THE SOVLES PREPARATION FOR CHRIST OR A TREATISE OF CONTRITION Wherein is discovered How God breaks the heart and wounds the Soule in the conversion of a Sinner to Himselfe PSAL. 51.17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit A broken and a contrite heart O God thou wilt not despise LONDON Printed for ROBERT DAVVLMAN at the signe of the Brazen-serpent in Pauls Churchyard 1632. A TABLE OF THE CONTENTS A ALl-sufficiencie in God a meanes to enlighten our dead hope 214. Application of particular sins a way to make us see them 64. How the word affects when applied 65. then hitting soonest 65. sinking deepest 67. for this it is ministers are so hated 68. B Bondage the spirit of bondage how it helps to the sight of sin 124. Broken heart is made by meditatioÌ„ of the word preached C Carnall men can give no comfort to wounded consciences 220. 240. Christ three grounds why the soule flies not to Christ 118. Labour to see the necessitie of Christ 122. sight of sinne a meanes to drive us to Christ. 117. Common depravation of our nature no plea for us to slight sinne 40. Confession of sinne needfull for the cure thereof 57. It must be open and free 219. a large confession may come from a wicked man 221. when hypocriticall 225. the difference betweene true and false confession 227. popish confession what 230. To hide our sinne a fearefull and dangerous sinne 235. To what persons how they should be qualified that we must confesse unto 239. Motives 241. Companions when evill a great hindrance to the working of grace and bow 95. Conscience a help to meditation 123. Consideration of Gods goodnesse a meanes to breake our hearts 101. Contrition what 2. a contrice heart acceptable 163 164. this contrition is wrought in all though not in the same manner and measure 170. Conviction of the soule for sinne â—ow 23. why God convinces 31. meanes of conviction 36. other meanes to worke sound conviction 200. D Death of sinne must be in us 256. Delight in sinne damnable 190 191 192. F Freenesse of Gods promises revives our hope 215. G God is All-sufficient 6. mercifull 6.210 Gods goodnesse considered a meanes to breake the heart 101. so also his justice 103. Gods abundant mercy a meanes to revive our hope 217 H Heart which feares discovery is evill 79. It is broken by meditation on the word preached 81. so also by consideration of Gods goodnesse 101. so also of his justice 103. what is meant by heart here 130. when our hearts are like stones 181. an ignorant heart is a naughty heart 33. Hatred of sin what 246. differences betweene sorrow for him and hatred of sinne 241. wherein this hatred consists 250. Help must be conveied to a wounded soule 190. Hearing the word how we may with profit 76. Hell torments how in some sort to judge of them 55. Hiding sinne a fearefull sinne 80. Hope supports the hearts of the sorrowfull 205. an antidote against despaire 208. It incourageth our indeavors 209. the soules anchor 112 how it is maintained and fed 214. I Ignorant heart is a naughty heart 33. Iustice of God a meanes to breake the heart 10 K Kindnesse of God a meanes to breake the heart 101. Knowledge of our sinne a meanes of conviction for it 377. L Law a meanes to convince us of sinne 38. M Meditation of Gods word preacht a meanes to breake our hearts 81. what it is and how to be done 83. it brings the word more powerfull to the heart and there fastens it 88. the lamentable neglect of this duty lamented câ—nsured 93. the comfort that ariseth from this duty 98. the ground the manner power thereof 100. how to be followed 109. when damped in us how revived 122. Mercy with what cautions a prophane person may seeke it 5. abundant mercy in God a meanes to revive our hope 217. God is mercifull 210. Ministers must first humble before lift up 61. they are much based for speciall application 6â— playn preaching is the best way 71. they should be skilfull mercifull faithfull men 240. N Nature no plea to help us to lessen our sinnes 41. Nature of God is tender and mercifull 210. O Opposites to the word deeply plagued 127. P Pitty belongs to wounded and troubled consciences 183. c. Popish divices cannot help a wounded conscience 191. Pricking or piercing the heart wherein it consists 129. Promise of God being free lifes up the head and revives hope 215. R Repentance not in our owne power 52. Reprehension 〈◊〉 sharpe a meanes to move us to see our sinnes 64. S Shifts a sinner uses to beate backe the power of the word 40 Sinne must be truly seene before the heart is broken 11. what this sight of sinne is 12. the properties thereof 14 the evill of sinne is farre greater then the evill of punishment reason thereof 15. It is a departing from God 19. why men cannot see the vilenesse of their sinne 20. how to see them convictingly 36 grounds why we slight our sinnes 40. particular sinnes closely applyed a meanes to see them 64. sight of sinne a meanes to drive us to Christ 117. sinne wounds the soule why 158. when we make sinne our God 174. all are not alike wounded for sinne 178. A truly sorrowfull soule hath a restlesse distast of sinne 245. Sinners in an high degree may be reconciled 4 All sinners are fighters against God 18. open and scandalous sinners commonly have a greater measure of sorrow 179. Soule how prepared for Christ 247. when it is said truly to be broken 255. Sorrow if godly it is a deep sorrow 134. how wrought 135. how procured 142. how the soule should behave it selfe under this sorrow 150. It is restlesse till it have obtained mercy 155. It drives unto God 157. this makes us highly to prize Christ 164. whether sorrow for sinne is a worke of saving grace 165. how sorrow of preparation is knowne and how sorrow of sanctification 167. whether this sorrow is wrought alike in all 170. not in the same manner 177. when sorrow is made a maske to cover sinne 193. It must not be slight but solid 198. the fruits thereof 203. Spirit of bondage how it helps to see sinne 1â—4 T Thoughts that are sinfull how produced 44. how and in what respects sinne in thought is more vile 44. W Word must be submitted unto 39â— and never shifted off 40. the threats must not be shifed off 48. when closely applyed it much affects 64 65. the word preacht must be meditated on 81. the opposers of the word in great danger 127. Worthinesse in our selves none to moue Christ to pitty us 119. Wrath of God is an insupportable burthen 56. Places of Scripture inlightned Cap. ver pag. Deut. 1.14.51 32.6.102 Iosua 7.24.211 1 Ki. 20.21.64 2 Cr. 36.16.127 Iudg. 1.12.101 Iob 5. last 85 6.12 â—6 7.20.30 13.27.25 14.17.22 19.23.184 22.13.48 36.6.126 9.12 10. ib. 40.3.39 Ps. 39.24.255 38.2.2 Ps. 58.8.77 74.4.2
would give any thing I might live under his ministery It is just Ahabs old humour he could sute seasonably with foure hundred false Prophets and if there had beene five thousand more they should all have been accepted of him but when Iehosaphat said Is there never another Prophet of the Lord Oh yes saith Ahab there is one Micaiah but I hate him he never spake good to me that is he never soothes me up So it was the temper of the people mentioned in the Acts when the Apostle saw they were a rebellious people he deales plainely with them but they cryed Away with such a fellow he is not worthy to live What said they then it seemes we shall be cast off from the Lord and be his people no more they were not able to beare that people in this case deale with Gods faithfull ministers as the widdow of Sarepta did whē the Prophet had told her that the meale in the barrell and the oyle in the cruse should not decrease all this while he was welcome but when her child was dead Oh what have I to doe with thee thou man of God thinking indeed that the Prophet had killed her sonne So all the while we set the doores open wide that all the drunkards and adulterers in the country may goe to heaven you like us well enough and we are as welcome as may be and we are marvellous good preachers and you thinke us fit for the pulpit but if we come once to lay sinne to your charge and to threaten condemnation for it to say If God be in heaven you shall never come there if you continue in your sinnes oh then they are up in armes and say as the widdow did Are you come to slay our soules and awaken our consciences beloved this argues a spirit that never found the power of the word But it is our duties and we must doe it and howsoever it is not accepted of the wicked yet it shall finde entertainment with God and he shall give us our reward at that great day Secondly it is a word of reproofe suffer me to deale plainly in this kinde if particular application be so powerfull and so profitable let me speake a word of my selfe and to my fellow-brethren It falls heavy on us that are not willing to practice the same but rather oppose it in others that desire to doe it this plain and particular application is accounted a matter of sillinesse and want of wisedome and rashnesse and a thing which befits not a pulpit but a mans words must be sweet and toothsome and he must have a tender hand over men whosoever they be be they never so prophane Nay I dare say if the Devill himselfe were here he 〈◊〉 not be troubled ministers must lay bolsters under mens heads and sow pillowes under their elbowes that they may sit easily and not trouble drunkards and adulterers but let them be still in their sins and so let them goe downe to hell this is that which the Devill loves and takes much content in And it is certaine if he could prevaile no other course should be taken up if a great man be present or a patron that we looke for a living from if my eares had not heard it I could not have beleeved it it is strange to thinke how they daube this over If their sinnes be so grosse that all the Congregation would cry shame if he did not reproofe them what will they say reprove you we will not we dare not but beseech you and desire you as every man hath his infirmitie a word to the wise is sufficient c. I blame my selfe so farre as my base feare possesseth me but brethren what will become of preaching in conclusion if this may take no place in the hearts of people and yet notwithstanding all this there is one thing to be considered if there be but any upright hearted minister or sincere Christian that is more exact then ordinary what will the carnall ministers doe though they have no reason in the text no ground in the word to warrant them though they cannot condemne a poore Christian upon good grounds yet they will invent new wayes and wrest the Text to dishonour Gods name and then in all bitternes they can vent themselves against faithfull Christians and conscionable ministers and hence the hands of the wicked are strengthened and the hearts of Gods people are much daunted and the Gospell of Jesus Christ prevailes not in the heart of such as it is preached unto Let us see what it is that God requires of us marke the severe charge and command that the Apostle gives his scholar Timothy I charge thee before God and the Lord Iesus Christ who shall Iudge the quicke and the dead preach the word be instant in season and out of season reprove rebuke as if he had said the stubborne hearts of men need this specially reproving and therefore doing this is the maine thing that God requires and the maine end for which the word serves Sharp reproofes makes sound Christians He that heales overly hurts more then he heales are there not many to be humbled and are there not many lusts raigning in the hearts of men and women Let us therefore throw away this shamfull hiding and make our ministery knowne to the soules of those to whom we speake Object But some will object against this preaching that it is nothing but the rashnes of mens spirits a kind of rayling that fits not a pulpit Answ. To this I answere the Prophets of God ever used and practised it and the holy Apostles which were inspired in an extraordinarie measure of the spirit did imitate Christ and his Prophets and God commanded Esay to lift up his voice as a trumpet and shew my people their transgressions and the house of Iacob their sinnes That is tell the drunkard and adulterer of their sinnes Did Christ and his Apostles raile Are these men onely wise Oh fearefull that the soules of men should be so desperately transported against the truth of God you that have had any such thoughts against the power of God in the ministery of the word repent and pray that if it be possible the words of your mouthes and thoughts of your hearts may be forgiven The Apostles and Christ himselfe used this kind of teaching Woe unto you Scribes and Pharisies seven times together if Christ had now lived you would have said he had railed Oh fearefull I tell you this is the next sinne against the sinne of the holy Ghost Object Ay but Secondly they object in this last age of the world there is a difference to be put it is true if men were not taught this were necessary but now in these times of knowledge what needs all this adoe all those troubles and reproofes what shall we make men to be chamlings to mince their meat for them no set their meate set the word before them and
