may be devoured one of another We read Ezek. 5. 3 4. the Prophet was bid to bind up a few hairs in his skirt which was to signifie a few of the people which were preserved from that common calamity but after these were cast into the fire and fire came forth from these to all the house of Israel Polanus upon the place hath this note that grievous evils may come upon those who have been preserved from former common miseries and those who for a while have been preserved by their contentions and divisions may be the cause of woful evil to others God forbid that this Text should be fulfilled in us Let not a fire come from us who yet are so graciously preserved to devour the house of Israel 4ly God in this work of his hath joyned severall sorts of instruments men of severall opinions he hath made them one to do us good why should not we be one in the enjoyment of that good Let the one part and let the other part have their due honour under God in the mercy God hath made use of both and why may not both enjoy the fruit of this mercy together in the Land Fiftly We were not without some feares lest God should leave us in the work of Reformation begun but now God speaks aloud to encourage us he tels us he owns the worke Now what doth this require of us A little Logick will draw the consequence Hath God declared himself that he intends to go on in this work he hath begun Then let us all joyn together to further it to the uttermost we can let us not exasperate the spirits of one another in ways of strife and opposition but let every one set his hand and hand to this worke that he may be able to say Oh Lord God thou that knowesâ— the secrets of all hearts knowest that upon this great mercy of thine my heart was so moved that whatsoever I could possibly see to be thy will for the furtherance of this great work of Reformation and that I was able to doe I did set my selfe to doe it and am resolved to spend my strengâ—h and life in it If every one did thus oh what glory might God have from this mercy of his 6ly When the Lord comes to us with mercies and such great mercies he expects we should rejoyce in them and sing praise but how can we sing without Harmony Prayer requires an agreement Mat. 18. 19. If two of you shall agree on earth touching any thing they shall aske it shall be done for them Surely Praise requires agreement much more Psalms out of tune are harsh to the eare disagreement of heart is much more to the Spirit of God 7. Surely when God hath done so much for us it must be acknowledged to be our duty to study what sacrifice would be best pleasing to him some sacrifice we must offer If there be any more acceptable to him then other surely he deserves it no. If a friend had done some reall kindness for you you would be glad to know what might be most gratefull to him wherein you might testifie your thankfulness Is this in your hearts Do you now say Oh that we did but know what is the thing that would be most pleaâ—ing to God what sacrifice would smell sweetest in his nostrils The Lord knowes we would fain offer it whatsoever it be I will tell you That we would lay aside our divisions our frowardnesse that we would abandon our contentions and strife that we would put on the bowels of mercies kindnesse humblenesse of minde meekenesse long-suffering forbearing one another forgiving one another If any man hath a quarrell against any even as Christ forgave you so also do ye Col. 3. 12. And 1. Pet. 3. 4. A meeâ—e and a quiet spirit is in the â—ight of God of great price it is much set by 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Psal 15. 17. The sacrifice of God that which is in stead of all sacrifices is a broken spirit Our hearts have been broken one from another in our unhappy divisions oh that now they could break one towards another in love and tenderness Here would be a sacrifice more esteemed of God then thousands of Rams and ten thousand Rivers of Oyle Loving mercy and walking humbly is preferred above such sacrifices Micah 6. 8. 8ly God might have sodeâ—'d us together by the fire of his wrath he might have made our blood to have been our cement to have joyned our stinty hearts together but it is otherwise God seeks to draw us to himselfe and one to another by the cords of love the allurings of his mercy Ninthly what can have that power to take off the sowrnesse of mens spirits like mercy the mercy of a God surely if any thing possibly can sweeten them that must needs do it We read 1 Sam. 11. 11 12 13. a notable experiment of the efficacy of mercy to sweeten mens hearts After Saul had slain the Ammonites some of the bosterous spirits would have had him to have slain those who formerly had rejected him but mark Sauls answer ver 13. There shall not a man be put to death this day Why For this day the Lord hath wrought salvation in Israel Though Saul at another time was a man of a harsh and cruell spirit yet now mercy sweetens him that which he was one day by the sense of mercy that should we be not only in the day of our Thanksgiving but in the course of our lives When salvation came to the house of Zacheus O what a sweet temper was he in Behold halfe of my goods I give to the poore and if I have wronged any one I restore foure-fold Salvation is this day come to the Kingdome O that all we had hearts to say If wee have wronged any wee will restore if wee have wronged any in their names by word or writing any way we will restore Mercy and love calls for mercy and love if we were in a right tune there would be a sympathy between the bowels of God and ours as in two Lures if the string in one be wound up to be answerable to the other if you then strike one string the other will move though lying at a distance Now Gods love Gods bowels move let our love our bowels move answerably 10. God shewes that he can owne us notwithstanding all our infirmities Was ever Kingdome in a more distempered condition then ours hath been of late and yet the Lord hath owned us Why should not we own our Brethren notwithstanding their infirmities Why should our divisions cause uâ— to call off one another seeing our divisions from God hath not provoked him to cast us off 11. Is it not in our desires that this great Victory might be pursued that it might not be lost as others in great part have been Surely it cannot be pursued better then to take this advantage of it to unite our selves more together then ever we have done
