all the prayers of all us mortals Our discourse hath gained us this knowledge that this is a most excellent prayer But objected Object May I say no other prayer Yes Res for this read Mat. 24.20 Orate ne fuga vestra pray that your flight be not in the winter But we be wiser then Christ he said When ye pray say Our Father By those words When ye pray say Our Father perchance our Christ gave us a hint that in conclusion all Christians shoud close alike making this prayer the * Last period not the * First praeword the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 not the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as if our own words we had shewed a weaknesse by his should be made amends O my God The Avowry while I speak to thee in my own language I will not pretermit to conclude as thou hast taught to say Our Father which art in Heaven The substance or subject matter of this prayer consists of Two parts The Preface That * Placed after post-put 1. The Preface is wrapt up in the six first words before the prayer which are these Our Father which art in Heaven 2. That placed after Are 1. Petitions six 2. The Reasons three 3. The Conclusion one only word Amen The preface is that I first mean to intermeddle with of which I will speak Conjunctim in whole speak Divisim by parts And first in whole before our prayers we stand in need of such a preface First lest we come too saucily to God Almighty Secondly in that time to recollect our whole Spirits to pray 1. For the first we should not have has Zebedees wife so impudent if before her prayer she had placed such a preface she would have been lowlier minded if she had minded that the highest heaven had been Gods habitation Man it 's the nature of him and he learnt it of a woman to be too sawcy in his suit and more to aime at his own honour than Gods glory Again the Gadarens for the losse of their Hogs could not have been so clownishly uncivil but have used better words to our Jesus had they praeput such a preface as this The ignorance of what God is makes mean man unmannerly and petition Gods departure rather then his presence 2. The second reason this preface had need be said for that in this time we have time to recollect our whole soule and minde and spirit to pray O consideration doth well what we are to do ere we do it An hasty zeal brings forth an untimely birth in which there is oft more hast then good speed An inferiour when he speaks to his better he sets before a May it please you If it please your worship A protospeech as to win audience so to get breath and briefly a short time wherein men gain a brief or recollect of their longer intended after discourse Thus have we cause to count of this preface as a time in which to make a Collect of all to be said In this Idea I have much presented and whilest I cast a glance on this prospective glasse I see to the utmost end of my suit by a divine kinde of contemplation It were well we would weigh in the ballance of our considerations these passages recommended in this preface which as I have spoken of in whole by parts now give me leave to prosecute O my God I am ever resolved The Avowry so thou wilt assoil me presumption to pry yet more and more into this ark of thy Covenant This preface shewes unto us What God is Where he is 1. What God is our Father 2. Where he is in Heaven He that is our God is our Father and this our Father he is in Heaven all I have said is witnessed while said Our Father which art in Heaven Here our God is described Relativè Relatively Possessivè Possessively The relation we have to him is as nigh as the childe is to the father And to shew what kinde of father next followes the possessive our a pronoune which protests God is not a step-father but our own Father Our Father his name is Father not named Lord not my Lord Judge Here is a term which sents neither of Lordly overlooking nor of Judge-like sentencing He is neither troubled with the port of pride and disdains to cast his Eye upon us nor yet is clothed in Pontius Pilats apparell to passe sentence against us nor assumes he yet this name Father to make us only credulous he hath washt his hands and will not be guilty of our bloud it imports as a father loveth his childe so God us which God grant We will go take notice what this Expression puts us in hopes of Expression bindes us to doe For the first word Father puts us in minde of 4 things 1. Of the love of God 2. His commiserating compassion 3. His fear that we fall 4. His best help when we need First For Gods love to man I may say of it as was said of Christ to Lazarus Lord how thou lovedst him David admires Psal 8. Jonathans falls far short of it though his love did surpasse the love of women 2 Sam. 1.26 But come Can a woman forget her owne childe The Quaere implies a possibility but a rarity yet it 's aver'd the Lord will never leave us nor forsake us And thus the naturall love of the mother the faithfull love of friends the love of God to us surpasses it parallels it self with Christs to Lazarus who shewed then his love unto him when