on the earth and mark therefore how it follows in the 37. verse They were stoned they were sawn asunder were tempted were slain with the sword they wandred about in sheeps-skins and goats-skins being destitute afflicted tormented Who were these They were they of whom the world was no tworthy They wandered in deserts and in Mountains and in dens and caves of the earth and yet such precious Saints of God as the world was not worthy of Now when we set before us how joyfully these servants of the most high went through all their wildernesse condition this should make us ashamed of our earthly-mindedness and would be a mighty help to us The Fourth Direction And then if we consider the great accompt that we are to give for all earthly things you only look upon the comfort of them but consider the account you must give for them this would be a means to take off the heart from earthly-mindednesse And consider what if you were now to die and to go the way of all flesh what good would it be to me to remember what contentments and pleasures I had in the earth The fifth Direction But above all the setting Jesus Christ before you and the meditating of the death of Jesus Christ I say that 's the great thing that wil take off the heart from the things of the earth The looking upon Christ Crucified how he that was the Lord of Heaven and Earth yet what a low condition he put Himself into meerly for the redeeming of us The conversing much with the death of Jesus Christ deads the heart much to the world In the 3. to the Philippians we have a notable text for that in the example of Paul he accounted all things as dung and drosse for Jesus Christ at the 8. verse I account all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord for whom I have suffered the liss of all things and do count them but DVNG that I may win Christ And then in the 19. verse That I may know Him and the power of his Resnrrection and the fellowship of His Sufferings being made conformable unto his Death Paul desired to be so conformable to the very Death of Christ that he accounted all things in the world but as dung and drosse in comparison of that Paul had the death of Christ before his eyes and meditated much on the death of Christ and that meditation had a great impression upon his spirit that made him account all these things as drosse as dogs meat in comparison and that he might have fellowship with the death of Christ Perhaps some of you may think of the glory of Christ in Heaven and that may for the present make you lesse worldly but let me intreat you to meditate on the death of Christ and know that there is an excellencie in Conformity even to the death of Christ such an Excellency that may take off your hearts from the things of the world It 's said of the King of France that he asking one once about an Eclypse saith he I have so much businesse in the earth that I take little notice of the things of Heaven Oh my Brethren for the close of all I beseech you let not this be said concerning any of you that you have such and such worldly imployments that you cannot enquire after Jesus Christ Plead not that you have such great businesse that you have so much to do in this earth that you take little notice of the things of Heaven no surely the Saints of God have their businesse in Heaven as we shall see God willing hereafter Their City Business their Trading their Aims their Bent it is higher than the things of this earth There are things that a man may let out his thoughts and affections too as much as he wil This shews the vanity of the things af this world that a man had need be very wary how much he minds them he cannot enjoy the comforts of this earth without some fear but now when he comes to converse with Heaven there he may let out himself to the uttermost that shews the excellency of these things And you that are but poor and mean in the things of this earth be not discomforted because there is a charg from God that men should not mind these things surely there is no great matter in them as God charges that we should not mind them Oh the excellency it lies in things above which are heavenly and spiritual where the Saints have their conversation But of this more at large in this following Treatise of Heavenly Conversation FINIS AN HEAVENLY Conversation PHILIPPIANS 3. 20. For our Conversation is in Heaven CHAP. I. Of Examples of Godly men and how far they should prevail with us Opened in Six Particulars SOme reade this Particle For But But our Conversation is in Heaven Our Conversation is not as theirs Certainly the Apostle doth intend this to make a distinction from or a difference between the Saints waies and the waies of those that were Enemies to the Crosse of Christ They mind Earthly things But our Conversation is in Heaven But because of the particle For our Conversation therefore I think that it hath reference unto the 17 verse for the 18. and 19. verses are in a parenthesis and therefore if you would know the scope of the Apostle in it and what this hath relation to for it is in the 17. verse Brethren be followers together of me and mark them which walk so as you have us for an ensample for our Conversation is in Heaven to it is to follow he made a little degression when he said Make us your example then he speaks of others but many there are that walk thus and thus and are enemies to the cross of Christ Whose belly is their god whose glory is their shame whose end is destruction who mind earthly things But our or for our Conversation is in Heaven As if he should say Take heed of following of those whose belly is their god who mind earthly things for their end is destruction but rather follow those whose Conversation is in Heaven for their end is salvation that 's the scope of the words Now then from the scope and the coherance of them follow us for an example For our Conversation is in Heaven so they are to be joyn'd together from whence first before we come to speak of this Heavenly Conversation that the Apostle mentions we have this point That the Examples of men whose Conversations are heavenly are to be followed Follow us as an example for our Conversation is in Heaven They are guided by the spirit of God and the end of their Conversation is good and therefore 't is safe to be followed In Prov. 2. 20. there the Wise man speaks of an argument Why we should imbrace wisdom because that would teach you to walk in the way of good men and to keep the paths of the
Heaven it was with a great purchase it was with the purchase of the blood of Jesus Christ that was more worth than all the world And if the Son makes you free then you shall be free indeed and therefore prize this as a great mercie while you live here in this world account it as a great mercie that you are a Citizen of Heaven account your happiness to consist there it is more than to have House and Lands here for a man to have a freedom of some Citie it is more than to have House and Land in the Wilderness What though the Lord doth order things so as while thou livest in the wilderness of this world thou hast no habitation of thine own yet certainly the Lord hath made thee free of Heaven it was purchased for thee by the blood of Jesus Christ Now by that price that it cost thou mayest conclude that there is some great matter in it that thou art a free Denizen of Heaven CHAP. VI. How the Saints have their Conversation in Heaven Opened in Nine Particulars BUt now our Conversation should be answerable and now we come more fully up to the scope of the Apostle But our Conversation is in Heaven The Conversations of the Saints that are free Citizens of Heaven ought to be answerable though their Co-habitations be in this world yet their Conversation it should be in Heaven in the 7. of Dan. 10. 18. there you reade of the excellent estate of the Saints But the Saints of the most High shall take the kingdom and possess the kingdom for ever That that is translated here The Saints of the most High it is not only meant of the Most High God but the Saints of the high Places so 't is translated by some for the Saints are the Saints of high places in regard of their interest in Heaven and in regard of their Conversations sutable to the place in the 2. Ephe. 6. And hath raised us up together and made us sit together in Heavenly places in Christ Jesus The Saints are set in Heavenly places Heavenly dignitie Heavenly privileges Heavenly prerogatives yea and they themselves may be said to be in Heavenly places though their bodies be upon the earth their souls are in Heavenly places their Conversation is in Heaven They are the Saints of the High God and they are set in high places You will say What is this Conversation that is in Heaven that is here spoken of I shall open it in these particulars The first is The aim and scope of their hearts it is Heaven-ward that the Saints look at as their aim and scope is Heaven they look upon themselves in this world as pilgrims and strangers Heaven 's their home and their eye is there their end their scope whatsoever they do it is for Heaven some way or other to fit them for Heaven and to lay in for Heaven against they shall come and live there their Conversation therefore is in Heaven All that they do eating drinking going about their business yet I say their aim it is Heaven I remember it 's reported of Anaragorus a Philosopher that being asked wherefore he liv'd he said he was born to contemplate the Heavens he made it the end of his life for which he was born to contemplate Heaven Being a Phylosopher and having understanding in the motions of the Heavens he took such delight in it that he accounted it the end for which he was born So the Saints look at Heaven as their Center that they aim at that 's their scope we saith the Apostle do not look at things that are seen but at things that are not seen nothing in the Earth is our scope but Heaven is our scope and so their Conversations may be said to be in Heaven in that respect Secondly Their Conversations are in Heaven for they are acted by Heavenly principles in all their waies Heavenly principles you will say What are they This is a Heavenly Principle That God is all in all that 's a Principle that the Saints are guided by in Heaven they look upon God to be all in all unto them so do the Saints here in what they do in what they are in what they enjoy they act upon this Principle that it's God that is all in all whatsoever I see in the creature yet it 's God that is all in all to me I act by vertue of this Principle That God the infinite First-being is infinitely worthy of all love for himself that 's a Heavenly Principle the Saints that are in Heaven they look upon the infinite excellencie and glorie of God they look upon him as the First-Being of all things having all excellencie and glorie enough to satisfie all creatures for ever and look upon him as infinitly worthy of all love and service for himself know this is a heavenly Principle So the Saints their conversation is in Heaven they are acted by heavenly principles I look upon such and such things in the world whereby I may go in credit encrease or comfort this is an earthly principle But when my heart is so upon God that it looks upon him as infinitly excellent and worthy of all love service fear honor and worship for himself alone whatsoever becomes of the creature God is worthy of all for that infinite excellencie in himself this is a heavenly principle and for one to be acted in his life by such a principle as this is this is to be acted by heavenly principles not by such low and base principles as the men of the world are but by heavenly principles Thirdly Their Conversations are in Heaven For here though they live in the world they have communion with the God of Heaven that is above in the whol course of their lives In the 1. Epistle by John 1. chap. you have divers excellent expressions about our communion with God In the 3. verse That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you That ye also may have fellowship with us and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ And then in another Scripture we reade of the Communion of the holy Ghost Thereis Communion with the Father Son and holy Ghost Now what makes Heaven but God we say where the King is there 's the Court where God is there 's Heaven let God be where he will There is some controversie among some where the Saints shall be after the Resurrection some think it shall be still here and yet with all the glory that the Scripture speaks of Now it 's no great matter where it be so it be where God is those that have Communion with God they are in Heaven their Conversation is in Heaven now it 's that that is the life of the Saints their Communion with God thy life it is to have communion with the Creature that is for thee to close with the contents of the Creature and the faculty that is in man to tast any
of God in them that the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ might be glorified in them Oh! this is that that all the Saints should desire and endeavor after That the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ should be glorified in them and ye in him saith he Labor you that Christ may be glorified in your lives and you shall be glorified in him We should desire that Christ may have glory in our glory then we shall have glory in Christs glory this is a sweet and blessed life when as the Saints have such hearts as they can say Lord let me have no glory but that thou mayest have glory in Then saith God Is it so Doest thou desire no further glory in this world but that I may have glory in then I will have no glory in this world but what thou shalt have glory in Christ will make us partakers of his glory as well as we shall make him partaker of our glory Oh! An Heavenly Conversation that glorifies God will glorifie the Saints too CHAP. XVIII An Heavenly Conversation will make Suffering easie HEavenly Conversation it will make all sufferings to be very easie it will be nothing to suffer any thing you meet withall in this world if your Conversations be in Heaven All revilings and reproaches and wrongs they will be nothing if you get but a Heavenly Conversation you will contemn all these things that the men of the world think to be such great matters Men that have conversed in Heaven never will be much offended for any sufferings 2 Cor. 4. 17. For our light afflictions which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory While we look not at the things which are seen but at things which are not seen for the things which are seen are temporal but the things which are not seen are eternal All but light afflictions Why for our eye is above all these things And it 's a notable passage that in the Gospel if you examine the place of Christs transfiguration upon the mount there Christ shewed his glory unto some Disciples that he carried with him and this is that that I would note from it do but observe in the story who were the Disciples that Christ carried with him to see his glory they were Peter James and John now afterwards if you compare that story with the story of Christ being in his Agony which was presently after where his soul was heavie unto death when he was to be betraied and to be crucified the next day and fell groveling upon the earth sweat clodders of blood through the anguish that was upon his spirit cried out Oh Lord If it be possible let this cup pass from me Here 's a great deal of difference between Christ in his Agony and upon the mount in his Transfiguration and observe that Christ would have none of his Disciples see him in his Agony but Peter James and John only those three that saw him in his transfiguration upon the mount in his glory The note from hence is That those that can converse much with Christ in glory can converse with Christ in Heaven can see Heaven they may be permitted to see Christ in his Agony and it will do them no hurt But now for the other Disciples that did not see Christ in his Glory if they had seen Christ in his Agony it might have offended them Is this our Lord and Master that is in such a fearful Agony at this time Oh! it would have offended them but now the other that saw him glorified it offended them not Well though he be in an agony now yet we know him to be a glorious Savior and we will beleeve and trust in him still So if we can converse with God in glory upon the mount what ever agony we see Christ in afterwards we shall be able to bear it when Stephen had the stones ratling about his ears yet when he saw the Heavens opened it was nothing to him then he fell asleep he rejoyced in the expectation of Heaven And if you reade in the Book of Martyrs ever when they came to their sufferings you may see how they did rejoyce when they did think of Heaven and remember eternal life Saith one woman to her child that was going to be burnt when as the people thought she would have rung her hands and made great lamentations to have seen her child stepping into the flames she said nothing but this Remember eternal life my son Oh! conversing with Heaven makes all sufferings in the world nothing CHAP. XIX Heavenly Conversation brings much joy THen Oh the sweetness and comfort that there will be while the soul is conversing in Heaven Oh the joy and the peace that will come to the Soul in the certain evdience that the soul is partaker in the Death Resurrection and Intercession of Jesus Christ I say those whose Conversations are in Heaven by this they come to have certain evidence to their souls that they have their portion in the Death in the Resurrection in the Ascention in the Intercession of Jesus Christ and this will afford comfort enough That Scripture in the 3. Colos 1. If ye then be risen with Christ seek those things that are above where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God set your affection on things above not on things on the earth for ye are dead and your life is bid with Christ in God When Christ who is our life shall appear then shall ye also appear with him in glory Here 's an evidence that you are risen with Christ that you are dead to the world and have interest in his Ascention and are partakers of his Resurrection and have part in his Intercession Those that have their Conversations in Heaven now they may know certainly that they are risen from death to life that when Christ ascended he went to Heaven to take possession for them yea that they are in Heaven where Christ is He hath set us in Heavenly places together with Christ Jesus For he is there as a common head That they are ascended with Christ already and that Christ is there as an Advocate making Intercession for them to the Father these will be the consolations of those that have their Conversation in Heaven CHAP. XX. An Heavenly Conversation is very safe ANd then A Conversation in Heaven is a very safe Conversation you will be free from snares and temptations As an Eearthly Conversation subjects unto temptations so a Heavenly Conversation will free us from temptations When is the bird in danger of the Lime-twig or Net but when she comes to pick below upon the ground but if she could but keep her self above alwaies she were free then from the Snare and Net It 's Chrysostoms similitude Keep above and then ye be free from the snare of the fowler It 's a safe Conversation CHAP. XXI An Heavenly Conversation gives abundant enterance into Glory AND then
It will cause an abundant enterance into the Kingdom of Heaven When they come to die Oh how joyfully wil they die what abundant enterance will be made into the everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ For when they die they shall but change their place they shall not change their company they shall but go to their Fathers house to be partakers of those mansions Christ before hath prepared Oh my brethren labor to have your Conversations in Heaven and know that this is not a matter only that concerns eminent Christians but all Christians and see how the Apostle charges this upon the Thessalonians 1. Epistle 2. 11. As you know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you as a Father doth his children that you would walk worthy of God who hath called you unto his Kingdom and Glory That is That you would walk in a Conversation answerable to the glorious Kingdom of God that you are called to according to your high calling we should walk worthy of it We are charged so to do and as it 's said concerning Christ in the Gospel by Saint John he spake concerning himself But the Son of man which is in Heaven So it should be said of every child of God such a one that is in Heaven not only such a one that shall go to Heaven but that is in Heaven for the present CHAP. XXII Seven Rules or Directions how to get Heavenly Conversation BUt you will say How should we do to get this our Conversasation to be in Heaven it's an excellent Conversation indeed Oh that we might attain unto it The First Rule First Take this Rule Be perswaded that it is attainable Let Christians conclude thus with themselves it is possible for me to live a life of Heaven while I am upon the earth There is a Heaven to be got it will mightily stir up the spirit of a Christian if he do beleeve this I may live in Heaven here with God and Christ and his Angels and Saints there are some that have attain'd to this and how have they attain'd to it not by their own strength they were men subject to the same infirmities that you are even Paul himself that had his Conversation in Heaven was subject to many infirmition But through the strength of Christ he can do all things he was nothing in himself reade but the 7. of the Romans Paul saith there of himself that he was even sold under sin and when he would do good evil was present with him and he was led captive and he found a Law in his members rebelling against the law of his mind and he had many corruptions and was feign to have a prick in the flesh a messenger of Satan to humble him and he spake of this Heavenly Conversation not only that he had it himself but writing to the Philippians they attain'd to it they were a Church that were very spiritual but were but poor and mean in respect of some others and they had not those eminent gifts that the Corinthians had and yet the Philippians had their Conversations in Heaven therefore it is a thing that is attainable The Second Rule Secondly If you would get your Conversations in Heaven Labor to keep a cleer conscience keep a Heaven in your conseience Those men that do fully and defile their consciences they lose their intercourse with Heaven and indeed the presence of the God of Heaven is tedious to them they be loth to go into his presence when once they have defiled consciences If there be a Hell in a mans conscience there will not be a Heaven in his Conversation but let men and women labor to keep conscience clean and a Heaven there and then there will be a Heaven in their Conversations The Third Rule Watch opportunicies for Heavenly exercises though you have much business in the world watch time You that are servants you should not indeed neglect your Masters business for you may serve God in the work of your Master but yet you must watch opportunities get alone and if you cannot have any long time let it be so much the frequenter watch all opportunities for Heavenly exercises for meditation for prayer for reading for conversing with God Oh! we might get many opportunities to get our souls in Heaven if we would but watch and those that are diligent to watch opportonities for Heavenly exercises and prize opportunities for them they are the men and women that will come to attain to a Heavenly Conversation that do not ' make it as a light matter whether they have converse with God or no in holy duties Christians that would have their Conversations in Heaven they must look upon their opportunities for Heavenly exercises they eye them as that wherein much of the joy and comfort of their lives consists The Fourth Rule Forget not this in the next place I speak now to Christians that would feign have their Conversations in Heaven I say to you Take heed and be careful that you rest not in formallity watch to get opportunities but be not formal in duties in them Oh! this will mightily darken your Conversations it will make them very earthly there will be no beauty at all in them if you come to rest in formallity in holy performances There 's many Christians that we hope may have some good at the bottom yet growing to a form in Religion they never honor their profession they have little comfort to their own souls they go on in a dead hearted condition they know not what it is to have communion with God Oh beware of that that we are all by nature subject too those that have enlightenings of conscience they dare not but take opportunities for Heavenly duties but then comes in the temptation of the Devil and the corruption of our own hearts when I have done my task then it 's over I have prayed I but you have been in Heaven that while what converse with God have you had there Oh take heed of formallity it will exceedingly hinder your Conversation But now a Christian though of never such weak parts can but chatter to God and speak a few broken words and half sentences yet if he doth not rest in formallity he may have much converse with God whereas others that have excellent parts yet resting in the work done never knows what the meaning is of having a Conversation in Heaven The Fifth Rule Labor to beat down your Bodies That is take heed of making provision for the flesh beware of sensual lusts how came Paul to have his Conversation in Heaven saith he I beat down my body The word is Black and blue club'd it down as if he should say This body of mine would draw my heart aside from spiritual things and make me earthly and sensual I wil keep down my body I will not give that satisfaction to the flesh and body so as to strengthen any temptation that should
