Let it likewise comfort all poor souls that need it both as concerning the propensness of God to love them and his constance of love toward them whom hee alreadie loved If thou had'st procured this love well migh'st thou fear the loss of it But if insinite goodness and a bredth incomprehensible were the fountain of it I speak to a poor soul under the condition loden or lost what doubt is there of his loveing thee If hee freely first mean't it and cut off the way of justice and the bridg of vengethat hee might not pass it over why should'st thou think hee should destroy his own work why should hee not bee willing to love thee whatsoever thy sin bee and haveing loved thee eternally what shall or can enter into him to change this principle in him or caus him to repent Vse V. This Doctrine serveth especially to stay the heart of a distressed wretch in the sight of his miserie by this light and door of hope Oh! bless that fountain which could not bee dried up by sin Wonder why Angels were left remediless not wee Ponder it in our deep fears and remember the Gospel of deliverance is from God as well as the law of terror Despair not the Lord cutt's of none who cut not off themselvs Vse VI. It teache's us to gather to our selvs a strong bottom against that slavish fear and emnitie of our spirit against God Why oh man if God were as thou framest him where had thy hope been Darest thou call him an hard Master the adversarie who of his own will and love cut off his own plea and devised a deliverie when no man or Angel could dream of it Vse VII Let it teach the Ministers of the Gospel to look to the order and substance of their teaching The order not to mis-match these two doctrines teaching this before the other bee well grounded For the substance takeing heed least they defraud the soul of this point when shee is brought low Vse VIII Let this bee a mean to carrie a poor heart quite beyond and out of it self The meditation of this freedom of God's purpose should ravish the heart and carrie it out of the baseness of self and self-ends into the stream of this Sovereign will and glorie of God It should bee above our own salvation Let us diligently trie our own spirit from the true spirit of Grace by this mark Further wee must observ that GOD in accomplishing man's deliverance out of this miserable estate is also the most free and sovereign Worker and applier of this deliverance to the soul For what els should it profit us that hee hath devised such a way as Christ and such means as the Gospel beleeved except hee took it upon him to possess the soul of it also Vse I. This will teach us to conceiv in what sens the Lord doth offer us his Christ command us to believ and promise us to eas us if wee hunger mourn bee poor in spitit to wit that hee is far from intimateing any power or will in us to concur with him in the least of these or to asscribe ought to him that willeth or runneth but rather to shew what those excellent Graces are which hee freely worketh in all whom hee will save Vse II. This will help us to judg who those parties are in all likelihood whom God will concur with and assist in the use of means tending to deliverance Such is the base slaverie of man that hee distrust's him sooner in no one thing then in that where in God offer 's himself to the soul As appear's in Manoah's and Gedeon's example For though hee bee free and tied to none yet I say with reverence hee tie's himself graciously to such as do seek him not themselvs for els should hee contradict his own ends which is blasphemous Vse III. To instruct us how wee may so go to work io the use of means as our own conscience may not accuse us for takeing God's office of freedom and sovereigntie out of his hands The honest soul sets up God in his own way of Christ in his own ends shee seek's the glorie of his wisdom power mercie and freedom who sought out such a deliverance and work 's it in her and all that concern her faith and conditions of it All seeking grace for a man 's own happiness is poor seeking for the present till God wod work better and all seeking for self must bee from self and by self But when the boat is tied to the ship of God's glorie shee need 's no more rowing of herself then the boat doth it 's enough for her that shee is set upon such a stream and tiâ—d to such a ship as can carrie her of it self and drown all her own welfare in the Lord. ARTIC II. The onely instrument of working out this deliverance is the Lord JESUS NO other name under heaven is given to save us by way of mediation or instrument but hee Act. 4. 12. God set him forth as a propitiation that all might see the salvation of God The father of our Lord Jesus Christ was content to part with his own Son and to make him the worker of this deliverance rather then it should fail in the execution thereof For in him the Lord purposed as in a mirror to declare the infinire grace of his election the freedom of the offer the efficacie of calling faith sanctification and eternal life all beeing established in him and nothing toward salvation subsisting without him therefore at the end of each gift Christ is mentioned as the gift of that gift Rom. 7. 24 25. 1 Tim. 1. 