into euerlasting life XV For the better vnderstanding of this that God worketh sowing faith in the hart of man after this manner it must bee obserued that a sinner is compared to a sicke man oft in the scriptures And therefore that the curing of a disease fitly resembleth the curing of sinne A man that hath a disease or sore in his bodie before hee can bee cured of it hee must see it feele paine of it and be in a feare lest it bring him into danger of death after this he shall see himselfe to stande in neede of Phisick and he longeth till he be with the Phisitian when he is once come to him he desireth him of all loues to helpe him to shew the best skill he can he will not spare for any cost then he yeeldes himselfe into the Phisitians handes perswading himselfe that by Gods blessing he both can and will helpe him after this he comes to his former health againe On the same manner euerie man is wounded with the deadly wound of sinne at the very heart and he that woulde bee saued and escape damnation must see his sinne bee sorrowfull for it and vtterlie dispaire of his owne strength to attaine saluation thereby furthermore he must see himselfe to stande in neede of Christ the good Phisition of his soule and long after him and crie vnto him with deepe sighes and grones for mercie after this Christ Iesus will temper him a plaister of his owne heart bloud which beeing applied he shall finde himselfe reuiued and shall come to the assurance of the forgiuenes of all his sinnes So it was in Dauid when he repented of his adulterie and murther First God made him see his sinnes for he saith I know mine iniquities and my sinnes are euer before me Secondly he felt Gods anger for his sinnes make me saith he to heare ioy and gladnes that the bones which thou hast broken may reioice Thirdly hee vtterly dispaired of his owne strength in that he said stablish me with thy free spirit signifying therby vnlesse the Lord woulde staie him with his glorious power he should run headlōg to his own cōfusiō Fourthly he comes to see himselfe stand in great neede of Gods fauour one mercie will not content him hee praieth for the whole innumerable multitude of his mercies to bee bestowed on him to doe away his iniquities Fiftly his desire and his praier for the forgiuenes of his sin are set down in the whole Psalme And in his praier hee gathereth some comfort and assurance of Gods mercie towardes himselfe in that he saith the sacrifices of God are a contrite spirit a contrite and broken heart O God thou wilt not despise XVI There are diuers degrees and measures of this vnfained faith according as there be diuers degrees of Christians some are yet in the wombe and haue their mother the church traueling of them some are new borne babes feeding on the milk of the word some are perfect men in Christ come to the measure of the age of the fulnes of Christ. XVII The least measure of faith that any Christian can haue is compared to the graine of mustard seede the least of all seedes and to flaxe that hath fire in it but so weake that it can neither giue heate nor light but onely maketh a smoake and is called by the name of a litle faith and it may be thus described when a man of an humble heart doth not yet feele the assurance of the forgiuenes of his owne sinnes and yet hee is perswaded they are pardonable desiring that they might be pardoned And therfore praieth to God that he woulde pardon them and giue him strength to leaue them XVIII A litle faith may more plainly be known by considering these foure points first that it is onely in his heart who is humbled for sinne for the Lord dwelleth with him that is of a contrite and humble spirite to receiue the spirite of the humble and to giue life to them that are of a contrite heart Secondly it is in a man especially at the time of his conuersion and calling to Christ after which hee is to growe from faith to faith Thirdly this faith though it be in the hart yet it is not so much felt in the heart this was in Dauid at some times my God my God why hast thou forsaken me saith he The first wordes my God my God are speeches of faith yet the latter why hast thou forsaken me shewe that then he had no feeling of Gods mercie A little faith then is in the heart of a man as in the spring time the fruit is in the bud which yet appeareth not but only hath his nature and substance in the bud Lastly the beginnings and seeds of this faith are three The first is a persuasion that a mans own sins are pardonable this perswasion though it bee not faith yet it is a good preparation to faith For the wicked cut themselues of quite from Gods mercie in that with Cain they say their sinnes are greater then that they can be forgiuen The second is a desire of the fauor mercy of God in Christ of the meanes to attaine to that fauour This desire is a speciall grace of God and it hath the promise of blessednes and it must be distinguished from that desire which wicked men haue who though they desire life eternal as Balam did yet they cannot desire the meanes as faith repentance mortification c. The third is praier for nothing in this world but onely for the forgiuenes of their sins with great sighes and grones from the bottome of the heart which they are not able to expresse as they feele them Nowe this hearty praying and desire for the pardon of sinne can neuer come from the flesh but onely from the spirite who stirreth vp these heauenly motions of longing desiring sighing after remission of sinne and all other graces of God which hee bestoweth vpon his children And where the spirit of Christ dwelleth there must needs be faith for Christ dwelleth in the harts of the faith full by faith Therfore as Rebecca whē she felt the Twins striue in hir wombe though it pained hir yet shee knewe both that she had conceaued and that the children were quicke in hir so they who haue these motions holy affections in them before mentioned may assure themselues that the spirit of God dwelleth in them cōsequently that they haue faith though a weake faith XIX Examples of this small faith are euident in the Apostles who though they beleeued that Christ was the sauior of the world yet they were ignorant of his death and resurrection which are the chiefe meanes of saluation After his resurrection they were ignorant of his ascention of his spiritual kingdome for they dreamed of an earthly kingdome at his death they
his grace and holie spirite where I might haue been borne in an ignorant time and region God would that I shoulde be borne in these daies and in this countrie where is more knowledge reuealed then euer was here or in manie places els is Where I might haue beene of a corrupt iudgement entangled with manie errours of Papistrie of the familie of loue of that hypocritical Brown by Gods goodnes my iudgement is reformed and he hath lightened mine eies to see my heart to imbrace his sincere truth By all which things I doe confirme my faith of this that God alwaies hath beene is and wil be for euer my father at my departing forth of this world will giue me the crowne of euerlasting glorie Secondlie when as man is euermore doubting of the promises of God be they neuer so certain God of his infinite mercie to preuent all occasions of doubting promiseth to giue his owne spirit as a pledge pawne or earnest pennie vnto his children of their adoption election to saluation Now since it pleased God to call me from hypocrisie to bee a member of his Church I feel that in my self which I neuer felt or heard of before In times past I came to praiers and to the preaching of Gods word euen as a Beare commeth to the stake now the word of God is meate and drinke to me and praier is no burden vnto me but my ordinarie exercise If I rise in the morning I am not well till I haue praied and giuen thankes to God if I doe any thing it commeth into my minde to pray In my praiers I finde great ioy and comforte and the exceeding fauour of God I neuer think I can well take my rest or doe anie thing else except first I aske it at Gods hande in Christ. Lastlie when my minde and heart is whollie occupied in worldlie matters I am stirred vp and as it were drawne to pray vnto God for the remission of my sinnes and the assurance of my saluation and in praier I haue had those grones which for their greatnes cannot bee expressed Nowe from whence commeth all this From the Diuell No. In these actions I haue found him my enemie and a continuall hinderer of them For he by his craft when I haue beene heauie and weake hath assailed to prouoke me to some sinnes whereunto my cursed nature was most giuen and I hauing yeelded to him haue beene so hardened and blinded by those sinnes that for a time I haue made light account of the worde of God and praier Well then peraduenture this came from mine owne selfe No neither This cursed nature of mine hath beene more pleased and delighted with sinne and with the pleasures of the world then with such exercises from which it draweth mee presseth me down as lead I cannot think that such a poisoning Cockatrice can laie such good egges or that wild crabbe trees such as all men are in Adam can bring foorth sweete fruites according to the will of God except God plucke them foorth of Adam and plant them in the garden of his mercie and stocke them and graft the spirite of Christ in them Wherefore these are the workes of Gods spirit and my conscience is thereby certified that God hath giuen me the spirite of adoption and therefore that his fauour and mercie shall continue towardes me for euer For the giftes of God are without repentance and whome God once loueth him hee loueth for euer Thirdlie there bee certaine fruites of Gods children which I finde in mee by which I am confirmed in Gods fauour Saint Iohn in his first epistle saith that hereby wee know that wee are translated from death to life because we loue the bretheren Truelie â— feele in my heart a burning loue towardes them which are good Christians though I neuer knewe them nor saw them and I am verie desirous to doe anie good for them and if drops of my heart bloude would doe them good they should haue them Moreouer I hate all sinne and wickednesse with a bitter hatred and I long to see the comming of my sauiour Christ to iudgement I am grieued and disquieted because I cannot fulfill the law of God as I ought all which I haue learned foorth of Gods word to be tokens of Gods children And thus you see what euidence I haue to shewe that I am a true member of the Church militant and in the fauour of God Timoth. Haue you a stedfast faith in Christ as these arguments seeme to proue without all wauering doubting and distrusting of Gods mercie Euseb. No no. This my faith which I haue in Christ is euen fought against with doubting euer assailed with desperation not when I sinne onely but also in tentations of aduersitie into which God bringeth me to nurture me to shew me mine owne heart the hypocrisie false thoughts that there lie hid my almost no faith at al and as litle loue euen then happily wheÌ„ I thought my self most perfect of all for when tentations come I cannot stand when I haue sinned faith is feble when wrong is done vnto mee I cannot forgiue in sicknes in losse of goods in al tribulation I am vnpatient wheÌ„ my neighbor needeth my helpe that I must depart with him of mine owne then loue is cold And thus I learne feele that there is no power to do good but of God only And in al such tentations my faith perisheth not vtterlie neither my loue and consent to the law of God but they be weake sicke wounded not cleane dead As I dealt with my parents being a child so now deal I towards God my louing father When I was a child my father and mother taught me nurture wisedome I loued my father all his commaundements and perceiued the goodnes he shewed mee that my father loued mee and all his precepts are vnto my wealth and profit and that my father commandeth nothing for anie need he hath thereof but seeketh my profit onelie and therefore I haue a good faith vnto all my fathers promises and loue all his commaundements and doe them with good will and with good will goe euerie daie to the schoole And by â—he waie happilie I sawe companie plaie and with the sight was taken and rauished of my memorie and forgot my selfe and stoode and beheld and fell to plaie also forgetting father and mother all their kindnes all their lawes and mine owne profite also How beit the knowledge of my fathers kindnes the faith of his promisses and the loue that I had againe vnto my father and the obedient minde were not vtterlie quenched but laie hid as all things doe when a man sleepeth or lieth in a traunce And as soone as I had plaied out all my listes or else by some had been warned in the meane season I came againe to my olde profession Notwithstanding manie temptations went ouer my heart and the lawe as a right hangman tormented