draw my heart off from Spiritual and Heavenly things no but I beat down my body saith he There 's no Christian that is Heavenly but he must be very careful and watchful over his sences while he lives here to beat down his body and so he may come to have his Conversation in Heaven The Sixth Rule Labor to be skilful in the mystery of godliness to draw strength from Jesus Christ in every thing you do For my Brethren Christ he is Jacob's Ladder When Jacob lay asleep he saw a ladder on which the Angels did descend and ascend up to Heaven Now this Jacob's Ladder is no other but Jesus Christ to Christians and that must be set up to Heaven if you would go to Heaven and converse with Heaven it must be by Jesus Christ you must be instructed in the mysterie of the Gospel in conversing with God through a Mediator there is such an infinite distance between God and us that except we have Christ the Mediator we can never come to God nor God come to us it is only Christ the Mediator that is the Ladder We need not say Who shall go up to Heaven to fetch Christ down No we may have Christ in our hearts and set up him and so we may go up to Heaven by his Mediation When as a Christian comes to live in this manner what I do expect from God I expect to draw it through a Mediator and all the services that I tender up to God I tender them up through the hand and heart of Christ Now those that are acquainted with this have much converse with Heaven By Jesus Christ the Mediator I may come up there and present my self there though no unclean thing may come there for God looks upon the Saints through him as righteous being cloathed with his righteousness they may come to their Father with boldnesse having their Elder brothers garments upon them they may come and kneel before the Throne of grace come into Heaven as into the Presence Chamber and kneel every morning for their Fathers blessing it 's by him what we have accesse unto the Father Oh! acquaint thy self with the Mystery of godlinesse in drawing all from Christ and tendering all to God through Christ By this Heaven comes down to thee and by this thou climest up to Heaven this is the Jacob's Ladder But those men that only look upon God in a natural way that 's thus Indeed all good things must come from God and so they go to prayer Lord we beseech thee bless us this day for all good things come from thee And they serve God their consciences tell them they must worship and serve God while they live here but it is but in a dull natural way let me leave it in your hearts All good comes from God through a Mediator through Jesus Christ the second Person in Trinity God-Man and all my services are tendered up to God through him there is this Mediator God-Man that unites God and me together and so by him I have acceptance both for my person and all my actions and by him I come to have other manner of blessings than comes from God meerly as Creator God in bounty bestows upon the creature many good things but when we come to deal with God in Christ we come to have Heavenly blessings blessings beyond the power of nature yea beyond all those blessings that nature can be any conveyance of beyond the blessings that the conduits of the creature are able to hold forth they have the blessing from God imediately imediately I mean in respect of the creature it 's by the mediation of Christ they enjoy God in Christ and so come to enjoy God in a Heavenly Supernatural way Oh this is the way to have our Conversations in Heaven and those Christians that are much acquainted with the Gospel of Christ they come to live far more Heavenly Conversations than others that go on in a dull heavie and natural kind of way in serving of God But being not acquainted with this mysterie their hearts lie low upon the earth and know not what it is to have their Conversations in Heaven The Seventh Rule And so the next Rule with which I must close all is this Exercise much the grace of faith There is no way to get above the Creature and above Nature but by exercising the grace of Faith Many Christians think they must exercise love to God and exercise sorrow for sin the grace of Repentance mourning for sin that 's good thou shouldest do that and thou shouldest exercise patience but the great grace that is to be imployed if thou wouldest attain a Heavenly life it is The exercise of Faith and make conscience to put forth that grace much for it 's by that that we do converse with God through Christ Though Christ be the ladder yet it 's faith that carries us up this ladder and brings us down again it 's faith that makes the things of Heaven real to the soul Heb. 11. 1. It 's faith that is an evidence of things not seen and the substance of things hoped for by faith these things come to be made real and substantial things and as present things faith it is that gives a great excellency to all the things of Heaven its self and therefore live much by faith and walk by faith and not by sence and then shalt thou be above the world and live in Heaven and as the fruit of thy faith wait for the appearing of Jesus Christ Our Conversation is in Heawen saith the Apostle from whence also we look for the Savior the Lord Jesus Christ c. Where a mans Conversation is there his expectations may be and where the expectations are there a mans Conversation is now our Converstaion is in Heaven from whence also we look for Jesus Christ as if he should say It 's not a motion do not you think that when we speak of Conversing in Heaven that we please our own fancies Oh no saith he we by faith look upon Heaven as the most real thing in the world for we expect the Lord Jesus Christ ere long to appear in glory bodily and we shall see him with these eyes and shall change our vile bodies and make them like his glorious body we by faith looking upon such glorious things to be so real and so at hand and we waiting for these things it 's this that makes our Conversation to be in Heaven our hearts and all are there because that we expect that these things will be made good to us quickly Oh Christians do but exercise your faith in this in Jesus Christ and put forth this fruit of faith in waiting for the appearing of Jesus Christ when he shall come and appear in his glory this will help to make your Conversations to be in Heaven Oh what a blessed time will that be when Jesus Christ shall come from the Heavens and appear to those that have been waiting for
TWO TREATISES OF Mr. JEREMIAH BURROUGHS The first Of Earthly-mindedness Wherein is shewed 1. What Earthly-mindedness is 2. The Evils of Earthly-mindedness 3. Several Convincements of Earthly-mindedness 4. Several Reasons of Earthly-mindedness 5. Considerations to take off the heart from Earthly-mindedness 6. Directions how to get our hearts free from Earthly-mindedness The second Treatise Of Conversing in Heaven and Walking with God Wherein is shewed 1. How the Saints have their Conversation in Heaven 2. How the Saints Trade for Heaven 3. Evidences of Heavenly Conversation 4. That Heavenly Conversation is 1. Convincing 2. Growing 3. Brings much glory to God 4. Brings much glory to the Saints 5. It will make suffering easie 6. Brings much joy 7. It 's very safe 5. Directions for Heavenly Conversation 6. What Walking with God is 7. The Excellency of walking with God 8. Evidences of our walking with God 9. Rules for our walking with God The Fourth Volumn published by Thomas Goodwyn William Bridge William Greenhil John Yates Sydrach Simpson Philip Nye William Adderley London Printed for Peter Cole at the Printing-Press in Cornhill near the Royal Exchange 1652. TO the READER IT was the saying of a Servant of Christ Every day a Christian spends on Earth is a day lost in heaven sure he meant it of the Place not the Company For what makes Heaven but Vnion and Communion with God in Jesus Christ Now this being attainable in this life what hinders but a Christian may live in heaven whilst he lives upon earth Truly our Fellowship is with the Father with his Son Jesus Christ 1 Job 13. And our Conversation is in Heaven saith another Apostle Phil. 3. 20. And I live yet not I but Christ liveth in me and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God Gal. 2. 20. These were men on earth subject to such infirmities as these are yet lived in Heaven and there are yet in this declining wanton Christ-denying age a Generation upon earth thus living whose lives and graces though hidden under a mean out side under many reproaches and infirmities yet shine inwardly with the glory of Christ upon them who though they be in the world yet follow the Lord with a Spirit differing from the spirit of the world and amongst these hidden ones of the Lord this blessed man the preacher of these Sermons of whom the world was not worthy was such a one who whilst he was upon earth lived in Heaven and as thou maiest easily perceive the end and scope of these Sermons is to winde up thy heart to the like frame and posture viz. To take it off from perishing vanities and to set it upon that which is the real and durable substance We see upon what weak shoulders the fair neck of all worldly pomp and glory now stands and how the Lord is winding up and putting an end to the glories of the Kingdoms of men who have not contributed their strength and power to the advancing but contrariwise to the pulling down and ecclypsing of the glory of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ Besides what the World tells us never had any age by the works of providence more examples laid before them of the worlds vanity than in our daies and therefore our hearts should sâ—t loose to all things that cannot stretch themselves to eternity The Apostles reason is full of weight It remains saith he that both they that have wives be as though they had none and they that weep as though they wept not and they that rejoyce as though they rejoyced not and they that buy as though they possessed not and they that use the world as not abusing it and this Exhortation he puts on by this Argument The time is short or as the word is The remainder of our season is now folding up as a sail or curtain into a narrow room Time is short and life shorter and the end of all things is at hand and we have greater things to minde and to set our hearts upon The Divinityy of this holy mans spirit did much appear in this that having much of the comfort that Earth could afford him he still looked upon all Creatures Contentments with the eyes of a stranger and on order to the raising up of his soul to a more holy humble serviceable self denying walking with God For him that injoyes little or nothing in the world to speak much of the worlds vanity and emptynesse and of taking the heart off that the sweetness whereof he never possessed is not so much as when a man is surrounded with the confluence of Creature-comforts then by a Divine spirit to tread upon the neck of these things and to be caught up into the third Heaven bathing solacing and satisfying it self with sweet and higher injoyments with the more savory and cordial apprehensions it hath of Jesus Christ this is somewhat like him that is made partaker of the Divine Nature and that lives above the world in the injoyment of the world so that now Reader thou hast these Sermons twice printed once in the practice of this holy man and now again in these papers which we present to thee in this preaching stile though we confess things might have been more contracted because we find this way more desired more acceptable to his hearers and if we mistake not more working upon the affections and more profitable to the greatest part of Christians The Lord Jesus be with thy Spirit and go along with these and all other his precious labors to the furtherance of the joy of thy Faith building thee up in the inner man and directing thee in the way to thine eternal rest Thomas Goodwyn William Greenhil Sydrach Simpson Philip Nye William Bridge John Yates William Adderley THou hast here the names of al the Books of Mr. Jeremiah Burroughs that are published by us Thomas Goodwyn William Greenhil Sydrach Simpson Philip Nye William Bridge John Yates William Adderley The first Volumn The rare Jewel of Christian Contentment The second Volumn Gospel Worship The third Volumn Gospel Conversation The fourth Volumn Two Treatises the one of Earthly-mindedness the other of conversing in Heaven and walking with God THE CONTENTS OF THE FOURTH VOLUUMN Philip. 3. 19. CHAP. I. TExt opened Page 2 Doctrine There is a great difference between a wicked man and a godly man The one minds the Earth the other his Conversation is in Heaven 3 CHAP. II. Earthly-mindedness discovered in nine particulars 1 When men look upon Earthly things as the greatest things 5 2 When the choicest of their thoughts are busied about earthly things 6 3 When their hearts cleave to the earth Page 8 4 When their hearts are filled with distracted cares about the earth 9 5 When the greatest endeavors of their lives are about things of the earth 11 6 When they seek any earthly thing for its self and not in subordination to some higher good 13 7 When they are
great evil and for that you have the same Scripture that was before for the temptations and snare 1 Tim. 6. 9. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare and into many foolish and hurtfull lusts lusts that are very foolish and simple 1. As for instance It causes men to follow after things that are very vile and mean it causes men to bestow the strength of their immortal souls about things that have no worth at all in them that 's a foolish lust to bestow the strength of an immortal soul about vanities If you should see men that are of excellent parts for to spend their time about trifles and toyes as about catching of flies and following of feathers you would say surely they begin to be besotted so for the soul of man that is capable of such excellency as it is of communion with God with the Father Son and holy Ghost for such a soul to have the strength of it spent about such poor trifling things that cannot profit in the evil day Oh this is a foolish lust Secondly Foolish lusts for earthly-mindedness causes thee to be a servant to thy servants you would account that man a fool that should be a servant to his servants So God hath made the things of the earth to be a servant to thee and yet thou wilt come and put thy neck under thy servants yoke and art a servant to thy servant yea were it not a great deal of folly for a man to expect all his honour and respect to come from his servant rather than from any excellency in himself as thus Suppose a man were travelling indeed there is respect given to him but it 's for his servants sake rather than his own If he should come to know this this he would account a great dishonor to himself But an earthly heart I say puts himself into such a condition as indeed he makes it to be his greatest honour to have honour from his estate and riches So that men do not respect rich men for any worth that there is in themselves or for any excellency of their own but only for their riches as much as to say a man is not respected for himself but for his servant Take some men that have had estates but now they are deprived of them and are become as poor as any Almes-men or Beggars amongst us who doth regard them then But now let a man have grace and holinesse if he were turned out of all and made as poor as Job yet he were one that the Angels of Heaven would look upon with honour and would glory in attending upon him this is the difference between the carnal earthly heart and the spiritual heart It 's a foolish lust to make himself to be a servant to his servant 3. It brings into foolish lusts For a man might have as much it may be more of the earth if he did not mind it so much as he doth Now for a man to mind the earth and to indanger himself in the minding of it when as he might have it as well without so much minding surely this is a foolish thing For a man to bestow a great deal of labour about a thing when as he might have it with lesse labour he is a fool surely Certainly if you be such as belongs to God especially you may rather expect God to bless you if you kept your hearts more spiritual you might expect that God would grant to you more of the good things of this world if you were lesse earthly-minded than you are and it 's your earthly-mindednesse that makes God cut you short of these things I am verily perswaded there are many men that have ill successe in their earthly affairs and it 's a fruit of Gods displeasure upon them because their hearts are so much upon worldly businesses did you go on in your imployment in obedience to God and commit it to God for successe you might be crowned with more successe than you have been now what a foolish thing is this 4. Yea further It 's a great deal of folly for any of you to go and buy a thing and to pay a greater price for it than it 's worth If you send a servant to buy you commodities and when he comes home you ask him what it cost and he tells you it cost such a price which is ten times more than it's worth you will say Thus it is to send a fool to Market so an earthly minded man manifests himself to God and his Angels and all the Saints to be a fool for why thou bestowest that upon this world that is a thousand times more worth than the things of the world for thou bestowest that upon the world that might bring thee to heaven I may say to an earthly-minded man those thoughts and cares and affections and endeavours that thou doest spend upon the things of the world If they had been spent about the things of God might have sav'd thy soul to all eternity thou mightest have got Christ and Heaven and Eternity the Lord would have gone along with thee and thou maiest come hereafter to see it at the great day when all things shall be opened before men and Angels had I but spent those thoughts and cares and endeavours about understanding the waies and things of God and eternal life my soul might have bin sav'd for ever Not that our works wil do it but that God would have gone along together with you in such waies as those are now for you to spend thoughts and cares about that that perhaps you shall not have for many men and women spend their souls about the things of the world and never have them this is a sad thing Oh! wil not this be folly will not you curse your selves hereafter for your folly Oh that I should spend my self and be spent about that that I have not got neither and I must be damn'd for that whereas had I spent time about things that concern'd my soul and eternal life it would have been more like that I should have gotten those things for God doth not fail men so in spiritual things as he doth in earthly things a man may be as diligent as it 's possible for any man to be in business of the earth and yet he may miscarry but give me any man or woman that ever was diligent in seeking the things of God and eternal life that ever did miscarry I verily beleeve at the day of Judgment there will not be one man found that shall be able to say Lord I did improve what talents thou didest give me to the uttermost to save my soul but Lord because I was not able to do any more without thy grace thou didest deny thy grace to me and therefore now I must be damn'd I beleeve there will not be any soul that will be able to say so but in the matters of the world men do say so that they
fair and beautiful wheresoever they come and be as sombody in the world these do thus and thus these forsake the truths of God and seek to provide for themselves in the things of the flesh Fiftly Men naturally never knew better things than the things of the earth and therefore no marvel though they mind earthly things so much Children that are born in a dungeon and never knew any better place they can play up and down in the dungeon So it is with men that never knew what the things of heaven and eternal life meant they can mind earthly things better than those but when once the Lord opens the eyes of their understandings to see into the reality excellency and glory of spiritual things they then wonder at their former blindness in minding such poor low mean foolish rattles as the things of the earth are Sixtly There are earthly principles continually dropt into men by converse with other men that are men of the earth 49. Psal 11. and 13. Their inward thoughts is that their houses shall continue for ever and their dwelling place to all generations they call their lands after their own names Their hearts are set upon these things then in the 13. verse This their way is their folly yet their posterity approve their sayings They are applauded by men they see that every body do applaud them in these waies and when they converse one with another they do converse about the things of the earth and the common example of men they see every body following the things of the earth and are greedy after these toyes and that likewise doth incline their minds to the things of the earth Lastly The sensible experience they have had of the sweetnesse that there is in the things of the earth This is that that takes off their minds from spiritual things and makes them to mind the things of the earth But though these be the reasons why men do thus mind the things of the earth and an earthly-minded man blesses himself in his way and thinks he hath good reason for what he doth and thinks all men fools that do not grovel in the ground like a mole with himself and looks upon the matter of Religion but as meer words and talk let them do what they will I find contentment here yet certainly at length it will prove folly this their way as the holy Ghost saith in the 49 Psal This their way it is but their folly and in the end the wise men of the earth those that have sought the things of the earth and blesse themselves in their way they will prove to be the greatest fools the holy Ghost accounts them so In the 17. of Jere. 11. verse As the Partridge sitteth on eggs and hatcheth them not so he that getteth riches and not by right shall leave them in the midst of his daies and at his end shall be a fool He applauds himself for the present in what he hath got but at the end he shall be a fool CHAP. V. NOW the main thing that is still behind in the Point It is therefore to endeavour to take off the minds of men and women from the things of this earth that so by it I may make preparation to the next Point which is of infinite concernment The Conversations in Heaven But because their conversations cannot be in Heaven till their minds be taken off from the earth till the disease of Earthly-mindednesse be cur'd therefore we must now propound those things that may help to take off the minds of men from the earth Eleven Considerations to take off mens hearts from Earthly-mindedness First Consider this That all the things of the earth that thy mind and heart is upon if thou couldst possess them all as thine own yet there is not so much good in them as to countervail the evil of the least sin not of the least sin of thought thy heart is mudling upon the things of the earth and thinkest that thou shouldest be blest if thou badst thus and thus as others have Let me tell thee if thou hast but one sinful thought there is more evil in that than there 's good in all that ever thou shalt get all the daies of thy life in the world and if this be so that there is more evil in the least fin than there is good in all the things of the earth it concerns thee rather to have thy mind how to avoid sin or how to get the evil of sin to be remov'd and how to get thy sin to be mortified that concerns thee more than the minding and plodding about the things of the earth that 's one consideration A Second Consideration A second is this that may take off the hearts of men from the things of the earth That the chief things that are in the earth yea name what terrene excellency possibly a man may be crowned with under Heaven hath been the portion of Reprobates heretofore and is to this day and shall be the portion of multitudes whom God hates and hath set apart to glorifie his infinite Justice upon eternally Shall thy mind and heart be set upon such things as are the portion of Reprobates will a Reprobates portion content thee will it serve thee art thou satisfied with dogs meat If it will not content thee why is it that thy mind is so much upon the things of the earth It may be thou that art poor and mean in the world thy mind is upon some little matter thou canst never expect to have any great things in the world and yet thou mindest them as if that there were thy portion and thy happiness some small pittance to furnish thy house to provide for thy self and thy poor family Oh friend if it were possible for thee to get the Empire of the whol world under thy foot yet thou shouldest get no more than hath been the portion of such as God hath hated and if so be that Kingdoms and Empires have been the portion of Reprobates why doest thou mind things that are lower abundantly and let the strength of thine heart flow out upon such things as these are A Third Consideration A third consideration is this Surely God hath made man for higher things than the things of this earth Oh! if thou hadst but thy thoughts often working this way Wherefore do I think in my conscience hath God made the children of men for what end why hath he sent them hither into the world Of all the creatures that God hath here upon the earth he hath none capable to know him the infinite First being of all things but only the children of men God hath given them such a nature as is capable of some converse with him surely then there be other things that God made man for than to have meat and drink and cloathes and here to live a while only to enjoy creatures Do not we reade often That Jesus Christ was God and Man took
