GODS GLORY IN Mans Happiness WITH The freeness of his Grace in ELECTING us TOGETHER WITH Many Arminian objections ANSWERED By Francis Taylor B. D. Preacher at Christs Church Canterbury LONDON Printed by E. C. for G. and H. Eversden at the Gray-hound in Pauls-church-yard 1654. The Analysis or Resolution of the Text. In the Words note 1. The Coherence For. 2. The matter and therein 1 S. Pauls compellation Brethren 2 His application in which 1 His exhortation Look upon your calling 2 Gods vocation wherein observe 1 The persons called set out 1 Negatively by Their condition wise according to the flesh great noble The limitation of it not many 2 Affirmatively wherein see Gods thoise and note 1 The chuser God 2 The chosen The foolish weake base things of the world and things despised yea and things that are not The end of it To confound and bring to naught the wise the mighty and things that are 2 The impulsive cause That no flesâ— should glory in his presence To the HONOURABLE his reall Friend Mr. Walter Strickland one of the Councel to his Highnesse the Lord Protector LUdovicus Vives reports of the Storke Ciconiae hic mos est ut unum e pullis relinquat ei domui qua est nidulata The Storke useth to leave one of her young ones to the house where she builds her nest Symbol 86. A pattern of thankefulness for kindness received And Symbol 81. Accipe oculatus Receive kindnesses with thine eye Though the giver should not much eye them lest he should seem to upbraide the receiver yet should the receiver often view them that he may be mindeful of the giver yet most receivers are blind in this kind Nihil citius senescit quam gratia Nothing grows old sooner then a good turn Other crimes saith an Historian may be hid with many colours ingratitude not with any It was so hateful to the Egyptians that they used to make Eunuchs of ungrateful persons that no posterity of thers might remain Barnab Rich. descript of Ireland Chap. 6. The Earth wee tread on upbraids them Inquit amicus ager Domino sere plurima reddam Si bene mi facias memini tibi reddere grates The friendly field the Lord bespeaks Sow I will render store If good you do me thanks I will Remember to restore Aulus Septimius Severus Bethinking my selfe how to rid me of this crime of ingratitude and finding nothing worthy of your Noble favour to me and mine in assisting us meer stangers to you in procuring the payment of our publick stipends I remember what Thales called by Julian Sapientum facile princeps one granted generally to be the principal of the wise men Paneg. 2. in Eusebiam Imp. answered to one that asked him How great a reward he should give him for what he had learnned of him If thou wilt saith be confesse that thou hast learned of me thou hast paid me I hope to finde the same courteous minde in you that confession shall be accepted for satisfaction I present you with Gods glory in Mans happiness The Lord make you a great instrument of his glory and the good of his Church in all your publick imployments and in the end remember you with the favour that he bears unto his people and visit you with his salvation that you may see the good of his chosen that you may rejoyce in the gladness of his Nation that you may glory with his inheritance Psalme 106.4 5. So prayeth he that is At your Honours service in the Lord Francis Taylor 1 COR. 1.26 27 28 29. For ye see your calling brethren how that not many wise men after the flesh not many mighty not many noble are called But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty And base things of the world and things which are despised hath God chosed yea and things which are not to bring to nought things that are That no flesh should glory in his presence ERasmus the greatest clerke of his age Aeternum illud naturae miraculum Desiderius Erasmus Eras vita vol. styled by his followers the miracle of nature left us no greater monument of his wisdome then that small book which he wrote in commendation of folly The wise Apostle of the Gentiles brought up at the feet of Gamaliel nay more inspired by the Spirit of God in this present Chapter commends unto us many kinds of foolishness Vers 21. First there is the foolishness of Preaching and no wonder if Preaching be counted foolishness for what do we preach but Christ crucifyed V. 23. and behold the foolishness of the Crosse of Christ also in the judgment of the learned Grecians Nay he stayes not at the foolishness of the Crosse of Christ but goes forward to the foolishness of God V. 25. if the world may be judge that hath appointed remission of sins by the Crosse of Christ to be preached to the world Lastly if God be counted foolish