And this appeareth in Iobs example when he saith Lo though hee sleie me yet will I trust in him I will reprooue my waies in his sight he shal be my saluation also for the hypocrite shal not come before him hee declareth his faith yet when he saith presentlie afterwarde Wherefore hidest thou thy face and takest me for thine enimie hee declareth the want of that feeling which you speake off Christian. Yet euerie true beleeuer feeles the assurance of faith otherwise Paul would not haue said Proue your selues whether you are in the faith or not Minister Indeed sometimes he doth but at some other times he doth not as namely at that same time when God first calleth him and in the time of temptation Christian. What a case am I in then I neuer felt this assurance onelie this I feele that I am a most rebellious wretch abounding euen with a whole sea of iniquities me thinkes I am more vglie in the sight of God then anie toade can be in my sight O then what shall I doo Let mee heare some worde of comfort from thy mouth thou man of God Minister Tell me one thing plainly you say you feele no assurance of Gods mercie Christian. No in deede Minister But do you desire with all your hart to feele it Christian. I doo indeed Minister Then doubt not you shal feele it Christian. O blessed be the Lord if this be true Minister Why it is most true For the man that would haue anie grace of God tending to saluation if hee do truelie desire it hee shall haue it for so Christ hath promised I will giue to him that is a thirst of the well of the water of life freely Whereby I gather that if any wante the water of life hauing an appetite after it he shall haue inough of it And therefore feare you not onely vse the meanes which God hath appointed to attaine faith by as earnest prayer reuerent hearing of Gods worde and receiuing of the Sacraments and then you shall see this thing verifyed in your selfe Christian. All this which you saie I finde in my selfe by the mercie of God my harte longeth after that grace of God which I want I know I doe hunger after the kingdome of heauen the righteousnes thereof and further though I want the feeling of Gods mercie yet I can pray for it from the verie roote of my heart Minister Bee carefull to giue honour to god for that you haue receiued already For these thing are the motions of the spirite of God dwelling in you And I am perswaded of this same thing that God which hath begon this good worke in you will perfect the same vnto the day of Iesus Christ. Christian. The third thing that troubles me is this I haue long prayed for manie graces of God and yet I haue not receiued them whereby it comes oft to my minde that God loues me not that I am none of his child therefore that I haue no faith Minister You are in no other case then Dauid himselfe who made the same complaint I am wearie of crying my throate is driâ— mine eies faile whiles I waite for my God Christian. But Dauid neuer praied so manie yeares without receiuing an answere as I haue done Minister Good Zacharie waited longer on the Lord before he granted his request then euer you did It s like hee praied for a child in his yonger yeres yet his praier was not heard before he was old And further you must note that the Lord may heare the praiers of his seruants and yet they bee altogether ignorant of it For the manner that God vseth in graunting their requests is not alwaies knowen as maie appeare in the example of our Sauiour Christ. Who in the daies of his flesh did offer vp praiers and supplications with strong crying and teares vnto him that was able to saue him from death and was also heard in that which he feared And yet wee knowe hee was not freed from that cursed death but must needes suffer it How then was he heard On this manner hee was strengthened to beare the death he had an Angell to comfort him hee was afterward freed from the sorrowes of death And so it is with the rest of Christes bodie as it was with the head Some being in want pray for temporall blessings God keepes them in this want and yet hee heares their praiers in giuing them patience and strength to abide that want Some being in wealth and aboundance praie for the continuing of it if it be the will of God The Lorde dinges them into a perpetuall miserie and yet hee heares their praiers by giuing theÌ„ blessednesse in the life to come You praie for the encrease of faith and repentance and such like graces you feele no increase after long praier yet the mercifull God hath no doubt heard your praier in that by delaying to performe your request he hath stirred vp in you the spirite of praier hee hath humbled you and made you feele your owne wants the better to depend on his mercie for the beginning and encreasing of euerie spirituall grace Christian. The fourth thing that troubles me is that I cannot feele faith purifie my heart and to worke by loue in bringing foorth liuelie fruits Minister If this bee so continuallie that faith bring forth fruit it is verie dangerous and argueth a plaine want of faith yet for a certaine time it maie be so Faith hath not onelie a spring time and a sommer season but also a winter when it beareth no fruit And there is manie a true Christian like the brused reede that is ouerturned with euerie blast of wind and like the flaxe that hath fire in it which by reason of weakenes giue neither heate nor light but onelie a smoke Christian Thus much shall suffice for my first temptation wherein I take my selfe satisfied nowe if you please I will bee glad to rehearse the second Minister I am content let vs heare it Christian. I am afraide least I haue not truelie repented and therefore that all my profession is onelie in hypocrisie Minister What mooueth you to thinke so Christian. Two causes especiallie the first is they which repent leaue off to sinne But I am miserable sinner I am laden with great burdens of sinne I doo continuallie displease God by my euill thoughts words and deeds Minister You need not feare For where sinne aboundeth that is the knowledge and feeling of sinne there grace aboundeth much more Christian. I finde not this in my selfe Minister But yet you finde thus much in your selfe those corruptions which you feele and those sinnes that you commit you hate theÌ„ you are displeased with your selfe for them and you endeuour your selfe to leaue them Christian. Yea that I doo with all my heart Minister Then howe miserable so euer you feele your selfe by reason of the masâ—e of your sinne yet you are not subiecte to
meat was within their teeth God in his anger stroke them with a sore plague And which is more strange then this God hath performed that which he hath promised to the vnbeleeuers though they refused to aske it at his handes of this thing wee haue a worthie example in King Achas who vtterly refused to haue a signe of his deliuerance and the confusion of his eneâ—ies when God offered it to him and yet â—e Lord deliuered him XVIII The reprobate may yet goe further in the â—rofession of religion and may seeme for a â—ime to bee planted in the Church for hee doth beleeue the promises of God made in Christ Iesus yet so that hee cannot applie them to himselfe In this thing the elect and the reprobate differ The reprobate generally in a confused maner beleeueth that Christ is a sauiour of some men and he neither can nor desireth to come to the particular applying of Christ. The Elect beleeueth that Christ is a sauiour of him particularly The reprobates faith may perish in this life but the faith of the elect cannot The reprobate may be perswaded of the mercie and goodnes of God towardes him for the present time in the which hee â—eeleth it the elect is not onely perswaded of the mercies he presently inioyeth but also he is perswaded of his eternall election before the foundation of the world of his euerlasting life which yet he doth not inioy Yea if God would confound him and he sawe nothing but present death and hell fire yet such is his nature that still he would beleeue for faith and hope are noâ— grounded vppon sence and feeling but are the euidence of those thinges which were neuer yet seene or felt The life of the faithfull is hid in Christ as the sappe in the roote of the tree their life is not in sence and feeling but in hoping and beleeuing which often times or contrary to mans sence and feeling is in Dauid who saith Create a newe heart in me Psal. 51. XIX After that hee hath receiued a generall a temporal faith in Gods heauenly word and his most mercifull promises of euerlasting life contained therein by the power of the spirite of God he commeth to haue a tast in his heart of the sweetnes of Gods mercies and a reioycing in consideration of the election adoption iustification and sanctification of Gods children But what is this tast I expresse it thus after the meaning of Gods word Suppose a banket prepared in which are many sweete and pleasaunt and dainty meates At this banquet they which are the bidden guests they must be set downe they see the meates they tast them they chawe them in their mouthes they digest them they are nourished fed and strengthned by them they which are not bidden to this â—east may see the meates handle them and â—ast of them to feele how good they are but â—hey must not eate and feede of them The first resemble the elect which truely eate digest and are nourished by Christ vnto euerâ—asting life because they haue great aboundance of the vitall heate of Gods holy spirit in them and doe feele sensibly his grace and vertue in them to strengthen them and guide them The second sort truly resemble the reprobates which neuer in truth enioy Christ or any of his benefites appertaining to saluation but onely see them and haue in their heartes a vanishing but no certaine or sound feeling of them so that they may be changed and strengthened and guided thereby To vse another similitude The reprobates haue no more feeling and enioying of Christ and his benefites than those men haue of the Sunne which see onely a glimmering of his light at the dawning of the day before it riseth Contrarywise the elect they haue the day-star euen the sonne of righteousnes Iesus Christ rising in their hearts the day spring from an high doth visite them the glorie of God doth rise vpon them they haue their eies annointed with the ointment of the spirite which is the true eie salue and doâ— plainely behold this sonne of righteousnes they inioy his presence they effectually feele his comfortable heate to quicken anâ— reuiue them XX From this sence and taste of Gods grace proceede manie fruites as first generallie he may do outwardly all things which true Christians doe and he may leade such a life here in this world that although he cannot attaine to saluation yet his paynes in hell shall bee lesse which appeareth in that our Sauiour Christ saith it shall bee easier for Tyrus Sydon for Sodome and Gomorrah than for Capernaum and other Cities vnto which hee came in the day of iudgement XXI Also the reprobate may haue a loue of God but this loue can bee no sincere loue for it is only because God bestoweth benefites and prosperitie vpon him As appeareth in Saule Who loued God for his aduauncement to the kingdome and here is a difference betweene the elect and reprobate the elect loue GOD as children their fathers but reprobates as hirelings their maisters whome they affect not so much or themselues as for their wages XXII Also a reprobate hath often a reioycing â—n doing those things which appertayne to â—he seruice of God as preaching praier Herod heard Iohn Baptist preach gladlie and the seconde kinde of naughtie ground receiueth the word preached with ioy XXIII A reprobate often desireth them whom he thinketh to be the children of God to pray for him As Pharao desired Aaron Moses to pray to God for him So did Simon Magus desire Peter to pray that none of the things which hee had spoken against him should come to passe But yet they cannot pray them selues because they want the spirit of Christ. XXIIII He may shew liking to Gods Ministers he may reuerence them and feare to displease them Thus did Simon Magus who at Phillips preaching beleeued wondered at his miracles and kept companie with him And Herod is saide to feare Iohn knowing that he was a iust man holie also he gaue reuerence to him Antonius the Emperour called Pius though hee was nâ— Christian yet in a general Parliament helâ— at Ephesus he made an act in the behalfe of ChristiaÌ„s that if anie maÌ„ should trouble oâ— accuse a ChristiaÌ„ for being a Christian the party accused shuld go free though he were found to bee a Christian and the accuseâ— should be punished And Plinius Secundus gouernour of Spaine vnder Traianus the Emperour when he sawe an innumerable company of Christians to be executed being moued with compassion he wrote in their behalfe being no Christian vnto Traianus to spare them that coulde be charged with no crime and his letter is yet extant XXV Hee may bee zealous in the religion which he professeth and fall from that profession as the Galathians did who after that they had receiued Paule as an Angell and woulde haue