they should find Callis in her heart And so it may be said of Saints whose Conversations are in Heaven I speak not of all Professors of Religion for it 's said of bodies when Paul speaks of the resurrection there are bodies Celestial and bodies Terrestial so I may say There are Professors Celestial and Professors Terrestial but as for such whose Conversations are in Heaven who walk with God and live here the lives of Heaven upon Earth If they were rip'd up you should find Heaven in their hearts un-rip many mens hearts and there 's nothing but the earth uncleanness and baseness suppose God should come this moment and rip up all your hearts and disclose them to all the men of the world what a deal of filthy stuff would be found in many of your hearts but for such whose Conversations are in Heaven they would be ready to have God unrip their hearts when he pleaseth Lord try Lord search me Lord examine and see what is in my heart I 'le but put this now to you as in the Name of God and let conscience answer What do you think would be found in your hearts if they should be unrip'd now and if your consciences tell you Oh Lord if my heart should be rip'd up now there would be a filthy deal of ugly and abominable stuff there surely I have not had my Conversation in Heaven my heart hath been sinking even down to low and base things but now for those whom this text concerns it will be an exceeding comfort to them and I hope that there are divers of you that may be able to say if the Lord should at this present rip our hearts and shew them to all the world I hope the world should see that Heaven is stamped upon our hearts We account it sad weather when we cannot see the Heavens for many daies when we cannot see Heaven many times for a week together and we account it an ill dwelling where men dwell in narrow lanes in the City so that they can scarce see the Heavens except they go abroad in the fields My brethren surely it 's a sad time with a gracious heart when any one day passes without converse with Heaven without the sight of Heaven and meditations of Heaven and having their hearts there Thus it should be with Christians whose Conversations are in Heaven they should never love such dwellings wherein they cannot see the beams of the Sun It 's a most comfortable thing for to see the light a man that dwels in some dark house it 's very comfortable for him to walk out into the open air and to behold the Heavens Oh my brethren our souls dwell in dark houses every one of us for our bodies are to our souls like a dark and low celler but the Lord gives us liberty to go abroad to be conversing with the things of Heaven that he hath revealed in his Word and in his Ordinances And as many Citizens that live in dark rooms keep a long time close to their work yet at such times as they cal days of Recreation they walk abroad in the Fields and take the fresh air and oh how delightsom is it to them The same should be to a gracious heart that hath a great many businesses indeed in the world I but on the Lords day Oh that he may now enjoy God in his Ordinances more than before his thoughts are upon those waies wherein he may come to have more of Heaven Oh! that I may come to converse more with God than at other times And upon that the Sabbaths are the joy of his soul his delight he longs after the Sabbath he thirsts after Ordinances for indeed his heart is in them for he finds there is more of Heaven in them than in other things and in that regard the Saints having their thoughts and hearts in Heaven thus he proves to have his Conversation to be in Heaven Moses never came to Canaan and yet God gave Moses a sight of it carried him up to mount Nebo Heavenly meditations are as it were mount Nebo whereby when the heart is raised a little upon the mount it 's able to see Heaven behold the glorious things there The Scripture speaks of Lucifer that he had his nest among the stars A Saint hath as it were his nest his dwelling among the stars yea above the stars in the highest Heavens As 't is with wicked men that when they seem to draw nigh to God yet their hearts are far from him then they are in their shops they are among their ships when they seem to be worshipping of God So when the Saints seem in regard of their bodies to be far from God yet their hearts are in Heaven in the mean time Sixtly For the opening of a Heavenly Conversation it consists in this When in the course of mens lives they do converse and delight in the same things that are done in Heaven they make their happiness the same happiness that is in Heaven and make their exercise to be the same exercise that is in Heaven As for instance What is there in Heaven There is the fight of the face of God Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God And the Angels Alwaies behold the face of God So the Saints may be said to have their Conversations in Heaven because their exercise here while they live it is in the beholding the face of God in standing before God seeing his face the greatest delight and contentment of their souls it is that they can see somewhat of God What 's to be done further The Work of Heaven it is in the Praisings and Blessings of God What do the Saints and Angels of Heaven but continually blesse and magnifie and praise the Name of that God whom they see to be so infinitly worthy of all praise and honor from his creatures Then is a mans Conversation in Heaven when as he doth the same things when he joyns with Angels Saints in doing of the same work of magnifying and blessing and praising God What 's done in Heaven but the keeping of a perpetual Sabbath Then are our conversations in Heaven when we delight in Gods Sabbath yea and indeed to keep a constant Sabbath unto God though busied about earthly things yet still we keep a Sabbath to God in resting from sin and being spiritually imployed And that 's a Sixth thing Seventhly Then our Conversation is in Heaven When in Earthly imployments yet we are Heavenly when we use earthly things after a heavenly manner it is not the place that God looks at so much where his Saints are But what they do Though while we live in the earth we use earthly things yet when we can use them in an heavenly manner then our Conversation may be in heaven though we upon earth As thus first When in the use of earthly things we do quickly passe through earthly things to God we make use of them but
stir in me What truths were there darted into mee at such a season What motions flowing in had I at such a time Oh how happy had I been if I had taken such an advantage for Heaven I had even been in Heaven already Now those who do converse with Heaven they watch at those advantages they come not to hear the Word but they watch for the time to have God stirring in their hearts and they follow that advantage they watch for the time of the softening of their spirits and the enlivening of their souls and they follow hard those advantages and so trade for Heaven and grow rich in Heavenly Commodities Fourthly Where there is a trade from one Country to another there 's much intercourse A man that trades to such a Town or Country ther 's much intercourse between that man and those that live there so a Christians trading for Heaven is in this there is very much intercourse between Heaven and his soul every day he sends up to Heaven and every day he hath something from Heaven sent down to his soul Oh do but examine what intercourse there hath been between Heaven and you how is it with many of you even as if there were no Heaven at all Men that are no trades-men to the Indies 't is as if there were no such place at all to them So it is with many that lives even in the bosom of the Church there is very little intercourse between Heaven and them but a trader for Heaven hath much intercourse with heaven Fifthly A man that trades to any place if he trade for great matters he hath the chief of his stock where he trades though he be not present in his body yet the chief of his estate is there If a man be a Spanish or a Turkish Merchant and trade thither the chief of his estate lies there in Spain or Turkey more than here So it is with one that trades for Heaven the chief part of his estate lies there he accounts his riches to lie in Heaven indeed he hath somwhat to live upon here in this world for a while but there 's his riches he looks at Heaven as the place where his greatest treasure lies Sixthly A man that trades is willing to part with something where he is that he may receive advantage in the place where he trades So it is with the Saints that trade for Heaven they are willing to part with much that they might receive afterwards in Heaven they are willing I say to part with any thing here in this world to the end that they may receive it when they come home A man that is abroad and is going to his own Country and there he is trading for Commodities he is very willing to part with all his money where he is for receiving Commodities in his trade or those that give their moneyes here that so they may receive commodities in another place where they are trading A carnal heart that doth not know the certainty nor excellency of the Commodities of Heaven they are willing to part with nothing but will keep all they think with themselves what we have here we are sure of but that that they talk of Heaven we do not know what it is it may prove to be but an imagination therefore we wil keep what we have and be sure of that Oh! thou art no trader for heaven if thou wert thou wouldst be willing to part with any thing here that so thou mightst receive commodities there thou wouldest be content to live poorly and meanly in this world so be it that thou mightest have thy riches when thou comest into thy mansion of glory Seventhly Trades-men that trade for great matters they must trust much they cannot expect to have present pay in great sums It 's true men that trade for little matters that trade by retale they usually take in their pence and two pence as their commodities goes forth but it 's not so with Merchants that trade for great things in whol-sale So 't is in traders for Heaven they trust much and indeed the grace of Faith it is the great grace that helps in the trading for Heaven they have a little earnest for the present You that are traders and go to the Exchange and sell bargains for many thousands you have not perhaps above twelve pence or a crown for the present it may be only a promise but you expect the great sums afterwards So those that are traders for Heaven they have some earnest they be contented with a little for the present the first-fruits of the Spirit or a bare promise from Christ this is that that binds the whole bargain and they expect to have the full pay hereafter when they come to Heaven It is a happy thing when God gives men and women hearts to be willing to trust God for eternity and if they have but a little comfort and grace now yet to look at that as an earnest peny of all the glory that Jesus Christ hath purchased by his blood and that God hath promised in his Word thou art not fit to be a trades-man for Heaven that canst not trust that canst not be content that great bargains should be bound with a little earnest But that 's the soul that trades in Heaven that can be content to wait for the fulfilling of promises to take what they have from God for the present though it be but a very little as an earnest to bind all those glorious things that God hath promised in his Word Here you see a trader for Heaven in these Seven things Now put all these things that you have heard together with these and you may see what it is to have our Conversations in Heaven CHAP. VIII Seven Evidences of mens having their Conversation in Heaven NOW then there are some Evidences of Christians having their Conversation in Heaven As we shewed you som Evidences of an Earthly Conversation so likewise of a Heavenly Conversation that is some demonstrations plainly to shew That the Conversations of Christians are in Heaven In the first place It 's plain certainly there are Christians that have their Conversations in Heaven First because there are Christians that can vilifie all the things of this earth surely except they had their Conversations higher than the earth they could not so vilifie the things of the earth It 's an evidence of the height of Heaven that a man is lifted up very high that shall look vpon the very Globe of the earth as a very punctum as a little thing so an evidence that the hearts of the Saints are on high when they can look on the things of the earth as smal it 's true we that are upon the earth look upon the stars as small and the earth as great but if we were in Heaven we would look upon the stars as great and the earth as small as Paul did accounted all things but as dung and drosse dogs
meat for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ and Luther that accounted the whol Turkish Empire but a Crumb that the great Master of the Family casts to his dog surely here 's an argument that the Saints have their Conversations in Heaven that can look upon the things of the earth as so mean and so little as indeed they are A second Evidence is this That they can be content with so little in this world and can live such comfortable lives in the enjoyment of so little perhaps you cannot tell how to have comfortable lives except you have so much coming in by the yeer and so much provision but now one that is heavenly a godly man or woman can tell how to live a joyful and happie life in the want of the things of this world though they have but little though but bread and water though but mean habitations mean cloathes though but of mean esteem in the world yet can go through the world with a joyful heart blessing God all his daies nothing but admiring praising and magnifying God for his rich mercie and blessing himself in God and accounting his portion to be a goodly portion and his lot to be fallen into a fair ground I verily beleeve that there are very many poor mean people in this world yet their houses are more fill'd with blessings of God in one day than many Rich Great Noble men have their houses in twenty or fourty yeers now this argues that they have their Conversations in Heaven that though they want comfort never so much in this world yet they can live comfortable lives surely it is somthing that doth rejoyce them when they can so rejoyce in the want of these outward things when their joy depend◠〈◊〉 upon the things of this world men that have earthly hearts if they lose but their outward comforts they cry our Oh we are undone And you may see mightie alteractions in their very countenances they have nothing to joy their hearts when they lose the things of the world but it is no◠so with the Saints whatsoever crosses they meet withal here in this world yet still they rejoyce in Christ blessing God the course of their lives is nothing elle but a continual magnifying and praising God for his mercie and goodness to them surely they have their Conversations in Heaven Thirdly Not onlie can live joyfullie in the want of manie comforts but they can suffer the loss of all yea suffer hard things suffer afflictions suffer torments and tortures with joyful hearts reade but that 11. of the Heb. at your leisure 13 14 verses They confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth for they that see such things declare plainly that they seek a Country this Scripture is to be annexed to the second evidence Mark They that seek such things declare plainly that they seek a Countrie surelie there is somthing else that they seek after when they set so light by the things of this world For the Saints are not fools but there is some reason for what they do surely there is somthing in it for they have the same nature as you have and they have need of comfort as well as you and had they not some other comfort besides outward comforts they could not live so comfortably in the want of outward comforts but they that are content with a little as pilgrims and strangers they declare plainly that they seek a Country that is the second Evidence And then For the suffering of tortures and pains for the sake of Christ This is another Evidence and so you have in the 10. Heb. 32. But call to remembrance the former daies in which after ye were illuminated ye endured a great fight of afflictions partly whilst ye were made a gazing stock both by reproaches and afflictions and partly whilst ye became companions of them that were so used and then in the 34. verse And took joyfully the spoiling of your goods Why knowing in your selves that ye have in Heaven a better and enduring substance This made them take joyfully the spoiling of their goods What when their goods were spoil'd did they take that joyfully what were they mad men to rejoyce at the plundering of their estates No it was no madness It was because they knew in themselves that they had in Heaven a better and an enduring substance and that made them be willing to wander about in sheeps skins and goats skins in leather cloathes as in the latter end of the 11. of Heb. reade but from the 36. verse to the end this argued their Conversations to be in Heaven If you reade in the storie of the Martyrs you shall find verie often when they came to the stake still their thoughts were in Heaven and their hearts there and encouraging one another what they should have in Heaven and of the glorie that they should have there that being willing to suffer such hard things for Christ and that being able to undergo all with so much joy is an evidence that there have been Christians in the world that have had their Conversations in Heaven A Fourth Evidence of Christians having their Conversations in Heaven is this That their hearts are so fill'd with Heavenly riches It is an Argument of a man that trades much unto such a place when he hath his Warehouse stor'd with the Commodities of such a Countrie As now though no man should tell me which way his trading lies that such a man were a Spanish or Turkish Merchant yet if I come into his Warehouse find that constantlie his Warehouse is fill'd with those Commodities I may conclude that certainlie this man is a Spanish or Turkish Merchant he hath the Commodities of the Countrie continuallie in his warehouse So the Saints have much of the riches of Heaven in their hearts continuallie they have much grace much holinesse much of the Image of God much spiritual life there is there in a Christian and you may see in his Conversation he doth manifest I say much of the Excellencie of Heaven much of the Glorie of Heaven shines in his face surelie his Conversation is in Heaven who hath so much of the riches of Heaven in his heart The heart of the wicked saith the holy Ghost is little worth Look into the heart of a wicked man or woman what is there thy heart that should be thy storehouse what is it fill'd withal it's fill'd with dirt and drosse and filth and uncleanness the hearts of wicked men are stored with those things but now look into the hearts of the Saints they are fill'd with God with Christ with the holie Ghost with Grace that shews that they have traded much in Heaven in a constant way you shal find their hearts fild with grace and manifesting much in their lives and therefore surelie their Conversation is in Heaven A fifth Evidence is this That they are willing to purchase the Priviledges of Heaven at so dear
faces may shine so that you may see by their Conversations that certainly they have been with God upon the Mount this day Now I appeal to you in this Do you live so as that your family and your neighbors may see that you have bin this morning in Heaven Every morning we should have some converse with Heaven which if we had our Conversations would be convincing all the day long and very profitable it would be to the world Christians that live Heavenly Conversations they are I say of very great use in the places where they live As I remember it 's said concerning Christ When he ascended up to Heaven he gave gifts to men And if we could oftener ascend up to Heaven we should be more able to be beneficial to the world CHAP. XV. An Heavenly Conversation is growing AN Heavenly Conversation is a growing Conversation Oh! they grow mightily they do thrive in grace exceeding much in a very little time they grow to attain to a very great measure of Communion with God the Father and with Jesus Christ and every day they grow more and more spiritual having so much of heaven within them It 's true when they come into Heaven they shall be perfect But now the fetching from Heaven is that that makes them grow it must be the influence from Heaven that must cause the grouth of Saints As now suppose that the ground upon which flowers and herbs grow be never so fertile in its self and the herbs or plants be never so well rooted in the earth yet if there be not an influence of heaven upon them they will not grow much nay not at all but quickly wither So it is with Christians let them have never so much means of growing below never so many Ordinances yet if they have not rich dews from above they wil not grow or if there be any growth yet either they wil bear no fruit or else it will be very shrifled and sowre fruit You know that fruit that hath the most of the beams of the Sun that comes from heaven upon it that fruit grows riper and sweeter than other fruit fruit that grows in the shade that hath the influence of Heaven kept off from it it is sowre fruit And the reason that the Saints have so little fruit and that it is so sowre it is because that they have not more influences from heaven they do not stand in the open Sun their souls are not presented dayly before God and have the warm beams of the Sun of Righteousnesse shining from Heaven upon them but there is something between Heaven and their souls but a Conversation in Heaven as it would be a Convincing Conversation so it would be a Growing Conversation CHAP. XVI An Heavenly Conversation brings much glory to God ANd then It would be a Conversation glorifying God much Oh! the Glory that God would have from a Conversation in Heaven Let your light so shine before men that others beholding your good works may glorifie your Father which is in Heaven Then indeed the Image of the God of Heaven is held forth when mens Conversations are heavenly the Lord takes much delight to have his glory to be dispensed abroad by his Saints to have some reflection upon the world As in a glasse though beams of the Sun do not shine upon a wall yet by a glasse you may take the beams of the Sun and cast the reflection of them upon a wal so those beams of the glory of God that shine in Heaven the Saints by their Heavenly Conversation may as it were by a glasse take them and reflect them upon the world and upon the faces of men the hearts of the Saints should be as a glasse taking the beams of the glory of God and casting them up and down where they are and so your Heavenly Father should come to be glorified by you Let every Christian think thus My Conversation is thus and thus but what glory do I bring to God by my Conversation do others glorifie God by beholding the lustre of the holiness of God in me do they see cause to blesse God that they see so much of the glory of God in me Certainly there is more of the glory of God shines in the gracious holy spiritual Conversation of a Christian than shines in the Sun Moon and Stars than in Heaven and Earth I mean for the works of Creation and Providence that are in Heaven and Earth the creatures that God hath made as the Sun Moon and Stars and here in this world the Seas the Earth the Plants and the like though they have much of the glory of God yet a Heavenly Conversation declares more of the glory of God than all these You know what the Psalmest saith The Heavens declare the glory of God and the Firmament shew his handy work It may be spoken more fully of Heavenly Conversations the Heavenly Conversations of the Saints declare the glory of God and those that shine in the Firmament of the Church are stars for the Church is the firmament and the Saints be there as stars they declare the Handy work of God Now though its true As in Heaven there 's one star differs from another star in glory and so in Christians every one cannot attain to so much glory as another yet every one is a star the meanest Christian that lives the weakest Beleever that is yet should be as a star in the firmament though he cannot shine so gloriously as the Sun or as other stars yet there should be never a Beleever never a godly man or woman in the Church but should shine as a star in the firmament but should be as the Gospel is even a mirror wherein we might behold the glory of God in whom we may behold the glory of God even as it were with open face An Heavenly Conversation is a Conversation glorifying God CHAP. XVII An Heavenly Conversation bringeth much glory to the Sanits AN Heavenly Conversation it 's a Conversation that will bring much glory to your selves Though it's true that the Saints should aim at the glory of God most yet there will come glory to themselves whether they will or no if their Conversations be in Heaven it 's impossible but that in the conscience of men they should be honored walking in a Heavenly Conversation There 's an excellent Scripture that shews that in our glorifying of God we glorifie our selves also 2 Thess 1. 11 12. the Aplostle he praies for them Wherefore also saith he we pray alwaies for you that our God would count you worthy of this Calling and fulfill all the good pleasure of his goodness and the work of faith with power To what end That the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you and ye in him according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ He praies for the Thessalonians That they might walk so that they might have so much of the grace