he unable to do him a pleasure when he dead and in grave when he stunk in the grave O Lord how unutterable is thy love towards all us thy sons and daughters Secondly This term or title Father puts us in hopes of Gods commiserating compassion O he pities our distressed estate that the patrimony he gave us prodigals is spent that we who are his are forc'd to feed on husks and akorns that faln amongst theeves and what 's left is taken from us O how his bowels yern within his belly to see us so poor and needy and naked not like that we were it grieves him to see us so ill like but most that we in misery and yet the fondlings make no matter of it Thirdly God is our Father and it insures us how fear'd he is we fall 1. Apparent by his injunction served upon the Angels to pitch their tents about us Psal 34.7 2. By his passing by our elder * Angels brethren who had faln but we having faln he sent his own Son to help us up again O God the greater hath been our misery the more cause we have to admire thy mercy Fourthly God is cald our Father which insures us how ready he is to help us that are faln If a childe should chance to fall into a pond you need not if his parent know of it wish him to go and help him his bowels yern his feet run his hands
he reaches out to lay hold on his babe God who is Father of us all alwaies knowes our mischances he needs be told by none bid by none go help us The truth is our help standeth in the Lord our God who made both heaven and earth and blessed be his name world without end Secondly God is our Father and as it puts us in hopes of his love compassion fear we fall best help so the title bindes us to do all is beseeming to be done to a Father nought else It 's inquired what is that 1. Aske him blessing 2. Do him reverence 1. The title Father adviseth us to crave Gods blessing O saith Esau to Isaae father blesse me even me also He will not leave him till he blesse him Esau his earnest suit shall teach me to make an high estimate of Gods blessing yea to esteem of Gods blessing better than Jasons golden Fleece He speaks it in respect of his high esteem he hath of Gods blessing above all else he wants or yet the great Chams Tree full of Pearls hanging by clusters I stand in need of much yet give me this and beleeve me I have got more than all else I want Our little ones desire twice a day our blessing gentle monitors which in a still voice solicite us to crave Gods blessing God is our Father we our childrens we look they should aske us blessing as much God expects of us 2. The word Father puts us in mind we must behave our selves reverently towards God and at two times in speciall When we speak to God When God speaks to us 1. For the first I have oft admired of that carriage of Elisha to Elias who thus cryed out after him O my Father my Father the chariot of Israel and the horsemen thereof If Gods good Prophet have such high stiles much more owe we to God himself First our honourable additions such as Almighty and most merciful Father it were well they were cald in to be witnesses when we speak to God that it 's with all reverence Again let our reverence be made to appear by bespeaking God in a low voice the high God loves to be bespoke in a low language cum plurima humilitate with much humility When we speak to him let us take our termes with us when of our selves say as did the Prophet I am a worm and no man as did the Patriarch Minor sum Domine I am lesse a Lord than the least of thy mercies God our Father cannot abide to hear us his sons and daughters mouth the word Merit Let me tell thee and truly he that will tell God he deserves heaven God will do him no more but justice yet reward him with hell For my own part The Avowry I had rather cry when I pray God be mercifull to me a sinner then to brave it out Lord I am not as this Publican yea and by professing of meritlesse I will gaine the more 2. You must reverence God your Father speaking to you this he doth so oft as we do as St. Paul saith We are Gods Embassadors and God intreats you by us whilest you hear us preach the word of God God expects you hear it with all reverence as words proceeding forth of his own lips and yet we have a sort who neither the four and twenty Elders who vaild their Crowns and laid them at his feet nor yet the Abissines who pull off the shooes in the Church-porch as they go in can move them to come mannerly into Gods house the Church to hear him Howsoever those saucy sons of Zebedees wives and their mother came to speak a good word for them they should misse their * Gods Fathers blessing The next thing to be prosecuted and explained is intimated in the word Our This is the relation we have to God he is Our Father I will not here speak upon the divers waies how the word Father is taken only so much say as may direct us to this possessive our God is call'd Our Father Distinctivè Our Father Praerogativè And first by way of Distinction And that tripartitely 1 Generaliter 2 Specialiter 3 Singulariter 1. Generaliter so God is the Father of us all all our Fathers for this