that cleanseth his heart from the filth of sin and so stores it with Pious works as that it may delight the Almighty God to dwell therein Lay aside the cares of this world and take into your minds the Joys of heaven Empty your heads of all other things and prepare that upper Room to entertain your Lord. Consider ye are framed according to the Image of the Lord adorned with his Similitude espoused unto him by Faith endowed with the Holy Ghost redeemed with the pretious Blood of a dear Saviour assigned to be Fellow-Citizens with the Holy Angels capable of Eternal Happiness Heirs of Goodness stock't with Sence and Reason What have ye to do with the flesh then slight not those opportunities and advantages that are set before ye but Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his Righteousness and all other things shall be added to ye Keep your Souls in a flying posture towards your Inheritance above For where can ye finde more Riches to invite ye The Lord is called The faithful God and will take an account of each ones faith Without Faith it is impossible to please God for he that cometh to him must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him Adam was a sinner and begot sinners and they must work out their Salvation with fear and trembling What am I A man that had my beginning from a thing unseemly in the moment of my conception I was conceived of Humane seed afterwards that froth changed into curds and by encreasing became flesh With weeping I was exposed to the miseries of a wretched world and behold I am full of sin and shall suddenly be presented before the strict Judge to render an account of all my works Wo be to me wretch when that day shall come and those Books shall be opened wherein are Registred all my thoughts words and works and shall be read before the Lord Then with a trembling Conscience I stand before the Tribunal-Seat of Christ full of fear and anguish calling to remembrance my manifold offences And when it shall be said Behold the man and his works then Oh then shall I see all my sins and abominations presented before mine eyes To prevent which Misery observe these Directions Since your whole life is a Race and a Battel a Merchandise and a Journey prepare against night a Rosary of good works to present unto the Lord. Let your sleep be no more than Nature and Necessity requires and remember as he that starts first is most like to win the Race so he that first offers his petition to Almighty God hath the more early title to a blessing Change not day into night and night into day be not addicted to idelness and sleep for that is the way to turn your blessing to a dream Let not that imagination seize you that you may lie in bed having no business immediately to do for he that hath a Soul and would save that Soul hath enough to do to make his calling and election sure Meditate Pray and Read Repent and do acts of Charity to others If you have little to do you have the more time to provide for a Crown of Glory When you open your eyes think upon some act of Piety Thank God for your last good rest and preservation Give thanks to the Lord for your creation and the many mercies you have received from his hands When you arise pay your devotion to the holy Trinity Be silent when you dress your self and fix your thoughts upon some act of Piety If you speak let it be in the praise of God of his Goodness his Mercies or his Greatness Always let the first-fruits of thy Reason be presented to the Lord that so the whole harvest of thy conversation may be Sanctified Let your habit be neither careless nor curious though men may respect you for your outward habit God doth expect that your inward garment should be Righteousness Let your ejaculations suit with your actions in the morning as when you clean your hands Pray to God to cleanse your Soul from sin or when you cloath your body Pray to him to cloath you with the Armour of Faith and a good Conscience This done betake your self to your Closet-Devotions or to Family-Duties as your condition is capacitated Having finished your Prayers consult with your self about your Occasions that day and resolve against any thing that may seem opposite to the Service of God or the Rules of Good manners If you have Children or Servants it is your Duty to Pray with them and for them or especially to be careful that they shall Pray for themselves After this betake your self to your Affairs avoid idleness and take heed of being too earnest after wordly goods be Prudent Temperate Diligent Humble and Charitable Harbour no idle Persons in your Family let your Servants have moderate Work and Meat if they deserve Reproof let it be without Passion advice with some Natures may do more than Correction Be not busie to inquire after the Concerns of your Neighbour but carry your self with this Caution that in all your Actions you mix the ingredients of Justice and Charity Be in Charity with all men Avoid Backbiting and Slandering he that delights in either of them shall never be beloved or innocent When you dine lift up your heart in an holy Ejaculation to the Lord thank him for your Temporal Food and crave for Spiritual After dinner return thanks for Mercies received He doth not deserve to eat that doth not desire to thank In your Recreations be moderate and be sure to secure your heart for God left your affections settle upon a false Basis Let not your Recreations be tedious lest if you dwell with them long you may be inticed to sin When you enter into Discourse be pithy and as often as you can devout but if your occasions shall be so urgent that you cannot conveniently discourse of God however be sure to think of him When you Read let it not be much at once let your Reading be little and your Meditation large for little Reading and much thinking little Speaking and much Hearing brief Prayer and firm Devotion is the surest way to be Wise and to be Devout In the Evening let your Meditations be on the hours of the day past how they have been spent if your Conscience be clear it is the sooner examined but if any thing extraordinary hath happned then take time to recollect your self with diligence Thank the Lord for his benefits of the day and crave a pardon for your errours and if any duty hath been omitted endeavour to redeem that fault the next day Let your last Prayers be applied to the concerns of your Conscience and forget not to thank the Lord for all his mercies to you and your relations that day When you enter into your Bed fix your Meditations upon Death and the Grave In the whole course of your life
believeth that Iesus is the Son of God Why is it that sinners so rarely confess their sins it is because they are in them we use not to declare our dreams till we wake Therefore let us not sleep as do others but let us watch and be sober To represent a Christian is only to act a part on the stage of this world but to be a real Christian is to depart this stage and enter into a world of Bliss He that hath children ought to correct them with discretion But he that spareth his Rod hateth his Son and he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes To be truly sensible of sin is to sorrow for displeasing God more than for the displeasure of God to be afflicted that he is displeased by us more than that he is displeased with us Mirth and Mourning are opposites to each other Mirth is burthensome in the time of Mourning and Mourning is likewise burthensome in the time of Mirth Love the Saints for Christ's sake and Christ will love you for his Saints sake Beloved let us love one another for love is of God and every one that loveth is born of God and knoweth God but he that loveth not knoweth not God for God is love The Old Testament veils the New the New Testament reveals the Old Beautiful upon the Mountains are the feet of him which bringeth good tidings but how much more beautiful are the good tidings which are brought by those feet The works of our life is the best demonstration that we are acquainted with the words of our life The Saint hath the motion of grace whilst the Hypocrite hath but the notion the Saint sees tasts and feels it whilst the Hypocrite only reads hears and speaks of it The Saint hath the experience of grace and the Hypocrite the expression Be modest in your desires so shall your cup over-flow but the covetous man never hath enough Take heed and beware of covetousness There is a time for all things but no time when all things may be spoken To every thing there is a season and a time to every purpose under the heaven When you give thanks let the strings of your Heart and the strings of your Tongue be tun'd to Unisons it is the musick that God himself delighteth in What a vain thing is man when the best of