that will have it preached V. 27. they that will be beleeve it must pass for fools and there yee have the foolishness of beleevers The preaching of the Crosse of Christ is esteemed foolishnesse in the judgment of the flesh For what can seem more foolish then to look for eternall life from a man a dying man a man crucifyed among Theeves a man as his adversaries judge not able to save himself from temporall death and much lesse able to give us eternall life Let him now say they Mat. 27.42 come down off the Crosse and we will beleeve in him It seemes a foolish thing for an unarmed Minister in a Pulpit to lay down laws for Princes and for people to prescribe the way to heaven who hath no sword to compel them to obedience that come to hear him but is subject to their sury if they do resist him Neither is it strange that the Ministers are counted fools where God himself that imployes them is accused of foolishness Yet the comfort is that The foolishness of God is wiser then men V. 25. That is to say where God shews least wisdome in any of his works for God forbid any should blasphemously imagin any folly to be in God in those very actions he shews more understanding then the wisest men do in the choiseft of all their works The least Flie doth more commend the wisdome of the Maker then the most curious picture of the greatest Elephant But if ye desire a choise pattern take Gods choise for a pattern there ye have it The world esteems them fools whom God hath called but Gods wisdome appeared more in the choise of these fools then if he had chosen the wisest of the world For by this means the glory of his choise is not eclipsed but shines through all the world unto the infinite and eternall praise of God And thrrefore the Apostle knits this
may prove great impediments to the saving of their souls Let them pray with Agur the son of Jakeh Prov. 30.8 9. Give me neither poverty nor riches feed me with food convenient for me lest I be full and deny thee and say Who is the Lord or lest I be poor and steal and take the name of my God in vain Now for men of middle condition that are neither so rich as to give much nor so poor as to aske but have a convenient portion to bring them through the world Here is for them 1. A lesson of Thankfulnesse to God who hath placed them in the safest condition in the world Let them look down upon poorer men and behold the manifold wants which those poor souls and pined bodies dayly do indure They want apparell and fire in the Winter meat and drink in the Summer houses to dwell in beds to lie on and what not All which men of middle rank enjoy Then let them look up ward and number if they can the manifold cares that attend upon rich men in the world They are affraid of all men friends and foes acquaintance and strangers yea of wives and children lest they should embeazle their estate or diminish their treasures Their losses fetch more tears from their eyes then their wealth brings smiles into their faces All which fears and griefes men of middle condition are free from and exempted Then let them lift up their heart with their hands unto God that hath freed them from the rich mans cares and fears on earth and from his sighs and grones in hell And yet hath exempted them from Lazarus tears on earth Luk. 16. and will give them of his joyes in heaven if they serve him faithfully in their generations Let them not henceforth praise the rich mans plenty let them rather extoll their own security 2. Let them rest contented and abundantly satisfyed with their own condition As they have not the tide of the world flowing in abundantly upon them so they have not the winds of penury blowing stiffely against them Their journey requires more labour in rowing yet they passe with lesse danger While poor men are bewailing their wants to such as are images rather then men that know not how to pity them and rich men are numbring their Cattell viewing their Lands telling their Coyne they may with quietnesse worke in their shops or study in their closets and often between while commend themselves and their labours to Gods benediction There is no happyer state on earth for them to envy If they will aspire let them in their meditations mount up into heaven where they may injoy felicity with eternity The greatest part of my perswasions are yet to come for I have yet to do with the greatest men What Rhetorick shall I use to perswade these men Shall I tell them that Bees have stings as well as honey That riches have discommodities as well as commodities How carefull and cautelous had they need to be in the use of them that they may not exclude them from greater riches Shall I