of that one thing necessary the more strangely men looke upon you let your hearts be stirred up to seek with the more strength the face of God that you may never look upon it but with joy You hear harsh notes abroad such things as grieve you at the heart labour so much the more to keep the bird alwayes singing in your bosome 7. If your peace be made with God blesse God for it It is a great mercy for a man in these times of trouble to have rest in his own spirit while others are tossed up and down in the waves of contention you sit quietly in the Arke of a good conscience blessing the Lord that ever you knew him and his wayes 8. Labour to make up your want of that good and comfort you heretofore had in Christian communion with a more close and constant communion with the Lord who hath been pleased to speak peace unto you Although I have not that comfort in communion with the streams yet I may find it fully made up in the fountain 9. By way of Antiperistas let us labour to be so much the more united with the Saints by how much we see others to be divided Men make void thy Law sayes David therefore doe I love it above gold We use to put a price upon things that are rare what makes Jewels to be of that worth but for the rarity of them Unity hearty love sweetness of communion among brethren is now a very rare thing a scarce commodity let us prize it the more and you who do enjoy it bless God for it 10. The more confused broken and troublesome we see things to be the more let our hearts be stirred up in prayer to God putting him in mind of all those gracious promises that he hath made to his Church for peace and union Lord is it not part of thy Covenant with thy people that thou wilt give them one heart hast thou not said that they shall serve thee with one shoulder hast thou not told us that thou wilt make Jerusalem a quiet habitation that thou wilt take away violence that there should be no pricking bryar nor grieving thorn 11. Those whose consciences can witnesse to them that it hath been their great care not to enwrap themselves in the guilt of these divisions but they can appeale to God that they have endeavoured after peace so far as they could with a good conscience let them bless God for this mercy it is a great deliverance to be delivered from the guilt of those divisions Deut. 33. 8. Of Levi he said Let thy Vrim and Thummim be with thy holy One whom thou didst prove at Massah and with whom thou didst strive at the waters of Meribah Massah signifies tentation and Meribah contention Places and times of contention are places and times of tentation Now if God shall prove us at those places in those times and we be found upright this will bring a blessing upon us At those waters where the people murmured contending even with God himselfe Aaron though there was some weaknesse in him yet kept himselfe from being involved in the guilt of that sinne of contending with God And Sol-Jarchi with other of the Hebrewes say that the Levites were not in that sinne neither which they thinke that place Malachie 2. 5. refers unto My covenant was with him of life and peace for the feare wherewith he feared me and was afraid before my name The feare of God was upon Levi at that time he dared not contend as then others did and therefore my covenant of life and peace was and is with him We have been these three or foure yeeres at these waters of Massah and Meribah God hath tryed us How happy are those who have held out who have kept their consciences free upon whom the fear of God hath been and through that feare of his have walked before him in the wayes of truth and equity The blessing of the Covenant of Life and Peace be upon them for ever CHAP. XXXI The Cure of our Divisions VVHat gracious heart is not cut asunder with griefe for those sore and fearfull evils that there are in and come from our divisions and is not even the second time cut asunder with carefull thoughts in it selfe what may be done to heal them Mat. 6. 25. Christ forbids that carking care that cuts our hearts when it is in matters concerning our selves yea for our lives 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 take no thought for your life so it is in your bookes but the word signifies Doe not take such thought as should cut your hearts asunder so v. 28. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 why doe you divide your hearts and ver 31. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and ver 34. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 again But though this charge of Christ be doubled and doubled againe against our carefull dividing cutting thoughts about our selves yet for the uniting the hearts of the Saints together for the good of the Church this heart-cutting care is not onely allowed but required 1 Cor. 12. 