love Thus then you see now to know whether your faith be right in Jesus Christ being commanded to believe in him One thing more and that is if faith lye under a Command let us all then be obedient to this Command and labour to believe in his Son Jesus Christ more and more if we have no faith let us do it if we have faith let us do it more and more I shall give you two or three motives and answer a question and so conclude First for Motives know you can never truly love God till your sins are forgiven you you will think God is not your God till your sins are forgiven but if you find that your sins are forgiven you you will love God then to purpose you will love God then in truth and in strength Mary loved much why many sins were forgiven her now unless you believe in Jesus Christ you cannot have the forgiveness of your sins and so you will be questioning whether God love you or whether he be not a hard God and a hard Master and dont pardon your sins and so you cannot love God truly and love God with strength If therefore you would love God with truth and strength believe in his Son Jesus Christ that you may know your sins are forgiven Secondly This believing in the Lord Jesus Christ makes our persons very acceptable unto God Eph. 1.6 he hath made us accepted in his Beloved How are we made accepted by faith in him if we have not faith in him we are not accepted therefore the Apostles put us to do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Col. 3.17 There 's the acceptation of your persons And so of your Prayers our Prayers will never speed in Heaven and have gracious Returns unless we believe in the Son of God 't is for Christs sake that our Prayers are heard as you may see in the verse before the Text and the Text together whatsoever we ask we receive of him because we keep his Commandments And what 's one Command That we belieive on the Name of his Son Jesus Christ why now our Prayers come to be heard when we keep his Commandments Lastly It is that which doth exalt the grace of God and honours him very much to believe in his Son Jesus Christ It 's said in 1 Joh. 5. He that believes not hath made God a Lyar. He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself There 's encouragement to believe in the Son of God He that believeth not God hath made him a Lyar because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son And this is one record that God hath given us eternal life in him And this is another that he Commands us to believe in him that we may have this eternal life Now what a dishonour is this to the God of truth to make him a lyar but now to believe in his Son doth exalt the free grace of God God hath made all the promises to Jesus Christ and in Christ they are all yea and Amen And mark it All the promises of God in him are Yea and and in him Amen unto the Glory of God by us 2 Cor. 1.20 When we believe in his Son Jesus Christ in whom they are all concentred in whom they are all yea and Amen but if you do not believe in the Son of God They are not all to the honour of God God hath not his glory in that way that he looks for by Jesus Christ So that we should believe in the Son of God because it doth exalt his honour and his free grace and promotes his Glory abundantly and the contrary brings reproach and dishonour upon God One question more But happily some will say I cannot believe what should I do To that Soul and to all of us I would say thus much First attend diligently unto the means by which God works faith Rom. 10.17 Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God Attend now unto the means the Gospel especially which is the means that God hath appointed to work faith by and doth work faith by Eph. 1.13 In whom ye also trusted after that ye heard the word of truth the Gospel of your Salvation When they heard the word of truth the Gospel of Salvation then they came to trust in him So when people do attend unto the means of Grace and attend seriously unto it God doth work faith and increase faith where it is by the same means You know Pipes dont give water but water comes through Pipes so the Gospel is the Pipe through which God lets out this water of grace and conveys it unto us and will you see it performed in Acts 13.48 And when the Gentiles heard this they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed When they heard the Gospel Preached as many as were ordained to eternal life believed they attended upon the word and the means of grace and it was not in vain they believed Attend therefore upon the Gospel and the word Preached as an Ordinance of God appointted and designed of God purposely to work faith in your Souls many persons they come to hear the Word they come only to hear a man what he can say and what notions and new things there may be but they come not to it as an ordinance of God appointed to work grace and faith in the soul and so miss of their expectation upon that account Secondly Consider how freely Jesus Christ is offered in the Gospel and offered unto you and at what a cheap rate Christ is to be had In Isa 55 come without money and without price come and drink of the waters of life freely Why the Lord Jesus Christ is a free gift Rom. 5.15 saith the Apostle not as the offence so also is the free gift A free gift Jesus Christ and grace is and Joh. 4.10 If thou haddest known the gift of God O Christ is the gift of God and what is required now but receiving of this gift will you not receive a gift and such a gift as this is when it is tendred to you by God himself and tendred to you in such a glorious manner and God doth put off this rich gift at a very low rate if you will receive it Rev. 3.20 I stand at the dore and knock if any man hear my voice and open the dore I will come into him and Ch. 22.17 whosoever will let him come and take of the water of life freely here 's Christ with the water of life and bread of life with his Righteousness with all that is useful for you for the present and to eternity here he is receive him O how great will our condemnation be if we dont receive him when as he is offered so freely to us 3. Lastly you cannot believe you say and I believe you too you cannot believe I but pray unto God to inable you
their very minds are defiled it speaks of a carnal mind Rom. 8.6 It speaks of a fleshly mind Col. 2.18 But Christ had no defiled mind no carnal mind no fleshly mind but the Lord Jesus Christ had a pure mind pure heart pure affections pure will pure intentions and the like his mind was a pure mind and therefore he saith Joh. 14. The Devil comes and finds nothing of his in me when the Devil comes he finds no impurity in Christ and which of you convinceth me of sin saith Christ he had a pure mind and therefore it 's said Heb. 7.26 he was holy and harmless separate from sinners he was holy in his nature and understanding and will and affections and heart and spirit He was pure from all errors and all opinions that do defile the understanding or the judgment 2 Cor. 11.3 I fear least by any means as the Serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ Christs spirit was pure and there was no mixture where there is a mixture there is not simplicity Christ had a pure mind from all errors and all defilements Now let this mind be in you also which was in Christ Jesus this pure mind be in you Thirdly The Lord Christs mind was a willing and a ready mind to do good Math. 8.3 If thou wilt thou canst make me clean I will saith he presently be thou clean how willing and ready was the Lord Christ he was not backward he did not shift off doing good as we use to do many times but he would rather prevent men as you may see in the impotent man Joh. 5.6 Wilt thou be made whole such a ready mind was in Christ to do good that where it was not look'd for he would do it and prevent men rather then not do good Psa 40.8 I delight to do thy will O God it was a great delight to Christ he was very ready and forward to do good Well let this mind which also was in Christ be in you a readiness a willingness to do good Fourthly The Lord Christs mind was a yeilding a humble and a condescending mind v. 7. he made himself of no Reputation and took upon him the form of a Servant O here was an humble condescending mind in Christ that the Lord of glory the Heir of the world would take upon him the form of a Servant Joh. 13. you read there how humble Christ was that he riseth from the Table girds himself with a Towel takes a Bason of water and goes and washes his Disciples feet Here was condescending indeed when the Lord and Master would go and wash his Disciples feet when they were sinful and he himself without sin Christ saith he came not to be Ministred unto but to Minister and he did Minister indeed In Mat. 11. Learn of me saith he for I am humble never was there a greater person in the world and never a greater person more humble than Christ was O how did he condescend to the poor and weak and mean and all sorts and conditions of people he would not break a bruised Reed nor quench the smoaking flax so yeilding and humble was he he would converse with sinners and Publicans when Pharisees and great ones stumbled at him he became all things to all men that he might do them good well let this mind be in you which was in Christ Fifthly the mind of the Lord Jesus Christ was a single mind we read in Scripture of a double mind James 1.8 a double minded man But there was no doubleness of mind in Christ he had a single mind Job 23.13 he is in one mind the Lord Christ he is alwayes in one mind others have many minds so many minds that they hardly know their own mind but Christ had one single sincere mind there was no doubleness no dissembling no equivocating no guile in his heart nor in his lips 1 Pet. 2.22 who did no sin neither was guile found in his mouth As Christ said of Nathaniel behold an Israelite in whom is no guile so may we say of Christ much more behold an Israelite in whom is no guile there was nothing but singleness in Jesus Christ he had a single mind a single spirit a single heart and let this mind be in you which also was in Christ Jesus Sixthly The Lord Christs mind was a fixed and a setled mind he was not lead away with the Traditions of the Elders with the opinions of the Herodians of the Sadduces