both and seeks with teares and stayes about the grave until she find her Lord. The Lord must be displeased with our narrowness How little a portion of him doe we see We are not straitned in the Lords heart but in our selves He calls for wider hearts Open thy mouth wide and I will fill it Psal 81. 10. not the mouth but the heart our narrow heart and narrow faith is like the little hand of the child who hath not fingers to hold the large and great apple 2. The fool wants a heart Hos 7. 11. Prov. 9. 4. Then must the fooles of this world know little of an enlarged and wide heart as little as the horse or the mule that hath not the understanding of a man nor have they the heart of the new man Speak to the natural men of the fatness of the Lords house of all the fulness of God and the showers of influences of grace of the anointing of all wisedom and ye speak to new weaned children 3. Idlers and sleepers that run not in the way of Gods commandements but are hot as fire and mad and run as the Galatians in a wrong way are hence rebuked Many run and sleep little after their corn and wine and oyl after their vineyards honours but not with enlarged hearts in the Lords way They run to set up themselves and in place of Religion set up all the wicked religions of hell Toleration is high but he shall be laid hold on who prophecies and cries against the cursed Altar 4. There is a Spirit of deadness on many professors the judgment of the Church of Sardis Rev. 3. 1 2. and hardly can sleepers waken themselves we pray not as David Psal 119. Quicken me quicken me Unrenewed professors are painted men praying and hearing men risen out of the grave dead on their feet preaching praying hearing and yet dead CHAP. X. Of fixedness of heart 2. Prayer begets an heavenly disposition and an heavenly disposition again begetteth prayer 3. Holy acts beget holy acts and an heavenly disposition begets an holy disposition 4. The Lord so frames his precepts and his promises as our actings are suitably required to his influences 5. These three are to be differenced 1. The spiritual state 2. The spiritual temper or constitution 3. The spiritual condition 6. The reason of doubling of sentences and words Psal 57. v. 7. My heart is fixed O God my heart is fixed I will sing and give praise 8. Awake up my glory awake psaltery and harp I my self will awake early MY heart is fixed Gen. My heart is prepared my heart is confirmed established The doubling of the word my heart is confirmed noteth the vehemency of affection 2. As also the speaking of it to God O God my heart is fixed declares the sincerity of it 3. The speaking to his tongue to awake it his calling it his glory as Psal 16. 9. My glory rejoyceth that is my tongue expresseth joy is an elegant fiction of a person as speaking to his soul Psal 103. 1. Psal 116. 7. Psal 42. 11. and noteth some dulness in tongue and heart to praise God his bidding his psaltery and harp awake is also an elegant prosopopeia as if the harp could sleep and wake And there is another figure the instrument of musick is put for the gift of musick he tacitely prayer God to waken up his gift and his grace of musick to praise and that God would awake himself to praise being under the sense of the Lords deliverance of him when he fled into the cave for fear of Saul and the Lord delivered him out of the hand of Saul and put Sauls life in his reverence The words contain 1. The disposition of fixedness of heart 2. His vehemency of affection in doubling the expression 3. His speaking of it prayer-wise O God my heart is fixed His sincerity 4. What the disposition wrought in him a fixed resolution to praise and a waking up of his gift of musick awake psaltery and of himself I my self will awake early The word my heart is fixed is rendred by Amsworth my heart is firmly prepared Diodati my heart is re-confirmed or re-assured Calvin in the French my heart is well disposed Geneva prepared Q. How got David this heavenly disposition 1. The occasion was 1 Sam. 24. as the title of the Psalm bears Saul with three thousand men-persons David in the rocks of the wild goats in the wilderness of Engedi Saul went into the cave to cover his feet and David and his men remained in the sides of the cave and David went in and cut the lap of Sauls garment and had in his power to kill Saul and his men counselled him so to doe but in stead of arfrighting Saul and his army the Lord suggests the fear and awe of God he durst not kill him 2. He trusted in God for deliverance another way then to put hands on the Prince as Psal 112. 7. A good man is not afraid of evil tidings his heart is fixed trusting in the Lord. This is the fixedness of faith opposite to fear and unbelief when another man would tremble being compassed with three thousand instruments of death as many men as many deaths yet his heart is fixed on God both to believe and to pray David by prayer Be merciful to me O God and by faith gets this confident disposition and this confident disposition brings forth acts of believing in stead of trembling and resolutions to praise and to sing and give thanks But if the question be moved how gets David grace to believe and grace to pray Certainly by influences of grace upon the occasion of the delivery So that here acts of praying bring forth holy dispositions to pray and to praise as is clear Be merciful unto me O God and God both delivered him and gives him fixedness of heart to pray and praise when a natural man would tremble at the sight and fear of so many deaths And again a disposition and fixedness of heart brings forth a resolution to praise and give thanks And 2. a stirring up of himself and his musick to praise yea and actual praising v. 11. Be thou exalted O God above the heavens let thy glory be above all the earth As the herb brings forth the seed and the seed again brings forth the herb and so the herb brings forth the herb and the seed the seed and the apple brings forth the tree and the grape the vine tree and again the tree brings forth the apple and the vine-tree the grape the water is the maker of ice and ice is dissolved into water and again that water is turned into ice Q. What shall beget a holy disposition to pray A. Praying begets a holy disposition to pray When David goes up the mount of Olives fleeing from Absolom he weeps and prayes Psal 3. and that praying begets a fixedness to believe and a disposition to pray v. 6. I shall not be afraid of ten
have been no Saviour no Emanuel no declared free grace no gracious design in God to open experimentally to Men and Angels the wonder of Christ and free grace but that must come upon the Soveraign Lord by some bide-by design of nature and created free will 3. Were influences at our disposal we might make our prayers only to our own free will who only can by this way hear and help but we pray to God only for quickning determining leading and stirring up influences and for effectual teaching and influences are in a good hand when the matter is so 4. The unregenerate as in Shepherd's select Cases page 96. pag. 102. are not within the compass of any conditional promise though in Baxter's Append. to Aphor. to Obj. 10. 11. p. 28. he puts a note of censure on it for if the new heart were in the power of Cain and Judas and this were holden forth to all and every one of mankind run well and win the crown of conversion and of the life of grace and of glory For 1. You have sufficient grace to win it 2. You have the influences of grace at your own disposal and power be you Brasilian Indian or what else Then were all men made independent Lords of salvation and damnation and of the holy and deep decrees of Election and Reprobation And if so there were not such a thing as a decree of Reprobation but as a sort of over-birth and a decree of some after-wit in the holy Majesty of God after he were disappointed of his former Gospel-decree of choosing all to glory who wisely yea out of his manifold wisedom willed and decreed all to be saved so they would use the universal power and the influences of grace well as they might and could but unto what God should such make their prayers whether to God the Father of our Lord Jesus or to themselves I cannot divine 5. If so be influences be at mans disposal could he kisse the Mediator stoop to free grace and adore it praise and sing his glory who sits upon the Throne and commend the Lamb who redeemed sinners out from among lost sinners 6. In reason we can no more time and dispose of the measure manner and kind of our own comforts and of the kind and measure of the Lord's influences then the Earth can dispose of the quantity of rain and dew and herbs corn or growing trees can determine of the influences of the Sun Moon and Heavens The third Classe of Answers to the Lord 's restrained way of giving of grace and to him who says Had I more grace I should be more holy must be taken from the holy attributes of God for this quarrel why would not the Lord make me holier and let out richer influences of grace is a reproaching of his Soveraignty He makes not all the lumps of the great masse of clay vessels of honour that is true Nor have they all alike nearness to the Throne of glory or the like measure of glory that are in Heaven nor alike measure of gifts all are not Apostles nor alike measure of grace and holiness nor are they all equally poor or equally rich or equally wise and learned or equally believing in the same measure of assurance the same measure of joy For when Paul disputes thus he hath mercy on whom he will and hardens whom he will it comes to this Why doth he then find fault it is not in him that runs and wills if the Lord would effectually call us Jews we should run and will and obey as vigorously as the Gentiles doe But the Lord doth not so call us therefore he cannot rebuke us or find fault with us that we believe not and receive not the Messiah and the righteousnesse of God through faith which is the very Objection in hand 2. As the Objection is against the Soveraignty of God so it is against the infinite wisedom of God Why should the infinitely wise Lord knowing if Judas and all the disobedient refusers of Christ had the same grace and influences of grace bestowed upon them which he freely bestowed on his own they would have obeyed deny that grace and these influences he knowingly denies them After the Apostle in three Chapters hath discussed this Rom. 11. 33. he acknowledges there is a deep in it O the depth of the riches both of the wisedom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgements and his ways past finding out No wonder it be a depth to me but there is no more deep in it if all have universal sufficient grace and if all have the influences of grace in their power then this is no depth He that believes shall be saved he that believes not shall be condemned and God rewards those who seek him I deny not there is a depth in all God's ways in the industry of a Pismire of a Coney of a Locust yea how the bones grow in the womb of her that is with child But because the Apostle having discoursed of Election and Reprobation and of the Righteousness of Faith and of the Law Rom. cap. 9. c. 10. and of the casting off the Jews for a time and the incomming of the Gentiles Rom. 11. and then concludes ver 33. O the depth both of the riches and knowledge of God c. there must be another sort of profundity in the words to humane reason then that wisedom of God shining in the works of Creation and providence Rom. 1. 19 20. Psal 92. 5 6 7. Psal 107. 43. Psal 58. 10 11 c. Now the Doctors of universal grace and such as submit election and reprobation obedience to the call of God and disobedience and all the influences of grace to the determination of free will arise no higher then the depths of mans willing and nilling As also the Objector in this saith God might have more honour and service of me if so it had pleased him and what is this but God would be wiser should he bestow grace and the influences of grace on me and all mankind for even such Arminians who cannot deny but God foresees what motions and influences shall prevail with free will what not are burthened with this doubt as we are if mans carnal wisedom be judge 3. This is a complaining against the free grace of God there is a sort of grace of Creation and a Comet or a Star is here left to complain why made not the Lord me a shining Sun and the Thistle must challenge God why made he not me a Fig-tree or a Vine-tree are not here beggars at the Lord's door boasting the Lord because they get not an Almes of begged and borrowed being after their own carnal will So here what ebness of grace was this that the Lord would not bestow the same influences of grace on Beelzebub the prince of divels before he fell as upon the Angel Gabriel and the Seraphims who flie with wings to doe his will and cover
the Pharisees meets the words of rebuke in Christ's mouth and bitterness in Herod resounds when John Baptist does rebuke his incest and adultery Take it for a sad condition when there is a practical contrariety and hatred betwixt the heart and the word of the Lord a heart loathing of the word and a rejecting thereof is dreadful whereas the esteeming of the word sweeter then the honey or the honey comb more then thousands of silver and gold the mans treasure his heritage his souls delight and love night and day his work meditation study wisedom do proclaim much of the new creation the word being the seed of the new birth and new creations must love the mother seed it s own native beginning as the streams are of the same nature and likeness with the fountain the Word tries all mens hearts see Joh. 7. 40 41 42 43 44 45 46. Luk. 4. 21 22 23 24 25 28 29. Acts 2. 12 13 37 38 39. Acts 7. 54 55 c. Acts 13. 38 42 43 44 45 46. Acts 14. 1 2 3 4 5 c. Acts 17. 34 35 36. Some believe some mock the natural man cannot close with the word Now Christ is given as a Leader and Commander to the people Isa 55. 4. charge him not as a misleading and a rash guide because he carries you through a wildernesse where there is neither flood nor fountain on the Earth nor dew or rain from Heaven you are withered and no influences come from him let faith complain of the barrenness of the Earth but justifie the driness of the clouds it s the wisedom of God that teacheth the believer to weep because he wants rain and moistness and is sinfully dry and yet to submit to him who denies rain and dew for he gives not here upon just grounds and holily I want deservedly for my just demerit Part. II CHAP. I. 1. God acts upon the creature first and not the creature first upon God 2. The Lord's dominion of influences on free will 3. Nor are we to be idle and sleep because the Lord is Master of his own influences 4. The Lord commands not us to have or want influences 5. Influences are not our warrant to act but the efficient cause thereof HItherto much hath been said of the Soveraignty of the Lord in divine influences Now are we to speak of the way of getting these influences and of the necessity of them and how we may fetch the wind 1. By natural actings 2. By supernatural actings by the word and promise 3. By the efficient causes of influences especially by the Spirit Hence the division of influences 1. By the infused habit of grace 2. By spiritual dispositions In all which our faith praying using of grace have their several influences What we may doe to fetch heavenly influences from God is above my reach to determine only let these Propositions be considered Prop. 1. God by order of nature first acts upon the creature and gives his stirring up influence to it We cannot in genere causae physicae first breath upon God he prevenes the Sun and the Sun riseth or riseth not as the Lord pleaseth to act upon it but no second causes do prevene the first or universal cause the Sun and Heaven do act first upon the Rose but the Rose doth not first act upon the Sun and Heaven Job 37. 7. He sealeth up the hand of every man that all men may know his works c. By the breath of God frost is given this shows that the host of creatures in Heaven and in Earth and the Sea are all dead passive sleepy cyphers and can do nothing if the Lord do not stir them God must be Father Lord and Author of all created actings and faith would without carefulness or unbelief commit all to so wise a Steersman though Phil. 4. 6. the Sea shall drown me the Fire consume me the Air suffocate me yet I desire to hear and obey that Be careful in nothing but pray Matth. 6. I shall perish for want ver 25. Take no thought They will kill me if I confess Christ Fear not Matth. 10. 28 29. your Father cares for two sparrows and for every hair of your head O but the Ship I am in is a sinking Matth. 8. 26. Why are ye fearful waken Christ by praying ah my little daughter is dead Fear not only believe Mark 5. 36. ah they shall deliver us to synagogues and prisons and bring us before Kings and all men shall hate us for Christ's sake True But there shall not one hair of your head perish it s but our unbelief which sees God suffering all to roll and reel as Fortune Nature and Devils will which makes us sinfully care For the Lord and Father of Christ cannot vace and Christ's not working is contrary to John 5. 17. but all are in a good hand Obj. But Heman saith Psal 88. 13. In the morning shall my prayer prevent thee So the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in piel antecessit antevert it praeoccupavit anticipavit it s to go before in time in earliness Psal 119. 148. Mine eyes prevent the night watch Deut. 23. 4. The Amalekites prevented you not with bread it s to go before in place Psal 68. 26. The singers went before its strange that any prayer could prevent God Ans Not properly he saith himself JOb 41. 11. Who hath prevented me the same word that I should repay him then our preventing of God should lay some debt upon God which is unpossible and as Paul observes Rom. 11. 35. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 who gave him first Therefore 1. He speaks Psal 88. of God after the manner of men as if Heman in a manner were more early up in the morning to pray then the Lord were ready to hear the contrary whereof is true as if Heman's early praying wakened God Psal 44. 23. Awake why sleepest thou 2. There is a preventing of God as a Deliverer and a Comforter God's order is that our praying makes an impulsion and stirring on the Lord first and then he delivers and comforts Psal 24. 6. Psal 18. 6 7 16. and so in order to comfort and deliverance in genere mediorum moralium prayer wakens Heaven and puts the Lord a working but as touching the order of real and physical actings the Lord prevents us the string of the Harp or Viol is not said to touch the hand of the Musician but the Musician's hand toucheth the string hence is Musick Nor does the Axe stir and lift up the arm of the Carpenter but the Carpenter's arm lifts up the Axe therefore they who teach that our prayer and the actings of our free will can and may prevent grace in place of preventing grace give us nature and the creature preventing God we read of the Father drawing us and the Son with the odour of his ointments drawing sinners but to teach that nature prevents grace is to say we are