men are but vanity at best Verily every man in his best estate is altogether vanity The wife of a man's bosom is better than the portions of the purse House and riches are the inheritance of fathers but a prudent wife is from the Lord. Marry not where you love not lest you are tempted to love where you marry not Marriage is honorable in all and the bed undefiled but Whoremongers and Adulterers God will judge If Nature be defective it is not the act of the creature but of God and since it is his will it should be so we ought to submit to his pleasure and not to blame the handy-work of God Hath not the Potter power over the clay of the same lump to make one Vessel unto honour and another unto dishonour To please all is hard to displease any may be inconvenient the Christians surest way is to please him who is all in all When a man's ways please the Lord he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him The Righteous man will venture his Credit to secure his Conscience but will not venture his Conscience for the sake of his Credit The Saints are visited by Christ here by way of invitation that they should visit him hereafter Blessed be the Lord God of Israel for he hath visited and redeemed his people A Christian should like all God's commands because they are all alike Holy Iust and Good The Statutes of the Lord are right rejoycing the heart the Commandment of the Lord is pure enlightning the eyes It is our Master's pleasure to let his joy enter into us here that it may teach us how to enter into our Master's joy hereafter In whose presence is fulness of joy at his right hand are pleasures for evermore No sin against God can be said to be little because it is against the great God of Heaven and Earth but if the sinner can finde out a little God it may be easie then to finde out little sins Our Mediator Jesus Christ the Righteous is the sinners Righteousness unto God and the Righteousness of God to sinners But we are all as an unclean thing and all our Righteousnesses are as filthy rags and we all do fade as a leaf and our Iniquities like the wind have taken us away If any man findes the want of Comforts Content will make them comfortable wants It was a rare experience which Paul had got who saith I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content Destruction giveth way to pride for pride goeth before destruction Be sober in advice and moderate in reproofs some hearts are sooner humbled with stroaks than with stripes As an ear-ring of gold and an ornament of fine-gold so is a wise reprover upon an obedient ear Pride soars aloft but patience walketh humbly with his God God resisteth the proud and giveth grace to the humble The mercie of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting Let not that incourage sinners to the commission of sin but from thence let them sue for a remission of sin It is the will of every Saint that the will of the Lord should be done and he is content that all things should be so done so as to content God The Holy Prophet confirms it saying I delight to do thy will O my God yea thy law is within my heart Though our good works will not carry us to heaven yet they shall finde a reward in heaven Behold I come quickly and my reward is with me to give every man according aâ— his work shall be The life of the wicked is abominable they sin with content and are content with sin Miserable Wretches Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the Prophet unto our Fathers saying Go to this people and say Hearing ye shall hear and shall not understand and Seeing ye shall see and not perceive For the heart of this people is waxed gross and their ears are dull of hearing and their eyes have they closed lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and be converted and I should heal them Till we get Christ within us we are without Christ. The Lord's bottle and basket are never empty he bountifully invites us with this free offer of grace Ho every one that thirsteth come ye to the waters and he that hath no money come ye buy and eat yea come buy wine and milk without money and without price He hath filled the hungry with good things and the rich
God let him consider the value of that mercie before it comes and when it is present let him seriously value its worth before it be past When David's condition was low and mean in the world we finde to come from him many sweet breathings of his Soul and strong actings of his Faith and love I will be glad and rejoyce in thy mercie for thou hast considered my trouble thou hast known my soul in Adversitie Let me not be ashamed O Lord for I have called upon thee let the wicked be ashamed and let them be silent in the grave It is the key of Knowledge that openeth the door of Heaven it is the knowledge of the Truth that leadeth to Salvation Behold thou desirest the inward parts and in the inward part thou shalt make me to know wisdom The ill which proceeds from man must not be attributed unto God neither must the good which proceeds from God be attributed unto man There is none good but one that is God The Lord knoweth the thoughts of men that they are vain Sin hath dominion over us before conversion but being converted we have dominion over sin and whereas before we were captives unto sin we now lead sin into captivity He that is born of God overcometh the world When we have done for God all that we can our all is so little and our good deeds so ill that we are at best but unprofitable servants When ye have done all those things which are commanded you say We are unprofitable servants we have done that which was our duty to do What greater act of impiety or ignorance can there be than for a man to do ill and yet pretend or think he doeth well Who can understand his errours cleanse thou me from secret sins He that will not deny himself and his own ends for Christ will deny Christ for his own ends and will to his sorrow be denied by Christ in the end Whosoever shall deny me before men him will I also deny before my Father which is in Heaven In God there is no darkness at all for God is light in man there is no light at all for he is darkness our very light is darkness God is light and in him there is no darkness at all If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness How great is that darkness We may profess Christ but when we possess Christ then is our hope of Glory Christ is made known to us two ways by Relation and by Revelation which latter knowledge is the best If we can be of the number of Christ's little ones the mercie will be great It was our Saviour's saying Verily I say unto you Except ye be converted and become as little children ye shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven A Saint's heart is in the Law of God and the Law of God is likewise in his heart The Law of God is in the heart of the righteous none of his steps shall slide O how I love thy Law it is my meditation all the day If any man would have his child be a man of God he must teach him betimes first to become a child of God Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it He is Natures fair Picture drawn in Oyl Which time and handling oft doth spoil Let the wicked laugh at the godly for being godly rather than God should laugh at them for being wicked Ye have set at nought all my counsel and would none of my reproof I also will laugh at your calamity I will mock when your fear cometh What a choice mercie had Solomon who had the choice of mercies The reputation of a good man is to be rich in goodness not in goods Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom neither let the mighty man glory in his might nor the rich man glory in his riches but let him that glorieth glory in the Lord. He is the only wise and rich man that can learn to be content Godliness with contentment is great gain The expectation of a Saint is Eternity and the whole world is not able to answer his single expectation We may be instructed by a Prophet but it is the Spirit of God by which we profit Walk in the spirit and ye shall not fulfil the lusts of the flesh The death of Christ giveth life to them that repent and giveth them a repentance unto life not to be repented of it giveth salvation to them that believe and enables them to believe unto salvation Salvation belongeth unto the Lord. Whether God give or take it is our duty to be thankful Shall we rejoyce at Sweets and shall we lowre When God is pleas'd by his Almighty power To season them with some few grains of sour Your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things Our God is free to give and free to forgive his hand and his heart are both open to them that serve him When we draw neer to Christ he is ready to receive us nay when we