but desire he should carry you away out of this vale of misery that mortality might be swallowed up of life If you would doe all this in earnest you would be so farre from feare of death that you would if you were put to your choice with the Apostle choose to hee dissolved and to bee with Christ which is best of all and so farre from fearing the day of Iudgement that you would love and long for Christs appearing waiting with patience and chearfulnesse when your change shall be Indevour to follow these directions then suppose that you cannot keepe downe these fears and conquer them as you would yet be not discouraged for fears and doubts in this kinde doe flow many times from strength of temptation rather than from weakenesse of Faith Moreover what if you cannot attaine to so high a pitch in your Faith as S. Paul had are you so ambitious that no other degrees of Faith shall satisfie you Orare you so foolish as thence to conclude that you have no Faith Thirdly Whereas you say you are without feeling therefore you feare you have no faith I acknowledge that want of feeling and want of sense of Gods favour is that which doth more trouble GODS tender-hearted Children and make them more doubt of Gods love and of their iustification than any thing else whereas I know nothing that giveth them losse cause For first What meane you by feeling If you meane the enioyment of the things promised and hoped for by inward sense This is to overthrow the nature and to put an end to the use of faith and hope For Faith is the ground of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seene And the Apostle faith Hope that is seene is not hope Indeede faith giveth a present being of the thing promised to the beleever but it is a being not in sense but in hope and assured expectation of the thing promised Wherefore the Apostle speaking of our spirituall conversation on earth saith We walke by faith not by sight These two faith and feeling are opposite one to the other in this sense For when wee shall live by sight and feeling then we shall cease to live by faith Secondly If by feeling you meane a ioyous and comfortable assurance that you are in Gods savour and that you shall be saved and therefore because you want this joyous assurance you think you have no Faith you must know this conclusion will not follow For Faith whereby you are saved and set into state of grace and this comfortable assurance that you are in state of grace and shall be saved doe differ and are not the same It is true Assurance is an effect of faith in al that have this assurance yet it is not such a proper and necessary effect which is inseparable from the very being of faith in man at all times For you may have saving Faith yet at sometime be without the comfortable assurance of Salvation To beleeve in Christ to Salvation is one thing and to know assuredly that you shall be saved is another For Faith is a direct act of the reasonable soule receiving Christ and Salvation offered by God with him Assurance riseth from a reflect act of the soule namely when the soule by discourse returneth upon it selfe and can witnesse that it hath the afore-mentioned grace of faith whereby a man can say I know that I beleeve that Christ Iesus is mine and I know that I beleeve that the promises of the Gospell belong unto mee The holy Scriptures are written for both these ends that first Faith and then assurance of faith and hope should be wrought in men These things are written saith S. Iohn in his Gospell that you may beleeve that Iesus is the Christ the Sonne of God and that beleeving you might have life through his name Againe these things have I written saith the same Apostle in his Epistles to you that beleeve on the name of the Sonne of GOD that yee may know that you have eternall life and that you may beleeve that is continue to beleeve and increase in beleeving on the name of the Sonne of God A man is saved by faith but hath comfort in hope of Salvation by Assurance So that the being of spirituall life in respect of us doth subsist in Faith not in Assurance Feeling And that is the strongest and most approved faith which cleaveth to Christ and to his promises and which holdeth his owne without the helpe of feeling For albeit Assurance giveth unto us a more evident certainety of our good estate yet faith even without this will hold us certaine in this good estate whether we be assured or not Wherefore some Divines have well conceived of a double certaintie of things apprehended by mans judgment The first is Certaintie of Adherence and cleaving fast to the thing it beleeveth causing a man from the bare assent and consent to the truth and goodnesse of the promise and from the Commandement of God in his Word which bids him beleeve and rest on his promise for to cleave to the promise and to relie on it and to obey that Commandement which commādeth him to beleeve in Christ Iesus yea though this truth bee not otherwise so evident and cleare to the understanding as to satisfie mans natural reason For though Faith in its minority cannot alwayes comprehend to the full how and by what meanes or why in reason the thing promised should be fulfilled yet because it conceiveth thus much that the things of God are not fully comprehended by humane reason and that the truths of God are infallible whether it comprehend them or not will first beleeve and rest on the promise and then afterward consider how it may be so farre as is fit to be understood by reason Hence it is that albeit reason as it is now corrupt will still be obiecting and will be satisfied with nothing but what it may know by sense and by demonstration from Artificiall Arguments yet Faith even above and against sense and all naturall reasoning will give credit unto and rest upon the bare naked divine witnesse of the Word of truth for his sake that doth speake it Secondly there is a certaintie of Evidence namely when the thing beleeved is not onely said to be true and good but a man doth finde it so to be by sense and experience and is so evident to mans reason convincing it by force of Argument taken from the Causes Effects Properties Signes Contraries and the like that it hath nothing to object against the thing propounded to be beleeved The certaintie of Adherence is the certaintie of Faith The certaintie of Evidence is the certaintie of Assurance The certainty of Assurance and evidence is of excellent use for it maketh a man fruitfull in good workes and doth fill him ful of joy and comfort therefore it must by all meanes be gotten yet it
of GOD is twofold or one and the same in different degrees The first is an actuall entring into and mutuall imbracing of Peace betweene GOD and man The second is the Manifestation and Expression of this Peace The first is when God and man are made friends which is when GOD is pacified towards MAN and when man is reconciled unto God so that now God standeth well affected towards man and man hath put off Enmitie against God which mutuall* Attonement and Friendship Christ Iesus the onely Mediator betwixt God and man hath by his satisfaction and intercession wrought for man and by his Spirit applieth unto and worketh in man For untill this Attonement be made and applied God in his just Iudgement and Hatred is an Enemie unto man for sin and man in his evill minde and unjust Hatred is an Enemy unto GOD and unto all goodnesse through sinne This first Peace is Peace of God with man inherent in God working the like disposition of Peace in man towards God and is the fountaine from which the second 〈…〉 The second kinde or rather further degree of Peace of God is the operation and manifestation of the former Peace which is a peace of God in man wrought by the Spirit of God through the apprehension that God is at peace with him This Peace is partly and most sensibly in the Conscience which is called Peace of Conscience and may also be called peace of Iustification according to that Being iustified by faith wee have peace with God c. And it is partly in the whole reasonable man whereby the will and affections of the soule agree within themselves and are subiect to the inlightned minde conspiring all of them against the commonadversary the flesh which yet remaineth in everypart this may be called peace of Sanctification according to that of the Apostle Being made free from sinne and become servants of God you have your fruit in holinesse This is the agreement of all the members to become servants to righteousnesse unto Holinesse Not but there will be warring alwayes in our members but it is not the warring so much of one Member against another as the warring of the Flesh in every member against the Spirit which also warreth against the flesh in every member Which lusting and fighting of flesh against the spirit beginneth in man as soone as the Spirit hath wrought the former peace of Holines in setting each member into dueframe and order Moreover this peace of Sanctification consisteth in this that albeit a Sanctified man must never be nor ever is at peace with sin so that it doth not assault and molest him or that hee should subject himselfe to it or have it absolutely subject to him in this life yet hee hath a peace and quiet after a sort and in comparison from sinne is so much that he is freed from the dominion and power of sinne to hurt him or to reduce him to his former bondage unto sinne Now so farre as a man getteth a conquest over his lusts that they are kept under and forbeare to assault and molest him so farre he may be said to have this peace of Sanctification The Conscience when it is awake and stirring and in the Act of enquirie and of Inditing accusing condemning man for sinne doth withall Pricke Lash Gripe Sting and Wound the heart with unutterable unconceiveable griefes feares and terrours through the apprehension of Gods infinite eternall and iust Wrath for sinne Now when GOD by his Spirit giveth any true hope and assurance unto a man that his lustice is satisfied concerning him through Christ and that now all Enmitie and Wrath is done away on Gods part and that hee loveth him in Christ with a Free Full and Everlasting love hereby he speaketh peace to the Conscience having done away all the guilt of sinne which before molested it through sense of Gods anger and feare of punishment Hence ariseth peace and comfort in the Conscience which therefore is called Peace of Conscience Thus the mind ceaseth to be perplexed and by faith in Christs death through the Spirit becommeth quiet with an Heavenly tranquility resting on the Word of promise and according to the measure of cleare