Rev. 2. 5. But that proves nothing it 's because the elect in that place doe fail and there be not any chosen thereto called 5. Nor should the glory of conversion be due to the grace of God but to our well-guiding free-will and to the works of righteousnesse that we had done contrary to 2 Tim. 1. 9. Tit. 3. 3. Eph. 2. 4 5. if we could procure by our good endeavours our own conversion 6. But so much the man fallen in sin is under the state of enterditement as the eldest Son of a King who is a fool is declared an idiot and the government not committed to him In the Gospel the Lord hath declared man a simple fool and laid the Princedome of grace and glory upon the Catholick Tutor and chief heir Christ Jesus yet we fools will needs be Masters and Free-men before we have served our apprenticeships Gladly would we be from under the dominion of Christ and free grace and be our own yea even fools and mad men take it not well to be fettered and in bands 7. Influences of free grace and the gracious actings of the spirit are paid for by the price of blood Heb. 13. 15. Let us by him then offer to God the sacrifice of praise continually Phil. 4. 18. Heb. 13. 15 20 21. 2 Thess 2. 16. The budding and blooming of the branch in every act of growing depends upon the immediate impulsions of life and from the sap of life that is in the root and the vine-tree Christ Assert 2. But the habit and seed of God being within though the indisposition be great yet we would act doe well 2. Because a natural heat in literal stirring doth pre-paratively work upon the soul though not by way of any Gospel-promise to make it ready to receive an influence of believing Moses his wondering at the bushes burning and it was not consumed made him draw near to see more of God and the acting of faith and wondering ripened Christs hearers for influences of believing so Cant. 5. 6. Moving of the bowels makes way for influences of opening to let the Beloved in and of praying and seeking 2. The very noise and literal stirrings in these actings have far-off acting upon the dead habit to awake it up so beating of the lump of perfume wakens up the smell The blowing of the wind on the garden of delicious flowers extracts sweet smelling the first three or four throwings of the iron bolt in the ship brings not out water but five or six causes the water to flow out apace The two disciples conferring Luke 24. concerning Christ crucified seem cold and indifferent yea there is much unbelief and deadnesse on the Spirit v. 21. We trusted that it should have been he which should have restored Israel though they say he was a Prophet mighty in word and deed before God and all the people v. 19. Yet their speech saith their heart was very cold concerning his office as Redeemer and concerning his Resurrection but they goe on in the conference and pursue the duty though literally till he begun v. 25 26 27. to open the Scriptures to them and then the heart begins to burn with heat v. 32. It 's considerable that the woman of Samaria's is very literal at the beginning and only concerning Jacobs well yet she going on in the conference there comes a warmnesse and a liking and a seeking of the water of life and a discerning of Christ to be a Prophet and at length a warmnesse of faith in believing him to be Christ and a leaving of the water-pot and a running to the City to invite others to come to Christ Here it is that the first three or four steps bring not heat upon the man but to walk a mile brings warmnesse To strike the flint oftner then once brings out fire at length and when there is a kindled and a fixed habit of grace and gracious dispositions flamings of heavenly dispositions follow apace because creation is a mids to the execution of the decree of predestination to life eternal therefore he who in predestination to life giveth his own to Christ John 17. 2 6 11 12. v. 6. hath established a new supernataral providence or a providence of redemption different from that providence of God Creator which should have been if Adam had never sinned Of this providence these Scriptures are to be understood John 5. 17. My Father worketh hitherto and I work Col. 1. 16. All things were created by him and for him 17. He is before all things and in him all things consist Hence Rev. 3. 14. He is the beginning of the Creation of God Col. 1. 15. Who is the image of the invisible God the first born of every creature Rev. 21. 5. And he that sate upon the throne said Behold I make all things new Heb. 1. 3. Vpholding all things by the word of his power 1. As by the first fall all things fell 2. The first Adam was the publick catholick misguiding Tutor who marred and destroyed all and the Creation and the workmanship of heaven and earth was made subject to vanity because of mans sin and is now as a woman travelling in birth crying in pain under corruption and vanitie Rom. 8. 20 21 22. So the second Adam coming to the throne made a new heaven and a new earth and as a Midwife to the travailing woman brings forth the birth the free sons of God carries on the work in bringing the man Christ in the world for the man Christ is not created and brought in the world by God simply as Creator and Law-giver by the covenant of works but by God as now acting to redeem the world and making a new Creation and a new world 3. Hence the blessing of the creature and of the earth which was under a curse for mans sin Gen. 3. 17 18. is now from Christ whom he hath appointed heir of all things Heb. 1. 2. and by reason of Christs reigning and sitting at the helm of the world and governing all things all the creatures because of this King are called to rejoyce as Psal 96. 11. Let the heaven rejoyce aâ—d the earth be glad let the Sea roar and the fulness thereof 12. Let the field rejoyce and all that is therein then shall all the trees of the wood rejoyce Psalm 98. 8. Let the floods clap their hands let the hills be joyful together See Isa 49. 13. Isa 65. 7. Jer. 31. 11 12 13. 4. And look as when a Kings son and heir is married all the servants and Courtiers are cloathed in Scarlet and gorgeous apparel So when Christ is declared Mediator husband and head of the body the Church the whole servants of the creation have a new right through Christ the heir of all to the liberty of the sons of God and to be delivered from bondage And hence the Saints have a right through Christ to the influences of this new providence the chief of which
cannot a soul filled with hellish and divelish sorrow such as was the case of wakened Judas receive influences of the Spirit to see a pierced Lord and to be in bitterness as one is for his only son Zech. 12. 10. but must despair and receive influences of hell for hardness and impenitency Obj. But we see the Church lament 3. very unbelievingly quarrelling with God v. 8. When I shout and cry he shutteth out my prayer 10. He was unto me as a Bear lying in wait and as a Lion in secret places And v. 18. I said my strength and my hope is perished from the Lord. Yet verse 24. The Lord is my portion saith my soul therefore will I hope in him then doth not unbelief and sorrow of sad and half despairing so incapacitate and deaden the soul to receive influences of believing Answ There is a far other consideration of a soul under prevailing corruption that is either yet not converted and of a converted man under a strong prevailing temptation when two contrary champions the flesh and the spirit are standing in battel array in the fields each one enemy attending the motions of another as in the former consideration there is a great difference betwixt green timber dry withered fewel or betwixt dry fire-wood fewel though dry yet soaked some days in water in this ease influences of the spirit from heaven influences of the flesh from hell do not so quickly exchange lodgings and go and come to and from divers subjects neither an unrenewed man nor a David under prevailing lust are such fitly disposed fields for showres of influences as in a moment they can cast off deadness and put on a spiritual disposition to receive influences of grace though there be an active celerity on the Spirits part for he can go and come quickly and this is to be seen in a soul under spiritual exercise even now there is a sad complaining I said in my haste I am â—ast out from before thy face and yet with the same breath nevertheless thou heardest the voice of my supplication Then under sense of being cast out of Gods favour there are also influences to pray and to pray in faith and when the Christian fainting saith My strength and my hope is perished from the Lord Lam. 3. 18. she also saith The Lord is my portion saith my soul v. 24. It 's clear then that fainting and feeling are neer to other and so influences for the one and for the other are neer to other the quickness and celerity of influences is evident in the suddain ups and downs of the soul as the shining of the Sun in March and the showring of the clouds are so neer to other he comes in his shinings as a fire-flaught in the midst of our sad louring and dumpish deadness and when the Lord pleaseth his visits are speedy and swift CHAP. III. How the soul is under plenty of means and dispositions heavenly and yet under scarcity of influences 2. Praying and love to the word according to the will of precept all along through Psalm 119. 3. Delighting in the word reading and meditating thereon fetch heavenly influences 4. Hence 18. obstructions of influences 1. Hardness and blindness 2. Vnbelief 3. Deadness 4. Security 5. Irreligious prophaness and Atheism 6. Vnconstancy 7. Deceitfulness 8. Pride 9. Worldly-mindedness 10. Fiery preposterous zeal 11. Vncleanness 12. Malice and bitterness 13. Worldly sorrow 14. False joy 15. Self-love 16. Wilful ignorance of the Gospel and hatred of Christ 17. Impatient fretting against providences the contraries of all which help to fetch heavenly influences Lasty the Lords manner of contributing his influences makes us not passive lumps and blocks the word shews that God lays a holy necessity on our will so that we are most willing and free agents in spiritual actings 18. Vain and wanton thoughts obstruct influences THe heart as including will and mind and affections is the publick Inne and lodging that receives all influences 1. There is a sweet proportion betwixt the influences of the spirit and the new heart Quest How is it then that the soul is under sweet dispositions and plenty of means and yet wants influences Answ This is to shew the absolute freedom of grace as Cant. 1. the Spouse is in a sweet condition Let him kisse me with the kisses of his mouth for his love is better then wine 3. Because of the savour of thy good oyntments thy name is oyntment poured out therefore do the virgins love thee 4. The King brought me into his chambers yet she stands in need of a pull draw me v. 7. Tell thou me O thou whom my soul loves where thou feedest where thou makest thy flocks to rest at noon-day Here is a soul in love longing to be embraced and kissed smelling Christs precious oyntments taken in to the Kings chamber yet the prayer to be drawn and to be instructed where to find him teacheth that some are at the well-head and yet thirsty and in Christs banqueting house and yet the praying of such to be drawn speaks want of influences and hunger for more except Christ intimately apply his influences to will and to do Cant. 2. 4. He brought me into his banqueting house his banner over me was love 6. His left hand is under my head and his right hand doth embrace me What is here wanting is not this paradise come down from heaven but the prayer v. 5. Stay me with flagons comfort me with apples for I am sick of love is a strong evidence that the Spouse even in Christs arms and in his house of wine where are all the refreshments of heaven is not sick only but fallen into a deep swoon if Christ hold not up the head and stay the soul with quickning influences what then could you make of heaven it self and of Christs sweetest embracements if he teach not how to improve the fulness of this free love in sweetest actings of heavenly duties When John is in heaven and sees heavens glory yet if the present actings of the spirit go not betwixt him and Angel-worship he roves influences must then make Christ to be Christ and heaven to be heaven and the Spirit must open and let out upon the withered soul streams of the well of life otherwise there is the banqueting house of wine and there is yet the hungry and swooning Spouse there is heaven and fulness of glory and there is yet miscarrying John grace must make it self our grace and he will have us to know to whom we owe the thanks both of Christ and of the outletting and emanations of free grace and of the well of life and of the flowings and streamings of that fountain and so the created habit of grace is not to be rested on but Christ acting in his free grace is all in all 2. The Lord gives influences according to his will of pleasure but we must stir and pray and act according to
by the rod of God the Asyrians Job spoiled by the Caldeans and Sabeans Christ Jesus crucified by Herod Pilate and the Jews Otherwise the Lord could yield no comfort in his word to the godly when oppressed by the wicked but the like Comfort not your selves my dear people under persecutions from the wicked for I permitted these evils but these calamities befal you before I knew them contrary to my will and holy determination I cannot without forcing of wicked will hinder them or safely and indeclinably secure and save you therefore stay your prayers to me and believe not that I can avert these evils Here is a most cursed necessity which our adversaries lay on God while as they would eschew an holy harmless and most wise necessity of providence Ob. 2. But by the adversaries way it follows that there is a foregoing reason why the will of Adam made choice of that sinful act because God predeterminated the will thereunto and the reason of the first omission or not consideration in Adam or his sleepiness is ob defectum praedeterminationis divina because of the defect of divine praedetermination Therefore because 2. God withdrew his actual influence of praedetermination it was no more in the dependent power of Adam to obey that Eat not then the Sun can move when God draws away his actual influence so must the original of sin be reduced on God So strange Answ 1. A reason ratio why any man sins is in good Grammer a moral motive inducing a man to sin and that works by way of perswasion Let not the Reader be perswaded that we teach that the real influence of God or that his holy concourse any way is a moral motive of obedience or of sin as if Adam had been perswaded to sin because he saw and felt the Lord did first withdraw his concourse or influence whither it praedeterminate or move by praedetermination or collateral joyning therefore Adam was morally induced to sin this is a goodly dream 2. Ratio a reason here must be taken for a physical and a reall not a morall cause now the adversary abstained from the word cause And 1. we say Adam not through defect or want of the Lords holy praedetermination as if therefore ideo for that cause he sinned because the Lord did withdraw his influences but the adequate culpable moral cause of Adams sinning and of his chosing of a vitious action for Adam in sinning is only and properly a moral cause under a law is his own free-will freely declining from the rule there is no defect or moral want of Gods praedetermination because the soveraign Lord who is above a law was not obliged to joyn his praedeterminating influence to Adam but rather obliged to withdraw his praedetermination from the man who in the same moment of time was willing to want that praedetermination for God out of holy soveraignty withdraws in the same moment his influence in which Adam sinfully rejects the same influence 3. This Adversary if he would turne the word ratio reason into the word cause or concurrence would see himself at a loss it will follow that the cause why Adam sinned is because God denied his causative concurrence and so the Argument shall hurt his cause for the concurrence of God is causative then must the Lords withdrawing of his concurring influence be the collateral cause of Adams sinning except he say that man hath in his power the concurrence of God and if so Adam and all mens free-will must be Lord of omnipotency and omnipotent concurrences and then why but God must rather make prayers and requests to our free-will to incline and move his omnipotency to concur to acts of obedience then free-will should make prayers to God that he should by his grace incline our hearts to his testimonies 2. Must not the created free-will of man by this be placed in the royal seat and throne of divine providence to domineer over and dispose of all free acts of obedience and disobedience as it seems good to the Creature And 3. so must the soveraign King be Lord of all free acts at the second hand with the good leave of created free-will And 4. the number of all free actings of final obedience and disobedience and of the saved and damned must be in the hand of created free-will and that primarily and so in the creaâ—tures power must be the Book of Life first by way of free determination and with the Lord and the Lamb the Book of Life is but as a second copy and a conditional roll containing so many as the creature first determines 5. And so must our Immanuel God manifested in the flesh ere he can get entrance in the world have a pass subscribed by free-will and God shall come in the flesh and be Mediator and King absolutely as man will it 's not then eternal love who fore-ordained the medicine and the Physitian before ever the man was sick and if free-will had so pleased Christ God man should have been holden out of the world and the gates for ever closed on him so as knock as he pleaseth free-will might have refused to open and let him in 6. Experimental grace and pardoning mercy might have stood afar off and lost man never have tasted thereof yea such riches of grace should never have been in the world 7. Mans free-will if it be the only determiner of it self and his own free acts and if the strong dominion of grace for fear of strangling of liberty created had no determining power might well have sent that saving Redeemer back to heaven again to his Father and none of mankind should ever have received Christ tasted of his precious love his sweet promises and the offered salvation for created free-will is such as may nill will refuse let God decree and allure draw move determine as he can or will yet omnipotency of grace cannot ravish free-will 8. Yea such is free-wills nature that by its independent self-determination the holy Ghost in all his sweetest attractions in the emanations and flowings of love which is stronger then death his strong and powerful breathings and mighty drawings by a power not inferiour to that which raised Christ from the dead may be frustrate and broken for free-will may stand out as a rock of iron and adamant against the strong actings of omnipotent grace and be not a whit moved at the perfume and sweet smelling ointments of Christ his beauty the refreshments of the house of wine his tenderest consolations 9. For if free-will say not Amen though Christ work compleatly his work make his soul an offering for sin yet shall not Christ see his seed nor be satisfied with his wages for free-will may refuse to yield the redeemed over to God as captives overcomed by his soul delighting and powerful drawings 10. Nor shall it be in the power of the Almighty to be faithfull and true in fulfilling his promise of giving a new heart to the elect