's true of many men in this case that I am speaking of their very souls do cleave to the dust their spirits are mixed with the earth and therefore they are drossie Though it may be they have some good common gifts some good natural parts and some workings of the holy Ghost upon them yet their spirits are drossie because they are mixt with the earth discourse never so much to these men of the vanity of the things of the earth they will give you the hearing but when you have done all their souls do cleave to the earth and discourse never so much to them of the excellency of heavenly things they will hear you but when you have done all their souls stil cleaves to the earth As a man whose soul cleaves in love to a woman As it is said of Sampson his soul did cleave to Dalilab talk what you will against that women or of the excellency of any other woman yet his soul cleaves to that woman so 't is in an earthly minded man let what will be said against the things of the earth or what can be said for the setting forth of the excellency of the things of Heaven yet his soul cleaves to the earth as the Serpents belly did to the dust of the ground That 's an earthly minded man Fourthly An earthly minded man it on whose heart is filled with distracting cares about the earth what he shall eat and drink and what he shall put on how he shall provide for himself and his family and what shall become of him at such a time Though he be well now yet what may become of him afterwards when the heart is filled with distracting cares about the things of the earth so far as the heart hath these prevailing over it so far such a man may be judged to be earthly There are two things that do cause distrating cares about anie businesse The first is An apprehension of some verie great evil In case I should be disappointed I look upon my disappointment in such a thing as a most intolerable evil to me If I should be disappointed I know not what in the world to do That 's the first The second is An uncertaintie in the means for the preventment of this disappointment when as I look upon disappointment as a very great evil so those means that should prevent and help me against disappointment I cannot trust to I look upon them as too weak to help me notwithstanding al such means I may yet be desappointed this causes distracting thoughts so t is in the things of the earth an earthly minded man or woman hath his thoughts fil'd with distracting cares about the world That is thus First They looking upon the things of the world as such great things they conceive if they should be disappointed they should be undone they look upon it as such a fearful unsufferable evil to be depriv'd of their estate and outward comforts in this world Secondly They don't look upon the means of provision for themselves and families as having anie certaintie in it which is a main thing to be considered of As for outward things in the world they find by experience there is uncertainty in them And then for any promse that there is in Scripture that God will provide for them and their families alas that they dare not trust to that 's a thing that of all means they think to be the weakest Lord have mercy upon them say they if they have nothing else to trust to but only a word in Scripture they think themselves most miserable and wretched But now it would be otherwise with the soul if it were not earthly minded it would not be at any great pause how things do fall out here in the matters of the world it 's true perhaps I may miscarry in such a businesse and my estate may be taken from me by the Caldeans or Sabeans as Jobs was but I shall not be undone my happiness is not gone I shall have that that will comfort me when all that is gone suppose the worst yet this will not undo me Indeed a man that sends abroad in a venture all his whole estate he is very solicitous because if there be ill news about it he is undone but another man that hath a great deal of riches house and Lands and a stock at home to maintain him and his family If there comes such ill news I have a stock to live on he thinks therefore he is not so much solicitous So a worldly man all his stock is in the earth there 's his only portion and if he miscarries there he is undone But a godly man though he hath the things of the earth yet he hath something else treasures in Heaven to rest upon besides the earth and therefore he is not so solicitous And then for the second The uncertainty of means and help if a godly man looks upon outward causes he sees all is uncertain but he hath a promise to rest upon I will never leave you nor forsake you cast your care upon me for I care for you and this he looks upon as a certain means and help whatsoever fals out here 's a promise that he can build upon and therefore this takes off his solicitous cares But an earthly minded man or woman whose heart is fild with distracting cares because he look upon himself as undone if he miscarries here and hath nothing to rest upon for his provision in this world more than the creature Fifthly An earthly minded man or woman is one whose great business of his heart and endeavours of his life are about the things of the earth he makes it his great business and the strong endeavours of his spirit are exercised in the things of the earth He eagerly and greedily works with the strongest intention about these things his whole Soul the whole man is laid out about the world it is the adequate object of his soul You will say Other men they are busie in their callings as well as these that you account earthly minded men I but mark they are busie about their callings in obedience to God and for outward things set aside their obedience to God then I say all the things that they busie themselves about in the world were it not under that consideration that they were obeying God in it they would not be adequate objects for their souls I mean by an adequate object that that Is sufficient to take up the whole strength of the soul to lay it out fully I 'le give you this similitude to express my mind further to shew you what I mean by an adequate object You have a little child he is playing at sports now this sport it hath as much in it as there is in his spirit there is a kind of equality between his spirit and such a sport there is benefit enough a child conceives in such a sport as it's worth the laying out of all his
peace with God by some thing that he himself must perform but for the point of Free justification by the grace of God in Christ it 's too Divine Spiritual and Heavenly for an earthly-minded man to apprehend in the Spiritualnesse of it an earthly-minded man his apprehensions of God are but in a carnal earthly way as the Prophet speaks in the 1 of Isa The Ox knows his owner and the Ass his masters crib Even after that manner doth an earthly-minded man know God as an Ox his owner and the Ass his masters crib as thus the ox knows his owner because he brings him fodder daily so an earthly-minded man hath no other apprehensions of God but this he thinks God gives him good things in this world God makes his corn to grow or Prospers his voyage An earthly-minded man may rise so high to have apprehensions of God as bringing good things unto him here on earth But one that is spiritual and heavenly doth apprehend God as God doth not look upon God meerly as good in respect of the benefit he receives from God here but he looks upon God as he is in himself he sees the face of God as there 's a great deal of difference between a man that knows another man and a beast that knows a man The ox knows his owner the ox knows the man that brings hay or provender to him but a man knows a man in another way knows what the nature of a man is knows what it is to be a rational creature so one that is spiritual knows what God is in himself he sees the face of God and understands what God is in another way than others do the difference between the knowledge of God that a spiritual soul hath one that is pure in heart and the knowledge of God that an earthly heart hath is just so much difference as comes to this As the ox knows the man that drives him to fat pastures so doth an earthly man know God that gives him good things but a spiritual heart knows God as one man knows another not in his full excellency I mean not so but there is such a kind of difference in some degree between the apprehensions of God in a spiritual heart and the apprehensions of God in an earthly heart And so we might mention in many other Spiritual and Divine Truths that an earthly mind doth apprehend but in an earthly way consider of Heaven its self how doth an earthly mind apprehend that he apprehends that he shall be delivered from pain and shall have some kind of glory but knows not what it is conceives it according to the way of the earth some pompous glotious thing that he shall live in pleasures and not in pain and so apprehends all the glory of Heaven but in sensuality whereas a spiritual heart looks at Heaven in another kind of notion he looks upon the enjoyment of Communion with God and Jesus Christ in Heaven and living of the life of God in Heaven that 's a thing that an earthly heart hath no skill at all in neither doth such an heart so much as savour it Thus I have in these several particulars discovered what an earthly-minded man is Oh that you would lay your hands upon your hearts and every one consider how far these things do reach you But I have besides these divers other convincements to convince the consciences of men and women that yet there is much earthlinesse in them but of them we shall treat of in their order afterwards The Second head to consider is this The great evill that there is in earthly-mindedness They mind earthly things Is that any such great matter you will say indeed we cannot imagine the transcendency of the evil that there is in this We think there 's a great deal of evil in swearing whoring drinking and such kind of scandalous sins and indeed there is But to have an earthly mind we do not think this to be so exceeding evil yet you will find that the Scripture doth speak most dreadful things against this and if God please to set them home upon your hearts I hope there is much glory may come to God by it and much good unto you in particular CHAP. III. Fourteen Evils of Earthly-mindedness The First EVIL Fâ—â—â—â— The Scripture cals it Adultery it is spiritual Adultery in Jude 4. vers Ye Adulterers and Adulteresses know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God They were Adulterers and Adulteresses in respect of their love to the world you that would abhor the thought of a temptation to Adultery yet you may commit spiritual Adultery a man or a woman may be an Adulterer or an Adulteresse before the Lord though they never commit the act of uncleannesse with another yet if their hearts be towards another they be guilty of uncleannesse for Christ saith whosoever doth but look after a woman to lust after her in his heart he hath committed adultery already that is hath sinned against that command that forbids adultery Is it so that if a man do but let his heart go after another woman more than his wife and a wife after another man more than her husband this is adultery before the Lord. So if our hearts be after any things more than the Lord Jesus Christ that we profess our selves married to and he to be our husband this is adultery in Scripture phrase The Second EVIL Yea further A worldly or an earthly-mind in Scripture phrase is called Idolatry in Ephes 5. 5. speaking of divers sins that should not be so much as named among them as it became Saints he hath Covetousness among the rest and he ads this And Covetousness which is Idolatry Now what is Earthly-mindednesse but Covetousnesse which is Idolaitry A man or woman is an Idolater that is of an Earthly mind Now Idolatry which is a worshiping of stocks and stones you all account to be a great sin but do you and al others take heed of another Idolatry that may be as bad that is To have your hearts to make the god of this world to be your God the cursed Mammon of unrighteousnesse to make the things of the earth to be your Christ to fall down and worship the golden-Calfe of the world It 's certain that that thing a mans heart is most taken with and set upon that 's his God and therefore here in this verse out of which my Text is it 's said They made earthly things their bellies their God The Voluptuous and Drunkard makes their Belly their God and the Unclean person makes his Strumpet to be his goddesse and worshppeth that whatsoever thy heart is most upon that 's thy God therefore that you must know to be the meaning of the Commandement Thou shalt have no other Gods before me That is thou shalt give me the strength of thy soul and nothing else So I am a God to my Creature when I have its strength exercised
God at the Throne of his Grace and have been sweetly refreshed as a Gyant with wine the while thou hast gone with a dead heart and continued so there and came away with as dead an heart without anie quicknesse and life and this is that that comes by thy earthly-mindednesse which is such a remora and pulback to duties The Tenth Evil. 10. Earthly-mindednesse is so great an evil wheresoever it prevails as it were just with God that thy name who art so earthly-minded should be written in the earth I say those that are earthly-minded and have this sin prevailing upon their hearts and are not sensible of it they have cause to fear least God should write their names in the dust yea lest God hath already written their names in the earth in the 17. of Jerem. 13. we reade of such an expression Oh Lord the hope of Israel all that forsake thee shall be ashamed and they they that depart from thee shall be written in the earth because they have forsaken the Lord the fountain of living waters And it 's apparant that he speaks of earthly spirits here for in the 11. verse he saith As the Partridg sitteth on eggs and hatcheth them not so he that getteth riches and not by right shall leave them in the midst of his daies and at his end shall be a fool and then he goes on and describes the excellencie of God and his Sanctuarie A glorious high Throne from the beginning is the place of our Sanctuary c. As if he should say There are a company of foolish vain men that seek after nothing but getting riches and the things of the earth But a glorious high Throne from the beginning is the place of our Sanctuary Oh Lord we see an excellencie in thee and in thine Ordinances and thy Sanctuary Oh Lord the hope of Israel in whom there is such excellencie is there any that do forsake thee who hast so much excellencie in thee who art the hope of Israel Oh Lord just it were that their names should be written in the earth that they should never come to partake of those good things that there are in thee the excellent things that there are in thine Ordinances and in thy Gospel but Lord let their names be written in the earth an earthly spirit I say may fear least the name of it be written in the earth lest God write concerning such a man or such a woman earth shall be their portion and their mouths shall be fil'd with earth one day and that 's all the good that they shall have from the Almighty Oh those who have known God and the things of eternal life they cannot but apprehend this to be a sad and a grievous evil for their names to be written in the earth The Eleventh Evil. An Earthly-minded man hath the curse of the Serpent upon him What was that Vpon thy belly shalt thou go and dust shalt thou eat Thou hast the curse of the Serpent thou grove-lest upon the earth as it were upon thy belly thy soul cleaves to the ground in a sinful way and dust thou feedest upon While the Saints are feeding upon Jesus Christ upon the very flesh and blood of Christ when they are refreshing themselves with the hidden Mannah Angels bread corn from Heaven thou art satiating thy self with the earth that 's thy food and that 's the very curse of the Serpent it 's a sign of a serpentine brood of the old Serpent to be groveling upon the earth and to feed upon it The Twelfth Evil. Earthly-mindedness is a dishonor to God and a scandal to Religion What! shalt thou profess an interest in Christ and are there no higher things to be had in God than such base things as thy heart is upon What! doest thou hold forth the everlasting Gospel in thy hand to others and doest openly professe a nearnesse to God more than others and is there no difference between the workings of thy heart and the workings of others after the things of this world Oh! how does this darken the excellency of Grace if there be any grace at all it very much clouds it as the mixing of earth and drossie stuff with pure mettle it takes away the excellencie of the pure mettle so the mixing of earth with the profession of Religion blemisheth the beauty and splendor of the profession of Religion Thou wilt never be the man or woman that is like to convince any by thy Conversation thou art never likely to be a means to draw any to the love of the waies of godlinesse because there is so much darknesse and earthlinesse in thy Conversation Oh will they say Indeed he or she makes a great blaze in the world and talks much of Religion and of Ordinances and such things but as worldly as any and groveling in the earth as much as any people that are standers by wil think that profession is but a meer verbal thing or a mock-shew when as they see as much earthlinesse in your conversation as in the conversation of those that are without you do bring an ill report on the things of God as the Spies did on the Land of Canaan Whereas every professor of Religion should endeavour to put a lustre upon Religion and to make the waies of God to be beautiful amiable and glorious in the eyes of all that do behold them But now to give a lye to your Gospel-profession by your Earthlyconversation is a very great scandal to the Name of Christ that is upon you and to his Gospel that you seem to stand up for Oh! there 's a great evil in this and a very ill report comes upon the waies of Religion by this means many that have had little religion in them yet have some kind of generousness of spirit so that they scorn such base sordednesse as some sorts of Professors are given unto Oh! for shame let not those that have only common gifts of nature and education outstrip you that seem to be the followers of Christ away with that base muddy earthly saving pinching disposition it becomes none but Judas that carried the bag and betraied his Lord and Master for Eighteen shillings and four pence Let me argue with you you that have to deal with any friends or neighbors that you yet are afraid have not the power of godlinesse in them as you desire but yet you see they have much ingenuity and generousnesse and publickness of spirit in them for publick good take heed of scandalizing such men for certainly such men if they could be brought to the love of Religion to the power strictness thereof had they the work of the holy Ghost upon their hearts to humble them for sin and to shew them the excellencie of Jesus Christ they would be glorious Instruments in the Church of God and Common-wealth and therefore it 's a very great evil to scandalize such men as these no you should labor to walk so as they might
they see in other men they do not regard silver and gold and to be getting all for themselves and they dispise those men that are of such a base covetous way and upon that they think their condition good because they think they are got above that lust but ye see it is no other than that a Mede may get a Heathen may disregard silver and gold but how it is because his spirit is upon another lust that 's the ground of it canst thou say this consider what I am now upon you that seem to scorn Covetousnesse and hate such base sordidnesse as you see in some men can you say it comes from hence The Lord hath made me to see the excellent things of the Gospel the treasures of grace that are fountain'd up in Jesus Christ the Lord hath made me to know what communion with himself in Jesus Christ doth mean and since that time I blesse God my heart hath been above all these earthly things and that 's the ground that makes me look upon all these earthly things as vanity because the Lord hath discovered unto me those excellent and glorious things that are infinitly above these earthly things I that 's somewhat indeed if you can be above earthlinesse upon this ground that 's a good argument therefore examine upon what ground it is that your spirit is against such things whether it be upon the sight and experience of better things then it 's right but certainly men and women may go far in seeming to be above earthly things in respect of the sin of covetousnesse and yet still have earthlie minde wherefore to give you convicements besides things that have been hinted As how a man doth value himself and value others is it not because that others or your selves have much of the things of the earth can you value a poor man that is godly above the richest man that is wicked and so can you value your selves for the least work of grace upon your hearts to make you more excellent thā the greatest cōmings-in of your estates but these things we have hinted And then where lies the chief Joy and chief Sorrow of mens hearts what 's that that doth most trouble your hearts is it the losse of the light of the face of God or the losse of an estate the losse of a voyage or the commission of a sin So what 's your chief Joy your profitting by the word or gaining by your bargains you have come to the word and there somtimes God hath reveal'd some truth to you and you have profited can you go away rejoycing because God hath made you to know his Law the Lord hath darted some truth into my soul this morning Oh! I go away rejoycing and having my heart fil'd with more joy than ever I have had upon any bargain wherein I have got never so much of the world These be two convincements we hinted not before Nine CONVINCEMENTS of Earthly-mindedness 1. Conv. For the further Convincement of an Earthly-minded man seriously consider this When a man shall rest upon earthly props upon worldly helps for the good that he doth expect If he can have those things then his heart seems to be upon the wing very pleasant but there 's nothing else can revive his heart it 's not a promise that can keep his spirit Now that that a man or woman most trusts unto that certainly they make to be their God for that properly belongs to God to put our trust in Him then we make God to be our God when we roul our selves upon Him Now to trust in earthly things though it be but for the comforts of your life you will say I cannot trust in earthly things to bring me to God nay but to trust in them for the comforts of your life while you are herein this world that 's an Argument of an earthly spirit for the truth is the comfort of a mans life consists not in any earthly thing he doth enjoy Object You will say Do not these comfort our lives Answ Yes so far as God is pleased to let out Himself through them but if thy heart doth rest upon these for comfort and doth not look higher than these for comfort even for thy outward support certainlie thou hast an earthlie heart And so when thou art about any businesse thou hast some earthlie means to further thee Obj. You wil say God would have us take all outward means to help us Ans I but not to trust in any thing If riches encrease set not your hearts upon them so if friends encrease set not your hearts upon them but trust in the living God let it be the living God that you rest on even for all outward things in this world 2. Conv. A Second Convincement is this When men make most provision for the things of this world both for themselves and for their children Are not these your thoughts I do not know what I may want hereafter and I see many that have lived finely when they have been young yet afterwards they have lived very miserably and therefore I must make provision for after-times Thus for the earth But now Do you reason thus for the things of Heaven do not I see many that have made a great blaze of Religion and yet afterwards they have come to nothing they have gone out in a snuffe as men that God hath forsaken and they have died in horror of Conscience and therfore let me lay up provision now against an evil time that I may not miscarrie in the matters of my soul so as others have done this were a sign your minds were not earthly And for your children God hath sent you children and Oh! how you toile and labour and your thoughts run in the night and as soon as you awake in the morning about what you shall get for their portions and for an estate for them Now I appeal to your conscience before God the searcher of all hearts Have your cares been to provide in a sutable way for their souls for their spiritual and eternal estates No question but it 's lawful for parents to provide in a Providential way for their children and they that do not are worse than Infidels but what is your chief provision for are your thoughts more solicitous to provide portions for them than that they should have instruction in the fear of God an interest in Christ than that they should have grace wrought in their hearts You are loth to die before you can bring your estate so clear as you may leave it to your children Oh are you not loth die before such time as you see some work of grace wrought in the hearts of your children Oh! these would your thoughts be if you were spiritual Oh! could I discern but some seeds of grace sown before I was disolved I could rejoyce abundantlie As ti 's repeated of Austen's Mother that the great thing that she desired to live for was
points of saving knowledge they speak like children so that one would wonder where their understandings were now turn such men to the matters of the world Oh! how wise are they in their generation Oh! how subtile and crafty are they they can see an objecton there and know how to answer it they can discern any thing that will let them in their profit many miles off and can prevent whereas others cannot but now in those things that hinder their souls they cannot foresee things there they are wise in their generation and they have memories for the matters of the world they can understand things and remember things and they can meditate there but put them to meditate on a point of Religion they are presently at a stand Let me appeal to you do not your consciences tell you that in the matter of the world when you are walking from hence to London you can run in your thoughts upon one business all the way that you walk you can plot this and contrive the other way and foresee this and the other objection and answer it thus in your own thoughts but I do but put this to you when you walk over the fields settle but upon one meditation concerning Christ and see whether you are able to draw out that meditation the while you walk over one field whereas you can spin out an earthly meditation if it were divers miles when you awake in the night season presently your thoughts are upon the things of the world and you can draw them out and work there understandingly but now in the things of God Oh! how barren and simple and weak are you there there 's scarce any one can over-reach you in the things of the world but in the matters of Religion you are over-reach't presently every slight temptation overcomes you there 6. Conv. And besides you may know it by the discourse and words of men 1. John 4. 5. They are of the world therefore speak they of the world and the world heareth them Their breath is earthly Oh! it 's an ill sign that you use to say of your friends sometimes when you come to their bed side Oh! I am afraid they will die their breath smels so earthly it 's a simptom of the death of the bodie So your hearts do smel so earthly and it were somewhat tolerable if it were on other daies when your callings requires it to discourse of businesse but even that time that God hath set apart for himself you are sometimes discoursing in your own thoughts concerning the businesses of the world when you are praying and hearing whereas the communication and discourses of men should relish of what they have heard out of the world not presently to go and talk about some earthly exchange occurrances and so loose all Oh! it 's this that hath lost many precious truths it may be when you have been hearing God hath darted in some beam of Gospel-light into your souls and you have lost is before you have got home and so have come to loose the impression of the truth that you have heard Oh! what a seemly thing were it in those that come to hear the word when they depart that there should be no discourse but tending that way Oh! how often are you in company and never leave any thing to refresh one anothers spirits or to further one another in the way to eternal life though God gives you allowance to speak about your business yet still if you be spiritual and heavenly he would have you to have something about heaven or eternal life before you do depart 7. Conv A. further Convincement is this When Spiritual things must give way to Earthlyness upon every little business Prayer must pay for it if I have any businesse I will take it out of the time of Paayer or converse in the Word the less or hear the lesse when as I say that earthly things are so high as spiritual things must give way Heaven must stand by as ir were til Earth be served this is an evil sign of an earthly spirit whereas were the spirit Heavenly the very first thing that thou would do when thou awakest in the morning or arisest should be to season thy heart with somthing that were spiritual in Psal 139. 17. How precious also are thy thoughts unto me O God! how great is the sum of them If I count them they are more in number than the sand when I awake I am still with thee Oh! that were an argument of a spiritual mind that upon the awaking presently to be with God When I awake I am still with thee But now I appeal to you Who are you withal when you awake Can you say Lord when I awake I am still with thee I find an inclination in my spirit to be upon the matters of Heaven and when I am up I had rather my worldly business should give way than spiritual duties 8. Conv. When a man or woman cares not much how it is with the Church with the Kingdom of Jesus Christ so it be well with them in the matters of the world when as there are things stirring abroad in the world for we live in stirring times wherein God is shaking the Heavens and the Earth now he doth not much enquire how things are in respect of the Priviledges of the Saints the Ark of the Church so his Cabbin be safe Truly there need no oeher thing but the examning of your hearts how they have been these last years of Jacobs trubles We find Eli in the time of war he sat trembling because of the Ark of God he did not sit trembling because that if the Philistims did prevaile he should be put out of his place and his estate taken away no but because of the Ark of God that was an argument of the spiritualnesse of Eli's mind And so it may be an argument of very great comfort to you in these dangerous times If our consciences tell us this that God that knowes all things knowes that the great thing my heart was solicitous about in these evill dayes it was What shall become of thy great Name Lord what shall become of Religion what shall become of thy Gospel Lord these were the things that took up my heart not so much what should become of my estate and outward accommodations and relations in this world Oh! examine your hearts in this Whether the care of your spirts be more for the furtherance of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ or for the furtherance of your Estates but for that man or woman that is most solicitous about businesse that concerns their outward estates and do not much care how Religion goes how the way of the Kingdom of Christ is maintai'd God at this time doth speak to that soul Thou art an Earthly-minded man or woman and therefore take heed lest what hath been spoken concerning the great evil that there is in earthly-mindednesse lest it befals thee and especially