25. That there should be no schisme in the body but that the members should have the same care one for another The words are That the members may care the same thing one for another and that with dividing cutting care that there might be no schisme in the body The word that is here for care is the same that in the former places in the 6. of Mat. is forbidden The expressions of my thoughtfull cares about this work is the subject at this time When I set my self about it my heart doth even ake within me at the apprehension of the difficulty of it There are some diseases that are called opprobria medicorum the disgraces of Physitians because they know not what to say or doe to them or if they do any thing it is to little purpose If there be any soule-disease that is opprobrium Theologorum the disgrace of Divines it is this of contention and division How little has all that they have studied and endeavoured to do prevailed with the hearts of men What shall we do Shall we but joyn in this one thing to sit down together and mourn one over another one for another till we have dissolved our hearts into teares and see if we can thus get them to run one into another Oh that it might be what sorrow soever it costs us We read Judges 2. 12. 3 4 5. the Lord sent an Angell from Gilgal to the men of Israel who told them how graciously he had dealt with them yet they had contrary to the command of God made a league with the inhabitants of the Land for which the Lord threatned that they should be as thorns in their sides When the Angell spake these words to the children of Israel the people lift up their voice and wept And they called the name of that place Boehim a place of tears Their sin was too much joyning joyning in league where God
liberty now their division rose high some would to up to Jerusalem to worship others would not those that went up cryed out of those who went not and those who went not vilified those who went Now their hearts are thus divided now shall they be found guilty The desolating judgment must now come This is the time for their captivity Now he gives them up to the Enemie God was exceedingly provoked with their contentions one against another at this time What says God when I was in some way of favour towards them when I took off in great part the yoke of bondage that was upon them that sore oppression that was before none of them a while since dared goe to Jerusalem to worship and now their Governours are more moderate their oppressing Courts are downe there is more liberty in the Land for my true worship and do they now fall out contemn divide wrangle one with another let them goe into captivity let the enemy come in upon them my soule takes no delight in such a crooked perverse Generation as this is Our condition seems to parallel with theirs very much we lately were under sore and cruell bondage nothing was more dangerous then the worshipping God in his own way wee were under hard Task-masters oppressing undoing Courts The Lord hath in a great measure delivered us it is the unthankfulness the sinfull distemper of mens spirits that makes them say what is done it is as ill with us as ever it was No we have much ease such liberties as were our fore-fathers raised out of their graves to see they would admire Gods goodness and bless him with meltings of heart but we spend that strength in siding wrangling contending quarrelling vexing opposing one another that we should spend in magnifying blessing and praising the Name of God for that mercy we enjoy We are a divided people whose hearts are divided and heads too and hands too peace and unity seems to be flown from us and a spirit of contention and division is come upon us King Subjects are divided Parl. is divided Assembly is divided Armies are divided Church is divided State is divided City is divided Country is divided Towns are divided Families divided godly people are divided Ministers almost every where are divided yea and what heart almost is there at this time but is divided in it self the thoughts the counsels contrivances endeavours ways of men almost of all men how are they divided O blessed Saviour are these the times thou speakest of wherein five should be in one house divided three against two and two against three the father against the son and the son against the father the mother against the daughter and the daughter against the mother Oh woe to us wee find it so amongst us and yet there is found no healing we are broken and there is no binding up It is with us as it was with Ezek. 2. 6. Briars and thorns are with us and we dwell among Scorpions O Lord what is this thy curse at this time upon England Bryers and thornes shall it bring forth We are rending and tearing and devouring one another while the adversary stands before us ready to devour us Ephraim is against Manasseh and Manasseh against Ephraim A fire is come out from Abimilech and devours the men of Sechem and fire comes from the men of Sechem and devours Abimilech yea there is a fire kindled in our owne bowels it rises from our selves Ezek. 19. 