A FAMILIAR TREATISE laying downe CASES OF CONSCIENCE Furthering to perseuerance in SANCTIFICATION By Thomas Cooper preacher of Gods word Printed at London by Iohn Beale for William Welby and are to be sold at his shop at the signe of the Swan in Paules Church-yard 1615. TO THE RIGHT WORSHIPFVLL MY HARTIE Wel-willers the Ladie Rumney Mr. Springham Mr. Slany Mr. Parkhust Mr. Clarke Mr. Vincent Mr. Mosley and Mr. Th aire and the rest of my Christian auditors and louing neighbors grace mercie and peace from God the Father through Iesus Christ our Lord bee multiplied RIght worshipfull and dearely beloued in the Lord Iesus It is the mercie of the Lord that wee are not vtterly consumed because his compassions faile not Hath not our long prosperitie hardened our hearts and lulled vs in securitie And when we say peace and safety may not a sudden destruction come vpon vs as the trauaile vpon a woman with childe and we shall not escape Doe not our impudent and desperate sinnes daily call downe for vengeance against vs in that we put the euill day farre from vs that wee may still approach to the seat of iniquity hardning our hearts yet more and more that we cannot repent And is not the enuious man busie to sow tares now wee are asleepe Are not our aduersaries watchfull and dil gent in their malicious and bloody practises against the Church of God practising daylie the ouerthrow thereof will any thing serue their turne but to roote cut and destroy and are we generally any better then such trees as are able to bee hewen downe and cast into the fire Hath this vnprofitable fig-tree for all this dressing and fencing for all this lopping and donging yet brought forth fruit worthie of repentance Surely though we should neuer so much stand vpon our iustification with Saul that wee haue fulfilled the Commandements of the Lord that we are an holy people the Lord shall finde no iniquity in vs c. yet the bleating of the sheepe and lowing of the oxen the sparing of Agag and reseruing of his offals is a notorious euidence to conuince our hypocrisie And therefore though we flatter our selues with Agag that the bitternesse of death is past because happilie the Lord in great patience hath yet waited vpon vs and put off many desperate blowes that might haue light heauilie vpon vs yet certainly when hee sees a conuenient time he will execute vengeance and wound the hairie scalpe of all those that goe on in their wickednesse And is not this a speciall euidence that we goe on in our sinnes and intend not repentance because we either hate to be reformed and haue cast the word behinde our backes or els heape vp teachers according to our own lusts which may prophecie of new wine and strong drinke to morrow shall be as to day or much more aboundant And is it not a fearefull argument of the wrath of God readie to seaze vpon vs in that wee haue chosen and embraced the world that thirsts after our blood and haue cast out that sword which should stand in the gappe to turne away the vengeance What then is the reason that we are not vtterly consumed that our aduersaries the Papists haue not had their desire Surely they shall not say where is now our God because they shal not blaspheme that great glorious Name of our God which is called vpon of vs And therfore not vnto vs oh Lord not vnto vs but vnto thy Name giue the glory euen for thy truth righteousnes sake Thogh we are not worthy of the least of Gods mercies thogh we haue deserued to be ouerwhelmed with all his plagues yet the Lord is worthy of all praise and glory and therefore he hath deliuered vs that we might glorifie him and shall not the Iudge of al the world do right wil he punish the righteous with the wicked must not Lot be taken out of Sodom before the vengeance be inflicted shall not euen one be a means to spare the Citie for his sake Behold here another ground of the patience of God euen the holy seed that yet remaines the Lord hath a litle flocke which is as deare vnto him as the apple of his eye this hath hee chosen it vnto him in Iesus Christ before the foundations of the world were laid This he hath made glorious through his beautie which he hath set vpon it this he hath promised to bee with vs to the end of the world can any thing be against vs if the lord be with vs shall not he make our enemies our footstool shal not the lord tread Satan vnder our feet blessed be God in Iesus Christ that hath made bare his mighty army in the sight acknowledgment of our enemies Did not the papists once acknowledge that God was become a lutheran do they not feel to this day that he that keeps Israel doth neither slūber nor sleep hath not our God watched ouer vs when wee haue slept in security hath not hee foght for vs when our carnal weapōs haue bin confounded hath he not got himself the glory of al our deliuerāces that so we might at length giue him the glory of his free mercies that so we might not be afraid of any