your joviall company and ryoting persons there is nothing under heaven that takes off the minde more from musing and the understanding from waighing a mans evill throughly therefore this must needs be a marvelous impediment and hinderance to those that indeavour to walke uprightly before God in any measure Amos. 6.5 There are rules of their revaldry set downe they thrust and put away the day of the Lord farre from them that is the first law they make the first statute they enact thinke not of sinne now and meditate not of judgement now but come say they cast care away fling away and casheer those melancholly imaginations we have many failings let us not therefore be pondering of them and make our selves so much the more miserable this day shall be as yesterday and to morrow as to day no sorrow nor judgement no sinne now considered And this is remarkable and if a poore soule in that drunken distemper should be smitten by the hand of God and should suggest these words to his drunken companions We are all here merry and Jolly and let out our hearts in delight but for all this God will bring us to judgement the eyes of God seeth our now drinking and bezeling and the eare of God heareth our blasphemies and swearing and for these we shall one day be plagued why this should spoyle all the sport and jollity they could not be able to beare him but they would presētly fling him out of doores this is that which baneth many a soule therefore take notice of it if any of you have had a sight of sin marke if a drunkard go aside hang the winge a little marke what men doe if they can but once get him into their cōpany make him shake off those dumps and runne on in his former course then this hinders him from meditating on his sinnes and from being prepared for Christ and hence it is that many a poore soule that hath had the fire kindled the terrour that the Lord hath let into his soule would have hūbled his proud stomacke melted his stubborne heart but partly drunkennesse on the one side and merriness on another tooke away all the amazement whereby the soule might have beene wrought upon and he have received everlasting salvation Therfore thinke of it It was the course the Scripture observed in the lamenting Church Zach. 12.12 The house of David apart and their wives apart the house of Nathan apart and their wives apart There is no casting up of account in a crowd but if a man will cast up his account if he will see his sins cōsider his base practices he must go aside by himselfe loose occasions and vaine occasions withdraw the minde and plucke off the soule from seeing the evill and affecting the heart with it Therefore the Apostle Peter a little beyond my text when he saw the Jewes were affected with that he had delivered and that their hearts were touched when they asked him what they should doe he saith save your selves from this untoward generation God hath now touched your hearts suffer not Satan by these wicked Instrumēts of his to steale the terrour of God out of your harts for your drunken companions are like nothing else but those ravenous foules spoken of by Christ that deuoured the seed that fell by the way side the foule is the Devill the seed is the word of God now the Devill doth not plucke this out of the soule himselfe alone but often by cursed companions the ale-house is the bush that harbours those ravenous beasts and drunken companions are those The Devill useth to pluck out this good seed out of the heart therefore as you love your soules suffer not your selves to be drawne away by these cursed wretches do not suffer them to steale the worke of Gods spirit away which he hath wrought in your hearts this I observe to checke that cursed practice of men who when a man is troubled send him to play at cards or dice or the like which is the greatest meanes to hinder the worke of God in their hearts Thirdly seeing meditation brings marvelous comfort and profit to our soules then what remaines if I were silent the word it selfe would speake and the profit of the duty would speake and bring your hearts to addresse your soules to this you are therefore to be exhorted since you see what it is that God requires that with speed you set upon it and that with care and conscience you labour to persevere in the performance therof I beseech you thinke of it what is more usuall in the world then this that men should make sleight and little account of their sinnes nay to goe boult upright under those execrable abominations wherfore they stand guilty before God Looke as it was with Sampson he went away with the gates of Gaza and made nothing of them so there are many that carrie the gates of hell upon their backes as drunkennesse adultery and yet they feare not nor are affrighted thereat nay Gods owne servants that desire to looke towards Zion Is not this your complaint many times I cannot finde sinne heavy I confesse the word discovers it and reveales it but I cannot be troubled for it I cannot finde my soule burthened with it sinne is not heavy unto me but I carrie it away easily and make no bones of the matter though proud and leud and carelesse and untoward yet my hart is not apprehensive of the weight of it Let me speake unto you Are you not therfore here hindred in the way God requires of you because you weigh not ponder not those evill wayes you stād guiltie of before God but you are better content to see them and slight thē then to remember them lay them aside I beseech you to take notice of it Looke as it is with men in the world if five hundred pound weight bee laid on the ground if a man never plucke at it he shall not feele the weight of it your sinnes are not many hundreds but many thousand weights the least vaine thought you ever imagined the least idle word that ever you uttered are weight enough to presse your soules downe into everlasting perdition and therefore so many sinnes so great and so constantly committed against so much knowledge against so many comforts and incouragements against so many vowes and protestations are much more heavy and yet you see them nor the reason is you see thē not you weigh not pride you weigh not malice you weigh not dead heartednesse if you would weigh them seriously and consider of them thoroughly you would find that they were heavier then the sand on the sea shore but you will say how should we come to meditate on our sinnes that we may be comforted for this is the onely way But what course shall we take that we may be burdened here lies the skill Now for the opening of the point I will discover three things
his sinnes on the teaster of his bed this is thy covetousnesse and thy pride and for these thou shalt be plagued Looke upon these sinnes they are thine owne thou hast deserved punishments to be inflicted upon thee for them thus we see the grouÌ„ds how meditation must be raised We see how we may bring meditation home to the heart we see how also we may get the life power of meditation I thought to have propounded an example that you may see the practice of the truth delivered as imagine it were the sinne of the opposing of the word I would breake my soule withall first by meditation cast the compasse of this sin looke into the word see whatsoever the word hath revealed of this sinne The text saith by this meanes the anger of the Lord is marvelously provoked in so much that he will laugh at the destruction of such Nay by this meanes Christ himselfe is despised nay our condemnation is hereby sealed irrecoverably 2. Chron. 36.16 the text saith They despised Gods word till the wrath of the Lord arose and there was no remedy Nay hereby we aggravate our condeÌ„nation For Christ saith Mat. 11.22 Woe be to thee Bethsayda Woe be to thee Chorazin for if the mightie workes which have beene done in thee had beene done in Tyre and Sidon they would have repented in dust and ashes But it shall be easier for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgement then for thee Nay the Author to the Hebrewes saith 2.3 How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation The case of such a man is desperate how shall we escape Thus you see the reach how farre this sinne goeth gather up all then and tell your hearts of this when they rebell and oppose the word of God How dare I doe this what provoke God so farre as to laugh at my destruction what despise Christ and his Spirit nay make my case irrecoverable and aggravate to my condemnation but if the heart will not stoope under this then call for conscience conscience to your charge and then conscience comes and chargeth the soule on paine of everlasting condemnation to heare and to be humbled And if this will not doe intreat the Lord to take the rod into his owne hand and bring these truths home unto the soule that it may never be quieted till it be humbled this is the course I would have you take to bring the truth home to your soules When the minister hath done his sermon then your worke beginnes you must heare all the weeke long he that never meditates of his sinnes is never like to be broken hearted for his sinnes take notice of this The text saith of these converts They were pricked in their hearts This clause of the verse discovers unto us that which brings in this shiverednesse and contrition of spirit which the Lord cals for at the hands of his servants Now give me leave to make way for my selfe by opening of the words that having taken away all the vaile from them you may more clearely see the truth delivered First let me shew you what this piercing or pricking of the heart is Secondly what is meant by heart You must know that sound sorrow or sorrow soundly set on is here meant by pricking and this word pricking resembles sorrow in three degrees For the word in the originall imports not only a bare pricking but a searching quite through and we have no word in our English tongue to answere the same word but onely a shiverednesse of soule all to pieces I say there are three things wherein pricking resembles sorrow First the body cannot be pricked but there must be some paine some griefe some trouble wrought by it and accompanying of it Secondly it is the separation of one part from another as the naturall Philosophers couceive and as the Physitian gives us to understand it is the sundering of two parts Thirdly the parts being thus pricked there is the letting of it out and if any blood or water be in that part thus pricked so answerably in this sound sorrow in heart there are three things I meane in that sorrow which is set home by the Almighty First there is a great griefe and vexation of soule Secondly by reason of the burthen that lieth upon the heart that cursed knot and union and combination betweene sinne and the soule comes in some measure to be severed and parted the soule being thus grieved with the sinne is content to be severed from it this is the thing we aime at Thirdly this knot of corruption being loosened and this closure being broken and the souldring betweene sinne and the soule being removed there is now a passage for the letting out of all these corruptions that the heart may be taken from under the power of sinne and be subject to the power and guidance of God This is the true nature of sorrow And by the way consider this unlesse the Lord should thus wound and vexe the soule the heart that prizeth corruption as a God as every naturall man doth would never be severed from it did the soule see onely the delight in sinne it would never part from it and therefore God is forced to make us feele this that we may be severed from our sinnes and be subject to him in all obedience Secondly what is meant by heart not to tyre you with any matter of signification this word implieth two things specially which concerns our purpose both may be implied and intended but the first is mainely implied and intented it is not the naturall part of a man which is in the middest of the body that is a fleshly heart but it is the will it selfe and that abilitie of â—oule whereby the heart saith I will have this and I will not have that As the understanding is setled in the head and keepes his sentinell there so the will is seated in the heart when it comes to taking or refusing this is the office of the will and â—t discovers his act there As our Saviour saith Where your treasure is there will your hearts be also And as the Apostle saith a man confesseth with his mouth and beleeveth with his heart So then they were not onely pricked as with a pinne but this sorrow seiseth upon the soule and pierceth unto the very will it was not outward overly sorrow but that which went to the very root and entred into the very heart From these words thus opened the Doctrine I might have handled from this point is that sins unpardoned are of a piercing nature they were not onely pricked because they heard the words but their sins peirced them but I will not meddle with this point though otherwise is were very usefull The use is this might take off the Imagination of those that thinke there 〈◊〉 no delight but in sinfull courses they are much deceived There is no gall but in sinne and there is no sorrow but from sinne