14. Fire is gone on t of a rod of her branches which hath devoured her fruit so that shee hath no strong rod to be a Seepter to rule this is a lamentation and shall be for a lamentation This is amongst us at this day and how long it shall continue God onely knows What this people were in their divided condition that we are and what does this threaten but that we should be as they a while after this were namely a people given up to the rage and fury of the Enemie which the Lord forbid There is a great out-cry of our divisions and while we cry out against them wee still encrease them we are angry with men rather because they are divided from our selves then because they are divided from the truth we are angry because every man is not of our own mind does not as we do There was a great deal of doe in Luthers time about the seamless coat of Christ Granvillian the Emperours Deputy in a Speech he made to the Citizens of Wormes beseeches them for the death of Christ and for all loves that they would amend our Lords coate which is rent and torn on every side When Luther laboured to bring Reformation to the Rule they bad him take heed that he did not rend the seamless coat of Christ and because they talked so much of the tunica inconsutilis they were called the Inconsutilistae the seamelesse men And what a stirre hath there been in out-cryes against men that would not yeeld to every thing that was enjoyned O they rent the seamlesse Coat of Christ I remember Musculus in a Tract he hath De Schismate hath a witty and pious note upon this The Souldiers saith he would not divide the seamelesse coat of Christ but what made them to be so carefull of it was it out of respect to Christ that they were so unwilling it should be divided No but out of respect to their owne advantage every one hoping it might fall to his share therefore say they Let us cast lots for it so saith he men would not have Christs coat divided they would have no division in the Church but what do they aime at their own advantage that they might enjoy quietly their owne ease honour and means that they might have none to contradict them but that the streame may run smoothly and wholly with them what a fine brave thing were this And because they see they cannot doe this while their ways are looked into and crossed therefore they make such an outcry against the dividing the seamlesse coat of Christ But certainly till our hearts be otherwise then yet they are all our out-cries wil not serve our ends the stilling our divisings Did we less divide between God and our own ends our own wayâ— we should not divide so much one from another Wherefore let us first turn our thoughts to consider a little of this division between God and other things and the evil of it CHAP. II. The evill of dividing between God and any thing else THis people would give God something and their idols something and so think to please both 2 King 7. 33. They feared the Lord and served their Idolls Thus Judah in the days of Josiah Zeph. 1. 5. sware by the Lord and by Malcham Swearing is a part of Gods worship therefore no humane instituted Religious ceremony ought to be joyned with it no more then with the Sacrament or any other divine worship no creature should share
in the wilderness in an afflicted condition we are fiery serpents one to another The Hebrew word that signifies afflicted signifies meeke to note that afflicted ones should be meek ones When the storm is comming the Bees flock together to the hive Ier. 50. 4. In those dayes saith the Lord the children of Israel shall come and the children of Judah together going and weeping they shall goe and seek the Lord their God Judah and Israel could not agree at other times but when they are in a weeping condition then they shall come together Secondly it is a time of Fasting and Prayer England never knew what such Fasting and Prayer meant as it hath knowne of late No nation in the world that we know of ever knew the like and shall we in such times as these when we are casting downe our selves before Almighty God when we are judging our selves before him in the pride and frowardness of our hearts contend against one another Esay 58 4. Behold ye fast for strife and debate and to fight with the fist of wickednesse It is a fist of wickedness indeed that fights in times of Fasts Is it such a Fast that I have chosen How doe we in the dayes of our Fasts acknowledge our vileness our unworthyness of the least mercy our pride our self-love our envy our passions all those distempers that are dividing distempers yet still we continue in them and they break forth into dividing practices Surely our Fasts will rise up in judgement against us to make the sin of our divisions out of measure sinfull Thirdly It is a time also of great mercies We are afflicted but not forsaken and mercies should sweeten our spirits This Summer hath been a continued miracle of mercies if our agreeing together our love to one another were now beyond the expectation of all men as Gods mercies to us have been beyond and above all expectation even such a fruit of mercies would be the greatest mercy of all But if instead of being sweetned by mercies we are the more imbittered one against another how great is this sinne If we shall take occasion from our victories at Nazeby Taunton Bridgewater Sherburne Bristol to seek to drive out of the Kingdome thousands of godly men whom God used as instruments of so great mercy to us will not this be sin unto us God brought us indeed into a wildernesse but he hath there spoke comfortably to us our wildernesse is our way to Canaan It was the charge of Joseph to his brethren Gen. 45. 