fly from him he is ready to invite us Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give ye rest Many men in their doings purchase their undoings There are many devices in a mans heart nevertheless the counsel of the Lord that shall stand He that receiveth a mercie and doth not use it doth abuse it Christ dyed that we might live But now is Christ risen from the dead and become the first fruits of them that slept Live Iesus live and let it be My life to dye for love of thee If we finde not some time to serve God he will not finde any time to save us If any man serve me saith Christ let him follow me and where I am there shall also my servant be If any man serve me him will my Father honour He that hath Christ hath all things and he that hath not Christ hath nothing at all Wherefore Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his Righteousness and all other things shall be added unto you There 's nothing in this vast Terrestrial Ball Compar'd to Christ for he is all in all Study to be altogether a Christian for if a man be but almost a Christian he is like to be but almost saved though he may think he is not far from the Kingdom of Heaven yet he will finde the Kingdom of Heaven is far from him Agrippa said unto Paul Almost thou perswadest me to be a Christian There is nothing among us more rife than the name Christian or the Christian name and nothing among us more rare than the Christian man They that are Christs have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts Though Christ was crucified to deliver us from death yet we must
See see the day by sable Clouds orespread And bids us Weep for Caryl now is dead But by and by do's seem to say This Globe Could not detain him from his patient Job Calamy went before but there 's no odds Since each design'd to be a Child of God's Observe the hours how striving to retire Caryl and Comfort seeming to expire Bids Night and Nature hang the Vniverse With Black due Obsequies for such an Herse He ne'er was cruel to exhaust a Tear All Weeping was reserv'd to spend it here Those flattering Arts which Poets use to save Decaying Reputations in the Grave Are here but vain for no Hyperbole Can tell the World how great his Merits be And Chronicles themselves can say no more Than what his Learning told the World before His Pious Sermons did declare his worth His Expositions set his Learning forth And whilst we here lament his being gone Angels with Anthems welcome him at home And I my self a Catholick could be At least to Pray to such a Saint as he Caryl whose Conversation free from ill Can be express'd but by an Angel's quill As in some mirrour you might clearly see In him a perfect Map of Piety The Beauty of whose Vertues may incite The World to imitation and delight Let us lament our loss and blame his fate For not allowing Life a longer date Reverend Caryl may his Vertues shew As bright hereafter as they 're Glorious now Who when he through this Earthly Globe had past He dy'd left he should idle grow at last For when grown Ancient he would even then Both study Piety and use his Pen He like an Artist did true Patience paint To us on earth now to some Glorious Saint He shews the same who can no longer cease That to extol as Caryl's Masterpiece His EPITAPH HEre lies the Earthly Carkass of a man Whose life too justly may be call'd a span He liv'd converting those that went astray But Death now snatcht this Heav'nly Guide away Then careful Earth unto his Corps be just A Divine Soul was once within his trust But being call'd away it now is flown From hence to take Possession of a Throne A SPIRITUAL GARDEN OF Sweet-smelling FLOWERS OR Mr. VENNING's DIVINE SENTENCES THat Soul that is settled in the love of God is blessed in the peace of Christ. When such a Soul suffereth an outward War she looseth not her inward peace No troubles whatsoever which do outwardly make a noise do violently enter into the silence of her inward repose She coveteth nothing abroad and therefore resteth wholly within by love Such a Soul the Angels do visit and honour she being the Temple of the Lord and the Habitation of the Holy Ghost Happy is that Conscience in which Mercie and Truth are met together for there Justice and Peace have kissed each other God is a God of Mercie and will take pity on him that is truly sorrowful for his sins By Mercie and Truth Iniquity is purged and by the fear of the Lord men depart from evil The Kiss of Justice is to love our Enemies to forsake Parents and Possessions for the love of God to endure with Patience injuries inflicted and in all places to flie from honours that are offered The Kiss of Peace is to invite Foes to friendship peaceably to sustain Adversaries lovingly to instruct such as do amiss meekly to comfort those that mourn and to be at amity with all men It is our Saviour's command Love your enemies bless them that curse you do good to them that hate you and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you For all that will live godly in Christ Iesus shall suffer persecution The Almighty hath three degrees of Wrath his threatning Wrath his punishing Wrath and his condemning Wrath. Adam sinned and was cast out of Paradice the Angels sinned and were cast into Hell We have many sins to repent for viz. our Church-sins our Sermon-sins our Sacrament-sins and the sins of our very Prayers Is any man rich let him not put his trust in them for riches make themselves wings and flie away Lazarus was poor but was received into Heaven Dives was rich but however was carried into Hell Moses went up unto the Mount to pray and took the Rod of God in his hand because with that Rod God had formerly done wonderful things for his people If any mistake through a vain hope of Heaven let him be earnest in the examination of himself to be deceived in this necessitates damnation To hear Sermons to commend them or admire them and not to practice what we hear and understand is to make Sodom and Gomorrha's case at the day of Judgment better than our's Then will the world discern the Blessed from the Wretched when the wrath of God is throughly kindled Those that are now so idly busie in heaping up their Treasures of an Ant-Hillock and building up the tottering Fabricks of a child remember not that the foot of death is coming to spurn it all abroad and to trample down both you and it Let us study how to answer the great and last Question Hast thou performed the condition of the Gospel Let us search our hearts that God may finde them in a condition to receive him For thus faith the Lord I the Lord search the heart I try the reins even to give every man according to his ways and according to the fruits of his doings Make not sale of Heaven for the false pleasure of a few sins for a little delight and ease that vanisheth in a moment Repent before thou becomest Old left thy Repentance should come too late for thou leftst not thy sin but thy sin left thee Take heed of dissembling with thy God lest he so discover thy craft that thou shalt not be trusted by man Accommodate Nature withthings convenient but beware of nourishing a lust for that is to hug a Devil in thy bosom To acknowledge God to be just is good and it is just we likewise acknowledge him to be good When thou Prayest rather let thy heart be without words than thy words without an heart Prayer will make a man to cease from sin or sin will intice a man to cease from Prayer It is good to have a good Name but it is better to have a good Conscience It is good to be great but it is better to be good Teach thy heart to walk wholly with thy God as well as holily Only a profession of Christianity is not the only profession of a Christian Your words and works may satisfie the judgments of men but God is the great Judge of our hearts Pray for mercie before you receive and forget not to praise when you have received It is common to have the name of Christ in common The Swearer swears by it the Begger begs by it the Jester joyns it to his jest but wo be to them that shall tremble at it Vain sinner