saving worke thereof Therefore plow up all by sound saving sorrow labour to have thy heart burthened for sin and estranged from it and this is good husbandry indeed the want of this was the wound of the thorny ground as you may see in the parable those hearers had much of the world in them much ease and profit and pleasure and these choaked the word and made it utterly unfruitful and so they never received comfort nor mercy afterwards This is that which the Prophet David saith A contrite and an humble heart O God thou wilt not despise If you would have your hearts such as God may â—ake delight in and accept you must have them broken and contrite David saith The Lords voice breaketh the Cedars of Libanus So the voice of the Lord like lightning must thunder into the corrupt heart of sinfull creatures A contrite heart is that which is powdered all to dust as the Prophet saith Thou bringest us to dust and then thou sayest returne againe yee sonnes of men So the heart must be broken all in pieces to pouder and the union of sinne must be broken and it must be content to be weaned from all sinne as you may make any thing of the hardest flint that is broken all to dust So it is with the heart that is thus fitted and fashioned If there be any corruption that the heart lingers after it will hinder the worke of preparation If a man cut off all from a branch save one sliver that will make it grow still that it cannot be ingrafted into another stocke So though a mans corrupt heart depart from many sinnes scandalous abominations yet if he keepe the love of any one sinne it will be his destruction as many a man after horror of heart hath had a love after some base lust or other and is held by it so fast that he can never be ingrafted into the Lord Jesus This one lust may breake his necke and send him downe to hell So then if the soule onely can be fitted for Christ by â—ound sorrow then this must needs pierce the heart before Christ can come there but the heart cannot be fitted for Christ without this and therefore of necessity the heart must be truly wounded with sorrow for sinne The last reason is this because by this meanes the heart comes to set a high price upon Christ and grace either the grace of God offered in the gospell or that good way which God hath commanded us to walke in If the heart finde the greatest evill to be in horror and vexation then ease and quietnesse from these will be the greatest good but now the soule seeth grace to be truly precious because it seeth sinne to be truly vile and this is the end why the Lord makes the soule see the vilenesse of sinne that the heart may be brought to see the excellency in Christ and prize him above all Now there are two questions to be answered First whether this sound sorrow be a work of saving grace and such a worke as cannot be in a reprobate Secondly whether God doth worke this in all men that are truly converted and brought home to Christ and whether he workes this in all alike or no. For the first whether is this a worke of saving grace yea or no and such as cannot be in a reprobate for answer to this First I will shew the order that this worke hath to the other workes Secondly I will shew the difference of this from sanctifying sorrow and yet it comes to be sanctifying sorrow For the order first the heart in this worke is not yet conceived to be in Christ but only to be fitted and prepared for Christ. If you stoppe here in your consideration and despute not of any worke to come it is only in the way to be ingrafted into Christ but so that undoubtedly that soule which hath this worke upon it shall have faith powred into it for this is the meaning of that place The Lord Iesus came to socke and sâ—ve that which was lost Now to be lost is not because a man is sinfull and miserable in himselfe but he is lost that seeth the evill of sinne and the punishment that comes therby comes to be lost in his owne apprehension in râ—gard of his owne estate and he that is thus lost shall be sure to have Christ and salvation by him It was the end why Christ came and therefore it shall be fulfilled But he that is truly sensible of his sinne and the vilenes of it and abhors himself for it he is truely lost he is not yet settled on Christ for then he were safe enough but he is truly sensible of his lost estate and therefore shall have faith and Christ though yet he partake not of them yet he shall be everlastingly saved and redeemed by Iesus Christ. Quest. And therefore this is an idle question what if a man die in this worke of preparation before he come to have faith I say it is an idle question because it is impossible that he which is thus prepared for Christ and grace but he shall have them before he die As the Prophet saith Behold I will send my messenger before me to prepare my wayes When the heart is fitted and prepared the Lord Christ comes immediatly into it The teÌ„ple is the soule the way is the preparation for Christ so as the soule is yet to be conceived as in the way of preparation for Christ not to have any formall worke of grace whereby he is able to do anything for himselfe The next thing is the difference of the sound saving sorrow from sanctifying sorrow and you must know there is a double sorrow First there is a sorrow in preparation Secondly there is a sorrow in sanctification The sorrow of the soule in this preparative worke of it is thus to be conceived when the word of God leaves an impression upon the heart of a man so that the heart of it selfe is as it were a patient and onely beares the blow of the Spirit the Spirit of the Lord and the over-powring force of the same forceth the soule to beare the word and hence come all those phrases of Scripture as wounded pierced pricked and the like only in the passive voice Because the soule is a patient and the Lord by the almighty hand of his Spirit breakes in upon the soule so that this sorrow in preparation is rather a sorrow wrought upon me then any worke comming from any spirituall ability in my selfe This is sorrow in preparation when I am a patient and wherein I receive the worke of the Spirit and am forced and framed by the spirit to doe that which I doe in this kinde But then Secondly there is a sorrow in sanctification and that is thus that sorrow that doth flow from a spirituall principle of Grace from that power which the
79.26.187 83.2.18 103.3.6 119.36.13 59.83 Pro. 8.19.24 Esay 5.19.49 7.18.5 17.11.29 Ier. 4.3.162 15.42 8.6.12 31.29.12 Lam. 3.19.82 20. ib. Eze. 16.16.223 30.31.244 Ezek. 36.31.11 Dan. 12.4.83 Hos. 2.2.65 15.211 3.3.175 Zac. 11.10.13 Mal. 3.45.22 Mat. 7. last 62 12 37◠43 21.45.66 27.4.240 46.57 Luke 3.11.64 12. ib. 19.10.58 23.40.222 29.42.36 Ioh. 6.44.171 Acts 3.17.38 Acts 4.22.69 5.3.235 16.30.180 Ro. 7.7.38 8.15.138 2. Co. 3.2.62 Eph. 3.19.215 20. ib. 1. Th 5.8.213 2. Ti. 1.17.138 3.14.84 4.1.72 Tit. 1.13.72 Heb. 6.19.212 2. Pet. 2.8.82 Re. 22.17.173 CHristian Reader thou hast here some sermons brought to light which by reason of the Authors absence are presented to thy view both with some lesser escapes and in more homely termes then his judicious eye would have suffered The principall faults I have here corrected those which are smaller may in the reading be easily discerned Page 30. for many read may p. 51. f. the r. they p. 63. f. sorces forces p. 78. f. carelesse carelessenesse p. 89 f. slave salve and line 32. insert is p. 94. ◠cup. p. 98. f. wherfore whereof p. 173. f. brad bad p. 142. and so in other places for happily perhaps p. 149. f. it him p. 67. f. fece fence p. 275. f. pulked plucked p. 56. blot out not p. 119. blot out this and that p. 143. blot otu the. p. 149. blot out and so forth p. 153. blot out for it is so in the second place p. 155. blot out which p. 160. blot out how I dispute p. 141. blot out in the second place p. 112. l. 11. blot out those evils and. THE SOVLES PREPARATION FOR CHRIST ACTS 2.37 Now when they heard this they were pricked in their hearts and said to Peter and the other Apostles Men and brethren what shall wee doe to bee saved IN this great worke of preparation for Christ Observe two things First the dispensation of the worke of Grace on Gods part he pulls a sinner from sinne to himselfe Secondly the frame and temper of spirit that God workes in the hearts of those that he doth draw and that makes its selfe knowne in two particulars partly in Contrition partly in humiliation For our better proceeding in the prosecution of these two maine points I shall handle them severally and at large And first we will sift out what this Contrition and humiliation is that we may not deceive our selves and thinke we have them when it is nothing so This Contrition as I conceive is nothing else but namely when a sinner by the sight of sinne and vilenesse of it and the punishment due to the same is made sensible of sinne and is made to hate it and hath his heart separated from the same and the sight of sin makes it selfe knowne in three particulars First when the soule is sensible of sinne Secondly when it hath a hearty and sound sorrow for the same and an earnest detestation of it Thirdly when he hath his heart separated from his corruptions All these are not wrought so much by any power that is in us as by the Almighty power of God working in us for the sinner would not see his sin but the Lord forceth him as the holy Prophet saith Thou holdest my eyes waking I am so troubled that I cannot speake the Lord holds sinne to a carnall sinfull wretch so that his sinne walkes and sleepeth and goeth with him nay the soule of a poore sinner would beat backe the blow and would not have the word to touch him he labours to shift off the arrowes of the Almighty which the Lord shooteth into the soule but the Lord will not suffer him so to doe Thy arrowes sticke fast in me and thy hand presseth me sore Psalm 38.2 As if the Prophet had said I would faine have beate backe thine arrowes but they sticke fast in me and I would have shaken off the burden that lay upon me but thine hand presseth me sore so then at last when the sinner sees hee cannot shake off the arrowes then he is content to bee separate from his corruptions This is in generall in the text wherin you shall plainly see these three particulars fully expressed First the sight of sinne by the hearing of Peters words and it was not by the bare hearing of his words onely but when Peter came somewhat roundly home to them and said This is Christ Iesus whom ye have crucified then followes the former worke namely the acknowledgement of their sinnes and the first cause that made them see their sinne was a particular application of their sinnes hee came punctually and particularly to them and said you are they that have crucified the Lord Christ this touched them and made them see their sinnes Secondly the daily and serious meditation and apprehension of their sinnes and of those truths which were delivered in the word hearing that is daily pondering and considering of the evills that were committed by them and shewed to them Thirdly they were pricked they did not pricke themselves but the Lord followed that truth that was delivered and by his Almighty hand did make that word prosperous to their soules and though they would not pierce themselves yet the Lord pierced them The second part of it is in these words They were pricked in their hearts not in their hands or eyes but in their hearts The third part is the separation from sin in these words Men and brethren what shall we doe Whatsoever you would have us to doe we will doe it and whatsoever sinne is forbidden wee are content to be rid of it nay nothing was too hard or too much for them Give mee leave to take a doctrine by the way from the words they when they heard this who were these they see this in the 36. verse them that had crucified the Lord of life What will some say is it possible that ever they should be so pierced frō their sinnes it was said of Iudas that betrayed Christ it had been good for that man that he had not beene borne What shall we thinke of those that murther Christ. If Iudas was damned for betraying of Christ then much more they for killing of him Is it possible the Lord should doe good unto them yes even they came to be pricked in their hearts From these words this doctrine ariseth It is possible for the most stubborne sinners upon earth to get a broken heart They that stoned the Prophets and killed them that were sent unto them and sleighted all the meanes of grace they that refused Christ and would not heare him they are now brought upon their knees and are resolved now if any course might bee taken to get Christ and mercy Titus 12.13 one of their owne Prophets said the Cretians are alwayes lyers evill beasts and slow bellies a man would thinke it a vaine thing to medle with them they are such desperate wretches but the text saith Reprove them sharply that they may be sound in the faith so