separation must bee made before the ende of this life For this is the order which God taketh hee will haue all them to be in his kingdome in this life that shall bee in the kingdome of heauen after this life And the time of their calling is termed in scriptures the day of visitation the day of saluation the time of grace III This seuering and choosing of the elect out of the worlde is then performed when God by his holy spirite indueth them with true sauing faith a wonderfull gift peculiar to the elect For the better knowing of it there is to be considered First what faith is Secondly howe God doth worke it in the hearts of the Elect Thirdly what degrees there bee of faith Fourthly what are the fruits and benefites of faith IIII Faith is a wonderfull grace of God by which the Elect doe apprehende and apply Christ and all his benefites vnto themselues particularly Here first it is to bee considered that the verie nature of faith standeth in a certaine power of apprehending applying Christ. This is declared by Paule when hee saith ye are buried with him through Baptisme by whome ye are also risen againe with him by the faith of the power of God who raised him from the deade Where it appeareth that faith is made a meanes to communicate Christ himselfe his death and buriall and so all other benefites to the beleeuer Againe to beleeue in Christ and to receiue or to laie holde on Christ are put one for an other by S. Iohn which declareth that there is a speciall applying of Christ. euen as we see when a man hath any thing giuen him hee reacheth out his hand and pulleth it to himself and so makes it his owne Moreouer faith is called the putting on of Christ Which cannot bee vnlesse Christs righteousnes bee specially applyed to the heart as the garment to the backe when it is put on Lastly this may appeare in that faith is called the eating and drinking of Christ for there is no eating of meate that nourisheth but first it must bee tasted and chawed in the mouth then it must be conueyed into the stomack and there digested Lastly it is to be applied to the partes of th◠body that are to bee nourished And Paul praieth for the Ephesians that Christ ma◠dwell in their hearts by faith which plainly importeth this apprehending and applying of Christ. I adde further that faith is a wonderfull grace of God which may appear First in that Paule calleth it the faith of Gods power because the power of God is especially seene in the begetting of faith Secondly experience sheweth it to bee a wonderfull gift of God when a man neither seeth nor feeleth his sinnes then to say he beleeueth in Gods mercie it is an easie matter but when a man shall feele his heart pressed downe with the weight of his sinnes and the anger of God for them then to applie Gods free mercie to his owne soule it is a most hard matter for then it is the propertie of the cursed nature of man to blaspheme God and to dispaire of mercie Iudas who no doubt often preached mercy and redemption by Christ in the security of his hart when Gods hand was vpon him and the Lorde made him see the vilenes of his treachery hee coulde not comfort himselfe in Christ if one woulde haue giuen him ten thousand worlds but in an hellish horror of conscience hanged him selfe desperately which sheweth what a wonderfull harde thing it is at the same instant when a man is touched for his sinnes then to apply Gods mercie to himselfe Yet a true Christian by the power of faith can doe this as it may appeare in Dauid In the daie of my trouble saith he I sought the Lorde my sore ranne and ceased not in the night my soule refused comfort I did thinke vpon God and was troubled I praied and my spirite was full of anguish and hee addeth the worde Selah a note of some wonderfull thing Againe he being almost in the gulfes of hell euen then cried to the Lord for help Iob saith If God should destroy him yet he would for all that beleeue in him still Vndoubtedly strang is the bād of faith knitting Christ and his members together that the anguish of spirite cannot and the strokes of Gods hand doe not vnloose V. This apprehending of Christ is not done by anie corporall touching of him but spirituallie by assurance which is when the Elect are perswaded in their harts by the holie ghost of the forgiuenesse of their owne sinnes and of Gods infinite mercie towards them in Iesus Christ. According to that of Paul Nowe we haue receiued not the spirit of the word but the spirit which is of God that wee might know the things which are giuen vs of God The things which the spirit of GOD maketh knowen to the faithfull particularlie are their iustification adoption sanctification eternall life And thus when anie are perswaded of these things concerning themselues they doe in their heartes distinctlie applie and appropriate Christ and his benefites to them selues VI. The manner that God vseth in the begetting of faith is this First he prepareth the heart that it maie be capable of faith Secondlie he causeth faith by little and little to spring and to breed in the heart The preparation of the heart is by humbling and softening of it and to the doing of this there are foure things requisite The first of them is the knowledge of the word of God both of the lawe and of the Gospell without the which there can bee no faith according to that saying of Esaiah By his knowledge shall my righteous seruant iustifie manie And that of Iohn This is eternall life that they knowe thee to bee the onely verie God and whome thou haste sent Iesus Christ. The onelie ordinarie meanes to attaine faith by is the word preached which must bee heard remembred practised and continuallie hid in the heart The least measure of knowledge without which a man cannot haue faith is the knowledge of Elements or the fundamentall doctrines of a Christian religion A fundamentall doctrine is that which being once denied all religion and all obtaining of saluation is ouerthrowen This knowledge hath a generall faith going with it which is an assent of the heart to the knowne truth of Gods word This faith when it is growen vp to some great measure it is called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the full assurance of vnderstanding and it is to be seene in the Martyrs who maintained Gods truth against the persecutions of the false Church vnto death VII Although both elect and reprobate may be enlightened to know the word of God yet the elect in this thing goe farre beyond all reprobates for it is speciallie said of thē that God is their schole-master that he softeneth their stonie heartes maketh
as may appear in Caine Saul Achitophel Iudas and now of late in Iohn Hoffmeister a monke Latomus who for the space of certaine daies neuer left crying that hee was damned because that hee had wilfully persecuted the Gospell of Christ and so he ended his life Therefore most worthie is Paules counsell for the moderating of this sorrow It is sufficient saith he vnto the incestuous man that hee was rebuked of manie so that now contrariwise ye ought rather to forgiue him and comfort him lest he shoulde be swallowed vp of ouermuch heauines And further hee giueth another reason which followeth lest Sathan should circumuent vs for we are not ignorant of his enterprises And indeed cōmō experiēce sheweth the same that whē any man is most weak then Sathā most of all bestirreth himselfe to worke his cōfusion The third is that all mē which are hūbled haue not like measure of sorrow but some more some lesse Iob felt the hand of God in exceding great measure whē he cried O that my grief were well weied my miseries were laid together in the ballance for it would be now heauier then the sand of the sea therefore my words are now swallowed vp for the arrowes of the Almightie are in me and the venome thereof doth drinke vp my spirite and the terrors of God fight against me The same did Ezechia when on his death bed he said he brake al my bones like a Lion and like a Crane or a swallow so did I chatter I did mourne like a doue c. Contrariwise the thiefe vpon the crosse and Lydia in her conuersion neuer felt any such measure of grief for it is said of her that God opened hir heart to be attentiue to that which Paule spake presently after she intertained Paul and Silas cheerefully in hir house which she coulde not haue done if shee had beene pressed downe with any great measure of sorrowe neither are any to dislike themselues because they are not so much humbled as they see some others for God in great wisedome giueth to euery one which are to bee saued that which is conuenient for their estate And it is often seene in a festred sore that the corruption is let out as well with the pricking of a small pin as with the wide lance of a Raser XII The fourth thing in true humiliation is an holy desperation which is when a man is wholly out of all hope euer to attaine saluation by any strength or goodnes of his owne speaking and thinking more vilely of himselfe then any other can doe and heartily acknowledging himselfe to haue deserued not one onely but euen tenne thousand damnations in hell fire with the diuell and all his Angels This was in Paule when hee said of himselfe that he was the chiefe of all sinners This was in Daniell when in the name of the people of Israell he praied and said O Lorde righteousnes belongeth vnto thee and to vs open shame as appeareth this daie c. Lastly the same was in the prodigall childe who saide Father I haue sinned against heauen and against thee and I am no more worthie to bee called thy sonne XIII Many are of opinion that this sorrow for sin is nothing else but a Melancholike passion but in trueth the thing is farre otherwise as may appeare in the example of Dauid who by all coniectures was least troubled with Melancholie and yet neuer any tasted more deepelie of the sorrow and feeling of Gods anger for sinne then hee did as the booke of Psalmes declareth And if anie desire to knowe the difference they are to bee discerned thus Sorrow for sinne maie be where health reason senses memorie and all are sound but Melancholike passions are where the body is vnsound and the reason senses memorie dulled troubled Secondlie sorrow for sinne is not cured by any Phisicke but onelie by the sprinkling of the bloud of Iesus Christ Melancholike passions are remoued by Physicke diet musicke and such like Thirdlie Sorrowe for sinne riseth of the anger of God that woundeth pearceth the conscience but Melancholike passions rise onelie of meere imaginations stronglie conceiued in the braine Lastlie these passions are long in breeding and come by little and little but the sorrow for sinne vsuallie commeth on a sudden as lightning into a house And yet howsoeuer they are differing it must be acknowledged that they may both concurre together so that the same man which is troubled with Melancholie maie feele also the anger of God for sinne XIIII Thus it appeareth how God maketh the hart fit to receiue faith in the next place it is to be considered howe the Lord causeth faith to spring and to breed in the humbled hart For the effecting of this so blessed a worke God worketh foure things in the hart First when a man is seriously humbled vnder the burden of his sinne the Lord by his spirit makes him lift vp himselfe to consider to ponder most diligentlie the great mercie of God offered vnto him in Christ Iesus After the consideration of Gods mercie in Christ he commes in the second place to see feele and from his heart to acknowledge himselfe to stande in neede of Christ and to stand in neede of euerie drop of his most pretious bloude Thirdlie the Lorde stirreth vp in his heart a vehement desire and longing after Christ and his merites this desire is compared to thirst which is not onelie the feeling of the drines of the stomacke but also a vehement appetite after drinke and Dauid fitlie expresseth it when he saith I stretched foorth my handes vnto thee my soule desireth after thee as the thirstie land Lastlie after this desire he beginnes to praie not for anie worldly benefite but onelie for the forgiuenesse of his sinnes crying with the poore publican O God be merciful to me a sinner Now this praier it is made not for one day onelie but continuallie from daie to daie not with the lippes but with greater sighes groanes of the heart then that they can be expressed with the tongue Nowe after these desires and prayers for Gods mercie ariseth in the heart a liuelie assurance of the forgiuenesse of sinne For GOD who cannot lie hath made his promise Knocke it shall bee opened and againe Before they call I will aunswere and while they speake I will heare Therefore when an humbled sinner commes crying knocking at his mercie gate for the forgiuenesse of sinne either then or shortlie after the Lord worketh in his hart a liuelie assurance thereof And whereas hee thirsted in his hart being scorched with the heate of gods displeasure beating vpon his conscience Christ Iesus giueth him to drink of the well of the water of life freelie hauing dronken thereof he shall neuer be more a thirst but shall haue in him a fountaine of water springing vp