read Deut. 32.6 Is not he thy Father hath he not made thee 2. Specialiter sic Justorum per adoptionem so God is the Father of us his adopted for this read Mat. 5.48 Be ye perfect even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect 3. Singulariter so God is Christs Father by eternall generation and so the word is used Mat. 11.27 All things are delivered unto me of my Father A review God generally is all our Fathers first by creating us Specially our Father only on whom he hath bestowed a portion of grace Singularly God is Christs Father no so ours as his for Christ is his eternall off-spring without beginning Now we see here why not Christ but Christians say this prayer for that God is our Father not as his Secondly why the adopted saints say Our Father for that they are all his adopted children Thirdly why we admit even of the most wicked with us to say our Lords prayer for that he is Father of good and bad all our Fathers by creation All the world by creation have a like relation unto God and may call him our Father All sanctified Saints have a more nigh tie to God and may call him our Father by creation by adoption yet more then the elect in speciall or the world in generall may Christ say and call God my Father not by creation not by adoption but by generation Straight then is the tye of God the Father to Christ his Son for Gods naturall Son Next is the relation of the Saint to God who is his Father by adoption The most remote relation is that of the wicked to God who is called their father for that he made them so did he the beasts of the field and fowls of the air All then this word our our Father as used by the wicked can put them in hope of is Gods generall providence to provide for them as his other creatures That which the word our our Father as used by the elect ought to put us in hopes of is Gods speciall providence that he will be with us to deliver us out of all our trouble The word our our Father as used by the elect in speciall world in generall not by Christ in particular protests he that is our Father yet he is Christs Father after a more miraculous manner than any other And yet to our comfort this possessive our proclaimes God is not a step-father but our own Our Father O how doth prayer link us on earth to the God of heaven makes us of as nigh alliance as father and son own father and own son Now since so nigh a tie our carriage is base if our Father disinherit us I am resolved for my own part
we relie on Gods mercy too much we wrong Gods justice not a little I will poise my Spirit betwixt hope and fear The Avowry and to ballance even while I hope for mercy fear justice 2. Wrongs God Justice are two brothers both sons to carnall security The name of the one is call'd Carelesse heed taking of Gods proceeding against malefactors The name of the other is Non-notice taking of the generall Assize to be holden when every one must answer for all he hath done in the flesh as avow'd 2 Cor. 5.10 Gods justice is much dishonoured while men neither minde what inflicted nor what is threatned against impenitent sinners We love to dandle in our hands Gods staffe or support will not cast so much as an eye at the Rod of his wrath God hath holden his corrections these many years prescribing divers their penances Measels Small Pox Plague and the Sword dipt in bloud have all certified thousands have taken pennance in white sheets God it is to be feared is about opening a vein and putting us to a new penance non flumine sed sanguine This was upon the first entrance of the Scots And what shall be the end of these things it 's not hid from us it 's upon record that without repentance we shall perish All this is true which blazes O God how thou art just Luk. 13.5 yet how little is thy justice feared O it is our carelesse passing by of Gods visitation past and to be holden which makes us set his * Justice corrections light and live so loosly lewdly I will call to minde what horrid punishments I have seen The Avowry and pray I may beleeve what denounc'd A mean while I admire Gods mercy to make me fear his Justice 3. Such neglect to hallow Gods Name who wrong Gods word Who be they Quest There are three offer it injury Res one is very many unwritten Traditions full cousin-german to old wives tales whose word is in credit with Papists not Protestants will be taken in Spain and Rome but in none of our K. Dominions our sacred Synods did never give them hearing and yet Tridentinum concilium una cum veteris novique Testamenti libris traditiones etiam pari pietatis affectu reverentia suscipit ac veneratur The Councell of Trent esteems unwritten Traditions as highly as the old and new Testament Vox Dei vox hominis are in the weigh scales what a wrong is this to Gods word for mans word to parragaud with it for unwrittn traditions to face it out they will be as well trusted as Gods own written word I will make a more high estimate of Gods Word than all other The Avowry lest while I admit of a parity to honour Earth I dishonour heaven 2. Ignorance is another doth offer much