of the Scribes and Pharisees with any wind of Doctrine but it was a setled sollid fixed firm mind Heb. 13.8 it 's said Jesus Christ the same yesterday to day and for ever he was in the same setled mind alwayes he did not chop and change his thoughts and mind and judgment but was setled and fixed and not carried away with any opinions or the like and see what follows upon it v. 9. be not carried away with divers and strange Doctrines Christ was not be not you therefore carried about with divers and strange Doctrines How many in these dayes are carried up and down with every wind of Doctrine with every opinion but let this setled fixed firm mind be in you which also was in Christ Seventhly Christs mind it was a heavenly mind Joh. 7.46 Never man spake like this man rever man spake so heavenly so graciously as this man did Christ was full of Heaven heavenly in his Doctrine heavenly in his Prayers heavenly in his Discourse altogether heavenly In 3. Joh. 12. there 's something seems to cross it If I have told you earthly things and ye believe not how shall ye believe if I tell you of heavenly things What did Christ tell them of earthly things and not heavenly things The meaning of the place is this 't is true I have drawn Parables taken from earthly things but in them are couched heavenly matters and if you dont understand them when I bring them down thus to your capacities how would you understand then if I should tell you of heavenly things in their own nature and kind and not suit them to your apprehensions or comprehensions Christ here spake of earthly things in this Chapter to Nicodemus he spake of Generation and of the wind and water these were earthly things I but he had heavenly things in them Regeneration and the wind and water of the Spirit so that Jesus Christ he minded heavenly things and so the next verse No man hath ascended up to heaven but he that came down from heaven even the Son of man which is in heaven why the Son of man is in heaven though he be here upon earth his affections are there his heart is there his aims and intentions are there O how heavenly was Christ in all his wayes he breathed out heavenliness and made spiritual uses of all things he saw and met with of the Vine of the Dore of the Sheep of the
hope for a blessing upon the action but the ground of his hope is from the name of the Lord Jesus Christ Cant. 1.3 because of the savour of thy good Oyntments Thy name is as an Oyntment poured forth That perfumes all the actions done in Christs name and so they are acceptable unto God and this name is the ground of my hope for a blessing from God and from Christ because I look at the name of Christ which is the sweet Oyntment that doth perfume all Therefore ask your hearts what 's the ground and the Pillar of your hopes for a blessing upon your actions 't is not the goodness of your actions but the name of Christ that gives the hope Fifthly Lastly he that doth all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ ascribes the blessing and success of all unto the name of Christ he will attribute nothing to his own thoughts words or actions he will attribute nothing to any intervening cause but attribute all unto the name of the Lord Jesus Christ Psal 115.1 Not unto us O Lord not unto us away with all that should rise from us but unto thy name give glory yea all the glory 1 Tim. 1.12 I thank Jesus Christ our Lord saith Paul that inabled me and put me into the Ministry He gives the glory to Christ I thank the Lord I had no power to Preach but thou hast enabled me to Preach and I give thee the glory so did Pet. 2 E. 3.18 To him be glory both now and for ever Amen To him be the glory that makes known himself unto us that gives grace unto us that inables us to Preach and Pray and do good in our places and generations and callings to him be glory both now and for ever So John in 1. Rev. to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever The soul that doth all in the name of Christ will see infinite reason why Christ should have all the glory and all the honour do you so give him all and challenge nothing to your selves attribute nothing to your own dregs to your own endeavours to your own actings it 's a sign you do all in the name of Christ then Eighthly Lastly must Christians do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ then it serves to be an exhortation unto us that we should do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ let all your thoughts be in his name all your words be in his name all your actions be in his name see you have warrant from his word for them do all in his strength and power and lay by your own do all as in his stead think such thoughts as Christ would think if he were present speak such words as Christ would speak do all according to his will do all for Christs sake do all for his honour and glory do all invocating his name for advice in your actions Q. But you will say is it possible to do all in his name can we alwayes have Christ in our thoughts mouths and actions A. To this I answer that immediately we should have a disposition a frame of spirit an inclination of heart unto it the very bent and tendency of our hearts should be that way the desire of our souls is unto thee and to thy name So the desire of our souls should be unto Christ and to his name the bent and tendency of it should be that way And not only so but Secondly I answer 't is well to have this but 't is not enough we should every morning at least actually mind and intend the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and so go on all the day in that intention as a bowl when it is thrown it runs by virtue of the strength that is put into it from the arm that threw it at first and runs till the strength be spent so we should by virtue of a morning intention and in a morning consideration of the name of our Lord Jesus Christ go on all the day long and if we find it to flag as it will quickly do we should renew our intentions and thoughts in the name of Christ send up secret Ejaculations to Heaven O Lord I desire to think in thy name and to speak in thy name and to act in thy name this we may and ought to do and not to rest altogether in an habitual inclination and disposition and they that do it oftest they will order things best best for themselves and best for Christs glory and advantage but to press the exhortation Christians should do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I will give you three or four Motives First We should do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ upon this consideration it will assure us that the Lord Christ doth approve of us and will be with us and will make our actions successful and bless them unto us Mat. 28.19 20. Go ye therefore and teach all Nations Baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost Go and Baptize them all in my name and in their names and what follows teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you and lo I am with you alwayes even unto the end of the world Do it in my name I will be with you then and I will bless you and prosper you and I will make your Preaching successful and useful David went in the name of the Lord against Goliah that grand enemy of the Israelites and did not the Lord bless him and prosper him did not he slay Goliah and free the Israelites from their fears and dangers the Lord was with him David went out in the name of the Lord in the strength of the Lord will I go and the Lord was with him wheresoever he went and prosper'd him in all he went about he did all things wisely would you therefore in spirituals or in your ordinary callings and places be approved of by Christ have Christ with you and bless you do all in his name not in your own names or in the name of others but in his name and in his name alone Secondly it is great wisdom to do so for what we do in Christs name out of respect to him carries much sweetness in it It is an impulse of of love to such a friend we love Christ when we do it out of respect to his name and 't is our wisdome so to do and the work of love is very sweet A wise man will do things so as they may be most sweet and pleasing to himself and acceptable to him he doth them now when we do it upon this account I say it is the impulse of love and there 's a great deal of sweetness in acting from love there is as true sweetness in acting for Christ as when we receive from Christ when you receive some influences of his spirit when you have an answer of your Prayers when you have your fears
not lift up my hand against any let me not think or speak or do any thing against thy Statutes Qu. Now whence is it that a gracious man's heart is such a jealous heart A. First It is from his own heart that his heart is so jealous the deâ—eitfulness of a man 's own heart is the ground or the cause of the hearts jealousie when it 's once sanctifyed in any measure it becomes jealous because this heart is so deceitful Jer. 17.9 The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked who can know it well saith a gracious soul I will be jealous therefore of my heart 't is deceitful 't is desperately wicked 't is hard to know it Why â—â—e heart is deceitful there is deceitful lusts in it deceitful principles in it deceitful aims and ends in it deceitful affections in it deceitful apprehensions in it it is a bundle of deceit What experience hath a Godly man of the deceitfulness of his own heart how oft doth it run out when it is hearing reading praying and meditating Therefore a gracious Soul is jealous over its own heart how oft doth the heart excuse when it should condemn how oft doth it condemn when it should excuse how oft doth it cry up a man to be good when he is naught and how oft doth it cry him down to be naught when he is good There is nothing almost but deceit in our hearts and therefore a Godly man is jealous over his own heart Secondly A gracious heart is jealous of it self because it sees men and women may go very far and yet miscarry come short of Heaven prove rotten and unsound and be asham'd at last a gracious heart sees men may go a great way the Galatians went a great way and Paul was afraid of them what saith he have ye suffered so many things in vain you did run well you began in the