all fled from him and Peter fearefully denied him They being in this estate are not saide to haue no faith but to be of litle faith Another example we haue in Dauid who hauing continued a lōg space in his two great sins adultery murther was admonished therof by Nathan the Prophet being admonished he cōfessed his sins and strait way Nathan declared vnto him from the Lord the forgiuenes of thē Yet afterward Dauid humbleth himselfe as it appeareth in the 51. Psalme and praieth most earnestly for the forgiuenes of those and all other his sins euen as though it had not beene true that they were forgiuen as Nathan tolde him The reason is howsoeuer they were remitted before God yet Dauid at his first repenting of them felt none assurance in his heart of the forgiuenes of them onely he had a persuasion that they might be pardoned And therefore hee vehemently desired and praied to the Lorde to remitte them and to sanctifie him anewe This then beeing the least measure of faith it must be remembred that he who hath not attained to it hath as yet no sauing faith at all XX The greatest measure of faith is a full perswasion of the mercie of God For it is the strength and ripenes of faith Rom. 4. verse 20. 21. Abraham not weake in faith but beeing strengthned in the faith was fullie perswaded that he who had promised was able to doe it This full assurance is when a man can saie with Paul I am perswaded that neither life nor death nor Angels nor principalities nor powers nor thinges present nor thinges to come nor height nor depth nor anie other creature shall bee able to separate vs from the loue of God which is in Christ Iesus our Lord. And lest any should think this saying is peculiar to Paule the whole Church in the cāticles vseth the same in effect saying Loue is strong as death iealousie is as cruell as the graue the coals thereof are fierie coals a vehement flame Much water cannot quench loue neither can the flouds drown it if a man should giue all the substance of his house for loue they would contemne it XXI No Christian attaineth to this full assurance at the first but in some continuance of time after that for a long space hee hath kept a good conscience before God and before men and hath had diuers experiences of Gods loue and fauour towardes him in Christ. This Paul declareth to the Romans in afflictions God sheds abroad his loue in their hearts by the holie Ghost which is giuen to them hence ariseth patience from patience commeth experience from experience hope and hope neuer maketh ashamed or disappointeth him of eternall life This is euident in Dauids practise Doubtlesse saith he kindnes and mercie shall followe mee all the daies of my life and I shall liue a long season in the house of the Lord. Marke this his resolute perswasion and consider howe hee came vnto it namely by experience of Gods fauour at sundry times and after sundrie manners For before he set down this resolution he numbred vp diuers benefites receaued of the Lord that he fed him in greene pastures led him by the refreshing waters of Gods word That he restoreth him leadeth him in the pathes of righteousnes That he strengthneth him in great dangers euen of death and preserueth him that in despight of his enemies hee enriched him with many benefites By meanes of all these mercies of God bestowed on him he came to be perswaded of the continuance of the fauour of God towards him Againe Dauid said before king Saul let no mans heart faile him because of Goliah Thy seruant wil go and fight with the Philistine And Saul saide to Dauid Thou art not able to goe against this Philistine to fight with him for thou art but a boy he is a man of war from his youth Dauid answered he was able to fight with to slaie the vncircumcised Philistine And the ground of his perswasion was taken from experience for thus he said Thy seruant kept his fathers sheep and there came a Lyon and likewise a beare and tooke a sheepe out of the flocke And I went out after him and smote him took it out of his mouth and when he arose against me I caught him by the beard and smote him and slewe him So thy seruant slew both the Lion and the Beare Therefore this vncircumcised Philistine shal be as one of thē seeing he hath railed on the host of the liuing God The like proceeding must bee in matters concerning eternall life Litle Dauid resembleth euery Christian Goliah and the army of the Philistines resembleth Sathan and his power Hee therefore that will be resolued that he shall be able to ouercome the gates of hell and attaine to life euerlasting must long keep watch ward ouer his own hart he must fight against his own rebellious flesh and crucifie it yea he must haue experiēces of Gods power strēgthning him in many tēptatiōs before he shal be assured of his attaining to the kingdome of heauen XXII Thus much concerning faith it self now followe the fruits and benefites of faith By meanes of this speciall faith the elect are truely ioined vnto Christ and haue an heauenly communion and fellowshippe with him and therfore doe in some measure inwardly feele his holie spirite moouing and stirring in them as Rebecca felt the Twins to stirre in hir wombe Christ is as the heade in the bodie euerie beleeuer as a member of the same body now as the head giueth sense and motion to the members and the members feele themselues to haue sense and to moue by meanes of the head so doth Christ Iesus receiue and quicken euerie true beleeuer and by his heauenly power maketh him to doe the good which he doth And as from the stocke sappe is deriued to the graft that it may liue and grow and bring foorth fruite in his kinde so doe all the faithfull that are grafted into Christ the true Vine And as the graft loseth his wilde nature and is chaunged into the nature of the stocke and bringeth forth good fruit so in like manner it is with them that are in Christ who by little and little are whollie renewed from euill to good XXIII The elect being thus ioyned vnto Christ receiue three wonderfull benefites from him Iustification Adoption Sanctification Iustification is when the elect being in themselues rebellious sinners and therefore firebrandes of hell fire and Gods owne enemies yet by Christ they are accepted of the Lord as perfectlie pure and righteous before him XXIIII This Iustification is wrought in this maner Sinne is that which maketh a man vnrighteous and the childe of wrath and vengeance In sinne there are three things which are hurtfull to man the first is Condemnation which commeth of sinne the seconde is the
his flesh hee is haled and pulled on to doe wickednesse Paule saith of himselfe that hee was solde vnder sinne that is hee was like a slaue who desireth to escape out of his Maisters handes and yet is faine in great miserie to serue him Thirdly after hee hath sinned hee is sore displeased with himselfe for it and truelie repenteth As Peter before the denying of his Maister had no purpose to doe it but rather to die in his cause In the act hee had a striuing with himselfe as appeareth by this that first hee answered faintly I knowe not what thou saist and yet after when the assault of Sathan more preuailed he fell to swearing cursing and banning After his fall he repented himselfe and wept bitterly for it All was contrarie in Iudas who went to betraâ—e his maister with full intent and purpose for the diuell long tempting him vnto it entred into him that is made him yeelde and resolue himselfe to doe it Afterward when Christ was betraied and condemned Iudas was not sorrowfull for his sinne with a godly sorrow but in dispaire of mercie hanged himselfe XLVI Fruites worthy of amendment of life are such fruites as the trees of righteousnes beare namely good workes for the doing of a good worke there be three things requisite First it must proceede from iustifying faith For the worke cannot please God except the person please him and the person cannot please him without this faith Secondly it is to bee done in obedience vnto Gods reuealed word to obeie is better then sacrifice and to hearken is better then the fatte of Rams Thirdly it is to be referred to Gods glorie Whether ye eate or drinke saith Paule or whatsoeuer ye doe doe all to the glorie of God The speciall workes of Christians which they and none but they truly performe are these fiue which follow XLVII The first is the good hearing of the worde my sheepe saith Christ heare my voice and followe me And againe he which is of God heareth his voice And this was one note of the faithfull in the primatiue Church to assemble to heare the worde This good hearing of the worde is the sauing hearing that bringeth life eternall In this action Christians are vsually thus disposed Before they come to heare the worde of God they make themselues readie to heare it as the men of Berea did who receaued the worde with all readines This preparation standeth in two points First they disburden themselues of all impedimentes that like vnto runners in a race they may be swift to heare these impedimentes are sinne and troubled affections and they come with humble heartes as fooles that they may become wise Secondly they quicken vp themselues and come vnto the assemblies hungring and thirsting after the worde of God as men doe after meate and drinke When they are in hearing Gods worde their minds are fixed and attentiue onely to that which is spoken as Lydias was Thirdly they truly beleue the word of God carefully applie it to their owne souls Fourthly they feel the liuely power of it in theÌ„selues It is as salt in them to drawe out their inward corruption it is to them the sworde of the spirite and as a sacrifising knife in the hande of Gods Minister by which their flesh is killed and they are offered vp in a liuing sacrifice to God it is spirite and life to quicken and reuiue their soules that are dead in sin And the reason of this is plaine The word of God preached is as a cuppe of wine the true Christian is the Lords guest but he hath sauce of his owne He bringeth his suger with him namely his true faith which he tempereth and mingleth with Gods worde and so it becommeth vnto him as a cuppe of sweete wine and as water of life Nowe the hypocrite because hee bringeth no faith with him drinketh of the same but thinketh the wine to bee sowre and tarte and voyde of relishe and in truth it is vnto him as a cuppe of ranke poyson Againe they heare the worde of God as in Gods presence and therefore their hearts are full of feare and trembling And they receiue the worde not as from man but as from Christ Iesus the onely Doctor of the Church And they regarde not so much the Embassadour or his abilitie as the Embassage of reconciliation sent from the king of Heauen After they haue hearde the worde they are bettered in knowledge and in affection and they remember it and meditate vpon it continuallie that they may frame all their doinges by it Worldlie men vse to buie bookes of statutes and to haue them in their houses to reade on that they may knowe howe to auoide daunger of lawe And so the faithfull doe alwaies sette before them Gods worde and in all their dooinges it is their Counseller lest they shoulde come into daunger of Gods displeasure XLVIII The second worke is the receauing of the Sacraments of Baptisme once onely when a man is admitted into the Church and of the Lords Supper often The first sealeth vp to the heart of a Christian that he is vnited vnto Christ and hath true fellowshippe with him in being fullie iustified before God and inwardly sanctified The second serueth to seale vp in the heart of a Christian the continuall growing and increasing of the same graces This thing euerie true beleeuer shall haue often experience of either in or after the receauing of the Sacrament and yet it shall not bee so alwaies for sometimes the Church being brought into Christes wine-celler shall fall into a sounde and not feele any refreshing there Yet the beleeuer is not to bee dismaied if he feele not alwaies comfort presentlie after the Sacrament A sicke man feeles no comfort or nourishment when hee eateth meate and yet it preserueth his life So the weake Christian though hee feele himselfe not nourishe at the Sacrament by Christes bodie and bloud yet hee shall see in time that his soule shall be preserued thereby vnto euerlasting life Furthermore when a Christian feeleth no comforte by the Sacrament let him then humble himselfe before the Lorde more heartily then euer before confessing his sinnes and praying for increase of grace and then hee shall feele the fruite of the Sacrament XLIX The third worke is a relieuing of the poore bretheren in Christ proceeding of a brotherly kindenesse towardes them This is a speciall woorke not to bee done to all men alike as saint Paule saith Doe good to all men but especiallie to them of the housholde of faith Directions for this matter are the faithfull of Hierusalem who were all in one place and had all thinges common namely in vse And they solde their possessions and goods and parted them to all men as euerie one had neede Also the bretheren at Corinth in their extreame pouertie relieued the