10. all the whole frame of grace and godliness is founded and sustained by him The whole work of his Mediation may bee referred to two heads 1. The qualification of his person to bee in case to satisfie 2. The actual performance of the satisfaction it self 1. The qualification of his person hath two parts Vnion and Vnction Vnion comprehend's three distinct things First The incarnation and flesh of Christ 2ly The Divinitie of Christ 3ly The joining of these two natures into one person or the assumeing of the nature of flesh unto the second person of the son of God not to swallow it up but to retain still his own distinct nature yet within union 2. By Vnion is mean't the calling or separation of the Lord Jesus beeing thus united in his natures to bee a meet Mediator which was the sanctification of him in time actually to the work of a Mediator to which God before all time had deputed him The Performance it self stand's of two parts 1. Either Meriting this price for all the Elect 2. Or actual applying it to them The Meriting part consist's of a double performance both of actual obedience to the Law and suffering the curs required thereby and due to sin And hee performed these two by way of real suretiship and no otherwise for takeing upon him the Person of a
wel-fare Shall a beleever rest in his pardon more then in the righteousness of God which may make them accepted and beloved No the Liverie they wear is The Lord our Rightousness Vse V. Let this rais the price of the Lord Jusus's love in the hearts of all his children the more cost the more love Vse VI. How should it teach us to abhor all enemies of the Cross Vse VII If this death of the Lord Jesus bee our satisfaction and the freedom from sin and curs our pardon peace and heaven where is the dwelling of our hearts upon it the delight of our souls in it how is it that each base shadow of joy can affect us when this cannot if our hope were here onely in Christ of all others wee were most miserable Nothing here can keep thee from miserie what is then thy happiness This satisfaction onely Let it bee all in all to thee the seasoning of thy blessings supplie of all wants Vse VIII Especially let the chief stream of this point's use bee this First to all Ministers to teach it and the people to applie it to themselvs in all their fears yea the greatest agonie yea death it self Whatsoever thou foregoest hold this Stand with open face and hold this mirror to poor finners that they may behold the LORD our Righteousness Secondly to all People Consider yee who have truly felt that Serpent of the Law sting yee mortally in the other part com applie the remedie in this look upon this brazen Serpent and live and first I say feel the strength Secondly take hold of it and make peace for the former Know without a promise from God there is no peace unto you and promise there can bee none without satisfaction This is the strength of an offer and a promise Anger abide's in God without this price and thou art but as the bush and drie stubble before it Bee assured then no promise speak's to thy soul and to thy heart except it hath this strength of Christ in whom each one is Yea and Amen Hence com's all wrath to bee turned into love and this will make God willing to offer and faithful to perform els not That bottomless depth of mercie in thy Judg and Enemie cannot bee gaged without this bucket by this thou maiest reach it Again as this is sufficient strenth so it is that onely which can redeem thee Hee redeemed us not with pearls but with the precious blood of the Lamb Wilt thou go to thy duties performances grace Alas they have no blood of expiation in them all these will say satisfaction is not in mee where then surely here onely Vse IX If so abandon all and cling to this onely Take hold of this sufficient and onely sufficient strength as the Prophet bid's thee Whatever enemie pursue thee at the heels this is thy refuge that here thou maiest have strong consolation in all fears against all enemies fearest thou the sins of thy youth or age The Lord Jesus was conceived in the Womb that the infant Elect which never saw light migt bee saved by him Youth notwithstanding her disobediene age for all her rebellion might bee forgiven Do thy moral sins of murther stealth uncleanness swearing distress thee This Lord Jesus fulfilled all righteousness for thee Do thy spiritual wickednesses oprress thee an unbelieving secure hard heart by the contempt of the gospel The Lord Jesus suffered the powring out of his blood to break the heart of those that pierced him upon the Cross Art thou poor Thy satisfier was so Rich Hee was the Lord of all Are thy sins great Hee died for Noah's drunkenness Lot's incests David's adulterie Small Lo even thy least vain word cost him his life-blood But perhaps not som sins but perhaps sin it self and the bodie of death trouble 's thee Hee was made sin that knew none Oh! then whatsoever sin can say yet go on to the throne of grace as Heb. 4. 