of which when they awake they shall be admitted and receiued into the presence of God in heauen Secondly we are to consider that there be three degrees of eternall life The first where of is in this world before we die and it is then when we beginne to repent and beleeue in Christ and to be assured in conscience that God the father is our father Christ our redeemer and the holy Ghost our comforter For this is eternall life to know God and him whome he hath sent Iesus Christ. The next degree is in death for death cuts off all sinne originall and actuall death frees vs from all worldly miseries death prepareth the bodie that it may be fit to enter into eternall happinesse together with the soule which is alreadie in heauen The last degree is when bodie and soule reunited goe both together into eternall and euerlaâ—â—ing glorie in heauen Our third meditation is that there is a mysticall vnion and coniunction betweene Christ euery beleeuer and that not onley in regard of soule but of bodie also which beeing once knit shall neuer be dissolued but is eternall Wherevpon the dying dead rotten and consumed bodie remaineth still a member of Christ abideth within the couenant and is and shall be euer a temple of the holy Ghost Thus Adam and Abraham which are dead so many thousand yeares agoe yea euery true beleeuer from them to the end of the world shall rise at the last day in body to glorie by the power of their coniunction with Christ. In the winter season we see the most trees voide of leaues buddes and blossomes so as they seeme to vs to be dead and yet neuerthelesse there is a sappe in the roote of them which in the Spring wil ascend reuiue the decaied branches Euen so it is with our bodies which though they be corrupted rotten burnt or eaten with wormes or deuoured by wild beasts so as they may seeme to be vtterly perished yet there is as it were a secret and hidden sap in them by reason of their vnion with Christ by which they shall be raised reuiued quickened beeing made like vnto the glorious bodie of Christ their head with whome they shall raigne and liue for euermore Helpes in practise are two First he that will beare with comfort the pangs of death must labour that he may die in Christ and that is by faith laying hold of the promise of God touching forgiuenesse of sinnes and life euerlasting by Christ. All these saith the holy Ghost died in faith namely Abel Enoch Noe Abraham and Sarah all laying hold of the promise of life by Christ. When Iacob on his death-bed was blessing of his children he brake forth into this heauenly speach O Lord I haue waited for thy saluation In which words it is plaine that his faith rested on the mercy of God by hope he waited for his saluatioÌ„ And our Sauiour Christ saith As Moses lift vp the serpent in the wildernesse so must the sonne of man be lift vp that whosoeuer beleeueth in him might not perish but haue life euerlasting Out of which words the forenamed dutie may be learned that looke as the children of Israel beeing stung with fierie serpents and that vnto death were healed by looking vp to the brasen serpent erected by Moses so when we are stung with sinne and death we must euer remember by faith to looke vpon Christ. But specially when we are dying then it is our part to fixe the eies of our soules by faith vpon him and thereby shall we escape death and be made partakers of eternall life and happinesse Notable is the example of Christ who as he was man alwaies fixed his trust and confidence in his fathers word especially at his end For when he was dying and the pangs of death seazed vpon him he cries vnto the Lord My God my God why hast thou forsaken me and againe Father into thy hands I commend my spirit which words are ful of faith and doe bewray what great affiance he placed in his fathers loue c. When Dauid in an extremitie saw nothing before his eies but present death the people intending to stone him at the very instant as the text saith he comforted himselfe in the Lord his God but how by calling to minde the mercifull promises that God had made vnto him and by applying them vnto his heart by faith And Paul saith of himselfe and the rest of the faithfull that they receiued the sentence of death in themselues that they might not trust in themselues but in God From these examples it followes that they which desire with comfort to beare the pangs of death must die by faith that is they must set before their eies the promise of remission of sinnes and life euerlasting and depend vpon it wrapping as it were and infolding themselues in it as in a close and warme garment that will keepe them safe and sure against the winde and weather of temptation The second Practise in time of death is to die in obedience which is nothing else but willingly readily and ioyfully without murmuring to submit ourselues to Gods will in bearing the paines of death A most worthie president