24. when they were going from Egypt to Canaan See that ye fall not out by the way We hope God is leading us to Canaan oh that we could see Christ looking upon us and charging us saying See that you fall not out by the way do not grudg one against another let not one say You are the cause of our trouble and another say Nay but you are the cause of our trouble let every one charge his own heart let every man fall out with his own sin as much as he will but let not brethren fall out by the way Fourthly it is a time of Service God never put such opportunities of service into our hands as now he hath How many holy men who were furnished with large abilities and enlarged hearts to have done service for God and his people in former times lived privately onely enjoyed sweet communion between God and their owne soules but oh how did they prize opportunities of service how did they thirst after and greedily embrace advantages for publique work they were willing to submit to any thing to the uttermost their consciences would suffer them that they might be employed in work for God and his Saints Though their encouragement from men was small yet their work was wages to them but in those times almost all places of publique imployment were in the hands or at the dispose of evill men could they have foreseen that within a few yeers there should be a doore open for all godly men to full opportunities for the imployment of their gifts and graces to the uttermost How would they have rejoyced and longed to have seen those times and blessed those who should live in them I am confident it cannot be shewn that ever there was a time since the world began that so many godly people in a Kingdome have had such a large opportunity of publike service as for these last five yeers hath been in England and shall this opportunity be lost with our wranglings and contendings Oh how unworthy are we to live in such times as these are When a Master sets his servants to work and that in such a peece of work as is of great concernment the opportunity of which if lost will be a great losse to him if these servants shall trifle away this opportunity with wrangling one with another about their work one opposing another in it will this be a good account to their Master So much time was spent in work but so much in quarelling whereby there is little of the work done We read of Nehemiah cap. 6. 3. when Sanballat and Tobiah those quarelsome companions sent to him to meet them intending to quarrell with him he answered them I am doing a worke so that I cannot come why should the worke cease If we see men set upon strife and contention we should not meddle with them to spend our time in answering what comes from them our case were miserable if we were at the mercy of every quarreller bound to answer whatsoever he pleases to put forth But let us tend our work these opportunities of service that now we have are too pretious to give away to them to be spent to be lost upon them How just were it with God to take these opportunities from us to bring us againe into such a condition as we should be glad of a dayes imployment in publick service and then oh how would our consciences wring us and grate upon us for such ill improvement of them for such unworthy losse of them when we had them 5. This time is the time of the tryall of our spirits We never had such a time to try what spirit of love what principles of union are in us as now we have and shall we now miscarry May it not be justly thought that all our seeming love one to closing one with another formerly was only for our own ends Before we were all under oppression or at least the fears of it when we looked upon our selves as in the same condition then the trial was not so much but now there is some difference made in the condition of godly men Some have the times smiling upon them more then others now is the time of tryal The time of the triall of the spirit of Pharaâ—hs Butler towards Joseph was when he was out of prison injoying his preferment at the Court Joseph remained stil in prison Perhaps while they were fellow-prisoners
Faith gets above and sayes It shall be I descry land and thus quiets all in the soule all being quiet there the turbulent motions that are in our spirits one towards another are soon quieted 3. Humility COloss 3. 12. Put on as the elect of God bowels of mercies kindnesse humblenesse of minde Ephes 4. 2. With all lowlinosse and meeknesse and long-suffering forbearing one another in love endeavouring to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace Phil. 2. 3. Let nothing be done through strife or vain-glory but in lowlinesse of minde let each esteeme others better then himselfe We may say of Humility as Tertullus Acts 24 said of Felix By thee we enjoy great quietnesse An humble heart looks upon every truth of God as infinitely above it selfe therefore it is willing to receive it from any a child may lead it Esay 11. 6. One Baldassar a German Divine writing to Oecolampadius hath this notable expression Let the Word of the Lord come let it come and we will put under six hundred necks if we had them Such a disposition as this would make much for peace Esay 32. 18 19. we have a promise that the people of God should dwell in a peaceable habitation and in quiet resting places and the City shall be low in a low place When the heart lyes lowest it is quietest 4. Self-denyall THe joynts in the body cannot joyne but one part must be hollow and give way to the other Condescention of one to another is a principall thing in friendship Philip. 2. the example of Christ emptying himselfe and making himselfe to be of no reputation is set before us as an argument for our union that therefore we should doe nothing through strife be like minded having the same love and be of one accord and one minde It is indifferent to a heart emptyed of Selfe whether it conquers or be conquered so Truth may triumph In other conflicts the Conquerour hath the honour and the conquered is disgraced but in the conflicts for truth both conquered and conquerour are honourable the mercy is the greater to him that is conquered but he must have a self-denying heart to make him think so 5. Patience THe Olive the Embleme of Peace will continue greene though overflowne by the waters for a long time together After Noah had been so long in the Ark the Dove brought an Olive leafe in her mouth to him It may be an Emblem of Patience as well as Peace Patience and Peaceableness are neere akin Ephes 4. 