16. and look to finde mercie in time of need Doth the Divell gates of Hell Conscience or the Justice of GOD threaten thee They cannot save for sin if they do thy conscience hath her answer to God against all And so plead this thy pardon to the Lord. Say thus Oh Father even thou cuttest off thy plea in giving this price in accepting it in offring of it to mee J Lord am here before thee pinched and damned by my sin if thou doest reckon it to mee Oh! Lord I put this blessed price beetween mee and wrath Lord have no power to denie it mee Even I if I were left with an Orphan's estate could not keep it from him Lord I am fatherless my orphan's stock is in thy keeping thou took'st it to bestow it Lord let my Soul have strong consolation in her seeking refuge to thee becaus this price warrant 's mee VI. Branch The Conquest of Christ Hee overcame all enemies rose again from the dead and gave a full beeing to the merit of his satisfaction Conceiv of it in three estates of Christ 1. Before his death Though the Lord Jesus was not exempt from mortalitie and infirmitie but subject to all through our sin yet hee conquered in suffering for he endured no more then himself pleased 2. At his death Although our Mediator must needs drink that cup which his Father gave him yet hee was a conqueror then too and above any enemy 3. After death when they had got his dead bodie into the grave hee resumed his bodie and soul again and gave them another blow wors then all hee rose again conquered their malice never more to bee conquered to die no more Act. 2. 24. Rom. 1. 3. Vse I. This inform's us of the assurance which a poor soul under a condition of grace may take to it self in pleading her part in this satisfaction For by his conquest hee sent his Church into a lively possession of all his merits Let us therefore com with the assurance of faith to the throne of grace Heb. 10. 22. saying Lord give the poor needing servant the fruit of the Lord Jesus his obedience the power of his conquest the full efficacie of his redemption Oh let us not want the strength of this perswasion but press it and say Lord I com to thee in the merit of a Christ not dead but alive a Conqueror that made good to mee all his sufferings by his victorie and gave all his enemies a dead blow when they looked all to have overthrown him Vse II. Sundrie consolations Touching Faith how many are the fears that a poor soul hath that shee shall never bee able to believ Within herself what weakness forgetfulness melancholy guilt of conscience through corruption and dead heart slavish and fearful presumptuous hardned by the deceit of sin unworthiness neglect of the season of grace this bodie of death opposing all savor of goodness and so even death of bodie make 's them afraid they may die ere they believ So without them what temptations against
them duties will give them strength to perform them and make them easie Matth. 11. 30. Priviledges of conversation either concern common life or conditions of men therein Common life as marriage liberties companie solitariness or the like manifold entercourses Conditions of men as their callings wherein God hath set them their places of government or subjection Magistracie or Ministrie their relations in familie or otherwise Parents Masters c. to all which God's people have peculiar promises that God will furnish them with gifts whom hee call's to any function Hee will caus a voice behinde to say This is the Way walk in it Esa 30. And according to the changes and conditions of life which hereafter shall befall the Lord will pick out meet grace and bee the same God to them in all 5. Priviledges of the saints in death they are pretious in death to the Lord Psal 116. Rom. 8. vlt. Nothing shall separate them from God's love That a good life shall bring a good death That they shall die in peace Psal 37. 37. That the day of death is better then the day of life Eccl. 7. 1. 6. Priviledg after death is the greatest of all that eternal fruition of God and all that hee hath prepared for his elect in his own presence things which neither eie hath seen ear heard nor entred into the heart of man to conceiv Vse I. It convinceth and reprooveth all such prophane ones as cannot endure to hear there should bee any admitting of difference between professors of the Gospel one or other What place is there for priviledges if all bee alike Indeed faith purifying the heart taketh away all difference Act. 15. but till then what difference is greater then to have hope and none to swear and to fear an oath Again this convinceth all hypocrites who mutter that God put 's no difference between good and bad in matter of rewards Esay 58. Mal. 3. Matth. 25. they are brought in takeing God for an hard master they fasted but God regarded not they were zealous but it was bootless But O yee hypocrites where is the fault Are God's waies unequal or yours Beware when God make's up his jewels it shall appear whether hee have a discerning eie and to your cost yee shall then know it Vse II. In due time get into this Corporation of God and buy your freedom of heaven Rest not in your outward priviledges of hearing of common faith of the sacraments know it herein God put 's not the chief difference Get the priviledg of these priviledges the marrow of this bone the understanding of the mysterie of Christ and your part in that which the world know's not nor shall it ever bee taken from you Vse III. Of Instruction to the Ministers of God that they preach God's Word with wisdom and putting difference God exclude's none I grant yet hee receiveth none to such priviledges without the condition of faith and the new creature Open not the door of God's priviledges for dogs to enter in at Remember that sweet promise If thou shalt separate to mee the pretious from the vile then thou shalt bee as my mouth Jer. 15. 