Spirit what now will you end in the flesh what turn to another Gospel what now be justified by the Law the young man comes very near to the Kingdom of Heaven I but this heart was not sound he had a covetous heart his heart was not enclin'd to the testimonies of God but to covetonsness the foolish Virgins did they not go far had they not got Lamps had they not trim'd up their Lamps went they not forth to meet Christ and came they not to the Gates and knock'd and yet no entrance they were Virgins in name and not in nature seeming Virgins not real Virgins Ananias and Saphira went a great way they received the Gospel they profest Christ they entered into a Church state they sould their Lands and brought the greatest part to the Apostles feet and laid it down and yet not sound at the heart The stony ground received the word with joy yet falls away when temptation comes now a gracious heart is jealous of it self may men go so far as to read hear pray leave the world and part with estate and be joyned to a Church and yet not be sound at the heart O Lord what shall I judge of my heart O that my heart may be sound in thy Statutes Thirdly They are so because Satan is so subtle Satan deceives so many Satan can transform himself into an Angel of light Satan can inject good thoughts good desires good opinions and the like Did not Satan get into David himself and make him to number the people Did he not get into Peter and make Peter set upon Christ himself O Master spare thy self this shall not be unto thee and it 's said that many were turned aside after Satan 1 Tim. 5. now this makes them jealous least Satan should delude them how hath Satan deluded many in our dayes and they thought they had Enthusiasms and Revelations from God and his Spirit whereas they were deluded by Satan I have known some have been confident they have had revelations from God and yet afterwards have been convinc'd that they were from Satan and that they have been deluded Fourthly Lastly a gracious heart is jealous of it self because the right way the way to life to happiness to salvation is very narrow very hard to find and few do find it therefore saith a gracious heart I may well be jealous whether I be right or no whether I have not mistaken O there are many by wayes on this hand and by wayes on that hand and but one way and a narrow way and a hard way and few find it have I found it Broad is the way that leads to destruction and many there be that go in thereat a broad way a pleasant way a down hill way and many there be go that way but the way to life and salvation is a narrow way yea so narrow that if Christ had not said it we could not have believed it as narrow as the eye of a Needle t is easier for a Camel to go through the eye of a Needle than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of heaven and 't is as narrow to a poor man as to a rich man 't is a very narrow way rich men are loaded with the world and they cannot enter and poor men are loaded with repinings grudgings and discontents and they cannot enter Thus you see that gracious hearts are jealous of themselves and wherein and why Qu. A question may be propounded You say they are jealous of themselves but is not this prejudicial to a man's peace and comfort and spiritual good that he should have a jealousie of himself An. For answer to this I tould you it is not sinful jealousie but a spiritual jealousie and there is no hurt in a Godly jealousie But further First it is not prejudicial to him but advantageous That Soul that hath a Godly jealousie over it self will be kept from a sinful and careless security men that are not jealous over themselves are secure and careless But that soul that is jealous cannot be secure cannot be careless that person will have an eye upon his heart and will be awake and will look to his heart What saith Solomon in the 4 Prov. Above all keepings keep thy heart if you have not a Godly jealousie how will you keep your hearts the secure man is asleep the negligent man is asleep therefore here should be the greatest jealousie and this helps to keep thy heart Secondly This will make you to do your duty towards God and man with more circumspection and with more vigour and life a drowsie sleepy man can neither serve God nor serve man but if a man be throughly awak'd then he looks about him and doth his business with more minding of it and more intention so the Godly Soul that is a jealous heart O it serves God with more carefulness it considers well I am to do with God and God looks for the heart and he calls for the Spirit and therefore I must give him my Spirit I must not be drowsie and sleepy and
Spirit in the heart then it 's a sound heart there may be seeming Graces and seeming Comforts but these do not cause soundness Take Brass Tin Cooper let it be Silver'd over by the Art of man this is not sound it is not Currant money so many have parts and they may have seeming graces and seeming comforts and yet not be real not be true such a heart is not sound you read in Scripture of a feigned faith a dead faith you read likewise of feigned love and there are feigned comforts flashy comforts and groundless hopes Now where the heart is sound these are graces comforts wrought by the Word and Spirit hence you read of faith unfeigned 2 Tim. 1.5 and you read of Love the fruit of the Spirit Gal. 5.22 and so peace and joy There 's false peace and false joy but you read of these wrought by the Spirit and love shed abroad in the heart by the Spirit you read of a lively hope of a hope that 's grounded upon the promises 2 Pet. 3.13 Nevertheless we according to his promise look for new Heavens and a new Earth now when graces are real in the heart and comforts are real in the heart and there 's a real truth in them Then the heart is sound And so soundness is opposed to the fancies conceits and dreams of men and their mistakes but their hearts are rotten notwithstanding all their dreams and fancies Fifthly Soundness of heart doth lye in sincerity Let my heart be sound in thy Statutes let it be sincere and upright and so some read the words And the word signifies upright and sincere and so it 's opposed to Hypocrisie O let me not be an Hypocrite let me not be a deceiver a sound heart is a sincere heart where there is Hypocrisie in men and women there 's an unsound heart there 's a rotten heart the Apostle speaks of love without dissimulation Rom. 12.9 So all must be without dissimulation where there is soundness and here both the end and the means and the manner are respected First where the heart is sound there will be sound ends sincere ends and among the rest there be three great ends that a sound heart aims at First the Glory of God Secondly Publick good Thirdly the Spiritual and Eternal good of the Soul First the Glory of God that 's the great end of a sound heart such ends will a sound heart have as Gods Statutes doth propound and hold out now this is one great and high end that God holds out in his word the glorifying of himself Prov. 16.4 God hath made all things for himself for his own glory for his own honour God hath set up his own Glory as his own end and so a sound heart hath that end that God hath propounded So in the 11 Rom. last saith the Apostle there From him and through him and to him are all things to whom be glory for ever Glory is the end 1. Cor. 10.31 Do all to the Glory of God whether you eat or drink or whatever you do that 's the great end 1. Cor. 6. you are not your own you are bought with a price Glorifie God in Soul and Body That 's the great end of a sound heart Secondly the end of a sound heart is publick good Do good to all but especially to the Houshold of Faith not a private and domestick end but do good to all the world if possible but especially to Sion to the Church of God to the people of God saith Hester if I perish I perish Sion is in danger Gods people are in danger I will not stand upon my self and my own safety and upon the Kings Law but Gods glory the welfare and good of Sion lyes at the Stake and I will venture here was a sound heart that had a right end if I perish I perish I will venture my self for God and for his cause and people Thirdly It hath a right end in regard of it self viz. it 's Spiritual and Eternal good A Godly man will have a care of his body but his great care is of his soul and the spiritual and eternal good of his soul Joh. 6.27 Labour not for the meat that perisheth but for that which indureth to everlasting life that meat that perishes concerns the body but there is meat saith Christ which indures to everlasting life and that 's the meat you must look at and that 's the meat a sound heart doth aim at and seek to find out and to feed upon First seek the Kingdom of Heaven and the Righteousness thereof and saith the Apostle in 2 Cor. 4.18 our scope is not to look at the things that are seen but at the things that are not seen things that are eternal and that concern the eternal good of our souls Secondly It is sincere likewise in regard of the means a sound heart will use all the means Psal 119.6 Then shall I not be confounded when I have respect to all thy Commands there must be respect to all Gods Commands to all his Threatnings to all his Promises to all Examples to all Invitations to all Admonitions to all Counsels to the whole will of God a sound heart hath respect to all that God hath revealed to all the means whatsoever they have unsound and rotten hearts who throw off the Law or the Gospel who throw of all Ordinances who throw off the Scriptures but then shall I not be confounded when I have respect to all thy Commands Thirdly So likewise for the manner of using the means many come and hear the word but not with trembling Isa 66.2 not as the word of God 1 Thess 2.13 they receive it not with love 2 Thess 2.13 they mingle it not with faith Heb. 4.2 they hear it not as the word that shall judge them John 12.48 so many pray but not spiritually Ephes 6.18 not feelingly and fervently Rom. 12.11 Jam. 5.16 not believingly Jam. 1.6 so many receive but descern not the Lords Body 1 Cor. 11.29 and many give but not with simplicity Rom. 12.8 and secresie Mat. 6.3 Now a sound heart respects the manner in these and all other duties as much as the duties themselves and is much humbled for failings in the manner of performing duties Sixthly Lastly soundness of heart lyes in this in the hearts putting forth to practice what is revealed to it or received by it when a man hath truth and witholds truth in unrighteousness that man is not sound at the heart but where the heart is sound the soundness of it carries him to practice what is revealed and given in unto it you may see it in David and in Hezekiah 1 K. 15.15 David did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord and turned not aside from any thing that he commanded him all the dayes of his life whatsoever God commanded him that he did his heart was sound in his Statutes And so here in Isa 38. v. 3. Remember now O Lord