2 3. Long-suffering is amongst the graces where the unity of the spirit is to be kept in the bond of peace There is a notable story I finde in the lives of the German Divines One Vitus Theodorus a Divine sends to advise with Melancthon what he should do when Osiander preached against him Melancthon writes to him and beseeches him for the love of God yea charges him that he should not answer Osiander again but that he should hold his peace and behave himself as if he heard nothing Vitus Theodorus writes back again This was very hard yet he would obey Let not men be too hasty to oppose oppositions but let them go on patiently in a constant way resolving to bear what they meet with and God at length will make their righteousness break forth as the light Confute evill reports by thy life He that knowes not to beare calumnies reproaches injuries he knowes not how to live sayes Chytraeus another German Divine 6. Joy in the holy Ghost ROm. 14. 17. The Kingdome of heaven is righteousness peace joy in the holy Ghost This grace in the heart puts a grace upon all a mans conversation it makes it lovely and amiable The beames of the Sunne shining upon the fire will put it out The beams of this spirituall joy will put out the fire of our passions 7. Meeknesse Gentlenesse MIlk quenches wild-fire Oyle sayes Luther quenches Lime which water sets on fire Opposition will heat will fire men when meeknesse and gentlenesse will still and quench all Cicero sayes Sweetnesse of speech and rarriage is that which seasons friendship severity in every thing and sadnesse must not be among friends in their converse such a kinde of carriage may have a seeming gravity but friendship must have a remisness it must be more free and sweet disposed to all mildness and easiness Ephes 4. 2 3. Meekness comes in as a speciall grace for peace and unity so Col. 3. 12. 8. Love THat is the speciall uniting grace Faith indeed hath the preheminence in our union with Christ our head but Love is the grace that unites the members 1 Cor. 13. the Apostle shews many of the fruits of this grace all tending to union and peace It suffers long it envies not it is not puffed up it behaves not it selfe unseemly it seeketh not her owne it is not easily provoked thinketh no evill beareth all things believeth all things hopeth all things endureth all things Bearing all things and enduring all things seem to be the same Therefore some would have it it covereth all things for so the word also signifies but there is a greater elegancy in it in the Translation beareth all things it is like the crosse maine beam in a house supporting the whole building and were it not for some who have the love of God and his truth and the good of the publiquâ— enabling them to undergo what they do more then any encouragement from men all things in Church and State would be ready to fall into confusion to be nothing but a heap of rubbish but this love enables to beare all things But if they have no encouragement but see that though they hazard themselves never so much be of never so great use do the greatest services that can be expected from men yet when mens turns are served they are little regarded but envyed and narrowly watched to spy out any thing that may have some shew of excepting against them and left to shift for themselves as well as they can when they might justly expect a great reward of their services yet are disappointed their hearts are grieved But yet because they are acted by a principle of love to God his cause the publique they therefore still hold out go on in their way labour to be as instrumentall as they can for good commit themselves and all their endeavours to God expecting encouragement from him and so they endure all things such men are worth their weight in gold here is a heart that hath much of the spirit of God in it God is love and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God and God in him No marvell though these men act so swiftly in their way no marvell though their motion in publick service be so speedy for their Charet is like that Charet of Salomons Cant. 3. 10. The middle thereof is paved with love and this is for the daughters of
he was wont They hinder the blessing of God Psalm 133. The Psalmist commending the love of Brethren concludes There the Lord commanded the blessing even life for evermore There that is where the love of Brethren is there is a blessing a blessing commanded by God it comes with power and this no less then life and this life for evermore God dwels in Salem sayes Luther not in Babylon where there is peace not where there is confusion Lastly yea they hinder all good They are like the Torrid Zone nothing can prosper under it When the Dog-star rises no plants thrive as an other times When a fire is kindled in a Town the bels ring backward When fires of contention are kindled in places all things go awke There is little joy in any thing Thus you see how great evill there is in our divisions in respect of what good we lose by them now then consider whether it be possible that any gain we can get by them can recompense this loss can any thing got by them quit the cost But if it could be supposed our loss may be recompensed yet I am sure nothing can countervail the evill there is in them in respect of the sinfulness of them That is the next head CHAP. XXVIII The sinfulnesse of our Divisions THough there be sin in many things mentioned yet we considered them in reference to our good that was hindred but now let us consider what venome of sin there is in them The number 2. hath been accounted accursed because it was the first that departed from unity The departure from that unity God would have is a very cursed thing for it hath much sin in it That which S. Aug. sayes of originall sin we may well apply to our divisions They are sin the punishment of sin the cause of sin nothing but a heap of sin First they are against the solemn charge and command of God and of Jesus Christ 1 John 3. 