the last of all Whose end is destruction who art drown'd in perdition lest hereafter this be the thing that thou shalt lie crying out of and cursing thy self for Oh! I had a base and earthly heart and sought the things of the earth and made my portion there and in the mean time the blessed God hath been forsaken and I have lost my Portion in the Holy Land for I had my portion in Egypt among the Egyptians accoding as I did choose to my self 9. Conv. That the more spiritual any truth is that is reveal'd the less doth it take with his heart Some truths of Religion perhaps he is moved with but these are as by-words to him he minds them not at at all The more spiritual an Ordinance is that is delivered the lesse is his spirit moved with it if indeed he comes to the Word and there be mingled some earthly natural excellencie for so I may call it as natural parts wisdom wit and eloquence and learning that he is mov'd withal it may be some fine story is more pleasing to him than the goodly pearls of truth that are revealed in the word as now such truths as these The enjoyment of communion with God the longing after Jesus Christs coming the living by faith upon a bare promise the excellencie that there is in suffering for Jesus Christ These truths now are spiritual The mortifying of the inward lusts Self-denial These things are little savored by an earthly-minded man tell him of the priviledges of the Saints the mysteries of the Gospel any thing that is spiritual it is but as a notion to him As 't is with men that are upon the earth they look up to Heaven and see the things of Heaven but little why is it that the Stars seem so smal to us here but because we are upon the earth the earth seems a vast bodie to us but the Stars seem but little to us though they are far bigger than the earth were we in Heaven then the heavenly bodies would seem vast to us and the earthly bodies would scarce be discerned by us were mens hearts heavenly all the things of the earth would seem little to them but because they are earthly therefore the things of heaven and spiritual mysteries are very small in their eyes CHAP. IV. Seven Reasons of mens Earthly-mindedness I Shall now proceed unto the Reasons of the Point Why is it that mens hearts are so much set upon the earth to mind earthly things I give you briefly these Reasons for it First The things of the earth appear real to them but spiritual and heavenly things be but a notion Now that that hath reality in it takes with the heart most though men are deceived in this for the Scripture speaks of spiritual things as the only real things and earthly things as that that hath no being at all in Prov. 23. 15. Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not speaking of the riches of the world it hath no reality at all in it But in the 8. Prov. 20. 21. I lead in the way of righteousness in the midst of the paths of Judgment That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance to inherit that which is that which hath a being othert hings they are not the honors of the earth are but a fantasie and vain shew you have read of Bernice and Agrippa They came with much Pomp with great Fansie so the original is but to an earthly man these earthly things are real things and therefore he minds them and wisdom is a lye unto a fool Secondly These things they look upon as the present necessary things though the Scripture tels us but of one thing that is necessiary but yet they think that these are present now they may have need of heavenly things hereafter They may have need of reconciliation with God pardon of sin peace of conscience and such things they may have need of them that is when they depart out of this life Oh! the infinite folly of most hearts to think that there is no present necessity of spiritual and heavenly things whereas indeed our life consists in them for the present This is eternal life we may come here in this world to enjoy eternal life but the generality of people they look upon all spiritual things only as our good for the future when we go from hence and are seen no more Thirdly These things are most sutable to mens hearts It 's no wonder that they mind earthly things They are of the earth and from the earth they have nothing but the first Adam in them now the first man was from the earth earthly The truth is the happiness of mans estate even in innocency in the morning of the day of his creation in comparison of the things that are now reveal'd by the Gospel was but earthly take man when he was in Paradice that Paradice was but earthly but then take man in his fallen and corrupt estate then he must needs be earthly and every thing closes with that that is sutable to it comfort it doth not come so much from the goodness of a thing but from the sutablness of the object with the facultie Now the things of the earth they are sutable to men that are of the earth and therefore they mind them the heart will abundantly run out upon that which is sutable to it Fourthly These things of the earth have a very fair shew in the flesh they have a kind of goodly appearance in the eye of sence yea and in the eye of that reason that is now corrupted by sin we have a most elegant expression of these earthly things and earthly minded men having their hearts set upon these things it is in the 6. to the Gal. 12. verse As many as desire to make a fair shew in the flesh saith the Scripture the words are to signifie when a man looks smug and neat as you shall have some men dresse themselves curiously and having handsom bodys they look so trim fine handsom and very brave to the eye of all that do behold them So saith he these men that are the false teachers they desire to make a fair shew in the flesh that is they look upon the things of the flesh as those things that are very brave to the eye and they love to have all things so compleat about them that they may look smug and carry themselves with such beauty before the world Oh! this is their happiness this they take content in they seem to have fine estates and to have brave cloathing and all curious things about them this looks so brave in the eyes of the world and therefore it is that their hearts are upon them they are here enemies to the Crosse of Christ they think suffering for Christ poverty disgrace looks but untowardly But now those that desire to make a fair shew in the flesh that would have their countenances well wash'd
and Heaven in our examination come with prepared hearts to let in the Truths God shall reveal unto us the rather because we see such holy godly men have imbraced those truths before us when precious Gospel-Truths are delivered to us by the hands of the servants of Jesus Christ then those very Truths in our eye are like apples of gold in pictures of silver as beautiful as golden fruit in silver dishes Sixtly The example of godly men should prevail thus far as after we have examined and found their way to be according to the Truth indeed then their example should confirm us in the Truth should help to settle us more in the Truth should comfort and encourage us in such and such holy courses because we find not only that we are convinc'd of it and we see it to be the way of God and have experience of it but others see it and they are convinc'd of it others that are so godly they find much communion with God in it now this should mightily strengthen and further us in that we go on in the same way that the Saints of God go on in And indeed it should be a very great grief to any godly man that he should differ from other godly men though it cannot be but that we should differ sometimes because we are imperfect here yea and sometimes a weak Christian knows that which a strong Christian may be ignorant of I say it fals out so sometimes that God in some things reveals himself to those that are weak and hides himself from those that are strong so that here in this world it cannot otherwise be expected for the present till the time that the New Jerusalem shall be let down from God out of Heaven and then the Saints will be all of one mind and walk all in one way but till then there cannot be expected but that there should be different waies of the Saints but yet I say it should be a very great heart-trouble to godly men to see that they are necessitated to go in different waies from other godly men and on the other side a great encouragment and strengthening when the Saints go on in one way together with their faces towards heaven CHAP. II. What 's to be done when Examples of Godly men are contrary IF you say What should we do when we have contrary examples and both sides godly men ye very godly men whose Conversation is in Heaven some go one way and others as godly as they go another way what shall people do then when they see that either way holy men go in Ans To that I answer only these two things First God by this means puts you to more strict examination of things and doth teach you by this that every Christian though never so weak yet should have a bottom and ground for their faith and practice out of the Word themselves and never did God teach this lesson more strongly than now he doth that we should all of us not satisfie our selves in any point of Religion nor in any practice of Religion but what we can our selves find and feel footing for out of the Word In former times Christians were very much led by examples and a few examplary godly professors would carry all the well affected in those places with them all that did pretend towards godliness would be very loth to go in a different way to some eminent godly men but though perhaps their affections were good and God may accept of their good affections yet certainly they were not so grounded and established in the truth as God would have them but now the Lord seems to go another way with his people and puts every one the weakest the meanest servant to search and to find out the truth themselves and to have the knowledge of it themselves and we hope the time is at hand for the fulfilling of that promise That all the people shall be taught of God shall be taught to understand themselves what are the reasons and grounds of the practice of Religion and those tenents and opinions which they hold and when people come to understand the grounds themselves they have a great deal more strength and they will come to be established more than formerly they have been this good will come of it Secondly When you see examples on both sides go contrary one unto the other and both godly yet examine but this Which way hath most earthly inducements for that way that hath most earthly inducements to draw or bias the heart that way lies under the most suspision for men that are godly yet they are but godly in part and though they may be as godly as other men in some other things yet there may be a temptation the temptation for Earthly contentment if it lies more one way than the other you are to be more wary of one than the other But that we may passe this point because it is but from the coherance by way of use but in a word or two CHAP. I Rebuke of those that follow the example of the wicked and reject the example of the godly IF the example of men whose Conversation is in Heaven is to be followed hence then are to be rebuked those that rather follow the example of wicked and ungodly ones if they be great or learned or the example of the multitude will rather follow the example of any than the example of those whose Conversation is in Heaven thou doest thus and thus and yet say Do not others do so but who are they that do so can you say in your consciences that you think that they that do so have their Conversations in Heaven you will do as they do If there be any example that you will follow they should be such that you can take it upon your consciences that these are the men who have their Conversations above you will do as others do in drinking swearing Sabbath-breaking and in all manner of prophaness have these their Conversations in Heaven Certainly you that do so you follow the example of those who have their Conversations in hell But it may be you have some neighbors live by you whose Conversations are blameless yea they are Heavenly and when you are in your good moods your consciences witness to them and you could wish that you might die the death of the righteous are there not some that live in the same families streets or towns where you live that though sometimes your hearts are against them you oppose them and scorn them and speak against them yet when you are in any good temper or afraid of death then you could wish that you were as they are and might die their death now will you not follow their example but rather the example of others whose examples are in such things as are sutable to your vile sinful and base lusts We know that these examples of holie men shall rise up in judgment against you another day
the Lord will condemn you from their example and say Did not such and such live in the familie and place where you liv'd and did not you behold their holie and gracious Conversation and shall the example of such and such vile wretches be followed rather than the example of my Saints I say this will stop your mouthes and aggravate your condemnation in the great Audit-day Some there are that are so far from following the example of those whose Conversations are in Heaven as they rage and fret against them and do what they can to darken the glorie of their holie lives and if they can but have any misreport of them they will follow it what possibly they can to the end that they might eclipse the holiness of their lives that so they may stop their own consciences whereas were there not something to darken the luster and beautie of the lives of the Saints certainlie mens hearts would condemn them for walking in contrarie waies unto them and therefore for relief of their consciences that they may not condemn them for walking in waies contrary to them they do what they can to spew upon their glory and are glad if they can hear any ill report of them and will follow them to their uttermost and all because their corrupt hearts are against the holiness of their lives and Conversations And then lastly Let those that profess Religion labor to walk so as their examples may be convincing others Is there such a power in holy examples to prevail with men you that profess Religion make this an argument to work upon your hearts that your Conversation may be more in Heaven that so your example may do the more good in the place where you live you that profess Religion and yet have earthly spirits and live scandalouslie and vilie Oh know you live to do as much mischief almost as a man can do in this world no greater mischief than for one to profess Religion and yet for his Conversation to be wicked and ungodly and so to give the Lye to his profession But for that we spake to heretofore when we treated upon that Scripture Only let your Conversation be as becomes the Gospel CHAP. IV. Two Doctrines observed from the Text. THus we proceed to the principal Doctrinal Truths For our Conversation is in Heaven Our Citie Conversation our Citizen-like behavior or Citie Burges estate for so the word signifies our carriage like free denizens it is in Heaven now from thence you have First That the Saints are the Citizens of Heaven Secondly That their behavior and Conversation even while they are in this world it is in Heaven For the first but briefly to make way to the second The Saints of God they are the Citizens of Heaven they are all free Denizens Burgesses of Heaven In the 2. Ephes 19. there you may see how God hath gathered all the Saints together to be fellow-Citizens of Heaven Now therefore ye are no more strangers and forreigners but fellow Citizens with the Saints and of the houshold of God They have an Heavenly Citie here in the Church the Church it is a Heaven to the Saints and as a type of that Heaven that they shal come into to live for ever both with the Saints and Angels hereafter And in the 11. Heb. 10. it 's spoken of Abraham He sojourned in the Land of Promise as in a strange Country dwelling in Tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob the heirs with him of the same Promise for he looked for a City which hath foundations whose builder and maker is God It seems then that all the Cities in the world in comparison of this Citie have no foundations Abraham looked for a Citie that hath foundations and whose builder and maker is God The builders and makers of these Cities are men the founders of the most famous Cities in this world have been men and manie times wicked and ungodlie men are the builders of them The first Citie that we reade of was built by Cain The builders and makers I say of these Cities are men laboring men But Abraham look'd for a Citie that had foundations whose builder and maker is God And in the 12. Heb. 22. But ye are come unto mount Sion and unto the City of the living God the Heavenly Jerusalem mark and to an innumerable company of Angels so that you are to have them your fellow Citizens The Heavenly Jerusalem that is here in the Church which is in comparison of Jerusalem that was in Canaan called the Heavenly Jerusalem so that they are Citizens of Heaven even as they are Members of the Church the Saints of God here in the Church are said to dwell in Heaven but in that their Citie there are an innumerable company of Angels also that plainly notes that it hath reference unto the glorious Heaven of the Saints that they are the Citizens of the Saints are the Citizens of Heaven there they dwell in the 13. of the Revelation 6 and 8. verses this would serve for proof of this thing and so for the other point that remains That their Conversation it is in Heaven And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God to blaspheme his Name and his Tabernacle and them that dwell in Heaven And it was given unto him to make war with the Saints and to overcome them Now these were not in Heaven that is in their bodies they were not in Heaven for the present But they are said to dwell in Heaven because they are of the Church here and they are free Denizens of Heaven too of the Heaven of the Saints that they shall live in hereafter in a more glorious way They are Now Citizens of it and they may be said to dwell in Heaven as we shall see afterward in the opening of their Conversations being in Heaven CHAP. V. How the Saints are Citizens of Heaven opened in Nine Particulars NOW the Saints are Citizens of Heaven For First Their names are all inrold in Heaven They are written in Heaven in the 10. Luke 20. Rejoyce in this That your names are written in Heaven In Heaven is the Books of life where all the Names of the Saints are written Philip. 4. 3. Whose names saith he are written in the Books of life Secondly The Saints are the Citizens of Heaven for they have Christ their Head gone before to take possession of Heaven in their names therefore they have a right to Heaven As a man may be a Citizen although he should travel in another Country yet his name being inrol'd there and he having possession there he may be said to be a Citizen though he be in a strange land for the present in his body So the Saints have their names inrold in Heaven they have Jesus Christ their head that is gone before in their names to take possession for them and to provide Mantions for them as in the 14. John Thirdly When ever they do actually beleeve they do take up their
thing or to have any delight in any thing in this world when there is a sutable object to the facultie that 's his Communion with the Creature As now a Drunkard there is a kind of Communion that he hath meerly with lude company and with the creature to please his sence for a while there 's all the communion that he hath But what a different Conversation is this for one meerly to please his sence in meat and drink a little while and another to have communion with Father Son and holy Ghost The Saints here in this world have not an Imaginary but a Real Communion with the Father Son and holy Ghost Communion you will say what 's that By Communion with God we mean this The acting of the soul upon God and the receiving in the influence of the goodness and love and mercy of God into the soul When there is a mutual acting of the soul upon God and God upon the soul again as when friends have Communion one with another that is that one acts for the Comfort of the other there is a mutual imbracing and opening of hearts one upon another for the satisfying of the Spirits one of another So communion with God is the mutual actings of the soul upon God and God upon the soul again The Saints they see the face of God and God delights in the face of the Saints And they let out their hearts to God and God lets out his heart to them We cannot expresse this to strangers a stranger shall not meddle with this joy this is a mystery a riddle to the carnal world Do but you consider this that what Communion you have with your lude company to sit and eat and drink and play and tell stories all day long this you think is a brave life but now that the communion of the Saints is raised higher and the comfort of the Saints is not in such poor low base things as thine is the Saints have comfort in God the Father Son and holy Ghost in an infinite higher way and in that respect their Conversations are said to be in Heaven And especially when they are with God in his Ordinances they cannot be content except they have Communion with God there it 's notenough for them to call upon the Name of God to kneel down and to use some humble broken hearted expressions Oh but what communion have I with God and Jesus Christ and the holy Ghost in my duties at this time I come to the Word and other Ordinances Oh! but what communion have I with God in them I cannot be satisfied except I tast and see how good the Lord is I cannot go abroad about my businesse but with a heavy heart except I hear some thing from Heaven this morning all the comfort of their lives do depend upon this in having communion with Father Son and holy Ghost Fourthly Their Conversation may be said to be in Heaven Because they do live according to the Laws of Heaven They do not here in this world live according to the Laws of men the lusts of men but they look for their direction from Heaven What rule is there from Heaven to guide me There must be some word from the God of Heaven to order and guide them in their waies or else they cannot tell how to sute with them Indeed while they live in the Cities of the world they must obey the Laws of men but still it is in order to the Laws of Heaven the main thing that they submit to is the Statute Laws of Jesus Christ the great Law giver because there is a Law of Heaven that doth require them for to obey the Laws of men that are according to those Laws of Heaven therefore they do obey them but the Laws of Heaven are those that the Saints look after for their direction in all their waies such and such a thing I have a mind to but will the Law of Heaven justifie me in this have I any word from Jesus Christ to guide me in such a way I dare not do otherwise than according to the Will and Scepter of Christ they must be my rule in all my waies whereas before thy lust was thy rule and thy own ends thy rule and the common course of the world thy rule but now the Laws of Heaven are thy rule and therfore their Conversations are in Heaven because they are guided by the Laws of Heaven Heaven is their aim They are acted by heavenly Principles They converse with the God of heaven And then fourthly They live according to the Laws of heaven Fiftly Their thoughts and hearts are set upon heaven as he saith The soul is where it loves rather than where it lives where the heart is there 's the soul there the man may be said to be Now the Saints have their hearts in heaven their thoughts in heaven their meditations in heaven working there When I awake I am alwaies with thee saith David And Oh how sweet are the thoughts of heaven unto the Saints While thou art mudling in the world and plodding for thy self in the things of this world If God should come to thee and say Where art thou as he said to Adam yea sometimes while thou art at prayer and hearing the Word Where are thy thoughts and about what even as we say in the proverb are running about a Wool-gathering But now come to one whose Conversation is in Heaven he keeps his thoughts and meditations there continually meditating on the glorious things that are reserved in Heaven As I remember I have read of that holy man Mr. Ward that being in the midst of a dinner and people wondering what he was a musing about he presently breaks out For ever for ever for ever for almost half a quarter of an hour he could not be still'd but he cries for ever for ever for ever So far as any man or woman hath their Conversation in Heaven their thoughts are there thinking Oh eternity eternitie to be for ever in Heaven to live for ever with Christ and God and Oh the Crown of glory that is there when will that blessed day come when I shall come to enjoy those good things that are there his thoughts will be there and he is longing to be there his love and desires and affections will be working there It 's said of the people of Israel Acts 7. 39. That their hearts turned back again to Egypt they never returned in their bodies to Egypt but their hearts were there they would fain have the Onions and Flesh-pots that were in Egypt their hearts were there So it may be said of many that though they come and hear the Word yet their hearts are in their shops their hearts are after their covetousness but it 's contrary with the Saints Though they live here in this world yet their hearts are in Heaven As I remember it 's written of Queen Mary that she said If they rip'd her open