apprehension of Gods love in Christ in the same measure the minde is at sweet agreement within it selfe without feare or trouble and in the same measure hee hath peace of Conscience flowing from the assurance of Iustification As soone also as a man beginneth Actually to be at Peace with God his lusts doe beginne to be at Warre with him rebelling against the law of his minde which yet may by little and little be subdued and conquered though not all lusts at any time nor yet any one fully in this life yet by vertue of the peace now made with God if he wil improve it by seeking helpe of God if withall he take to him the Compleate armour and doe fight manfully under Christs bāner he may so prevaile against them that he shall be assaulted with fewer Temptations from his owne concupiscence than hee was wont in so much that they do not so oft nor so strongly assault him as in former times Now so farre forth as the powers and faculties of man agree in their fight against sinne and doe so subdue it that it doth not assault and molest him hee may be said to have the peace of sanctification The first peace whereby God is pacified and is become propitious and gracious to man is absolutely necessary to the very being of a Christian The second which riseth from the manifestation of this Peace unto a man and the sensible feeling of the operatiō of this Peace in man is not necessary to the being of a Christian at least in a sensible degree of it but to the well-being of a Christian it is necessarie For a man may be in the favour of God and yet be without the sense of this Peace in himselfe Because this peace of Conscience doth not flow necessarily from the being in GODS favour but from knowledge and assurance of being in his favour Now a man in many cases may loose for a time his sense of Gods favor his faith being over-clouded with feares and unbeliefe as it was with David after his adultery with Bathshebath and murther of Vriah who yet was upheld secretly by his right hand as the Prophet was in another case by vertue of that first peace of GOD yet untill GOD did give him the sense and feeling of His loving Countenance hee was without the second Peace the peace of Conscience Yea though God by Nathan in the outward Ministery of his Word had given him assurance of Gods loving kindnesse saying The LORD hath put away thy sinne thou shalt not dye That first peace is absolute and admitteth of no degrees The second which floweth thence both in respect of peace of Conscience and in respect of good
the brethren when hee breathed out threatning was as he himselfe saith mad against them Was hee at that time a Reprobate Did hee not afterwards being coÌ„verted so love GODS people that he could be content to spend and be spent himselfe for them So many thousands whose consciences for the present may justly condemne them of not loving those that be zealous and indeed Gods children may yet love them hereafter as dearly as their owne soules Some will yet say certainely we are Reprobates For we have according to the command of the Apostle tryed whether we be in the faith or no and whether Christ be in us but we finde neither the Apostle saith we know these to be in us else we are Reprobats 2 Cor. 13. 5. By Reprobate in this place is not meant one that is not elect one whom God in his just judgment past by and ordained unto wrath For none of the Elect can before their conversion know by any search that they are in the faith or that Christ is in them For that cannot bee knowne which yet is not Many are not converted untill they be thirtie fortie or fiftie yeares old Will you say these in their younger yeares were Reprobates You may say they then were in state of condemnation and children of wrath but no Reprobates Besides a man must not bee said not to be in the faith and not to have Christ in him because he doth not know so much For many have faith and are in Christ yet do not alwaies know it The word Reprobate because it is ordinarily understood by our common people for a man ordained to condemnation is too harsh except its true meaning were expressed and the Greeke doth not necessarily inforce it Yet I confesse it is a terme proper enough if it were not in our English almost appropriated to the former sense These words now rendred except ye be Reprobates may as I judge rather be translated thus Except you be unapproved or except you be without proofe namely of your being in the faith and of Christs being in you whereof you outwardly make profession Howsoever it bee translated for in this I submit my selfe to the Church let any that is judicious observe the matter therin handled and the Metaphor taken from Goldsmiths in trying of mettals and they shall finde it must bee understood in tâ—hs sense The Corinthians did question the lawfulnesse of Pauls calling to his Apostleship therefore they require of him to give them a proofe of Christ speaking in him His answer is to this purpose as if he should say I will goe no farther to seeke a signe or proofe of Christ speaking in mee then to your selves Hath not the Word and Gospell of CHRIST beene powerfull by my Ministery to convert you and to beget faith and to forme Christ in you Looke into your selves try if you have not faith and if Christ be not formed in you If you find this I need no other proofe of my calling nor of Gods power and grace blessing me in my calling But if upon tryall you cannot finde that you are in the faith c. you are unapproved Christians Either you have yet onely a meere forme of Christianity and like false coyne or Reprobate silver are but hypocrites and counterfeits or if you be Christians in truth yet you are inexperienced Christians and without proofe of it to your selves But whether you finde that you have faith or no c. I trust and am assured that both I the rest of Christs Ministers with me shall approve our selves to be true and faithfull Ministers of Christ though in the account of the false Apostles and of some of you wee bee as Reprobates or unapproveable that is such as in your opinion cannot give proofe of CHRIST speaking in us Our late excellently learned and reverend Translators ver 7. translated the same word in the affirmative Approved wherefore the privative particle being added the translation may well be unapproved or without proofe or refuse Some may Reply if I find upon tryall that I am a counterfeit and as Reprobate silver may I not then judge my selfe to be a Reprobate No. For first you may erre in judging of your selfe Secondly if you do not erre you can judge only this that yet you are not in state of grace but in the use of the meanes you may be God can as well convertian Hypocrite as a Pagan For though now you be drosse and refuse you may ere long be pure Gold For God in making vessels of honour doth more than all earthly Kings and all their Goldsmiths can doe For they by their prerogative setting their stampe and by their Goldsmiths skill can make currant coyne and rich Vessels if that they have pure mettall to worke upon But they cannot make good mettal of base stuffe or can make gold of brasse But such is the force of Gods Word and Spirit that whereas they finde you base and drossie stuffe they by imprinting the Character and stampe of Gods Image upon your hearts doe metamorphise and transforme you into the same Image from glory to glory even as by the Spirit of the Lord. As soone as you are truly touched and annointed with this Spirit you shall become good Gold and Silver vessels of honour fitted for the LORDS use whereunto you were pre-ordained There are yet others object fearefully saying that they are cast-awayes and that God will not have mercy on them and that because now it is too late they have passed the time and date of their Conversion they therefore will not use or at least have no heart in using GODS meanes to convert them such as prayer reading hearing the Word c. Nor yet willingly will suffer others to pray either with them or for them and all because they think it is now too late and in vaine mistaking this and such other Scriptures Because I have called saith GOD and you have refused they shall call on mee and I will not answer And because they thinke they sinne when they pray and heare the Word and that the more means is used to save them their condemnation shall be the more increased Thus Satan a fearefull heart deludeth many It must be acknowledged that God would have all men walke and worke while they have light because the night will come when no man can worke And whilst it is called to day hee would have every one returne and accept of grace offered and not to harden their hearts against it And our Saviour bewaileth Ierusalem because they did let slip the day of their visitation All which doth shew that God hath his set period of time betweene his first and last offer of grace which being passed hee will offer it no more and that justly because they took not his offer when they might And this time is kept so secret with God
is not of it selfe so strong nor so constant nor so infallible as the certainty of Faith and Adherence is For sense and reason since the fall even in the regenerate though they will lay some foundation in the Rules of Faith to proceed by yet erring in or misapplying the rule are weake variable and their conclusions are not so certaine as those of pure Faith Because Faith buildeth onely upon Diuine Testimonie concluding without reasoning or disputing yea many times against reasoning So that notwithstanding the excellent and needfull use of Assurance and certainty of Evidence it is Faith and the certainty of Adherence whereby even in feares and doubts a man cleaveth fast to the promises and is that which we must trust unto and is the Cable wee must hold by lest we make ship wracke of all when wee are assaulted with our greatest temptatioÌ„s for then many times our Assurance leaveth us to the mercy of the winds and Seas as Marriners speake If you have Faith though you have little or no feeling you are yet sure enough of Salvation indeede though not in your owne apprehension When both can be had it is best for then you have most strength and most comfort giving you chearefulnesse in all your troubles but that certainty of Faith and cleaving to the naked word and promise is that to which you must trust See this in the examples of most faithfull men for when they have beene put to it it was this that upheld them and in this was their faith commended Abraham against all present sense and reason even against hope beleeved in hope both in the matter of receiving a sonne and in going about