faithfully acquit himself in the duty of his Office for by office he conferrs influences 2. It s to question his nature whether the Head shall inlive its members CHAP. IV. The necessity of influences of Grace Of the Soveraignty of God in dispensing influences IT is easie to determine that there is a sort of necessity of the Lords bestowing influences upon all natural causes of this before In so far as willing and nilling are acts of second causes in the same sphere with natural causes there seems to be no more reason for denying influences to nilling and willing simply yea or for literal hearing and praying then for plowing and sowing except that here God acts in a dreadful way of Justice toward Pharaoh and other reprobates in leaving them to the actings of their own heart only it may be said that God finding his child under deadness and acting in a dead and literal way as he hath bowels of compassion toward his chosen under the evil of sin that are ready to be drowned he joynes his help of influences seeing his own goe about duties with wrestling and pain since he knows some one way or other they must be over the water and helped otherwise they cannot stir 2. As there are some saving graces from the Mediator so must there be some mediatory influences bestowed covenant wayes upon the chosen of God But 1. Free goodness and not natural necessity made the world and that same freedome intervenes in continuing being and acting in creatures which act by nature Fire casteth heat the Sun light and influences the Sea ebeth and floweth by nature yet there must also be a free new commission sealed from eternity to every acting of nature he commandeth the Sun and it riseth not forbideth the fire to cast out heat and it obeyeth Job 9. 7. Heb. 11. 34. Dan. 3. 27. and it is an obliging and an indearing of the heart to God to come dayly under new debt and multiplied free gifts and it renews acts of love in us as fresh actings of salvation flow whether it be new deliverances Psal 18. 1 2 6 7. Psal 116. 1 2 3 4. or new acts of keeping faith from drying up in the fire 1 Pet. 1. 3 4. so as you being tried as gold verse 8. y◠love having not seen him 2. It extracts acts of praying sense of spiritual slownesse seems to pray Cant. 1. 4. Draw me we will run and sense of spiritual dulnesse Psal 119. 33. Teach me O Lord the way of thy statutes 3. Hence comes humble relying upon God when faith is put to believe that at every stirring of the members and at every lifting of the foot for a new step the head must stir in heaven and let down new influences of life and the bottles of Heaven and well of life must let down new flowings of rain every moment upon the withered garden if as much rain fell in one day as would suffice the earth for seven years and a man might eat so much at one meal as he should neither be hungry nor thirsty for five years there should not be such dayly dependance upon new influences for rain and dew dayly and for our dayly bread this day We can but 4. hence but believe the infinite wisedome of the Lord who well knows how to husband and steward his showres for in the man Christ they are continual John 8. 29. He that sent me is with me the Father hath not left me alone 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 nor dismissed me for I do always 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the thing that please him When ever we do what is displeasing to God the Father of Christ leaves us out of the depth of his soveraignty of dispensing influences Christ was never so morally deserted 1. As the Lord would have a falling law Adam to whom he denied influences that nature might be nature so he also would have a standing and never sinning-Adam that grace might appear to be grace 2. Upon supposition that the second Adam is God man it was impossible but the man Christ in all his actions moral should want influences or ever sin or be left alone of the Father but he must always do the thing that pleaseth the Father nor is there any murmuring to be against the dispensation of deepest wisdom why we have not at our pleasure influences of grace that we should never sin as the man Christ never sinned 3. Say we could see no reason the thing is notire the Lord acts in the first elect Angels that they never sin he denied in the first fall influences to the reprobate Angels and since the Lord hath condemned them and tied them with chains of darknesse that their whole actions except the acts of intellectual being and living and the acts of knowing believing desiring fearing c. in the substance of the act should be only moral and only sin in all the substantial circumstances John 8. 44. Satan was a man-slayer 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and stood not in the truth being created in the first truth adhering to God 1 John 3. 8. the Divel sinned from the beginning hence he is called 1 Peter 5. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the contrary party in law and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 goes about like a roaring Lion seeking whom he may drink over So that though there be in men actions of the phansie as to claw the head rub the beard actions of the vegetative life to grow to age to decline in old age senescere pubescere adolescere that are under no Law and so no sins yet all Satans actions are moral these excepted of which we spoke and influences to moral actions granted to reprobate men as to gives alms to go and hear the word visit the sick and imprisoned are denied to Satan Some men are also 2. Reprobate to good works Tit. 1. 16. and cannot believe and here is soveraignty that God works in some vessels of mercy to will and to do not in others 3. As touching the measure of grace and the degrees of saving influences the Lord walketh in a latitude of freedome all men have not alike measure of saving grace and faith 4. His freedome shines in the work of conversion John Baptist is filled with the holy Ghost from the womb Luke 1. 15. but 2. the woman of Samaria Matthew Zachaeus Magdalen Abraham Saul go on in a wretched state of nature for some considerable tract of years and then are visited with influences of life and 3. the Thief that was crucified with Christ upon the Cross in his outgoing is converted and not till then except the soveraign liberty of God silence us no other reason can occur of these things to mans understanding 4. In the Saints this liberty is clear fewer falls in Joseph then in David and so he must be nearer to dayly influences to the one then the other So the Lord left Hezekiah to try him that he might know all that
was in his heart 2 Chron. 32. 31. Thus much Noah his drunkennesse Lot his incest David his adultery and murdering of Vriah Peter his denying of Christ and his Judaizing Gal. 2. proclame to us that though Saints are to believe perseverance and so that in Christ there shall be furnished to them out-lettings of life from the fountain to bring them to glory as touching the habitual tract of their journey to Heaven yet hath the Lord reserved a liberty hic nunc to let out and withdraw influences and the faith of believers is to rest upon the promise upon this condition that they fret not at his dispensation who by sad falls on Ice and slidery way must correct our sinful rashness and teach children godly wariness nor is there any thing in our folly to be seen but his wisdome 5. And sinful slips in us and freedome of withdrawing in the Lord bring us to be the engaged debtors of grace and this sets the higher price upon our Advocate 's intercession when we sin 1 Joh. 2. 1 2. his withdrawings usher the way to his own outlettings of grace he knows how to dry us up that we may being withered come under the debt of new watering more of this hereafter There is here no creating of clouds or rain by King or Husbandman or Hosts of men the Husbandmans faith and prayer in extreme drought may fetch rain but we have in these actings in which God must joyn his gracious influence no real influence upon the Lord's influences the Rose acts not upon the Sun by influences but the Sun acts upon the Rose though we may pray for influences of grace Nor can tears and wrestling extort influences when the Lord is upon aâ— act of declaring his soveraignty in trying us there is praying and yet heaviness and dropping away of soul bids on and the Petitioner remains like a bottle on the smoak the Glass set must run out so many hours ere the Sea flow again the Sea-man weeps and prays but the storm continues and the wind hears him not and he that creates the wind suspends his acting God hath not said that the husband-man may pray away Winter while the season be over nor that the Traveller when the Sun is set and darkness come should pray away the night while the hours be over So here God hath fixed a time for a winter season of heaviness and trying deadness The Lord's mind is to pray for the right melting of the metal and not for the quenching and removing of the fire he must do his work its wisdom to know who orders our prayers and to pray for something about his withdrawing and not for the removal of the withdrawing it self Paul three times prays 2 Cor. 12. for the removal of the Messenger of Satan But prayer stirs not right then in all points he should have prayed for sufficiency of grace our gracious Lord laying aside the dross of our prayer hears us not in granting what we suit but what we ought to suit in prayer and in granting what we suit not formally but what the Spirit suits internally in us The man in a Feaver cries for a Drink the Physitian forbids to give him drink and yet gives to quench the thirst some other thing then drink so the sick mans suit is profitably heard Yet my meaning is not that the Lord cannot or will not at all take off an arrestment of disertion at the praying of his children the Lord cannot repeal that Psal 50. 15. Call upon me in the day of trouble I will deliver thee and thou shalt glorifie me therefore he repeals it not under withdrawings which are amongst the greatest of such troubles as put us to call upon God 2. Christ under the Lord's withdrawings in point of comfort and enjoyment of the felt favour of God prayed and was heard Heb. 5. 7. Matth. 26. 38 39. Luke 22. 42 43. therefore by the like he doth hear us in such a case I fetch the Argument a proportion for Christ in whom Satan finds nothing is not capable of the withdrawings of God in point of duty If any say it was Christ's duty always to rejoyce in God I answer It was an affirmative Precept which did not oblige the man Christ actually in every moment of time and in radice it did habitu it did habitually it did oblige him for that rejoyce evermore obligeth not ever to actual rejoycing but to a savory habit of rejoycing nor did that pray continually oblige the man Christ to pray actually and to speak to God when he was preaching and speaking to men at one time nor was actually rejoycing in God physically consistent with actual sorrow in suffering 3. The praying to be led of God in his way not to be led into temptation must include a suit that God would send influences and not forsake us in the way of his obedience under our defections therefore there is need of a special submission and a reserve of time to sail when his flowings set the soul a float Hence may a child of God submit to his deep soveraignty in withdrawings and stoop humbly to the Lord 's holy decree his holy will be done upon clay and yet also desire presently the removal of sinful deadness and pray against our sinful omission which necessarily follows upon the Lord's withdrawing and we are to nill and hate sinning which results from the withdrawing therefore both pray and forget that ye have prayed and adore soveraignty Pray under withdrawing for influences yet trust not on the act of praying and though he still withdraw pray but without fainting under and fretting against soveraignty The habit being of the nature of a power cannot actuate itself nor can we actuate and make use of the power of grace now as the God of nature is he in whom we live and move and so we are acted by him in our natural stirrings so in Christ Redeemer Emanuel in whom is the fulness and fountain of grace we live spiritually Neither have we the use and exercise of our grace in our own hand nor can we believe when we will as a Musitian can sing when he will CHAP. V. Whether or not the Lord 's withdrawing of his influences and impressions of grace doth acquit and free us of guiltiness objections removed WE are not a little slandered by Jesuits and Arminians as such who by the device of forbowing and predeterminating influences of grace do destroy the nature of Free-will and voluntary obedience to God in this Argument He who withdraws such an influence and impression of grace without which the act of obedience is physically impossible he is the cause of disobedience and he renders the non-obeyer guiltless and excusable But God according to the way of Calvin and his withdraws such an influence and impression of grace because without his impression of grace its impossible physically that the Will can be bowed to obey it being essentially requisite
I say not inherently or personally for Christ's satisfaction is not a meer dying nor meer suffering for beasts may die and suffer much But such a dying and such a suffering for 1. Christ's dying and satisfying hath an excellency from the subject God-man who dyed Act. 20. 28. 2. It hath an excellent qualification from the patience submission willingness of God-man the like wherof could be in no simple Man in no Angel in no Creature for the personal influence of God was in him his obedience As for the damned in Hell their satisfaction is of another nature different from Christ's is only satispassion and pure torment not holy willing suffering as the Law requires sinless sufferings as contradistinguished from active obedience How be it the Law moral doth require patient and submissive suffering without dispairing or blaspheming in any reasonable Creature for the holy Law cannot but condemn sin and blasphemy adhering either to our acting or suffering Nor 6. Let it be said to the undervaluing of the righteousness of God through faith that inherent righteousness is the full end of Christ's bloud when in the state of glory there shal be no more pardoning of sin but perfect inherent holiness For 1. that inherent holiness in the estate of glory is not perfect legal holiness nor the formal cause of our justification in glory because all the glorified once sinned and so for eternity are such as have violated the Law 2. Our righteousness from the time forward shall not only be inherent for the righteousness of God is an everlasting righteousness Dan. 9. 24. and how that robe of Christ's surety-righteousness shall in the state of glory be laid by as an old useless garment and the robe of inherent righteousness in lieu of it put on for ever The Scripture does not speak What men without Scripture speak we care not 3. Nor is our inherent righteousness only either the adequate end of Christ's bloud or of faith and labours as if God intended as his only end to make us eternally Law-righteous whereas he shall eternally delight in us and lead us in glory as those that are freely redeemed in the bloud of the Lamb for the Lamb shall be the everlasting righteousness of all crowned with glory Rev. 4. 8 9 10. Rev. 5. 11 12 13. Rev. 7. 14 15 16. 3. Soveraignty challengeth submission to the will of God in doing and in suffering because it is his obliging will we fail not a little in the former when we pray because the Mast of the Ship is broken and death is at the bedside and we hear the Word because it is the fashion and abstain from fornication and from other works of darkness and put on a sort of holiness not because it is the will of God even our sanctification as for eating drinking sleeping waking they are spiritually minded who doe not these things for nature and lust but as wel-pleasing to the Lord and find a convincing and perswading reason in the holy commanding will of the Soveraign Lord why they ought to be done upon a spiritual account and the other is no less spiritual for many are sick and die many are poor and persecuted for weldoing because they cannot chuse but so it must be not because as Peter saith 1 Pet. 3 17. So is the well of God in a spiritual account to them for when holy Soveraignty hath laid on the necessity of dying of sickness and pain and a gracious spirit shall close with that this is spiritual patience 4. Because the Lord hath a dominion over second causes and as it were a strong lock upon all Creatures to open and sâ—ut at his pleasure and he puts a seal upon Sun and Stars Job 9. 7 8 9. that they cease and shine or shine not or go down we are to put our Amen and Seal to Soveraignties decrees I rise early and there is no bread ah Lord I lay in a soft bed and there is no sleep in the night but pain Say Amen Lord the Fig-tree blossoms not this year yet I will rejoyce in the Lord Hab. 3. 16 17. Soveraignty hath so appointed there is nothing but rolling of garments in bloud and captivity and spoils yet pray thy will be done in the Earth as it is done in the Heaven CHAP. VIII Divers Particulars in which Soveraignty appears 1. SOveraignty and the glorious liberty of God appears in 1. His Decrees 2. The Works of God especially 1. Of Creation 2. Of common Providence 3. Works of more special Providence 1. Works of Justice 2. Works of Free-grace The Soveraignty of his Decrees is 1. In these two solemn and celebrious Decrees of Election and Reprobation He loved Jacob and hated Esau before ever the children had done good or evil Rom. 9. this is a humbling thought to clay graciously disposed which dare not contradict the Soveraign potter The Lord might have appointed my chair before the Throne and my eternal crown to Judas and to Pharaoh and the same Lord might so have ordered as the furnace of the traitor Judas in Hell should have been my furnace in Hell 2. O what depth of love did the King chuse me or did he once name my name and write me for life eternal This is a hardning thought in the fallen Angels and reprobate men that they strive against and hate the providence permitting their fall and sin but doe neither strive against nor hate their permitted fall and sin 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 why doth he yet notwithstanding of his irresistible Decree find fault with our sin why doth he not blame his own Decree who hath resisted his will a graceless soul will flee upon eternal Decrees and Events that belong to God but is never humbled for sin and remission of duties The gracious soul is much upon these thoughts O the freedome of the eternal emanations of free grace and the depth of the outgoings of Soveraign justice and does mournfully complain of its own sinful actings Psal 51. 1 2 3 4 5. we are to say Amen to his way Soveraignty is not our Rule clay is not to watch over the Lord's acts of holy Soveraignty but in point of submitting to the opened and revealed Decrees but is to eye the rule watch over the heart in point of duties 2. All things to be and never to be are written in his book Psal 139. 16. the number of David's members all the hairs of the head are numbred Matth. 10. 30. all the piles of dust and sand all the drops of dew rain hail snow all the drops of the sea rivers lakes fountains of the Earth Isa 40. 12. Pro. 30. 4. all the ounces and dram weights of the hills and mountains are exactly weighed as in ballances and numbred by holy Soveraignty all the blasts of wind gathered in his fists Prov. 30. 4. he knows how many inches and spans are in the Earth from East to West and in the compass and circle of