of this obedience we haue in our Sauiour Christ when he said vnto his father Not my will but thy will be done thereby submitting his will to his Fathers will touching the death which he then suffered And this his example at the time of his departure must be a rule of direction vnto vs vpon the like occasion True it is that obedience to God in death is against corrupt nature and therefore our dutie is the more to invre our selues to the performing of it and that which the blessed Apostle said of himselfe I die daily ought to be continually our resolution and practise If we shall inquire howe this may be done the answer is when God layeth afflictions vpon vs in our life time then by indeauouring to beare them with patience meeknes and lowlinesse For euery affliction is as it were a petty death and if we doe in it subiect our selues to the hand of God we shal the better obey him in the great death of all and thus doing whensoeuer God striketh vs with death we shall with comfort endure the same The Third particular Affliction is Satanicall molestation whereby both persons places of mansioÌ„ or abode are either possessed or otherwise molested by the malice of the Deuill Touching this affliction the Question of coÌ„science is How such persons as are possessed or feare possession or else indure molestations by the Deuill in their houses may haue their minds quieted and staied and consequently in that case be remedied And here 2. things are generally to be considered in way of answer First it is to be remembred that possession is known by two signes The one is when the deuill is euideÌ„tly present either in the whole body or in soÌ„e part of it
this doctrine is this He that truely repents himselfe of one sinne in this case when he is preuented is as if he repented of all II. Case What must a man doe that finds himselfe hard hearted and of a dead spirit so as he cannot humble himselfe as he would Answ. Such persons if they humble themselues they must be content with that grace which they haue receiued For if thou be grieued truely and vnfainedly for this that thou canst not be grieued thy humiliation shall be accepted For that which Paul saith of almes may be truely said in this case that if there be a readie minde a man shall be accepted according to that he hath and not according to that he hath not III. Case Whether the party that is more grieued for losse of his friend then for offence of God by his sinne doeth or can truely humble himselfe Answ. A man may haue a greater griefe for an earthly losse then for the other and yet be truely grieued for his sinnes too The reason is because that is a bodily naturall and sensible losse and accordingly sorrow for it is naturall Now the sorrow for the offending of God is no sensible thing but supernaturall and spirituall and sensible things doe more affect the minde then the other Dauid did notably humble himselfe for his sinnes and he did exceedingly mourne for the losse of his sonne Absolom yea and more too then for his sinnes Would God I had died for thee Absolom O Absolom my sonne my sonne c. Againe I answer that the sorrow of the minde must be measured by the intention of the affection and by the estimation of the thing for which we sorrow Now sorrow for sinne though it be lesse in respect of the intentioÌ„ therof yet is it greater in respect of the estimation of the minde because they which truly mourne for their sinnes grieue for the offence of God as the greatest euill of all and for the losse of the fauoâ—â— of God as for losse of the most excelleâ—t preâ—ious thing in the world IV. Case Whether it be necessarie in humiliation that the heart should be smitten with a sensible sorrowe Answer I. In sorrow for sinne there are two things first to be displeased for our sinnes secondly to haue a bodily moouing of the heart which causeth crying and teares The former of these is necessarie namely in heart to be deepely displeased with our selues the latter is not simply necessarie though it be commendable in whomsoeuer it is if it be in truth for Lydia had the first but not the secoÌ„d II. It falleth out oftentimes that the greatnesse of the griefe taketh away the sensible paine and causeth a nummednesse of the heart so that the partie grieueth not III. Sometimes the complexion will not affoard teares in such there may be true humiliation though with drie cheekes The second thing to be done for the attaining of Gods fauour and consequently of saluation is to Beleeue in Christ. In the practise of a Christian life the duties of humiliation and faith cannot be seuered yet for doctrines sake I distinguish them In Faith there are two things required and to be performed on our behalfe First to know the points of religion and namely the summe of the Gospell especially the promise of righteousnesse and life eternall by Christ. Secondly to apply the promise and withall the thing