euill tidings that still we might feare and depart from euil while the wicked rage are careles surely howsoeuer the pit is digged for the wicked and the consumption decreed shall passe ouer to the confounding of hypocrites howsoeuer sinner in Sion shal be afraid and feare shall take hold of the hypocrits when Gods wrath approcheth yet shall the vpright heart then lift vp their heads because their saluation draweth neere The purging of the Church of hypocrites shal be the preparing thereof to greater glorie and safetie and the anointed of the Lord shall gaine more honour and securitie when the Lord Iesus shal be more aduanced vpon his holy hill of Sion And are not our enemies hastening hereunto hath not the patience of policie enraged them more and more and doth not their wickednesse so breake out that it can no longer be endured Is it not time together with the safety of our soules to prouide also for the securitie of our liues and states Blessed bee the Lord for the vigilance and courage of the state Oh blessed bee our God for his watchfulnesse ouer vs were not all our building and watching else in vaine And is it not then more then time to keepe our God waking by our prayers and teares Is it not his time to awake out of securitie that so we may make our peace with God that he may stil for his glory preserue the peace of his Churches that he may still preuent and confound the enemies of his Church And could I now hold my peace in this day of good tydings when the Lord hath euen againe giuen vs our liues for a prey and pluckt vs as a prey out of the teeth of the deuourer Haue I not vowed
before we are healed And do not our great sinnes require a sharpe corrasiue can we be brought to sound repentance till we be cast out of our selues and but by a sentence of death euen by the terrors of hell must we not haue some sence of what we haue deserued that so we may by repentance auoide the vengeance to come And may it not now so fall out that the Lord will not heare our prayers because we regard iniquity in our hand shall Israel preuaile while the excommunicate thing remaines Are we fit for the comfort and ioy of Gods fauour so long as our sinne stands before him to grieue his spirit must he not goe vnto his place that we may seeke him diligently 8 God knoweth what is fittest for vs and he doth what is best for our present condition to bring vs to repentance And therefore in stead of complaining on God that he hath done vs wrong herein let vs in the name of God complaine against our selues What is it which he could haue done which he hath not done vnto vs And what haue not we done against him which we should not doe how haue we not in all things requited him euill for good And therefore in stead of desiring comfort let vs search and trie our hearts how we haue offended our gratious God let vs iudge our selues that we may not be iudged of him so shall we take Satans office out of his hands in accusing of our selues 9 The way to preuent satans accusation is to accuse and iudge our selues so shall we stop his mouth and confound his malice and making hereby our way vnto the throne of grace we shall find the blood of Iesus to speake better things for vs then the blod of Abel first to wash vs thorowly from our sinnes and then to minister ioy and gladnes vnto our soules 10 That we are not the greatest sinners For our further comfort herein because when we are about this practise of iudging of our selues and the Lord by this inward rod drawes vs thereto It is now Satans policie to keepe vs in these distractions and so to sucke vs in despaire by perswadings that our case herein is singular Either none are so grieuous sinners as we are or else none so deeply plunged in this extremity as our selues Therefore learne we this to resist his fiery darts First though we should be the greatest of all sinners yet shall the mercy of God appeare the greater in pardoning so grieuous a sinner more glory shall redound to his name in being so incomparably mercifull more loue is due from so great a sinner more care to please so bountifull a Father Secondly it will not appeare that we are greater sinners then any so long as we feele our sinnes and desire to be eased of them seeing these two things make vp the measure of sinne Who is the greatest sinner either not to feele sinne at all by reason of hardnesse of heart and the conscience being past seeking or else to despise and reiect the remedy against sinne though we haue some sense thereof either through Pride that we need it not or through despaire that we thinke it will doe no good Thirdly though we are not the greatest sinners in comparison of others 11 It is not vnprofitable to commence our selues to be the greatest sinner yet shall it not be amisse to comence our selues to be such partly because we know our owne estate best and not others and therefore in this respect we may esteem our case more hainous