tell them that Jezabel was the daughter of a King 2 King 9.34 yet was she devoured with dogs Shall I shew them the wisdome of Achitephel that could not keep him from hanging himself 2 Sam. 17.23 Shall I set before them the rich man Luk. 16. in his gorgeous apparell and dainty fare and then bring him in groning and lamenting in hell torments Their worldly cares dead heavenly affections within them The common tenet is that while the heavens move the earth stands still Copernicus made the earth to move and the heavens to stand still But never any man made both moveable Rich men are often of Copernicus sect the earths motion in them makes heavenly affections unmoveable The heathen men as Fulgentius notes called the Peacock Juno's bird who was esteemed the Goddesse of riches Junonis in tutelam ponum pavum quod omâ— nis vitae petentia petax in aspectum sui semper quaerat ornatus sicut pavus stellarum caudae curvamen concavans anterius faciem ornat posterioraque turpiter nudat Fulg. Myth l. 2. Fab. de Jun. because as the Peacocke while he stretcheth out his tail to shew the stars of it adornes his fore part but shewes the deformity of his naked back-parts So do rich men while they set out their bravery lay open their infirmities The wiser sort of men among the heathen were so well acquainted with this that some of them refused great treasures offered as Phocion who refused the talents offered him by Alexanders Embassadours as a present from their Master And when they pressed him to receive them telling him that their Master sent them to him because he conceived him to be a worthy man 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Isid Pel. l. 2. Ep. 146. he answered If he thinke so of me let him suffer me both to seem and to be so Others when they had riches gave them away as Crates who gave his goods to the Senate with this Motto 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ibid. as Isidore delivers it Crates sets Crates of Thebes at liberty Or as Nonnus delivers it better alluding to the name of Crates in the Greek which the English phrase will not bear Crates sets the goods of Crates at liberty 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Non. Synag Histar in Naz. Stel. 1. that the goods of Crates may not overcome Crates I speak not this to bring in Monkery or to perswade men to give away their goods to maintain idle drones but to make men wary in the use of their riches For I think with Augustine Vilius terrena opulentia humi liter tenetur quam superbe reâ—inquitur Pros Aug. sent 319. that Worldly riches are better humbly kept then proudly cast away For want of moderate use of them honours and riches do many men harm Which makes the same Father to exclaime O cursed nobility which through pride makes it selfe ignoble and base in the sight of God Mala nobilitas quae se pâ—r superbiam apud Deum reddit ignobilem De Temp ser 127. And many men have suffered many losses for their possessions as Isidore complaines Riches have hurâ— many and having whetted the sword againsâ— hem have fled into the power of their enemies But authority and kingly power 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Isid Pel. l. 3. Ep. 154. that all men contend for hath often deprived the owner not only of a happy life but even of life it self They that passe over the Humber when the Sea comes in seldome see the shore They that in tempestuons seasons passe over the Irish Seas seldome escape So rich men are so puzled with the thorny cares of wealth that they seldome attain to the true treasure I know the fault is not in the riches but in the mens ill using of them yet I take it to be a difficult thing to do otherwise and say with the Psalmist
we are the children of God St. Peters coherence intimates so much unto us that there is away to put all out of question He told us before of a chaine of grace tokens of salvation Wherefore the rather saith he give diligence to make your calling and election sure As if the Apostle should have said I would not perswade you to this diligence to make your election sure if I did not know there were certain and infallible tokens of election whereby it may be known but now seeing there are such certain notes though otherwise you might be negligent yet let me now perswade you the rather to diligence in making your election sure Next the Apostles command in the text to make it sure shews that there is a way for such as have grace to be assured of it The Apostle writes by the Spirit of God to whom all Spirits ought to be subject He urgeth it also as a matter very necessary for our own profit and comfort Doubtlesse then there is a way to secure