we do not stick in them we make them the means to passe through to God and get quickly through a carnal heart sticks in the things of the earth mingles with the earth but a spiritual and heavenly heart makes earthly things but as Conduitâ— for conveyance of him to heaven we here carry about with us the flesh and because we have so much earth we have need of these earthly things I but they are means of conveyance to Spiritual and Heavenly things And then When we use Earthly things as Heavenly that is we take a rise of earthly things to meditate of Heaven upon the enjoyment of any thing in this earth we raise up our thoughts to the things of Heaven when we see the light to remember then the glorious light of Heaven and of the inheritance of the Saints which are in light when we cast any sweetnesse in the creature If these things be so sweet Oh what is heaven and God then that is the Fountain of all good things Thus to make all earthly things to be but as heavenly rises to us That 's a heavenly Conversation that in the use of earthly things doth quickly passe through to God and that makes spiritual and heavenly rises of earthly things Eightly Then is our Conversation Heavenly when the Saints in their Converse together are Heavenly when the Saints in their converse do look upon themselves as the Citizens of Heaven and converse as it beseems those of such a Country When as Country men are abroad in forreign parts and they meet together and there be conferring about the state of their country in their own language and aboue their friends and what things there are there among them they will say one to another as English men me thinks we are in England now our converse is as if we were in England So when the Saints in their meetings they do not meet to jangle and wrangle but they meet to converse of Heaven and to confer about their Country and every one telling news of Heaven there 's none of the Saints that walk close with God but when they meet together may tell one another some tidings of Salvation from above When Country men meet together in any place commonly the first question is What news is there from our Countrey from England So the Saints when they meet together if they be of Heavenly Conversations They will be talking somwhat of Heaven before they go what news of our Countrie what news from Heaven though they may have leave to refresh themselves being poor earthlie creatures here with somthing of the earth yet they will have some talk of Heaven before they part one with another This is a Heavenlie Conversation when the Communion of the Saints of Heaven is in Heavenlie things The ninth and last thing wherein the Conversation of the Saints in Heaven is is this That their great trade while they are upon the earth it is for Heaven Though they be not in their bodies there yet their trading is there and that 's the special thing that seems to be noted in the verie word in the text now their chief trade it is in Heaven the Saints that have Heavenlie Conversations they do not trade for trifles as other men do but they trade for great things for high things in the 3. of Collos saith the Apostle there If ye be risen with Christ seek those things that are above where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God set your affections on things above and not on things on the earth They seek the things of God even those things where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God set your affections on things above and not on things on the earth they seek after these things they merchandize for those goodlie Pearls CHAP. VII The Saints Trading for Heaven opened in Seven Particulars NOW in the Saints Trading for Heaven there are these several things considerable First As in trading you know it is requisite in those that are trades-men to any Countrie that they should have skill in the Commoditie that they trade for so the Saints they have skill in Heavenly things there 's many poor Christians who have little skill in the matters of the world speak to them about them they understand but little but speak to them about Heaven and you may quickly perceive that they have skill in heavenly Commodities they have a skill from God they are Wise Merchants Secondly A Trades-man he must have a stock to trade withal Now the Saints they have a stock to trade withal for heaven they have grace in their hearts grace in the heart is a stock for a trade If you leave your Children no lands yet if you leave them a good trade and a stock you think you leave them a plentiful portion Now the Saints though they have but little in the world yet they have skill in the Commodities of heaven they have a good trade and a good stock too they have a stock of grace that shall never be lost how ever they perhaps may not have those In comes that they do desire somtimes yet they shall never lose their stock their portion and it should be their care to improve their stock for heaven and indeed then they have their Conversation in heaven when they improve and lay out all their stock that way about heavenly Commodities And then a third thing in trading is To take advantage of the Market for Commodities Great bargains may be had sometimes that cannot be had at another so the trade of a Christian for Heaven it is in the observing his advantages that he hath for heavenly things and those that have their Conversations in heaven they are very wise and understanding this way they are able to know their times and seasons other men that have not skill in the matters of heaven they do not know their times and seasons and therefore they neglecting their markets it may be upon their sick and death bed then they begin to think of heaven and then Oh that they might but know that their souls might go to Heaven when they go from their bodies I but thou art unskilful in heavenly Commodities thou didest not know thy time thou shouldest have had thy Conversation in Heaven in the time of thy life and so have observed what advantages God gave thee for trading for heaven Oh that we were but all wise this way to make it appear that our Conversations are in Heaven in this respect namely That we are wise to observe our advantages Oh! the advantages that God hath given us all at one time or at another for Heaven there 's not any one of you but God hath given you much advantage for Heaven had you but taken it If you will reflect upon your own hearts the course of your lives in former times your consciences may tell you Oh sometimes what fair advantages had I for Heaven How did the Spirit of God begin to
a rate namely The Ordinances that are part of the Priviledges of the Kingdom of Heaven Now the Ordinances that are the means whereby they come to enjoy so much of Heaven they are willing to purchase them at a dear rate Oh how ever I live yet let me live where I may enjoy the Ordinances of God the wels of Salvation my life cannot be comfortable in the enjoyment of all things in this world if I should be deprived of the breasts of consolation surelie they that are willing to purchase Heavenly Commodities at so dear a rate as the Saints will do this doth evidentlie declare their Conversations to be in Heaven Sixtlie When they are so sensible of the stoppages between heaven and their own souls If there should be a general stoppage of ships that are in France Turkie or Spain your Countriemen are not sensible at all of it but your Merchants I 'le warrant you would be sensible enough of it and when they come together upon the Exchange al their converse would be of it So it is with those that have their conversations in Heaven and here 's a great difference between those and those that are earthlie minded tell those that are earthlie of anie stoppage in the Intercourse between them and Heaven and they know not what you mean they think you are fools and mad but the Saints they are sensible of it oh it is a sore and sad evil to them I mean when at anie time God hides his face from them when at anie time they go into the presence of God can hear nothing from him can receive no Letters from Heaven as I may so say If the Post doth not come from such a Countrie the Merchants are troubled at it So when the Saints send up their prayers to Heaven by which they trade thither and can hear nothing from God again and when they cannot feel those influences from Heaven let into their souls as heretofore sometimes they have done Oh! they bewail this as a great evil that is upon them above any evil in the world that influences of Heaven are stop'd and that God seems to be a stranger unto them Oh these things they complain of one to another and they make their moans when they feel the stoppages of Heaven this plainlie declares that they are Traders for Heaven and that their Conversations are there The last Evidence of a Saints having his Conversation in Heaven is His willingness to die to depart this world The going out of this world with so much comfort joy peace and triumph as many of the Saints have done as we might give you the expressions of many of the Saints when they were readie to die rejoycing at the hope of Eternal life at their going out of the world surely had they not conversed in Heaven while they lived here their souls would not have been so willing to have departed out of their bodies A man that hath nothing to do in another Country it may be shall be there as a dead man he goes but with little joy thither But now a man that hath had trading to another Country and he hath great riches and so thriven there that whatsoever he seems to be here yet there he is a great man Oh! how comfortably doth that man go to the Country how glad is he when he takes ship and sees a fair gale and prosperous wind to carry him to that Country And so it is with the Saints who have their Conversations in Heaven because they have so much riches there when they come to die they die with joy and blesse God for that day as the most blessed day that they have seen for they are going now to the Country that they have been trading to all their daies and where their riches lies These are the Evidences and Demonstrations that the Saints have their Conversations in Heaven CHAP. IX Four Reasons why the Saints have their Conversations in Heaven But now If you demand the reason why it is that the Saints have their Conversations in Heaven To that I answer briefly thus The first Reason Because their souls that are their better part they are from Heaven You know that when God made Man He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life The Soul of man it is as it were the breath of God God did not say of Mans Soul as of other creatures Let it be made let there be a soul in mans body No but when he had formed the body he breathed the soul into him It was to note that the soul of man had a more Heavenly and Divine original than any of the other creatures that are here in this world and because the original it is so Divine and Heavenly therefore it is that when the soul is as it were its self is set at liberty it would be at its original Indeed though mans soul be of a Divine and Heavenly Nature yea through the fall of man so it is that the soul of man is even almost turned to be flesh and so mingled with unclean drossie things as if it had no such Divine and Heavenly original and therefore a natural man is called flesh That that is born of the flesh is flesh as if he had no soul at all for I say the soul of man through his fall the Nature of it seemed to be changed it is at least depressed down to such vile things as if it never had such a Divine and Heavenly original But now when God works grace in the soul the soul of man begins to return to its self and to know its self and begins to return to its own nature that it had in its first creation and as soon as ever the soul begins to know its self it looks then presently at all these things that are here below as vile things in comparison as contemptable for indeed all these things in this world are infinitly beneath the soul of a man Infinitly that is in comparison we may even call it an infinite distance between mans soul and all these things that are here below in the world the soul of man is neer unto God himself and therefore when as the soul returne unto its self it would be some where else than where it is and would converse with those things that are sutable to its original As it is with a man that hath a noble birth suppose a Prince is got into another Country and there being a child is used like a slave set to rake channels and such mean imployment now all the while that he is there and not know his original he minds nothing but to get his victuals and do his work that he is set about but if once he come to know from whence he was namely born the Heir unto such a great Prince or Emperour that lives in so much glory in such a Country then he that liv'd like a slave his thoughts and mind and longings are to be in the
Country where his birth was so high Oh that he might be but there he should be happy then and it doth him good to hear any man speak of that Country Truly so it is with the souls of men they are the birth as I may so speak of the high God of the great King of Heaven and Earth being breathed so into the nostrils of man Now through mans fall the soul comes to be a slave to the Devil and is set about drudggery to provide for the flesh but now when God is pleased to convert the soul the Lord comes then to declare to a man or woman Oh man woman thou art born from on high thy soul is as it were a sparkle of the Divinity as I may so say thy Father by creation nay not only by creation as he is the Creator of all Creatures is God but by a more special work of his by a more special work I say than in the first creation of other things thy soul is from God and of a Divine Nature and is therefore capable of Communion with Father Son and holy Ghost Certainly thou never hadst such a Divine and Excellent being given the meerly that thou shouldest delight in the flesh and be servicable to thy body in eating and drinking here a while Oh! consider of thy Country whence thou camest at first here 's one work of grace to know the Excellency of our souls and from whence they came surely if grace do this it must needs turn the heart of one that is converted to God to have his Conversation to be in Heaven That 's the first Reason The Second Reason But not only so because the soul had a Heavenly original and therefore will not be content with a portion here in this world But secondly When grace comes there the soul hath a Divine Nature put into it beyond the excellency that it had in its first Creation I say there is a Divine Nature higher than is meer natural excellency in the 2 Peter 1. 3. According saith he as his Divine Power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness and whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises that by these you might be partakers of the Divine Nature Certainly the Apostle did not here mean meerly what Adam had in innocency I never read that that 's cal'd the Divine Nature though it 's true there is a renewing of the Image of God in man when he is converted I but there is somewhat more in the soul of man than repairing of this the holy Ghost coming and dwelling in the soul in a higher way than it dwelt in the soul of Adam at the first indeed before it was a creature but such a creature as only had reference to God as God was the Creator and man was the creature but now it hath reference to God as being made one with the Second Person in Trinity and so one with the Father and therefore of a higher Nature than man was in the state of innocency And you know what is said of Adam in Paradice He was of the earth earthly he was of the earth in comparison of the second Adam take Adam in innocency in comparison of the second Adam he was but of the earth earthly and so his posterity though Adam had stood should have been but of the earth earthly their portion its like should have bin but in a happines in this world we never read in Scripture of a Heavenly condition Adam had been in though he had stood but the second Adam is from Heaven Heavenly And the posterity of the second Adam that is those that are by Regeneration made the children of the everlasting Father that are made the posterity of Jesus Christ by faith are from Heaven Heavenly therefore their souls are indued with a Divine Nature with such high principles of grace as it must needs carry up their souls to Heaven If a lump of earth should be so changed as to have a spirit and a life put into it and to be made of such an Airial nature as any of the birds are this lump of earth would fly in the air presently It is so in the work of conversion All men and women are earthly and therefore they fink down to the earth and the earth is their proper center but when once they come to be converted there is a spirit put into them whereby they come to mount up aloft It is not more natural for the Earth to fall down low than it is for the fire and air to ascend up high because every creature doth move towards the Center of it heavie things fall down because below is the proper place of them light things rise up because their proper place is to be above and so the Conversations of the Saints must needs be in Heaven because there 's their Center there 's that that 's sutable to the Divine Nature that is put into them The Third Reason Their Conversations must needs be in Heaven Because those things that are the most choice things unto them are in Heaven I should have named a great many particulars here to shew what are the choice things that concern the Saints and how they are all in Heaven Their Father God is in Heaven Our Father which art in Heaven Jesus Christ he is in Heaven Seek the things above where Jesus Christ is sitting at the right hand of the Father Jesus Christ that is their Head in Heaven Their Husband is in Heaven Their Elder Brother is in heaven Their King is in heaven Their Treasure is in heaven Their Inheritance in heaven Their Hope is in heaven Their Mantion-house in heaven Their chief Friends are in heaven Their Substance is in heaven Their Reward is in heaven Their wages are in heaven All these things being in heaven no marvail though their Conversations are in heaven And they are going to Heaven now being that they are going that way travelling towards heaven they must needs be there in their hearts heaven is the place that they shal come to ere long they shal be there and they know that here in this world they are to be but a while but for ever to be there We shall be caught up into the clouds â—nd be for ever with him Yea their Conversations must needs be in Heaven for they have much of heaven alreadie there 's much of heaven in the Saints the Kingdom of Heaven it is within them the Scripture saith They having so much of Heaven for the present it must needs be that their Conversationâ— are there and so that Scripture in the 10. Heb. 34. Knowing in your selves that ye have in Heaven a better and enduring substance You may reade it thus Knowing you have Heaven a better enduring substance in your selves so that the words knowing in your selves hath not only reference to what they know by hear-say though this be a true note that they may know heaven
by hear-say they hear Ministers speak of Heaven and reade it in the Word of God but they know it in themselves they know it by what God hath revealed in their own hearts yea though tâ—â—â—â— were no books that ever they should see more though they be not book-learn'd and though they cannot reade a letter in the book though they should hear no more Sermons yet by what is revealed in themselves They know in themselves that they have a more better and enduring substance That 's a truth But the words may be more proper to the original read thus Kowing that you have Heaven in your selves a Better and Enduring substance Eternal life is begun alreadie in the hearts of the Saints there is Heaven alreadie in the Saints and therefore no marvel though their Conversations be in Heaven The Fourth Reason God hath so ordered things in this world on purpose that he might wean the hearts of the Saints from the world The Lord loves to have the hearts of his Saints to be in Heaven where he hath treasured up such glorious things for them and because that the Saints while they are here in the world have so much of the world in them they would feign be living here in the world therefore God doth so order things that they shall meet with little content in this world that they may be weary of it and be wearied from it and indeed here 's the reason why Gods people have met with such crosses in the world why the Lord hath kept his Saints so low and mean in the world It may be you are ready to draw ill conclusions from thence and to think I am afraid God doth not love me that he keeps me so low and mean and I meet with such crosses and others do not Oh! gather not such ill conclusions as these are It is because he would gather your hearts to Heaven and wean you from the world that you might long to be with him in Heaven for you are absent from him here in this world and the Lord would have the full stream of your affections to run after those things that you shal have with him in Heaven This use you are to make of those afflictions you meet withal and those crosses that befall you in this world And thus we have gone through the Doctrinal point of the Saints having their Conversations in Heaven CHAP. X. WEE have treated long upon that point of An Heavenly Conversation and have opened to you what that Heavenly Conversation is wherein it consists in many particulars But now we shal proceed to the Application of al. Though as I have gone along I have endeavoured not only to speak to your heads but your hearts and to quicken what I have said so as might quicken your hearts yet from the consideration of all there are divers Uses that may be profitable unto you The First Vse The first is this If the Saints live such a Heavenly Conversation as hath been opened to you Oh how far are they from being Saints from being godly Who are so far from having their Conversations in Heaven as they have their Conversations in Hell There are a generation of men that profess themselves to be Christians say that they hope to go to Heaven and yet if you behold their Conversation it is no other than the Conversation of hell Certainly 't is not what men say but how they live that will cast them another day he that is of Heaven or for Heaven his Conversation is in Heaven and he that is for hell his Conversation is hellish now that 's a Conversation in hell that is like to what is done in hell what is there in hell but blaspheming and cursing What is there in hell but hatred and malice what is there in hell but raging and filthiness These things are the Conversations of many men who are even devils incarnate In many families there 's the Name of God blasphemed there 's cursing and railing and malice and wrath and pride so that though they be here in this world yet they manifest to what place they do belong So that as the Saints have their Conversations in Heaven when they die they go to their own place that is to heaven where their Conversations were so on the contrary the wicked having their Conversations in hell when they die they go to their own place as it was said of Judas He went to his own place So a wicked man dying having his Conversation in hell while he liv'd I say when he dies he goes to his own place that 's his own proper place he took content and delight in those things that were done there and so when he dies there he shall go As the tree falls so it lies As thy Conversation is and the bent of thy heart is there so it must lie to all eternity CHAP. XI The Second Vse THis Point likewise rebukes Hypocrites as wicked prophane ones that have their Conversations in hell so there 's another kind of men that are unsound professors Hypocrites and they have their Conversations between Heaven and Earth It 's not in Heaven nor in Hell nor altogether upon the Earth but between Earth and Heaven and Hell Sometimes they seem to be a loft above sometimes very forward and zealous in the profession of Religion sometimes much inlarged in Duties at other times again they are as base earthly spirits as any yea somtimes there 's much of Hell in their hearts and in their waies they professe themselves the seed of Abraham but they are not as the stars of heaven but as Meteors that are between Heaven and Earth we call them blazing stars but they are not so bright as the stars nor are they of such a heavenly nature as the stars they are but made of a few unclean vapours that come out of the earth which being got up neer the heavens do make a shew as if they were some star in heaven but you find a great deal of difference between the stars and them in this for within a little while they fall and vanish and come to nothing and so it is with many hypocrites they by the Word are raised up a little for the present and seem to be above the stars and they have a glittering shew as if they had somthing heavenly in them even like the stars of heaven they seem to be got above others your blazing star a child would think it a great deal bigger than one of the stars that is an hundred times bigger than that is so 't is with many hypocrites they have a greater shew of Religion than many that have truth of Godliness and that are truly gracious they look upon them as wondering at the excellent parts that they have excellent abilities it may be they will discourse sometimes in an excellent manner about heavenly things you shall find some that have no soundness at all yet will have very excellent discourse they