Christian in this temptation is this 1 At the first his heart is vsually dulled â—nd made secure with sinne 2 Yet after a while there ariseth in his hart a godlie sorrow which is when hee is greued for the only cause that by his sin he hath displeased God who hath bene to him so louing mercifull a father whose fauor he would be content to purchasse so hee might haue it and obtaine it euen with the damnation of his owne soule 3 TheÌ„ he begins to repent himself of his sins renewing a fresh his former repentaÌ„ce 4 u This repentaÌ„ce he sheweth by 7. signes 1 A care to leaue that sin into which he is falleÌ„ As they which crucified our sauior Christ wheÌ„ they were pricked in their harts at Peters SermoÌ„ they shewed this care in saiing men brethren what shal we do to be saued 2 An Apologie which is wheÌ„ a man in the heauines of his hart shall not excuse or defend his sin but coÌ„fesse it to the lord vtter ly condeÌ„ne himselfe for it acknowledging withal y t there is no way to escape y t wrath of god but by hauing gods fre pardoÌ„ in christ 3 Indignation which is an inward anger and fretting against his owne selfe because he was so carelesse in looking to his owne waies Peter wheÌ„ he had denied his maister he wept that bitterly which sheweth y t with sorow he had also an anger against himself 4 A feare rising not so much froÌ„ the iudgments of God as froÌ„ this lest he shold hereafter fall into the same sin againe and by so doing more greeuouslie displease God 5 A desire euer after more carefully to plese god 6 Zeale in the seruice of God 7 Reuenge vpon himselfe for his former offences for example if a man sin in surfetting and dronkennes if he euer repent hee will bring vnder his corrupt nature by sparing and moderating himselfe LVIII The sixt temptation is outward afflictioÌ„s which the godly in this life must suffer If any will go after Christ he must denie himself take vp his owne crosse follow him And S. Peter saith that iudgment begins at Gods house And Paul that we must enter into the kingdome of heauen through manifold temptations The exercise of a Christian in afflictions is this 1 At the first they are very heuie bitter 2 He suffereth theÌ„ with great lenitie and patience submitting himselfe vnder the hand of God Yet if they bee in any great measure they will driue him to impatience 3 If they continue he shall feele according to his owne iudgement the wrath displeasure of his hart 4 His old sinnes wil come a fresh into his remembrance and trouble him Hee is sleepie and in his sleepe hee hath visions and dreames and anxietie of spirit 5 In this miserie God supports his faith that it faile not and he then forsake Christ. 6 He feling thus gods power to strengthen him hath experience of it in himselfe 7 From experience proceeds hope that the grace of God shall neuer bee wanting vnto him in anie afflictions to come and as he hopeth so it comes to passe 8 With this hope is ioyned a serious humiliation before the Lord with the fruit of peace and righteousnes If the afflictions bee for Christes cause vnto death then he in more speciall maner is filled with the ioy of the holie ghost and he is then stablished with the greatest measure of the strength of Christ that no torment is able to foyle him and to bring him froÌ„ Christ though the Christian should die a thousand times for it According to that of Paul To you it is giuen for Christ not onelie to beleue in him but also to suffer for his sake And this is grounded vpon the promise of God WheÌ„ thou passest through the waters I wil be with thee through the flouds that they do not ouerflow thee when thou walkest through the very fire thou not be burnt neither shall the flame kindle vpoÌ„ thee LIX Hence ariseth a notable differeÌ„ce betwen the godly the wicked in the suffering of afflictions A reprobate the more the Lord laieth his hand on him the more hee murmureth rebelleth against God it is contrary with the true christian None feeleth more the power rebellion of sin then he none is more assalted by sathan then he often times it cometh to passe that God withdraweth the signes of his fauor from him lets him feele his wrath And this is the greatest temptation of all other when a man shall see the Lord to be his enimie to his thinking to arme himself against him to his destruction As Ezechias did who saith that the Lord did crash his bones like a Lion Or as Iob saith that the arrowes of the almightie were in him the venime thereof drunke vp his spirit the terrors of god did fight against him Yet the true Christian when the world the flesh the deuill God himself too are against him doth euen then most of al rest in the Lord by faith cleue to him Though God should destroy me yet would I trust in him saith Iob. And Dauid saith my God my God why hast thou forsaken me When he saith that God had forsaken him it may seeme to be the complaint of a desperate maÌ„ not hauing so much as one spark of faith yet then he saith my God my God which words contain a confession proceeding froÌ„ true faith so y t in Dauid it appeareth that the faithful wheÌ„ they feele theÌ„selues forlorne vtterly reiected of god according to y e sense iudg ment of y e flesh yet by faith they can apprehend his hiddeÌ„ mercy behold it a far off in the glasse of his promise And so they do often shew contrary affectioÌ„s in their praiers as Dauid doth Iacob when he wrastled with the Angel for life death neuer gaue ouer wheÌ„ he was foild he wold not cease before the Lord had blessed him This his wrastling is a type of the coÌ„flicts which the faithful are to haue with y e lord himself who vseth to bring his own children as it were to the field he assaileth theÌ„ with the one hand with the other he holdeth them vp that so he may proue exercise their faith And for this cause the Church is called Israel by the name of Iacob An exaÌ„ple may be had in the woman of Canaan First our sauior Christ gaue hir faith by y t faith she was moued to seeke to him But when sheâ— was once come to him he gaue hir three repulses First by saying nothing Secondly by denying hir thirdly by calling hir dog Thus Christ in apperance made shew as though he wold neuer haue granted hir request But she at euery repulse was more instaÌ„t crying more earnestly vnto him
Then afterwarde came the Gospell a more gentle plaister which â—oupled and swaged my wounds of my conscience and brought me health It brought the spirit of God which loosed the bandes of Sathan and coupled me to God his wil through a strong faith ferueÌ„t loue Which bands were to strong for the Diuell the world or anie creature to loose And I a poore wretched sinner felt so great mercie that in my selfe I was most sure that God would not forsake mee or euer withdrawe his mercie and loue from mee And I boldlie cryed out with Paul saying Who shall separate me from the loue of GOD c. Finallie as before when I was bound to the Diuell and his wil I wrought all manner of wickednes for I coulde doe no otherwise it was my nature euen so nowe since I am coupled to God by Christes bloud I do good freelie because of the spirit and this my nature And thus I trust I haue satified your first demaund Timoth. Yea but mee thinkes you doe too much condemne your self in respect of sinne For I can remember that from your child-hood your were of a good and gentle nature and your behauior was alwaies honest and ciuill and you could neuer abide the companie of them which were roisters and ruffians and swearers and blasphemers and contemners of Gods word and drunkards which nowe are tearmed good fellowes And your dealing with all men hath beene euer commended for good faithfull and iust What meane you then to make your self so abhominable and accursed and to say you were so wholie addicted vnto wickednesse and your will so fearefully and miserablie in captiuitie vnto the will of the Diuell Euseb. Brother Timoth. I know what I say God giue mee grace to speake it with more liuelie feeling of my weaknes with a more bitter detestation of my sinne By nature through the fall of Adam am I the childe of wrath heire of the vengeance of God by birth yea and so from my first conception And I had my fellowshippe with the damned diuels vnder the power of darknes and rule of Sathan while I was yet in my mothers womb and although I showed not the fruites of sinne as soone as I was born nor loÌ„g after yet was I full of the naturall poyson froÌ„ whence all wicked deeds do spring caÌ„not but sin outwardly as soone as I am able to work be I neuer so yong if occasion be giuen for my nature is to sinne as is the nature of a serpent to sting and as a Serpent yet young or yet vnbrought foorth is full of poyson and cannot afterwarde when time and occasion is giuen but bring forth the fruites thereof And as an Adder a Toad or a Snake is hated of man not for the euill it hath done but for the poyson that is in it and hurt which it cannot but doe so am I hated of God for that naturall poyson which is concieued and borne with mee before I doe anie outwarde euill And as the euill which a venemous worme doth maketh it not a serpent but because it is a venemous worme therefore doth it euill and poysoneth euen so doe not our euill deedes make vs euill first but because wee are of nature euill therefore doe we euill and thinke euill to eternall damnation by the lawe and are contrarie to the will of God in our will and in all things consent vnto the will of the fiend Timoth. As yet I neuer had such a feeling of my sinne as you haue had and although I woulde bee loth to commit anie sinne yet the lawe was neuer so terrible vnto me condemning me pronouncing the sentence of death against mee and stinging my conscience with feare of euerlasting paine as I perceiue it hath beene vnto you therefore I feare oftentimes least my profession of religion should be onelie in truth meere hypocrisie I praie you let me heare your minde Euseb. A true saying it is that the right waie to goe vnto heauen is to sayle by hell and there is no man lyuing that feeleth the power and vertue of the bloude of Christ which first hath not felt the strange paynes of hell But yet in these paines there is a difference and it is the will of God that his children in their conuersion shall some of them feele more and some lesse Ezechias on his death bedde complaineth that the Lorde breaketh his bones like a Lion that he could not speake by reason of paine but chattered in his throte like a Crane and mourned like a Doue Iob saith that God is his enemie and hath set him vp as a marke to shoote at and that the arrowes of the almightie are vpon him and that the poison of them hath dronke vp his spirite Dauid bewaileth his estate in manie Psalmes but especiallie in the 130. Psalme where he beginneth on this manner Out of the deepe places haue I called vnto thee O Lorde which is as though hee shoulde saie O my poore soule fall not flatte downe vexe not thy selfe out of measure the burden of thy sinnes presse thee sore indeede but bee not for all that quite ouerwhelmed thou art thrust downe so lowe into the depth of deepes that thou had neede crie aloude to bee hearde of him which dwelleth in the highest heightes and the euerburning hell fire is not farre from that lake whither thine iniquities haue pluÌ„ged thee â—o that thou maiest perceiue as it were the Eccho of their cries and desperate howâ—nges which bee there cast out of all hope of euer comming forth But the Lord which bringeth foorth euen to the borders of hell his best beloued when they forget them selues knoweth also how well to bring them backe againe Goe no further then downwarde but liâ—t vp thy heart together with thine eie and seeke vnto the Lord to reach vnto thee his mercifull and helping hand Againe in the scriptures wee finde examples of men conuerted vnto the Lord without anie vehement sorrowe of their sinnes What anguish of coÌ„science had the theefe vppon the crosse for his former life in his present conuersion at the houre of death How was Lidia dismayed and cast downe in respect of hir wickednesse like as Dauid was or Iob whose heart God onelie is saide to haue opened to giue attendance to the preaching of Paul and Silas who also euen presentlie after was readie to entertaine them and to make them a feast in hir house which she could not haue done if shee had beene in the perplexities of Ezechias or Dauid The same may be spoken of the Iailer and of them which hearde Peters Sermon at Ierusalem who for all that they had murdred our Sauior Christ yet in their conuersioÌ„ their harts were onely for the time pricked So then God in preparing vs which in truth are nothing but fleshly and stincking doung-hils of sinne nay verie vncleannesse pollution it selfe I saie in preparing vs to be the teÌ„ples of his holy spirit