thy Saviour is willing to save thee but it is thy sin and Satan that studieth to destroy thee When Satan's malice had produced mischief in our first Parents mischief brought forth misery and misery cried to heaven for mercie The God of mercie promised mercie unto mankind The seed of the woman shall break the Serpent's head When the fulness of Grace was come he that was covered in the Law became discovered in the Gospel When the fulness of time was come God sent his Son made of a woman made under the law that we might receive the adoption of Sons The Son of man had sinned against God and the Son of God satisfies for the sin of man Let admiration produce amazement that God should send his Son to suffer death for sinners that rebelled against him But man must dye unto Eternity unless the Son of Eternity would dye for him Therefore Christ the Messiah was slain but not for himself He was delivered to death for our offences He was delivered by his Father in Mercie by himself in Compassion by Iudas for Covetousness and by the Jews in Malice And all this to the end that God might effect what the Jews could not conjecture The Redemption of his people Israel He that was typified by the brazen Serpent is exalted on the Cross between two Thieves with this Title superscribed Iesus of Nazareth King of the Iews Thus Christ the immaculate Lamb refused no shame that he might purchase Glory to his faithful ones He that was the God of Glory becomes the Son of shame He that is the Righteous Redeemer was counted an Unjust Usurper He that is the Lord of Life was condemned to Death He that is honoured with the Acclamations of Angels was dishonoured with the Exclamations of Jews Pilate disgracefully shewed him to the people with an Ecce Homo Behold the man Stand O my Soul and with admiration bless the Author of all Blessedness Christ who to prevent thy shame suffered himself to be numbred among the wicked He was accounted sinful to purchase thy Salvation Adam by eating of the forbidden Tree made thee accursed had not Christ by dying on the cursed Tree restored thee to blessedness Christ's Cross is thy Comfort his dishonour is thy honour Christ's Cross is to the Iews a stumbling-block to the Gentiles foolishness But to thee O my Soul it is the power and the wisdome of God Then if Christ hath done this for thee follow thy Redeemer with a Cross at thy back and say with Paul God forbid that I should glory in any thing but in the Cross of Christ. But wo unto us sinners we run on in a course of pride though he humbled himself unto death even the death of the Cross. Pilate could not add to our Saviour's honour or dishonour in calling him Iesus for it was a name given him from Heaven for the Angel said unto Ioseph Thou shalt call his name Iesus for he shall save his people from their sins It was a sweet saying of an Antient Father The name of Jesus is Mel in Ore Melos in Aure Iubilus in Corde Honey in the Mouth Melody in the Ear and a Jubily or Joy in the Heart Neither is there salvation in any other for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved This name is light unto the Soul Ye were darkness saith the Apostle but now ye are light in the Lord. This name is health to the Body In the name of Iesus of Nazareth rise up and walk All spiritual food is dry saith the aforesaid Father if this Oyl be not poured into it if it be not seasoned with this Salt There are several Titles that proclaim Christ's Glory but the name of Iesus imports our Redemption By others we know him to be God by this we know him to be our Mediator It is great misery to see man so proud and greater mercie to see God so humble God was the Creditor man was the Debtor but he that was both God and man the Pay-Master Wherefore Let Israel hope in the Lord for with him there is plenteous Redemption There is no sinner so great but after conversion he makes as great a Saint Though his sins be red as Scarlet Grace makes them white as Snow Come let us reason together saith the Lord though your sins be as Scarlet they shall be white as Snow though they be red like Crimson they shall be as Wooll There is more pleasure in suffering than in sinning for a Saint of God may suffer and not sin but he cannot sin and not suffer If any man suffer as a Christian let him not be ashamed but let him glorifie God on this behalf To walk as a Heathen walks only by the light of the Rush-candle of Nature is no better than to walk in darkness If a man walk in the day he stumbleth not but if he walk in the night he stumbleth because there is no light in him God never made a good promise but he made good that promise For all the promises of God in him are yea and in him Amen We should prize mercie if we knew its price Thy mercie O Lord is great unto the Heavens and thy truth unto the Clouds 'T is true that Christ is every where Then Hell 's no Hell if Christ be there In his presence is fulness of joy at his right hand are pleasures for evermore A Righteous man hates sin because it is opposite to God and Goodness Fools make a mock at sin but among the Righteous there is favour That Saint that grows in grace grows more a man and more than a man For with him Where sin aboundeth grace doth much more abound A rich man is poor without God but with him a poor man is rich Go to now ye rich men weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you Ye have condemned and killed the just and he doth not resist you The pride of self-love is a folly in ones self For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased but he that humbleth himself shall be exalted If a man would be ever good he should believe he was never good There is none good but one that is God God takes care of his Saints and they take care to be be cared for by him Cast your care upon him for he careth for you He that hath God hath all things for God is all in all A grain of Grace is of more value than many pounds of Gold God Created us and left us to our selves afterwards he Redeemed us and left himself to us Take heed of being self-conceited For the way of a fool is right in his own eyes True Christians are all for Christ and Christ is all-sufficient for them and their salvation It is the saying of holy Paul For me to
upon the shore that lives a while but with no delight because out of its own Element Afflictions and miseries happen by Gods permitment and whom he loveth he chastiseth those griefs are for the good of them that love God therefore beware of sin that makes your sorrows bitter and minde not the Rod so much as him from whom the Rod comes lest that teach you both to fret and faint As Sheep make every place the better where they come and Goats make every place the worse so is it with a Saint and with a Sinner the first bringeth sweetness along with him and the other leaves a stink behind him Win what thou canst by Prayer with comfort thou shalt enjoy the purchase Instructions for the keeping of the Sabbath Make the Lords day the Market-day for thy Soul let the whole day be spent in Prayer Repetitions or Meditations lay aside the affairs of the other part of the week let the Sermon thou hast heard be converted into Prayer Shall God allow thee six days and wilt not thou afford him one Observations for the Week-days 1. When thou risest in the morning consider thou must dye 2. Thou mayst dye that minute 3. What will become of thy Soul Pray often At night consider what sins thou hast committed 2. How often thou hast Prayed 3. What hath thy mind been bent upon 4. What hath been thy dealing 5. Thy conversation 6. If thou callest to mind thy errours of the day sleep not without a Confession to God and a hope of Pardon Thus every Morning and Evening make up thy Accounts with Almighty God and thy Reckoning will be the less at last Say not with thy self To morrow I will repent for it is thy duty to to do it dayly And if thou dost delay repentance Satan hath an opportunity to incroach and will bring thee to make it a custom which is hard to break Repent and seek the Lord betime lest thou too suddenly art accosted with shame and death The sinner is always grinding at the Devils Mill and the Devil is no less busie in supplying the Hopper lest his Mill should stand still A piece of dry Bread with Water a good Conscience and devout Thoughts is a noble Feast As the Potter fashioneth the clay so doth the Lord dispose of man as liketh him best wherefore fear thou the Lord. Wo unto him that striveth with his Maker Shall the clay say to him who fashioneth it what makest thou Be diligent to observe the Commandments of God for he is a Master cannot erre and what he willeth must be done If thou art Great be likewise Good for as if you were a Looking-glass others dress themselves by looking upon you God is the Fountain of Felicity converse with him and you shall be filled with Joy The first that named Gods Name in Scripture was the Devil and he likewise confess'd our Saviour to be the Son of God however he was the Devil notwithstanding that If you will not follow the example of your Saviours life you will merit nothing by his death God will not be perswaded to save us if we will not be perswaded to serve him Be careful to frequent the Church for publike Worship is the Pillar of Religion and a devout Service of Almighty God In the Church be careful to serve God for you are before the eyes of God and Man It is not only a scandal to man but a defiance to the Deity to be careless of our duties