it Adde unto this the promises of God elsewhere made by the mouth of our blessed Saviour Mat. 7.7 Aske and it shall be given you seek and ye shall find knock and it shall be opened unto you Now what have we more need to aske then the confirmation of our eternall election What have we more reason to seek for then the perswasion of our internall vocation What have we more to knock at heaven gates for then assurance to be let in there when we are shut out here So that Gods promise assures us a way to make our calling sure Lastly consider the examples of those that have attained to this assurance Take St. 2 Tim. 4.8 Paul for one Hencefore there is laid up for me a crown of righteousnesse But St. Paul was an Apostle had been rapt up into the third heaven and might very well know by revelation what would become of him So were not they whom St. John writes unto and yet they knew their own happy condition also 1 Joh. 4.13 We know that we dwell in him and he in us And presently after V. 16. We have known and believed the love that God hath to us And in the Chapter before 1 Joh. 3.14 We know that we have passed from death to life St. John joynes the rest with him in this assurance Heb. 6.9 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 That have salvation or are joyned to it The Hebrewes had in them things that accompany salvation and could not be divided from it Take the testimony of Macarius also They that are anointed with the spirituall oil of gladnesse have received a signe of that incorruptible Kingdome to wit Qui spirituali exuliationis oleo uncti sunt signum regni illius incorruptibilis recepere sc spiritum sanctum arrhabonem Secretarti sunt regis coelestis ac freti siducia Omnipotentis palatium ejus unpredâ—untur abi sunt angeli et spiritus sanctorum quamvis adhuc sint in hoc nundo Licet enim integram haereditatem sibi in illo seculo praeparatam nondum adierint certissimi tamen sunt ex arrhabone quem modo receperunt ac si jam coronati essent et regni clavem tenerint Macar Hom. 17. Gods Spirit for an earnest They are the Secretaries of the heavenly King and relying confidently upon the Almighty they enter into his palace where the Angels and the Spirits of holy men are although they be yet in this world For although they be not yet come to the entire inheritance which is prepared for them in that world yet they are most sure of it by that pledge which they have newly received as sure as if they were already crowned and had the key of the Kingdome in their own possession I will conclude the point with the testimony of an Emperour Constantine in his oration to the Fathers assembled in the Councell of Nice as Gelasius reporteth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Gelas Act. concil Nic. lib. 2. cap. 7. speaks thus The hope of the happinesse to come we do not only expect but as it were in some sort we have it hear already Worthily spoken and as became a Christian Emperour Woe then to the carelesse worldling who seeks to make sure the possession of his lands and goes to the Assurance office for his goods at Sea he hides his wealth and carefully layes up his treasure that it may not be stolne but takes no care at all to assure his election or calling to eternall happinesse If they could not be made certain he were to be excused but seeing there is a way to do it his negligence is inexcusable He hath preferd his wealth before his soul earth before heaven gold before God misery before happinesse He must expect Simon Magus doom Thy money perish with thee Act 8.20 He hath neglected his soul while he lives and God will refuse it when he dies The great mercy of God to us here also appears We had deserved eternal condemnation It had been abundanâ— mercy in God to bring us to heaven though we had gone through a kindâ— of hell here We had been happy in the end though we had been miserable in the way But God hath been pleased to give us not only heaven after this life but the assurance of it in this life Thus are we happy here under the certain hope of happinesse hereafter Our joyes are begun in this world that will be perfected but never be ended in the world to come Praise God then for thy happinesse begun on earth till thou enjoy thy endlesse happinesse in heaven We must now ascend one step higher to the means to assure us of our election and vocation and then we are at the highest till we come to heaven 6. The way to make our calling and election sure is by diligence It is no easie labour to assure so great happinesse There is need of much diligence to settle us in a full perswasion of our election and vocation Heb. 6.11 We desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end