that a Cretian which is a filthy beast by a sound reproose may come to bee a glorious Saint and whereas the Jewes had loaden the Lord with their sinnes therefore it was just with God to ease himselfe of his burden and so send them and their sinnes downe to hell together Thus a man would think but the Lord did not so as we may see in Esay I am he that blotteth out all thy transgressions for my owne name sake I will remember your sinnes no more and as the Apostle saith the Gentiles were full of all unrighteousnesse worse then they almost could be for all kind of degrees of sinne and yet many of them became full of all holinesse Such were some of you saith the Apostle and in another place we may see that a Scarlet sinner may become a Saint in nature we know this scarlet is such a deepe die that all the art under heaven cannot alter it Yet the Lord can make of a Scarlet sinner a milke white Saint I doe not say it will ever be and it doth alwaies come to passe but it is possible The reason is taken from the Lords Almighty goodnesse and power the Lord is able to supply all wants and amend that which is amisse nay he is able to do more then that thou standest in need of When the Lord made heaven earth he did not spend all his strength that he was able â—o help no more No no he is All-sufficient still he is not onely able to continue that good which the creature hath but to make a glorious supply of whatsoever is wanting as David saith He pardoneth all thy iniquities and forgiveth all thy sinnes not some but all otherwise he were not All-sufficient unlesse he had a salve for every sore and a medicine for every malady if our sinnes were more then God could pardon or if our weakenesses were more able to ouerthrow us then his strength to uphold us he were not All-sufficient Indeed there are some things which the scripture saith God cannot doe but it is not because of the want of power in God but because there is a weakenesse in the creature As God cannot deny himselfe but the more and greater our sinnes and wickednesse are the more will the strength and glory of his power appeare in pardoning of them and where sinne abounds there grace abounds much more in the pardoning of the same Christ is All-sufficient in power to procure mercy for all thy sinnes and the Spirit is all-sufficiently able to apply the satisfaction of Christ to thy soule and therefore be thy condition never so fearefull the sinne against the holy Ghost onely excepted there is power and mercy in the Lord to pardon thee and it is possible for thee to finde mercy The first use is for reproofe and it checks the desperate discouragement that harbours in the hearts of many poore sinners that if they finde no power in theÌ„selves no succour in the meanes they doe question in this case and presently conclude an impossibilitie to receive mercy and they thinke there is no hope of pardon as heretofore they have had no care in sinning because they cannot see how it may be they suppose it cannot be This bringeth a great indignity to the Lord Jesus Christ and a great discouragement to themselves why the Lord hath hardnesse and difficulties at command When the seige about Jerusalem was marvellous sore and every man did despaire of any comfort or succour the Prophet said before to morrow this time shall a measure of fine flower be sould for a shekle and then a Lord on whose hand the King leaned said If the Lord should make windowes in heaven how can this thing be and the Prophet said unto him thou shalt see it but not eat of it so it is with many that begge often and the Lord answereth not so that the soule is marvellously starved and the flood of iniquitie comes in amaine upon the soule and all his sinnes come to his view and the heart beginnes to reason in this manner If the depths of Gods mercies should be opened can all these sins be pardoned and can this damned soule of mine be saved Surely this cannot be It is just with God wee should seeke mercy given to others as bad as wee and yet wee not taste of it because wee distrust the Lord. Cains sin was so much the greater because hee said it could not be forgiven so it is a horrible sinne to say the Lord is not so mercifull as the Devill is malitious and that the world and a sinfull heart 〈…〉 able to damne me then God is to save me if 〈…〉 so God were no God and Christ no 〈…〉 and the Spirit no comforter this is a 〈…〉 sin our selves and the devill above God the Lord Jesus Christ. Oh therefore check all those discouragements of soule which too much prevaile with us Secondly it is a ground of great incouragement to provoke the hearts of all wicked men under heaven to looke out of that condition wherin they are for some mercy because the most wicked of the world may be wrought upon and the most prophane heart may be pierced Who therefore would not have his heart quickned up to seeke out for recovery from that estate wherein he is All you poore creatures if there be any here present as I doubt not but there are Oh you poore and ungodly sinfull creatures my soule pitties you you that have had your hands imbrewed in the blood of Christ and whose sinnes are written with a pen of Iron and are seene in every corner of the street you that are thus in the gall of bitternesse and yet in the kingdome of darkenesse though your case for the present be very desperate yet here is a little twigge in the middest of the maine sea whereupon you may lay hold And this may make you looke up the Lord may shew mercy unto you as proud as stubborne and rebellious as you have had mercy If you have the hearts of men looke for mercy though your estate be fearefull for the present yet it may be good God hath not set the scale of condemnation upon your sinnes he hath not yet sent you to hell Consider this whatsoever thou art thou yet livest upon the earth and enjoyest the meanes and it is possible yet to have all thy sinnes pardoned oh lay about thee goe home say Good Lord were they pierced in their hearts that pierced the Lord Iesus and were their soules wounded In conclusion then why may not my prophane sinfull heart be humbled and pierced It may be so if the Lord say Amen it will be thus that disease is not past remedy that hath beene cured in others therefore let this stay thy heart as bad as thou have been humbled and brought home and therefore why not thou But the soule will say Can all these abominations be removed and is it possible
and stubbornnes be such vile sins in others then they are so in me and as there must be a sight of our personall particular sinnes so Secondly the soule must be set downe with the audience of truth and the conscience of a sinner should be so convicted as to yeeld and give way to that which is knowne as not seeking any shift or way to oppose that truth which is revealed his particular apprehension of sin is like the inditement of a sinner before God and his conviction is that which brings the soule to such a passe that the heart will not nay it dares not nay which is more it cannot escape from the truth revealed As when a man is only arested and no more he may escape therefore it is not enough particularly to arest the soule and bring it under command that it cannot shift from the truth revealed When the Lord comes to make rackes in the hearts of such as he meanes to doe good unto the text saith he will reprove the world of sinne that is he will convince the world of wickednesse he will set the soule in such a stand that it shall have nothing to say for it selfe he cannot shift it off for there is in every mans heart naturally such corrupt carnall pleading that it labors to defeat and put by the worke of the word that it may not come home to the heart As a man in battaile array labours to put by the blow that it may not hit his body so it is with a corrupt heart when the word comes home to the soule as it doth sometimes into the heart of a drunkard or an adulterer or a murtherer and the word of God seemes to stabbe the heart they put by the word of God by carnall shifts and so breake the power of it that it cannot have its full blow upon the soule and so the word takes no place to any purpose in them Now this kind of knowledge takes away all shifts that the soule hath nothing to say for it selfe and pluckes away all defence that the edge of the word cannot be blunted but that it will fall flat on the heart this is that I would put to your consideration punctually When there is that wisedome and knowledge revealed to the soule so powerfully that it prevailes with the heart and it gives way thereto so that all the replies and pleas of the soule be taken away and the soule falls under the stroke of the word not quarrelling but yeelding it selfe that the word may worke upon it and withall there is a restlesse amasement put into the heart of the creature and a kind of dazeling the eye so that the soule is not content now before it see the worst of his sinne that is revealed and then it lies under the power of that truth which is made knowne these two make it plaine The minister saith God hates such and such a sinner and the Lord hates me too saith the soule for I am guilty of that sin Many times when a sinner comes into the congregation and attends unto the ordinary meanes of salvation if now the Lord be pleased to work mightily at last the mind is enlightned and the Minister meets with his corruptions as though he were in his bosome and he answereth all his cavills and takes away all his objections With that the soule begins to be amased to thinke that God should meet with him in this manner and saith If this be so as it is for ought I know and if all be true that the Minister saith then the Lord be mercifull unto my soule I am the most miserable sinner that ever was borne Give me leave to open a passage or two this way Suppose there be an ignorant creature that knoweth nothing and he thinkes God will pardon him because he is so he need not consider of this or that which the minister calls upon him for see what God saith to such in Esay It is a people of no understanding therefore he that made him will not have mercy on them and he that formed them will shew them no favour You thinke to carry all away with ignorance but the God of heaven will shew you no pitty and he that made you will not save you When a poore soule begins to consider of this he that made us wil save us Will he not no he will not Not one of you not your wife nor children nor thy servant this drives the soule into amazement when the Lord works this truth in him and he frequents the ordinances more diligently and saies if it be so my case is fearefull In conclusion he finds every minister saith so and all writings confirme it and he seeth it is so indeed and it is the will and way of God Then the soule is cast and saith I see this is just my estate and condition therefore woe to me that ever I was borne This is right conviction and though his carnall neighbours come to him and beginne to cheere him up and say The Lord is more merciful then men are ministers must say something c. If the heart be truly convicted it returnes this answere and saith I have thought as you doe but now I see there is no such matter these are but figtree-leaves and will not cover my nakednesse It is true Christ came to save sinners and he came to humble sinners too he came to bind up the heart and he came to break the heart too This is a great part of the spirit of bondage spoken of Rom. 8.15 Wee have not received the spirit of bondage to feare againe When God hath revealed a mans bondage to him So that sees he himselfe bouÌ„d haÌ„d foot for marke it so long as a man keepes in these carnall shifts he is not in bondage But when he is once in bondage and fetterd he saith If ever any had a proud heart I am he If ever any were prophane I am he And if ever God hated such wretches he hateth me Now there is no escape there is no plea at all he will not go away say there is no such matter Ministers many say what they will No no the soule that is truely conuicted of sinne yeelds it selfe and saith I have sinned Oh what shall I do unto thee thou preserver of men saith Iob as if hee had said Lord I have no plea at all to make nor no argument to alledge for myselfe I onely yeeld up the bucklers I cannot say so bad of my selfe as I am I have sinned Lord what shall I doe unto thee Oh thou preserver of men thus it is with a heart truely convicted and throughly informed of the vilenesse of sinne he doth not withdraw himâ—elfe and play least in sight but he saith this is my condition just the Lord met with my heart this day God resists the proud prophane in heart and he resists me too I have heard much and would not be informed