in the Congregation of those that come to seek his face A Congregation zealous at the Worship of God on Earth is an exact Picture of the Saints with God in Heaven Laugh not in the Church lest it be suspected thou art tickled by the Devil Well may he be punished that misbehaves himself in the Church when the Devils misbehaviour cast him out of Heaven If thou art poor neither wonder nor despair God will pay them that serve him and the less Wages thou receivest now the more thou shalt have hereafter You have a Crown set before you which Crown he that wins may wear it and that is Mercie It is dangerous to be rich for riches tempt men to be covetous and to delight in Gold besides Riches have wings and flie away by loss at Sea or Land by fire or some other accidents which lead men to discontentments and finally to despair If a wicked man be never so rich his whole Estate cannot ransome him for eternal torments for God is no esteemer of Riches A poor mans morsel with content and grace is better than the dainties of a Dives Many there are that to improve their own Estates care not how many Families they undo so true is that of the Holy Writ They that will be rich fall into temptations And how much to be admired is the Vanity of those that delight in Riches for when the covetous man dyes he can carry nothing with him but while living hazards his Soul to heap up Riches and knoweth not who shall enjoy them What are the Honours and Riches of this World when compared to the Glories of a Crown of life What can be a more certain token of a Reprobate than to receive large Wages in this World and yet do little or no service for it There are a sort of men that may be truly called Time-servers whose Religion is like Wax to be moulded to any fashion Discretion teacheth us to observe those times that are lawful and necessary especially in reference to the performance of our duties to Almighty God but it is an horrid piece of Impiety to serve the Times and neglect God Think not thy self Good because thou seest another worse but endeavour to mend him and make thy self better Imagine not thy life to be good because thy heart is honest but strive to run that thou mayst win the Race To avoyd Hypocrisie is good and likewise to shun the sin of profanation but to be active in the service of God is better An outward shew of goodness is Good for example-sake to others but an inward Holy zeal is better Do not conclude thy self good because thou art so sometimes 'T is a Habit of Holiness a Garment of Righteousness that makes a Saint God doth take notice of our steps but will judge us by our wayes Thou art not good because thou dost believe the Devils do believe and tremble but a good belief a good conversation acts of piety and charity are the ingredients of a good man To what end should a man fancy himself a Saint when his heart lies open to the eyes of the Lord He may be Gods Reprobate though his own Elect. If thou hast sinned and dost repent do not conclude that thou art well and mayst return to thy former Vomit for Justice when offended will be severe against those that abuse a Mercie Thou mayst hear Sermons often and do well in practising what thou hearest but thou must
not expect to be told thee in a Pulpit all that thou oughtest to do but be studious in searching the Scriptures and reading good Books what thou hearest may be forgotten but what thou readest may better be retained Take heed of giving thy self the liberty of committing one sin for that will lead thee to another till by an ill custom it becometh natural That disease is desperate which to keep is death and to part with is impossible To begin an evil is of ill consequence it teacheth one to shake hands with shame but to continue in it hardens the heart and leads it till it be past grace To begin a sin is to lay a foundation for a continuance this continuance is the Mother of Custom and Impudence at last the Issue Fly evil society as an infectious Plague for ill Company is the corruption of good manners Take heed of those Doctrines that oppose the Magistracie or Ministry and endeavour to promote prophane Liberty and cast down good works by crying up of free grace In Nature 't is an observable Maxime The Masters commands must be obeyed according to his own will shall we not then be as obedient to our Spiritual Master as our Temporal one God forbid If we intend to serve God he expects we should serve no other God Our God is a living God and loves not dull and drowsie Saints we must not only serve him in this life but we must have life in our service Hast thou sinned repent behold the Lord holds a bottle for thy Tears Call no sin little it will require a great stock of Penitence take heed of purchasing a sin till thou knowest the price Prayers and Tears are the sinners best Embassadors to the Throne of Grace To sin is the frailty of the Nature of man but to glory in sin is bruitish like the Swine that understands not that clean pasture is better than a Ditch Make not Religion a Cloak 't is Diabolical to Honour God with our lips and dishonour him in our lives Such are the paths of those that forget God and the Hypocrites hope shall perish It is in vain to dissemble with God for the Hearts of all men are in his hands and the Hypocrite shall not come before him And what comfort is there in Hypocrisie when we consider that The Triumphing of the wicked is short and the joy of the Hypocrite but for a moment And where is the hope of the Hypocrite though he hath gained when God taketh away his Soul In Humane affairs Reservedness is Wisdome but Dissimulation is in all things Hateful To be Lip-holy and Heart-hollow is a brief Character of a Hypocrite A false Friend is to be abhorr'd above a mortal Enemy This is the Fate of an Hypocrite when once known he will not be believed when he speaketh truth If Hell hath one place hotter than another it is called Locus Hypocritarum the place of Hypocrites The Malitious man dissembleth with his Lips and harbours deceit within him When thou givest Alms sound not a Trumpet as the Hypocrites do their folly is their reward And beware of the Leaven of the Pharisees which is Hypocrisie No Serpent hath more Poyson than sin it is a thief in the house and a sword in the heart of a Nation God and Mercie will not stay where sin is the obstinate Governour To fast till we are Anatomies to pray till our knees are fixed to the ground is nothing if we do not fast from sin Erroneous times may unsettle truth but the Conscience of a good man is firm The Cap and the Knee are but outward Ceremonies but he that avoids Iniquity is the best Christian The Wages of sin is death but to mortifie sin is eternal life Gods care is concerned in Sparrows how much more in the least concerns of his Children Forsake not the publike Worship of God lest God forsake thee not onely in publike but in private In your Repentance remember Church-sins Sermon-sins Sacrament-sins lest the Church give you up to Satan for your sins Let not Whoremongers and Adulterers boast for those sinners God will judge The Usurer is stuft with earth in this World He hath the Grave for his Landlord but no God for his Father The fashions of other Nations have made us slaves to them but our pride may expect a greater doom Love not the World for it 's a Moth in a Christians life Nothing is more prejudicial to a Christian then a carnal love When you rise or when you go to Bed let your Meditation be what shall become of your Soul this minute Is your Heart devoted unto Christ live to him and you shall live with him For know God is a Guest that requires the upper Rooms that is the Head and the Heart And it is the pleasure of a devout man to promote the Interest of Almighty God He that will be false to God can never be true to man It is good to be of a true Religion but it is ill not to be true in that Religion If God be against you who then can take your part Will God that made you save you if you will not serve him Consider it was Christ that dyed for you it is he that either saves or condemns you flatter not your self with a vain conceit can man be more merciful than God The Epicure that delighteth in the variety of dainties of this World little thinketh that those very creatures will one day witness against him The Gallant that glories in the pride of his Habit will likewise be tried by his Garments The heaps of Treasure which the worldling hoardeth up will be an evidence against him Time will be when Time shall call the Drunkard to account for his waste of time Fornicators and Adulterers will at last with sorrow remember the date of their former sins The consequences of a sinners life will appear against him charging him with the ruine of Wife and Children disquieting of Neighbours and impoverishing of other Families It is better to be a Lazarus in poverty and to want the relief of this World than to be richly habited to fare deliciously and hereafter to want a drop of water to quench the flames of an incensed Mercie The way to live in Heaven is to live heavenly upon Earth Do not pretend to believe more than you do believe and live according to that belief If you would be wholly God's give him your heart and live wholly to him Better it is to serve God than man purity is better than impurity feasting is noysome because it makes you sick Why do ye wallow in the mire because ye have the natures of Swine The Lord hath made the world and us that we in it may serve him and that is the duty of man The sinner will be accused not onely by his own conscience but his familiar companions Grieve not the Spirit now lest it grieve you hereafter Your intentions to Repentance and