19. Ezek. 22. 6. Vse IV. Of Exhortation to a double dutie First Consider seriously of these bequests and legacies of Christ unto thee whereof any one might make thee faithful How should that hope of glorie after your toil and travel ended encourage you But especially let not death bee unwelcom as that old man said Thus long have I served God and it irketh mee not to die for I have had a good Master Secondly Let it hearten us to our work to see what good vails wee have better then all the wages of an hireling Priviledges are commonly held by Service Honors are best maintained by loyaltie by labor and diligence Therefore hold our selvs close to our holie conversation and walking with God by such priviledges Vse V. Let all free of God's Companie bee well seen in the enfranchisements and honors contained in this charter of promises and priviledges Bee well versed in this argument When the vilest ride on hors-back and Princes go on foot as lackeys those that swear and prophane the sabbath and maintain mis-rule rule the rost and seem to bee the onely men when enemies to power and sinceritie in all places bear sway wee had need to bee well resolved of it that our Priviledges are peculiar to our selvs and wee would not change portions with them Use of all ARTIC VII The Truth as it is in JESUS require's all Beleevers to bee holy EPh. 4. 23. If yee have learned the Truth as it is in JESVS put off the Old man and put on the New As wee have felt JESUS in the truth of his Reconcilation so let us put on the same Lord JESUS in the truth of Renovation for the one intimate's the other Then wee put on the Lord Jesus when his love is put into and upon our souls to enlarge and widen them to go thorow our conversation with holie resolution Weigh well the scope of the whole Treatise Surely by the way of sin and of the Law to carrie thee to faith in the Lord Jesus that the truth of Jesus may lead thee to an holy conversation This is Christ Jesus the mysterie of Godliness to feel such perswasion of undecaying sweetness such presence of this persuasion of love as might tell thy dearest lusts Rom. 6. 21. What fruit have I had of thee yea make thee stink before them as he said of David that thou might'st bee Christ's servant for ever and that hee might do all thy works pray read meditate hear do suffer obey in thee in his strength walk in all holy conversation Esa 26. 12. Vse II. To this end bee admonished not to rest onely in this that thou hast faith except thou hast also learned the truth of faith as it is in Jesus As thou hast received from the Lord Jesus so walk Remember to stir up the spirit of Christ in thee Vse III. Watch to thy self duly and daily and to this work of Conversation and way that God hath chalked out for thee Do as those Numb 9. 19. who attended the watch of the Lord day and night readie from the least warning of the cloud or the fire from the Tabernacle to remoov and upon the first rest hereof to stand still If God hath once purged thy foul heart and seasoned it for thee keep it so hee did it not without much ado that thou should'st undoo it all at once by thy eas and sloth world pleasure weariness and the like Let the wise Virgins take heed of nodding in this night of the age wee live in let them watch to their work let them see how they grow downward in rooting and setlednes upward in fruitfulness skill eas and experience resolution and full purpose of heart to cleav to God And by so doing wee shall watch to the coming also of our Lord Jesus to translate us from this our poor walking with him to bee with him and to bee rid of all our clogs which hinder us from so doing and go from this our doing God's will as it is in heaven to
works commending her to God but as sparkles of the Spirit of Grace which by these steps drawe's her home to God becaus hee will save her Vse I. Terror to all that dream of their estate to bee good when yet they lie in their sins as whole men they think Christ is offered them barely Bee reconciled to God bee they what they will bee And in this they are the more strengthened by the opinion of such Divines as dislike these preparations The which opinion as it take's away the benefit of triall and comfort from many poor souls who would fain finde the least seed of faith to bee begun in them and keep 's them long at a dead point with themselvs for lack of faith it self so it nuzzle's many hypocrites in a conceit of themselvs that bee they what they will yet they may be reconcil'd at their pleasure Again all such as remain blinde and dead-hearted blocks in the midst of this grace of the Gospel they see no light nor feel any warmth therefrom but still are cold Snakes and are neither affected with good nor evil Where is the hope of your faith where no dram of the condition of it is wrought Thirdly to all dalliers with the season of this grace and putting off this rich offer of God pinn'd on their sleev thinking they might have God tied to them and becaus they have tasted of his grace with the tip of their tongue