my conscience and went nie to perswade mee that my father would thrust me awaie and hang me if hee catched me so that I was like a great while to runne away rather then to returne to my father againe Feare and dread of rebuke and of losse of my fathers loue and of punishment wrastled with the trust which I had in my fathers goodnesse and as it were gaue my faith a fall But I rose againe as soone as the rage of the first brunt was past and my minde was more quiet And the goodnes of my father and his olde kindnes came vnto my remembrance either by mine owne courage or by the comfort of another And I beleeued that my father would not put me away or destroie me and hee hoped that I woulde doe no more so And vpon that I got me home againe dismaied but not altogether faithlesse the olde kindnes would not let me dispaire how beit all the worlde coulde not set mine heart at rest vntill the paine had beene past and vntill I had heard the voice of my father that all is forgotten Timoth. Seeing that you haue thus plainelie and truelie shewed the weaknes of yours and consequentlie of all mens faith shewe mee I praie you howe by the weakenes of faith a Christian is not rather discomforted then comforted and assured of his saluation Euseb. God doth not so much regarde the quantitie of his graces as the truth of them hee approoueth a litle faith if it bee a true faith yea if faith in vs were no more but a graine of mustard seede which is the least of al other seedes it should be effectual and God would haue respect vnto it The poore diseased beggar with a lame hande hauing the palsie also is able neuerthelesse to reach out the same and receiue an almes of a king and so in like manner a weake and languishing faith is sufficieÌ„tly able to reach out it selfe and to apprehende the infinite mercies of our heauenlie king offered vnto vs in Christ. Faith in the 3. of Iohn is compared vnto the eie of the Israelite which although it were of dimme sight or looked a squint yet if it could neuer so little beholde the brasen Serpent it was sufficient to cure the stings of the fiery serpeÌ„ts to saue life Timoth. Seing that you satisfie me in euery point so fully shew me I pray you whether a man may be wicked haue faith whether faith entring expelleth wickednes For I haue heard some saie that a maÌ„ might beleeue the word of God and yet be neuer the better in his life or holier theÌ„ before he was Euseb. Many there are which when they heare or read of faith at once they consent thereunto haue a certain imagination opinioÌ„ of faith as wheÌ„ a man telleth a storie or a thing done in a straÌ„ge land that perteineth not to theÌ„ at al which yet they beleeue tel as a true thing this imagination oâ— opinion they call faith Therfore as soone as they haue this imagination or opinion in their heartes they saie verilie this doctrine seemeth true I beleeue it euen so theÌ„ they thinke that the right faith is there but afterward when they feele in themselues no maner of working of the spirite neither the terrible sentence of the law the horrible captiuity vnder Satan neither can perceiue any alteration in theÌ„selues that any good works follow but find they are altogether as before abide in their old state theÌ„ think they y t faith is not sufficient but that works must be ioined with faith to iustificatioÌ„ but true faith is only the gift of God is mightie in operation euer working being full of vertue it renueth man begetteth him a fresh altreth him changeth him turneth him altogether into a new creature conuersatioÌ„ so that a maÌ„ shal feel his hart clean changed far otherwise disposed then before hath power to loue y t which before he could not but hate delighteth in that which before he abhorred hateth y t which before he could not but loue And it setteth the soul at liberty maketh hir free to follow the wil of god is to the soul as health to y e body after y t a maÌ„ is pined with loÌ„g sickâ—es the legs cannot bear him he cannot lift vp his hands to help him his tast is corrupt sugar is better in his mouth his stomacke longeth after slubbersauce and swash at which a whole stomacke is ready to cast his gorge when health commeth shee changeth and altereth him cleane giueth him strength in all his members lust and will to doe of his owne accorde that which before he could not doe neither coulde suffer that anie man should exhort him to doe hath now lust in wholsome things and his members are free and at libertie and haue power to doe all things of his owne accord which belong to a sounde and whole man to doe And faith worketh in the same manner as a tree bringes foorth fruite of his owne accorde and as a man neede not bidde a tree bring foorth fruite so is there no lawe put to him that beleeueth and is iustified through faith neither is it needefull For the lawe is written and grauen in his heart his pleasure is dailie therein and as without commaundement euen of his owne nature he eateth drinketh seeth heareth talketh goeth euen so of his owne nature without anie compulsion of the lawe bringeth foorth good workes and as an whole man when hee is a thirst tarrieth but for drinke and when he hungreth abideth but for meate and then drinketh and eateth naturallie Euen so is the faithfull euer a thirst and an hungred after the will of God and tarrieth but for an occasion and whensoeuer an occasion is giuen hee worketh naturallie the will of God For this blessing is giuen them that trust in Christs bloude that they thirst and hunger to doe Gods will He that hath not this faith is but an vnprofitable babler of faith and workes and neither worketh what hee bableth nor whereunto his words pretend For he feeleth not the power of faith nor the working of the spirit in his heart but interpreteth the scriptures which speake of faith and workes after his owne blinde reason and foolish fantasies not hauing any experience in himselfe Timoth. Euerie member of Christs congregation is a sinner and sinneth daily some more some lesse for it is written 1. Ioh. 1. If we saie we haue no sin we deceiue our selues and the truth is not in vs. And Paule Rom. 7. That good which I would that do I not but that euill which I would not that doe I. So it is not I that doe it saith hee but sinne that dwelleth in mee So the Christian man is both a sinner and no sinner which how it can be shew it me by your experience Euseb. I being one man in substance and two men in qualitie flesh and
sit one on y e right hand of Christ the other on the left They would pray that fire might descend froÌ„ heaueÌ„ consume the Samaritans WheÌ„ Christ asked who say men that I am Peter answered Thou art the sonne of the liuing God as though Peter had beene as perfecte as an Angell But imediatlie after when Christ preached â—nto them of his death and passion Peter was angry and rebuked Christ and thought earnestlie that hee had raued and not wist what hee had said as at another time when Christ was so feruentlie busied in healing the people that he had no leasure to eate they went out to holde him supposing that hee had beene beside himselfe And one that cast foorth Diuelles in Christes name they forbadde because hee waited not on theÌ„ so glorious were they yet And though Christ taught alway to forgiue yet Peter after long going to schole asked whether men should forgiue seauen times thinking that eight times had beene too much And at the last supper Peter woulde haue died with Christ but yet within fewe houres after he denied him both cowardly shamefullie And after the same manner though he had so long hearde that no man must auenge himselfe but rather turne the other cheeke to the smiter againe yet when Christ was in taking Peter asked whether it were lawfull to smite with the sworde and taried no answere but laide on rashlie So that although wee bee once reconciled to God yet at the first we be but children and yong scholers weake and feeble and must haue leasure to growe in the spirite iâ— knowledg loue and deeds thereof as yong children must haue time to growe in their bodies and so in like manner the sting of the serpent is not pulled out at once but the poyson of our nature is minished by little and little and cannot before the houre of death be wholie taken awaie Timoth. I perceiue by your godlie discourse the manifolde conflictes betweene the flesh and the spirite and that the flesh is like to a mightie Giant such a one as was Goliah strong lustie stirring enimie to God confederate with the Diuell and the spirite like to a little childe such a one as was little Dauid new borne weake and feeble not alwaies stirring nowe then what meanes do you vse to weaken the flesh and strengthen the spirit Euseb. I vse to tame my flesh with praier and fasting watching deedes of mercie holie meditations reading the scriptures and in bodilie labour and in with-drawing all manner of pleasures from the flesh and with exercises contrarie to the vices which I finde in my bodie most inclined to and with absteining from all things that encourage the flesh against the spirit as reading of toyes and wanton bookes seeing of plaies and enterluds wanton communication foolish iesting effeminate thoughts and talking of couetousnes which Paul forbiddeth Eph. 5. magnifying of worldly promotions If these will not mortifie my flesh then God sendeth me some troubles and so maketh me to grow waxe perfect and fineth and trieth me as gold in the fire of tentations and tribulations Thus verie often he maketh me to take vp my crosse naileth my flesh vnto it for the mortifying thereof Marke this if God send thee to the sea promise to go with thee he wil raise vp a tempest against thee to prooue whether thou wilt abide by his word and that thou maist feele thy faith weakenes and perceiue his goodnes for if it were alwaies faire weather and thou neuer brought into such ieopardie whence his mercie onlie deliuereth thee thy faith should bee onelie a presumption thou shouldest be euer vnthankefull to God and merciles vnto thy neighbour If God promise riches the waie therevnto is pouertie whom he loueth him he chasteneth whom he exalteth hee casteth downe whom he saueth he first damneth hee bringeth no man to heauen except he send him to hell first if hee promisâ— life he slayeth first when he buildeth he casteth downe all first he is no patcher hee cannot abide another mans foundation he will not worke till all bee past remedie and brought to such a case that meÌ„ may see how that his haÌ„d his power his mercy his goodnes his truth hath wrought altogether hee will let no man be partaker with him of his praise and glorie his works are wonderfull contrarie to mans workes who euer saue he deliuered his own sonne his only sonne his deere son his darling vnto the death for his enimies to win his enimies to ouercome theÌ„ with loue that he might see loue loue again and of loue likewise to doe to other men to ouercome them with well doing Ioseph saw the Sun and the Moone and seauen starres worshipping him neuertheles ere that came to passe God laid him where he could see neither sun nor moone neither anie star of the skie and that many yeres and also vndeserued to nurture him to make him humble meeke to teach him Gods waies and to make him apte and meete for y t roome honor again he came to it that he might be strong in the spirit to minister it well God promised the children of Israel a land with riuers of milke honie yet hee brought them foorth the space of fortie yeares into a lande where in riuers of milke and honie were but where so much as a drop of water was not to nurture and teach them as a father doth his sonne and to doe them good at the latter ende to seduce their cankred nature to make them strong in the spirite to vse his benefites aright Lastlie God promised Dauid a kingdome and immediatelie stirred vp Saul against him to persecute him and to hunt him as men doe hayres with gray-houndes and to ferret him out of euerie hole and that for the space of manie yeares to turne him to make him to mortifie his lustes to make him feel his own diseases in fine to make him a good man and a good King Timoth. But how if it come to passe that you be tempted to anie great sinne and the fleshe ouercome the spirit in what case are you then Euseb. There is no bodie here but you I and I take you to bee a Christian and a faithfull friende therefore I will shewe a little of my exhortation The last yeare by reason of the dearth I and my familie were put to great pinches and most commonly we had nothing but bread and water here vpon I bethought mee howe I might get somewhat to releiue my familie It came into my minde that in our Towne a rich man had a great flocke of sheepe and that I might take one of them without any hurt of him I was verie loath at the first but because there was such great stealing of sheepe I was in extremitie in the night I went among his sheep and tooke a lambe and told my familie that it was giuen me I presently killed it the