to offer him againe unto God in Sacrifice He denyed sense and reason he considered not the unlikelihoods and seeming impossibilities in the iudgement of reason that ever he should have a seed hee being old and Sarah being old and barren or having a seed that he should be saved by that seed sith hee was to kill him in Sacrifice He onely considered the Almighty power faithfulnesse and soveraigntie of him that had promised he knew it was his dutie to obey and to waite and so let all the businesse thereabout to rest on Gods promise For this his faith is commended and hee is said to be strong in faith Iob and David or Asaph shewed most strength of Faith when they had little or no feeling of Gods favour but the contrary rather Iob had little feeling of Gods favour when for paine of body hee said wherefore doe I take my flesh in my teeth and in anguish of soule he said Wherefore hidest thou thy face and takest me for thine enemie Yet then this certainty of faith which made him cleave unto GOD made him to hold fast and say in the same Chapter Though hee slay mee yet I will trust in him When David said to GOD Why hast thou forgotten mee His Assurance was weake yet even then his Faith discovered it selfe when he saith to his soule Why art thou disquieted within mee Hope in God who is the health of my countenance and my God You see then that the excellencie of Faith lyeth not in your feeling but as the Psalmist speaketh by experience in cleaving close unto the promise and relying on God for it upon his bare word For he saith It is good for mee to draw neere to God I have put my trust in the Lord God this was it which secretly upheld him and kept him in possession when as you may see in that Psalme his Evidences and Assurance was to seek Wherefore Beleeve Gods promises made to you in Christ and â—est on him even when you want â—oy and feeling comfort For â—aving Faith you are sure of heaven though you be not so fully â—ssured of it as you desire It will â—e your greatest commendation when you will be dutifull servants and children at GODS Commandement though you have not present wages when you wil take Gods word for that Those are bad servants and children which cannot go on chearfully in doing their Master or Fathers will except they may receive the promised wages 〈◊〉 least in good part aforehand Oâ— every day or except they may have atleast a good part of the promised inheritance presently and in hand Feeling of comfort is part of a Christians wages and inheritance to be received at the good pleasure of God that freely giveth it rather than a Christian duty To comfort and stay ourselves on God in distresse is a duty but this joyous sense and feeling of Gods favour is a gracious favour of God towards us not a duty of ours toward God It is from too much distrust in God and too much self-respect when wee have no heart to goe about his worke except we be full of feeling of his favour Hee is the best child or servant that will obey out of love duty and conscience and will trust on God and wait on him for his wages and recompence Though want of apprehension of Gods favour and of feeling of comfort may be accounted a great misery yet it is not to be judged a proofe of no grace or of no true Faith Thirdly when you say you cannot feele that you have faith or hope you meane as in deede many good soules doe you cannot finde and perceive that these graces bee in you in truth which if you did you would not doubt of your salvation My answer is If faith and hope be in you then if you would judiciously enquire into your selves and feele for them you may finde and feele them and know that you have them For as certainly as he that seeth bodily may know that he seeth so he that hath the spirituall sight of Faith may know that he hath Faith Wherfore try and feele for your Faith and you shall finde whether it be in you yea or no. For this cause 1 Try whether you ever had the necessary Antecedents and Preparatives which ordinarily make way for the seed of Faith to take deepe root 2 Consider the nature of saving Faith and whether it hath wrought in you accordingly 3 Consider some consequents and certaine effects thereof First hath the Law shut you up in your owne apprehension under the curse so that you have beene afraid of Hell And hath the Spirit also convinced you of sin by the Gospell to the wounding of your conscience and to the working of true humiliation causing the heart to relent and to desire to know how to be saved and if after this you have denied your selfe and received and rested on Christ according to the nature of true Faith as followeth then you have Faith If you doubt you were never sufficiently humbled then reade Chap. 16. Sect. 6. Secondly Consider rightly the nature and proper acts of Faith lest you conceive that to be faith which is not and that to be no faith which is You may know wherein true saving Faith consists by
THE CHRISTIANS DAILY WALKE in holy SECVRITIE and PEACE Being an Answer to these Questions 1. How a man may doe each present dayes work with Christian Chearefulnesse 2. How to beare each present dayes crosse with Christian Patience Containing familiar Directions Shewing 1. How to walke with God in the whole course of a mans life 2. How to be upright in the said walking 3. How to live without taking care or thought any thing 4. How to get and keepe true peace with GOD wherein are manifold helpes to prevent and remove damnable Presumption also to quiet and to ease distressed Consciences First intended for private use now though importunity published for the common good By HENRY SCVDDER Preacher of the Word The fourth Edition corrected and amended by the Author Thine eares shall heare a voyce behind thee saying This is the way walke ye in it Isa 30. 31. LONDON Printed by I. B. for Henry Overton and are to be sold at his Shop at the entring in of Popes-head Alley out of Lumbard-street 1631. The Epistle to the READER THE searching out of Mans true happinesse hath exercised the wits and Pens of many Philosophers and Divines with a different successe 1. Some by a mistake of the end â—ave erred about the meanes All their enterprises have ended in Vaâ—itie and Vexation whilest they have caught at the shadow of fruit 〈…〉 a hedge of thornes and have neglected the trâ—e it selfe whence the â—uit might have bin gathered with â—re certaintie and lesse trouble I maruaile not at Varroes report of 288. severall opinions about this subiect when I consider Mans naturall corruption whose understanding is so darkned that as those Sodomites were weary in seeking the doore of Lâ—ts house so in vaine have the wisest Heathen sought the happinesse which though like blind men they groped after it they could never find And his spirituall appetite and taste is so distempered that hee car iuage of the chiefe good no better then a sick-man can doe of the 〈…〉 meates 2. Others having the eyes oâ— their understanding lightned and their senses exercised to discerne both good and evill have concluded that mans true happiness consists in the soules enioyment 〈…〉 God by an holy conformity and 〈…〉 communion with him For What else is true happinesse then the enioyment of 〈…〉 chiefe good And that God the chiefe good appeares in this that all the properties which raise up goodnesse to the highest top of perfections are in God onely For he is the most pure perfect uniuersall primary unchangeable communicative desirable and delightfull good the efficient patterne and utmost end of all good without whom there is neither naturall morall nor spirituall good in any creature Our conformitie to him the Apostle Peter expresseth when hee saith that the Saints are made partakers of the Divine nature That is they are renewed in the Spirit of their minde and have put on the new man which after God is created â—n righteousnesse and true holinesse So that they have 1. A new 〈…〉 in their understanding faculâ—e that they know God not oneâ— as Creatour but as Redeemer 〈…〉 of the world and whilest they beâ—â—ld as in a mirrour the glory 〈…〉 the Lord with open face they are changed into the same image from glory to glory as by the spirit of the Lord. This knowledge is begun in this life in the knowledge of Faith and shall be perfected in the life to come in the knowledge of sense this is in a glasse that shall be face to face Secondly they have a new life in their will and affections that is they have disposition and inclinations in their hearts sutable and conformable to the directions of the Word This the Apostle Paul intended when he said of the Romans that they had obeyed from the heart the forme of doctrine whereunto they were delivered He saith not which was delivered unto you but whereunto you were delivered that is the Word is as a mould whereinto being cast you are fashioned according to it Hence it is that the Saints are said to be Sealed with the holy Spirit because as the Seale leaves its print upon the Waxe so the Spirit makes holy impressions in the soule this is called the writing of the Law in our hearts in allusion whereunto the Apostle compares the hearts of beleevers to Tables the Ministers to Pennes the Spirit to Inke without which the Penne can write nothing and the affections or Conversation of these beleevers to an Epistle and this is said to be read and understood of all men when they walke as examples of the Rule 2 Cor. 3. 2. 3. Hence it is that godlinesse hath a selfe-sufficiency ioyned with it 1 Tim 6. 6. Because a man is now in Communion with GOD whose face when a man beholds in righteousnesse hee shall be satisfied with his image Ps 17. 15. Hence comes that peace of Conscience joy unspeakeable and glorious and that holy triumph and exultation of Spirit which you may obserue in the Apostle Paul Having briefly shewed what this conformitie and communion with God is I will adde one or two words more to make it manifest that onely those are truely happy which are in this estate I may spare quotations of Writers who concurre in this opinion None of sound iudgement have denyed it the best Schoole-men have determined and concluded it and there is good reason for it For 1. mans utmost end is that it may be perfectly well with him which hee can never attaine unto without communion with God who is the chiefe of Spirits and the best of goods Other things are desired as subordinate to this The body is for the Soule as the matter for its forme or the instrument for its agent Humane wisedome and morall vertues are desired not for themselues but for the fruite that is expected by them as glory pleasure and riches Fame or glory is desired not so much for it selfe as for the opinion of others whence it s called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Wordly and bodily pleasures are excessively desired as drinke in a Feaver or Dropsie better it is to be without the malady then to enioy that remedie Riches are desired not for themselves but for the sustenance of life Life is not so much desired for it selfe as for the enioyment of happinesse which when a man hath sought in the labyrinth of earthly vanities after much vexation and disquietment of spirit hee must conclude that it is onely in that truest and chiefest good which is the fountaine whence true delight first floweth and the obiect wherein at last it resteth Secondly That is mans happinesse in the possession and enioyment whereof his heart resteth best satisfied So farre a man is from true happinesse as hee is from full contentment in that which hee enioyes The Bee would not sit upon so manyflowers if shee could gather