therefore they may have it at their command wheras haveing once despised it they grow further and further from it daily They should have learned that the condition of faith is the preparation to faith Dallie with the one and forego the other Fourthly to all hypocrites that rest in som appeareance of these preparations not wrought in them by the spirit of Grace but from their own principles which appear's in this that if they bee reprooved they cannot endure it dare not enter into the triall of their mournings desires and proov them to com from the spirit of Grace but love their own eas better then the rules of God and while their own pangs last who but they but when their own sparkles bee out then full of sorrow No constancy plainness self-denial can bee found in them grace is nothing worth of it self except som mixture of their own concur with it A sign they have felt little sweetness in it and therefore are far from beleeving it Vse II. Let this doctrine remove those fears objections which arise in weak consciences as touching the greatness measure of preparations But let them know first that in these stand not their happiness but in Christ beleeved in Secondly if they had these in the measure they would they would bee readie to rest too much in them as Peter in his tabernacles Thirdly that the truth of these not the greatness hath the promise even the smoaking flax and the bruised reed Yea commonly such honor God soonest by beleeving And with these cautions let them go on and prosper Vse III. Exhortation to poor souls whom God hath truly brought under the condition of faith to bless him for that handsel I say first to acknowledg it great mercie although they have many doubts and fears and distempers to hinder them and the divel to com between cup and lip that they might not drink of that cup of salvation Oh remember it 's mercie to bee brought within these suburbs of heaven Bee thankfull for any thing especially a pledg of faith nay bee humble and say Lord what ever is not hell is from mercie I will rather comfort my self that the Lord meane's mee the fulness of this earnest rather then grudg that presently I have not my will and so wax wearie of waiting And secondly this should expell slavish fear from them becaus the Lord hath given them a condition of faith Beware yee do not abuse it Pledges are well kept by honest men not spoiled Do not tempt God by your distrust nor suffer the good preparations of the Spirit to die or wane through boldness loosness worldliness pleasures least God make them as bitter to you as Samsons dallying with his harlot Vse IV. It discover's the ignorance and vanitie of such Ministers and people who though they bee not leavened with Poperie yet partly from confounding mourning and sorrow with repentance and partly from blindeness and error of the common sort teach and think that repentance must goe before faith and here they flourish exceedingly for say they What doth not Peter say Repent and believ Think you that Christ will dwel where corruption is Must wee not repent becaus the kingdom of heaven is near Will God meddle with such as live in their sins Hence they mightily urge mortification of Lusts before wee dare apply Christ c. But Oh yee blinde guides of the blinde See you not how under colour of your devotion you overthrow Christ What use is there of Christ if our sins before wee believ must first bee mortified shall Christ die for sin alreadie mortified can wee dispose our selvs to grace when as all that is in us is graceless No Christ must bee not onely before our mortification but also before our believing yea before our preparation to beleiv Oh! but John the Baptist bid's the people to repent becaus the Kingdom was at hand I answer This objection com's from meer ignorance of the text For that Repentance there signifieth onely a penitencie of heart irking the soul for sin And yet Christ onely is the worker of it And it is a preparing grace of the Kingdom raised in the hearts of all that God will save It confound's the order of sanctification w th the order of Regeneration For although Mortification go before Vivification yet repentance never goe's before faith Now to cast the soul upon a promise or to believ is the last work of the calling spirit of God whereby an humbled sinner doth cast himself upon this word of God Bee reconciled com and drink com and I will eas you or the like offer will charge or promise of God for pardon and life This point is of all others the chief and therefore I chuse to refer it to this place as the use of all that hath been spoken jointly considered for wee know a five-fold cord is not easily broken and yet no one twist thereof might well bee spared Five divers grounds have been handled in this second part 1. God the Father our enemie hath cut off his plea and found out our deliverance 2. The Lord Jesus accordingly hath satisfied the justice of God that mercie might have free cours by the procuring of a righteousness 3. God the Father accept's this for a poor sinner as if hee in person had satisfied and therefore offer 's it to the soul most unfeignedly without hook or crook 4. Hee offer 's him not nakedly but with all his rich furniture to draw the soul to fasten upon him 5. Hee offer 's