23. This is his commandement that we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another as he gave us commandement It is not an arbitrary thing that we should love one another but it is the command of God and a great command joyned to that of beleeving in his Son Jesus Christ The one is as truly necessary to salvation as the other Let men talk of faith of believing on the Son of God of trusting to free grace in Christ yet if they have dividing contending spirits no love no sweetness no grace of union with the Saints their faith is a dead faith And because God stands much upon this to have his people live together in love at the beginning of the verse he sayes it is his commandement at the end of the verse he sayes he gave us commandement And it is also observable that he sayes of the commandement of love that he gave us that commandement It is a gift for it is a sweet commandement We should not onely submit to it as being bound by the authority of it but we should open our hearts to it and embrace it joyfully as a gift from God The commandement of love God gives us as a gift from his love The excellency of these commandements are further amplified ver 24. And he that keepeth his commandements dwelleth in him and he in him I do not thinke that you can finde in all the Scripture any command of God in one ver and a piece of another so inculcated and commended Again chap. 4. 21. This commandement have we from him that he who loveth God loves his brother also If you think you have any command to love God or to believe in Jesus Christ know the same authority layes a command upon you to love your brother also Joh. 15. 12. This is my commandement that ye love one another as I have loved you And ver 17. These things I cowmand you that ye love one another Christ you see likewise makes a great matter of the Saints loving one another Surely the sinne then must needs be great that breaks such a great commandement as this upon which God the Father and Jesus Christ his Son layes so much weight Secondly these unkind and unloving divisions are against the prayer of Jesus Christ yea against that prayer he made for us a little before he died Joh. 17. 21. he prayes to his Father that all who did believe and should after believe on him might be one as his Father is in him and he is in his Father and that they may be one in the Father and him as if he should say Oh Father I am now going out of the world and I foresee when I am gone even those whom thou hast given me who are one in me and in thee will meet with strong temptations to divide them one from another but oh Father I beseech thee let thy fatherly care be over them to keep their hearts together that they might be united in the strongest union that is possible for creatures to be united in Oh Father let them be one as thou and I am one Would we not be loath to lose the benefit of that heavenly prayer of Christ for us in that 17. of Joh. read it over see what soul-ravishing excellency there is in it seeing he hath expresly said he intended us who live now in it as well as those Disciples who then lived with him let us prize this prayer as being more to us then ten thousand worlds Luther writes a chiding Letter to Melancthon By those sinfull distrustfull fears and carking thoughts of yours sayes he you do irritas facere praeces nostras you make void our prayers How great then is the evill of our divisions by them we do what in us lies to make void as concerning us the prayer that blessed prayer of Jesus Christ Sathan sayes Christ to Peter hath desired to winnow you like Wheat but I have prayed for you that your faith fail not He shall not prevail sayes Christ Why Because I have prayed for you Oh blessed Saviour is not thy prayer against our divisions as strong Canst not thou prevail with thy Father as well in this as in that We know thy Father did and does ever hear thee some way or other this prayer of CHRIST is and shall be heard yet our sin is not the less for it tends to the frustrating of Christs prayer Sathan desires to winnow us in our divisions but he desires not to have the Chaffe divided from the Wheat he rather would have the Chaffe mixed with the Wheat The mixing the Chaffe with the Wheat makes a great stirre amongst us But Christs prayer which helped Peter in his winnowing we hope will help us in ours only let not us do any thing that makes against it Thirdly our divisions are against our own prayers How often have many who now are estrang'd from one another heretofore so prayed together as their hearts have seemed to melt one into