promised which is Christ vnto our selues and this is done when a man vpon the commandement of God sets downe this with himselfe that Christ and his merits belong vnto him in particular and that Christ is his wisdome iustification sanctification and redemption This doctrine is plaine out of the sixt of Iohn for Christ is there propounded vnto vs as the bread and the water of life Therefore faith must not be idle in the braine but it must take Christ and apply him vnto the soule and conscience euen as meate is eaten The Questions of conscience touching Faith are these First howe we may truely apply Christ with all his benefits vnto our selues For wicked men apply Christ vnto themselues falsely in presumption but fewe doe it truely as they ought to doe I answer that this may be done we must remember to doe two things First lay downe a foundation of this action and then practise vpon it Our foundation must be laid in the word or else we shall faile in our application and it consists of two principles The one is As god giues a promise of life eternall by Christ so he giues commandement that euery one in particular should apply the promise to himselfe The next is that the Ministerie of the word is an ordinarie meanes wherein God doeth offer and apply Christ with all his benefits to the hearers as if he called them by their names Peter Iohn Cornelius Beleeue in Christ and thou shalt be saued When we haue rightly considered of our foundation the Second thing is to practise vpon it and that is to giue our selues to the exercises of faith and repentance which stand in meditation of the word and praier for mercie and pardon and when this is done then God giues the sense and increase of his grace VVhen Lydia was hearing the sermon of Paul then God opened her heart Act. 16. 12. Secondly it is demaunded When faith beginnes to breed in the heart and when a man beginnes to beleeue in Christ Answer VVhen he beginnes to be touched in conscience for his owne sinnes and withall hungers and thirsts after Christ and his righteousnesse then beginneth faith The reason is plaine As faith is renewed so it is begunne but it is renewed when a man is touched in conscience for his sinnes and beginnes a new to hunger after Christ therefore when these things first shew themselues then faith first begins For these were the things that were in Dauid when he renewed his repentance The third dutie necessarie to saluation is Repentance In which two things are to be coÌ„sidered the beginning namely a Godly Sorrow 2. Cor. 7. and vpon this sorrowe a Change In Sorrowe we consider first the nature of it secondly the properties of it Touching the nature of sorrow it is either inward or outward The inward sorrow is when a man is displeased with himselfe for his sinnes The outward when the heart declares the griefe thereof by teares or such like signes And sorrow in this case called a godly sorrow is more to be esteemed by the first of these then by the second The propertie of this sorrow is to make vs to be displeased with our selues for our sinnes directly because they are sins doe displease God If there were no iudge no hell or death yet we must be grieued because we haue offended so mercifull a God and louing father And as godly sorrowe will make vs thus to doe so is it the next cause of repentance and by this is repentance discerned The next thing in repentance is the Change
temptation that is incident to man by this the curing of any particular distresse will be more easie plaine This generall Remedie is the Applying of the promise of life euerlasting in and by the blood of Christ. For no physicke no arte or skill of man can cure a wounded and distressed conscience but onely the blood of Christ. And that this is the soueraigne remedie of all other no man doubteth The maine difficultie is touching the manner of proceeding in the application of the promise Herein therefore three things must be performed First of all the partie must disclose the cause of the particular distresse that the remedie may the better be applied For the truth is that the very opening of the cause is a great ease to the minde before any remedie be applyed Yet by the way this care must be had that the thing to be reuealed be not hurtefull to the partie to whome it is made knowne For the distresse may happily arise of some confederacie in matters of Treason by the concealing whereof the partie to whome they are reuealed may intangle himselfe in the same danger Secondly if the cause may be knowne for sometime it is hid from the partie distressed theÌ„ triall must be made whether the said partie be fit for comfort yea or no For if he be found to be vnfit the word of God shall be misapplyed and consequently abused His fitnesse for comfort may be found out by searching whether he be humbled for his sinnes or not for meÌ„ may be in great distresse and yet not touched at all for