speak the very language of Canaan but it is in such company where they may gain respect by it but still are but as meteors that hang between heaven and earth whereas the truth is while they seem to be so high above others and so heavenly yet their hearts are groveling upon the earth many times while they have most excellent expressions in prayer yet God sees their hearts basely cleaving to some earthly thing there is some base earthly contentment that their hearts are upon while they seem to be so heavenly much like to the Kite that flies on high as if it were an Eagle but the eye of it while it is above in the air is fixed upon some carrion upon some prey that it hath upon the earth and as soon as ever it sees a fit opportunity to seise upon the prey it comes down to seise upon it and that 's the place the Kite would be at that 's the place he doth most delight in to be upon his prey And so an hypocrite though he rises high in some actions yet the truth is his eye is upon some earthly prey and when he sees his opportunity thither he goes and finks down to those things and that 's his most proper place there he takes most delight and content in his Conversation though his actions may seem to be Heavenly and therefore he will fall down and never attain to the highest Heavens that the Saints shall go to but to hell at the last CHAP. XII The Third Vse THE Third Use is this The Saints Conversation is in Heaven Hence then for shame let us not find fault with strictness in the waies of God let not man speak against the waies of God as being too strict and what need we be so Circumspect and so precise and so pure what need we labor to do so much what canst thou attain to a more strict and holy Conversation than a Heavenly Conversation It is a very carnal expression that some have Why we cannot be Saints we are not Saints yes the holy Ghost cals all beleevers all that have the very least degree of true grace he call them Saints When we come to Heaven then we shall live better but while we are in this world we cannot Yeâ— while you are in this world your Conversation is to be in Heaven surely men either are not acquainted with the Word or they shut their eyes and will not see and consider what the Word saith about a strict Conversation Sometimes you find in Scripture that we are commanded to be perfect as our Heavenly Father is perfect It 's a strange speech and yet it 's the speech of Christ himself And we must walk as Christ walked and he that hath this hope purifieth himself as he is pure and then our Conversation is in Heaven Put these together Perfect as our Heavenly father is perfect Walk as Christ walked Purge our selves as he is pure Our Conversation is in Heaven what do all these things tend to Surely it tends to a great deal of strictness and holiness of life And these things shew that the work of a Christian here in this world is a busie work that a Christian-life it is not an idle dull heavy or sluggish life you that are Christians you had need quicken up your selves you had need awaken those drousie spirits of yours if this be required of you that you should be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect Walk as Christ walked Purifie your selves as he is pure Holy as he is holy and to have your Conversations in Heaven surely there need be a great deal of quickness and life in the hearts of Christians and you are not to content your selves in a meer possession and doing some little matter in the way of Religion or being somewhat better than others you are to aim at heaven look up there and make that to be your pattern CHAP. XIII The Fourth Vse AND that rebukes even such as are truly godly many that yet do fail exceeding much in this thing Oh! their Conversations are too low are too earthly If they would examine their hearts strictly they cannot say that their Conversations are in heaven I am a stranger upon earth saith David But many may say that they are strangers in heaven Whereas earth should be the place of our pilgrimage and heaven our home but it 's quite otherwaies heaven is rather the place where most professors are strangers and earth is the place of their habitation they cast up a thought now and then to heaven as now and then men will cast up their eyes and look upon heaven but where 's your heart where 's the great workings of your spirits It 's a speech of the Lord saith he Heaven is my Throne and Earth is my Foot-stool Spiritual things they are to be look'd upon as the good things as the Throne of God those earthly things only as the things of Gods foot-stool but now How many are there that have Earth their throne and Heaven their foot-stool that is Heavenly things are made subordinate to earthly things Oh! this should not be in any of those that professe themselves to be Christians none of the Saints should satisfie themselves in any life but this to be able to say I blesse God my Conversation is in Heaven though God let me live upon the earth yet my conversation is in Heaven What an unworthy thing it is for one that doth professe to have his portion and his inheritance in Heaven yet to have the heart so mingled here with the earth In Gen 45. 20. saith Joseph in sending for his father Regard not your stuffe for the good of all the land of Egypt is yours Regard not the stuff do not let it grieve you to forsake your stuff leave all your lumber behind you for all the good things of Egypt are yours Oh what a shameful thing is it that Christians should regard their stuff so much as they do that hope to have the good things not of Egypt but of Heaven its self to be theirs Surely if we have seen the things of Heaven one would think that all the things of the earth should be darkened in our eyes 2 Cor. 3. 10. That which was glorious saies the text had no glory in comparison of the greater glory That Scripture I confesse is spoken in comparing of the Law and the Gospel there was a glory in the delivering of the Law but that had no glory in comparison of the greater glory that is in comparison of the Gospel for in the Gospel we behold as in a glasse with open face the glory of God and are changed into the same image as from glory to glory But we may apply it thus As the things of the earth that were glorious before in your eyes yet in comparison of the greater glory should not at all be glorious though before conversion these things were glorious grant it that there is some kind
him it was a blessed thing to have Christ here personally and to live with him when he was upon the earth though it were in the state of his humiliation Oh when he shall come in his glory how blessed will that be and when he shall change our vile bodies that they may be like unto his glorious body Oh this will keep the heart in expectation of Christ for then that vile body of thine that is now a body of sin and death matter of diseases a body of weakness and a lump of clay now it shall be made like the glorious body of Jesus Christ to shine more glorious than the Sun in the firmament this will be when Jesus Christ shall come with all his Angels in his glory and this is observable when all the glory of the creature shall be darkened with the glory of God and Jesus Christ yet then the bodies of the Saints shall shine gloriously before the face of God and Jesus Christ surely they shall be more glorious than the glory of the Sun for that you know will be darkened at the coming of Jesus Christ The great glory of the Father and Jeus Christ and the Angels shall darken the glory of the Sun Moon and Stars but the glory of the bodies of the Saints shall be so great as all the glory of God and Jesus Christ and the Angels shall not darken their glory but it shall appear with a very great lustre now if the glory of God and the Angels should darken it then to what purpose is it that their bodies shall be like to the glorious body of Jesus Christ but certainly it shall not darken their glory If a candle could be raised to have so much lustre and beauty as if you should put it into the midest of the Sun yet it would shine in the midst of it it would be a strange kind of light you would say It shall be so with the bodies of the Saints that though they are put into the midst of the glory of God and his Son yet their very bodies shall shine in beauty and lustre there Now did we beleeve this and wait for it every day how would it change us I have a diseased and a lumpish body and my body hinders me in every duty of worship and service wandering and vain thoughts lodge in me now I but I 'le wait for that time when Christ shall come in all his glory and make my body to be like unto his glorious body to make it to be able to look upon the face of God and to be able to be exercised in holy duties to all eternity without any weariness and without any intermission so shall the bodies of the Saints be raised to that power that their bodies shall be so strong that their souls shall be exercised about the highest things possible for a creature to be exercised with without weariness wait for this I have many things here that trouble my mind and spirit and hinders me in my converse with Heaven but within a while the time shall come that I shall be delivered from all troubles here when Christ shall appear with his mighty Angels to be admired of his Saints and when he shall come and take the Saints to judg the world and shall set all the Saints upon Thrones to judg the world the expectation of this time will raise the heart very much to be in Heaven But then especially when I consider the glory that shall be upon my soul let me think thus if this body of mine that is a lump of flesh shall be by the almighty power of God whereby he is able to subdue all things unto himself raised to that height of glory to be more glorious than the Sun in the Firmament then what height of glory shal my soul be raised too but then take not only my soul but my grace the Divine Nature that is in my soul what shall that be raised too The plants are capable to be raised to a higher excellency than stones and the Rational creature to a higher excellency than a Sensitive creature and the Sensitive higher than the Vegetative and the Supernatural creature to a higher excellency than the Natural Then raise your thoughts thus My body shall be raised so high what shall my soul be then and what shall my graces that are in my soul be Oh! wait for this it is but for a little while before I shall be with God for him to be all in all to my soul enjoying full communion with him I say exercise faith and wait for it look for it every day consider it 's neerer and neerer your salvation is neerer than when at first you beleeved God hath a little work for you here but as soon as this is done this shall be my condition I shal see my Savior my soul shal presently be with him and enjoy ful communion with him in glory and my body within a while shal be raised and shall live for ever with him shall be where he is and shall enjoy all that he hath purchased by his blood as much glory as the blood of Christ is worth am I capable of the text saith It shall be a weight of glory I am not here fitted to bear a weight of glory if the glory of Heaven should shine in upon me so much as it might it would swallow me up presently We reade in the 7. of Dan. upon the glory of God appearing to him saith he I Daniel fainted and was sick certain daies If God should open the Heavens and dart in some light from Heaven into us so as he might alas we should faint presently and be sick and die No man can see God and live no man here can enjoy that that God hath prepared for his Saints in Heaven and live therefore let us be content for a while to be as we are and exercise thy faith and hope in what shall be Thou shalt be able to bear that weight of glory and be able to stand before the face of God continually to enjoy those things that eye hath not seen nor ear heard nor can enter into the heart of man to conceive nay though a man hath a spiritual eye and a spiritual ear and a spiritual heart enlarged to supernatural things yet they are things not only beyond the eye of sence but the eye of reason nay the eye of faith hath not seen them fully nor ear hath ever heard of neither can enter into a gracious heart to convince what it is but those Clusters that we have of this land of Canaan do shew that mere is a glorious rest for his people Now by the exercise of your faith and hope work these things upon your souls every day it would be a mighty help to make your Conversation to be in Heaven where should my heart and thoughts where should my life and conversation be but where I expect such things as these are to be revealed very
this work I can do nothing without thee Lord and let me have assistance from thee Whereas the wicked they make flesh their arm and therefore there 's a curse pronounc'd against them in Jer. 17. 5. verse they are strangers to any such work as this of dependance upon God for assistance Now and then at a spurt they will say that God must help them and they can do nothing without God I but to have a holy gracious frame of spirit to walk in a holy dependance upon God for assistance in every businesse this is far from the wicked and ungodly Fourthly The soul walks in a holy dependance upon God for a blessing upon all it doth Walk before me and be upright I am thine exceeding great reward As if God should say to Abraham Walk in dependance upon me I am thy reward though thou hast little encouragment in the world yet look up to me for thy reward so when the soul turneth from men and the world and minds not so much what encouragement it hath from the world but looks up to God Lord I depend upon thee for a blessing and how ever things seem to go yet Lord I look up to thee for the bringing all to a good issue here 's now a soul walking with God Walking with God makes a man free and ready in the waies of God Seventhly One that walks with God in all his waies of Holiness and Obedience his heart is free in him he comes off readily to every good work he is not hall'd and pull'd to God but he walks with him There 's a great deal of differenet between one that is dragged after another as if you should drag a prisoner that hath no mind to go that way and another that walks up and down with delight and pleasure with you 'T is not enough to walk with God for to be in the way that God would have you to be or to do the things that God would have you to do except your hearts do come off freely in the waies of obidience except there be a cheerfulness in the waies of obedience except you choose the waies of holiness as the waies that are most sutable to you this is the walking with God In the 119. Psal 45. I will walk at liberty saith David for I seek thy precepts It 's a notable Scripture The men of the world they think that there is no walking at liberty but for them to satisfie their defires to the uttermost to walk after their lusts which is the Scripture phrase No but saith David my liberty is this I seek thy precepts A carnal heart thinks it is the greatest bondage in the world for to seek the precepts of God and to conform to Gods precepts that I must walk according to rule that 's a bondage No I 'le walk at liberty for I seek thy precepts It 's an excellent argument of grace in the heart to account the precepts of God to be the greatest liberty to the soul When I am in the waies of sin I am in the waies of bondage I am a slave to Satan but when I seek thy precepts I am at liberty As a man when he is walking up and down in the fields he is at liberty So when the soul is walking with God it is at liberty but when the soul is walking without God it is in a dungeon a prison but I say when it walks with God it is at liberty it comes off freely in all the waies of obedience Walking with God consists in Communion with God Eighthly Walking with God consists in the Converse and Communion that the soul hath with him in holy duties There are the special walks of the soul with God and of God with the soul in the duties of holy Worship In the 18. of Levit. 4. saith the Lord there Ye shall do my Judgments and keep mine Ordinances to WALK therein I am the Lord your God You must Walk in Gods Ordinances the Ordinances of God they are the Walks of a gracious soul and there the soul meets with God in the 26. of Levit. 11 12. It 's a notable Scripture to shew that in Gods Ordinances there the soul meets with God And I will set my tabernacle amongst you and my soul shall not abhor you that is shall delight in you And I will WALK among you and will be your God and ye shall be my people I will set my Tabernacle amongst you What 's that That is mine Ordinances you shall enjoy mine Ordinances you shall have the duties of my Worship and I will Walk among you then God walks among us when we enjoy his Ordinances So that you see in the 18. of Levit. there God saith You shall walk in mine Ordinances the Ordinances are the godly mans walk then in the 26. of Levit. the Ordinances are Gods walk so that we see they walk the same way and there God and a gracious heart meet together The Churches enjoying Ordinances are the Candlesticks that we reade of in the 1 of Revel 13. In the midst of the seven golden Candlesticks was one like unto the son of man cloathed with a garment down to the feet and gird about the paps with a golden girdle The Lord Jesus Christ is in the midst of the Candlesticks that is in the midst of the Churches where there are the Ordinances of God there he is and if you would walk with him you must find him there in the 68. Psal 24. there likewise you may see what the way of a gracious heart is in walking with God They have seen thy goings O God even the going of my God my King where in the Sanctuary If you would walk with another you must know where his goings are observe where he uses to walk and be going there They have seen thy going O God even the goings of my God my King in the Sanctuary there 's the goings of God if you would meet with God and walk with him it must be in the Sanctuary it must be in his Ordinances In the 7. of Cant. 5. verse it is said That the King speaking of Christ is held in the galleries now what 's that but in the Ordinances that 's as it were the galleries of the great King of Heaven and Earth And you know Princes and great men they have their sumptuous galleries wherein they use to walk and only chief favourites are permitted and suffered to be there to walk up and down The King is HELD in his galleries that is when Jesus Christ is in Communion with his Saints in his Ordinances in the duties of Worship Oh 't is the most pleasant galleries to walk in that he hath it 's as pleasant a gallery as he hath in Heaven it's self Oh! he loves to be there The King is Held there Oh! many a sweet and comfortable turn hath a gracious heart in these galleries that is in the Ordinances and Duties of Worship in walking with Jesus Christ When
message of death come to him in the 38. of Isa Remember O Lord saith he how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart he turned his face to the wall and the text saith he wept it was for joy as if he should say Lord it 's true there hath been many infirmities in me but Lord I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart as if he should say I may boldly challenge and I do come now Lord to challenge the good of the Covenant that thou wouldst remember me according to the riches of thy mercy for Lord I have walked with thee as if he should say Lord was not that the thing that thou didst require of my father Abraham why Lord I have walked before thee and I have been upright in some measure therefore Lord be a God alsufficient to me Lord remember thy Covenant be a God to me be All in All to me because of this Oh my brethren Is not this worth ten thousand thousand worlds That the soul may be able to appeal to God that it hath done that which is a special thing that is requir'd in the Covenant on our parts and so upon it may have the assurance of Gods performing the Covenant on his part The Fifth Excellency And then the fifth thing is There is a blessed safety in walking with God As in the 23. Psal 4. there see the Prophet David that was a man much exercised in walking with God saith he Yea though I walk through the vally of the shadow of death I will fear no evil for thou art with me thy rod and thy staff doth comfort me I am walking with thee and though I be walking in the shadow of death I 'le therefore fear no evil Now is it not a blessed thing to be in safety alwaies with God And in the 138. Psal 7. saith David Though I walk in the midst of trouble thou wilt revive me thou shalt stretch forth thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies and thy right hand shall save me No matter what the trouble be so God be with the soul he that walks uprightly walks surely in the 10. of the Proverbs 9. Whereas it 's said of the wicked that they walk upon a snare continually in the 18. of Job 8. The wicked walk upon a snare The waies of wickednesse that you walk in they may seem to be pleasant and comfortable to you but certainly you are upon a snare and you may be catch'd and undone for ever though perhaps thou hast escap'd all this while yet thou art in continual dangers Every step I say thou goest on in the waies of sin thou art upon a snare and in danger to be catch'd to thy eternal destruction But he that walks uprightly he walks surely and this is a great excellency for a man to walk surely I know I am in my way for I am with God A child doth not fear what way soever it goes in if he can but see his father Now the soul may know surely I am in the right way I am with God and I am safe what ever danger comes for I am walking with God The Sixth Excellency The sixth Excellency that there is in walking with God is this From hence the soul comes to enjoy a holy boldness and a holy familiarity with God It may be when the soul comes first to God the presence of the great God strikes some fear there is some dread of the Majesty of God But when the soul hath used to converse with him there is a holy familiarity that the soul hath with God and a holy boldness it can have free liberty to say any thing to him now and this is the reason that some now that never knew what the spirit of prayer meant and what the liberty of the soul in opening its self to God meant before yet when they have come to be acquainted with the waies of God Oh what liberty have they then in their spirits to open their hearts to God yea they can open their hearts to God as one friend to another I remember it 's said of Luther that when ever he was praying he could speak to God as to his friend In Job 22. 21. Acqusint now thy self with Him and be at peace The soul comes to have an acquaintance with God Oh what a phrase is here What acquaint our selves with God that God should be our acquaintance I God is willing to be the acqaintance of the poorest Christian in the world Poor men and women and Servants and others that perhaps some rich men that is by them wil scorn their acquaintance but they account them rather as it 's spoken of some vile people fit to be set with the dogs of the flock yea perhaps though they be poor godly people yet they think it too much debasing themselves to have any kind of acquaintance with them Well but the infinite God though he is so high that he humbles himself to behold the very things that are done in Heaven yet this God thinks not much to be one of thy acquaintance to be of the acquaintance of any one that hath any godliness in them when we see a great man a man of parts and honor come to some poor man and shake him by the hand we will say Look what an humble man is this that will be so familiar with the meanest of all Oh! now acquaint thy self with God This is the blessedness of walking with God the soul comes to have a familiar converse with God and a holy boldness The seventh Excellency The seventh benefit or Excellency that there is in walking with God is this The Communication of Gods secrets He that walks with God shall come to know the mind of God It 's impossible for a man to take delight in walking with another but he must discover secrets from him there 's never any true friendship where there is a closeness of spirit But where there is true friendship they will take one another and walk together and open their hearts each to other this is comfortable walking indeed Thus it is in walking with God this is the blessing of it such souls they have the secrets of God discovered to them they come to know much of the mind of God though they are weak in their natural parts yet I say they come to know much of Gods mind because they are with God We reade in the 13. of Proverbs 20. vers saith the holy Ghost there He that walketh with wise men shall be wise Then what shall he be that walks with God Surely if there be wisdom to be learned from our walking with wise men then there is wisdom to be learn'd in walking with God 'T is from hence that men that are weak in parts they come to have such excellent knowledg in the great mysteries of the Gospel and you wonder at it you see such a mean servant that a while ago could understand