from the marriage-bed and the like Thirdly Abstaine from all worldly labour as upon a Sabbath day for worldly busines the cares thereof doe as well as worldly delights distract the thoughts and hinder humble devotion and a ceasing there-from giveth a full opportunitie to holy imployments the whole day Therfore the Iewes were commanded to sanctifie a fast And that yearely Fast called the day of Atonement was upon perill of their lives to be kept by a forbearance of all manner of worke Now albeit the Ceremonials of that day are abolished in Christ yet forbearing worke as well as meate and drinke being of the substance of a Fast doth remaine to bee observed in all such as may properly be called Religious Fasts Thus much for the outward fast you must be as strict in observing the inward Begin the day with prayer according as I directed you to doe every day but with more than ordinary preparation with fervency and faith praying for Gods special grace to enable you to sanctifie a fast that day according to the Commandement Then apply your selfe to the maine worke of the day which hath these parts 1 unfained Humiliation 2 Reformation together with Reconciliation and 3 earnest Invocation The soule is then humbled the heart rent and truly afflicted when a man is become vile in his owne eyes through conscience of his owne unworthinesse and when his heart is full of compunction and anguish through feare of Gods displeasure with godly sorrow and holy shame in himselfe and anger against himselfe for sinne These affections stirred doe much afflict the heart To attaine this deepe humiliation know that it is to be wrought partly by awakening your Conscience through a sight of the Law and apprehension of Gods just judgements due to you for the breach of it which wil break your heart and partly by the Gospell raising up your heart to an apprehension and admiration of the love of God to you in Christ which will melt your heart and cause you the more kindely to grieve and to loath your selfe for sin and withall to conceive hope of mercy whence wil follow reconciliation reformation and holy calling upon God by prayer To worke this Humiliation there must be First Examination to find out your sinne Secondly a Accusation of your selfe with due aggravation of your sinne Thirdly Iudging and passing sentence against your selfe for sinne Sinne is the transgression of the Law and revealed will of God Wherefore for the better search and finding out of your sinne you must set before youthe glasse of the Law for your Light and Rule And if you have not learned or cannot beare in minde the heads of the manifold duties commanded or vices forbidden then get some Catalogue or Table wherein the same are set downe to your hand which you may reade with pausing and due consideration staying your thoughts most upon those particular sinnes whereof you finde your selfe most guiltie If of those many that are you doe not meete with one more fit for this purpose or which you shall like better then use this Examinatorie Table in manner as Followeth But expect not herein an enumeration of all particular sinnes which is beyond my skill nor yet of all the heads of duties or kindes of sinnes which would require a volumne but of those which are principall and most common yet hereby if your Conscience be awake it will be occasioned to bring to your thoughts those other not mentioned in the Table if you bee thereof guiltie The first Table of the Law concerneth duties of love and pietie to God the performance whereof tendeth immediately to the glory of God and mediately to the salvation and good of man The first Commandement concerneth the setting up of the onely true God to your selfe to bee your God Examining your selfe by this and so in the other Commandements thinke thus with your selfe Doe I know and acknowledge the onely true GOD to be such a one as hee hath revealed himselfe in his Word works namely One onely Infinite Immateriall Immutable Incomprehensible Spirit and Everlasting Lord God having beeing and All-sufficiencie in and from himselfe One who is simply full of all perfections and uncapable of the least defect being Wisedome Goodnesse Omnipotencie Love Truth Mercy Iustice Holinesse and whatsoever is originally and of it selfe Excellent The only Potentate King of Kings Lord of Lords of whom through whom and to whom are all things The Father Sonne and holy Ghost God blessed for ever Amen Doe I Beleeve his Word in all things related commanded promised and threatned therein and that his holy and wise Providence is in all things Have I Him and his Word in continuall remembrance Doe I esteeme and exalt God in my heart above all so that it doth humbly adore him at the very mention and thought of him making my selfe to be nothing in mine owne eyes yea esteeming all creatures to bee nothing in comparison of him Have I given religious worship to him onely Have I beleeved in him and in him onely Have I sworne by him as there hath beene cause and by him alone Have I prayed onely unto him and have I sought to him and to obtaine helpe of him only by such meanes as he hath appointed giving the glory and thanks of my being and well-being and of al other things which are good unto him Is my Conscience so convinced of the truth Authority of God that it holdeth it selfe absolutely bound to obey him in all things that it doth incite to that which is good restrain from that which is evill encourage me in well-doing and check me when I doe ill Is my will resolved upon absolute and unfained obedience to doe whatsoever God commandeth to forbeare whatsoeuer hee forbiddeth to subscribe to whatsoever he doth as well done and have I borne patiently all which either by himselfe or by any of his creatures hee hath inflicted upon me Have mine affections beene so for God that I have loved him with al my heart loving nothing more than him nothing equally to him Doe I hate every thing that is contrary to him Hath my Confidence beene onely in him and my expectation of good from him Have my desires beene to him and for him longing above all things to have communion with him Hath it beene my greatest feare to offend him or to be severed from him Hath it beene my greatest griefe and shame that I have sinned against him Have I reioyced in God as in my chiefe Good Hath mine anger risen against whatsoever I saw crosse to his glory Have I beene zealous for God And have I made him the utmost end of all mine actions Hath my whole outward man as tongue senses and all other active powers of my body been readie to professe the true God and to yeeld obedience to his will Or contrariwise Am I not guilty of denying of God in word in workes or at least in heart
fulfill their pennance injoyned if they be devout in certaine superstitions in their will-worship and voluntary religion their conscience is quiet for a time notwithstanding their soule and blacke sinnes even their abominable Idolatries I do these to wit that all this is but a blindfolding smothering and stupifying the conscience for a time laying a double and a farre greater guilt upon it it is farre from being any meanes truly to pacifie it For how can any man have true peace from any or from all such actions as are in themselves an actuall denying of the true head of the Church Iesus Christ and are a cleaving to a false head which is Antichrist And how can any man merit for himselfe when our Saviour saith when hee hath done all that is commanded hee is an unprofitable servant and hath done but his dutie which thing hee must say and acknowledge All these before mentioned build their hopes upon false grounds Those that follow build their presumptuous false hopes upon a misse-application of true grounds 7. Many acknowledge that they have sinned doe deserve eternall damnation but they say God is mercifull therefore their heart is quiet without all feare of Condemnation It is most true that God is most mercifull but how Know hee is not necessarily mercifull as if he could not choose but shew it to all men Hee is voluntarily mercifull shewing mercy onely to those unto whom he will shew mercie God could and did hate and in his justice comdemne Eâ—au notwithstanding his love and mercy to Iacob God is all iustice as well as all mercy but he hath his severall obiects of justice and mercy and hath his severall vessels of wrath and mercy into which respectively hee doth powre his wrath or mercy When God speaketh of obstinate sinners he saith that hee will not â—e mercifull to their iniquities and saith againe Hee that made them will not have mercy on them And David prayeth with a Propheticall Spirit saying to God Be not mercifull to wicked transgressours And who are these but such as hate to be reformed who are presumptuous and turne the grace of God into wantonnesse Now concerning them that alwayes erre in their heart hee hath in effect sworne that hee will shew them no mercy For hee hath sworne that they shall not enter into his rest 8. Some others goe farther they acknowledge that GODS Iustice must be satisfied and they thinke it is satisfied for them they dreaming of universall redemption by Christ who indeed is said to dye to take away the sinnes of the world This causeth their conscience to be quiet notwithstanding that they live in sinne It must be granted that Christ gave himselfe a ransome for all This ransome may be called generall and for all in some sense but how namely in respect of the common nature of man which he tooke and of the common cause of mankinde which hee undertooke and for that in it selfe it was of sufficient price to redeeme all men and it was paide in such