their sinnes This humiliation stands in sorrow for sinne with confession of the same vnto God and in earnest praier for the pardon thereof with an heartie desire of amendment of life But if on the other side the partie be vnhumbled then the first and principall care must be to worke in him some beginning of humiliation This may be done in a freindly and Christian talke and conference whereby he must first be brought to see and well to consider his own sinnes secondly to grieue and to be sorrie for them at the least for some of the principall And touching this sorrow two things must be remembred first that the nature of worldly sorrowe must be altered by beeing turned and changed into sorrow according to God If a maÌ„ be in some danger of his life by bleeding at the nose experience teacheth the counsell of the Phisitian is to open a vaine and let the partie blood in the arme that the course thereof may be turned another way The like order is to be taken with men that are troubled with worldly sorrow in their distresse and that is to turne the course of their griefe by causing them to grieue not for worldly respects or onely in consideration of the punishment due vnto their sinnes but principally for the very offence of God in and by their sinnes committed This done a second care must be had that this sorrow for sinne be not confused but a distinct sorrow The man that is in sorrow must not be grieued onely because he is as other men are a sinner but more specially for this and that particular sinne by which it comes to passe that he is such or such or a sinner that so his sorrow in respect of sinne may be distinct and brought as it were to some particular head And men in this case must deale with the partie distressed as Surgeons are woont to doe with a tumour or swelling in the bodie whose manner is first to applie drawing ripening plaisters to the place affected to bring the sore to an head that the corruption may issue out at some one place and then afterward healing plaisters which are of great vse to cure the same Euen so confused griefe must be reduced to some particulars and then and not before is a man fit for comfort when his conscience is touched in speciall in regard of some one or more distinct and seuerall offences And he that is grieued for one sinne truly and vnfainedly from his heart shall proportionally be grieued for all the sinnes that he knoweth to be in himselfe The third thing required in applying this remedie is the ministring and conuaying of comfort to the mind of him that hath confessed his sinnes and is truly humbled for them and it is a point of the greatest moment of all Where if the question be how this comfort should be ministred the answer is it may be done by bringing the partie troubled within the compasse of the promise of life And there be two waies of doing this the one false and the other true Some thinke that men may be brought within the Couenant by the doctrine of Vniuersall grace and redemption But this way to perswade vs of title in the Couenant of grace is both false and vnfit False it is because all the promises of the Gospel are limited with the condition of Faith and Repentance not beeing vniuersall but made onely to such persons as repent and beleeue therfore they are indefinite in regard of whole mankind and to beleeuers they are vniuersall It is obiected that God would haue all men to be saued Ans. The Apostle is the best expounder of himselfe and he faith in the Acts to the same effect The time of this ignorance God regarded not but now he admonisheth all men euery where to repent In which wordes Paul addes this circumstance of time now to limit this good will of God to the last age of the world after the comming of Christ in the flesh and not to inlarge the same to all the posteritie of Adam And â—o must he be vnderstood in the place to Timothie God would haue all men to be saued that is now in this last age of the world And thus the same Apostle 2. Cor. 6. expounds a certaine prophecie of Isai concerning the acceptable time of grace Now saith he is the acceptable time behold Now is the day of saluation meaning the time of the new TestameÌ„t And Col. â— 26. The mysterie hid froÌ„ the beginning is now made manifest to the Saints And Ro. 16. 26. The reuelatioÌ„ of the secret mysterie is now opened All which and many other places about the same matter hauing this circumstance of time Now must needs be limited to this last age of the world As for the note of vniuersalitie All it must not be vnderstood of all particulars but of all kinds sorts conditions and states of men as may be gathered out of the former words I would that praiers be made for all men not for euery particular man for there be some that sinne vnto death for whome we may not pray but for all states of men as well Princes as subiects poore as rich base as noble vnlearned as learned c. But the saying of Paul is vrged 2. Cor. 5. 18. God was in Christ recoÌ„ciling the World vnto himselfe therefore the promise in Christ