the neglect of that Soul-saving duty will rise up in Judgment against you The Righteous and the Wicked will be tried by their Consciences and that will discover the whole truth Study that Lesson which the Apostle Paul hath set before you To have always a Conscience void of offence towards God and towards man The powers that are are of God therefore be subject for Conscience sake Let your rejoycing be in the Testimony of a good Conscience Put on Charity out of a pure Heart a good Conscience and of Faith unfeigned Justice hath leaden feet but iron hands and it is but just that they that encourage one another to sin should at last condemn each other It will be but cold comfort at the great Tribunal for sinners to remember their past follies Satan that now spreads abroad his temptations will then witness to their neglect of wholesom exhortations The holy Quire of Angels will point to the sinners Conscience and that will answer I am acquainted with all your sins The Spirit of Christ will testifie how often that hath moved the ungodly to repent The abused creatures that have been forced to promote sin will continue in the hearts of sinners the Beast of the field will rise up against the Glutton and the Wine against the Drunkard Pray often for Prayer is a sheild to the Soul a sacrifice to God and a scourge to Satan Shun all appearances of evil resist the Devil and he will flie Seek not after Riches they have wings and flie away but study for Wisdome it 's price is above Rubies To seek after the Riches of this World is vanity But the fear of the Lord is wisdome and to depart from evil is understanding The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge but fools despise wisdome and instruction What can be more pretious than Wisdome for it is the gift of God Out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding What can be stronger than Wisdome that buildeth houses and heweth out its pillars Who can be more pious than the wise man He that getteth Wisdom loveth his own Soul What can be more clear than Wisdome for that excelleth folly as far as light excelleth darkness The wicked mans fate is to be wise too late The Veil of Hypocrisie cannot hide our sins from God he will make us know that it is his Christ that we resist What is gotten by resisting our Saviour Or what shall a man gain if he get the whole World and lose his own Soul What are the Riches of this life to the Joys of heaven And who is a better Guide to that happy place than the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the World And why should not we love God since he so loved the World that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life Was one Guest found out that had not a Wedding-garment and will not God then find out every unholy Soul The Righteous themselves are pardoned sinners but the wicked are impenitent Each Soul that labours in the Lords Vineyard shall receive his reward according to his merit Let your acquaintance be few and good Cousins Country-men and School-fellows are spenders of money and time Let your study be furnished not with many but with choice books Let wisdom direct your actions the wise man takes care for necessaries not for superfluities Wisdom is Riches indeed it teacheth a man the Art of contentment in all conditions It makes a man not onely Master over others but Conquerour of his own passions Premeditation is commonly accompanied with Wisdom The wise man sees his own faults by the follies of others He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty and he that ruleth his Spirit than he that taketh a Citie Wisdome is more useful in a City than the strength of mighty men So true is that of Solomon This Wisdom have I seen under the Sun and it seemed great unto me 14. There was a little City and few men within it and there came a great King against it and besieged it and built Bulwarks against it 15. Now there was in it a poor wise man and he by his wisdome delivered the City yet no man remembered that same poor man 16. Wisdom is better than strength nevertheless the poor mans wisdom is despised and his words are not heard However he that getteth wisdom loveth his own Soul and he that keepeth understanding shall find good 18. For Wisdom is better than Weapons of war but one sinner destroyeth much good Ingratitude is the Epitomy of Impiety To render a good deed for a good deed becomes a man to give evil for good is diabolical to repay evil for evil becomes a sinner but to return good for evil is the Quality of a Saint Injuries should be wrote in dust but Kindnesses in marble Nothing more spurs a man on to be ungrateful than the sin of covetousness Set not your heart upon wealth For the love of money is the root of all evil The wicked borroweth and payeth not again but the righteous sheweth mercie and giveth To be always begging or borrowing and never paying is the disposition of a covetous and ingrateful man and doth oftentimes set the dearest friends at variance Nature excuseth the follies of a fool but the ungrateful man hath no Apology To be courteous to one that is ungrateful is like ones hiding his treasure in the Sea Neer Relations that are strongly bound by the bonds of Affinity and Consanguinity are oftentimes divided by this black sin of ingratitude He that will forget a kindness is ungrateful but he that renders a discourtesie for a courtesie is impious And blessed is he that considereth the poor the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble Wo be unto the covetous rich man that hath his heart fixt upon his heaps the poor man is happier than he For the Lord heareth the poor The needy shall not alway be forgotten the expectation of the poor shall not perish for ever There is an evil under the Sun saith Solomon and it is common among men A man to whom God hath given riches wealth and honour so that he wanteth nothing for his Soul of all that he desireth yet God giveth him not power eat thereof but a stranger eateth it this is vanity and an evil disease He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver nor he that loveth abundance with increase 12. When goods increase they are increased that eat them and what good is there to the owners thereof saving the beholding of them with their eyes The poor mans labour rocketh him to sleep but the cares of the rich man keepeth him awake 13. There is a sore evil under the Sun namely riches kept for the owners thereof to their hurt 14. Those riches perish by evil
that are earthy and as is the heavenly such are they that are heavenly What God gives us for our good we ought to employ for his glory He that glorieth let him glory in the Lord. When our Saviour was buried it was the Body of the Lord not the Lord of the Body was laid in the Sepulchre If we set our affections on what we have when we have it not it adds the more to our affliction But the peace of Heaven surpasses the troubles of this world A Saint may be sad that he is no better but will inwardly rejoyce that he is no worse That man that deserves nothing ought to be content with any thing God is pleased with the free offerings of his Saints and they are pleased with the free gifts of God To be sorrowful for sin is good but that sorrow must continue or else the sorrow will be sin it self What is all this world but a world of nothing at all Whosoever can withstand the corruptions of gain gains by the corruptions Is it pleasure to the Almighty that thou art Righteous or is it gain to him that thou makest thy ways perfect The men of this world pray to one another but the children of God pray to none but to the God of men The children of this world are wiser in their generation than the children of light But the sorrow of this world worketh death Man is no sooner born but he begins to dye so uncertain is the life of man that none knows whether