laid vp for vs in Christs blood and to witnesse and testifie it vnto them and to be the seale therof For the sacrament dooth much more liuely print the faith and make it sincke downe into the hart then do bare words onely Now when the words of the testament and promises are spoken ouer the bread this is my body that was broken for you this is my blood that was shed for you they confirme the faith but much more when the sacrament is seene with the eies and the bread broken the wine powred out and looked on and yet more when I taste it and smell it As you see when a man maketh a promise vnto another with light words betweene theÌ„selues so they departed he to whom the promis is made beginneth to doubt whether the other spake earnestlye or mocked doubteth whether he will remeÌ„ber his promise to abide by it or no. But when any maÌ„ speaketh with aduisement the words are more credible if he swear it coÌ„firmeth the thing more and yet the more if hee strike hands if hee giue earnest if hee call recorde if he giue hand-writing seale it so is the more more beleeued for the heart gathereth â—o he spake with aduisement deliberation good sadnes he clapped hands called recorde and put to his hande and seale the man cannot bee so faint without the feare of God as to denie al this shame shal make him abide his promise though hee were such a man as I could not compel him if he woulde denie it And thus we dispute God sent his sonne in our nature and made him feele our infirmities that moue vs to sinne and named his name Iesus that is a Sauior because he should saue his people froÌ„ their sinnes and after his death he sent his Apostles to preach these glad-tydings to thrust them in at the eares of vs and set vp a sacrament of them to testifie them to seale them and to thrust them in not at the eares onely by rehearsing the promises of the testament ouer it neither at our eies onely in beholding it but beat them in through our feeling tasting smelling also and to bee repeated dailie to be ministred to vs. He wold not think we make half so much a do with vs if he loued vs not wold not haue his Sacrament to bee a witnes and testimonie between him vs to confirm the faith of his promisses that wee should not doubt in them when we looke on the seales of his obligations wherewith he hath bound himselfe this to keepe the promisses couenants better in mind and to make them the more deepely to sinke into our hearts and be more earnestlie regarded Timoth. Considering that this which you saie is too plaine great shame it is that there is such neglect of the Sacrament as there is and that it is so seldome vsed but surelie want of faith and the security which ouerspreadeth this our Countrie is the cause of it the Lord if it be his will remoue the same Now let me heare a litle how you lead your life and haue your conuersation among men Euseb. I haue my conuersation among men as sincere as I can in righteousnes and holines which is after Gods commaundements our Sauiour saith Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorifie your Father which is in heauen Timoth. It is but a dim light which wee can carrie before men and small are our good works and to be esteemed of no value If we were preachers or rich men or noble men then we might saue soules giue good couÌ„sel help manie by our almes but you I are poore men of base birth of low degree how can we then do anie good works Euseb. As touching good works by that measure of knowledge that God hath giuen me I thinke that all works are good which are done according to the obedience of Gods law in faith with thankesgiuing to God with a mind desirous of his glorie alone I think that I or any maÌ„ els in doing theÌ„ please God whatsoeuer I do within the law of god as when I make water And trust me if either winde or water were stopped I should feel what a pretious thing it were to do either of both what thaÌ„ks ought to be giuen God therfore Moreouer I put no difference betweene workes but whatsoeuer commeth into my hands that I do as time place occasioÌ„ giueth according to my degree For as touching to please God there is no work better then other God looketh not first on my works as the world doth or as though he had neede of them but God looketh first on my hart what faith I haue to his word how I beleeue him trust him and how I loue him for his mercie that he hath shewed mee hee looketh with what heart I work not what I work how I accept the degree hee hath put me in not of what degree I am Let vs take an example You are a Minister and preach the worde I am a kitchen boy wash my maisters dishes Of the ministerie hark what the Apostle saith if I preach I haue nought to reioice in for necessitie is put vpon mee if I preach not the gospel as who should saie God hath made me so woe is to me if I preach not If I do it willinglie saith he then I haue my reward that is then am I sure that Gods spirite is in me that I am elect to eternall life If I do it against my wil the office is committed to me that is if I do it not of loue to God but to get a liuing therby for a worldlie purpose had rather otherwise liue then do I that office which God hath put vpon mee but do not please God So then if you preached not or in preaching had not your hart aright you minister the office they that haue the spirit of God heare his word yea though it were spokeÌ„ by an Asse the woe belongeth to you but if you preach wilâ—ingly with a true hart coÌ„science to God then shal you feel the earnest of eternal life and the working of the spirit of God in you And your preaching is a good work in you Now I that minister in the kitchin and am but a kitchin boy receiue all thinges at the hand of God knowe that God hath put me in such an office submit my selfe to his wil and serue my Maister not as a man but as Christ himselfe with a pure heart according as Paul teacheth me putting my trust in God and of him seeke my reward Moreouer there is not a good deede done but mine heart reioiseth therein yea when I heare that the word of God is preached by you and see the people turne vnto God I consent to this deede my heart breaketh out in me yea it springeth and leapeth in my breast that
and quaffing and all such like Galathians 5. 19. 20. 22. All these they cannot proceede from thee Sathan or from my fleshe but onelie from faith which is wrought in me by gods holie spirite Sathan If this were so God would neuer suffer thee to sinne as thou doest Christian. I shall sinne as long as I liue in this worlde I am sure of it because I am taught to aske remission of my sinnes continually But the manner of my sinning now is otherwaies than it hath beene in times past I haue sinned heretofore with ful purpose and consent of will but now doubtles I doo not Before I commit anie sinne I do not go to the practising of it with deliberation as the carnall man doth who taketh care to fulfill the lustes of the flesh but if I doo it it is flat beside my minde and purpose In the doing of anie sinne I woulde not doe it my heart is against it and I hate it and yet by the tyrannie of my flesh being ouercome I doe it afterwardc when it is committed I am grieued and displeased at my selfe and doe earnestlie with teares aske at Gods hands forgiuenesse of the same sinne Sathan Indeede this is verye true in the children of God but thou art solde vnder sinne and with great pleasure doest commit sinne louest it with thy whole heart otherwise thou wouldest not fall to sinne againe after repentance and commit euen one and the same sinne so often as thou doest Thou hypocrite this thy behauiour turneth all the fauour of God from thee Christian. Nay it is the order of the Prophets to call men to repentance which haue fallen from the feare of God and from the repentance which they professed and God in thus calling him putteth them in hope of obtaining mercie And the law had sacrifices offered euery day for the sinnes of all the people and for particular men both for their ignorances and their voluntarie sinnes which signifieth that God is readie to forgiue the sinnes of his children yea if they sinne daily Abraham twise lied and swore that Sara was not his wife Ioseph swore twise by the life of Pharao Dauid coÌ„mitted adulterie often because he tooke vnto him Bathsheba Vriahs wife also kept sixe wiues and ten concubines Gods will is that meÌ„ forgiue till seuentie seuen times and therefore he will shew much more mercie And for my part so oft as I shall fall into the same sin so oft I shall haue Christ my aduocate and intercessour to the father for me who will not damne me for the infirmitie which he findeth in me I will abstaine from externall iniquitie and I wil not make my members seruants vnto sinne and so long I trust my imperfections shall haue no power to damne mee for Christes perfection is reputed to be mine by faith which I haue in his bloud God is not displeased if my bodie be sicke and subiect to diseases no more is he displeased at the disease and sicknesse of the soule A naturall father will â—ot slay the bodie of his childe when he is sicke and abhorreth comfortable meates and my heauenly father will not condemne my soule although through the infirmitie of faith and the weakenesse of the spirit I commit sinne and often loath his heauenâ—y word the food of my soule Nay which â—s a strange thing I know it by experience â—hat God hath turned my filthie sinnes to my great profit and to the amendment of my life like as the good Phisition of ranke â—oison is able to make a soueraigne medicine to preserue life Sathan Well be it that now thou art in the state of grace yet thou shalt not continue so but shalt before death depart from Christ. Christian. I know I am a meÌ„ber of Christs misticall bodie I feele in my selfe the heauenlie power and vertue of my head Christ Iesus and for this cause I cannot perish but shall continue for euer and raigne in Heauen after this life with him The conflicts of Sathan with the weake Christian. Sathan THy minde is full of ignorance and blindnes thy heart is full of obstinacie rebellion and frowardnes against God thou art whollie vnfit for anie good work wherfore thou hast no faith neither canst thou be iustified and accepted before God Christian. If I haue but one drop of the grace of God and if my faith bee no more than a litle graine of mustard seede it is sufficient for mee God requireth not perfect faith but true faith Sathan Yea but thou hast no faith at all Christian. I haue had faith Sathan Thou neuer hadst true faith foâ— in time past when according to thine own opinion thou didst beleeue then thou hadst nothing but a shadow of faith and a foolish imagination which all hypocrites haue Christian. I wil put my trust in god for euer his former mercies shewed mee heretofore strengtheÌ„ me now in this my weaknes 1. He created me when I was nothing 2. He created me a man when he might haue made me an vglie Toade 3. He made me of comelie bodie and of good discretioÌ„ wheras he might haue made me vglie deformed franticke mad 4. I was borne in the daies of knowledg when I might haue beene borne in the time of ignorance and superstition 5. I was borne of Christian parents but God might haue giuen me either Turks or Iewes or some other sauage people for my parents 6. I might haue perished in my mothers wombe but he hath preserued me and prouided for me by his prouidence euen vnto this houre 7. Soone after my birth God might haue cast me into hell but contrariwise I was baptized and so receiued the seale of his blessed couenant 8 I haue had by Gods goodnesse some sorrowe for my sinnes past and haue called on him in hope and confidence that heâ— would heare me 9 God might haue concealed his worâ— from mee but I haue heard the plentifuâ— preaching of it I vnderstand it and hauâ— receiued comfort by it 10 Lastly at this time God might powâ—â— his full wrath on me which he dooth noâ— but mercifully maketh me to feele miâ—… owne wants that I might be humbled aâ—… giue all glorie vnto him for his blessingâ— Wherefore there is no cause why I shouâ—â— bee disquieted but I will trust still in tâ—â— Lord and depend on him as I haue done Sathan Thou feelest no grace of the hâ—… lie Ghoste in thee nor anie true tokens 〈…〉 faith but thou hast a liuely sense of the râ—bellion of thy heart and of thy lewde aâ—â— wretched conuersation therefore thâ— canst not put anie confidence in Christâ— death and sufferings Christian. Yet I will hope against all hopâ— and although according to mine owâ— sense and feeling I want faith yet I will bâ— leeue in Iesus Christ and trust to be sauâ— by him Sathan Though the children of GOD haue beene in many perplexities yet neuer any of them haue bin in