sort that it is appliable to al without exception by the preaching and ministry of the Gospell And it was so intendedby Christ that the plaster should be as large as the sore and that there should be no defect in the remedy that is in the price or sacrifice of himselfe offered upon the Crosse by which man should be saved but that all men and each particular man might in that respect become saveable by Christ Yet doth not the salvation of all men necessarily follow hereupon nor doth it follow that all men may be saved if they will nor yet must any part of the price which CHRIST paid be held to be superfluous though many be not saved by it For it being of infinite value because he was the eternall son of God that suffered and so it was to be because he was to feele the wrath of an infinite God it receiveth not the consideration of more or lesse And the whole price and merits of Christ are not to bee applied by parts but the whole merit is to bee applyed to each particular maÌ„ that shal be saved But know that the application of the remedy and the actuall fruit of this all-sufficient ransom redoundeth to those which are saved onely by that way and meanes which God was pleased to appoint which for men of yeares iâ— faith by which Christ is actually applyed Which condition many to whom the Gospell doth come make impossibleto themselves through a wilfull refusing of the Gospell and saluation it selfe by Christ upon those termes which God doth offer it Vpon this sufficiency of Christs ransome and intention of God and Christ that it should be sufficient to save all is founded that generall offer of Christ to all and to each particular man to whom the Lord shall please to reveale the Gospell likewise that universall precept of the Gospell commanding every man to repent and beleeve in Christ Iesus as also the universall promise of salvation made to every one that shall beleeve in Christ Iesus Although in an orthodox sense â—ightly understood Christ may be said to have dyed for all yet let not every one nor any one presently presume he shall be saved For God did intend this all-sufficient price for all otherwise to his elect in Christ than to those whom he passed by not elected for he intended this not only out of a generall and common love to mankinde but out of a peculiar love to his Elect. He gave not Christ equally and alike to save all and Christ did not so lay downe his life for the Reprobate as for the Elect. Christ so dyed for all that his death might be applyable to all He so dyed for the Elect that his death might be actually applied unto them He so dyed for all that they might have an object of faith and that if they should beleeve in Christ they might be saved But he so died for the Elect that they might actually beleeve and bee saved Hence it is that Christs death becommeth effectuall to them and not to the other though sufficient for all Now that many beleeve not they having â—he means of saith the fault is in themselves through their wilfulnesse or negligence but that any beleeve to Salvation it is of Gods grace attending his Election and Christs dying out of his especiall love for them and not of the power of mans free will God sending his Gospell and giving the grace of faith new obedience to those whom of his free grace he hath ordained to eternall life both where he pleaseth and when he pleaseth Furthermore it must be considered that notwithstanding the all-sufficiencie of Christs death whereby the new Covenant of grace is ratified and confirmed the Covenant is not absolute but conditionall Now what GOD prodoundeth conditionally no man must take absolutely For God
with the Father Iesus Christ the righteous Who by being made a curse for you hath redeemed you from the curse of the whole Law Therfore from the curse due unto you for your greatest sinne Consider this againe can the sinne of a finite creature goe beyond the pardon of an infinite Creator Can a sinne in some sense finite deserve beyond the satisfaction of a price for value every way infinite Howsoever it is impossible for a notorious sinner yea for any sinner by his owne power or worth to enter into the kingdome of Heaven Yet know what is impossible with man is possible with God Is any thing too hard for the Lord Hee can alter and renew you and give you faith and repentance he can make these things possible to you that beleeve yea all things are possible to him that beleeveth I you will say if I did beleeve Why what if yet you doe not beleeve It is not hard with him you comming to his meanes of faith you harkening to the precepts and promises of the Word considering that the God of truth speaketh in them I say it is not hard for him in the use of these meanes to cause you to beleeve Wherefore neither greatnesse of sinne nor multitude of sinnes should because of their greatnes and multitude make you utterly despaire of salvation or feare Damnation When once you can beleeve or but will and desire to obey beleeve the greatest matter of feare is past I know if you never had sinned you would not feare damnation Now to a man whose sinnes are remitted his sinnes though sin dwell in him are as if they were not or never had beene For they are blotted out of Gods remembrance I even I am he saith God that blot out thy transgressions for my names sake and will not remember thy sinnes And who is like thee saith the Prophet that pardoneth iniquitie c. hee will have compassion upon us he will subdue our iniquities and will cast all our sinnes into the bottome of the Sea A debt when it is paid by the Surety putteth the principall out of debt though he payd never a peny of it The holy Ghost speaketh most comfortably saying that God doth finde no sinne in them whose sinnes are pardoned In those dayes and at that time saith the Lord the iniquitie of Israel shall be sought for and there shall be none and the sinnes of Iudah and they shall not be found but how may this be he giveth the reason for I will pardon them whom I reserve If you beleeve that God can pardon any sinne even the least you have like reason to beleeve that God can pardon all yea the greatest for if God can doe any thing he can doe every thing because he is infinite He can as easily say thy sinnes are forgiven thee all thy sinnes are forgiven thee as to say Rise and walke He can as wel save one that hath beene long dead rotten and stinking in his sinne as one newly fallen into sinne For he can as easily say Lazarus come forth as to say Damsell I say to thee Arise Lastly to make an end of removing this fear I ask thee who art troubled with the greatnesse of thy sinnes past and with feare that they can never be pardoned how stand you affected to present sinnes Doe you hate and loath them Doe you use what meanes you can to be rid of them Are you out of love with your selfe and humbled because you have harboured them to GODS dishonour and your owne hurt And doe you resolve to returne from your evill wayes and to enter upon an holy course of life if God shall please to enable you and is it your heartie desire to have this grace to be able And are you afraid and have you now a care lest you fall wittingly into sinne then let Satan and a fearefull heart object what they can you may say though my sinnes have beene great and hainous for which I loath my selfe and am ashamed yet now I see that they were not onely pardonable but are already through the rich mercy of God pardoned For these are signes of a new heart and a new minde Now to whomsoever GOD giveth the least measure of saving grace to them hath he first given pardon of sinne and will yet abundantly pardon For he saith Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts and let him returne to the LORD and he will have mercy upon him and to our God for he will abundantly pardon SECTION 3. Removing the feare that riseth from doubts that God will not pardon THere are others who make no doubt of Gods power they beleeve hee can forgive them but they feare yea peremptorily conclude that hee will not pardon them and that because they be Reprobates as they say for they see no signes of Election but all to the contrary I answer these thus When your Consciences are first wounded with a sense of Gods wrath for sinne it is very like that before you have beleeved and repented you cannot discern any signes of Gods favour but of his wrath for as yet you are not actually in state of grace and in his favour And oft-times after a man doth beleeve though there be alwaies matter enough to give proofe of his Election yet hee cannot alwayes see it If you be in either of these estates conceive the worst yet you have no reason to conclude that you are Reprobates It is true that God before the foundation of the world fully determined with himselfe whom to choose to Salvation by grace to which also hee ordained them and whom to passe by and leave in their sinnes for which he determined in his just wrath to condemne them But who these be is a secret which even in point of Election the Elect theÌ„selves cannot know untill they be effectualâ—y called nay nor being called untill by some experience and proofes of their faith holines they do understand the witnesse of the Spirit which testifieth to their spirits that they are the children of God and doe make their Calling Election which was alwayes sure in God sure to themselves But in point of reprobation namely that God hath passed them by to perish everlastingly in their wickednesse no man living can know it except he know that he hath sinned the sinne against the holy Ghost that unpardonable sinne For God calleth men at all ages and times some in their youth some in their middle age some in their old age yea some have beene called at their last houre Now let it be granted that you cannot by search into your selves finde the signes of effectuall calling which yet may bee in you though your dimme eies cannot perceive them Nay suppose that you are not yet effectually called here is no cause for you utterly to despaire and say you are Reprobates How know you