in Dauid who beeing reprooued by the Prophet Nathan for his sinnes of adulterie and murther presently made confession of them and at the very same time receiued by the prophet sentence of absolution euen from the Lord himselfe wherein he could not erre The fourth Ground To loue any man because he is a Christian and a child of God is a sensible and certaine note of a man that is partaker of the true loue of God in Christ. Hereby saith S. Iohn we knowe that we are translated from death to life because we loue the brethren Loue here is not a cause but onely a signe of Gods loue to vs. And our Sauiour Christ saith He that receiueth a Prophet in the name of a Prophet shall receiue a Prophets reward Now that we be not deceiued in these grounds it must be rememebred that these beginnings of grace be they neuer so weak must not be flittering and fleeting but constant setled not stopped or staied in the way but such as daiely growe and increase and then they are indeed accepted of God And he that can finde these beginnings or any of them truely in himselfe he may assure himselfe thereby that he is the child of God Hauing thus laid downethe Groundes of cōfort I come now to the way by which the party in distresse may be brought within the compasse of the promise of saluation This way standes in two things in making triall and in applying the promise First then triall must be made whether the person distressed haue in him as yet any of the forenamed grounds of grace or not This triall may be made by him that is the comforter in the moouing of certaine Questions to the said person And first let him aske whether he beleeue and repent The distressed partie answers no he cannot repent nor beleeue Then he must further aske whether he desire to beleeue and repent to this he will answer he doeth desire it with all his heart in the same sort is he to make triall of the other groundes When a man is in the fit of tentation he will say resolutely he is sure to be dāned Aske him in this fit of his loue to God he will giue answer he hath none at all but aske him further whether he loue a man because he is a Christian and a child of God then will he say he doth indeed Thus after triall made in this manner some beginnings of faith and repentance will appeare which at the first lay hid For God vseth out of the time of prosperitie by in distresse and affliction to work his grace The second point followeth After that by triall some of the foresaid beginnings of grace be found out then comes the right applying of the promise of life euerlasting to the partie distressed And that is done by a kind of reasoning the first part whereof is taken from Gods word the second from the testimonie of the distressed conscience and the conclusion is the applying of the promise on this manner He that hath an vnfained desire to repent and beleeue hath remission of sinnes and life euerlasting But thou hast an earnest desire to repent and beleeue in Christ. Therefore remission of sinnes and life euerlasting is thine And here remember that it is most conuenient this application be made by the Minister of the Gospell who in it must vse his ministeriall authoritie giuen him of God to pronounce the pardon For in distresse it is as hard a thing to make the conscience yeild to the promise as to make fire and water agree For though men haue signes of grace mercie in them yet will they not acknowledge it by reason of the extremitie of their distresse In this manner vpon any of the former grounds may the troubled and perplexed soule be assured that mercie belongs to it And this I take to be the onely generall and right way of conforting a distressed conscience Nowe that the promise thus applyed may haue good successe these rules must necessarily be obserued I. One is that the comfort which is ministred be delaied with some mixture of the Law that is to say the promise alone must not be applyed but withall mention is to be made of the sinnes of the partie and of the grieuous punishments due vnto him for the same The reason is because there is much deceipt in the heart of man in so much as oftentimes it falleth out that men not throughly humbled beeing comforted either too soone or too much doe afterward becom the worst of all In this respect not vnlike to the iron which being cast into the fire vehemētly hot cooled againe is much more hard then it would haue bin if the heat had bin moderate And hence it is that in the ministring of cōfort we must somwhat keep thē down bring them on by litle litle to repentance The sweetnesse of comfort is the greater if it be delayed with some tartenesse of the Law II. Another rule is this If the distressed partie be much possessed with griefe of himselfe he must not be left alone but alwaies attēded with good company