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A09364 The first part of The cases of conscience Wherein specially, three maine questions concerning man, simply considered in himselfe, are propounded and resolued, according to the word of God. Taught and deliuered, by M. William Perkins in his Holy-day lectures, by himselfe revised before his death, and now published for the benefit of the Church.; Cases of conscience. Part 1 Perkins, William, 1558-1602.; Pickering, Thomas, d. 1625. 1604 (1604) STC 19668; ESTC S114413 95,900 200

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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
and pure and no mortall man being vncleane polluted by sinne can haue fellowship with him yet God hath shewed his mercy to those that beleue in him and hath accepted of the blood of Iesus Christ his sonne whereby they are clensed from all their corruptiōs v. 7. If here it be asked how this pardon and forgiuenes may be known It is answered by two signes one is Hūble heartie Confession of our sins vnto god for so saith the Apostle If we confesse our sins he is faithfull and iust to forgiue vs our sins and to clense vs from all iniquitie v. 9. The other is the pacified Conscience for being iustified by faith we haue peace with God and If our heart condemne vs not that is if our conscience in respect of sinne doth not accuse vs then haue we boldnesse towards God Chap. 3. v. 21. The secōd note of fellowship with God is the sanctifying Spirit whereby we are renewed in holines and righteousnes Hereby we know that he abideth in vs euen by the Spirit which he hath giuen vs Chap. 3. v. 24. The third is holines vprightnes of heart life To this end the Apostle saith If we say that we haue fellowship with him and walke in darknes we lie doe not truely but if we walke in the light as he is in the light we haue fellowship one with another c. Chap. 1. 6. 7. The fourth is perseuerāce in the knowledge and obedience of the Gospel So the same Apostle exhorteth the Church Let therfore abide in you that same doctrine cōcerning Christ which ye haue heard from the beginning If that which ye haue heard from the beginning remaine in you that is if ye beleeue and obey it you also shall continue in the same and in the father Chap. 2. 24. The second Ground He that is the adopted sonne of God shall vndoubtedly be saued This point the Apostle plainely declareth when he saith Beloued now are we the sonnes of God And we knowe that is we are vndoubtedly assured by faith that when Christ shal appeare in glory we shal be like vnto him for we shall see him as he is That the latter part of these words is thus to be expounded I gather out of Chap. 2. 28. as also by comparing this text with that of S. Paul where he saith When Christ which is our life shall appeare then shall we also appeare with him in glory And againe If we be sonnes we are also heires euen the heires of God and heires annexed with Christ if so be that we suffer with him that we may also be glorified with him Nowe put the case that the conscience of the beleeuer will not rest in this but desires to be further resolued touching the certainetie of his adoption Then I answer that he must haue recourse vnto the signes whereby a sonne of God may be discerned from a child of the deuill and these are principally three First is truely to beleeue in the name of the sonne of God for those that haue God for their father are made the sonnes of God by faith in Iesus Christ. And this faith shewes it selfe by obedience For hereby we are sure that we knowe Christ that is that we beleeue in him and apply him with all his benefits vnto our soules If we keepe his commandements Nay further He that saies I knowe him and keepes not his commandements is a liar and the trueth is not in him chap. 2 3 4. The second signe is a heartie desire and earnest indeauour to be clensed of his corruptions Euery sonne of God that hath this hope purifieth himselfe euen as Christ is pure chap. 3. vers 3. The third is the loue of a Christian because he is a Christian for hereby saies the Apostle are the children of God known from the children of the deuill because the sonnes of Satan doe hate their brethren as Cain did his brother Abel euen for the good workes which they doe On the other side Gods adopted sonnes may hereby know themselues to be translated from death to life because they loue the brethren Chap. 3. 10 11 12 c. The third Ground They that are assured of the loue of God to them in particular may also be certainely assured of their owne saluation This doctrine followes necessarily vpon the Apostles words chap. 4. v. 9. For those whome God hath loued from all eternitie to them he hath manifested his loue by sending his onely begotten sonne into the world that they might liue through him eternally But howe may a man be assured of Gods speciall loue and fauour The same Apostle answers by two notes The first is the loue of our brethren and that according to Gods commandement wherein it is commanded that he that loues God should loue his brother also 4. 21. Andif any man say I loue God and hate his brother be is a liar For howe can he that loueth not his brother whome he hath seene loue God whome he hath not seene 4. 20. Nowe that a man deceiue not himselfe in the loue of his brother Saint Iohn giues three rules One that Christian brotherly loue should not be for outward respects or considerations but principally because they are the sonnes of God and members of Christ Euery one that loueth him which did beget that is god the father loueth him also which is begotten of him 5. 1. Another is that it must not be outward in shew onely but inward in the heart Let vs not loue in word or in tongue onely but in deede and in trueth 3. 18. Lastly that it be not onely in time of prosperitie but vvhen hee stands in most neede of our loue For whosoeuer hath this worlds good and seeth his brother haue neede and shutteth vp the bovvels of compassion from him howe dvvelieth the loue of god in him 3. 17. The second note of Gods loue vnto vs is our loue of god For those whome God loueth in Christ to them hee giues his grace to loue him againe And this louing of him againe is an euident token of that loue wherewith he loueth them So saith the Apostle We loue him because hee loued vs first 4. 19. If it be demaunded howe a man may be assured that he loueth God the answer is hee may knowe it by two things first by his conformitie to him in holinesse The child that loues his father will be willing to tread in the steppes of his father and so in like manner he that loueth God will indeauour euen as hee is so to be in this world 4. 17. But howe is that not in equalitie and perfection but in similitude and conformitie striuing to be holy as he is holy and indeauouring to doe his will in all things Secondly by the vveaning of his affection from the things of this world yea from all pleasures and delights of this present life so farre forth as they are seuered from the feare and loue of