they are members of Christ they are members of Christs body and they should be of the mind of the head the members are ruled and governed by the head now all true Churches and Christians are the members of Christ Eph. 4.15 But speaking the truth in love may grow up into him in all things which is the head even Christ O speak the truth in love saith he or truth it in love and grow up in him in Christ in all things which is the head you must grow up into his mind because ye are members and he is the head so in 2 Col. 7. Rooted and built up in him and stablished in the faith stablished in the Doctrine of Christ abounding therein with Thanksgiving Why because we are members of Christ we should therefore grow up in the faith of Christ and in the doctrine and mind of Christ Thirdly We should be of the same mind with Christ because the Lord Christ became like unto us therefore we should be like unto him v. 7. and was made in the likeness of men and so in Rom. 8.3 For what the Law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin condemned sin in the flesh Christ was like us in the likeness of sinful flesh and condemned sin in the flesh now what a vast distance was there between Christ and us when Christ was in Heaven the Son of God had not he came down from Heaven and taken our nature upon him and been made like unto us we could never have been made like unto him for he must take away that black Image and corruption of our nature and deformity that we might be made like unto him now the Lord Christ having done thus we should be like unto him upon that account and if we be not of his mind we shall never come to be like him 1 Joh. 3.2 3. beloved now are we the Sons of God and it doth not yet appear what we shall be but we know that when he shall appear we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is Then shall we be perfectly like him and every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself even as he is pure If you have hope to be perfectly like him hereafter you must be of his mind here and purifie your selves even as he is pure so that upon that account that Christ became like unto us in our nature we should be of his mind that we may be like unto him in his nature Fourthly we should be of the same mind with Jesus Christ because if we be not of his mind we shall be of an evil mind we shall be either of the worlds mind and the worlds mind is bad enough it lyes in wickedness or of the Devils mind and that 's worse or of the flesh's mind and that 's worst of all for the Devil and the world work by our flesh now saith the Apostle to be carnally minded is death and the carnal mind is enmity unto God it is not subject unto God neither can it be Now if you be not of Christs mind you are either of the worlds mind or the Devils mind or the flesh's mind and that 's death and will end in death eternal and you cannot please God Fifthly we should be of the same mind that Christ is because this is a way to keep us from falling into errors and corrupting opinions and from damnable Heresies and the like those have Christs mind will admit of nothing but truth they will not admit of the spirit of Antichrist and the spirit of errors of which you read 1 Joh. 4.3 6. There 's the spirit of Antichrist and the spirit of errors now if men be of Christs mind they will never admit of those errors and Antichristian Doctrines The Doctrine of Antichrist is the worshipping of Images now if you have Christs mind you will never worship Images Babes keep your selves from Idols Antichrists mind is that Priests must not marry if you be of Christs mind Marriage is honourable in all and it will never admit of that Doctrine So transubstantiation that 's Antichrists mind but if you be of Christs mind you will never admit of that Acts 3.20 He shall send Jesus Christ which before was Preached unto you whom the heavens must receive until the times of restitution of all things he shall send him he dont send him wherever the Sacrament is and there turn the bread into Christs flesh and the wine into Christs blood but he shall send Jesus Christ which before was Preached unto you whom the heavens must receive until the times of restitution of all things here 's the mind of Christ now and those that have the mind of Christ will not receive the mind of Antichrist So invocation of Saints that 's the mind of Antichrist an erroneous and a damnable Doctrine but here 's the mind of Christ Joh. 16.23 Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name not in Maries name or Peter's name or this or that Saints name but in Christs name So for the Popes Supremacy and the Lordliness of his Prelates if you have Christs mind you will never entertain any thing of that Luke 25. and he said unto them the Kings of the Gentiles exercise Lordship over them and they that exercise authority upon them are called Benefactors But ye shall not be so but he that is greatest among you let him be as the younger and he that is chief as he that doth serve What you my Disciples and you to have Supremacy you to have the Titles of Lords and Holy and Gracious and the like it shall not be so among you here 's the mind of Christ so in 1 Pet. 5.3 Neither as being Lords over Gods Heritage but being ensamples to the Flock no Lordliness no domâ—nion power greatness nor glorious titles and the like here 's the mind of Christ so that if we have the mind of Christ we shall be kept from eâ—rors So all traditions and ordinances of men and impositions inventions of men Mat. 15.9 In vain they do worship me teaching for Doctrines the Commandments of men That 's a vain worship which is worshipping in vain and v. 6. ye have made the Commandments of God of none effect by your traditions So in 2 Col. 20. wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the Rudiments of the world why as though living in the world are ye subject to ordinances c. after the Commandments and Doctrines of men Here 's the mind of Christ you must not be subject to ordinances and impositions of men and their additions to the worship of God but have the mind of Christ and you will admit of nothing but what is from Christ Sixthly we should be of Christs mind because it is the way to union to meeken and sweeten spirits and to make harmony between all sorts and to much unity Isa 11.6
Gomorrah Tyre and Sidon then for such at the day of Judgment So much for reproof Secondly this may be matter of humiliation to us all that we are no more like to Christ that we have not the same thoughts of God of Truth of Sin of the World that he had the Lord Christ saith be not conformed to the world the fashions of the world the manners of the world the worship of the world that we should not love the world nor things of the world that was Christs mind that we should forgive our Enemies but we are not of Christs mind though we have been long in the School of Christ Disciples of Christ yet we are not of the mind of Christ O how slow and dull and untoward are we to learn the mind of Christ It 's the mind of Christ that people should not cast off Ordinances and forsake the assembling of themselves and the like but how many do it in these dayes O this should be matter of humiliation to us all that we come so short of the mind of Christ Thirdly it may be an use of examination to us to examine whether we be of the same mind that the Lord Jesus Christ was of you may know it by what I have delivered to you already have we a publick mind a pure mind a humble mind a heavenly mind a compassionate mind and the like but I 'le add something else would you know whether you are of the mind of Christ yea or no then First if you are of Christs mind you will love what Christ loved and hate what he hated now look into Heb. 1.9 he loved Righteousness and hated Iniquity do you love Righteousness you have many go for Christians and Professors but come to dealing and there 's no righteousness in their actions they are all for what they can get and wring and scrape to themselves and don't love righteousness thou art no true Christian whosoever thou art thou art but a bastardly Christian at the best for where there is the same mind of Christ and a true Christian there 's loving of Righteousness and hating of Iniquity See in 1 Joh. 2. last If ye know that he is Righteous ye know that every one that doth Righteousness is born of him If ye be true Christians ye are born of God and you do Righteousness and Ch. 3.10 In this the Children of God are manifest and the Children of the Devil whosoever doth not Righteousness is not of God Many borrow and never pay again is here any Righteousness many have pledges and never restore them is here any righteousness many they will put off ill wares with lying and swearing is here righteousness if so be there be not Righteousness in mens actions they have not the mind of Christ they are not born of God but they have the mind of the Devil and of the World and the flesh and it 's a sad condition but here 's the way to know whether we have the mind of Christ we will love righteousness and hate Iniquity hate evil thoughts and lusts and all fraud and cheating and over-reaching one another Secondly if we would know whether we have the mind of Christ we shall know it by this then we will judge of things as Christ judged of them Joh. 7.24 saith Christ Judge not according to appearance but judge righteous Judgement so in 2 Cor. 10.7 Do ye look on things according to outward appearance Men that have Christs mind will not judge according to outward appearance and semblances and seemings