the body of the World or great All and the highest Heaven round about Isa 40. 12 17. the number of Angels good and evil of men of beasts birds fishes creeping things he tells the number of the Stars whether odd or even and calleth them by their names Psal 147. 4. and Soveraignty could have made their number greater by seventy seven Millions so he knows the number of trees herbs flowers leaves of trees piles or threds of grass the number of actions motions intentions purposes of Men and Angels actual and only possible and impossible but never to fall out all the stirrings in Heaven and Earth Great is our Lord and of great power his understanding is infinite Psal 147. 5. 2. He decreed twelve thousand of every Tribe to be sealed a certain number for an uncertain he wrote so many not one more nor fewer Why are many called and few chosen the blessed number of Persons by Country House Head Name to be bought by the ransome of Christ's bloud is agreed upon between the Father and the Son not one more paid for and ransomed not one fewer the number of the Citizens were agreed upon they are not moveable Tenants the Lord loves not to put out or to put in none can take your chair and Crown in Heaven it s a deep to consider how millions of millions of influences and stirrings the Soveraign Lord laid up beside himself from eternity to let out upon his hosts of Creatures and especially Men and Angels and a treasure of influences of grace are with him would we bring our witherednesse under these eternal dewings we should have more of the anointing 3. The Lord's Soveraignty decreed not things only but the connexion of things as between Bread and Wine used according to the Lord's Institution and the broken Body and shed bloud of Christ they suit not together of their own Nature and Essentially therefore by the intervening will of God 2. In things of remote nature this is seen 2 Kings 13. 19. If thou had smitten the ground five or six times then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou had consumed it whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice The connexion of the Kings smiting of the ground and of smiting of the Syrians is not from the nature of the things themselves but from the free appointment of God if Christ talk with the woman of Samaria and ask of her a Drink of water he shall convert her and the Samaritans before he leave her If Job be spoiled he shall humbly submit himself to God and bless him There may be more or less conveniency between the things but all the connection of things in this kind might in their contraries have been as true if so holy Soveraignty had appointed 3. He who decrees the existence of things in time and place he decrees the co-existence of the same things Now that Joseph should be the subject matter of killing or selling when the Ishmalites came by and that Ahasuerus cannot sleep in the night when that very passage of the Persian Chronicle must be read in the which is the story of Mordecai's loyal revealing the treason was from him and they were tied together by no nature of things by no influences of Planets and Stars but by the Soveraign will of God now the co-existence of things is a real event of providence as is clear It s from the Lord that Peter and Paul lived together in the same age and time and Abraham and David lived not together and from the holy decree of God that Jezebels body be cast out when there is none willing to bury her and from the holy decree of God that the Souldiers came with Spears to break the Legs of Christ and that they find him dead and so break not one bone of him yea the existence and living and acting of all things and the co-existence living and working together of them are from the same providence of God or then from nature or from the blind fortune neither of which we can say and who appoints the meeting of two Seas or the meeting of two Rivers or of two Men at the same place or that the new Star should be in Cassiopeia rather then in another part of the Firmament doth not David bless the Lord who sent Abigail to meet him with a counsel of peace then must these confluences and co-existences of things be written in the Lord's book and so decreed Psal 139. 16. and from the Creator God as the efficient and for God and his glory as the end Rom. 11. 36. Rev. 4. 11. Prov. 16. 4. 5. The wisedom of God so appoints as means for his end that black and white should be in the same body for beauty the poor and the rich the full and the hungry to try the charity of the rich and patience of the poor that some should weep some sing and rejoyce at the laying of the foundation of the second Temple Ezra 3 6. Some of these are acts of mercy Jesus cometh by the way and two blind men sit by the way Matthew Zacheus are in such places and Christ comes by and saves both the one and the other 7. Some are acts of justice as the falling of a piece of a milstone by a womans hand and Abimelech's near approaching to the Tower that a woman might kill him who might twenty other ways have died if the Lord did not rule all the going of Achab to the war 2. The arrow at a venture shot at Achab and passing by hundreds 3. The arrow directed to the one only naked part of his body 4 The washing of the wounds in such a Pool in the field of Jezreel 5. The Dogs licking of the bloud of Achab are all so linked together by the Lord 's holy and just Decree as this is clear if Achab go to the War against the Syrians the Dogs shall lick his bloud and he shall die in the battel 8. The administration of the means of salvation to Capernaum not to Tyrus and Sidon which would rather have repented then Capernaum does prove this is from the Lord if Peter hear the Lord shall effectually perswade him to believe if Cain Pharaoh Judas hear the Lord shall not effectually perswade them to believe The Lord commands reprobates to repent and believe if they would be saved yet did he never decree the belief repentance or salvation of any of them does not Soveraignty here shine who decrees the non-salvation of Judas and the non-effectual drawing of Judas to Christ which saith there be no property so called and bands of conditions lying upon the Lord if Judas repent he shall be saved as if a father promise to his son an hundreth Acres of land upon condition that the son pay him one hundreth shillings if the father only can and must furnish to the son the hundreth shillings and in the mean time deny the purpose in his heart to deny to furnish the hundreth shillings it
and the least of Stars why made he me not the Sun nor the Earth say out of the lump of poor Nothing out of the which I came he might have made me the Globe of the Heaven of Heavens or an Angel but he would not 3. Why made not God the first Adam as perfect as the second Adam a house that can stand alone is better then an old house that needs aprop O quarrel not the Vine tree is a more noble plant then the thorn and the one must be propped else it grows not 2. The man Christ needs influences of graces as well as another man 3. The Angels and glorified Spirits need the like Man a house of clay needs a pillar of excellent matter of the gold of free-grace to hold him up in his actings 4. Why made he me not as holy as the man Christ why was this man born blind O cease he who gives not an account of any of his matters when he made you a man might have made you a snake or a stone he is debter of two eyes or of half an eye of the lowest gift or grace imaginable to no man close with all he does That is an evil wit that disputes with God Submission silent submission to the hardest dispensation makes the child of God victorious we are above all things in conquering when we are below all things in submitting for the Lord. 2. Job or any answer Job 38. 8. Who shut up the Sea with doors as if it had issued out of the womb Ver. 9. When I made the cloud the garments thereof and thick darkness a swadling band for it Job 26. 7. He stretcheth out the North over the empty place and hangeth the Earth upon nothing give a reason of East and West 3. The Lord puts forth Soveraignty on Jeroboam's arm to dry it up on Mephibosheth's feet upon the mans eye-holes Joh. 9. that they should be empty of eyes on Judas his bowels on Job's body smitten with boyls his outgoings of Soveraignty appear on the Fig-tree which he curseth on the Gourd of Jonah for he blasts it on the Fig-tree and Vine-tree for he marrs them Joel 1. 4. As it pleaseth him he setteth one piece of clay on the Throne to glister another bit of clay behind the mill where he sweats and is hungry Zeph. 3. 12. I will leave in the midst thereof an afflicted and a poor people or sick yea dryed up as Fish-ponds and Brooks use to be when the rest are swept away Joseph is rich and all the Corn of Egypt is his and his brethren want bread and are low like Carriers driving horses with loads on them 5. Job gets no leave to swallow his spittle Job 7. 19. Precious Israel is plowed Psal 129. 1. and her back made a field of bloud like two legs and a piece of an ear of a devoured sheep plucked out of the mouth of a Lion Amos 3. 12. the man Christ a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief a worm and not a man and all the Earth sitteth still and is at rest Zech. 1. 11. the wicked shine are fat their breasts are full of milk and you stumble at this Shall any teach the Almighty knowledge Job 21. 22 23 24. Amos 6. 1 2 3. Psal 73. 1 2 3 4 5 6 c. 6. Except Soveraignty what can silence the mind of one who stumbles and doubts and weeps because so many Infants are burnt in Sodom with fire so many in the old World are drowned with waters in the mothers womb and the cradle the young sucking children of the Amalekites of Babylon who never drew a sword against the people of God could never bow their knee to the Idol God Pel nor stretch out their hands to him perish by the sword and their heads dasht against stones O they were guilty of sin original yea and so were Moses David Samuel Noah Job and Daniel when they were in the womb and weeping on the breasts 7. Soveraignty determines what is just righteous Abel dies in bloud godly Josiah in war many bloody men smile out their soul in peace I took Sodom away saith the Lord Ezech. 16. 50. as I saw good a wall falls upon twenty seven thousand and kills them 1 Kings 20. the Lord shoots an arrow of the Pestilence at the camp of the Assyrians and without a misse takes away in one night an hundred and fourscore and five thousand chosen men Isa 37. 36. 2 Chro. 13 18. there fell of Israel at once five hundered thousand how many graves must be there Pharaoh and his Princes are drowned in the Sea Herod killed with worms then simple judgements as divided from sin prove nothing but how are we to stoop and tremble at holy Soveraignty 8. As touching gifts and graces much is to be seen of Soveraignty Elihu saith Job 32. 9. Great men are not always wise neither do the aged understand judgement Beautie is a debt that God ows not to pay to Absalom nor wisedom to Achitophel more then to a stark fool or to any man who is born as a wild Ass colt This Soveraignty gives faith to Abraham to Moses meekness to David sincerity to Josiah zeal to Job patience to the man Christ the fulness of the Spirit above measure there is more grace of godly painfulness given to Paul then to the dayly eye-witnesses of Christ I laboured more abundantly then they all 1 Cor. 15. you might have had wisedom and used it as Achitophel and yet saith one God hath given me no more grace therefore let God blame God that I doe as I doe if he had given me more grace I would have done better and if I had a heart according to the heart of God I would have been as holy sincere and zealous as David but he denyed it to me out of his absolute Soveraignty which is far above my will and my strength influences of grace both for the obtaining of the habits and the acts of Soveraign grace Ans These practical Propositions are to be considered 1. Prop. 1. It is proud nature which saith God is to be blamed for whether the Lord give or withhold more grace holiness and spotlesness doth essentially convey his Soveraignty Matth. 20. 15. Is it not lawful for me to doe what I will with mine own saith he who is Almighty For he who is in an unsearchable way above all law that binds the Creature can be subject to no blame Suppose the evil servant say Matth. 25. 24. Lord I knew thee that thou art an hard man reaping where thou hast not sown and gathering where thou hast not strowed That is thou seekest much obedience and a large harvest and sowest upon my heart little grace and gave me but one talent if thou hadst given me five talents or two talents I should have done as well as the servant who received five or two but thou didst not any such thing therefore blame thy self and so it is the very
complaint of the very malignant servant as also the rich Gluttons divinity reflects upon the gracious dispensation of God Luke 16. 30. Nay father Abraham but if one went unto them from the dead they will repent Which is as much as God is to be blamed that his five brethren repent not for he bestows not sufficient helps of salvation on them Q. 1. What is the book of Moses and the Prophets but a paper roll of letters and syllables would he send a Preacher from Hell and a Messenger from Heaven to give them sufficient warning and instruction of a Heaven and a Hell it were good but that he does not he then is to be blamed not my five brethren 2. He who shews mercy on whom he will and hardneth whom he will and that by a strong mighty will which no man can resist he can find fault with no man though he sin and harden his own heart For his absolute Soveraign will is far above me and my strength but so doth the Lord saith the carnal man Rom. 4. 18. 19. and the holy Ghost saith such an Objection is unworthy to be moved or answered nor becomes it base clay and the clay pot so to argue with the great potter and former of all things 2. Influences for getting of the habits or performing the acts of saving grace are the Lord 's own therefore Soveraignty is his Law he may bestow them or withhold them as he pleaseth especially if the Creature be willing to want these influences and if the Sun rejoyce with all his heart at the influences and concurring providences of God to the contrary sinful actings as he doth Exod. 5. 2 8 16 17 18. Psal 14. 4. Psal 10. 6 7 8. 4. 10 11. Psal 36. 3 4. Psal 84. 5 6 7 8. Prov. 1. 11 12. Prov. 2. 14. Prov. 4. 16. 17. Prov. 10. 23. Prov. 14. 9. Prov. 7. 18. Prov. 9. 17. Psal 49. 11. Luke 11. 39. Psal 5. 9. Psal 64. 6. 3. Though we could not conceal the Lord's concluding of all under unbelief and their guiltiness who are so concluded and the mystery of the Lord 's rejecting the Jews and calling the Gentiles with the free obedience of the one and free disobedience of the other and the Lord 's having mercy on whom he will and hardning whom he will with their willing running in ways of disobedience and rebellion and say as Paul Rom. 11. 33. O the depth c. yet adversaries have no cause of objecting this to us more then to the Scriptures of God 4. Prop. Gracelesness is satisfied with gracelesness and is no more desirous and thirsty for grace nor darkness after the Sun light or coldness desireth the fires heat yea as Satan cannot destroy Satan the body of sin cannot love to be subdued by grace and the man hating both Christ and his Father John 15. 24. and pleasing himself in that way who yet complains that God doth withdraw his grace and so cannot command us or exhort us to repentance is like to him who lies still in the furnace and loves to be burnt and complains that he is scorched and tormented and the Lord will not lift him out of the furnace 5. What a proud Pelagian nature is this for any to say had he the habit of grace which was in David he could act as David and could secure himself from adultery and murther but how did David who had David's heart fall in these horrid crimes can any interpose himself surety and put grace which he hath not or nature which he cannot command to undertake to obey God in all things were it not safer to be pained with the bondage of sin and be sick for Christ and his grace and never to interpose self to be surety for self but to be strong in free grace only Ephes 6. 10. CHAP. X. 1. Soveraignty in actings of grace 2. We are not to seek influences but such as are suitable to the Word 3. Of divers influences 4. How we complain of want of influences and how we may suit them 5. We are to act under indispositions 6. How we are to pray continualy 7. Not to act duties while we feel breathings of the Spirit is an unsafe Rule 8. Preparations before Duties 9. To wait on breathings before we act Duties how lawful how not LEt it be futher considered in these Particulars how unjust we are and how free the Lord is 1. Who ever complains of the want of grace and yet remains in the state of nature doth close with his want of grace For 1. The renewed mans complaining of the want of grace is neither in sense or godly feeling nor in faith and humble believing Nature can no more complain of the want of grace with any spiritual and godly sense then a sucking child can weep because he is not an understanding man of thirty years old for darkness cannot seek after the Sun light for so it should desire its own destruction nor can cold desire heat nor Satan be divided against Satan and therefore these are but feigned and counterfeit bemonings For the actings of sinful nature with delight say that the man hates grace which he professeth he so much desires for only grace can thirst after and long for grace Joh. 15. 24. If I had not done among them the works which no other man did they had not had sin but now they have both seen and hated both me and my Father Such a hatred of the fulness of grace Jesus Christ cannot consist with a lively desire of grace Prop. 2. It is a right Rule not to separate Soveraignty from the Word or the Omnipotency of grace from the Promise otherwise we make a sort of Idol of Omnipotency seek we them and pray for influences of grace not peremptorily hic nunc to every single acting Psal 119. 2. My soul cleaveth to the dust quicken thou me according to thy word Ver. 28. My soul melteth for heaviness strengthen thou me according to thy word Ver. 107. I am afficted very much quicken thou me according to thy word v. 154. For 1. A gracious heart seeks no other out-lettings of grace to this or that duty but according to the promise Now the promise is not contrary to the Soveraign dispensation and there is no such Soveraignty but that there are many withdrawings of God whence follows deadness and the souls melting for heaviness Nor is there either promise or dispensation that the belever shall in every moment of time be lively and vigorous and have the heart lifted up in the ways of God except we would say Earth is Heaven and we are not for a time in heaviness if need be 2. There is a bastard literal heat and vigor of going about duties that comes not from the Word no bastardheat comes from the Word but by accident for the Spirit that speaks in the Word speaks his own spiritual and lively comforts and actings not that which may flow from a