and strive to be obedient to his will as well as to beleeve his promises to hope for happinesse this iâ— to strive Now never any did thus strive in seeking to enter though it were but the last day of their life that was put backe and not received Wherefore say not it is to late But say the more time I have lost the more cause there is why now I should presently set to Religion in earnest not loose time in questioning whether I shal be accepted or no. And whereas you said you are afraid to use the meanes of Salvation for the reasons before objected hereby you may see that all this is but the malice and craft of the Divell by keeping you from the meanes to keepe you from Salvation For it is most false to say that to pray heare the Word c. is to increase your sin because you cannot performe these as you should and as you would I am sure it is a greateâ— sinne in you to for beare these necessary duties out of despaire that they shall ever profit you or that you shall be accepted oâ— God You should thinke thus if â—â— doe not use the meanes of salvation I shal certainly perish everlastingly but if I do pray heare c. I may be saved therefore in obedience to God I will doe as well as I can But little doth a man know how well hee may doe if he would indevour neither can a man conceive how acceptable a little indevour shall be if he doe but desire to be true in his indevour For as GODS power is seene in mans weakenesse so is Gods grace seene in manâ—insufficiencie When wee are weake then God in us can be strong And when wee in humilty like our services worst then through Christ God may be best pleased with them But whatsoever you doe Doe not neglect nor absent your selves from exercises of Religion for weakest observances where is truth are farre more acceptable than whole emissions Wherefore if as you say you would not increase your sinne and thereby your damnation be willing to use and to joyne with others in the use of all good meanes of Salvation then if you be not saved yet you shall have the lesse punishment But you may be assured that if in obedience to Gods Commandement you shall pray heare the Word receive the Sacrament and have communion and conversation with those that feare God you shall be saved in the end What if you doe not yet feele benefit and comfort when you use these meanes of salvation according to your desire yet you must waile the good houre both of grace and comfort even as the impotent folke did who lay waiting for the Angels comming to move the waters that they might be healed of their diseases at the â—oole of Bethesda For if when God hideth his face you will waite and looke for him then God will waite his time to be gracious and blessed shall you be that waite for him It may be it commeth justly upon you that God should make you waite his leasure and cause you to buy wisdome wise deare experience because you did once account it an easier matter to beleeve and repent and therefore you did not take the first offers but made God wait If it were thus yet despaire not of grace onely be humbled For God doth not deale with us after our sinnes nor reward us after our iniquities but according to his rich mercie and promise made to us in Christ Iesus SECTION 4. A removall of feares rising from doubts of Gods love THere are very many who have true proofes that they are the Elect of God and have reason to thinke that God not onely can but will doe them good yet because they will deny that to bee bestowed upon them and to be in them which indeed is therefore they feare and are causelesly disquieted I would have such to consider first whether they have not in them already evident proofes and sigues of GODS effectuall love towards them in Christ These will acknowledge that it is most true that if they were sure that GOD did love them they should not feare but this is all their doubt that GOD doth not love them Some give this reason of their doubt God hath afflicted them and still doth Plague them yea albeit they have professed the name of Christ they are in some thing or other chastened daily in so much that they seeme to bee in the condition of those whom GOD hath threatned to curse in every thing they put their handes unto Therefore say they GOD doth not love them Such weake and inconsiderate reasonings are incident to those whom GOD truely loveth Did not the holy men of GOD reason and conclude thus But when doe Gods Children thus It is in their haste before they be well advised what they think or say And whence is it Is it not from their ignorance and brutishnesse being carried away by sense So foolish was I and ignorant saith the Prophet c. But when they come to themselves and doe come to learne what is truth by the Word then they learn that it is not outward prosperitie will make wicked men happie neither is it outward affliction that can make a good man miserable Then they will neither applaud nor envie the prosperity of the wicked nor yet misconstrue nor repine at their own afflictions For they learne that no man can know Gods love or hatred by any outward thing that doth befall the sonnes of men in this life They learne that God doth oft smile on his enemies and that he doth oft frowne upon is angry with and doth correct those whom he dearely loveth even as a Father doth his Children They learne by the Word likewise that GOD hath excellent ends in all this even in respect of them and all for their good namely for tryall of their graces for prevention of sinne for to remove sinne bringing them to repenrance and that they might be made partakers of his Holinesse Besides herein he doth much glorifie himselfe shewing that he is wonderfull in Counsell excellent in Working causing the affliction to worke for his glory in his peoples good Yea you may learne by the Word and by your owne experience that although the childe of God in his infirmitie and passion when he is under the rod may let goe his hold of God yet that God in his love and compassion towards his childe will hold him fast by his right hand and will not leave him but will guide him with his Counsell that he may afterward receive him unto Glorie This is the way of GOD with his Children wherefore none from hence hath cause to question GODS love but to conclude it rather But I have brought afflictions upon my selfe by mine owne sin and folly I am impatient under them and am little or no whit better for
leave his Children as in another case he left Hezekiah to try them and to know what is in their hearts Fourthly God withdraweth himselfe for a time that they may learne to esteeme more highly of his favor and to desire it more when by the want of it they find by experience what an Hell it is to be without it And that they may bee more thankefull for it and be more carefull by studying to please God for to keepe it when they have it This holy use David and the Church made of Gods forsaking them as they thought for a time It made them seeke more diligently after God promising that if hee would turne to them they would not goe backe from him resolving by his grace to sticke more close unto him But know this to your comfort when God doth most withdraw himselfe and forsake you it is but in part and in seeming and but for a time He may for the causes before rendred turne away his face and forbeare to shew his loving countenance but he will not take his loving kindnesse utterly from you nor suffer his faithfulnesse to faile What God said to his afflicted Church that hee saith to every afflicted member thereof For a small moment have I forsaken thee but with great mercies will I gather thee In a little wrath have I hid my face from thee for a moment but with everlasting kindnesse will I have mercy on thee saith the LORD thy Redeemer Hence it is that in your greatest extremities your faith and hope shall secretly though you feele not their working preserve you from utter despaire As it was with David and with our Blessed Saviour who albeit these words of theirs to God Why hast thou forsaken mee argued feare and want of sense of Gods love yet these words My God my God doe argue a secret affiance and hope And whereas you say that no mans griefe or troubles are like yours partly by reason of outward afflictions and partly by inward temptations and distresses give mee leave to deale plainely with you It is a foolish and a most false speech Talke with a thousand thus troubled they will all say thus No mans case was ever as mine is Nor so bad will any that have but common sense thinke this to be true Most of these must needs be deceived You feele your owne distresse but you cannot fully know what another feeleth If you would rightly looke into the distresses of others who were better than your selves according as they are recorded in the Scripture you would not thus thinke As for outward afflictions upon whom did God ever lay his hand more heavie then on his servant Iob Had not S Paul also his trouble without of all sorts and terrours within c. And if you consider sorrowes feares and distresses of all sorts were yours such as Davids were or more than his I pray what meane these and many moe the like speeches My bones are vexed my soule is vexed but thou O Lord how long I am weary with my groaning mine eye is consumed with griefe it waxeth old Why standest thou a farre off Why hidest thou thy selfe in time of trouble How long wilt thou forget mee Lord for ever How long wilt thou hide thy face from me I am poured out like water and all my bones are out of ioynt My heart is like waxe it is melted in the midst of my bowels My strength is dryed up like a potsheard my tongue cleaveth to my iawes and thou hast brought me to the dust of death My bones waxe old through roaring all the day For day and night thy hand was heavie upon me There is no soundnesse in my flesh because of thine anger neither is their any rest in my bones because of my sinne Mine iniquities that is the punishment of mine iniquities are gone over my head they are too heavie for me Thus and much more doth he complaine I am weary of my crying my throat is dry Mine eyes faile while I wait for my God So Asaph My sore ran and ceased not my soule refused to be comforted What thinke you now Were not Iob Paul and David in Gods love and favour notwithstanding all this It may be you will reply howsoever the matter of their trouble might be greater than yours yet they could remember God they could pray to him they had faith and confidence in God in their distresses al which you want therefore herein your case is worse than theirs Consider your selves well I speake onely to you that are wounded at the very heart for sinne and it is to be hoped that in some measure you shall find the like grace faith and confidence in you which was in thē If you see it not bee grieved for the want thereof Indevour to doe as you say they did in their distresses onely be not discouraged and all shall bee well But take notice I pray you that sometimes David neither did nor could pray as he conceived of his owne prayer any otherwise than in roaring and complaining at which time he saith hee kept silence But when hee could confesse his sins and pray then hee had some