my sinnes Minister What is your temptation as â—ouching faith Christian. Ah woe is mee I am much â—fraide least I haue no faith in Christ my Sauiour Minister What causeth this feare Christian. Diuerse things Minister What is one Christian. I am troubled with manye doubtings of my saluation and so it comes â—nto my minde to thinke that by my incredulitie I should quite cut off my selfe from the fauour of God Minister But you must knowe this one thing that hee that neuer doubted of his saluation neuer beleeued that he which beleeueth in trueth feeleth manie doubtings wauerings euen as the â—ound man feeles manie grudgings of diseases which if he had not health he could not feele Christian. But you neuer knewe anie that hauing true faith doubted of their saluatioÌ„ Minister What will you then saie of the man that saide Lorde I beleeue Lorde helpe my vnbeleefe And of Dauid who made his moane after this manner Is his mercie cleane gone for euer Doth his promise faile for euermore Hath GOD forgotten to bee mercifull Hath he shutt vp his tender mercie in displeasure Yea hee goeth on further as a man in dispaire And I saide this is my death Hereby it is manifest that a man indued with true faith maie haue not onelie assaults of doubting but of desperation This further appeareth in that he saith in another place Why art thou cast downe my soule Why art thou disquieted within mee Waite on God for I will yet giue thankes hee is my present helpe and my God And in verie truth you maie perswade your self that they are but vnreasonable men that say they haue long beleeued in Christ without anie doubting of their saluation Christian. But Dauid had more in him then I haue for me thinkes there is nothing in this wicked heart of mine but rebellion against God nothing but doubting of his mercie Minister Let me know but one thing of you these doubtinges which you feele do you like them or doe you take anie pleasure in them and doo you cherish them Christian. Naie naie they appeare verie vilde in mine eyes and I doe abhorre them from my hearte and I woulde faine beleeue Minister In man wee must consider his estate by nature and his estate by grace In the first he and his flesh are all one for they are as man and wife therefore one is necessarie to the doings of the other When the flesh striueth the man also striueth that is in subiection to the flesh yea when the fleshe perisheth the man likewise perisheth being in this estate with the fleshe a louing couple they are they liue and die together But in the estate of grace though a man haue the flesh in him yet hee and his flesh are diuorced a sunder This diuorcement is made when a man beginnes to dislike and to hate his flesh and the euill fruites of it this separation beeing made they are no more one but twaine and the one hath nothing to doo with the other In this case though the flesh beget sin and perish therefore yet the Christian man shall not incuâ— damnation for it To come more neere the matter you saie the fleshe begettes in you wauerings doubtinges and distrustinges what then it troubleth you but feare not remember your estate you are diuorced from the flesh and you are newe married vnto Christ if these sinnes be laide at youâ— doore accompt them not as your children but renounce them as Bastards saie with Paul I doubt indeede but I hate my doubtings and I am no cause of these but the the flesh in mee which shall perish when I shall be saued by Christ. Christian. This which you haue saide doeth in part content mee one thing more I praie you shewe mee concerning this point namelie how I maie be able to ouercome these doubtings Minister For the suppressing of doubtings you are to vse three meditations The first that it is Gods commandement that you should beleeue in Christ So saint Iohn saith This is his commandement that wee beleue in the name of his sonne Iesus Christ. Thou shalt not steale is Gods commandement you are loth to breake it least you should displease God and pull his curse vpon your head This also is Gods commandement Thou shalt beleeue in Christ and therefore you must take heede of the breach of it â—east by doubting and wauering you bring â—he curse vpon you Secondlie you must â—onsider that the promises of saluation in Christ are generall or at the least indefinite â—xcluding no particular man as in one for â—ll maie appeare God so loued the worlde that â—e gaue his onely begotten sonne that whosoeuer â—eleeueth in him should not perish but haue euerlaâ—â—ing life Nowe then so often as you shall â—oubt of Gods mercie whereas hee excluâ—eth you not And as when a Prince giues â— pardon to all theeues euerie one can apâ—lie the same vnto himselfe though his â—ame bee not set downe in the pardon So â—â—e king of kings hath giuen a generall parâ—on for free remission of sinnes to them that â—ill receiue it Beleeue therefore that God 〈◊〉 true in his promise doubt not of your â—wne saluation chalenge the pardon to your selfe In deede your name is not set downe or written in the promise of grace yet let not anie illusion of Sathan or the consideration of your owne vnworthinesse exclude you from this generall free mercie of God which hee also hath offered to you particularlie first in Baptisme then after in the Lords supper and therefore you are not to wauer in the applying of it to your selfe Thirdlie you are to consider that by doubting and dispairing you offend god as much almost as by anie other sinne Yoâ— do not aboue hope beleeue vnder hope as you shoulâ— doo Secondlie you robb God of his glorie is that you make his infinite mercie to bee lesse then your sinnes Thirdlie you make him a lier who hath made such a promisse vnto you And to these three meditations adde this practise When your hart is toiled with vnbeliefe and doubtings then in all hast drawe your selfe into some secrete place humble your selfe before God powre out your hart before him desire hiâ— of his endles mercie to worke faith and tâ— suppresse your vnbeliefe and you shall see That the Lord ouer all is rich vnto all that call vpon his name Christian. The Lord reward you for your kindnes I will hereafter doo my endeuour to practise this your counsell Nowe I will make bold to shew another that makes me to feare least I haue no faith And it is because I doe not feele the assurance of the forgiuenesse of my sinnes Minister Faith standeth not in the feeling of Gods mercie but in the apprehending of it which apprehending maie bee when there is no feeling for faith is of inuisible things and when a man once commeth to enioy the thing beleeued then hee ceaseth to beleeue
condemnation but shall most certainely escape the same Take this for a most certaine truth that the man that hates dislikes his sins both before and after hee hath done them shall neuer be damned for them Christian. I am euen hart sicke of my manifolde sinnes and infirmities these good words which you speak are as flagons of wine to refresh my wearie laden and weltting soule I haue begunne to flee sinne and to detest it long agoe I haue beene oft dipleased with mine infirmities and corruptions when I offende God my heart is greeued I desire to leaue sinne I flee the occasions of sinne I woulde faine fashion my life to Gods word and I praie vnto God that he woulde giue mee grace so to doo and yet which is the griefe by the strength of the flesh by the sleights and power of Sathan I am often ouertaken and fall maruellouslie both by speach and by deed Minister Haue courage my good brother for whereas you haue an affection to doo the thinges that are acceptable vnto God it argueth plainely that you are a meÌ„ber of Christ according to that of Paul They which are of the spirite fauour the things of the spirite Well then if Sathan euer obiect anie of your sinnes to your make aunswere thus that you haue forsaken the first husbande the fleshe and haue espoused your selfe to Christ Iesus who as your head and husbande hath taken vpon him to answere your debts and therefore if he vrge you for them referre him ouer vnto Christ. For there is no sute in lawe against the wife the husbande liuing yea I adde further if you bee ouer caried with Sathans temptations and so fall into anie sinne you shall not answere for it but Sathan it shall surely be rekoned on his score at the daie of iudgmeÌ„t for he was the author of it if you fal by the frailtie of your flesh it shal perish therefore but you shal stil haue Christ you aduocate Christian. Indeede as you saie I haue in me an affection to please God but when I come to performe my obedience there I faile Minister Therefore marke this further As long as the children of God are in this life God regardeth more the affection to obeie then the obedience it selfe And they shall bee vnto mee saith the Lorde of hostes in that daie that I shall doe this for a flocke and I wil spare them as a man spares his owne sonne that serueth him The Father when he shall set his childe to doe anie busines though he doe it neuer so vntowardlie yet if he shew his good will to doe the best hee can his father will bee pleased and so it is with the Lorde towarde his children you looke to haue some perfection in your selfe but in this life you shall receiue no more but the first fruits of the spirite which are but as a handfull of corne in respect of the whole corne fielde and as for the accomplishment of your redemption you must wait for it til after this life you would bee kissed with the kisses of Christs mouth but here in this world you must bee content if you maie with Marie Magdalen kisse his feete For the perfection of a Christian mans life standes in the feeling and confessing of his imperfections And as Ambrose saith obedience due to God stands more in the affection then in the worke Christian. But why will God haue those whom he hath sanctified labour still vnder their infirmities Minister The causes are diuers First hereby hee teacheth his seruaunts to see in what great neede they stand of the righteousnes of Christ that they maie more carefullie seeke after it Secondlie he subdueth the pride of mens hearts humbleth them by counteruailing the graces which they haue receiued with the like measure of infirmities Thirdlie by this meanes the godlie are exercised in a continuall fight against sinne and are dailie occupied in purifieng themselues Christian. But to goe on forward in this matter there is another cause that makes me feare lest I haue no true repentance Minister What is that Christian I often times finde my selfe like a verie timberlog void of all grace goodnes frowarde and rebellious to anie good worke so that I feare lest Christ haue quite forsaken me Minister As it is in the strait seas the water ebbes and flowes so is it in the godlie in them as long as they liue in this world according to their own feeling there is an accesse and recesse of the spirit Otherwhiles they bee troubled with deadnes and dulnes of heart as Dauid was who praied to the Lorde to quicken him according to his louing kindnes that he maie keepe the testimonies of his mouth and in another place he saith that Gods promises quickened him Which coulde not be vnlesse he had beene troubled with great dulnes of heart Againe sometimes the spirite of God quite withdraweth it self to their feeling as it was in Dauid In the daiâ— of my trouble saith hee I sought the Lorde and my soule refused comfort I did thinke vpon God was troubled I praied and my spirite was full of anguish Againe will the Lord absent himselfe for euer and will he shew no more fauour hath God forgotten to be mercifull c. The Church in â—hâ— Canticles complaineth of this In my beddâ—â— sought him by night whom my soule loued I sought him but I found him not And againe my welbeloued put in his hand by the hole of the dore and 〈◊〉 heart was affectioned towardes him I rose 〈…〉 pen to my welbeloued and my hands did 〈…〉 myrrhe my fingers powre myrrhe vppon â—…dles of the bar I opened to my welbeloued 〈◊〉 my welbeloued was gone and past mine heart was gone when hee did speake I sought him but I coulde not finde him I called but he answered me not Contrariwise God at some other times sheds abroad his loue most aboundantlie in the hearts of the faithfull and Christ lieth betweene tho breasts of his Church as a posie of myrrhe giuing a strong smell Christian. But how can he be a Christian that feels no grace nor goodnes in himselfe Minister The child which as yet can vse no reason is for all that a reasonable creature and the man in a soune feeles no power of life and yet he is not dead The Christian man hath manie quaumes come ouer his heart and he falles into manie a soune that none almost would loke for anie more of the life of Christ in him yet for al that he may be a true Christian. This was the estate of Peter when he denied our sauiour Christ with cursing and banning his faith onelie fainted for a time it failed not Christian. I haue nowe opened vnto you the chiefe things that trouble me and your comfortable answers haue much refreshed my troubled minde The God of all mercie and consolation requite you accordinglie Minister I haue