letter which is common to Seneca and other humane Writers and the Prophets though even the style liveliness majesty and divinity that may be seen in the letter of the Scripture are eminently above the like in other Writers The Spirit immediately inspiring and the Spirit quickning in the Word are both the same Spirit that Christ promised to send John 16. of which Christ ver 14. He shall glorifie me he shall receive of mine a word most mysterious and shall shew it unto you and believers are afraid that their hearts receive some other quickning between the sound of the Word and the actings of the Lord upon their hearts which causeth them to pray for no quickning but according to the Word The like may 3. be said of the salvation of the Lord Psal 91. 16. I will shew him my salvation Isa 12. 2. For the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song he also is become my salvation Psal 119. 170. Let my supplication come before thee deliver me according to thy word for we are apt to seek strange and whorish influences the like whereof the Lord bestows not upon his people Psal 119. 132. Look thou upon me and be merciful unto me as thou uses to doe to those that love thy name Psal 106. 4. Remember me O Lord with the favour that thou bearest to thy people O visit me with thy salvation V. 5. That I may see the good of thy chosen that I may rejoyce in the gladness of thy Nation that I may glory with thine inheritance It s cold comfort we reap without the word its true his omnipotency was eternal before there was a Word or Promise made to us but now the Lord will have the Word or Promise to be the officina the work-house of his Spirit and of the quickning influences thereof 5. As also there is a salvation and escape out of prison by keys of our own making and by putting out the hand to iniquity Psal 125. and the heart is much for the bulk of a deliverance from Hell and for the body and lump of a mercy were it Heaven and Baalam's paradise or the end of the righteous whether it be purchased by the ransome of Christ's bloud or no and faith laying hold thereon or no. 6. And we love to have the remission and the righteousness of Christ in his bloud the separated from holiness and sanctification but the Scripture conjoyneth them 1 Cor. 1. 30. Gal. 1. 4. 1 Cor. 6. 11. Heb. 10. 10. Heb. 13. 12 13. 1 Pet. 2. 24. yea is a holy justification to speak so is the cleanly kindly sure absolution of the sinner for Christ loves noâ— and washes not in his bloud but such as he makes Kings and Priests unto God Rev. 1. 5. in so saying I honour good works more then Mr. Baxter doth who makes them as good as Christ's bloud even the price of pardon Ephes 1. 7. Col. 1. 14. Yea and 7. We could be satisfied with dumb and scrupulous influences and inspirations contrary unto and separated from the Word as Evah Gen. 3. 4 5 6. 1 Kings 13. 18. Matth. 4. 3 6 8 9. 8. What could the powerful influences of God Creator separated from Christ the treasure-house of love and mercy doe to us and if Omnipotency were separated from the promises of the Gospel could it save us in the Lord's way through the bloud of Christ for power in God cannot to speak so save men but by the Name of Jesus Christ the only saving Name under Heaven Acts 4. 12. nor can Omnipotency work a redemption now in this Gospel-dispensation but that which is by bloud Ephes 1. 7. Col. 1. 13. And that which is to declare the righteousness of God for the remission of sins Power acts by way of compleat satisfaction as the exceeding greatness of God's power to us-ward who believe is of the same size with the mighty power which raised Christ from the dead and set him on the right-hand of God in heavenly places Ephes 1. 14 20. The power of translating a sinner from Satans Kingdome to the Kingdom of the Son of his love works as acted as it were and set on work to act righteously to translate no man but the person for whom a ransome of bloud is given to justice as the Princes right power is only for the good of free and legal subjects Col. 1. 11 12 13. and that all power in Heaven and Earth to save Matth. 28. 18. John 17. 2. Matth. 11. 27. and that Kingly and Royal power to give repetance to Israel and forgiveness of sins Acts 5. 31. to forgive sins Matth. 9. 6. to raise and quicken the dead John 5. 26 28 29. is a power in a way purchased by the bloud of attonement Rom. 14. 9. For to this end Christ both dyed and rose that he might be Lord both of the dead and living And by the way it s a righteous power over all flesh and in Heaven and Earth though he died not for all flesh and for all the Angels in Heaven and all the men on Earth it were strange to say Christ died for the reprobate and not for their sins and final unbelief and rejecting of Christ to obtain a power to pardon some of their sins and not all and to give them repentance from some dead works and not from all dead works and to purge them from some but not from all their sins 3. It s most unjust to lay the blame of our sinful omissions upon holy Soveraignty because he withdraws influences For 1. That is to reproach God this is like the malecontentedness of Satan and of Hell for the damned complain that ever they were born and that they cannot be annihilated and that hils and mountains cover them not quick in soul and body yea they storm and rage because God gives them a being capable of eternal woe 2. The wakened consciences of men out of Christ often fall upon this recrimination the gnawing of conscience of Judas is I have sinned and of the young man Prov. 5. 12. How have I hated instruction and my heart dispised reproof Yet it is a more commendable complaining and more hopeful to complain of sinful neglect of means then of divine permissive providence of sin upon the Lord 's withdrawing of gracious influences but conscience in its kindly acting is the tormenting worm that eats self No Divel alledges this its true Satan bites at providence God hedges about a hypocrite Job and God commends him says he Christ torments us before the time Satan trembles and frets at the existence of God and that God is above him Joh 1. 9 10. Matth. 8. 29. Jam. 2. 19. and so all his words to Christ speak a barking at providence Matth. 4. its wrong that the Son of God should want bread it is an useless providence that the man Christ go down stairs for God saith he should save him though he throw himself down headlong Satan is a better
Master who gives all the Kingdomes of the World to his Worshippers then God who denies Bread to his own wel-beloved Son thus doth Satan but in another kind fret So Gen. 3. it s a bad providence that Adam and Evah are not as knowing as God and Luke 5. 34. What have we to doe with Christ But may not conscience accuse providence in the Lord 's withdrawing of grace especially being wakened Ans The Conscience of Divels and the Damned is awakned either penally or sinfully these may be distinguished here the Conscience as penally wakned by the Judge primarily gnaws and torments it self for sin as punished I have sinned saith Judas and he casts down the seven pieces feeling the worm but as the Conscience is sinfully wakned by it self in blaspheming the God of Heaven Rev. 16. 9 11. because of pain it also frets against providence but is is not pain'd for the want of saving grace and holy influences which might have prevented sin yea their blasphemings of God eternally is a seal and a closeing with the state of unrenewed nature which is never moved for sin but wrestles against the providence which sometime did permit sin which now hath such tormenting consequences though the conscience in the mean time being taken with the Iustre and apparent good in sin did also close with the opportunity of sin and with providence opening the way to tentations Prov. 7. 15. and seek such a providence Gen. 39. 11 12. and embrace it Mark 14. 10 11. yet is there saving good in a regulated spiritual complaining of the want of saving influences So as 1. They be not looked on as misdeeds of providence and we say not the Lord might have lent me the influence to such a self-denying death as Abraham's journey in aiming to sacrifice his only son for God but he would not 2. It s good if there be a holy submissive complaining of the want of gracious influences as terminated upon duties Isa 63. 17. O Lord why hast thou made us to erre from thy ways and hardened our hearts from thy fear and not looked on as withdrawings of meer providence Though there be a holy claimbring to God ver 19. we are thine yet we are so thine as thy grace is Soveraign Thou never bearest rule over them they were not called by thy name and yet no praise or thanks to Israel that they were called by his Name rather then the Heathen 3. We may pray for and so earnestly suit and desire influences as Draw me quicken me encline my heart unto thy testimonies Therefore we may pray against withdrawings of influences as sad privations of dreadful consequents and so much is held forth in that Petition lead us not unto temptation 4. Yet so as there is no deserving in us of having eyes to see and spiritual influences to see to hear to perceive with a new heart Deut. 29. 2 3. as its not the merit of one part of the Earth the South that it lie nearer the Sun then another Northern part nor the good deserving of one Horse that he wear a golden Saddle and a silken Bridle rather than another this would be minded What am I Lord as it was Christ's mind to cry down works in point of salvation yet not to cry down all actings by way of duty in the New-covenant way Therefore 5. since grace may be desired and all gracious influences are grace so is there a conformity betwixt the believers will suiting influences and the revealed and approving will of God I say not his high decree and ordaining will for sure New-Testament or New-Covenant prayers new oyl and new supply of grace do import a fresh supply and watering of influences to be furnished to believers especially since we may pray Hallowed be thy Name in me thy Kingdome come to me thy will be done by me in the Earth is it is in Heaven 5. We may and ought to suit of God what the Lord promiseth in the Covenant of grace but the Lord promiseth to bestow predeterminating grace in this Covenant as after shall be cleared Now the faultiness of this I will not pray untill the Spirit act upon me and move me to pray is seen in that it importeth that the moral ground of praying is not the command of God pray continually and that command call upon me in the day of trouble which is most false for another warrant for all moral obedience then precept promise or practise can no man give yea it supposeth that the warrant of prayer is the influence of grace Now the influence of grace is the efficient helping cause not the rule not the objective cause of either our praying or any acts of our obedience Yea it is the way of Enthysiasts to make divine impulsions and not the word of precept the Rule of our obedience 2. This I will not pray untill the Spirit first act upon me must have either this sense I will not pray untill the Lord first give a praying disposition or untill the Lord first actually breath upon me This latter saith indeed I will not pray until I pray for the Lord 's actual influence includes praying The former cannot be said For there is no warrant to disobey the command pray continually untill I get a new disposition from Heaven for then might all praying of the renewed be shifted and the three Disciples in the garden might have said to Christ our Master bids us pray but we are heavy with sleep and indisposed and cannot pray and so must we be excused 2. Upon the same account Magus Acts 8. 21. and other unrenewed men should shift the command of praying for while we be translated out of nature to the Kingdome of grace we want the habit of grace and spirit of adoption by which only we can pray acceptably 3. How unsavoury shall this be a man falls over a Bridge and is a drowning another is going to the place of Execution to die another is sick to death all of them may by this shift say we must not pray lest we take the Name of God in vain untill the Spirit breath upon us heavenly impressions of speaking in the Spirit to God 4. This shift cannot stand to suspend praying until the Spirit breath from on high for we are to pray for the spirit 's breathing and for teaching quickning enlarging of heart that we may pray and praise Psal 51. 15. Psal 119. 36 37 40 48. Wind fetches wind here and fire begets fire as cold flint creates hot fire so the Atheists let them pray that can pray I 'me no Minister But it hath this I am ready to pray but the blame of my not praying is to be laid on the Spirit for the wind blows not but this is but witty laziness as when the Sea-man will sleep and attempt no Sea-voyage and lay the blame which is his fall upon the wind which blows not after his mind it appears he is but a sleeper
parts I should doe more for God but more of nature you have and what doe you Is it not thus had I the wings of an Eagle I would flie But these wings you have and you lie and you creep you doe but slumber and sleep in the ways of God you flie not 3. Why is not this said Had I more corruption as it is easie to gain here and doe evil and wax worse and worse I should run with Divels and Reprobate men from evil to worse for this is a truth had I the acquired blinded mind of Pharaoh and trayterous heart of Judas I should be worse then they If it be said there is not the like reason between nature and grace for one habit of saving grace helps to make the will stronger and more bent to gracious actings then gifts or common parts or natural parts Ans It is true the habit of saving grace makes the soul readier to act savingly for God Saving grace doth more strongly effect the will in an habitual way for gracious acts But no habit either of grace or nature can actuate it self and therefore it is presumption in a way of relying on the habit of grace to promise much to our selves 8. Had I extraordinary helps of a teacher sent from Hell I would believe Ans 1. We believe not the word spoken by Angels the Law nor the word spoken by the Lord Heb. 2. 3. and Heb. 12. 25. For if they escaped not who refused him who spake on Earth much more shall not we escape if we turn away from him who speaketh from Heaven Christ came from Heaven and out of the bosome of the Father and hath preached Heaven and Hell to us for he had experience of wrath answerable to the pain of Hell 2. This is no other shift then that of the rich man in the Parable Luk. 16. 30. Nay father Abraham if one went to them from the dead they will repent Now repentance flows not from the Preachers experience though he had seen and felt the pains of Hell or the joys of Heaven nor doth the experience of Heaven's joy or Hell's torment heal the broken and wounded will and the rich man's divinity hath been the same with Pelagians way that if the word be feelingly and dexterously proposed it can waken up the sleeping free will and repentance is a work of nature if the fire be dexterously blown upon it will certainly flame and all depends upon the running and willing of his five brethren Now common grace free will and natural ability at best is but a potency the actual stirring of saving grace must extract and to speak so milk out of the very saving habit acts of sound believing and repenting or then the will and the habit must lie dead far more is this true in natural powers and common graces Now in all this our Saviour answers well the whole doubt he that is not faithful in little can he be faithful in much Luke 16. 11. If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous Mammon who will commit to your trust the true riches Verse 12. And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another mans who shall give you that which is your own Our Saviour reasons most strongly Joh. 3. 12. If I have told you earthly things and ye believe not how shall ye believe if I tell you of heavenly things He that is not able to bear a burden of the weight of one pound would he bear a burden of a thousand talents So he If the Lord had given me ten talents I should have equalled David or Paul or the beloved disciple John in grace and holiness Now ye have not improved two talents but digged them in the Earth For it is not here as in earthly things mow a Meadow twelve times in one year and after thrice mowing ye shall have but little take continually away from a deep fountain and draw water from it night and day at length it shall be ebb or dry but act and improve the habit of grace and the more it shall grow and encrease And its certain grace can waken up sleeping free will but free will cannot stir up grace death cannot make use of life but life can work upon deadness The next answer to this had I grace or more grace I should be as holy as David it s a blowing up of nature and a dethroning of Christ For this I when you say I should be holy as David is not that gracious I of which Paul Gal. 2. 20. I live not but Christ lives in me but its I and self divided from self and grace but woe to the will separated from Christ woe to the branch cut off from the green and flourishing tree its good for nothing but the fire woe to the arm sawen off the living body and by this as one saith well If God would give the power you would of your self add the will this is the Pelagian heresie Let God but make a stirring and a blowing and give a sort of will I could doe wonders as if it were not the Lord who works in us both to will and to doe of his good pleasure Phil. 2. 13. yea it lays little upon God's calling for he calleth Cain and Judas and much yea the All of our salvation on our Answering Christ knocks by word of mouth and I and self free-will opens the heart of Lydia which debaseth Christ and powerfull grace In all which consider had you the influences of grace at your disposing 1. Then might free will bar the Iron door against sin that sin of Angels and men without free wills good leave should never enter the world And the Creature should be more Master and Lord Governour over providence then the Soveraign Lord himself then could the Lord erect no theatre nor set a Chair of free-grace to the Mediator and Lord of grace Jesus Christ while first he took Counsel with created free will and say O creature may I have thy good leave to send my Son to the world and the disease must be consulted shall there be such a precious one as the Physician the healer of sinners It s true no sinner no Saviour no lost one no Redeemer such as our Emanuel but it s known if influences of grace be as Pelagianizing universalists say at the disposing of nature with that absolute indifferency the free creature may stand or may fall let the Al-governing Lord doe his best to the contrary there is here a created Soveraign dominion If God create the creature free it involves a contradiction that God should be free to hold out or bring in sin and hell and misery and God is indifferent except man must irrevocably perish to send his Son in the flesh to saue finners and such a providence might have been if mans free will had so been pleased to dispose of its own free acts and of the influences of God there should for ever
that be said by Isa 40. 13. Who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord or being his counsellour hath taught him Ver. 14. With whom took he counsell who instructed him and taught him in the path of judgement and taught him knowledge and shewed him the way of understanding Or what needs that Job 21. 22. Shall any teach God knowledge seeing he judgeth things that are high What a God is an unknowing God who needs a lesson from the creature or from some higher God and then who taught that other God who is supposed to be higher then the most high what a carnal mind is this that chaseth the Almighty God out of the world 4. What doe they who curse the day the stars the twilight the birth as Job chap. 3. A gracious heart saith let the Lord be the Lord and closes with all the attributes of God and with all the influences of Omnipotency wisedome goodness and justice on men and of love mercy grace bounty forbearance to the Saints and to their own soul this is to sing mercy and to sing judgement whereas its a note of Atheisme to wish and vote out of the world God his attributes and all the acting and influences of mercy justice truth grace soveraignty and to say It s not the Lord the Lord can neither doe good neither can be doe evil Zeph. 1. 8. So would we beware to fight with the Lord's dispensations of grace he is Lord and Soveraign disposer of his own comforts whether we look upon comforts as duties commanded 2 Thes 5. 17. Jer. 31. 15. or as a reward of duties from the Lord Rom. 15. 4. Psal 27. 14. 2 Thes 2. 16. Isa 66. 13 14. he is the Lord of all influences to work in us to will and to doe and Master of his own rewards The Lord is Master of his own love-visits and is neither debtor to the man Christ nor to the elect Angels yea the Lord 's saving influences go along with his free decree of Election and look as the Lord of nature preserves the speces of Roses of Vine-trees though this or that individual rose or vine-tree may wither and be blasted so he holds on the work of believing praying of hoping and persevering to the end though there may be a miscarrying in this or that particular act of faith and some deadness in praying hic nunc And as in a great work of a water-mill some one of the wheels may be broken and yet the Mill is kept a going and the Ship still under sayl though some instrument or other be wanting and laid aside for a while So when there is a withdrawing of feeling of a presence in praying as Cantic 5. 6. I called him but he answered me not yet influences flow in another duty of praising ver 10. My Beloved is white and ruddy and the chief among ten thousand And when there are withdraw-drawings of God as touching vigourousness of believing Why art thou disquieted O my soul c. yet are there very large outlettings of God in love-sickness and strong desires after the Lord Psal 42. 2. My soul thirsteth for God for the living God So is it that some River which floweth a far other way in a new cutted out Channel the former being dried up So the bloud runs in another vein and still furnisheth strength to the body nor is there cause to complain as if all strength were gone for when the afflicted man eats ashes for bread and drinks tears the heart is withered as grass and the mans bones are burnt as an hearth Psal 102. the flood breaks out in another corner Ver. 12. But thou O Lord shalt endure for ever and thy remembrance unto all generations V. 19. He looks down from Heaven 20. To hear the groaning of the Prisoner to loose them that are appointed for death There is some spiritual compensation in the Lord 's forbidding the wind to blow in one earth when it strongly blows in another Some deadned deserted ones are much meekned and made to speak out of the dust and fed and fatned also with hunger yea if it were but lying at the gate of Christ and knocking though no answer at all be returned it hath much of Christ in it in other considerations deadness may be on and want of holy vigorous acting of faith and yet spiritual complainings yea and with the complainings fervent praying Psal 119. 25. My soul cleaveth unto the dust quicken thou me according to thy word Ver. 28. My soul melteth for heaviness strengthen me according to thy word Ye would judge righteously of the Lord and see whether or no ye complain without cause for though there be fainting yet there is hoping Psal 119. 81. My soul fainteth for thy salvation but I hope in thy word Some children are always malecontent and still weeping nothing in the house can please them it s the fault of some greedy wretches who have abundance and yet still complain of want It were good to turn our censuring of the Lord's providence into complaining of our own evil hearts it follows humble and diligent obedience that hath sweetness of submission Psal 119. 165. Great peace have they that keep thy Law and nothing shall offend or as the word is stumble their feet There is a heart-covenanting with God when the man saith God shall doe nothing that shall stumble me his killing of me his casting me out of his presence into hell shall not offend me Job 1. 22. 2 Sam. 16. 10. The man Christ could be broken or offended at nothing whether the traytor sell him or the disciples forsake him or the Jews apprehend him or the souldiers spit on his face or Pilate condemn him or the people nod the head shoot out the lip and mock him there is nothing can break Christ but the Scriptures must be fulfilled in Christ's sufferings If the Lord slay Aaron's sons Aaron holds his peace Let me be rained upon with showres of influences from Heaven or let my fleece be dry and let me be a bottle in the smoke yet there is no unrighteousness with God and in him is no darkness Ah I am dead but the Lord guides well ah he is a Lion to me and a Leopard but the Lord is good to the soul that waits for him The man that stumbles least at the sins of others and their falls is the man nearest to God's heart Psal 18. 18. They prevented me in the day of my calamity They wronged me ver 25. But I kept my self from my iniquity and what can ye say against his withdrawings will ye make it a quarrel that he hides his face there is a deep of soveraignty between the Lord 's withdrawing from Hezekiah and Hezekiah's pride God hardens Pharaoh's heart and Pharaoh hardens his own heart Joshua 11. 19 20. Isaiah 57. 17. Psalm 81. 11 12. Qu. But what shall be done under deadness Ans 1. If there be any life life helps life the one