apprehension that God had forgiven him his sinne And for all Asaphs remembring of God yet even then he was troubled and his spirit was over-whelmed and hee saith his soule refused comfort and David saith unto God when wilt thou comfort mee I grant it was his fault yet it was such a fault as was incident to one beloved of God Moreover I deny not but that Iob and David had faith and hope in God but these graces in them were of times over-clouded with unbelife and distrust as doth appeare in their many passionate distempers at which times yet their faith appeared to others in their good speeches and actions intermingled rather then to themselves And the Prophet confesseth that those his faithlesse complaints were in his haste and from his infirmities How say you now Is it not thus with you Are you not like others of Gods children Off and on up and downe you would pray and cannot you would beleeve but as you thinke cannot you would have comfort but cannot feele it Onely you feele a secret support now and then and now and then you doe see and feele a glimpse of GODS light and comfort for which you must be thankefull which you must cherish by all meanes with which you must rest contented waiting untill God give you more You should know and consider that this is an old cunning device of Satan to make you beleeve that your case is worse or at least much different from the case of any others because hee knoweth that while he holdeth you thus conceited no common remedy which did cure and comfort others can cure and comfort you For you will still aske Was ever any as I am And if Gods
was felt witnesse your owne experience for before the hammer and fire of the Word was applyed to your hearts you had no sense of it and never complained thereof You must not call a heavie heart a hard heart you must not call a heart wherein is a sense of an indisposition to good a hard heart except onely in â—omparison of that softnesse which is in it sometimes and which it shall attaine unto when it shall bee perfectly sanctified in which respect it may bee called hard Whosoever hath his will so wrought upon by the Word that it is bent to obey GODS will if he knew how and if he had power this man whatsoever hardâ—esse hee feeleth his heart is soft not hard The Apostle had a heart held in and clogged with the flesh and the law of his members that it made him to thinke himselfe wretched because hee could not bee fully deliverd from it yet wee know his heart was not an hard heart Amongst those that are sanctified there remaineth more hardnesse in the heart of some than in others and what with the committing of grosse sinnes and a cursorie and slight doing of good duties and through neglect of meanes to soften it the same mens hearts are harder at one time than at another of which they have cause to complaine and for which they have cause to bee humbled and to use all meanes to soften it But it is false and dangerous hence to conclude that such are not in state of grace because of such hardnesse in the heart For as GODS perfectest Children on earth know but in part and beleeve but in part So their hearts are softened but in part SECTION 7. Removall of feares rising from doubts about falling from Grace THere yet remaine many who though they be driven up into so narrow a corner that they cannot reply to the answers given to take away their false feares and doubts but they are inforced to yeeld that they find that they now are or at least have beene in state of grace they now see they have beleeved and have beene and it may bee now are sanctified yet this they feare that they either are already fallen or shall not persevere but shall fall away before they dye Touching falling away from grace first know that of those that give their names to Christ in outward profession there are two sorts The first sort are such who have received onely the common gifts of the Spirit as first illumination of the mind to know the mystery of Salvation by Christ and truâ—y to assent unto it Secondly Together with this knowledge is wrought in them by the same spirit a â—â—â—hter impression upon the affections which the Scripture calleth a taste of the heavenly gift and of the good Word of GOD and of the powers of the world to come By these gifts of the Spirit the souâ—es of these men are raised to an abilitie to doe more than nature and meere education can helpe them unto carrying them further then nature or art can doe by working in them a kinde of spirituall change in their affections and a kinde of reformation of their lives But yet all this while they are not ingrafted into Christ neither are deepely rooted as the Corne in good grouÌ„d nor yet are throughly changed and renewed in the inward man they have at best only a formâ— of godlinesse but have not the power thereof Now these men may and oft doe fall away not onely into some particular grosse sinnes of which they were sometimes after a sort washed but into a course of sinning falling from the very forme of godlinesse and may so utterly loose thoâ—e gifts received that they may turne Papists Anabaptists or may fall into any oâ—her Heresie and in the end become very Apostates yet this is not properly a falling from grace It is onely a falling away from the common graces or gifts of the Sâ—irit and from those graces which they did seeme to have and which the Church out of her charitie did judge them to have but they fall not from true saving grace for they neuer had any For if ever they had beene indeed incorporated into Christ Iesus and had beene sound members of his body and in this sense had ever beene of us as the Apostle Iohn speaketh then they should never have departed from us but should no doubt have continued with us The second sort of such as have given their names to Christ are such as are indued with true iustifying faith and saving knowledge and are renewed in the spirit of their minde whereby through the gracious and powerful working of the sanctifying Spirit the Word maketh a deeper impression upon the will and the affections causing them not onely to taste but which is much more to feed and to drinke deepe of the heavenly gift and of the good word of GOD and of the powers of the world to come so as to digest them unto the very changing and transforming them by the renewing of their mindes and unto the sanctifying of them throughout in their whole man both in spirit soule and bodie so that CHRIST is indeed formed in them and they are become new creatures being made partakers of the divine nature Now concerning these It is not possible that any of them should fall away either wholly or for ever Yet it must bee granted that they may decline and fall backe so farre as to grieve the good spirit of GOD and to offend and provoke God very much against them and to make themselves guiltie of eternall death They may fall so farre as to interrupt the exercise of their faith wound their Conscience and may loose for a time the sense of Gods favour and may cause him like a wise and good father in his iust anger to chide correct threaten them making them beleeve hee will turne them out of doores never to receive them into his heavenly Kingdome untill by renewing their faith and repentance they returne into the right way and doe recover GODS lo-ving countenance towards them againe That you may understand and beleeve this the better consider what grace God giveth unto his elect and how and from what they may fill also you must observe well the difference that is betweene the sinning of the regenerate and unregenerate together with their different condition wherin they stand while they are in their sinnes In the first act of Conversion I speake of men of yeeres and discretion GOD by his Word through his holy Spirit doth infuse an habit of holinesse namely an habit of Faith and all other saving graces this every childe of GOD receiveth when he receiveth that holy annointing of the spirit that which the Scripture calieth the Seede remaining in him Secondly God by his gracious meanes and ordinances of the Gospell doth increase this habit and these graces Now because every man
it is but you have conceits other wise you have no feeling of comfort and in your sense to you it is otherwise then either the Scripture or the Ministers speake Now when you will preferre your owne opinion and sense such as it is before the iudgement of Gods word of truth and before the iudgement of Gods Ministers iudging according to this word Are you not highly conceited of your owne opinion And are you not strangely proud though it may be you thought otherwise Wherefore if you understand things aright you must have a meane conceit of your owne understanding of your owne opinion and of your owne sense For as you must deny your goodnesse and be poore in respect of conceit of any goodnesse in you if you would ever looke to have any goodnesse from Christ so you must deny your owne opinion knowledge sense and wisedome if you would know spirituall things aright and would become wise through Christ And that it may appeare now that you are not too well conceited of your owne opinion touching your estate make use in this case of Experienced Christians but especially of iudicious and godly Ministers Let not feare either of troubling them nor yet of shaming your selfe hinder you But do it according to these directions First Acquaint such a one with your case betimes keepe it not to your selfe too long For then like a bone long out of joynt and a festred wound it will not be so well nor so easily cured beside the vexation in the meane time Secondly deale plainely truely and fully in setting downe the cause of your trouble not doing as many telling one part of your griefe and not another which hath beene the cause that they have gone away without comfort Either tell all or none in this case If you thinke him not faithfull reveale nothing thereof to him If you judge him a fit man then shew all as you will doe your bodily maladies and diseases to a Surgeon or Physician if you would have them cured Thirdly Beleeve them rather than your selves in this case hearken to them and make use of their judgement and experience and bee not presumptuous of your owne understanding and feeling In times of your feares and doubts be not rash and sudden in judging your selves The Devill is a jugler and your eyes be dazeled and of all men you are the most unfit and incompetent to iudge of your selves in this case For when groundlesse suspition and causelesse feares have like a head-strong Colt got a head and hath caught the bit in his teeth it will like to other