and I would have a man to bind his heart hand and foote that they may not dare to have any brabling against the revealed will of God that so what ever truth is delivered though never so crosse and contrary to our corrupt nature the soule may be willing to be under the blow of it and let the strength of the word come full upon the heart And this will make us feelingly to understand our conditions as in Iob when God had taken downe his proud heart see how he submits himselfe Behold I am vile what shall I say I will lay my hand upoÌ„ my mouth I have sinned but I will go nâ— further as thogh he had reasoned thus with himselfe I have I confesse pleaded too much for my selfe I have made more shift for my selfe theÌ„ was needfull I have gainsaid thy word but now no more Now if any man seeme to quarrell take up armes against the truth of God let that man know he was never truly huÌ„bled for his sins It is a sinfull rebellious spirit that carries it selfe thus against God his word the shifts whereby the soule labours to beate backe the power of the word may be reduced to these three heads First the soule hath a slight apprehension of sin and thinketh that it is not so hainous and so dangerous as those hot spirited ministers beare men in hand this is usually the common conceit of all men naturally and even of us all more or lesse to make a slight account of sinne and that for these foure respects First in respect of the commonnesse of it because that every man is guilty of it we slight it what saith one Good now what then are not all sinners as well as we though we have many faylings yet we have many fellowes If we were drunkards or whoremongers then it were somewhat Thou sayest true indeed thou hast many fellowes in thy sinnes and thou shalt have share with many fellowes in the punishment to come there is roome enough in hell for thee and all thy fellowes hell hath opened her mouth wide nay the more companions thou hast had in thy sinnes the more shall be thy plagues Quest. O saith one all the world lies in sinne and we doe no more then the world doth Answ. But if the world lies in sin Christ never prayed for the world and he will never save the world What a senselesse thing is this to be such a 〈◊〉 as God hates Is this all thy pleasure that thou art a hater of God What ods is it for a man to be stabbed with a penknife or with a speare or for a man to be murdered in the streets or in his bed so though thy sinnes be not hydious blasphemies and the like yet if they be petty oathes they are enough to sinke thy soule It is not your great swearer but no swearer shall come into the Kingdome of heaven the text saith not no great liers shall enter into heaven but no liers shall enter into heaven What differeÌ„ce is there between a man that goes to hell for open rebellion and a man that goes to hell for civill profession and what difference is there betweene an open adulterer and a secret adulterer Quest. But some will say are not all sinfull by nature and are not some saved and why not I as well as others Answ. For answer I say no man is saved by nature but if any be saved the Lord opens his eyes and breakes his heart and so it must be with thee too if ever thou thinkest to receive any mercy from God Secondly there is also a naturalnesse in a sinfull course and they say it is my nature and infirmity and I am of a cholericke disposition I shall sometimes sweare when I am angry and I cannot but be drunke sometimes when I light into good company Quest. What would you have of us Saints on earth Answ. I either Saints or Devills never sanctified never saved never pâ—rged never glorified as the Apostle Saint Iohn saith He that hath this hope purgeth himselfe as he is pure he striveth with his whole endeauour to be pure and alwayes he hath a respect to all Gods commandemeÌ„ts And as the author to the Hebrewes saith pursue faith and holinesse without which no man can be saved If thou dost say if it were an honour to pray in my family if Gentlemen and Knights did it I would doe it I tell thee if holines doth seeme to fly away by disgrace persecution theÌ„ you must pursue it Nay dost thou say it is thy nature to sinne Then I say the greater is thy wickednesse if it be thy nature so to doe We hate not a man because he drinkes poyson but we hate a â—oad because it is of a poysonus nature therfore rather mourne the more for thy sinnes because it is thy cursed nature so to doe And say Lord did only temptations or the world allure me to this there were some hope that thou wouldest have mercy upon me but O Lord I have a cursed nature and though there were no Devills nor world no temptations outwardly yet this cursed nature of mine would sinne against thee They that have received Christ have a new nature and therefore if I have a carnall corrupt nature then my condition is most fearefull And say did temptations the world allure me then there were some hope of mercy but it is my nature to sinne and therefore my estate and condition is most miserable wretched Oh wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from this body of death Thirdly many say words are but winde and all this winde shakes no corne And so when we presse men to the inward worke of the soule not onely to keepe men from the halter but to tell them they must pull downe their proud hearts and be humbled for their sinnes and the like then they reply thoughts flie away suddenly and thoughts are free To which I answer these words are such winde as will blow downe thy soule into the bottomlesse pit of hell It is not I that say so but our Saviour himselfe By thy words thou shalt be justisfied and by thy words thou shalt be condemned though you make nothing of your swearing and idle thoughts and revilings of Gods people yet the God of heaven will require them at your hands and you shall either receive acquittance from Christ of them or else vengeance for ever for them For the Lord commeth with thousands of his Saints in flaming fire to punish not onely murtherers and adulterers and the like but all ungodly ones the Lord will call thee to an accompt for all thy abominations nay for all thy speeches against the people of God upon thy ale-bench when thou diddest tosse theÌ„ too and fro and the Lord will set thy sinnes in order before thee nay he will call thee to an accompt for them for all thy thoughts though
they are sudden and quickely passed over as the Prophet Ieremiah saith O Ierusalem wash thy heart from wickednesse how long shall thy vaine thoughts remaine in thee Whatsoever men thinke of thoughts yet they are the very life and sinewes of sinne and they are brought forth by meditation of a mans corruptions in this kinde A man may sinne more in thought then in any other kinde whatsoever both in regard of the vilenesse of sin and his unavoydablenesse thereof A theefe cannot robbe all the towne but a covetous man may wish all in the towne were hanged that he might have their goods and so an adulterer cannot commit sinne with every woman in the towne but he may lust after both the godly and prophane and he may commit adultery both with the chast and unchast too in his thoughts A man may sinne infinitly in this kinde and never have done for no company nor place can hinder an adulterer from sinning and lusting nor the malicious man from envying in his heart nor the covetous man from desiring the goods of other men Though thou darest not cut the throat of a minister yet thou canst malice all the ministers in the countrey Fourthly the soule hath a strange inward resolution of â—leaving to sinne whatsoever can be said or done to the contrary And this inward resolution of the soule hath a delight in corruptions though he die and be damned for the same this plucketh the heart from the word and layeth so many mists upon the understanding that it cannot see the truth when the soule hath nothing to say for it selfe it falls to open and profest reviling of Jesus Christ and defying of him and hence it is that after many good arguments the soule stands as it were at a set and saith I will not beleeve it though there were five thousand Ministers to perswade me to it and why doth he so hath he any argument to alledge No not a word but he that is proud will be proud and he that is a swearer will sweare and will not make conscience of any thing this comes from a proud and a sturdy heart When Ieremiah would have convinced the people of their sinnes and of the punishments threatned to them they said Thou speakest falsly there is no such matter So it is with many a carnall heart now a dayes if the minister of God will not please their phantasies then all the businesse is they knew all this before when as indeed they knew nothing at all Therefore saith God Take heed there be not in any of you a root of bitternesse if the soule heareth the law and blesseth himselfe in his wickednesse and saith I shall have peace though I walke after the imaginations of my owne heart the Lord will not spare that man but the Ielousie of the Lord shall smoake against him this roote of bitternesse is nothing else but sin and a resolution to continue in it For the Lord Jesus sake consider this there are too many of these in the Congregation wilt thou not beleeve Gods word I tell thee thou deniest almost that there is a God and thou renouncest the Lord Jesus Christ and salvation by him thou saiest in effect there is no God and that there is not any meanes of grace revealed What devillish blasphemy is this Let me speake to the terror of all such hearts hell never entertained any such thoughts the devils in hel for ought I know have not any such profest resolutions the devils beleeve and tremble the devills beleeve that the Scriptures are the word of God and they know there is infinit mercy in God but they shall never tast of it and they know all the plagues threatned shall come upon them and they snake and tremble at the remembrance of it What do the devills consent to the word of God conceive of it and know that it is the truth of God and shall be made good upon them Then good Lord of what a strange temper art thou that wilt not beleeve it that wilt not consent that it is true the devill is not worse then thou art in this case I must confesse that the consideration of these passages sometime makes the soule of a poore minister shake within him and were it in my power as it is not the first worke that I would doe should be to humble and breake the hearts of all such vile wretches but all that I can or will doe is this that which the holy man Moses spake and he spake it with a marvellous caution you that never came to the height of this horrible contempt take heed that there be not any man among you that saith It shall goe well with me whatsoever the minister saith It is as much as your soules are worth and to such as are guilty of this sinne I wil give the same counsell that Peter gave to Simon Magus who had a base esteeme of the gifts of the Spirit O saith Peter pray that if it be possible the thoughts of thy heart may be forgiven thee It is a fearefull thing it is a marvellous opposing of grace And for you whose eyes God hath opened goe home consider of the miserable estate of all such as lie in this sinne goe to prayer and send up requests in the behalfe of all such poore creatures and say Is it so Lord that there are many such who have the name of Christians that will not be reformed nor humbled good Lord that many that have the name of Christians will not come in thy word will not prevaile nor take place in their hearts Good Lord breake their hearts in pieces breake in upon them and let thy word overcome them in mercy and compassion and bring them to the true knowledge of sinne here and happinesse hereafter And thus much of the first Cavill Secondly the soule saith I confesse I see more now then ever I conceived of before I did not conceive that sinne was so haynous and so dangerous as it is Now I see it is marvellous great and dangerous yet this is my hope that whatsoever falls it will not light upon me and therefore what need I care I hope to prevent it and then all will be well When the word comes faire full upon the conscience of a man and would pierce his heart and meets him in every place as the angell did Balaam he will have some fetch or other to put by the word and he saies I hope for all this the danger shall not fall upon me Now the way that the soule useth to put by the word and to prevent the danger threatned appeares in these three particulars The first is this how ever sinne is never so vile in it selfe and he is guilty thereof yet he thinks the God of heauen doth not attend to his sinnes or else he is not so just or righteous that he will punish him for them Indeed if he were some