part of the worm acts upon the other to bring forth a motion of life 2. Ye have no more reason to chide him for blasting your heart with withering then that the Lord sends a wind upon the Rose and dries it up and the grace of it is gone 3. Meddle not with his part but complain of your part let his soveraignty alone and confess your own guiltiness Isa 64. 6 8. there is a confession of our sin But we are all as an unclean thing and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags and withal an acknowledgment of his Soveraignty we are the clay and thou our potter 4. When the Lord withdraws seek again and again be sick after him Cant. 3. 1 2 3. Cant. 7. 6 7 8. Joh. 20. 1 2 3 13. and know that Christ is never so absent but there may be also much cause of praising and humble blessing God if there be love-sickness for him hunger after him and a spiritual missing of him as there is reason to complain of the withdrawing of his influences For Cant. 3. when Christ is absent he is not absent the soul is shined upon when the soul is overclouded for it is noon-day at mid-night he is absent as to feeling as to finding and quiet enjoying I sought him but I found him not and again I sought him but I found him not but he is strongly present and shining as to influences of grace 1. In painful seeking in the bed by night Cantic chap. 3. ver 1. 2. In and about the broad streets and ways v. 2. 3. In using publick means watch-men saw ye him v. 3. 4. In using other means in private I went a little further 5. In holy missing I found him not v. 1. I found him not v. 2. In holy finding v. 4. I found him 6. And all the while his presence is mighty in the soul-love to him I sought him whom my soul loved four times expressed v. 1. v. 2. v. 3. v. 4. so that the gleaning is better then the full harvest the mid-night absence hath as many sweet priviledges as the noon days presence A sinners seeking loving and longing and languishing after lost Christ is Heaven upon Earth his pawns he leaves behind him are rich and sweet nor can one be out of Heaven in a better desertion then missing and seeking the face of Jacob's God Psal 24. 6. Psal 27. 8. Jer. 50. 4. so groundless often is our complaining that we want Christ that Christ guides and tutors us badly that he mis-guides rather Ah how sinfully querulous are we he does all things well his absence is presence his frownings sweet and profitable Yet is not this spoken to cool our fervour of seeking when we misse him and find him not but rather we are to go on not to say any thing of Law-smiting and of Law-firings of the soul under apprehended wrath especially that which hath Gospel-hope and Gospel-sickness after Christ conjoyned with them Rom. 7. The Law slew me The Law kills no man who is under Christ out of hand yea to such as are under grace somewhat of the Gospel-heaven cleaves to the Law-hell It s a miracle how some are burnt with the Law slain with the terrors of God wounded with the arrows of the Almighty and yet are green in the surnace as Job c. 6. c. 7. 20. I have sinned what shall I doe to thee O thou preserver of men Ver. 21. Why dost thou not pardon my transgression and take away my iniquity To strive with the Law were to strive with God so do Divels and reprobates for eternity wrestle with the Law-justice and the Law-curse grace teacheth meek assenting to the Law as good and spiritual neither Christ nor any of his live at ods and variance with the Law Indeed to the Saints the Law is as they say of Elements They exist not in their purity but with some mixture For the Law to believers is managed by Christ and in his hands made use of for saving ends even when the believer is in the Law-furnace nor is there any who could guide make so good use of the Law as Jesus Christ Some there are that one nights waking under the terrors of the Law would make an end of them if invisible Gospel strength were not furnished to them and here there must be a mixture of Law-influences and of Gospel impressions of Christ upon the spirit It speaks much grace in Josiah 2 Kings 22. 19. to feel and suffer with softness and tenderness of a meekned and a tamed heart the smart and pain of the influences of the threatning Law And its prevalency of grace for Hezekiah Isa 39. to stoop to the like and to say good is the word of the Lord even the word of a curse Deut. 28. of threatning the saddest evils as to kick like a fatted horse and to spurn at such impressions of wrath born in upon the conscience in Pharaoh Exod. 10. 28. in Achab 1 Kings 22. 26. in the Priests Prophets and People Jer. 26. 8. of the chief Priests and Pharisees Matth. 21. 45 46. does proclaim much gracelesness of an undanted and unplowed heart where there is any ingredient of Gospel-grace there is a coming down and a stooping to the influences of God of what kind soever yea and generally a gracious spirit dare no more resist and pray against the Lord's will of pleasure or purpose in its event then against any part of the revealed will of God or the will of precept either Law or Gospel The disciples were to watch and pray against the decreed and prophecied scattering of the flock and their fleeing and forsaking of Christ Matth. 26. 31 32 38 41. but there can no case be given in which we may resist the approving will of God in his word that then must be a sweet conformity with God when the heart sweetly closes with impressions of rebukes threatnings convictions and influences of Evangelick commands It s good earth that easily yields and cedes to the breakings and tillings made by the Plough let the word act as the Lord will in all its kinds and the soul says amen but the ground that breaks the Irons of the tilling Plough is convinced to be rocky and barren every string of the harp beaten on by the hand of the Musician gives a resound like it self a Bell of silver hath an other sort of excellent sound then a Bell of Brass or Iron the gracious heart answers to every letter and impression of the word to the promise with faith to the precept with pliableness of obedience to the threatning with softness and godly trembling for all the Word and Law and the several parts thereof are written and engraven in the heart and the gracious heart is a double or a second copy of the Old and New Testament So Achab on the contrary meets every word from Micaiah with hatred and there is a resound and an echo of hatred and persecution which in
twelve ports the foundation of the wall garnished with all manner of precious stones the building of the wall of Jasper what a bride the Lamb's wife is as shee is busked and adorned with the glory of God what a joyful company of harpers cloathed in white follow the Lamb Rev. 14. Rev. 19. Yea 4. Even in this life in the lower countrey and the out-fields the fruits that grow in the land are good Rom. 14. 17. Gal. 5. 22. Psal 72. 16. 1 Pet. 1. 4 5 6. Psal 16. 11. 1 Cor. 2. 9. what a life-guard for Kings sons Isa 6. 2 3 4. Psal 34. 7. Psal 91. 11 12. and on the other hand what golden nothings and clay-dreams does the spirit of the world follow after what spiritual gallantry is in the man that says and resolves time and all that Solomon had shall not satisfie me I must either be a King above time or have nothing Will a beggar aspire to a Kingdom or a sow seek after pearls what does the spirit of the world but lie and swear and whore and oppresse in the sons of disobedience the godly is of a far more excellent spirit 5. It s a poor spirit that acts in Cicero Seneca and other Pagans the bastard and the servants priviledge is little to a Kings heir and son As to the second the differences of that Spirit which is of God are considerable 1. The spirit John 14. 17. remains in his own and dwels in them as in his house Rom. 8. 11. as a man remains and works in a shop or work-house and the soul lives breaths acts discourses in the man so the spirit of adoption prays groans believs teacheth witnesseth speaketh heareth in the believer Matth. 10. 19. Rom. 8. 16 25 26. Now the world cannot receive this spirit John 14. 27. no more then the noble soul of man can find lodging in a brute beast try what spirit acts in you and the principles of your actions and you shall know the influences Every mans moral actings are as John's baptisme from Heaven or of Men what sparkles of influences kindle the heart in your actings 2. The Spirit of God John 16. 13. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 He shall guide the way to you in all truth Rom. 8. 14. as many 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as are led driven either as a flock by the shepherd or as a ship by the wind are the children of God The Spirit is a Pilot and a Steersman acting and moving in the Saints directing counselling enspiring in all actings its easie to know the spirits leading by what it drives at Rev. 16. 13. For they are the spirits of divels working miracles which go forth to the Kings of the earth and of the whole world to gather them to the battel of that great day of God Almighty This he says of the three unclean spirits like frogs the Popes firebrands and incendiaries who came out of the mouth of the Dragon out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false Prophet What hellish influences must drive these men delivered up to such leaders There is a spirit who rules in the children of disobedience Satan the Prince of the air Eph. 2. The spirit of giddinesse and errour leads Egypt Isa 19. 14. The spirit of whoredome Hos 4. 12. Hos 5. 4. that inclines to Idolatry The spirit of lying 1 Kin. 22. 22. The spirit of errour 1 John 4. 6. The spirit of unbelief that was in the ten spies led and drive many Num. 14. 24. But Caleb had another spirit with him It 's the sin of the time we live in to persecute resist the spirit and the more outlettings of the spirit that appear in Steven the more the Jewes set themselves against him For Acts 7. 27. they cry out with a loud voice and stop their eares and run upon him when he saw heaven open being full of the Holy Ghost he was before full of the Holy Ghost but now there is a high spring-tide and a new mighty flowing of the influences of the Holy Ghost and the height of goodnesse and excellent actings of the spirit drawes out their malice to the full as Steven told them 51. Ye have alwayes resisted the Holy Ghost 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is to fall crosse with all the might in a hostile way upon the spirit O tremble to hate and fight against the marrow of godliness and to mock the spirit O that it were not this day the sin of Scotland and of the generality of the Ministers of the Gospel in this Land In the Prelates times the seekers of God met not with such bitternesse as even now they meet with 3. Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty 2 Cor. 3. 17. Vphold me with thy free Spirit Psal 51. 12. It 's proper to natural men in whom the spirit dwels not to be vile slaves to lusts and the more of the spirit in any the more active are they in the Lords wayes and hardly can the spirit be where there are not influences of grace For it 's the Spirits office to be stirring and active as the horses of Egypt are flesh and not spirit that is lumpish dead feeble unable to save not spirited active to deliver and in this especially the actings of the spirit appear in the fiery spiritness of heavenly influences Would ye be carried on and helped in duties get the spirit and ye cannot misse heavenly influences the drinesse of the earth speaks the suspending of rain and dew in the clouds and a heaven of brass the man is dead and under bands and straitned in prayer then must the showres of influences be restrained Psal 51. 12. Vphold me with thy free spirit What then v. 13. Then I le teach transgressors thy wayes Take a work where there are an hundred wheels of which the higher moves the lower then when the first and highest moves not all the ninety and nine must stand When the spirit breathes not and influences are restrained what wonder if the soul be deadned For the Marigold loures and weeps in its kind and droops when the Sun is down our prayers would blow upon the North and South wind that they may blow The breathing and blowing of prayer do readily waken up the spirit though he must stir in praying also else we are dead and breathless 4. The spirit that is of God is a praying spirit Jude Praying in the Holy Ghost Of all the Tongues and Languages on earth the Holy Ghost loves most to speak prayer-wise and in the language of humble supplications Rom. 8. 29. We know not what we should pray for as we ought What then shall the work lie Nay the spirit takes it off the poor mans hand but the Spirit it self maketh intercession for us with sighs that cannot be expressed And rather or spiritual work be at a stand the Third Person lends a lift to the groaning soul that cannot pray
Lord upon the head upon the head Christ and the influence of that anointing upon the members to wit on the meek on the broken-hearted on the captives on those that are bound and sold Then saith the man Christ the Spirit of the Lord hath sent the strong and fountain-influences of the abounding anointing on me and I may send the fruits of these holy influences upon the meek to preach to them glad tidings that they may believe and influences upon the broken hearts that they may be bound up and influences on the captives and prisoners and the sold and oppressed with debt that they may be made free for binding up of hearts and freeing of captives and prisoners are impossible without the healing influences of Christ Then saith he God lets out to me and to the members 〈◊〉 the head receive anointing and a full fountain and I issue out streames and life to the members look then as the dry earth hath a sort of connatural right of meanes and end to the full clouds and bottles of heaven and the rain in the clouds and the cold and dead earth hath a sort of connatural right by the Lords holy appointment to the influences of the Sun so by a decree of free grace the broken-hearted the meek the captives the prisoners have a right of meanes in order to the end to the influences of compassion and tenderness and of real grace that in its fulness is in the soul and heart of the Mediator Christ toward their brokenness bondage and misery who are his Then may the captive and prisoner claime influences from Christ as the dry earth in its kind suites and â—egges that raine that is in the bosome and womb of the clouds for its refreshments and so much the more that fulness of Christs anointing is not only ordered by a free and gracious decree as the meanes for this end to supply the emptiness of the meek and the poor captives but 2. also which is more the influences of the fulness of Christs anointing is due by way of merit and of buying and selling to those captives as when there is a large price of blood given for to redeem the man in his vain conversation as 1 Pet. 1. 18. from the present evil world Gal. 1. 15. from the living to sin and in sin 1 Pet. 2. 24. from all iniquity and the bondage and filthiness thereof Tit. 2. 14. There is a due right in law by way of bargain and payment made to Justice upon Christs part that such ought not to be detained slaves captives and prisoners Now the earth hath no such right by buying nor any Jus emptionis to have rain and influences from the clouds and the sun for the Lord may without violation of any bargain turn the earth into iron and the heavens into brass and so may the Lord simply and absolutely deny the fruits Christs anointing binding up of wounds and freedome to the broken-hearted and to the captives and slaves of sin for any deserving in them yet as touching the bargain and engagement of redemption from sins and the dominion masterdome and law imprisonment thereof the meek and the captives have a more noble right in the surety Christ by way of buying and selling to the healing influences of Christs holy anointing then the world can express See also how the spirit in its fulness is given to Christ Isa 11. 2. The spirit of the Lord shall rest on him the spirit of wisedom and understanding the spirit of counsel and might the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord. Isa 42. 1. I will put my spirit on him he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles These be mighty influences on him to whom said John the Baptist God gave not the spirit by measure John 3. 34. 3. There is a right of promise to influences Rev. 2. 7 17 26. Rev. 3. 12 20 21. John 14. 18 21. John 15. 1 2. In Christ promissio facit legale jus Christ as it were oweth me showers of grace for he promised to water me This promise is a draught of the river of life to the deadned spirit 4. There is a mystical dueness and connatural love-right The head by natures law is a sort of debtor for influences of life to the members Here are sweet grounds for the streams to beg from the fountain the members dry and withering from the living head 2. It was fit there should be another higher providence about the head then about the members and so more admirable and transcendent influences extended toward Christ then toward any of the sons of men as that a new star should be created at his birth That 2. God should give testimony of him from heaven immediately This is my beloved Son c. 3. That Angels immediate messengers from heaven should preach his birth-day and place Luke 2. should minister to him in his agony in the garden should watch the corps of this King sleeping in the grave should witness his ascension and what mighty influences above nature must be in his raising the dead commanding devils c. In his coming down from heaven to be man in whom all the fulness of the Godhead dwells bodily and that the holy body should ascend visibly through the air and through the heavens cleaving yielding and giving way to him what influences in that the clouds are his chariots and that the man Christ intercedes at the right hand of God and sends influences of life all the world over to his members rules all Empires and Kingdomes the languishing and fainting believer is comforted O how suitable is Christs fulness and life to my death and emptiness 3. These must be strong influences that with the anointing Isa 61. 1 2. is given a power to preach the year of vengeance to judge and trample upon the necks of all his enemies that the man Christ shall come visibly and locally from the highest heavens and the heavens bow and yield to his blessed manhood when he comes with his mighty Angels to judge all And he sends 4. influences of judgments through the stars which fight against his enemies Judg. 5. 20. through winds seas and rivers fire and sword and evil Angels that are armed against his enemies Exod. 14. 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28. Exod. 15. 10 11 12. Judg. 5. 21. Gen. 19. 23 24 25. Numb 16. 31 32 33. Psal 78. 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 c. All which teach us not to murmure at providence government of the world Why say we this is sad and yet fallen out God might otherwise have disposed of all and we reflect upon his providence while as we offend at second causes but be comforted in a new world and in a more glorious providence of influences in ruling heaven and earth and in carrying the chosen of God to glory then if all were ruled to our will 1. None shall wither or be blasted that are