another so as one would think it impossible that ever in this world there should have been that distance between them that now there is How often have we prayed Oh that once we might be blessed with such a mercy as to worship God according to his own mind that we might be delivered from conscience oppression from spirituall bondage Oh that we might be delivered from the inventions of men in the service of God that the Saints might joyn and serve the Lord with one shoulder There were never such hopes that the Saints should enjoy their prayers so as of late there hath been and yet never were they so divided as now they are they now seek to bring one another in bondage If five or six years since when many of us were praying together making our moans to God for that oppression we were under God should have then presented as in a Map such times as these are to our view could we have beleeved that it were possible that there should be such a distance in our spirits as now there is Fourthly our Divisions are very dishonourable to Jesus Christ were it that they darkned our names onely it were not so much but that which darkens the glory of Jesus Christ should goe very neere unto us I have read of Alexander Severus seeing two Christians contending one with another commanded them that they should not presume to take the name of Christians upon themselves any longer For sayes he you dishonour your Master Christ whose Disciples you professe to be It is dishonour to a General to have his Army routed and run into confusion The Devill seems to prevaile against us in these our divisions so as to rout us John 17. 21. 23. is a notable Scripture to shew the sinfulnesse of our divisions in the dishonour they put upon Christ and it may be as strong an argument against them as any I know in the Book of God Christ praying to the Father for the union of his Saints uses this argument O Father let this be granted that the world may beleeve that thou hast sent me And againe ver 23. Let them be perfect in one that the world may know that thou hast sent me If they be not united one to another in love and peace but have a spirit of Division ruling amongst them what will the world thinke surely that thou didst not send me that I who am their head their teacher and Lord never came from thee for thou art wisdom holiness and love if I had come from thee then those who own me to be theirs and whom I own to be mine would hold forth in their conversations something of that spirit of holinesse wisdome and love there is in thee but when the world does not see this in them but the clean contrary they will never beleeve that I came from thee those truths that I came into the world to make known as from thee O Father will not be beleeved but rather persecuted if those who professe them by their divisions one from another and oppositions one against another shew forth a spirit of pride folly envy frowardnesse therefore O Father let them be one as thou and I am one if this Petition be not granted how shall I look the world in the face I shall be contemned in the world what am I come down from thee for such glorious ends as indeed those were for which I came into the world and when I should come to attaine those ends for which I came shall there be such a carriage in those who doe professe my Name that by it the world shall perswade themselves that thou didst never send me O what a sore evill would this be surely any Christian heart must needs tremble at the least thought of having a hand in so great an evill as this is Fifthly Divisions are sinfull because they grieve the holy Spirit of God Ephes 4. 30 31. Grieve not the holy Spirit of God whereby ye are sealed to the day of redemption Surely there is no godly heart but will say O God forbid that I should doe any thing to grieve the good spirit of God it is the Spirit that hath enlightned me that hath revealed the great mysteries of God of Christ of eternall life unto me it is that Spirit that hath drawn my Soul to Jesus Christ that hath comforted it with those consolations that are more to me then ten thousand worlds the Spirit that hath strengthned me that helpes me against temptations that carries me through difficulties that enables me to rejoyce in tribulations the Spirit that is an earnest to assure me of Gods electing love the spirit thet hath sealed me up to the day of Redemption and now shall I be gâ—ily of so great a sinne as to grieve this blessed Spirit of the Lord If I did but know wherein I have grieved it it could not but make my soul to bleed within me that I should have such a wretched heart to grieve this holy Spirit by whom my soule hath enjoyed so much good I hope should for ever hereafter take heed of that thing I would rather suffer any griefe in the world to mine owne spirit then be any occasion of grief to that blessed Spirit of God But would you know what it is that hath grieved it and what it is that is like to grieve it further mark what followes ver 31. Let all bitternesse wrath anger clamour and evill speaking be put away from you with all malice And would you doe that which may rejoyce it Oh! God knowes it would be the greatest joy in the world for me to doe it then ver 32. Be ye kind one to another tender-hearted forgiving one another even as God for Christs sake hath forgiven you Sixthly these divisions doe grieve and offend our Brethren this should not be a light matter to us Christ accounts it a great evill to offend one of his little ones We may thinke it a little matter to give offence to some of Gods people who are poore and meane in the world so long as we have the bravery of it and the countenance of great men no matter for them But friend whatsoever slight thoughts thou hast of it Christ thinks it a great matter you may look upon them as under you the times favour you more then them but if you shall give them cause to goe to God to make their moanes to him of any ill usage they have had from you Lord thou knowest I was for peace to the uttermost that I could so farre as I was able to see thy Word for my guide but these who heretofore were as Brethren to me now their spirits are estranged their hearts are imbittered their words their carriages are very grievous and all because I cannot come up to what their opinions their ways are certainly this would prove very ill to you regard it as lightly as you will it may be when others carry themselves towards you