then any other and partly because we are more enflamed with the loue of Christ and so in the abundance of his loue doe discerne our vnworthinesse and corruptions more and more in our selues That so still we may more deny our selues and labour to be found in Christ not hauing our owne righteousnesse ought we not in charity to thinke others better then our selues may we not hope the best of the worst because the Lord may recouer them And is there any outwardly so vile but that our hearts tell vs we find far more fearfull corruptions within vs then possibly we can challenge others by that which appeareth outwardly and shall not our charity to others call vs more into our selues that so we may more narrowly search our owne hearts more iudge our selues that we may not be iudged of the world shall not the sence of our vilenesse make vs more compassionate vnto others that so the Lord may haue compassion on vs And can we be too vile in our eies that so we may hunger more earnestly after the mercy of God And therefore though others may be greater sinners then we yet is it wisedome for vs to feele our selues to be the greatest that so there may be no place left for going further on the score that we may now thinke it sufficient that we haue spent the time past yea too much that we haue already so prouoked our God that we may not differ our repentance any longer that the meanes of God may not be reiected of vs. If we wisely consider the policy of satan herein howsoeuer he lay to vs that we are the greatest of all sinners yet hereby he intends to plunge vs deeper in sinne to driue vs to despaire that so we may despise mercy so depriue our selues of the possibility of it And therefore to admit wee were the greatest sinners though we feele our selues to be in worse case then any this shall be a meanes to be more emptied in our selues the more to faint after the mercy of God in Christ Iesus Nay is it not satans policie by perswading vs that we are of all sinners the chiefe if he cannot plunge vs in despaire yet to make vs secure and carelesse We know the worst and therefore let vs make no bones of sinne let vs not trouble our selues with any such reckoning Gods mercies are greater Christ merit is sufficient doe we what we can Gods purpose can not be altered Thus doth satan play vpon the left hand and on right now vrging to despaire because neuer any so bad as we then prouoking to presumption be we neuer so bad And doth not our wise and gracious God bring light of this darknesse that because we are so vile therefore we not presume any further It is the wonder of Gods loue to tender grace to so great sinners and shal be the glory of our father to giue hope to such castawayes it shall be our greater comfort that he accepts such forlorne wretches It shall be our greater care now to redeeme the time and to labour more abundantly in more powerfull obedience to testifie againe our loue to so exceeding bountifull a Sauiour And shall we then doubt that our God will againe receiue vs into fauour who hath so freely loued vs being his enemies And therefore To this end call to mind former mercies Be we wise now to call to mind the dayes of
take holde again by vnfained repentance It is no shame to be chalengd of failings for the best ar not without it shal be thy wisdom to reform the least seing otherwise thy God may come against thee For thy better enabling herein Peruse this treatise ensuing let it be in Gods feare a touch-stone vnto thee to make triall of a sound conuersion Reuel â— and take it as a preseruatiue to keepe thee in the power of godlinesse that so thou mayst not leaue thy first loue If by pride or security thou hast bene left to thy selfe and so hast left thy former measure view thy selfe diligently in this present glasse and vse it as a meanes for thy recouerie and perseuerance If by second thoughts thou hast now gained more light glorifie God for any encrease and comfort thy selfe that thou maist also encrease yet remember that we are still to grow and therefore expect not what may be said seeing my health and study affoords only breuitie and my manifold afflictions might haue occasioned a decrease or at least haue cut off all liberty to impart my store vnto thee and therefore blesse God the rather for this lengthening of dayes and do not distast because it smels of the smoake least if thou feare affliction thou shalt find no comfort herein And let me againe aduise thee not to stare vpon the colour which happily may bleare thine eyes but to looke into the woofe to humble thine heart Neither misconstruing what may be well digested left thou bee peruerted by a stumbling blocke nor despising the pearle Math. 22.14 because it is vnpolished least thou loose the nut because thou canst not crack the shell Though many are called yet but few are chosen and therfore if few digest this pill let them not condemne the physicke but their own il-disposed