passions carry you head long whither it listeth contrary to al right reason and understanding In such suspicion feare of your estate you are like a iealous woman in the fit of her jealousie and feare of her husbands unfaithfulnesse she will picke matter out of every thing he doth though he study to give her no occasion of suspition to increase her suspition of him If hee be somewhat strange and austere then she saith he loveth her not but others better If he be kinde to her then she thinkes that this is but to dazel blind her eyes that hee may without suspition give himselfe to other women Deale now ingenuously and answer whether it is not or whether it hath not beene so with you I pray marke your absurd and contrary reasonings When you prosper thence you inferre sure God doth not love mee for whom he loveth he correcteth When God whips you well for this and doth cast you into grievous afflictions thence you conclude sure God is wroth with mee and doth not love mee If you bee troubled in Conscience Oh then GOD writes bitter things against you you can have no peace And when he giveth you quiet of minde Oh then you feare all riseth from presumption your case is naught and it wasbetter with you when you had trouble in minde Is it not thus Are you not ashamed that you have beene thus senselesse and absurd in your owne reasonings and yet this understanding reason and sense of yours must be harkned unto before the truth of Gods Word and before the iudgement of all men though never so judicious Will any body that is wise trust such a judgement If an excellent Physitian for others is seldome found to be the best Physitian for himselfe in a dangerous sicknesse but will make use of one it may be inferiour in judgement in Physicke to himselfe for his owne wits be not so well his owne in his owne case then me thinkes it should be your wisedome to make use of the judgement of others and not follow your owne sense But you will say shall I thinke otherwise of my selfe than I feele I answer I in some cases or else you will bee counted a wilfull foole as in the case of an Ague you feele your drinke to be of an odde rellish before you had your ague you knew it was well rellished and those which bring it tell you it is the same standers by taste it for you and say it is the same and that it is excellently well relished I hope you are wiser in such a case as this then to conclude according to your feeling and taste every one seeth that the fault was in your palate not in the drinke Even so it is with you when the palate of your understanding is distempered with a shaking fit of groundlesse and faithlesse feare wherefore in this state deny your owne sense and trust not your owne iudgement but hearken unto thâ— judgement of other men And the rather because GOD doth therefore comfort men and give them experience of his consolations that they may comfort other in like case Also hee hath given commandement â—o his more understanding more confirmed children that they should comfort you giving you to understand how it is with you in the matter of yous â—onk better than you can know of your selves Nay more God hath given to his Ministers â—he tongue of the learned to speake a word in due season to the soule that is wearie Should not the judgements of these be regarded But which is most of all God hath not onely given to Ministers skill to discerne your state better than your selves but hath given power and authority when they shall see cause in his name to absolve you and to assure you that if it bee with you according as you doe thus and thus relate your state to be you are in Gods favour and in state of grace I meane not that you should hang your faith upon any mans or any mens judgement but when that men judicious being in better case to judge of you then you are to judge of your selves shall by the Word of God and by authoritie from him give you hope and comforts you ought to comfort your selves by these meanes Thus much I have said that your judgement might be fitted to
also in praying much for peace unto him who is the God of peace the Father of mercies and the God of all consolation then shall you have peace and much good shall be unto you For it is GOD that speaketh peace to his people wherefore assuredly his answer to him that asketh peace will be an answer of peace even this peace which passeth all understanding GOD shall give you peace and with it glory even a glorious peace Thus having directed my Pen not onely to you in particular in this tract of peace but sith it is judged fit to be publike both in this and the other directions to a daily walke unto all other that need and desire it you may see the excellency of peace together with the impediments furtherances and meanes of peace Shâ—nne the Impediments improve the furtherances and I dare assure you that albeit in this life you may still feele a conflict betweene faith and doubting betweene hope and feare and betweene peace and trouble of minde yet in the end you shall have perfect peace and in the meane time though I cannot promise you to have alwaies that peace which will afford you sense of ioy yet God hath promised that you shal have that which shall keepe your hearts and mindes in Christ And what would you have more Thus I have endevoured to satisfie your godly desire I have of purpose written much in as few words as the points in hand would well beare I did it the rather not onely because writing is tedious to mee but because I know that you are established already in these truths wherefore these may be sufficient to helpe you unto distinct notions of the most necessarie things that belong to a Christian life and to put you in remembrance I have omitted many allegations of Scriptures and have forborne to write out most that are alleaged It was partly for haste partly for mine owne ease and partly because it would have made this Booke to be too big for a vade mecum to carry about with you but I considered that you are much conversant and well read in the Scriptures and you may turne to the places both in the line and in the marâ—ent for you will finde that for the most part the life of each point in hand lyeth hid in the Text of the Scripture alledged I thanke God I have reaped much benefit to my self in studying and Penning these directions I pray God that â—ou may reap much good in reading of them Now the God of hope fill you with all ioy and peace in beleeving And the God of peace that brought againe from the dead our Lord Iesus that great Shepheard of the Sheepe by the bloud of the everlasting Covenant make you perfect in every good worke to doe his will working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight through Iesus Christ to whom be glory for ever and ever Amen A Table of the chiefe things observable in this BOOKE A DOubts of Gods love because of grievous Afflictions removed 554 In what cases God usually doth not Afflict his children 559 The ends why God doth grievously Afflict his children 563 A Caution in becomming All things to all men 215 How to walke with God Alone 184 Fit meditations when we Apparell our selves 21 Rules how to Apparell our selves 22 Cautious to the directions about Arising and apparelling 27 How to Awake with God 19 Fit meditations when wee Awake and arise 21 22 B Fit meditations at going to Bed before sleepe 180 When a man loveth Brotherly 234 Benefits of Brotherly love 233 How Brotherly love is expressed 235 Meanes to live and love Brotherly 239 Motives to Brotherly love and communion of Saints 242 C How a man should carry himselfe as before God in his particular Calling 55 Difference betweene Care and Carefulnesse 384 Adescription of lawfull Care ib. A description of Carefulnesse ib. True properties of provident care whereby it is differenced from Carefulnesse 387 c. When Cares of this life are inordinate 393 Gods children should not take thought or be carefull about any thing 396 Disswasives from carefulnesse 399 Why no man should be Carefull about earthly things ibid Why no man must care about successe in any thing 401 The evill effects of Caring about successe in any thing 405 Meanes to be free from Carefulnesse 409 The condition of a true Christian even when he hath sinned differeth from that of a formal Christian when he sinneth 688 How a man should be have himselfe in all Company 213 How a man should make good use to himselfe by all Company 218 Meanes of good speech and carriage in all Company 225 Rules wherby a man may well order himselfe in evil Company 228 How to be kept from infection of sin by bad Company 231 How to demeane a mans selfe in good Company 234 What is to be done after a man hath beene in Company 244 Motives to Brotherly love and Communion of Saints 242 How a man may know that he hath beene sufficiently humbled and prepared for Conversion 630 None can know that the time of his Conversion is past 542 None must bee troubled though they know not when nor by whom they were Converted 631 What grace God giveth in the first Conversion 686 What Conversion and true repentance is 474 Men over-gone with trouble of Conscience are most unfit to iudge of their owne estate 767 An excellent helpe to peace of Conscience in the former câ—se 765 c. When the Conscience is troubled it is good to lay it open to some faithfull and skilfull Christian ibid Rules touching opening a mans state to others when the Conscience is troubled ibid How to keepe the Conscience tender 480. 679 How to walke as in Gods sight under Crosses in all adversity 273 Rules how to passe by or beare lighter Crosses 274 Rules how to beare all Crosses 275 Of bearing Crosses thankefully 313 Of bearing Crosses fruitfully ib D How to begin the Day well 28 29 How to walke in the sequell of the Day after it is well begun 53 How to end the Day well 179 Reasons why naturally all are unwilling to Dye 585 Reasons why some are more fearefull to Die than others ibid Causes why Christians are too unwilling to Dye 587 Helpes against feare of Death 588 Difference betweene the sinning of the regenerate and unregenerate 688 E Rules for Eating and drinking 64 In what order a man should ascend to the knowledge of his Election 518 Whence it is that the Elect may backeslide aud how farre 685 The Elect never fall from the first infused grace 688 Some thinke they Endevour to doe well yet doe not 324 What Endevour is in generall ibid Some thinke they Endevour not when yet they doe 326 What is true Endevour ibid A mans Endevour in some caseâ— may be as true when yet he cannot performe it as in some other cases when he can performe it to the full 327 The