe of preaching from God p. 86 Ends. Of corrupt Ends in a Minister and good Ends p. 63 64 Envy Envy the word used in a good sense and in a bad sense p. 25 It 's a fruit of the flesh p 25 Its Degrees p 26 Its Object p. 27 It s Subject p. 28 Its Aggravations p. 29 Its Remedies p. 32 How differenced from zeal p. 32 Errour Errour Considerations about it p. 142 c. Errours are Hay and Stubble though not Fundamentall p. 161 Men may be erroneous and not know it 161 Errours Greater Lesser p. 121 161 Why called Hay and Stubble Its secret waies shall be made manifest p. 169 May indanger salvation p. 189 Its Causes p. 169 Defile Gods Church p. 217 Erroneous times sad times p. 174 How God will punish the erroneous p. 186 219 How farre a godly man may erre and how a godly man erring differeth from a wicked man p. 220 The Difference between Errour and Heresie p. 190 See Doctrines Eternal Of Eternal Damnation F Family OF Family-Duties p. 3 See Relations Wickdnesse p. 3 4 13 Such as they are such is the Common-wealth p. 14 Faith Faith Its eminency p. 70 Nature and Acts p. 71 Its Foundation viz. the Scripture p. 126 Effects p. 72 Knoweth its ground why though it comprehend not the matter believed p. 71 Is the Instrument of Sanctification as well as of Justification p. 72 Fundamental Of Fundamentals p. 2 The ignorance of them lamentable p. 2 Reduced to several Heads p 14 Are easie p. 15 Knowledge of them necessary ibid. Foundations Foundations in Religion carefully to be laid p. 125 Four unquestionable Scripture Foundations I. The Matters to be believed viz. The Scripture is the only Foundation of our Faith p. 125 126. How carefull Ministers should be to build truth upon that Foundation p. 141 Four rotten Foundations The Authority of the Church Magistrate Enthusiasme Meer humane Reason p. 127 II. The Worship and necessary Service of God p. 129 How necessary it is ibid. It must have a Divine Command p. 131 Three rotten Foundations in Worship ibid. III. The things to be done by us p. 125 This Foundation of Practice consists in 1. It 's Directory Gods Word 2. The Justification of our Persons 3. A receiving power from Christ 4. A renewed and sanctified Nature p. 133 The necessity of this Foundation p. 134 Four rotten Foundations that men build upon in reference to practice p. 135 How Christ is the Foundation p. 145 c. How the Apostles the Foundation p. 145 c. Fool. Wise men after the flesh are fools p. 229 G Glory THe Degrees of Glory p. 101 105 Of Glorying in men The sinfulnesse of this sinne p. 261 And how many waies that is done ibid. See Boasting Godly Their Characteristical Priviledges p. 155 265 Of Godlinesse in the power of it p. 42 105 Grace Free Grace to be exalted and praised and how p. 121 Why the godly are so sensible of free Grace p. 123 Impediments of this duty p. 124 Gospel Gospel how great a mercy to a people p. 79 Government Of Government in the Church p. 120 Growth in Grace Growth in Grace and Knowledg pressed p. 1â— 91 Intensive Extensive ibid. Grounds of Religion See Principles and Fundamentals H Hay OF building Hay and Stubble p. 161 Hell Of Hell p. 222 Heresie Heretiques How God will punish Heretiques p. 220 Hide How vain and sinfull to Hide our sinnes p. 166 c. Holy Ghost The Holy Ghost is God and a Person p. 201 c. Why called a Spirit ibid. Heaven Heavens Happinesse p. 108 Houshold-Duties See Family