wrong to Gods good Word men esteem not what they know not a barly corn is better lik'd by the midden Cock than a pearl It was but an Asse fell to the thistle and left the fertile soile Heraclitus laught at him Hist we will be sorry for these who are so very ignorant they know not they know nought their grosse ignorance hath made them undervalue that inestimable word the Word of God insomuch divers have better appetites to hear a play acted then a Chapter read or a Sermon preached especially by an orthodox Divine For my own part I am resolved The Avowry to fall in love with knowledge lest my want of knowledge diminish my love to the Word of God 3. The world is a third that wrongs Gods Word not a little Gods Word hath no greater enemy than this world Lord how many fly draw offs hath it to withdraw us from reading it hearing it medicating on it How doth it shuffle by all religious duties proponing either pleasure and go to the womans house in the Proverbs or profit and go to Mammons or ease and stay at home all Sermon time he that will be counselled by the world was never known to wish the Word well Well though the wicked so far make use of God and his Word The Avowry as that he may enjoy the world and its goods I am resolved only so far to make use of this world and its good things as that I may enjoy God and his Word 4. They neglect to hallow Gods Name who live but lewdly the honour of the Prince is laid to the stake when the subjects are exceeding lews and live wickedly But who hinders our country men from living well and doing good works Quest which others seeing should cause them to glorifie our Father which is in Heaven There are six of them Res 1. Insensiblenesse of sins 2. Want of true faith 3. Want of charity 4. Incredulity that God will not repay back 5. Love of this world 6. Fear to need Six Orators and all to draw us from good works and since I cannot stay to decipher to you out nor portray the perfect portracture of these wicked wretches I will send you to a sort of my very good friends who are able to rid you of all those idle consorts 1. Repair to a troubled conscince one can free thee from an insensiblenesse of sin 2. Repair to Abraham who against hope beleeved I mean to a true and lively faith this will send misbelief a packing 3. Hast thee on to the house of unity thou shalt there meet with brotherly love will banish malice 4. Go me on from hence and get to speak in private with Consideration I mean consider with thy self what largesses received already Hear is one will thrust Diffidence by the head and shoulders out of the door of thy heart 5. There is a fift his name I have forgotten yet his Motto is this I desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ This is he is only able to drive away and cause to depart out of thine heart and in post-hast love of this world 6. Let Solomon be the sixt whose very language the creatures neither spin nor labour is of strength sufficient to free the from that slavish bondage in which thou wert to fear fear to need Since I have these six to oppose those six The Avowry I am resolved to fight under the banner of Gods Graces lest poor soul be ensnared in the ginne of hellish vice The fist moiety of my method warns me to give a call upon those graces prayed for in this petition yea and to provide them house-room in my heart Graces two They be two Sincerity They be two Vigilancy Sincerity The Parallel a Jonadab whose heart is upright Vigilancy a David whose eyes prevent the night watches Behold the Mine without drosse Sincerity The Court of Guard which guards it Vigilancy That 's my riches Sincerity This their keeper Vigilancy How much do I want and want that * Sincerity First How much may I lose and let go this * Vigilancy Latter For
warned the Jewes to have a care of this when said to them Think not to say within your selves here 's provision taken against an open assault and a small skirmish O that this care were had over our bodies and sould then we might play at foiles and not receive so many disgracefull vinnies The Avowry I am resolved to have an eye all over and to stand upon my guard * Head to the foot a capo pe since required to take heed to the least harm carching in the incounter Now see what it is we pray for Deliverance from evill I will not divide Deliverance from Evill since Evill without Deliverance delivers us up to death Let us tye these two a good and a bad together and though the wolves guts being placed nigh the sheeps tharmes fret them all to pirces yet it 's my hopes this Innocent shal have the better of that Malefactor and that the nigher Deliverance makes his approach the suddenner downfall will betide Evill Let us team then these two together as Samson did his foxes to burn up the land of the Philistims But to save from spoil the * Soul land of israel 1. I mean let us treat upon Deliverance and Evill conjunctim our Deliverance from Evill 2. Then upon Evill all alone First these two Devill and sin are comprehended under this one only word Evill from which we pray for Deliverance to