but they will judge righteous judgment judge as Christ himself judged Christ saith blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven blessed are they that mourn for they shall be comforted blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God Do you judge right now where blessedness lyes not in honours nor pleasures nor things of this nature no it lyes in mourning for sin in poverty of spirit in pureness of heart if you be of Christs mind you will be of Christs judgment Luke 16.15 The things that are highly esteemed among men are abomination with God Now do you judge of the world as Christ judged Christ look'd upon the world as a perishing thing as a defiled thing and as that which will not satisfie the soul but endanger every man and woman do you judge of the world so Why do you lay out your money for that which is not bread and your labour for that which satisfieth not Do you judge of all these things thus now they are not bread for my soul nor they will not satisfie my soul I must use the world while I am here and if I have enough to carry me to my Journeys end 't is well in Acts 19.28 Great is Diana of the Ephesians say those of Ephesus So say Catholicks of their Cathedrals and pompous worship great is Diana of the Ephesians yea but Diana and all her worship was abominable to God many cry up their worship and such and such things as are the inventions of men but they are no more pleasing to God than Diana's Idols Temple and Worship Paul would know no man after the flesh no not Christ himself he had the mind of Christ and yet he would not know Christ after the flesh upon fleshly grounds and considerations so do you know no man after the flesh but upon spiritual grounds as they relate to God Thirdly if you have the mind of Christ then you will see that in the truths of Christ as will make you love the truth and stand to it and to venture all for truth rather than part from it Christ he did witness to truth in Joh. 18. and did testifie a good confession before Pontius Pilate and lay'd down his life for truth now hence he saith in Heb. 10. If any draw back my soul shall have no pleasure in him what of my mind and draw back from my truth and my wayes my soul shall have no pleasure in him what draw back from Christ's Doctrine and from the principles that have been wrought in you by that Doctrine draw back from his worship and from profession of Christ and practice of the Gospel my soul shall have no pleasure in you that is my soul shall be exceedingly exasperated against you if you draw back from me and my Doctrine Antipas held fast the faith the Church of Pergamus held fast the faith of Christ and Paul who had the mind of Christ saw so much in the truth of Christ as he saith I am ready not onely to be bound but to dye for the name of the Lord Jesus He saw reality and eternal life in the truths of Christ so that if you have Christs mind you will see that in Christs truth and Doctrines and wayes and worship which will make you go on and venture all rather than part with the same Fourthly Lastly if you have
we need not trouble our selves about them and spend our strength and desires after them but after these and then they will be cast in Fifthly Gold is of an earthly nature and of an earthy abstract but the Word is from Heaven heavenly 't is a spiritual thing There is nothing comparable unto the Word of God all things thou canst desire are not to be compared to her to the wisdom of the Word Now the Word being heavenly it is more to be desired than Gold which is but out of the bowels of the earth The Word is spiritual and comes from Heaven and heavenly and therefore more desirable So that you see upon what account it is that the Word is more to be desired than Gold and Silver Qu. Now a question may be moved with what desires are we to desire the Word of God Ans First We must desire the Word of God with strong and ardent desires with strength of heart and soul this should be in our desires Psal 42.1 2. As the Hart panteth after the water brooks so panteth my soul after thee O God My soul thirsteth for God for the living God when shall I come and appear before God He was banished from the house of God and from the Ordinances of God and from the Word of God now saith he when shall I come and appear before God I have ardent desires strong desires to be where God is and his Word and Ordinances are and in Psal 119.20 a remarkable place My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy Judgments at all times My soul breaketh what ardent what strong desires were in the heart of David now after the Word of God So then they must be strong and ardent desires in our Souls after the Word of God which is better than Gold or Silver Secondly These desires must be sincere desires It may be men have desires to the Word but they are not sincere they should desire the Word for it self because it is the Word of God because it is pure Psal 119.440 Thy Word is very pure therefore thy Servant loveth it It is a good argument of Truth of Grace and of a servant of God to love the Word for the purity of it Many cannot endure it because it is pure but if we love it and desire it for its purity it 's an argument we are right Such should our desires be sincere desires to love the Word for it self It is sincere milk and it calls for sincere desires sincere affections there should be no Bias in our affections no crookedness no selfishness but sincere desires unto the Word of God 3. Our desires must be permanent and abiding not fleeting and flashy desires but permanent abiding desires our desires should be alwayes to the Word of God our hearts should stand bent to the Word of God continually Psal 119.20 My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy Judgments at all times Mark at all times my soul is carried out with venement desires unto thy Judgments at all times I do continue and maintain my desires towards thy Word Psal 1.2 In his Law doth he meditate day and night when a mans desires are to the Word of God night and day here 's permanent constant and abiding desires But you will say that 's impossible for a man to hold up his desires at such a height and to continue them True to flesh and blood it is but we must renew our desires when they begin to flag and fall 4. Lastly our desires they must be opperative and working desires many have lazy and sluggish desires they have velleities wishes O that I did understand such and such things O that I were acquainted with the Word of God and the like they have velleities and wishes but they must be real desires which will put men upon searching the Scriptures comparing place with place reading and meditating and improving of truths Mens desires after Gold are such 1 Tim. 6.9 They that will be rich how they will work and labour rise early and lye down late and study and cast this way and that way to get the world to get Gold and Silver such should be our desires Joh. 6. Labour not for the meat that perishes but for the meat that endures to everlasting life So you see what kind of desires the desires of our souls should be after the Word of God I shall now come to some Inferences from the point Are Divine truths more to be desired than Silver and Gold Then First I infer many are very faulty and worthy of blame yea of great blame First Those that have no desires to the Word of God There are some people in the world that have no desire to the Word of God Job 21.14 We desire not the knowledg of thy wayes we have better wayes than thine our own wayes and as for thy wayes we dont desire the knowledge of them do these men look at the Word of God to be better than Gold or Silver No we dont desire the knowledge of thy wayes it blames and condemns them Secondly It blames those who have most desire after Gold and Riches and after the things and pleasures of the world They have little desire after Gods Testimonies Statutes Laws and Judgments little desire after these they cannot say the zeal of thy house hath eaten me up but the zeal of the world hath eaten me up These are blameable that have so little desires after the things of God and such ardent desires after the world and the things of the world Thirdly It blames those that have fleeting transient desires now and then they have a fit they have some desires after the Word of God but their desires are fleeting and transient they dont keep up and maintain their desires Every morning noon and night we should have desires after the Word of God and the wayes of God David would prevent the morning watches and seven times a day be would have his heart in a frame for God and the things of God I at midnight would he rise to praise God for his Righteous Judgments but we have a fit now and then and away and this is blameable Fourthly It condemns those that have not sincere and pure desires They have desires after the Word of God for some base ends they make a profession that they may cover their wickedness with a pretence of Zeal and Profession and Religion and Godliness As the Scribes and Pharisees they made a shew O they minded the Word and every Letter and Syllable of the Word and yet within as Christ saith they were full of Excess Hypocrisie and Uncleanness Lastly It reproves those that rest in their desires and labour not to accomplish their desires they dont put forth their desires into endevours and those desires are foolish and hurtful desires that dont carry out the soul to endeavours All these come under censure and are blameable Secondly If the truths of God