would thinke this man to be in a miserable condition And yet all this is but a beame of Gods indignaâ—tion If the beames of Gods wrath be not hot what is the full sunne of his wrath when it shall sease upon the soule of a sinfull creature in full measure The third consideration is this Nay yet if thou thinkest to lift up thy self above al creatures and to beare more then they all then set before thine eyes the sufferings of the Lord Jesus Christ he that creats the heavens and upholds the whole frame thereof when the wrath of God came upon him onely as a surety he cries out with his eyes full of teares and his heart full of sorrow and the heavens full of lamentations My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Oh thou poore creature if thou hast the heart of a man gird up the loines of thy mind and see what thou canst doe Doest thou thinke to beare that which the Lord Jesus Christ could not beare with so much sorrow Yet he did indure it without any sinne or weaknesse he had three sippes of the Cuppe and every one of them did sinke his soule and art thou a poore sinfull wretch able to beare the wrath of God for ever Now beloved seeing all objections are answered and the things made plaine labour to do that which you may have comfort in Submit your selves to the good word of the Lord and not only be willing and coâ—tent to be thus enlightned but labour for it that thou maiest prevent the Judgements deserved by the same Now that I may the better prevaile with you consider these three motives first it is the only old way to heaven for God never revealed any other but this way in the old law the only way for the leaper to be cleansed was to come out into the congregation and to cry I am uncleane I am uncleane This leaper was every sinner this meanes of curing was the sight of his sinne and as he did so must every sinner confesse his sin take shame to himselfe and say It is my proud heart and this my loose life c. This true sight of sinne is the only doore to life and salvation who would not goe that way which is the right the ready way if ever you receive mercy at the hands of the Lord it must be by this way or not at all I pray you take heed and doe not find a shorter cut to heaven the further you goe the contrary way the further you must returne back againe this hath cozened many a man more then he doth imagine As a traveller when he is loath to goe through some filthy lane he will breake through the fence and goe through the meadow that he may save the foule way at last when he hath gone up and downe and cannot get out againe he is forced with much losse of time to goe backe againe and goe through the lane So it is with many sinfull wretches in the world and this hath cost them deare They will not goe this way by sorrow for sinne to see the filthinesse thereof and their cursed abominations but they will have a new way to receive mercy comfort from God yet at last they are driven to a stand and then they will heare the minister of God and when he saith Christ came to seek and to save that which was lost that is those poore sinners that saw themselves lost and consider the plagues of their heart And when Christ workes savingly he opens the eye and awakens the conscience and a man must confesse before he can find mercy then the soule saith I never saw this worke upon my soule I was never lost No where broke you over then you would needs to heaven a new way you are like the thorny ground that would receive the word with joy Nay I le assure you you must come backe againe and see all those abominations which have been committed in secret by you and discover them or else there is no meanes to come unto life Let us search try our waies saith the Church you must not thinke that Christ will pardon all and you doe nothing No first see your sinnes and then you shall receive mercy pardon for them Secondly the worke by this meanes will bee much more easie then at another time If thou once get thy conscience convicted and thine eyes opened the worke will goe on clearely and easiâ—y Many of Gods people will strike in with you and many good Christians will pitty you and pray for you and you shall have many helps this way and therefore is it not better now to have your conscience awakened when you may have helpe then afterward when there is no remedy When any of Gods people fast or pray they will remember you what saith one Doe you know such a man yes very well what is he oh he was the most shamelesse drunkard that ever the sun did see or the earth beare Was he so oh but now God hath opened his eyes and awakened his conscience he was never so frolike before but now he is as much wounded now his heart is broken his conscience flies in his face It were good to remember him though he hath beene a wretch and a profest opposer of Gods people yet let us remember him Yes that I will I know his burthen is great I have found it and I hope so long as I have a knee to kneele and a tongue to speake I shal remember him And then they pray for him and say Good Lord who can beare a wounded soule Good Lord thou hast humbled him and made him see himselfe vile and miserable let him see thy mercy in Christ. What a comfort is this to have a whole countrey pray for him in this maner Object But some will object and say This is something dangerous and drives men sometimes to a desperate stand and therefore is it not farre better to be as we are and not to awake this severe Lion A man cannot conjure downe his conscience when it is up once Answ. To this I answere you must see your sinnes that is the truth of it doe not thinke to put it off the Lyon will roare and that conscience will be awakened one day it is better to be awakened now then to have your eyes opened in hell when there is no remedy Thirdly set upon this worke the issue will be very successefull oh what a comfort will it be to a poore soule in the time of death when he shall come to render up his soule into the hands of God that all his sinnes are wiped out And then to heare those glad tidings from heaven Be of good comfort poore soule thou hast seen thy sinnes therefore I will not see them thou hast remembred them and mourned for them therefore I will never plague thee for them Who would not see his sinnes that Christ may cover them in that
day of accompts there was never sâ—nner broken hearted but God did bind him up and there was never any truly wounded for sinne but God did ever heale and comfort him and therefore labour to looke your face in the glasse of Gods Law and so see your owne spots I confesse this is tedious to your sinnes the plagues due to them but looke thou on them that God may not If an adversary offer meanes of agreement we use to say suffer it not to come to the publike triall for the case is naught I say it will be so with every wicked mans case the Lord hath a controversie with every wicked man and it must be tryed in the publike day of judgment or else you must make a private agreement betweene God and your owne soules If there be any drunkard or adulterer or unjust person that is guiltie of any sinne you had better take up the matter in private Doe not feare to looke upon your sins but bring theÌ„ all out before the Lord and see the ugly face of them and intreate the Lord to seale up unto you the pardon of them that you may never be called to an accompt for them I tell you it is the most comfortable course in the world The last use for instruction to all my fellow brethren let me speake a word to them and to my selfe too let us all take that course in dealing with the people and Gods ordinances which God himselfe takes up As the steward disposeth of every thing at his masters will and the Apothecary orders drugges as the Physitian appoints so let it be with us to we are but stewards and Apothecaries let us take that course and use those meanes that God hath appointed for his peoples good God saith you must see your sinnes and be humbled for them and therefore let us labour to make men see them as the Apostle saith I hope we were made manifest to your Consciences Did not your Consciences say so that you could not gaine-say it we must take up that course the Scripture hath revealed and which the faithfull servants of God have ever used and which God hath ever blessed nay it is our wisdome so to doe Mathew the seventh and the last Christ taught the people with authority not as the Scribes there is a kind of commanding power which the word ought to have upon mens Consciences if a man be a sinner it will reprove him and command reproofes to sease upon him and if he be in distresse of Conscience it will command comfort to take place in his heart Give me leave to speake my thoughts and it is my judgement too What doth it profit a man to scrape up a little Greek and Latine together and to leave the sense of the Scripture undiscovered and the Conscience no whit touched nor the heart stirred He that knowes any thing this way though he were but an ordinary schoole-boy that had but any skill in the tongues if he could not doe it he should be scourged by my consenâ— But let it be in case of Conscience a poore soule comes to anguish of spirit the onely way to â—et this man on foote againe is to answer all his objections and questions and resolve all his doubts and to make the way good and the case cleare Alas this course is not knowne amongst us And in the way of examination if a man come to examine a sinner he takes away all his cavils and all his carnall shifts that he hath to hinder the word and forces the soule to say It is Gods word though he will not entertaine it Let a man try this course and he shall finde a marvellous difficulty this is the reason why our ministery thrives not and the hearts of men are not wrought upon because we labour not the right way to shew men their sinnes and to convince their conscience that they may not flinch out from the ordinances of God Nay I take it to be the speciall cause why after all the pretious promises that God makes knowne no man receives good by them We offer salves to them that know not whether they have any sores or no And we offer Physicke to those that we know not whether they have any disease or no we speake of grace Christ but people thinke they have no need of theÌ„ suffer me to speake my mind herein freely That ministery which doth not ordinarily humble the soule breake the heart doth not convert and draw to Christ but that ministery that doth not inlighten the mind and convince the soule of sinne that never humbles ordinarily and therefore never doth draw home to Christ Now we come to shew the causes why and the meanes how sinners come to see their sinnes The Apostle speakes it to their faces You are they that have committed this sinne you have crucified the Lord of life this is your sinne The Doctrine from hence is this A speciall application of particular sinnes is a chiefe meanes to bring people to a sight of their sinnes and to a true sorrow for them The Apostle doth not generally propound their sins but he comes home to their hearts and it is not onely done in this place but it hath beene the practice of all Gods faithfull ministers heretofore As Iohn Baptist he goes not cunningly to worke secretly to intimate some truths but he deales roundly with them and saith O generation of vipers who fore warned you to flie from the wrath to come And he shewes them their sinnes in particular And when the publicans came to be baptised he saith Receive no more then is appointed for you and he saith to the souldiers Doe violence to no man and be content with your wages he was the minister of humiliation and preparation and therefore he deales thus plainely with them When Ahab had slaine Naboth the Prophet Elias came to him and sayes In the place where dogs lickt the blood of Naboth shall dogges licke thy blood Ahab said Hast thou found me out ô my emenie And he said I have found thee out because thou hast sould thy selfe to worke wickednesse in the sight of the Lord and the text saith When he heard this he put on sacke-cloth and went softly This was the power of a particular reproofe though he were a miserable wicked man Thus did Paul deale with Peter wheÌ„ he halted before the Jewes he did plainly reprove him to his face and that not secretly but because he had sinned openly therefore he reproves him openly so also our Saviour Christ shakes up the Scribes and Pharisees And this is the rule in generall as the Apostle saith Reprove theÌ„ sharply that they may be sound in the faith Oh! but some will say If I doe thus plainly deale with them I shall discourage them altogether Answ. Nay it will make them sound Christians indeed see what the Lord saith Plead with your mother the word