deliver us from Evill and what to deliver and us and from these thus named This sewes us Note the Devill and sin are our worst of enemies that abroad this at home that without doors this within doors that the prince of the aire this which we heir from Adam and earths in us and dwels in us in our bodies in our souls These two seek the destruction of our souls and bodies Whoso hears the cry of the Crocodile immediately he is a dead body O fear not him can kill the body but these can kill both body and soul Let me count of these for foes who are of force to be my undoing the undoing of all me and for ever Secondly what worse enemies than these which are alwaies at oddes with us Earthly enemies are not ever in action take sometimes truce with us the truth is these two never take truce no not a minute a moment Devill his daily journey is to compasse the earth and all to make us hellish proselytes Sin like the Sun is in continuall motion like the fountain ever bubling Hence saith our Saviour Why do thoughts arise and you shall see what arise and turn to Mar. 7.21 Streams of waters of Mara and amin and so many able to drown the Israel of God as the Red sea all the host of the Egyptians Thirdly it is the Devill and sin seek to destroy unum unitatem not only this or that person but the species Hist the whole kinde and posterity of Adam Nero wisht all Rome had but one head that so with one blow he might be their utter overthrow what he wisht these have wrought even all our overthrowes The Mirandillian Butchery the Parisian Mattens the Sicilian Evensong fall all far short of that these two have complotted acted against Adam and all us his off-spring And honce issues out my ill conceit against the Devill and sin Yea their hate to our kinde The Collect their continuall hate which stretches out its limits beyond this life to deprive us of a life everlastign this foul fact of these two hath made me resolve upon it to repair to those three to the trine Unity or Trinity in unity all to put up to them this petition Lord lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evill Let us now go take notice from what we desire deliverance it is from Evill By which word Evill you have heard is meant the Devill and Sin this is their style nones else That I note is Note nought is more evill than the Devill and Sin 1. For antiquity sio fuit a principie ever since Devill was a Devill and sin sin these have been evill 2. For spite or malice know you not devill makes God out of love with us and sin us out of love with Gods Law 3. For Complots the Devils device to harm Job and sins insinuation to bring Ananias to his end reveal they are horrible evill 4. The Devils Epithites the evill spirit the unclean spirit Mat. 12. and sins effect By one man came sin and by sin death make me give them this title Evill and deservedly I am resolved The Avowry since this they are to beware yea to watch and ward over my heat lest my heart admit of acquaintance with these two foul fiends the Devill and sin The Cases of Conseience now next come in and they be three The first whereof is this I. Case after what manner doth Lust and Concupiscence temps us to fin or intice or draw us on from serving God to become the servants of sin This is the hardest thing in the world to discover and therefore much pains must be taken to compleat an answer satisfactory Such a serious subject as this is slighting of it is unseemly and the Orator should be as ill thought of Hist as Alexander thought of Cherillus who gave him money to hold his peace 1. It is and for this cause that I am resolved first to demonstrate how lust effects this feat by a simile 2. To make the point more perspicuous I purpose God willing to describe lusts sick daies march through the heart of man and all to captivate poor foul and take the Man prisoner and lead him into that strong hold call'd Temptation First this may be made appear by a Simile drawn from flowers how lust or concupiscence entices or draws man on to sin You know there passes from flowers a subtle vapour which the sense of smelling drawes in and which drawes away the sense with delight after it So lust which sprung up in the Garden of Eden after Eve had finned from it as from a flower passes a subtle vapour of evill thoughts And as the sent of the flower goes on by the organ of smell into the brain so a sent of lusts even evill thoughts are carryed by that organ the common sense into the heart And as the delightfull smell makes us in love with the subtle vapour so the pleasures of lusts make us affect the vapours of evill which come from lust Nor are those evill vapours a few but full many apparent by those already quoted words of Christ Luk. 24. Why do thoughts arise in your hearts These are infectious vapours and more dangerous to the soul than fenny mists to the body if not scattered and blown a way by Gods Spirit they poyson soul and cast understanding will and memory the souls publick Notary into Feaver sits This is it hath made me resolve upon it The Avowry to beg of the good gardiner God