earth and therefore savoured the things of the earth and spake of them but Christ he was of heaven and spake of heavenly things They were minding of their Cummin and Annise and Mint and Tythes and neglected the weighty things of the Law their hearts were upon those things 1 Joh. 4.5 saith he they are of the world therefore speak they of the world and the world heard them Men that are of the world that love the world they speak of the world and men love to hear them speak of the world And when any speak of heavenly things how unwelcome and unsavory are they 1 Cor. 2.14 The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God for they are foolishness unto him neither can he know them because they are spiritually discerned They do not perceive the things of God nor receive the things of God they are spiritual and unwelcome unto them Therefore in the 8. Rom. 5 6. saith the Apostle They that are after the flesh do savour the things of the flesh they savour them relish them and delight in them but they that are after the Spirit do savour the things of the Spirit and in Isa 58.13 If thou turn away thy foot from the Sabbath from doing thy pleasure on my Holy day and call the Sabbath a delight The Holy of the Lord Honourable and shalt honour him not doing thine own wayes nor finding thine own pleasure nor speaking thine own words God accounts that man a gracious man a heavenly man a good man that turns his foot away from the Sabbath from finding his own pleasure and doing his own will and calls the Sabbath a delight and honourable and doth not his own work and will nor speaks his own words Now our own words are the words of the world the words of the flesh It 's an Argument a man is not of the world when he savours the things of God and turns away his feet from the Sabbath from doing his pleasure on Gods Holy day c. But when a man relishes and savors the world and the things of it in his discourses this shews we are glewed to the world and love the world Ninthly A man loves the world when he doth mourn and lament for the things of the world being taken from him That which we love we mourn when we lose it when men mourn exceedingly for a child it 's an argument they lov'd their child so when men mourn and are afflicted for the loss of Estate Names Friends and Relations it 's an argument they loved the world Rachel weeps and refuses to be comforted why her Children are not Many how greatly are they afflicted when they lose some outward things â—redit profit honours pleasures estates and reâ—â—tions how they mourn and are disconâ—tâ—ted and hang down the head and will not be comforted They love the world and the things of the world Tenthly Lastly we are said to love the world when men are resolved to be rich and will have the world one way or other they will have the world by hook or by crook as we use to say 1 Tim. 6.9 They that Will be rich They are resolved to be rich and to have the world whatsoever comes of it These men love the world indeed Thus then you see what the world is and what it is to love the world The next thing is why we should not love the world nor the things of the world First Those that are in a state of grace be they Babes little Children young men or Fathers they should not love the world because they are called out of the world called off from the world They are called to another state to a state of grace and now their love should run out to grace and the things of another world which they are called unto They are called to be Heirs with Christ and that of Heaven Glory and Happiness and therefore they should not love the world Secondly They should not love the world because it will put them upon things that are unreasonable which will be seen in tvvo or three particulars First 'T will put you upon things that are but probable and make you leave things that are certain Now this is unreasonable to be taken off from things that are certain and to be put upon things that are but probable It is but probabâ— for any man in this world to get the world noâ— to follow hard after that which is but probable whether we shall get it or no Hag. 1.6.9 saith the Prophet ye have sown much and bring in little ye eat but ye have not enough ye drink but ye are not filled with drink ye cloath you but there is none warm and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes and v. 9. Ye looked for much and loe it came to little and when ye brought it home I did blow upon it It is a hazzard a venture to get the things of this world men may take a great deal of pains and pursue these things eagerly and yet come short of them The greatest part of men dye in their expectations they look to get these things and do not get them nay those that labour most do usually attain least And therefore as the wise man saith Eccles 9.11 I returned and saw under the Sun that the race is not to the Swift who should get the race but the swift it's most probable that the swift should get the Race But the Race is not to the swift nor the Battel to the strong neither yet bread to the wise wise men dont get bread nor understanding men get riches nor get favour to men of skill but time and chance happeneth to them all 't is uncertain whether they shall get these things or no. The World and the Devils promises are seldom made good but now for other things they are certain and therefore it puts men upon unreasonable things to leave certain things for improbable things God's promises are certain God will not fail men that take pains for true Wisdom and understanding Ask and ye shall have seek and ye shall find knock and it shall be opened unto you First seek these things for they are certain Secondly Suppose we do get the world with our endeavours yet we cannot keep them without fear of losing them Prov. 23.4 5. Wilt thou set thine Eyes upon that which is not for riches certainly make themselves wings they flee away as an Eagle towards Heaven Wilt thou set thine Eyes upon that which is not which is not considerable which is not long to continue Riches certainly makes themselves wings others need not make them wings And they flee away as an Eagle towards Heaven Prov. 27.1 Boast not thy self of to morrow for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth To morrow may be a great storm and may blow down the house a great Tempest and the Ship be overturned or driven upon an Anchor and all the
goods be lost to morrow may be a fire in thine house therefore wilt thou set thine Eyes upon that which is not But if we get grace that will continue with us if we get peace and joy none can take them from us if we get interest in Christ none can pluck us out of his hand Thirdly Suppose we do get them and we can keep them yet they will not satisfie our souls and therefore to be put upon that which will not satisfie and let go that which will satisfie the soul is unreasonable Eccles 5.10 He that loveth Silver shall not be satisfied therewith If we love the world the honours the pleasures or any thing in the world we shall not be satisfied with it for every creature hath a cranny in it yea there is a curse goes along with it In the 6. Mich. 14 15. Thou shalt eat but not be satisfied and thy casting down shall be in the midst of thee Thou shalt be cast down though thou gettest never so much And that which thou deliverest will I give up to the Sword Thou shalt sow but thou shalt not reap thou shalt tread the Olives but thou shalt not anoint thee with oyl and sweet wine but shalt not drink wine There 's a vacuum in all creatures every creature hath but dry breasts it will not yield that which we expect and look for at it There is not that in Riches and Honours or Trades or Health or Wives or Children or Estates which men expect Haman had great honour and greatness in the world as much as a man could desire yet he wants Mordecai's cruse and that doth sowâ— all unto him There is vanity and vexation in all estates and conditions Solomon hath written that Inscription upon all things here in the world Vanity of vanities all is vanity and vexation of spirit Therefore to love the world and the things of it puts us upon unreasonable things But now the things of God are better than the things of the world Fourthly it puts us upon the worst things all the things in the world are perishing things but the things of God are durable things These things are but Dogs meat as Paul calls them but the things of God and of Heaven and of the Kingdom they are excellent things There 's an excellency in grace there 's an excellency in the knowledge of Christ now we let these things go and choose the other that 's unreasonable Thirdly We should not love the world because it 's scandalous to the wayes and things of God when professors are as the men of the world it is a scandal unto the wayes of God To love it and the things of it so that nothing appears but a profession of Religion 2 Tim. 3.5 Having a form of Godliness but denying the power Who are those that have a form of Godliness but deny the power Covetous men lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God Now this brings a great scandal upon the wayes of God that men of the world say these Professors are as covetous as any love the world as much as any and early up and down late and as greedy after the things of the world as any others whatsoever what 's in their Religion so that hereby Religion suffers The Spies brought up an ill report upon the Land of Canaan So these bring up an ill report upon God and his Ordinances upon the Milk and Honey that is in that Land indeed They are ready to say such and such are great professors and make a noise in the world but Silver comes from them as a joynt from the body as blood from their veins they are so hard that there 's nothing to be gotten from them In Matth. 18.7 Woe be to the world because of offences And one of the great offences that comes is from Professors because they love the world so much Fourthly As it is scandalous so it is idolatrous when men love the world they make an Idol of the world The world hath their hearts their heart is glewed to the world Eph. 5.5 Nor covetous man who is an Idolater and in the 3d. Collos he tells you that covetousness is Idolatry We cry out of the Papists that they set up Images and Pictures and bow to them and we are greater Idolaters our selves if we love the world and the things of the world We set up Idols and Pictures in our hearts and certainly Idolatry is a great sin and an Idolater is a grievous sinner We would be loath to have that imputation fastened upon us to be Idolaters and yet if we love the world we are Idolaters and live in Idolatry Fifthly It 's a dangerous thing to love the world A man that loves the world whose bent is that way is in danger of two or three things 1. A man that loves the world by little and little grows a stranger to God a stranger to Christ we cannot at once have our eyes upon Heaven and upon Earth too When we are between two men or two mountains the nearer we draw to one the further we go off from the other So the further we go off from God the more we love the world When men do love the Cistern they leave the Fountain all the creatures they are but Cisterns and when our hearts run out to these then we leave God who is the Fountain 2. Another evil is that we grow acquainted with the worlds wayes and the wayes of worldlings we grow acquainted with their shifts and their over-reachings and their plots and designs and customs and many times with their oaths and wicked courses and we are defiled and hardened thereby 3. We expose our selves to divers Temptations and Snares which are hurtful Those that will be rich fall into a snare and into a temptation and many hurtful lusts 't is a thousand to one if we dont lose a good Conscience thereby Nay we are in danger of losing our very souls by loving the world and the things of the world In the 19. Matth. 