inlightened and touched thou wilt be much contended and comforted as David said to Abigail when shee came to disswade him from going against Nabal to destroy him she said Vpon me my Lord be this iniquitie why Blessed be God saith David that sent thee this day to meet me and blessed be thy counsell which hath kept me this day from comming to shed blood and avenging my selfe So if thou hast a good heart thou wilt not goe away repyning and fretting at the word and say the minister meant me crosseth me Take heed of this tempter of heart and if God bee pleased to carve out to any man those particular fruits that concerne his good goe away and blesse the Lord say blessed be his good word and his poore servant that met this day with my sins I never observed that pride I never observed that malice I never discovered that carelesse what became of Christ I cared not what became of his ministers I respected not what became of his name I regarded not but the Lord hath shewed me my sinnes and blessed be God for that good worke which hath beene communicated to my soule by his servant And observe this so farre as the heart is fearfull that the minister should meet with his sins so farre the heart is naught Nay if it be thus if your consciences testifie against you that you are loath to have your sinnes dealt roundly withall you thinke the ministers should be mild and not use such bitter reprehensions and sharpe reproofes I beseech you thinke of it seriously you deale with your sinnes in this kind as David did with Absalon when Ioab was to goe out he gives him charge to use him kindly and gently that is doe not kill him but take him prisoner that was his speech deale kindly for my sake with the young man Absalon Dost thou deale so with thy sinnes thou wouldest have the minister deal kindly with drunkennesse and adultery and malice do not kill drunkennesse but only take him prisoner keep him in reforme the outward face of drunkennesse that we may not be drunken in the open streets but in a corner and so that men may not sweare at every turne but when they come among gentlemen that they doe it cunningly The case is cleare thy soule if it be of this temper it never hated sinne it never sorrowed for sinne it never found the word of God working upon it for the subduing of sinne Imagine there were a traytor or rebell come into the towne that sought to take away the Kings life nay suppose he were thy enemy or the like will any one say that man hates an enemy that cannot endure to have an enemy discovered attached and brought to execution No sure but he loves him he covers him he hides him and would not have him knowne he is a lover of a traitor and a traitor himselfe else why doe you harbour a traitor you cover him that he cannot come to judgment and therefore you are a friend unto him so it is in this case Canst thou say that thou hatest sinne thou hatest malice and covetousnesse and loosenesse and prophanesse and in the meane time thy soule saith I cannot endure that the minister should discover these I cannot endure that he should attach them and arrest my soule for my covetousnesse and adultery and the like My heart riseth and I would cover it and hide it nay I can beare it out sometimes and say the traytor is not here I am not the drunkard I am not the adulterer you talke of but if the minister will pursue thy soule then thou shuttest the doore against him If it be thus with thee I tell thee thou art a friend to the traytor thou never hatedst thy sinne thou wert never yet brought to a true sight or sorrow for it Wee will now proceed When they heard this saith the text the word in the originall caryeth a continual act when they had heard there was not an end but the sting of the word did still stick in their hearts When they walked on the way that sounded in their eares I have crucified the Lord of life and when they lay downe that came into their mindes I have shed the blood of the Lord and when they arose this was their first thought I have consented thereunto and imbrewed my hands therein this stucke upon the spirits of thē and the sting of the truth would not away but after they had heard it it remained still in their hearts The doctrine is this that serious meditation of our sinnes by the word of God is a speciall meanes to breake our hearts for our sinnes After they had heard this notes a continuall action the truth of God still stuck in their stomackes the arrowes of God would not out the Apostle shot some secret shot into their soules which came home to their hearts and consciences when they heard this that is the musing and meditating and pondering of this when they could hold no longer they could beare no more but came to the Apostles and said what shall we doe Sometimes God brings a man into the Church to carpe at the minister and to see what he may have against him now if the Lord sting the conscience of that man he will heare you all the weeke after and say me thinkes I see the man still he aymed at me he intended me and me thinkes I heare the word still sounding in mine eares he is alwaies meditating on the word in this kind And a serious meditation of sinne discovered by the word is a special meanes to pierce the soule for the same this is the power of meditatiō whē David had considered the glory of wicked men how their eyes started out with fatnes and they had more then heart could wish and who but they in the world they were not troubled they were not molested then he thought they were the only men in the world when he had considered and mused of this it pierced his soule and he was vexed with it this went to the very intrailes of him and therefore that place is marvelous pregnant It was the meanes whereby Lot was so touched with the abominations of Sodome that righteous man dwelling among them in seeing hearing vexed his righteous soule from day to day with their unlawfull deeds Many saw and heard besides Lot and yet were not vexed but he vexed himselfe that is the meditation of those evils bringing them home to his soule vexed him and troubled him and the word is a fine word implying two things first the search and examination of a thing Secondly the racking and vexing a man upon the triall So it was with Lot he observed all the evils he weighed them and pondered them and then he racked his soule and vexed himselfe with the consideration of them the same word that is used here for vexing is used in the matter of a storme
the text saith The Ship was tossed with the waves So meditation doth tosse the soule with vexation It was the practice of the Church remembring mine affliction the wormewood and the Gall my soule hath them in remembrance and is humbled in me In remembring I remembred for so the originall hath it I remembred all my miseries and afflictions and my sinnes that were the cause thereof that is I still mused meditated thereof And what follows the heart was buckled and bowed thereby and was broken in the consideration thereof But you will say what doe you meane by this musing and meditating what is this meditation Answ. I answere meditation is nothing else but a setled exercise of the mind for the further inquiry of a truth and so the affection of the heart therewith There are foure things to be considered in it First it is an exercise of the mind it doth not barely close with a truth and apprehend it and see it and assent unto it and there rest but it lookes on every side of the truth It is a fine phrase of Davids I thought upon my waies and turned my feet into thy testimonies The originall carryeth it I looked upon my waies on both sides it is taken from curious workes which are the same on both sides they that work thē must oftē turn them on every side so it was with the prophet David I turned my waies upside downe and looked every way on them And so againe Many shall runne too and fro and knowledge shall be increased Runne too and fro what is that It is not the bodily removing of the man so much as the busie stirring of the mind from one truth to another it propounds one and gathers another so that it sees the whole silvage of the truth I use to compare meditation to perambulation when men goe the bounds of the parish they goe over every part of it and see how farre it goes so meditation is the perambulation of the soule when the soule lookes how far sinne goeth and considers the punishment of it and the plagues that are threatned against it and the vilenesse in it Secondly it is setled exercise of the minde it is not a sudden flash of a mans conceit upon the sudden But it dwels and staies upon a truth it setles againe and againe that it hath bestowed it selfe upon When a man is deepe in meditation upon a thing he neither seeth nor heareth any other thing else the streame of the heart is setled upon the truth conceived A man that hath beene offered an injury by another when he eares and walkes still he thinkes of his injury his heart is setled on it So your hearts ought to be on the truth The Apostle to Timothy saith Continue in the things thou hast learned the word in the originall is Be in them that is let a mans mind be moulded into the truth Thirdly it is a setled exercise for two ends first to make a further inquiry of the truth and secondly to make the heart affected therewith for this is the nature of meditation not to settle it selfe upon a thing knowne but it would either know more in those truthes that are subjected to it or else labours to gather something from them It is with the truth as it is with a man which goeth into the house and puls the latch when he was without he might see the outside of the house but he could not see the roomes within unlesse he drawes the latch and comes in and goe about the house meditation puls the latch of the truth and sees this is my sinne this is the cause here is the misery this is the plague and thus meditation searcheth into every corner of the truth Lastly meditation labours to affect the heart not only to know a thing but to bring it home to the soule these things are so know it for thy good So when a man hath viewed all and considered all then meditation brings all to the heart and labours to affect the heart therewith this is that which brings sorrow and compunction for sinne a setled exercise of the heart that meditates on sinnes that makes inquiry after them and the grounds are two and very remarkeable they are The first is this meditation makes all a mans sinnes and any truth belonging thereunto more powerfully and plainly to be brought home unto the heart It is the action of the understanding when a man doth gather all reasons and musters up force of arguments and labours to presse the soule and lay them heavy upon the heart and bring it under the power of the truth It is with meditation as it is with usurers that will grate upon men and grinde the faces of the poore and sucke the blood of the needy they will exact upon men and take use upon use they will not be contented to take the principall but they will have consideration for all the time until they have sucked the blood of a poore man that is under such a muckworme A poore man could be content to pay the principall but to exact use upon use this killes him So doth meditation it exacts and slayeth the soule of a poore sinner you have committed adultery in a corner but you shall not so carry it away This you did against the knowledge of God revealed against many mercies received against many Judgements threatned against checks of conscience against many vowes and promises remembred and Item for this and Item for that and thus meditation oppresseth the soule But then the soule will say happily it is but a trick of youth or it is my infirmity No no saith meditation this hath been your course from time to time continually that hath beene your haunt it hath beene a riveted corruption that hath fastened upon your bones and will goe to your graves with you and it will bring you to hell But then the soule saith I will repent No no saith meditation your heart is hardened in this sinne you have a heart that cannot repent nor yeeld the word of God workes not it prevaileth not the minister hath flung hell fire in your face and told you that no drunkard nor adulterer shall goe to heaven and yet you goe away no more moved then the seat whereupon you sate you have continued in sin and are hardened in sinne Thus marke how meditation exacts use upon use But then the soule replies I will goe to the word and wait upon the meanes and it may be the word will provaile No saith meditation you have despised the word and God will take away his word from you or you from his word or his blessing from both What is it a matter of infirmity No it is your continuall course And you repent No you cannot you cannot you are hardened And you hope the word will worke upon you No no it is cursed unto you Thus meditation exacts use upon use until the blood