of our own hearts be alwaies walking and conversing with God we shall have nothing else to do but to walk continually with the Lord I will walk in thy truth unite my heart to fear thy Name Psal 86. 11. It 's an excellent Scripture I will walk in thy Truth saith the Prophet Oh unite my heart to the fear of thy Name As if he should say I find much sweetnesse and good in walking in thy Truth here Oh Lord unite my heart to the fear of thy Name Lord keep me alwaies here it 's good being here as Peter said when Christ was transfigured in his glory So when the soul is walking with God it saith it is good being here Well when thou comest to Heaven thou shalt alwaies be with the Lord as the Scripture speaks and therefore from the excellency that thou findest here learn to long after Heaven where thou shalt be continually with the Lord and take only this one note for the setting out of the excellency of Heaven and I confesse only such as have had much sweetness in walking with God here will understand what I mean by this As suppose that all those sweet manifestations of God to thy soul here and all the dartings in of the Spirit of God all those soul ravishing joys that thou hast had suppose they were put all together that thou hadst them all over again at this instant what a comfortable time would it be At such a time may some soul that knows what the meaning of this point is say Oh the sweet communion I had with God! I would give a world to have it again Well thou hadst it once but it was quickly gone and thou hast had it a second and a third time yea many times when I have been with God I have had wonderful gracious lettings out of God to my soul Oh that I had them again Well suppose thou hadst now in this one quarter of an hour all the comfort and joy that ever thou hadst in all thy life put all the times together what a comfortable quarter of an hour would this be Now in Heaven to all eternity thou shalt have that in a kind infinitely more than that for milions of yeers even for ever Oh! what will Heaven be If I should set out Heaven to a carnal man I must tell him of Crowns of glory And there he shall see glorious sights he shall be freed from all kind of sorrows and there he shall have a Kingdom But if I would set out Heaven to a Saint I must tell him this He shall have communion with God and all those soul-ravishing comforts that he hath had in the presence of God in this world he shall have them all together and infinitly more than them Oh this is that that will make their souls long after Heaven and set prize upon it CHAP. VIII Ten Several Evidences of a mans Walking with God BUt having set out unto you the excellency of walking with God you will say Who is it that doth walk with Him I shall further set out to you the Evidences of those men and women that do walk with God The first Evidence One that walks with God Is one that depends not much upon sence or reason in the course of his life I say one that is above the waies of Sence and Reason in his course he hath received a principle to go higher Most men in the world they walk according to sence and therefore the Scripture saith They walk according to the pleasure of their eyes But now one that walks with God his walk lies beyond Sence and above Reason though things of Sence seem to go this way or that way quite crosse to him yea though Reason seem to go quite crosse to him yet still his heart is not in a hurry but he hath that that can quiet his heart though Sence and Reason seem to be contrary 2 Cor. 5. 7. there you shal see the walk of a godly man For we walk by faith and not by sight saith the Apostle beyond our sight either beyond our sight of sence or the sight of Reason we walk by faith But now this is a great point a Christian walking by faith and therefore I intend to speak to that by its self from this very text God willing in another Treatise The second Evidence One that walks with God you shall find him in private the same that he is in publick what ever holiness doth appear in such a one before others in his walking in the world if you trace him and follow him in his private course you shall find him the same man as you do in publik why because he hath not to deal with man so much he hath to deal with God in all his waies when he hath any thing to do before others he walks with God and when he is alone he is the same man still In the 101. Psal see what David saith there concerning his walk in private in his family I will behave my self wisely in a perfect way saith he Oh when wilt thou come unto me I will walk within my house with a perfect heart As if he should say I will not walk when I am abroad only with a perfect heart but I wil walk within my house with a perfect heart There are many people that when they are abroad in the world they seem to be very strict in their way but follow such men to their houses and there you shall see a great deal of difference You will find many times as much difference between the course of men when they are abroad and in their houses as you find in their cloaths you shall have many men and women when they go abroad they wil be very neat and though they have but little means yet they wil lay it upon their backs so that they may be fine abroad but come to them in their families and they care not what cloaths they wear there It is just so in regard of their lives their lives have as much difference as their cloaths When they are abroad then they put a good face on things and seem to be very fair in their conversations and speak good things but at home there they are froward and perverse and perhaps in their passions will swear there they are prophane and ungodly and vent their corruptions in a most ungodly manner doest thou walk with God If thou hadst to deal with God thou wouldst be the same in thy family that thou art abroad that thy wife children and servants in thy family might give as good a testimony of thee as when thou art abroad with others Yea and if ye could retire with them into their very closets you should find them the same there in any duties of Religion You shall have many when they come abroad and joyn with others Oh how enlarged are they yet dead and dull when they are at home either in family or closet yea their own consciences
the love of God shed abroad into their hearts but when they come to the Word they cannot but say that they hear their fathers voice Perhaps the word is not a comforting word to thee as hereto fore I but is it not a directing word an instructing word an inlightening word Oh this now should support thee for the present Sixthly All that I will say further is this Keep thy self in a waiting frame for God Do not determine that because the Lord is gone he will ever be gone Oh no but keep still in the waies of God waiting for him resolve that though God leaves thee yet thou wilt not leave the path in which God was heretofore I am sure that God was once here Oh then keep the path wherein thou wert wont to meet with God for thou shalt meet with him again It 's better to keep the path the ordinary high-way of God for you are more like to meet with God there than if you should go out of the way I 'le give you a Scripture or two for that and so conclude The first is in Psal 101. 2. I will behave my self wisely in a perfect way Oh when wilt thou come unto me That which I quote this for is this the resolution of David to behave himself wisely in a perfect way together with his panting after the presence of God Oh when wilt thou come unto me as if he should say Lord Thou art absent from me now but Lord I will not go out of the way wherein I was wont to find thee Oh when wilt thou come I will not determine that I shall never see thee in this way as heretofore I have done no but I hope I shal afterwards meet thee And so in the 119. Psalm 8. verse I will keep thy Statutes what then Oh forsake me not utterly It seems that the Lord for the present to Davids apprehension had forsaken him but what was Davids resolution God hath forsaken me and I 'le forsake him Oh no But I 'le keep thy Statutes and Oh! leave me not utterly So keep on in the waies of God still go on in his way and wait for the presence of God until he come and conclude this Surely he will come Be not like to children that because they see the Sun going down therefore they conclude that the Sun is gone and will never come again Though God seems to withdraw the light of his face from thee do not conclude and determine well I shall never have those comforts from God in communion with God in walking with God as once I was wont to have do not say so but go on and keep in the waies of God wait upon him and look up towards him and so thou maiest come to have as much Communion Sweetness and Joy in God as ever thou hadst in all thy life And now know that God cals for the work of faith in such times as these are now God calls thee to walk by faith and not by sence FINIS AN EXACT ALPHABETICAL TABLE Of all the chief Matters handled in the Fourth VOLUMN A ADultery see Earthly-mindedness Accompt The Saints are carefull to make even their accompts with God Page 313 Aim The aim of the Saints is heaven-ward 107 Angel The Saints have the same confirmation of their happiness as the Angels have Page 104 Apostacie What the root of apostacie is 40 Astray By Nature men go astray from the waies of God 268 B Benefit What the benefit of grace is 36 See Conscience Beleeving By beleeving men take up their freedom of Heaven Page 103 Blessing see Jacob C Care Whence distracted cares arise 9 What our care should be 78 Calling How godly men are busy in their callings 16 Calling see Wicked Citizen The Saints are Citizens of heaven and how 100 We should walk as becomes Citizens of Heaven 105 See Priviledg Communion What the word Communion signifies 109 Communion with God what it is 110 Communion see Saints Content see Little Conversation Heavenly Conversations are to be followed 92 How far heavenly Conversations are to be followed 93 How the Saints Conversation is in Heaven 106 Reasons why the Saints Conversations are in Heaven 227 Heavenly Conversation is a convincing Conversation 240 Heavenly Conversation is attainable Page 251 Conversation see Faith Hell Evidence Godly Growing Glory Suffering Directions Converse What the Converse of the Saints is 116 Contrariety see Examples Comfort The Saints have comfort in little of this world 223 Comfort see Losses Confirmation see Angels Covenant What the Covenant on our parts is Conscience The benefits of a cleer conscience 215 Covetousness see Idolatry Creature How the Saints deal with the Creature 310 All the Creatures bring glory to God 245 Curse On whom the curse of the serpent is 44 D Danger see Example Death What is that hinders preparation for death 47 Devil The Devil casts thoughts into the heart of man Page 7 Delight Wherein the delight of the Saints lieth 115 Delight see Sabbath Depend For what Godly men depend upon God 277 Difference see Godly Jacob. Direction Directions how to get a heavenly Conversation 251 A godly soul depends upon God for directions 277 Directions how to walk with God 320 Destruction Earthly mindedness brings destruction 50 Distracted see Cares Doctrine see Reconciliation Drossie How a drossie heart is known 57 E Earth The Earth swallows up earthly men 13 Earth look higher Earthly things When men mind earthly things in a sinful manner 6 Earthly things carry a fair shew Page 65 Earthly things are many times the portion of reprobates 68 Earthly man When an Earthly man is in his element 10 Earthly-minded A man may be Earthly-minded and not know it 51 What shall become of earthly-minded men 72 Earthlimindedness What Earthly-mindedness is 5 Earthly-mindedness is adultery 20 Earthly-mindedness is Idolatry 21 See Enmity Earthly-mindedness deads the heart to prayer 42 Earthly-mindedness is a scandal to Religion 45 How earthly-mindedness may be known 54 Reasons of Earthly-mindedness 64 Earthly-mindedness brings guilt upon the spirit 18 The effects of earthly-mindedness another day 50 Earthly see Heavenly vilifie Conversation Element Spirituall Godlinesse Temptations Snares Ministry Lusts Death Destruction Vanity Humility Inducements Egyptians What Idolatrous worship the Egyptians had Page 21 End What it is that causeth a blessed End 299 Who they are that have the same ends God hath 275 Enoch Enoch's Prophesie 262 Evidence Evidences of mens conversations being in heaven 222 Evidences of walking with God 306 See Walking Example Examples of godly men should be followed and how far 92 Examples of godly men should make us enquire after the waies of godliness 94 Examples of godly men should confirm us in the truth 96 What we should do when examples of godly men are contrary 97 See Examination Danger in following the examples of wicked men 100 Examination Contrary examples should put us upon examination 98 Esau see Jacob Excellency The excellency of walking with God Page 267
Excellency see Walking Eye The souls of the godly eye God 272 F Faith The heavenly conversation of others is not the rule of our faith 93 Faith must be exercised 259 Familarity Whence our familarity with God ariseth 293 Folly The folly of earthly-mindedness 38 Formality Formality must not be rested on 253 Formality must be taken heed of 326 G Genius Wicked men fancy heavenly things according to their own genius 17 God God takes care of men concerning earthly things 78 Heavenly conversation brings glory to God 244 See Walking What a man trusts to he makes his God Page 54 Godly Difference between wicked and godly men 3 Godly mens Conversations should not be earthly 238 Godly men carry themselves as in Gods presence 274 Godly see Calling Godliness Earthly-mindedness is contrary to the work of godliness and how 26 See waies my stery Glory Heavenly Conversation brings glory to the Saints 246 What the glory of the soul is 239 Grace What the work of grace is 27 Grace see Benefit presence Growing Heavenly Conversation is growing 240 H Halting The Saints must take heed of halting 325 Heaven see Saints Profession Conversation Aim Heavenly The Saints are Heavenly in Earthly imploymonts Page 115 The Saints have great skill in Heavenly matters 218 See Genius Conversations Hell The Conversations of wicked men are in Hell 99 Heart The heart is best known by the thoughts 7 The heart of a wicked man is upon the things of the earth 16 The vileness yf mens hearts discovered 302 Heart see drossie Higher God made man for higher things than the things of the earth 96 Hypocrites Hypocrites rebuked 135 Honor see walking Humility Humility takes the heart off from earthly mindedness 86 I Jacob Difference between Jacob's blessing and Esau's 6 Idolater Idolaters depart from God 22 Idolatry Covetousness is Idolatry Page 20 See Earthly-mindedness Vileness Ill see Success Ignorant see Religion Imployment see Heavenly Inducement Earthty Inducements oppose godliness 98 Intercourse The Saints have much intercourse to heaven 218 Joy What the joy of a Saint is See World 54 L Law The Saints are guided by the Laws of God 110 Little The Saints are contented with little in this world 222 Loss The Saints have comfort in all their losses 224 Lust Earthly-mindedness brings in foolish lusts and how 34 M Man Wherefore God made man 69 See Nature Mind Who they are that know the mind of God Page 94 Ministry How earthly-mindedness hinders the Ministry 30 Mystery The mystery of godlinesse ought to be studied 254 N Nature What man is by nature 268 P Petitions What men they are that shall have their petitions granted 295 Pilgrim We are pilgrims here upon earth 76 Prayer see Earthly-mindedness Preparation see Death Presence Gods presence draws forth grace 298 See God Principles see Saints Priviledge What the priviledges of a Citizen of heaven are 106 How the priviledges of a Citizen of Heaven are procured 107 Promise Wicked men do not trust to a promise Page 15 Protection The Saints have the protection of heaven 104 R Reconciliation How a wicked man conceives of the Doctrine of Reconciliation 17 Religion How Religion is scandalized 45 Why men are ignorant in Religion 59 Reprobates Reprobates have their portion in this life 68 Riches The Saints have right to the Richcs and common stock of heaven 103 Riches see Uncertainty S Saints The Saints names are inrolled in heaven 102 The Saints are no longer slaves 103 The Saints ' are guided by heavenly principles 108 The Saints have communion with God 109 The Saints trust God with much Page 220 The Saints are sensible of the stoppage between them and heaven 226 Sabbath To whom the Sabbath is a delight and to whom it is a wearinesse 16 The Saints keep a a perpetual Sabbath 115 Saints see Citizens Riches Angels Perfection Laws Delight Heavenly Sabbath Trading Intercourse Little Comfort Losses Safty Wherein the safty of a Saint lies 292 Scandal see Religion Self What self is 25 Secrets what manner of men they are that know Gods secrets 294 Seriousness What seriousness of spirit is 309 Serpent see Curse Sinful see Earthly Shortness What the shortness of our time here should lead us to 73 Snare Earthly-mindedness brings men into snares 29 Soul Of what value the soul of man is Page 70 The soul of man is from heaven 229 The soul of man ought to be beautified 324 Soul see Glory Walk Spiritual A wciked man is earthly in spiritual things a godly man is spiritual in earthly 11 Strictness We ought not to find fault with strictness in Gods waies 231 Stranger The world are strangers to walking with God 300 Success The reason of ill success 35 Suffering Heavenly Conversation makes suffering easie 249 T Temptation Earthly-mindedness puts men upon great temptations 28 Thoughts What the thoughts of the Saints are 111 Which way the thoughts of the Sainis tend 112 See Devil Heart Trade What the Saints trade for heaven is Page 213 The Saints have free trade to heaven 104 Trust see God Trusted Worldly things are not tobe trusted too 55 U Vanity All earthly things are vanity 53 Vilifie The Saints vilifie the things of the earth 222 Uncertainty The uncertainty of riches 71 Vileness The vileness of Idolatry 21 Vocation What vocation is 25 W Waies The waies of godlinesse should not be opposed 95 See Strictness Walk How the soul is brought to walk with God 268 He that walks with God depends not much upon reason 307 He that walks with God is the same in private that he is in publick 308 He that walks with God walks in his Commandements Page 310 What it is to walk with God 267 Walking What walking with God is 272 Wherein walking with God consists 280 Several excellencies of walking with God 286 The honor of walking with God 288 Particular evidences of walking with God Page 316 See Strangers Excellency Wearinesse see Sabbath Wicked Why wicked men are busie in their callings 16 See Godly Genius Example Hell Work see Godlinesse Grace Worldly Wherein worldly joy consists 54 See Trust Strangers A TABLE of those SCRIPTURES which are occasionally Cleared and briefly Illustrated In the Fourth VOLUMN The first number directs to the Chapter the second to the Verse the third to the Page of the Book Chap. Verse Page Genesis 6 9 263 27 28 6 27 29 6 33 9 52 45 20 239 Exodus 23 14 288 25 21 323 Leviticus 4 18 280 26 11 280 26 12 280 2 Kings 17 8 301 2 Chronicles 28 2 301 Nehemiah 5 9 317 Job 18 8 292 22 21 293 Psalms 16 3 277 16 6 277 23 4 292 37 4 295 45 13 325 45 14 325 49 11 66 49 13 66 62 10 77 62 11 77 63 8 283 583 3 277 72 9 268 86 11 305 89 15 289 89 16 289 119 37 42 119 45 279 138 7 292 139 17 61 Proverbs 2 20 92 13 20 294 23 7 7 23 17 274 Canticles 5 2 281 7 5 281 Isaiah 13 17 53 30 21 269 35 8 271 53 9 271 Jeremiah 2 12 23 17 13 44 Ezekiel 33 31 31 Daniel 7 10 107 7 18 107 Hosea 2 7 329 4 11 22 11 10 298 Micah 6 6 291 6 7 291 6 8 291 Luke 1 6 315 21 34 47 John 3 31 81 Acts 6 31 318 7 29 113 22 25 101 22 27 106 23 25 64 Romans 8 5 3 1 Corinthians 9 27 25 15 29 79 2 Corinthians 3 10 239 4 17 247 4 18 13 5 7 307 Galatians 6 12 65 6 26 310 Ephesians 2 6 107 2 11 251 2 18 272 2 19 130 4 17 309 5 5 20 Philippians 3 8 8 3 19 8 Colossians 3 1 249 3 2 79 3 3 79 2 Thessalonians 1 11 246 1 12 246 1 Timothy 6 9 28 6 9 34 6 9 50 2 Timothy 4 10 40 Hebrews 10 32 224 10 34 232 11 1 256 11 5 322 11 10 101 11 13 87 11 37 87 12 13 327 12 22 101 James 4 4 23 2 Peter 1 3 230 2 18 327 1 John 1 4 109 2 6 319 4 5 60 3 John 0 4 316 Jude 0 14 20 0 4 262 Revelation 3 4 287 13 6 102 13 8 102 14 4 287 FINIS 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 muniiceps coelorum nos gerimus Steph. Beza Piscat ad verbú nostra Civilis vita in coelis est Doct. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ab 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 pri 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 terra extra terram sine terra Beda Acts 23. 25. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 terrae fillii 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 1 Cor. 9. 27. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Castigo corpus meum vulg Comundo corpus meum Levidum reddo corpus Agust Est metophorasumpta à pugilibus suctantibus qui pugnis verberibus se mutuo obtundunt Chem. Jans Aret. Pareus Piscat First For Direction Secondly For Protection Thirdly For Assistance Fourthly For a blessing upon all it doth Gospel worship
of glory upon the things of this world that they are gilded and varnish't over but in comparison of the greater glory they are not glorious at all though they that never saw any thing else as glorious but the things of the world yet thou that hast seen the greater glory shouldst not account these things glorious Oh therefore Christians lift up your hearts to Henven and let your Conversations be in Heaven Though God hath so ordered it that you must live here a while and must be content for indeed to some Christians that have their Conversations in Heaven it 's a great part of their self-denial and of their subjection to God to be willing to live upon the earth and to stay from Heaven till Gods time come This is a riddle and a mystery to many that it should be a part of our Salvation Obedience yea of Self-denial though they had Crowns of Glory though they were Kings and Princes here in this world to be willing to stay here We might come to attain this if our Conversations were in Heaven and our hearts there As we reade of Daniel though God so ordered it that he could not live at Jerusalem where the Temple was yet he would open his window towards Jerusalem he would ever be looking that way And so though God hath so ordered it that we cannot come yet to live in this Heavenly Jerusalem bodily and in that full way as hereafter we expect to do yet we should open our window our eyes and the doors of our hearts should be open towards Heaven I remember I have read of Edward the First King of England that had a mighty mind to go to Jerusalem but because he could not go for death prevented him he gave charge to his Son to carry his heart thither And so it should be with us we should endeavour to have our hearts there and to have as much of Heaven as we can though we cannot be there our selves in nature Every creature hath put into it by the God of nature an instinct to move to its proper place as now because the proper place of fire is above there is an instinct of nature in fire to ascend to its proper place And the proper place of earth is below and therefore it will fall down to the Center a heavie thing that hath much earth in it though it breaks its self to pieces yet it will fall down towards its Center and so it will be with a Christian though he break himself to pieces whatsoever he suffers yet he hath an instinct to carry him to his proper place fire because its proper place is above if it be kept down by violence what a mighty power there is in fire to make way for its self that it may get up that 's the very reason of the mighty force that there is in Guns because there is fire in the pouder that is kept in when the pouder is once fir'd because the fire would get up above therefore it breaks with violence and if it cannot have vent to get out it breaks any thing in the world for it must out that it may get up to it 's own place and so it should be with a Christian there should be a strong impetiousness to get up to his own place that would be an evidence indeed that Heaven is thy proper place Oh Christians lift up your hearts and let your Conversations be in Heaven CHAP. XIV An Heavenly Conversation is a convincing Conversation I Shall not need to come again and tel you what Heavenly Conversation is it hath been opened at large to you but for the setting an edg upon this Exhortation First Know That a Heavenly Conversation will be a very convincing Conversation then you will convince men that you have somwhat more than they have when they see you live Heavenly for the men of the world they know the things of the world are the things that their hearts are upon and that which they mind but now when they see those that professe Religion mingle themselves with the earth as they do then they will think that they are acted by the same principles that themselves are but now Heavenly Conversations will convince them when they behold them walking above in the whol course of their lives when they see an evenness and proportion in their course take them at all times and in all businesses they carry themselves as men of another world As a man that is a stranger to a place may for a while act it so as he may seem to be one that is a native in the place but one that is born in the place will go nigh to find him out in one thing or other and so 't is very hard for men to carry themselves so if they have not true grace though they appear sometimes to be very Heavenly yet one that is a true Citizen of Heaven will discern them at one time or other if they have not grace yea the truth is carnal men wil discover themselves that they are born of the earth and are of their Countrie his speech betrais him he is a Giliadite But when Christians shal in their constant way have their Conversations in Heaven then their Cōversations are very convincing There are the Raies of Heaven about them they have the lustre of Heaven shining wheresoever they go and in all company surely such a man seems to be in Heaven continually So it will force it from the very Consciences of men to say Certainly these are the Citizens of Heaven if there be any Denizens of the new Jerusalem while they live upon the earth these they are I remember it 's said of that Martyr Dr. Taylor That he did rejoyce that he ever came into the prison to be in company with that Angel of God Mr. Bradford Mr. Bradford's Conversation it was Angel-like like an Angel of Heaven and did convince almost every where where he went Oh! 't is of great use that Christians should live convincing Conversations You know what Dives said to Abraham That he would have one sent to warn his brethren that they might not come to that place saith Abraham They have Moses and the Prophets Oh but saith Dives If one rise from the dead they would hear him I may say thus If God should send one from Heaven to live among men and to preach to them surely they would regard him Would it not be a great benefit to the world if God should send some one Saint from Heaven or Angel to converse in a bodily way among us Truly Christians should live so as if they came from Heaven every day as if they had been in Heaven and conversing with God When they go to perform duty in a morning and get alone between God their souls they should never leave striving till they get their hearts so in Heaven and get themselves upon the Mount so as when they come down to their family their very