23. Then said Jesus unto his Disciples verily I say unto you that a rich man shall hardly enter into the Kingdom of Heaven What a danger is that man in that loves the world and the things of the world in danger of losing Heaven of losing his soul what will it profit a man to win the world and lose his soul And he that loves the world he is labouring to get the world and be great in the world and so to hazzard his soul 'T is dangerous to love the world Sixthly We should not love the world because it puts us upon impossibilities Matth. 6.24 No man can serve two Masters for either he will hate the one and love the other or else he will hold to the one and despise the other Ye cannot serve God and Mamon The Lord Jesus Christ tells you 't is an impossibility to serve God and Mamon every man saith I will serve God and love God I were not
worthy to live else but if we love the world we dont serve God and love God we cannot serve God and Mamon Mamon is Riches 't is an impossible thing and therefore the Lord Christ when he was tempted by the Devil Matth. 4.10 saith he Get thee hence Satan for it is written Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him onely shalt thou serve I cannot hearken to thy Temptations to imbrace the world no 't is impossible him Onely shalt thou serve God Onely is to be served and we cannot serve two Masters whosoever loves the world hath two Masters to serve God and the world and 't is impossible to serve them both Seventhly We should not love the world because hereby we make God our enemy 'T was a sad thing when God said to Jer. Behold I am against thee I am thy enemy to have the great God the Lord of Hosts the Lord of Sabbaths the Lord of Heaven and Earth to be our Enemy O dreadful whosoever loves the world is the enemy of God in 4. James 4. Ye Adulterers and Adulteresses know ye not that the friendship of the world is enemity with God That 's more than an Enemy Enmity to God Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the Enemy of God Would you be enemies to God Love the World If you would not be enemies to God dont love the world Better have all the world our enemy than God our enemy all the world to be against us than God to be against us And in Psal 10. It 's said The covetous whom God abhors A man of a covetous heart and covetous affections is greedy of the world and loves the world God abhors him To have God our enemy is sad what will become of that man or woman that hath God for their enemy The love of the world doth make God our enemy Eighthly We should not love the world because it makes us expensive of time which is better than the world Would any man lay out Gold and Silver for Straws and Stubble and Chips and Butterflyes and such things as these Those that love the world are at greater expences than the world is worth and they give that for the world which is better than the world The best things of the world are the riches and honours and pleasures and preferments and learning and gifts but now our souls are better than all these better than the whole world What shall a man give in exchange for his soul all the world is not worth one soul one soul is worth a Million of worlds Now to lay out our time strength understandings and souls about the world and the things of the world what expences are we at we give too much for the world the world is not worthy of our affections understandings strengths hearts therefore see what the Prophet saith in Isa 55.2 he comes there with a vehement expostulation wherefore do you spend money for that which is not bread 'T is not bread when you get it It 's not any thing will satisfie or advantage your souls And you labour for that which satisfieth not So that we are at too great cost and too great expences when we love the world and labour to get the world and buy it at so dear a rate Ninthly We should not love the world because it imbaseth the understanding that most noble faculty of the soul The world doth imbase our understandings and imbase our spirits our understanding was made and given us for God and for heavenly things that we might have Communion with God by virtue of our understanding and reason and apprehension and fall in with God Now if the Body be for God as in 1 Cor. 6.13 much more the soul and the understanding is for God and for heavenly things and not for the Earth and earthly things Now the world doth imbase our understandings for what is the world it's a meer dirty thing Rom. 8.20.22 You shall see that the world is subject to corruption subject to vanity the world is in bondage to corruption and the world lyes in wickedness 1 Joh. 5.19 It lyes like a piece of Carrion in a Ditch it lyes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the wicked one in the Devil And what can the world contribute to your understanding now to do you good No it imbases the understanding and makes the soul earthly drossy muddy and miery Now will you imbase a noble Soul to a dirty World in Dan. 2. There is mention made of a great Image and what was the best of that Image the Feet are Clay and the Legs are Iron and the Thighs are Brass and the Belly is Silver and the Head is Gold the best is but Gold and Silver and they are rusty things perishing things and these do imbase a noble Heroical Soul to be bowed down to these things for the Soul becomes that which it loves if it loves the earth it is an earthly soul Tenthly The world it is of a damning nature and therefore we should not love it The world doth not onely indanger us but it drowns the soul in perdition 1 Tim. 6.9 They that will be rich fall into Temptation and a Snare and into many foolish and hurtful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition The soul is drown'd in perdition whosoever is a lover of the world is a child of the world and so is a Son of perdition It 's said of the man of sin he is a Son of perdition the world doth make men leave Christ in the 19. Matth. 22. There 's a young man comes to Christ Master what shall I do to inherit eternal life keep the Commandments saith Christ He saith unto him which Jesus said Thou shalt do no Murther Thou shalt not commit Adultery c. The young man saith unto him all these things have I kept from my youth up what lack I yet Jesus saith unto him if thou wilt be perfect go and sell that thou hast and give to the poor and thou shalt have treasure in Heaven and come and follow me but he leaves Christ he went away sorrowful saith the Text why he had great Possessions So the Scribes and Pharises they leave Christ for their Credit Joh. 12.42 43. So in the 8. Matth. 34. The Gadarens desire Christ to be gone out of their Countrey they would have none of Christ but they loved their Swine which were drown'd in the Sea and the world drown'd them in perdition Eleventhly The world is a great enemy to growth in grace and Communion with God for the world and the things of it divert the heart from spiritual things Martha is cumbred about many things and diverted from Christ and hearing of him So in Matth. 13.22 He also saith Christ that received seed among the Thornes is he that heareth the word and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word and he becometh unfruitful So that the love of the world
and the things of the world are a great enemy to growing in grace and to Communion with God It makes men to leave the best things and most excellent things even Grace it self and God himself and Communion with God A worldly heart hath little or no Communion with God If a Woman fall in love with another and commit folly with another her Husband cares not for Communion with her so is it here ye Adulterers and Adulteresses know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God Psal 73.27 They went a whoring from under God Men go a whoring from God when they love the world and dote upon the world and the things of it Now what an enemy is the world to growth in grace and Communion with God Twelfthly The world is the Devils Instrument whereby he ensnares men and women and leads them captive at his pleasure he is called the God of the world and he takes men with the world The world is his grand Instrument to take men and women In Matth. 