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A96034 A glasse and salve for professors held to them. By William Voile minister of the Gospel. Voile, William. 1668 (1668) Wing V749A; ESTC R186085 101,652 114

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and servants in the way wherein they should go Prov. 22. 6. as if they did believe the Devils old saying A young Saint and an old Devil O how careless many Professors be of preparing those who shall survive them to hold forth the name of Christ in a holy manner to his honour and the credit of his Gospel 2. Many Professors do suffer very much frothy vain idle foolish corrupt communication not tending to edification to proceed out of their mouths 3. Many Professors do profane and mispend much of the holy Salbaths For which sin and Idolatry especially as the Jews about two hundred years since have said the Lord did reject their Fore-fathers so that as they then said they could not take the Christians of those days to be the servants of the true Messias because they did live in those two sins 4. Many Professors be so full of pride under this Dispensation that by reason of it and the fruits of it men of knowledge can hardly get charity enough to think there is any fear of God before their eyes 5. It is a common thing with Professors to be silent at the sins one of another Which five things joyned together do amount to a foul heap of iniquity Part. 8. I come now to some down-right Reasons for this my belief that the greatest cause of the afflictions peculiar to Professors and the greatest impediment of their prayers for some good things expedient for them u the sins and iniquities of Profess●rs R. 1. And first Gods Kingdom Wisdom and Power being such as it is and all mens hearts and times being in his hand Prov. 21. 1. Psal 31. 15. he might have established our King in all his Dominions and yet given us favour with him and his Parliaments as Gen. 39. 4 5 6 21 22 23. Dan. 1. 6. and bowed their hearts to confirm us in the places which we held 1659. with the means and liberty which we then enjoyed excepting the Kings revenue and some high Offices Neither hath it been at any time such a hard thing for God to better our Estates instead whereof notwithstanding Gods-love to his children which passeth knowledge Eph. 3. 19 and that the effectual fervent prayer of the righteous availeth much with him Jam. 5. 16. c. yet it hath pleased him in his infinite wisdom to afflict Professors in divers kinds wherein he hath not afflicted others yea to afflict us in our worldly Estates and to encrease the means of growing rich to others yea to augment the worldly Estates of others by diminishing ours to deprive us of our Benefices Offices and Preferments to make room for others yea ye know that since 1659. notwithstanding we have carryed our selves not seditiously but peaceably and quietly yet our condition is by degrees and steps grown from good to bad and from bad to worse Which sorry changes of our condition to what others may make a shift to impute them I know not but in my judgment they are to be ascribed to our sins who are called Professors of whom I believe many are not yet born again and many Sons and Daughters have and do by their sins provoke our heavenly Father to chastise and correct them For R. 1. Although the Lord scourgeth every Son and Daughter whom he receiveth Prov. 3. 12. Heb. 12. 6. yet he doth not afflict or grieve so much as one man or woman meerly for his pleasure Lam. 3● 33. and when he judgeth and afflicteth any of his children his judgements are right he afflicts them in faithfulness Psal 119. 57. because according to his just and wise Method of making men meet to partake of the inheritance of the Saints in light Col. 1. 12 13. there is as Peter calls it 1 Pet. 1. 6. need either because they be not duly careful and diligent to find out their sins or because they be so far from hating sin as they ought as not to be throughly careful to humble themselves for and to cease from some of those sins whereof they be guilty Exod. 34. 6 7. or else for that they do not use due care and diligence to reach and attain some other end which they ought to seek if this clause doth contain any thing which the former clauses do not R. 2. A sinful agreement between Professors About forty years since if the Commonalty did mis-behave themselves and the Magistrates did not punish them for it nor the Ministers reprove them for it this they who were taught of God did look on as a fore runner of Gods wrath even as a sign that it was near at hand The reason of which opinion must of necessity be this that such a conspiracy is too like Jer. 5. 30 31. and doth provoke the LORD of Hosts unto great wrath Acts 5. 9. Which if it be true as I believe it is then we may well receive this for a truth that the nearer we Professors come to such a hellish consent the more probable it is that the wrath of God will seize upon us if it be not already upon us and if it be that this our consent hath brought it upon us or at least as much of it as is peculiar to us And the very truth is the sinful agreement which is between many of us is too like such a conspiracy as the holy Prophet Jeremy in that Chapter ver 30. calls a wonderful and horrible thing For 1. In the time of the Interruption I took notice wherein O. Cromwel and our Parliaments Armies Commitees Commissioners and Assembly of Divines and particular persons Round-heads c. did miss the right and did what they ought not to have done among other things over-recompensing their members for their losses one Father and Son as I have heard with 5000 l. for the pure loss of about or less than 5 l. 2. Since that time the Covetousness Pride and Iniquity of many Professors hath been very considerable 1. Whereof hath been no small part the Fashionmonging of Professors and particularly the gay Lady-like attire and ornaments of shop-keeping women in London But it is said concerning them that London doth allow what other Towns do not It may be so howsoever and although London hath been my Benefactor yet I shall not justifie the proudest of the Londoners in taking an Ell yea or half an Ell or a quarter of an Ell when they be allowed but an inch especially at such a time of Adversity as this is I had rather they would consider seriously concerning Apparel and Ornaments that which is written by Paul 1 Tim. 2. 9 10. and by Peter 1 Pet. 3. 3 4 5. praying and taking good heed lest they be weighed in the ballances and found wanting Dan. 5. 27. it may be to be nothing Gal. 6. 3. lest London be reduced to the state of some other Cities and that they fare as was prophesied Zeph. 1. 8. Es 3. 17. to the 24. 2. The children and servants of many religious Families