For it is an vsuall practise of the Deuill to take the vantage of the place time when a man is solitarie and depriued of that helpe which otherwise he might haue in societie with others Thus he tempted Eue when she was apart from her husband And in this regard Salomon pronounces a woe to him that is alone But herein doeth his malice most appeare in that he is alway readiest when a man is in great distresse and withall solitarie then vpon the sudden to tempt him to dispaire and to the making away of himselfe III. Thirdly the partie in distresse must be taught not to rest vpon his owne iudgement but alwaies to submit himselfe and be content to be aduised by others that are men of wisedome iudgement and discretion A thing to be obserued the rather because the very neglect thereof hath caused sundrie persons to remaine vncomforted for many yeres IV. Fourthly the partie distressed must neuer heare tel of any fearefull accidents or of any that haue bin in like or worse case thē himself is For vpon the very report the distressed conscience will fasten the accident vpon it selfe and therby cōmonly wil be drawn to deeper griefe or dispaire For the mind afflicted will imagine fearefull things and sometime the very bare naming of the Deuil will strike terrour feare into it V. Fiftly The partie that is to comfort must beare with all the wants of the distressed as with their frowardnesse peeuishnesse rashnesse and with their distempered and disordered affections and actions yea he must put vpon him as it were their persons beeing affected with their miserie and touched with their sorrowes as if they were his owne grieuing when he seeth them to grieue weeping when they doe weepe and lament VI. Sixtly he that is the comforter must not be
knovv not saith Saint Paul what to pray as we ought namely in our distresses but the Spirit it selfe maketh request for vs with sighs that cannot be expressed and therein lies our comfort Thus Moses at the redde sea beeing in great distresse not knowing what to say or doe sighed and groned inwardly in his soule vnto the Lord for helpe and protection and his very desire was in stead of a loud crie in the eares of the Lord. The second thing is that triall must be made whether the partie hath in him any tokens of grace or not These tokens are the small beginnings of grace which before I haue declared As for example a griefe because we cannot grieue for sinne as we should a serious will and desire to beleeue and repent a purpose to sinne no more and such like If these be found in the partie then by them as by sure pledges he may bee assured of the fauour of God towardes him and where any of these be found the saying of God to Saint Paul must be vrged My grace is sufficient for thee and therewith must the distressed partie stay his minde Yea we are to be content with any condition in this life be it neuer so miserabie so long as we are in the fauour of god though he should lay vpon vs euen the paines of hell till the time of our death So did Dauid who when he was pursued by his owne sonne vttered these words vnto God Behold if I please thee not doe with me what thou wilt And the like was the minde of Paul who beeing assured of the fauour of God was content for his glorie and the saluation of the Israelites if it had beene possible to be separated from Christ and to indure the very pangs of hell The third thing in this cure is to Applie to the said distressed partie such promises of God made vnto afflicted persons as are most large and comfortable For example that The Lord is neere to them that are of a contrite heart and vvill saue such as be afflicted in spirit Psal. 34. 18. Againe I came not saith our Sauiour Christ but to the lost sheepe of the house of Israel Matth. 15. 24. He saies not to the straying sheepe but to such as ate now in the pit readie to be drowned or in the Lyons mouth readie to be deuoured Againe The Spirit of the Lord is vpon me therefore he hath annointed me that I should preach the Gospel to the poore that is to such as are distressed in conscience and poore in spirit he hath sent me that I should heale the broken hearted that I should preach deliuerance to the captiues These and many other such like promises are in this case to be vrged and the partie mooued to indeauour to beleeue them and to rest himselfe vpon them though he loose all things els Fourthly the partie must be brought to a serious consideration of his life past and of Gods mercifull dealing with him in former times and therewith is he to be comforted for the time present For if aforehand he hath receiued any tokens of the fauour and loue of God by them he is now to stay and â—o settle his minde The reason is plaine the gifts of God are without repentance whome he loueth once he loueth to the ende and whome he chooseth he calleth iustifieth and sanctifieth and will also in time glorifie Dauid beeing in