4.8 9. he thought to catch Christ with the glory of the world The Devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain and sheweth him all the Kingdoms of the World and the glory of them Here was his last bait whereby he thought to catch Christ And saith unto him all these things will I give thee if thou wilt fall down and worship me He thought to catch Christ with it but the Lord Christ was too hard for him but 't is his Instrument whereby he catches men and women Thus he caught Eve by the fruit of the Garden thus he caught David by Bathsheba and thus he caught Achan by a Wedg of Gold and a Babilonish Garment And thus he catches men and women some by Wine some by Women some by Kingdoms and he leads them captive when he hath taken them by some bait or other of the world something or other he presents sutable to the eye to the taste to the fancy or to their opinion he presents something or other sutable by which he leads them Captive at his will 13. Lastly We should not love the world because it is that which causes men to erre and go astray from the truth and from the wayes of God and leads them to Apostacy in the end 1 Tim. 6.10 The Love of money is the root of all evil which while some coveted after they have erred from the faith Mark they have erred from the faith if we love the world we will let the faith go and truth go and the wayes of God go and so we make way for Apostacy what was it caused Spira to renounce the faith whose story you have heard of and is among you it was the love of the world of his credit and esteem and outward engagements that he had These made him to renounce the faith And so Demas 2 Tim. 4.10 Demas hath forsaken me saith Paul and embrac'd the present world What forsake Paul that great Apostle brought up at the feet of Gamaliel a man wrapt up into the third Heavens a man of that note that Paul was to forsake him for the present world yet Demas did it the Love of the world drew him off from Paul and his Doctrine and Church State and wayes the Devil by that means drew him away So then you see the reasons why we should not love the world nor the things of the world But now a Question or two comes to be answered Qu. What must we then quite cast off the world and have nothing to do with the world Anâ— I answer not so neither 't is not said here we may not have the world but we must not love the world We may have to do with the world I shall answer this question in three or four things First We may study the world make it a part of our study we may study the works of God in the world they are honourable sought out of all them that have pleasure therein we may study the world for the world will teach us many good lessons First We may study the world and come to the knowledge of the invisible things of God by these visible things Rom. 1.20 For the invisible things of him from the Creation of the world are cleerly seen being understood by the things that are made even his eternal power and God-head so that they are without excuse We may come to know there is an eternal God an Omnipotent God by these visible things and in the 12. Job 7 8. Ask now the Beasts and they shall teach thee and the fowls of the Air and they shall tell thee or speak to the Earth and it shall teach thee and the Fishes of the Sea shall declare unto thee These will teach us something the Beasts and the Fowls and the Earth and the Fishes will teach us the invisible things of God and instruct us in those things may do us good There 's something to be learned from these therefore we may study these God's power wisdom goodness mercy are all learned by the creatures Secondly The creatures do teach us prudence and providence Go to the Ant thou Sluggard he layes up in Summer against Winter Thirdly The creatures will teach us to do the will of God Psal 119.91 They Continue to this day according to thy Ordinances for all are thy Servants They all serve thee The Sun and Moon and Stars they all serve the Lord and the Winds do serve the Lord Psal 148.8 Stormy winds fulfil his Word The very winds do fulfill the word of God and obey his voice and do what he commands them to do They teach us therefore to do the will of God shall the waves and winds and all the creatures obey the Lord and shall not man obey the Lord for whom all these were made Fourthly They teach us to wait upon God 145. Psal 15. The eyes of all wait upon thee that thou mayest give them their meat in due season the fowls of the heaven wait upon God the very Leviathan in the Sea waits upon God for its meat in due season And what shall we be carking and caring about what shall we eat and what shall we drink and wherewith shall we be cloathed who feeds the Wild fowl in the air the Lord feeds them and therefore they teach us to wait upon God without carking and being distracted and desponding Fifthly The creatures do teach us to expect glorious liberty from the hand of God Rom. 8.14.21 The earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the Sons of God and v. 21. They wait to be delivered into the glorious liberty of the Children of God there is a glorious liberty for the Children of God to come to they may be in bondage and are at this day but there is a liberty and a glorious liberty and shall not we wait for it when the whole
creation waits for it Sixthly Lastly The creature teaches us to know times and seasons the Stork the Crane and the Swallow they know their times and seasons and shall not we know times and part seasons We are therefore to make it a part of our study to study the world and the creatures Secondly We may pray for the things of this world Prov. 30.8 Agur prayes there Remove far from me vanity and lyes give me neither poverty nor riches feed me with food convenient for me you see here he prayes for food convenient So in Luke 11. Christ teaches us to pray Give us day by day our daily bread that is things needful for this life needful for my state and condition and relation that I am in Thirdly We must follow a calling in this world and use lawful means to obtain the things of the world 2 Thes 3.10.12 The Apostle orders there If any man work not neither should he eat Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ that with quietness they work and eat their own bread The Lord commands and orders it so men are to have a calling and to follow a calling and to be diligent in their calling 1 Cor. 7.33 He that is Married careth for the things of this world how he may please his Wife He ought to take care and to please his wife and provide for his wife and Children 1 Tim. 5.8 He that provides not for his own and especially for those of his own house he hath denyed the Faith and is worse than an Infidel and they ought so to labour as they may have wherewith to relieve others Eph. 4.28 Let him that stole steal no more but rather let him labour working with his hands the thing which is good that he may have to give to him that needeth Men ought to have a calling and follow a calling and so to follow it that they may not live upon others and be idle but have to relieve others and help others that are impotent or aged and sick and weak or made poor by the providence of God Acts 20.35 It is more blessed to give then to receive Men should labour therefore to have that so they may give rather than receive Fourthly We may use the world it 's not said here use not the world but love not the world nor the things of it 1 Cor. 7.31 And they that use this world as not abusing it Men indeed do abuse the world to gratifie their lusts and to satisfie the flesh as in the next verse All that is in the world the lust of the flesh the lust of the eyes and the pride of life is not of the Father but is of the world we may use the world but not abuse it Qu. Now the next question is when doth a man so use the world as not to abuse it An. I answer first a man doth not abuse the the world but use it well and right when he uses all things for that end that God hath made them Now in Prov. 16.4 you shall see for what end God hath made the world He hath made all things for himself God hath made all things and all things in this world for himself for his own praise and honour and glory and therefore in the 1 Cor. 10.31 Whether ye eat or drink or whatsoever ye do do all to the Glory of God Let God be glorified in your eating and drinking in your recreations in all your actions in all your sufferings do all to the glory of God for God hath made all things for himself and in 1 Cor. 6. Ye are not your own ye are bought with a price glorifie God in your body and in your spirit which are Gods When you use your understandings your affections your speech your eyes your hands your feet when you use all to the glory of God Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity when your feet run the way of Gods Commandments when you use all for the glory of God then you dont abuse the world but use it a right way Secondly When we walk with God in the use of the world and the things of it and answer Gods call It 's said of Enoch he walked with God three hundred years he walked with God in his calling we are but Stewards and God calls upon us ever and anon to do this and to do that he calls upon us to give to the poor we answer Gods call So when God calls upon us to mourn we mourn when he calls us to Sympathize with those that suffer we Sympathize when he calls us to rejoyce we rejoyce when we abridge our selves of our liberty at Gods call now we use the world aright Thirdly We use the world aright when we use the world and the things of the world to promote spiritual good in our selves or others Rom. 8.28 All things work together for good to them that love God and are called according to his purpose Now when I use the creature to promote my spiritual good the good of my soul to get more grace to further my peace and comfort and content and communion with God I use the word aright I use it well Matth. 5.16 Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorifie your Father which is in Heaven When I use the world so that I make my light to shine by it and so to shine that men may see my good works when I do good with my estate that men may glorifie God now I use my estate aright When I make friends of unrighteous Mammon that 's using the world aright to promote spiritual good Many use their estates to crush others and to be revenged and to have their lusts satisfied and so they promote the interest of Satan this now is an ill use of the world and the things of the world Fourthly Then I use the world aright when I do use the world on the by and I mind the things of God and of my Soul as my main business The world is to be minded but on the by and the things of God and of the Soul are to be my main business here in the world Wherefore hath God set me in this world is it to get riches and honours and to have my pleasures and to gratifie my lusts No but to glorifie his name and to work out my own salvation now when I make this my main business I use the world aright Therefore saith Christ Labour not for the meat that perisheth but for that meat which endureth to everlasting life which the Son of man shall give unto you for him hath God the Father Sealed Let that be your main business to get the bread that endureth to everlasting life to get grace to work out your salvation to get assurance and clear evidences for an eternal good condition this must be your main scope and business here in the world but many look at heaven