he that is born to day shall live till to morrow If in this life only we have hope in Christ we are of all men most miserable Trust not in endeavours lest you neglect God but use endeavours lest you despise God But work out your salvation with fear and trembling Christ is the Physitian of our Souls his comforts are cordial but miserable comforts are the Physitians of the Body So said Iob to his friends Ye are all Physitians of no value Let us beware of the evil of sin for it leads us to the evil of suffering Wherefore Follow not that which is evil but that which is good He that doth good is of God but he that doth evil hath not seen God We may do those things which please God and yet displease him in the doing But Blessed are the poor in heart for they shall see God We perform our duties in a right measure when in seeking for mercies we study to please God rather than our selves God so loves his own that he will not depart from them and they that truly fear and love him have not the power to depart from him It was holy Ioshua's resolution As for me and my house we will serve the Lord. It is at present heaven with us to enjoy God and Christ What will it then be when we worship him with his innumerable company of Angels When we pay our devotions to God we should lay aside all worldly affairs lest they distract us in our duty It is a great offence against the Almighty to be interrupted when we walk with him See then that ye walk circumspectly not as fools but as wise redeeming the time because the days are evil A Christian hath but two things to fear God and Sin As it is writ of Ioseph How can I do this great wickedness and sin against God! The three Divine Vertues are Faith Hope and Charity but the greatest of these is Charity The three humane Vertues are Friendship Credit and Conscience but the greatest of these is Conscience Conscience was Paul's glory when he said Herein do I exercise my self to have always a Conscience voyd of offence toward God and toward Men. When thou sinnest repent betimes lest thou plunge into a custom of sinning and always remember God hath a certain custom to punish sinners Thus saith the Lord of Hosts Turn ye unto me and I will turn unto you But except ye repent ye shall all perish God is the way and the life if we walk after his way we shall finde life if not we erre from the way of life Jesus saith I am the way the truth and the life no man cometh to the Father but by me Serve God in secret as well as in publike worship and he that seeth in secret shall reward thee openly What deceitful pleasures are those that require either Repentance or Damnation As the Jews did by our Saviour so should we do by the world the flesh and sin that is crucifie them They that are Christs have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts The disingenuity of others towards us is a scourge to us for our disingenuity towards God If God denies the desires of thy heart learn to want with patience it will teach thee when God is pleased to bestow his blessings to receive them with chearfulness We ask the Lord for our dayly bread but he knoweth our wants before we ask We desire Health Wealth c. but the measure of those blessings is in God's hand and he knows how to carve for us better than we could for our selves Your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him It is the duty of a Christian to wait God's leasure there is no mercie worth the praying for but it is certainly worth the waiting for We are all born to dye let us so dye that we may be born again Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin If thou canst hear and bear the Rod of affliction which God shall lay upon thee remember this Lesson Thou art beaten that thou mayst be better There is no better defence against our own Infirmities and the scandalous reproaches of others than the Sincerity of our own hearts Grace be with all them that love our Lord Iesus Christ in sincerity God is love and we ought to serve him in fear and love No service can be better done than that which is done in love God dwelleth in that servant and that servant in him Why doth a wicked man envy the welfare of a man more righteous than himself because it is a terrour to his Conscience to see the Image of Vertue in another man he having defaced it in himself Where envying and strife is there is confusion and every evil work All the Pomps and Gayeties of this world are not to be compared to a grain of distressed Vertue Wherefore adde to your Faith Vertue and to Vertue Knowledge Though I give my body to be burnt and have not charity it profitteth me nothing but to mortifie my sins and to deny my self submitting to the will of God is more than Martyrdom Let not the world overcome you but fight under the Banner of that great Captain the Lord Jesus Christ so shall you with him overcome the world Who is he that overcometh the world but he that
he hath sent empty away When God sends mercie we should not onely thank the donor but welcome the messenger for they both come from God How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the Gospel of Peace and bring glad tidings of good things The proud man exalts himself against all that is good therefore the Lord thinks good to take down his pride Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord. The world cannot exalt a proud man so high but God will bring him low neither can all the world so debase an humble man but God will exalt him The world may strive to pull him down But God will raise him to a Crown In the seed-time of your life let your Holiness be sown that so you may reap Blessedness in the Harvest of Eternity He that will put Piety in practice must set his heart to practice Piety The Lord seeth not as man seeth for man looketh on the outward appearance but the Lord looketh on the heart My Son give me thine heart and let thine eyes observe my ways Ungodly men grow rich yet godliness with contentment is great gain There is a kind of Divine husbandry saving grace is a heavenly thirft and doth so improve that it makes us Burgesses of the Holy City Wherefore Grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord Iesus Christ. A friend may commit an errour in love but he is an enemy that loves his errour The covetous man cannot enjoy what he hath got through the greediness of his desire to get more He coveteth greedily all the day long but the righteous giveth and spareth not To have faith in Christ is well-pleasing to the faithful God for he is the Father of the Faithful The Lord is God the faithful God which keepeth covenant and mercie with them that love him and keep his Commandments to a thousand generations The Righteous man hath grace beyond expression the Hypocrite hath expression beyond grace The tongue of the just is as choice silver the heart of the wicked is of little worth God doth sometimes deliver men up to Satan that they may be delivered from Satan Deliver such a one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Iesus Can a man be an empty Vine and yet bring forth Fruit Israel is an empty vine bringing forth fruit unto himself Christ is the Son of God and yet he is called the Son of man The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory the glory as of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth The Almighty's permission of sin is no warrant for the sinners commission of sin Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin Our Saviour had a Father and a Mother and yet he was from the beginning In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God This is Solomon's advice Be not righteous overmuch However it is the duty of a Christian to cloath him with Righteousness as with a Garment The Saints have no greater joy than to enjoy God and to rejoyce in him He that glorieth let him glory in the Lord. As it is hard to bend a well-grown Stick so is it difficult to work upon the heart of a desperate season'd sinner for he runs on in his wickedness and is deaf to all good instructions They have ears to hear and hear not for they are a rebellious house Onwards they run a ready pace Plainer's the way than that to grace A Saint will not sin though he knows that sin may work for his advantage All things work together for the good of them that love God We are commanded to love Peace and follow after Righteousness and yet the Saints themselves are in continual War fighting the good fight of Faith Above all things take the sheild of Faith wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked The Salvation of a Saint may be sure yet may not he be sure of his Salvation Wherefore the rather brethren give diligence to make your calling and election sure for if ye do these things ye shall never fall Blessings