such affliction that he could hardly thinke vpon God yet he tooke this course praied to the Lord for comfort communed with his owne heart and called to remembrance how God had formerly dealt with him and with this meditation of the continuall course of Gods mercie in his preseruation he confirmed his faith and staied his heart in his greatest troubles The fifth and last thing to be done is the remooueall of such reasons and doubts as the partie distressed vsually makes against himselfe for his owne ouerthrow For it is the manner of those that are troubled in minde to dispute against themselues and commonly they are woont to alleadge three things First beeing instructed how to humble themselues and to depend on Gods mercie they will graunt that all these indeede are good things but they belong not to them for they neither doe nor can feele any thing but the tokens of Gods anger and that they are alreadie entred into some degrees of condemnation This obiection may be taken away by informing them of the manner of Gods dealing in all his workes For commonly he workes all things in his creatures in and by Contraries if we could know the whole frame of them Thus in the Creation euery creature had his beeing of that which had no beeing and something was made not of something but of nothing After the flood the signe of Gods couenant for the preseruation of the world from destruction by raine is the Raine-bow which indeede is a naturall signe of raine When Elias was to prooue the Lord to be the onely true God against the idolatrous priests of Baal and that by burnt offerings he powred water vpon the sacrifice and fills a trench with water round about and in this contrarie meanes was the sacrifice burnt vp Christ for the curing of a blind man teÌ„pers spittle clay together which in all reason is a fitter means to put out the eyes theÌ„ to cause the blind to see Thus in the worke of our Redemption Christ giues life not by life but by death and he sendes men to heauen by the gates and suburbes of hell He will not build vpon an olde foundation but he pulls downe and destroies all that Man may haue no hope at all in himselfe but that all the hope he hath may be in God First he kills and then he makes aliue as Anna speaketh first he woundeth and then he healeth He makes man to sowe in teares that afterward he may reape in ioy And he that knoweth Gods dealing to be this must herewith rest content and satisfied because in wrath God vseth to remember his mercie yea his mercie is neuer sweete vnto the palate of the soule vntill it be seasoned with some tast of his wrath The Paschall Lambe was eaten with sowre hearbs to signifie that we can feele no sweetnes in the blood of Christ till we first feele the smart of our owne sinnes corruptions Secondly these persons vse to alleadge against themselues that if they could feele any coÌ„fort at all then they would stay their minds and yeild to good perswasions exhortations To this the answer is That there is a Rule of grace which we must follow gathered out of the word of God and the experience of Gods children contrarie to the rule of nature and aboue the light of reason and it is this that in case of affliction we must not liue by feeling but by faith This Rule is grounded vpon the speech of the Lord by the Prophet The iust man shall
litle water at once that by degrees drop by droppe according to the widenesse of the mouth And hence it is that though the giftes of God without vs which are ours by imputation be perfect yet all such graces as are put into vs are weake and imperfect Secondly if any seruant of God should be perfectly regenerate and made absolutely holy in this life then he should fulfill the morall lawe and so become a Sauiour to himselfe and by the tenour of the law haue life so should not Christ be a Sauiour properly but only an instrumēt to dispose vs to the keeping of the law whereby we might saue our selues But there is one only al-sufficiēt Sauiour Christ Iesus the beginning the middle the accōplishment of our saluation is to be ascribed to him alone Thirdly it is the will of God that his owne children with whome he is well pleased in Christ should bee brought to nothing in themselues that they might be all in all out of themselues in Christ beeing as it were emptied of selfe-loue and of all confidence in their owne goodnesse But if sanctification should be perfect at the first then a man should not goe out of himselfe but would rather stay as he is and rest contented in his own goodnesse For this cause Paul after his exaltation was buffered by Satans temptations that he might not be exalted out of measure 2. Cor. 12. but should content himselfe with this that he was in the loue and fauour of God in Christ. II. Ground is To consider what makes a man professing Christ accepted of God and howe much he himselfe must doe for this ende The substance of all things to