There is no growth in any art or science without great diligence and growth is our study and the end of our labour So in the conclusion of this Epistle 2 Pet. 3.17 18. Beware ye fall not from your own stedfastnesse but grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ There is need of diligence 1. To know Ad sciendum For the signes of election are many and are not easily known Much diligence must be used to understand the Scriptures where these tokens are scattered None of them can be spared though they be many because we have many temptations to unsettle us A ruinous house the more props it hath the faster it stands The more notes of election the soul understands the better it holds out against Satans wiles 2. To examine Ad
children bear to their parents for nature is their schoolmaster and chains of naturall affection are the bands of it This love comes not from vice or gain or nature Nay all these plead against it Vice opposeth it mainly for it opposeth all fellowship in evill Cain cries out against it for it cuts off many occasions of gain Nature it self sometimes opposeth it because it is above nature and hence are the bands of naturall affection sometimes disunited The father shall be divided against the son Luk. 12.53 and the son against the father This our Saviour foretold should follow upon change of Religion So then neither vice nor gain nor nature plead for this love but the first ever and the other two often against it This love is a good affection to Gods children because they are Gods None of the former reasons perswades us to it but only the goodnesse that is in them The image of God is graven in them And they that love God love those images of him that himself hath stamped and the liker they are to God the more they love them The heathen did admire at that affection that the persecuted Christians bare one to another Amant mutuâ— pene antequam noverint Minut. Fael They loved one another before they well knew one another saith Cecilius the heathen man and wonders at it Yea they themselves admired at it So saith Minutius Faelix of himself and Octavius Crederes unam animam im duobus esse divisam Ibidem You would have thought that one soul had been divided between us two The Scripture testifie as much The multitude of them that beleeved were of one heart Act. 4.32 and of one soul It not only makes it a mark that we our selves may discern but also that others may know by that we belong to God if we do not dissemble Joh. 13.35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples if ye have love one to another They have not this love that deride at piety and laugh at austerenesse of life That do not love men for their goodnesse but hate them Neither have they this love that suffer better men then themselves to perish for want of means 1 Joh. 3.17 and have plenty and yet relieve them not Who so hath this worlds good and seeth his brother hath need and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him how dwelleth the love of of God in him These are not called by God But such as love them that are good meerly because they are good they love God and God loves them 3. An earnest desire of the coming of Christ to judgment is a good token of Gods elect There is a crown of righteousnesse laid up not only for St. 2 Tim. 4.8 Paul but for all those that love the appearing of our Saviour Christ They that are guilty fear the coming of the Judge but they that are innocent fear it not They that are in their sins are afraid of the coming of our Saviour Christ to judgment But they that are reconciled to God through the bloud of Christ wish for it that they may be freed from sin and misery Rev. 22.17 It is the voice of the Bride it is the voice of the Spirit in the Bride Come V. 20 It is the voice of the penman of the Apocalypse Come Lord Jesus V. 17 It should be the voice of every hearer Come This is the generall voice of all Gods elect although at some particular time they could wish that Christ would not come yet As when they are overcome with some temptation they could wish that he might not come at that moment of time till they have repented and humbled themselves that they may give up their account with more comfort Even they that doubt of Gods favour would give all they have if they belong to God that Christ would come to judgement so they were sure that he would but acknowledge them for his own Try then thy affection to the coming of Christ and if thou finde it willing doubt not of Gods favour 4. The care of keeping a good conscience is an undeniable prove of Gods love to us Justification cannot be parted from sanctification