to praise to submit to God to adore to walk humbly to walk circumspectly and tenderly and such like but most of them may be reduced to these NOw to speak of the burning of the heart the place Luke 24. 32. is clear The two disciples having parted with Christ now risen from the dead and not knowing him to be Christ 32. they say one to another Did not our hearts burn within us when he spake to us in the way and opened to us the Scriptures In which words the nature of heavenly heart-burning in the causes and properties thereof is laid open and the differences between the heat natural from natural influences from the lively heat spiritual In the words these particulars are to be observed 1. When the heat is gone and past 1. they perceive it they said one to another when he is gone our heart did burn in the past or preterite time 2. They accuse their own stupidity 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 did not our heart burn were we sleeping when he burnt us 3. The Author speaking Christ while he spake to us in the way 4. The fewel that made the fire and the burning coals the Scripture opened by Christ 5. The object of the burning or the subject recipient our heart was burning as an oven or a furnace They said one to another The coal of fire which Christ cast into the heart and is now smoaking among the fire-wood and on the heart leaves two things behind it 1. Telling of their experiences one to another 2. The feeling and perceiving of the heavenly heart-burning better when it 's gone then when it was on Then the heart-working of Christ will leave histories behind it as what is much of Solomons Song but a Narration of the daughters and virgins one to another of Christs actings upon the soul or a chronicle of Christs love and the Spouses sin as 1. Of Christs dispensation in withdrawing Cant. 3. I sought him but I found him not Cant. 5. 6. I opened to my beloved and my beloved had withdrawn himself 2. She tells his saving actings upon the soule be like to the virgins Cant. 1. 4. The King hath brought me unto his chambers Cant. 2. 4. He brought me into his banquetting-house and love was his banner over me 3. She tells over songs of Christs loveliness and excellency Cant. 5. 10 11 12. of the savouriness of his name of the memory of his love Cant. 1. 3 4. of the seat and room that Christ hath in her heart and betwixt her breasts Cant. 1. 13. all the night 4. She tells of her carnal drowsiness of her sinful refusing to open and let in Christ to the heart So does Jeremiah tell a sad experience of his own he had quit the prophecying trade and would speak no more in the name of the Lord and he was burnt with a fire in his breast he could not get the word housed in his heart but it did come abroad This shall be the first difference betwixt spiritual heart-burnings and the influences that the Spirit leaves and the natural heat The literal burning leaves no work upon the heart nor any impression of heavenly experiences Jehu his heat against Achab and Baal left no impression of God on him to hate the golden calves or the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat who made Israel to sin He did cleave to that way 2 Kings 10. 28 30. Let fiery professors shew any influence of a gratious work in the heart the flaming of thorns under a pot and the flashes of heat from burning straw leave no fire but ashes and much cold behind them in the cold winter frost and the generality of dead professors can say nothing to one another but I have long heard the Gospel and yet am without God and without Christ 2. I am convinced of the excellence of Christ and there yet is no fire or coal of heart-love to Christ in me and it were good such a missing there were 2. Did not our hearts burn This is convinced to be a disposition spiritual rather then a habit it s a burning of heart while Christ speakes that had a cooling before though they were believing Disciples But here observe they feel not so the burning of heart in the mean time as afterward when v. 31. Christ was vanished out of their sight and gone now they take special notice in a feeling way of the warmness of heart they felt while he opened the Scriptures to them The Lord preaches in a ladder reaching from earth to heaven Jacob sleeps and can give no judgement in the mean time but Gen. 28. 16. when the sweet vision and preaching is eâ—ded Jacob awaked out of his sleep and he said Surely the Lord was in this place and I knew not A strong impression of the presence and glory of God sometimes comes on after the Lord is away David desires and thirsts Psalm 63. 2. saith he in the wilderness of Judah that I may see thy power and thy glory as I have seen thee The enjoying of Zion and Zions songs while the people is at home in their own land hath not such influence on their spirit as when the Sancturies glory is removed then Psalm 137. 1. By the rivers of Babel there we sate down yea we wept when we remembred Zion While one is in a fever they may be ignorant that they are in a fever but when the cooling of health comes then he well remembers he was sick of a fever When there is a fever of glory on Peter he speaks he knows not what Mark 9. 6. yet after 2 Pet. 1. 16 17. he makes sweet comfortable use of that glory of Christ on the mount when the Lord waters the sown seed and sends down new influences of grace then doth it appear what warming hath been in the soul this is a second difference betwixt literal heat and spiritual burning of heart literal heat hath most sense when it is a dowing there are no spiritual reflexions upon that burning when it is gone and over except the Lord give repentance and that is accidental to all sinful fairds and flaming of the flesh or of a moral gift it dies with its flaming as fired powder that endures not long whereas its useful to call to mind the gracious burnings of heart yea or any of the Lords ancient paths according to that Psalm 119. 52. I remembred thy judgement of old and have comforted my self and its good to receive and lay up influences of heart warmings of Christ Isa 42. 23. Who among you will â—ear this who will hearken and hear for the time to come Did not our hearts burn 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The godly reprove their not knowing and not discerning of Christ in his heart flamings of love godly and spiritual sense â—â—lengeth self-dulness Cant. 5. 6. I opened to my beâ—â—ved but my beloved had withdrawn himself and was gone This is a sense of Christs withdrawing
the Spirit in one and the same work the sounding of the word and the breathing of the Spirit may be attended Psalm 130. 5. I wait for the Lord my soul doth wait Whether in his real helping and hearing my crying out of the deeps or on his saving actings upon the dead heart and in his word do I hope there may be a casting of the goods in the sea to help the ship to land there is failing of the eyes in waiting for God Psalm 69. 3. Psalm 119. 8. My soul fainteth for thy salvation 13. I opened my mouth panted for I longed for thy salvation I cannot create breathings But the man in a pit or dungeon though he can make no help to himself yet he can cry and make use of arms and legs when a rope is cast down to him 4. Blowing of the bellows adds nothing to the fire yet it removes the ashes it fans away the earthy part and rarifies it and acts upon the smoke and adds quickning it 's fit to blow upon the habit of grace and heavenly disposition yea to blow in a sanctified way in a gift so Paul 2 Tim. 1. 6. Wherefore I put thee in remembrance to stir up the gift of God which is in thee by the laying on of my hands Erasmus saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is an elegant metaphor from such as care for the fire which is as it were buried under ashes they blow with the bellows and revive and stir up the fire like to die out others think it an allusion to the Priests dayly watching to cherish and keep in the fire which the Lord sent down from heaven and to cast new fewel to it So is that 1 Tim. 4. 14. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 neglect not the gift that is in thee let it not rust self-sharping and self-impulsion upon the heart and acting upon the habit which is in worse case because it lodges in a lazy heart is required we may deaden and neglect both our souls and the new habit whereas that prayer Lord increase our faith teacheth that we by diligent acting add to the habit to the gift talent and dispensation and the improving of these are forcible means to draw down fresh influences of life the Lord of his grace having brought himself reserving actings of soveraignty and deep wisedom under a sort of promissory necessity to bestow influences and to give one talent to him who makes five talents ten idleness and sleeping then must be no small obstruction to new quickening influences 5. As the husbandman is a fellow-worker in his way with industry and art with the Lord and nature to fit his ridges by plowing and sowing to receive influences of dew and rain and impression from heaven and he works with God and nature who labours the vineyard purges out brambles briars stones prunes the young vine-trees that they may receive influences from Sunne Moon Heavens and Clouds Yet no husbandman no vinedresser can be Lord of the influences of heaven so hath the Lord commanded us to plow up the fallow-ground of our hearts and not to sow among thorns to lie under the husbandry of Ministers sent of God to frequent ordinances to yield up our hearts by willing consent to be acted on by God to resign them and put the heart out of our possession and yield to that suit My son give me thy heart else we mock God in suiting from him enlargedness of heart in a sort of compromising that we shall run if he shall draw and enlarge But we keep fast possession of our own hearts and doe not resign them to God Hence a word of wakening to cry to harp and psaltery to our gift and to our tongue and to our sleepy hearts Psal 57. 8. is requisite as also 2. that we chide with our unbelieving soules Psal 42. 5 11. and command the renewed part to act upon the heart to accuse and convince and rebuke the heart 1 Sam. 24. 5. 1 John 3. 20. 6. The soul can be in no such dead case but it 's capable of an Evangelick command Sardis hath a name they are living and yet are dead then is it useless to speak to Sardis now dead no Rev. 3. 2. Strengthen that which remaines There fly sparkles of fire from the red hot iron of the smith upon those about whether they will or no. From that charge Open to me my sister my love c. there came upon her whether she would or not flamings of love which brought influences on her bowels CHAP. IX The fifth Question is what is the enlarging of heart It is nothing but the wideness and fulness of the soul and powers thereof in its actings Hence these Propositions concerning enlargedness of heart Prop. 1. WHen the soul is widened and stretched out in its actings we are ready to say I shall never be moved Psal 30. I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever Psal 23. 6. which though true when he was banished from the Tabernacle Psal 42. Psal 84. Psal 63. he had uttered thoughts of his state Some say Shall I ever again be dead Shall I ever again doubt as a down-casting soul no I shall believe and hope under temptations to the end But we are no more to judge of our selves by our present enlargedness then we are to pass sentence of the multitude of people of a City by a solemn fair or great market the town is not every day so peopled nor are we to esteem of a river by its swelling and running over banks after a mighty long continued rain 2. Nor are we to judge of our selves according to our ebbing and deadness of disposition that we shall ever again believe Saith the doubting soul Shall I ever again see the beauty and glory of his power as sometimes I did in the Sanctuary Psal 63. The birds reason not so they say not in winter shall ever the Spring and the season of building our nests come again shall birds ever have Summer-singing again And we are ready to make a weapon-shew of grace when the heart is enlarged I 'le doe wonders as if the man were the Father who begat grace and the Lord of his own believing as some believe the horses swiftness is the swiftness of the rider Be humble and pull down the sail when the heart is enlarged Prop. 2. See in the Text enlargedness of heart and running are near of kindred and blood The disposition and the gracious acting by divine influences are near other as the powder and flamings the dry timber and the warm harth-stone to receive flamings There is a near disposition in the Embrio in the framed mass of the birth to receive by the Creators influences a living soul Psal 38. 1 2 3 4. So in Christ Psal 40. the law in the heart and preaching the Lords righteousness in the great congregations are near other 2. The enlarged heart is ripened to receive influences and quickening of grave for running The
strong convictions come upon the spirit we are to yield our hearty assent to him Matth. 27. 54. the Centurion and the watchers of Christ seeing the earth-quake and other wonders from heaven say 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Luke 23. 47. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 true certainly undoubtedly this was the Son of God this was a righteous man but ah he calls and we answer not we love to be wrought on as stones and blocks and could wish to be carried sleeping to heaven in Christs bosome 2. We often suffer the heart to cool and obey not the Spirit in his heavenly disposition and let the fire die out and the furnace cool 3. It were good if we did not counter-work heavenly dispositions by refusing and shifting Cant. 5. 3. of God and the actings of his Spirit Cant. 5. 2. open to me nay saith the Spouse how can I open The third particular is that David speaketh this prayer-ways to God there may be so heavenly a disposition upon the child of God as he dare lay it before God in point of sincerity that it is not rotten David prayer-ways lays before God the fervor of his desire of God Psalm 42. 1. As the hart panteth after the water-brooks so panteth my soul after thee O God Psalm 63. 1. My soul thirsteth for thee my flesh longeth for thee Psalm 73. 25. Whom have I in heaven but thee Psalm 119. 103. How sweet are thy words unto my mouth v. 97. O how love I thy law Psalm 139. 17. How precious are thy thoughts to me And the Church saith Isa 26. 8. Yea in the way of thy judgements we have waited for thee O Lord the desire of our soul is to thy name Jer. 15. 16. Thy words were found and I did eat them and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoycing of my heart for I am called by thy name O Lord God of hosts Q. 1. May we not lay out rotten and unclean hearts before God A. No doubt the pained man may lay out his boils before the Physitian and confession of sins and of the evil of our ways make way to making of a new creation in us Psalm 51. 5 10. Q. To what end should we speak to God of the sincerity of heavenly dispositions and fixedness of heart A. 1. Because neither David nor any of the Saints can order their own hearts under heavenly dispositions therefore the telling of this to God is a seeking help from him to improve these dispositions Peter cannot make use of the glory of Christs transfiguration which he saw except grace help in a manner glory and the Lord inable Peter to make the right use of it as he doth 2 Pet. 1. 16 17. and not as he doth Mark 9. 5 6 7. The Spouse banqueting with Christ in his garden eating honey and the honey-comb is in greater danger to miscarry and turn sleepy and carnally secure as it fell out Cant. 1. 2 3. then when she wants his presence Cant. 3. 1 2 3. It s not easie to guide a new heart or to guide and use well the heaven of a fixed heart and such heavenly disposition at the Kings banquet of wine when he gives the hidden manna and the white stone when Christs banner over you is love and his left hand under the head and the right embracing you there is then if ever need to pray and Christ is our precedent in this when he was transfigured and in that heaven so as he seemed to be beyond praying in a state of praising yet he prays Luke 9. 29. and then there is need of watching yea a believer is to pray in a good sense to be delivered from the evil of our prayers and from the sinful abusing of spiritual acts of a renewed heart from the evil of the flowings of free grace and heavenly dispositions so to speak and therefore should we tremble for fear that our sinful abuse of the impressions of the Spirit and heavenly dispositions move not the Lord to hide his face from his own shinings of grace and darken his own Sun and overcloud his noon-day beams and rays of light and love and who knows that God may mar his own feast and remove the table before the believer eat because he was sinfully wanton at the sight of dainties and prayed not humbly that Christ would bless his coming down to his garden and his banqueting with his Spouse Psalm 141. David prays for his own prayers it s a great art to carry equally the running over cup of consolation or to guide the comforts of the Spirit when the man is high the head is giddy Psalm 77. 6 7. I will offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of praise I will sing yea I will sing praises to the Lord this hath been a warmly condition of his spirit therefore he follows it with prayer v. 7. Hear O Lord when I cry with my voice The body being warm and sweating there 's need to take heed that cold get not into the heart 2. To tell the Lord of our fixedness of heart is a sort of in aging of him to perfect his own new building and to send rain and summer warmness on his own sowing and to perfect what he hath begun and it s a secret praying that God would make an eik to his own work that he would give influences of grace and would be pleased to milk out holy actings willing and doing out of holy dispositions Psalm 119. 35. Make me to go in the path of thy precepts for therein do I delight If the Lord give freely of grace a disposition to delight in his precepts he will also give grace to walk in his paths he that made the plant creates the tree and the fruit he who made the vine-tree makes the Summer-sun to nourish it v. 159. Consider how I love thy precepts quicken me O Lord according to thy loving kindness The Lord who gives the life of love and a warmly disposition of heart to the precepts of God must also give more quickning to that life he that brings the sown corn to a blade brings it to an ear of corn and to be bread the saving work of grace is one piece one building foundation walls and covering it s one growing tree root bulk and branch one compleat new man Doth the Lord of free grace create half a new man or rear up half a new building No grace is grace is grace going on and advancing till it be reaped grace and so glory 3. He tells the Lord of his fixed heart by way of thanksgiving and praise as Psalm 131. Lord my heart is not haughty he lays before the Lord the depth of the mercy of heavenly dispositions and of a fixed and prepared heart though he was at the mouth and entry of death the cave was like to be his burial place being chased for his life into it yet he tells the Lord he feared no evil in the valley of death Hence 1. Try