if abused may be turned into curses and curses are oftentimes turned into blessings Saith the Lord of hosts I will even send a curse upon you I will curse your blessings If any man would be rich he must be diligent but notwithstanding that let him remember Paul may Plant and Apollo may Water but it is God that giveth the blessing He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand but the hand of the diligent maketh rich The blessing of the Lord that maketh rich and he addeth no sorrow with it The Righteous man makes godliness his gain the Wicked man makes gain his godliness He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house but he that hateth gifts shall live The Soul is above the reach of any weapon but sin and that pierces like a sting Sin is a raging torment in the Conscience A wounded Spirit who can bear Let not the best of men think they were ever good lest their Conscience shall tell them they were never good Be not wise in thine own eyes fear the Lord and depart from evil Some men will pretend to abhor such a sin yet hug it in their bosom such sinners sting their Consciences to magnifie their Credits If by suffering for Christ we loose all that we have in this world we are sufficient gainers when we save our own Souls Paul that Pious Apostle saith Doubtless I count all things but loss for the excellencie of the knowledge of Iesus Christ my Lord for which I have suffered the loss of all things and do count them but dung that I may win Christ. A repenting Penitent though formerly as bad as the worst of men may by grace become as good as the best God who is rich in mercie for his great love wherewith he loved us Even when we were dead in sins hath quickned us together with Christ by grace ye are saved The Devil is indifferent whether we go to Hell in the frequented road of Profaness or in the smooth way of Hypocrisie It is the power of godliness not the form that directs the way to Heaven as the power of ungodliness leads to Hell Lovers of Pleasures more than lovers of God Having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof from such turn away Beware of impenitence and of late repentance true repentance cannot be too late but a late repentance is rarely true Wherefore the real Christian should say betimes with holy Iob I abhor my self and repent in dust and ashes It is one thing to hold the truth and another thing to hold it in sincerity we
must be just as well as orthodox Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and truth Let not the Sun go down upon your wrath go not to bed in anger lest you have a tempter to your bedfellow Wrath is cruel and anger is outragious but who is able to stand before envy One of the blessings of the Old Testament was Prosperity and one of the blessings of the new Testament is Affliction Let not sin intice you to forsake God lest it urge God to forsake you It is Solomon's advice My Son if sinners intice thee consent thou not Conversion is a fit application for the wounds of a wicked man and strengthening likewise is very apt for the converted Saith David In the day when I cryed thou answeredst me and strengthenedst me with strength in my Soul A devout Soul should not think himself secure when he is safe nor should he fear when in the greatest danger but distrust himself and always trust in God Say with Iob Though he slay me yet will I trust in him Act not against the light of Conscience lest your Light be darkned and your Conscience shipwrack't Men loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil Vertue and Vice that is Charity and Lust divide the whole life of man they are the two Trees of the Gospel that produceth fruits good and evil Study not to live long but to live well for an hour mis-spent is not liv'd but lost No man is perfect for there is none so good but he may mend Iesus said unto the young man If thou wilt be perfect go and sell that thou hast and give to the poor and thou shalt receive treasure in heaven and come and follow me The sins of a mans life are innumerable Who can understand his errours saith David cleanse thou me from secret faults The changes of a Saints condition are but so many exchanges of mercie if he thrives God is bountiful to him if he hath troubles in this world God is careful of him and provides him a portion in a better world When David was in the Cave all his comfort was in Prayer unto God I cryed unto thee O Lord I said Thou art my refuge and portion in the land of the living Troubles or Sickness when sanctified is much better than unsanctified Prosperity It is not talking of God but walking with God that makes a Christian compleat See that ye walk circumspectly not as fools but as wise Redeeming the time because the days are evil Beware of superstition for that will not teach a man to fear God but to be afraid of him Study to have Christ rather in your heart than your house for with such Habitations he is best pleased Rent your heart and not your garments and turn unto the Lord your God for he is gracious and merciful slow to anger and of great kindness The being of the Soul is rather where it loves than where it lives Let us study to love God though we do not see him rather than to see him and not love him All the pleasure of our days is grief when there is not an inward peace in the Conscience and with that all the griefs imaginable are turn'd into delight for a good Conscience is a continual feast It is good to be Learned but it is better to be Religious for Learning is but an Ornament to Religion but Religion is a Blessing to Learning One may be ever learning yet never able to come to the knowledge of the truth A man may have knowledge and no grace but he cannot have grace and no knowledge Jesus answered the Sadduces saying Ye erre not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God He that is truly Religious delights in the service of God and had rather be shortned in the comforts of his life than neglect the performance of his duty towards him Delight thy self in the Lord and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart To profess Religion is good but to practice Religion is better to profess and not to practice is to dissemble with God and Man and a cunning course it is for man to destroy his own Soul The godly man may apply the promises to himself but the wicked man may apply himself to the promises Having these promises let us cleanse our selves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit perfecting holiness in the fear of God If we would have God hear our Prayers we must have the sence of feeling them our selves Sin brought death into the world and death carried sin out of the world He that would not have Time pass swiftly away should not use much Pastime The way to understand the sweetness of God's mercie is to get a sence of the bitterness of our own misery In all concerns let God be concerned the work will be the better done and the blessing will be the larger No man can do an evil action well but a good action may be spoiled in the management The tongue is an evil member for he that hath no reputation himself is master of another man's Keep thy tongue from evil and thy lips from speaking guile The delight which a gracious Soul hath in mercies is not in the hearing of them or talking of them but in the possessing and enjoying of them God is a God that pardoneth Iniquity and retaineth not his anger for ever because he delighteth in mercie The delight of a gracious Soul is to long to be dissolved and to go to his long'd-for home that he may be with Christ. A day in thy Courts O God is better than a thousand I had rather be a door-keeper in the house of my God than to dwell in the tent of wickedness It is God's appearing gracious to our Souls that makes him appeaâ— so glorious to our eyes To the praise of the glory of hiâ— Grace wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved It is not in our power to imagine the power of God it converteth Souls and raiseth dead Bodies The Law of the Lord is perfect converting the soul the Testimony of the Lord is sure making wise the simple Iesus cryed with a loud voice Lazarus come forth And he that was dead came forth bound hand and foot with grave-cloaths and his face was bound about with a napkin Iesus saith unto them Loose him and let him go The Soul cannot be converted by the word that man speaks nor by the man that speaks the word For by grace are ye saved through faith and that not of your selves it is the gift of God By the Scriptures we learn what God hath done for us and what we are to do for God All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine for reproof for correction for instruction in righteousness When a gracious Soul desireth a mercie of