But sanctification is more easily perceived then justification and by it is justification apprehended Sanctification is a work of God in us justification is a work of God concerning us Now we do more easily perceive those things that are wrought in us then those that do otherwise belong unto us This was St. Act. 24.16 Pauls exercise Herein do I exercise my self to have always a conscience void of offence towards God and towards men This is that God requires of us 1 Thess 4.7 For God hath not called us to uncleanness but unto holiness And therefore it is a true note of our calling They that have not this care cannot know they are elected They that have it need not at all to doubt of it These and other tokens may we learn out of the book of God and by experience seek to finde them in our selves So shall we come to be most certain in our old age when we have most need of assurance Senectus ipsa aetate sit doctior usu certior processu temporâ—s prudentior Ber. form hon vitae Old age it self is made more learned by age more certain by use more prudent in processe of time saith Bernard Let us go forward to fight in this combare against Satan to the end of our lives That which we strive for is no temporall but an eternall inheritance 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—lem Aley Admon â—d Gâ—ntes So saiâ—h Clemens Alexandrinus It is no small matter that ye strive for it is no lesse then immortality Let us not then suffer Satan to wring our evidences out of our hand but rather according to the sweet counsel of the blessed Apostle in the words of my text by these and other markes Give diligence to make your calling and election sure Which that we may do he gives us grace that hath elected us from eternity to eternal happiness and called us from misery to immortality to whom with the Son our Saviour and the holy Ghost our Comforter be all glory honour praise and dominion now and for evermore Amen FINIS ERRATA Pag. 1. line 13. chosed read chosen marg vol r. par vol. p. 4. l. 24. spake r. speak p. 5. l. 3. wishly r. wistly p. 8. marg chaix r. chair p. 9 l. 13 calany r. call any p. 17. l. 26. Thus r. Thus is p. 20. l. 28. passed r. pressed p. 28. l. 21. were r. we are p. 35. l. 11. no strive r. no strife l. 26. mon. r. man p. 36. marg end ser r. ser 3. p. 42. marg 11.13 r. Rom 11.33 p. 54. l 17. mystery r. ministery p. 72. adminested r. administed marg puricula r. pericula p. 86. marg affectionis r. affectibus p. 114. l. 6. should r. would p. 123. opoliones r. opiliones p. 124 l. 26. thoses r. those p. 126 l. 22. for so as r. for as p. 132. thing r. think l. 15 Adde in the margin Use 2. p. 161. l. 3. we are Gods building r. ye p. 170. l. 13. eternall r. internall p. 175. l. 12 consailes r. counsailes p. 178. amissi r. aversi p. 184. l. 12. treasures r. leasures p. 195. marg impediuntur r. ingrediuntur tenerint r. tenerent p. 199. end God favours r. Gods favour p. 201. l. 22. baets r. baites l 26. our rich r out rich p. 203. l. 14 mouth r. moth p 209. l. 4. tromented r. tormented l. 17. is it r. it is l. 27. vinepresse r. winepresse marg 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 r. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 A Catalogue of Books Printed for G. and H. Eversden and are to be sold at the Gray-bound in Pauls-church-yard AN Exposition of the whole book of the Canticles by John Robotham Preacher at Dover in Kent in 4º A tabernacle for the Sun or an Idea of Church discipline by John Rogers Minister at St. Thomas Apostles London in 4º The life of Sir Thomas More sometimes Lord Chancellor of England by J. H. Gent. in 8º The naturall mans case stated or an exact map of the little world Man in 17. Sermons by Mr. Christopher Love late Minister of Lawrence Jury London together with a Sermon preached at his funeral by Mr. Tho. Manton in 8º As also the Doctrine of Mortification with the Hearers duty by Mr. Christopher Love in 8º A Comment on the 11. first verses of the fourth Chapter of St. Matthew concerning Christs temptations by Tho. Fuller B.D. and Minister of Waltham Abbey in Essex in 8º A Comment on the first and second Chapters of Ruth by Mr. Tho. Fuller B.D. and Minister of Waltham Abbey in Essex in 8º The Lords prayer unclasped or a vindication of it against all Schismaticks and Hereticks by James Harwood B.D. in 8º The Mystery of the two witnesses unâ— vailed by John Robotham Minister 〈◊〉 Gods word in Dover in 8º The Christian Diurnal or dayly 〈◊〉 ties to be practised towards God 〈…〉 neighbours our selves by Anthony Mâ—â—â—â—gan D.D. in 12º Sion and Parnassus or divine Epigrams on severall texts of Scrpture bâ— J. H. Gent. in 8º