which hath been upon us and our Brethren by Nation and Religion the Pestilence the Sword the horrible burning of Houses and the losses and sufferings which are peculiar to professors as also the late prodigies are Messengers sent of God not only to warn men out of their sins but even to fear and drive them out Es 26. 9. 27. 7 8. 9. Psal 94. 12. 119. 67 71. which Messengers and him who sent them if we hear not this our turning of a deaf ear to our Creator and most bountiful Benefactor and to his Messengers whatsoever the sins be to which we cleave adds much to them and greatly provokes Gods wrath against us Quest But what if much of a mans disposition and behaviour under the rods of God be point blanck contrary to that which God calls for by them and even to that good whereof afflictions are not much less than a natural cause and which men in such cases are somewhat apt to do As if when men are cast out of a sufficient Estate into a very low Estate and without any certainty of a competent maintenance for them and their Wives and Children if then they should be very high-minded and full of mirth and jollity Answ Verily I cannot but think this cross carriage doth provoke the great God who formed all things greatly Beloved This is a day of trouble and of treading down and of perplexity by the Lord GOD of Hosts in one of the valleys of Vision wherein the Lord GOD of Hosts calls to weeping and to mourning the Prophet adds and to baldness and to girding with sackcloth And behold joy and gladness Es 22. 5 12 13. Plainly God hath brought many of us into a low Estate of whom some are not lowly they do not lie low●● it He hath deprived many of us of much of our worldly Estates and brought some of us out of a high and plentiful Estate into a very low and needy Estate without a certainty of worldly things necessary for us and our Wives and Children by which he calls not only for the humbling of the body but also for humbleness of mind and for mourning and weeping yea men are apt in such cases to mourn and weep and to speak as if their hearts were not haughty yea some of us have bewailed our low Estate to men it may be to God also and spoken of Imprisonments Oppression c. And yet notwithstanding all this behold joy and gladness in abundance smiling and laughing and jollity and pride as if they were sure of a very high estate to morrow Jam. 4. 13 14. Prov. 27. 7. And Non-conforming Ministers as if they had been counselled by Balaam a little before the burning of London apparalled and adorned instead of plain Yeomen like gallants and such a Ministers wife not vouchsafeing to take the pains to teach her own children Was that so because that part of h●r gown which did sweep the dust was longer than the whole tail of a Pea●hen or because she was proud 5. By transgressing a holy just and good Law and trespassing against the God of heaven and earth who gives us all the good things which we have by polluting his blessed Name and doing all the evil works before mentioned Marg. 60. for a very trisle as a very little profit peradventure not worth a half-penny or a very little ease or a very little pleasure unless our hearts be monstrous base or to please the company it may be profane wretches And this many of us do not duly consider how great an aggravation it is 6. By sinning without any occasion or any Tempter excepting our selves and the pride folly and naughtiness of our own hearts As that Minister who kept his stock of pride when he lost his Benefice although he had not learning enough of any sort for a wise man to be proud of it Occasions of sinning do call for milder dealing See the Geneva Tr. Gal. 6. 1. 7. By not making use of the power which we have in resisting evil examples and evil counsel and inward motions before they break out in our speeches and actions by not reforming those things which are in our power as our tongues and bodies by not abstaining from the sins which it is in our power to abstain from as vain idle foolish unseemly speeches and the like and by not doing the duties which it is in our power to perform as the instruction and correction of our children and servants and the like and although very much of this might be done without any considerable inconvenience Many of us do not so much of it as might be so done 8. By making a small matter of great sins and of small sins nothing 9. By making a light matter or nothing of our own sins because other folks be greater sinners than we 10. By slighting or worse than slighting the counsel admonitions and rebukes of God by his Preachers and our illightened and awakened consciences and by quenching the spirit 1 Thes 5. 19. Is this our making no good use of such things as these nothing Is thy keeping of thy sins against God's Word in the mouths of the Preachers and the checks of thine own conscience and the good desires and purposes stirred up in thy heart by the good Spirit of God is such a keeping of Gods enemies so near thy heart nothing How long shall he who is the Judge of all the earth stand at the door of thy heart knocking for admission Rev. 3. 20. 11. By the repugnancy opposition disagreement or whatsoever it should be called which is between our exorbitant behaviour and things whereby we should be moved to behave our selves better Of which things 1. One is the high and great dignities to which we are exalted especially to be children of God members of Christ's mystical body of his flesh and of his bones Eph. 5. 30. Christ's Friends Joh. 15. 14 15. and coheirs with Christ of the Kingdom of heaven Rom. 8. 16 17. For what said Nehemiah Chap. 6. 11 Should such a man as I flee Who is there that being as I am would go into the Temple to save his life I will not go in And so should we say should such as we are sin against our good God who is there that being as I am would sin to save his life By God's help I will not sin Qu. But what if we do but think we are such Ans Yet we should abstain from sinful practises the rather in regard of the high conceit which we have of our spiritual estate and if we do not that conceit doth exaggerate our iniquity 2. The promises vows covenants leagues and it may be oaths general and particular which we have made or entred into to God or men or both especially if without compulsion Deut. 23. 21. Eccl. 5. 4. Psal 66. 13 14. Psal 119. 106. Psal 50. 5. especially some of our covenants 3. Our specious and large forms of godliness 2 Tim. 3. 5.