hearts 2 Cor. 4.6 7 Those that can get meat out of the eater and sweetnesse out of the strong let them praise the glorious Lord Ioh. 12 who bringeth light out of darkenesse and not cease praying vnto our gracious Father that he would turne our darknesse into light and enable vs to worke while yet wee haue the light that so we may approue our selues the children of the light and be prepared to that light which shall neuer be changed into darknes Euen so be it Come Lord Iesus Come quickely In whom I rest thine vnfainedly THOMAS COOPER PARTICVLAR OBSERVATIons and Cases and Conscience treated herein 1. The supplie of a powerfull Ministery is a gratious meanes of reformation 1. Case How to discerne our estate in the acceptance of God by the vse of the word 2. The best haue their infirmities and are subiect to grieuous sinnes 1. Why infirmities abide in the Saints 2. Caso How nie our estate in sanctification by infirmities 3. Sinne to be striuen against though we cannot possibly subdue it wholly in this life 3. Sinne is to be reprooued Case 1. How to reprooue sinne 2. Triall of our estates by enduring reproofe 4. The least sinne in the Saints is sufficient to make the Lord to come against them Case 1. Why God chasteneth sinne in this life 2. How God punisheth sinne in his children which he hath punished in his Sonne 3. How to make peace with God in our corrections and try our estate in grace thereby 5. Quest How the Church may be said to leaue her first loue seeing she is commended before that she fainted not 6. Sinne of omission to be seuerely reprooued 7. The Elect must goe forward and perseuere in grace Case 1. Why perseuerance and growth in grace is necessary 2. How to grow in grace 1. By auoiding Apostasie 2. What are the meanee of Apostasie namely 1. Corrupt iudgement It markes on the left hand and on the right 2. Corrupt practise It manner and signes and that on the left hand and on the right Motiues to prouoke vs to constancy in well-doing Meanes to enable vs to grow and encrease Meanes to preuent Apostasie in the sense of our failings Markes of triall that we haue thriuen in grace Doct. 8. Euery true conuert hath a first loue Case The markes of first loue The reasons why God vouchsafeth his first loue vnto those that are conuerted vpon their first calling Doct. 8. The Saints may leaue their first loue Case Meanes whereby first loue is lost twofold 1. Withdrawing that which may cherish what this is 2. Adding that which may coole What these are Namely 1. Spirituall Pride how this cooleth and decayeth loue and how to remedy it what is falsly reputed spiritual pride the remedy 2. Carnall policie by what meanes this abateth first loue 1. How a friend to Religion 2. How our enemie 3. Prosperitie how first loue is hereby decayed and it remedie 4. Abuse of Christian libertie how this decayes this loue with the remedie 5. A corrupt and dead ministerie that this also cooleth first loue and by what meanes together with the remedie Here obserue False imputations of leauing first loue Case 1. In the right vse of their Christian libertie 2. By enioying prosperitie 3. By vse of spiritual wisdome in auoiding of trobles 4. Faith how and when to be giuen account of and to whom 5. How to discerne inward sufficiencie to make open profession of faith in the time of trouble 6. How to discerne an outward calling to witnesse to the truth in perilous times 7. Wherein we may be silent and how 8. Names habits whether in affliction they may be changed in times of persecution and how far That 9. Apparell may be changed and how farre Other imputations of leauing first loue as 4. Discretion in reproouing sinne 5. Outward and inward afflictions 6. Honest prouision for the familie 7. Libertie in the vse of things indifferent 8. Whether want of former feelings of ioy may be an imputation Case That we haue left our first loue Gods prouidence and resolution of iudgement herein Iust occasions of this want of feeling of comfort from our selues Case How to behaue our selues in this want of ioy Meanes to resist tentations that arise from this want of comfort 1. To remember the suffering of Christ 2. And his glorious conquests 3. That this is an argument of the soundnes of conuersion 4. That these inward buffetings preuent outward baites of pleasure 5. That God is able to deliuer vs proued by many reasons 6. That he will deliuer vs. 7. That the time is not past 8. That the stronger tentations the shorter and and more comfortable issue 9. This is a means to try renue sound repentance 10. God knoweth what is fittest for vs. 11. Satans tentations preuented by accusing of our selues 12. That we are not the greatest sinners yet 13. It is not vnpofitable to conceiue our selues to bee the greatest sinners To this end 14. Call to mind former mercies 15. That God differs our refreshing in great mercy 16. That we must not iudge our selues by our tentations or condition therein