ship or bird for they are such principles as doe actively render the soul able for works of grace and in nothing doe we fail more then in not striking on the flint to bring out fire We improve not heavenly dispositions as the Prophet complaines Isa 64. 7. There is none that stirs up himself to take hold on thee Qu. But to act when the soul is under an indisposition is as if the bird should fly without wings Answ If we speak of the renewed ones that are in Christ when dispositions heavenly seem to be a fire quenched out and turned to cold ashes we are to stir up and awake the habit of grace and act thereby for the instinct and nature of the new man hath in it virtually gracious acts and we are to improve the habit of grace 2. When one disposition is smothered with the down-casting of unbelief yet is there an half of a contrary spiritual disposition alive working contrary to unbelief by reason whereof David chides his own soul Psal 42. 5. Why art thou cast down O my soul and why art thou disquieted within me hope thou in God I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance Whether Davids soul pleads against Davids soul by the habit of grace or by an heavenly disposition or by both it sayes something to this that all dispositions spiritual are never so removed but there is a seed of God which may be wakened up 2. When the disposition is smoared with heaviness there is another counterworking heavenly disposition Psal 119. 28. My soul melteth for heaviness Then there hath been some disposition of deadnesse on yet behold a disposition to pray counterworking that disposition Strengthen me according to thy word v. 81. My soul fainteth for thy salvation Fainting speaks some weaknesse yet there is a disposition to hope which counter-acts fainting But I hope in thy word v. 83. I am become like a bottle in the smoke which is some disposition to deadnesse on the spirit but see the counter-working disposition but I do not forget thy statutes 3. As the Spirit at length in the renewed prevailes over the flesh Rom. 7. 23 24. so the gracious disposition is victorious over and hath the better of the sinful disposition So whatsoever was Davids doubting disposition at another time or now when he is forced to flee to the cave and part with his few Souldiers his faith and believing disposition prevailes over his fears and doubting as is clear v. 1. My soul trusteth in thee 3. He shall send from heaven and save me 7. My heart is fixed I will sing and give praise Else could a slain man buried in the cave sing and give praise And let this be considered as the third property and character of heavenly dispositions Hence under indispositions we would doe as those who would be over the water if one foord be too deep try another and try every foord there is an indisposition to believe there may be a spiritual disposition to pray beside it set to praying there is a deadnesse that hinders praying that the Church cannot speak Psal 77. 4. yet there is in the Church a disposition to praise in the same Psalm v. 14. Thou art the God that dost wonders thou hast declared thy strength among the people 15. Thou hast with thine arm redeemed thy people the sons of Jacob and Joseph Then set about praising there is nothing left but the habit of grace dispositions motions experiences are all gone turn over the promises and act upon the habit and blow upon the live coal and strengthen that which remaines when one instrument is broken the tradesman makes use of another 2. Though sinful dispositions for a while and the flesh have the better wait on the Lord and trust to his strength and act the heavenly flamings of God at length shall prevail The Spouse is drowsie for a while and refuses to open and shifts Christ of lodging Cant. 5. 2. yet at length when Christ puts in his hand by the hole of the door faith and heavenly dispositions are victorious and she rises and opens and misseth and seeks and prayes and becomes sick of love for him v. 6 7 8. and bursts out in a high song of extolling her beloved v. 10 11 12. Job is under much sadnesse of unbelief and dumpishness of spirit Job 19. 6. Know that God hath overthrown me and hath compassed me with his net 7. Behold I cry out of wrong but I am not heard I cry aloud but there is no judgment Hard words if there be no judgment for an oppressed man crying to God there is no providence no governing God who rules the world yet v. 25. I know that my Redeemer lives I know I shall see him Get any of the habit of grace and spiritual dispositions and act with them and ye shall not want victorious influences upon this ground because greater is he that is in you then he that is in the world 1 John 4. 4. 3. Get heavenly dispositions and God shall act upon his own work and bring forth all his own actings out of his own seed Now the way to get heavenly dispositions is 1. to be much in perusing the word and promises Davids meditating 2. Learning 3. Observing loving the testimonies of God prove that David was a heavenly disposed man Psal 119. 2. Keep communion with God in praying hearing reading conferring He who is much and daily among the oyntments of the Apothecaries smels shall cleave to him whether he will or not Luke 24. 34. John 7. 45 46. Cant. 2. 4 5 6. 7. 3. Mind much seek much the things that are above Col. 3. 1 2 3. 4. Cherish the Spirit obey him grieve him not work with him be instrumental under his breathings follow sweetly and willingly his drawings See Ephes 4. 29 30. 1 Thess 5. 19 20. Cant. 3. 4. Cant. 5. 8 9 10. 11 12 c. 5. Beware of frequent smoaring divine light deal tenderly with the light of the natural conscience and tenderly with convictions and warnings if so you can hardly want divine dispositions and suitable influences 1 Sam. 24. 4 5 6. My heart is fixed I will sing Awake up my glory See the touch of the Spirit in his heavenly dispositions set afloat the tongue 2. The Psaltery and Harp 3. David 4. Davids heart to sing and praise and though they were all sleeping they are all awakened out of their sleep As a great high Spring-tide set all the ships afloat though there were many hundreds of them And this is the Fourth Character of heavenly dispositions in which these are considerable 1. Such as are the dispositions such are the acts in their nature 2. Strong and mighty dispositions have strong and mighty actings 3. Smaller actings of dispositions waken up the soul to strong actings Sinful dispositions to the love of the world to vain-glory empty pleasures bring forth sinful actings the
thorn-tree brings forth a thorn-tree and the thistle-seed a thistle it 's clear in Cain the Pharisees So gracious dispositions produce acts of love faith hope godly sorrow works of righteousnesse and mercy As wine-grapes grow out of the vinetree and the Lord fits influences of grace for such dispositions like sowing like harvest and here also men gather not figs of thistles the vessel smells of good or sour wine Some must foam out their own shame and all wonder at the gracious words that proceed out of Christs mouth For dispositions in Christ were strong habits of grace and the running-over fountain and fulnesse of the holy Ghost the savour of the breath of the anointing and the dispositions that accompany the fulnesse of the holy Ghost is a very garden and a heaven and here there is some truth in that Cant. 2. 13. The vines with the tender grapes give a good smell Cant. 5. 8 9 10 11. Psal 45. 1 2 3 4. 2. Psal 119. 136. Rivers of teares run down mine eyes because they keep not thy Law Some fountaines that are lesse have small streams and ebb-brooks other large fountains have mighty rivers and floods issuing from them we may judg what a fountain both of habits dispositions are within where there comes out joy unspeakable and full of glory leaping for joy fulness of assurance like a ship with full sails and full wind As fulnesse of love and of all spiritual dispositions of tendernesse must be in the bowels and heart of Christ who sends out acts of enduring pain blood shame death horrour of wrath and the curse of a revenging God for sin The love of Christ needs no exhortation to acts of love nor is there need of earnest request and intreaties to the fire to cast out heat and the Sun to give light need you exhort an extreme pined-away sick man to be pained and weak or request the Sunne to shine How mighty and strong are the acts of longing and languishing after Christ that flow from love-sicknesse and then what suitable influences of grace must goe along with these actings what pullings of strength to pluck up mighty cedars what an influence of love in God to bear up all things and so to bear mountaines to bear torments to bear new deaths O what a mighty arm of omnipotent grace Col. 1. 11. Strengthened with all might according to his glorious power unto all patience and long-suffering with joyfulness A power above all that we think or ask Thoughts even of men can goe far and far in apprehending of power and strength ever that can remove out of their place as many millions of mountains and whole earths as Angels and men can write on the outmost and highest heavens East West South and North. Suppose they were all paper and double and treble and multiply them again to millions of millions of heavens and writ new figures of signes and excellencies on them yet the power of grace furnishing influences is above these acts of thinking and counting and yet the short thinkings of unbelief are at this can he help me to spit at fame glory riches and a whole earth of pleasures know ye his strength and his mighty puls that have translated many 3. When the disposition of grace is on a small object brings forth suitable actings Christ lets out one cast of his eye upon Peter and he went out and wept bitterly a small shake of the tree brings down ripe apples they fall of their own accord a gentle quiet gale of wind will cause a light swift vessel to make twice as much way as a huge ship a rent in the garment of a deadly enemy seemes a small transgression but to David it hath a mighty smiting of heart We are afraid to come under the pull of Christs arm as if it were pain and death to be loved and translated by Christ John 5. 40. Isa 30. 10. Jer. 51. 9. Ezek. 24. 13. Some will not be cured and are averse from being drawn to come to Christ and be saved and an hating of meanes is a virtual hating of the sweet and special alluring attractions of grace and we value actings of grace at so low a rate as if we could doe all our alone by pure nature I my self will awake early What was David sleeping or his tongue sleeping or his harp sleeping yea even when the heart is prepared and strongly fixed to praise there is some sleepinesse on the man I insist not on this that none run so swiftly for the price and wager of glory but a cramp or a stitch may come on so as they need a spur and turn dull and slow But the 5th Property of a heavenly disposition is to cause the man reflect upon himself and his own sleepinesse 8 my self will awake early What if tongue and voice awake what if harp and the gift of musick wake if mans heart sleep 1. Grace hath an immanent working and a reflect acting on it self and the mans own heart as well as a transient and a direct acting the vessel of honour or the chosen man purgeth himself 2 Tim. 2. 21. And every man that hath this hope purifies himself even as he also is pure 1 John 3. 3. Jude exhorts so v. 10. Building up your selves on your most holy faith praying in the holy Ghost Some think if the holy Ghost act pray sigh believe praise in them they need to doe nothing the holy Ghost prayes in me and in my stead Nay but Jude wills you to edifie your self the actings and influences of the holy Ghost are not given to this end that we should sleep and sport and play 21. Keep your selves in the love of God Will not the love of God keep the man in the love of God Shall not Christ in you the hope of glory keep Christ himself in you nay what need were there then of watching Watch thou in all things 1 Tim. 4. 16. Take heed to thy self and to thy doctrine Then may one take heed to reading and not take heed to himself Acts 20. 28. Paul to the Elders of Ephesus Take heed to your selves and to the flock They shall not heedfully watch over the flock who doe not carefully watch over themselves Is this right that men should doubt of the influences of God and fear that God forgets himself and his own begun work of grace and never fear their own lazy back-drawing Why but we should be on our wings and waken our selves and crow more loudly It 's a gracious complaint Cant. 1. 6. My mothers children were angry with me they made me the keeper of the vineyards but mine own vineyard have I not kept Ask hourly what your own heart does how the husbandry at home thrives The Spirit of the Lord was in Jehoshaphat without doubt but 2 Chro. 20. 3. When he heard of the host coming against him he feared and set himself to seek the Lord. The Spirit of the Lord came
the heart Prov. 23. 19. Hear thou my son and be wise and guide thine heart in the way it 's grace that guides the heart in the way but the graced heart also guides it self in its manner of working in the way of God 1 Tim. 5. 22. Keep thy self pure 2 Tim. 2. 15. Study to shew thy self approved unto God Jude v. 21. Keep your selves in the love of God So 1 Joh. 3. 3. Every man that hath this hope purifieth himself even as he is pure The sea purgeth it self of mire and dirt and new wine casteth out the scum and refuse and gold melted seperates and casts out its dross and the superfluity of the mettal far more doth the renewed heart keep it self by a lively power against every power contrary to it self only the heart cannot plow the heart and remove its rockiness the Lord by an omnipotent infusion of a new spirit doth that Ezech. 36. 26. I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh and I will give you an heart of flesh Now 2. The renewed man does not so much as the renewed heart would carry him to do it 's clear saving wisedom if David had improved it should have kept him from adultery and murther Psalm 51. 6. Behâ—ld thou hast delighted in truth in the reins and in the hidden part thou makest me to know wisedom So is fornication against the price of redemption that Christ hath given for us 1 Cor. 6. 19 20. 3. The renewed man may and doth forget that the habit of grace is given to him to trade withal and for promoving of acts of sanctification he thinks as Papists do it 's given to be his justification and pardon and that it may compense his other sins this I may do because I am a renewed man and the gifts and caâ—ings of God are without repentance and God will dispense with it I being in a state of grace But the Scripture saith 1 Kings 15. 5. David did that which was right in the sight of the Lord save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite and so David's being a man according to Gods heart was no shelter to his shedding of innocent blood Now grace is not given to the child of God as a piece of overguilded copper to a child to play withal as if he needed not to trade with it nor to put it to the bank 3. The unrenewed man is under the debt of Gospel-obedience to Christ a deep habitual sleepiness on the sluggard frees him neither from an obligation to the duty of plowing nor from that justice of God which cloathes the sleeper with rags Now the shift that the natural man hath is No man can come to the Son except the Father of Christ draw him it 's true and Scripture-truth of it self But it 's told 1. By the proud and the lawless bankrupt as a shift 2. It is told also by the humble and broken diver In the former mans sense the meaning is I cannot believe I can do no more he denies me grace blame himself hence he must keep his lusts But 1. Nature and acting of nature must be before the acting of grace he hath not denied to you the grace of using external means to come to the assembly of the Saints to lend the ear and not to turn the ear away from the law and this you refuse 2. Proud fools would cashier both Law and Gospel but that eminent preacher Mr. Will. Fenner God will not help that man to go that hath legs to go and will not 2. God is to be waited for in the way of his judgements Isa 26. 8. so thou must not look to fetch God out of his walk the means of grace and salvation 3. Heaven is an end and an end can never be gotten without means 4. God will not set up another door to heaven for any man in the world he 'll never make another Bible either be ruled by this or by none the drunkards way shall never be his the worldlings way shall never be his The truth is the carnal man would be carried sleeping with his lusts and filthiness in Christs bosome in heaven as an eagle flies over a river and never wets one feather he would be over word reading hearing of Sermons learning knowledge repenting mortification self-denial there be no Bibles nor Ordinances in heaven and by a miracle he would be over all these otherwise I hear I pray I whore not but the way of doing I cannot reach and if I cannot get this way chalked out let me lie saith he where I am God can do this and he will not but he will have the Gospel like a milstone tied about every mans neck that shall be saved Even among men this is no excuse ah you must pity him say ye it 's his natural temper he is mad in a prevailing habit of malice he is kind and loving otherwise will ye judge and law-absolve him from the guilt of man-slaughter and spare his life for that Another acts a prank of covetousness and goes along in an act of treason ah say some he is a simple man and short-witted but otherwise not wicked in that he hath been foolish we saâ— his other virtness satisfie not the Law he hath wit to act mischief and is a greedy fool 2. This same tale is said by the humbled man Ah I cannot believe and I look upon this weakness as afflictive paining wickedness and he weeps over his wounds and weeps over his Physitian and this complaining is good and hath good in it But another doubt there is there is no promise of rewarding natural acting with faith true what then will ye go no farther then on natures leading because there is no promise of grace made to natures acting 2. We are obliged to obey God in the covenant of works and believe in Christ in the covenant of grace suppose there had been no hire of life eternal in the one or the other the Lord might stand on his points and command as Law-giver and never come down as a Covenanter to hire and to bude us as children to embrace a great and large Kingdom on a low condition a poor farthing or half penny of faith 3. There is no promise of a rich harvest made to all who plow painfully but often the contrary the race is not to the swift nor the battle to the strong Eccles 9. 10. nor have they ever riches who rise early and go late to bed and eat the bread of sorrow Psal 127. and for that shall the husbandman hang up the plow and till none there is not a promise made that all that sail shall bring home rich ships full of gold what then are all the Merchants in the earth loosed from the duty of trading and sailing cried down then all shipping must be laid aside 4. There is not a promise made to using of means but there is a sad threatning of