be done of vs for this ende that we may become the children of God may be reduced to three heads First of all we must heartily bewaile our sinnefull liues past and seriously humble our selues in regard of our owne sins both of heart and life and if by occasion wee fall into any sinne we must not lie therein but by speedie repentance recouer our former estate Secondly in regard of the sinnefulnesse of our hearts and liues in times past we must rest our selues on Gods mercie alone flying to the throne of mercie for the pardon of them all Thirdly we must indeauour in the course of our liues afterward to performe obedience to God in all his commandements that thereby we may shew our selues thankefull to him for his mercie Consider the examples of this practise in Gods children All that Dauid that worthy seruant of God could doe after his sinnes committed to bring himselfe againe into the fauour of God whome he had offended consisted of these very heads which haue beene named Repentance Confidence and Affiance in Gods mercie and Performance of new obedience And this his practise was verified amongst many other places specially in the 119. Psalme and in all the Psalmes commonly called penitentiall Againe the Prophet Daniel was accepted of God onely for the doing of these things Dan. 9. And in like manner was Paul and the rest of the Apostles Yet here remaines a great difficultie Many a good seruant of God may and doth truly say of himselfe I bewaile my sinnes and doe in some sort rest on Gods mercie and withall I endeauour to performe new obedience but alas here is my griefe I cannot doe these things as I would In matter of sorrow and griefe I am troubled with hardnes of heart in occasions of boldnes and confidence with doubting in indeauour to obey with many sinnes and sundrie faults For the staying and moderating of this griefe these rules may further be remembred The first Rule If there be in the minde a purpose not to sinne in the wil a desire to please God and in the whole man an indeauour to performe the purpose of the minde and the desire of the will marke what follows vpon this God in mercie accepteth the purpose and will to obey for obedience it selfe yea though a man faile in the very act and doe not so well as he should This is a great mercie of God and we can neuer be sufficiently thankfull for the same But yet that we may not here delude our hearts with conceits and blesse our selues in vaine we must know that God doth not alwaies accept the will for the deede vnlesse there be a constant purpose in heart a true desire in will and some resolued endeauour sutable in the life Malach. 3. 17. Goa spares them that feare him as a father spares his owne child How is that though the childe beeing commanded some busines goeth about it very vnhandsomly and so the deede be done to small purpose yet the father accepts it as well done if he see the childe yeelde vnto his commandement and doe his indeauour to the vttermost of his power Euen so will God deale with those that be his children But how will some say can God accept a worke of ours that is imperfect Ans. So farre forth as the obedience is done in truth so farre forth God accepts it because it is his own work in vs and as it is ours he pardons it vnto vs because we are in Christ. A second Rule is laide downe Rom. 7. 19. where Paul saith to this purpose the good which I would doe I doe not and the euill which I would not that doe I. In these words is set downe the state of all regenerate men in this life and the meaning is this The good things which God hath commaunded I doe them but not as I would and the euill forbidden I auoid but not as I would This we shall see to be true by comparing the voyces of three kindes of men together The carnall man saith I do not that which is good neither will I do it and that which is euill I do and I will do it Contrariwise the man glorified he saith That which is good I do and will do it and that which is euill I do not neither will I do it The regenerate man in a midle betweene them both he saith The good things commanded I do but not as I would the euill things forbidden I auoid but not as I would And this is the estate of the child of God in this life who in this regard is like vnto a diseased man who loues his health and therefore obserues both diet and physicke and yet he often falls into his fit againe though he be neuer so carefull to obserue the rules of the Physitian by reason of the distemperature of his bodie and hereupon is faine to goe to the Physitian the second time for new counsell In like manner Gods children haue indeede in their hearts a care to please and obey God but by reason of sinne that dwelleth in them they faile often and so are faine to humble themselues againe before him by new repentance Againe the seruants of God are like to a man by some suddaine accident cast into the sea who in striuing to