of the soule be sucked up Meditation breakes the soule and layeth waight upon the soule in this case It is a passage remarkable of Peter the text saith when our Saviour told Peter that before the cock crew twice he should deny him thrice in the last verse of the chapter the second time the cocke crew Peter remembred the words of our Saviour when he thought therupon he went out and wept bitterly the word in the originall is this the holy man catcht all together and heaped all the circumstances together and reasoned thus the cocke crowes now I remember the words of Christ oh what a wretch am I that should deny such a master that called me such a master as found me such a master as was mercifull unto me when I never saw my selfe nor my sinnes he plucked me out from my sinnes It is that master I have denyed he came to doe me good to save me and I have denyed him Nay even at a dead lift if ever I should have defended him I should have defended him now if ever stood for him I should have stood for him now but to deny my master and forsweare him that I should do it an Apostle beloved an Apostle thus honored that I should doe it when I professed the contrary what such a master denied by me such an Apostle at such a time before such persons and forced to it by such a silly maiden All these sinfull circumstances the manner of them the nature of them the haynousnesse of them the holy Apostle laid all these to his heart and his heart sunck under these circumstances thus gathered together and he went out and wept bitterly Looke as it is in war were there many scores that came against an army they might be conquered or many hundreds might be resisted but if many thousands should come against a small army it would be in danger to be overcome Meditation leadeth as it were an army of arguments an army of curses and miseries and judgements against the soule how ever one misery or plague will not downe but a man may brooke it and goe away with it yet meditation brings an army of arguments and tells the soule God is against thee wherever thou art what ever thou dost And then the heart begins to cry out as Elisha's servant did Master what shall I doe what so many sinnes and so haynous and so many judgements denounced and shall fall upon me for them Lord how shall I doe how shall I be delivered from these pardoned for these thus meditation brings home sin more powerfully to the heart The second argument is this as meditation brings in all bills of account so secondly meditation fastens sinne upon the consciences of those to whom the word of God is spokē more strōgly in so much that the soule cannot make escape from the truth of God delivered and from the judgements of God denounced against him Sometimes when men heare the word and threatnings denounced then their hrarts are touched and they goe away resolved not to commit sinne as they have done But when they are gone it workes not but the heart recoyles againe and goeth to his owne course againe The reason is because you meditate not on the word It is with the word as with a Slave if a man have never so good a salve which will helpe a soare in foure and twentie houres if a man shall doe nothing but lay this salve to the wound and take it off it would never heale the wound and no wonder Why he will not let it lie on the best salve under heaven will not heale a sore and eate out a corruption unlesse it be bound on and let lie So it is with the good word of God many a soule heareth the word of God and his heart is touched for his sinne and his conscience beginnes to be awakened but when he goeth out of the Church all is gone his affections die and his heart dies and his conscience is not touched no wonder you will not hold the word to your soules you heare sinne and not heare it you wil see sinne and not apprehend it and therfore it is that the word over-powers not your corruptions Do you thinke the salve will work when you keepe it not on The word of God is the salve conviction of Conscience is like the binding on of the salve meditations like the binding of it to the sore remember the truth which touched thee first and keep that on let nothing take it away from thy minde hold that good word close to the soule and it will keepe thy heart in the very same temper after the delivery thereof as it was in the delivery The Apostle Iames compares a slight hearer to a man that lookes his face in a glasse slightly that forgets himselfe what visage he had but saith Who so looketh unto the law of liberty and continueth therein he being not a forgetfull hearer but a doer of the word this man shall be blessed in his deeds the Law of liberty is the Law of God and this Law being a glasse You must not onely heare and be gone and slight and neglect it but you must continue in looking and then you shall see the complexion of your sinnes and the vilenesse of your corruptions when the drunkard heareth the basenesse of his sinnes and the adulterer the basenes of his abominations they looke themselves slightly in the glasse of the Law But they must carry away the glasse with them and looke themselves still the adulterer must say I am a prophane creature and my heart is polluted Conscience defiled and this soule hardned and I shal be damned if a man should thus looke and view his sinnes and carry away the glasse with him continually he would see his life so ugly and his heart so base that he could not be able to beare it If the pills be never so bitter yet if a man swallow them suddenly there is no great distast but if a man chaw a pill it wil make a man deadly sicke because it is against the nature of it so our sinnes are like these pills they goe downe somewhat pleasantly because we swallow downe our oathes prophannes our malice and contempt of God and his ordinances and we make it nothing to mocke at the religion of God and the professors of it you swallow downe pills now but God will make you chaw those pills one day and then they will be bitter Though the swearer swallowes down his oathes now yet at last the Lord will make him remember that he will not hold him guiltlesse but araigne him at the day of judgement and make him cry guilty at the barre and againe will make you chaw over your malice you hated the Lords word and the workes of his Spirit and this will condemne you Againe meditation doth beset the heart of a man that he cānot escape wheresoever he is meditation brings
punishable by the Law of man were abominable and God was incensed against them but what will every wicked thought sinke the soule into hell unlesse God pardon it and is God so just and so severe and will he punish all sinners and must I answere for all my petty oathes If I shall be condemned for my words and thoughts it is a strange thing well I will inquire further of the matter it is marvelous hard if it be true Many a man hath beene thus and goeth no further for the present Well then Secondly he resolves to heare the minister againe and he fals to reading and conferring with others to try if it be so as the minister before revealed unto him and commonly he goeth to heare the same minister againe and by this meanes what with hearing and reading conferring he seeth the thing he doubted of is too certaine and that the thing be questioned before is without all doubt the Law is just the word is plaine if God be true this is true The wages of sinne is death Yea of every sinful thought and He that beleeveth not is condemned already so that now the sinner beginnes to consider that the condemnation threatned sleepes not and that God hath him in chase and that punishment that God threatens shall be executed upon him sooner or latter thus the soule from a generall amazement comes to see that it is so and by this meanes he is surprised with a sudden feare of spirit in expectation and suspition of what is discovered left God should lay it upon him in so much that the soule saith What if God should damne me God may doe it and what if God should execute his vengeance upon me the soule feareth that the evill discovered will fall upon him the nature of his feare is this he knoweth there is cause of feare and he cannot beare the evill when it is come He saith I am a sinfull wretch and God may damne me for ought I know and what if God should damne me this is the reason of those phrases of Scripture Wee have not received the spirit of bondage to feare againe the spirit that shewes our bondage and thence comes this feare Hence it is that the Apostle saith to Timothy God hath not given us the spirit of feare That is the spirit of bondage that workes feare therefore the Lord saith by Moses Thy life shall hang in doubt before thee and thou shalt feare day and night thou shalt have no assurance of thy life It is with a soule in this feare as it was with Belshazzar when he commanded the cups to be brought out of the house of the Lord that he and his nobles and his concubines might quaffe in them brave against the God of Israel then came a hand writing against him on the wall and when he saw it his thoughts troubled him and his face beganne to gather palenesse and his knees knocked one against another as if he should say surely there is some strange evill appointed for me and with that his heart began to tremble and shake Just so it is with this feare he that runnes ryot in the way of wickednesse aud thinkes to despise Gods Spirit to hate the Lord Almighty and to resist the work of his grace and saith within himselfe Let us goe heare the minister that we may cavill at him and persecute him Now it may be there comes this feare and hand-writing against him and who knowes but that it may be thus with thee whosoever thou art for this is a note of the child of the devill to hate Gods servants and ministers Now when a wicked man heares this he saith the word of God was profestly spoken against him and these are my sinnes and these are the Judgements and plagues threatned against them and therefore why may not I be damned and why may I not be plagued and thus his heart is full of feare he begins to reason with himselfe what is this the nature of sinne and are these the Judgmēts of God denounced against sinfull creatures why then what if God should lay these Judgemēts upon my soule and who knoweth but God will doe so to me this day plucke me out of the land of the living I am sure my sinnes are such and Gods Judgements are such threatned against them and therefore why may not this be and when he goeth to bed he reasoneth thus what if I never rise more and when he goeth from home what if I never returne more and God may take me with my meate in my mouth and cast me downe into hell fire for ever The soule being in this estate and the heart being thus pestered and plagued with the feare of Gods wrath that followeth a man like a Jailor he is hindred still that he cannot sinne so freely but still the wrath of God pursueth him and saith Do you not feare that God may take you away in the act of sinning and in the middest of your chambring and wantonnesse The heart being thus pestered with this feare it is not able to endure it he labours to drive away this trouble and dread from his mind and still he thinkes God is against him and he heares some behind him saying Thou must come to Judgement and be plagued Now the soule labours to drinke away and play away this Sorrow Another man haply that was a prodigall before riseth now early and will be exceedingly busied about his occasiōs all the day long that these things may take up his mind the reason is there lyeth something at the heart and he cannot tell which way to drive away his feare but he labours all in vaine For this is to make up walls with untempered morter which will presently fall downe it is as much as a man should labour to ease himself of sinne by sinning to give a man cold drinke in a hot burning feaver Thirdly in the third place the Lord pursueth the soule and when the heart cannot be rid of this feare the Lord beginnes to let fly against the soule of a sinner and discharges that evill upon him which was formerly feared and affliction enters into the heart The nature of feare is to feare an evill to come now the Lord makes the soule to see that it is not only great drunkards adulterers that are threatned but every sinfull thought and idle word The soule would faine have driven away this feare but the Lord will not let him but saith these curses shall kindle upon thee and shall continue for ever to thy perdition And hence comes this sorrow the Lord lets in some veine of his vengeance and some secret displeasure of his and makes sinne to stabbe the soule and then the curse lyeth upon him and the Lord as it were kindles the fire of his wrath upon him really and makes him see this is that which he feared Now his conscience is all on a flame within him and
of sin as it is sinne he cannot lay aside his sorrow so long as sin prevailes and gets head against him and dogges him up and downe nothing will content him but the removall of his sinne That soule which was cured by any other meane save onely by Christ was never truly wounded for sinne If ease cures him then horrour was his vexation If honour cure him then shame was his burthen If riches cure him theÌ„ poverty did most of all pinch him but if the soule were truly wounded for sin then nothing can cure him but a Saviour to pardon him and grace to purge him for what is that to the soule to have ease and liberty nay to be in heaven if he have a naughty rebellious heart nay if it were possible for him to be in heaven with his sinfull heart it would tyre him and burthen him there Therefore those soules that are cured by any thing saving by Christ those soules were never truly wounded for sinne as sinne It may be horror and vexation lay heavy upon theÌ„ but it was not the stroke of sinne that did trouble them Then gather up all he that which out of the vilenesse which he seeth in sinne is content to take shame to himselfe and will not meddle with his sinne neither carelesly nor willingly and is not cured by any thing saving by Christ this man behaveth himselfe truly in the first place Thus much of the tryall Secondly againe the soule is restlesse in importuning the Lord for mercy and will not be quieted till it get some evidence of Gods favour the soule will take on nay it will not be contented unles it can finde some glimps of acceptance through the goodnesse of God in Christ. This is plaine if a man be burthened with a weight or some heavy load that is laid upon him if that he be fallen under his burthen he lyeth there like to die and if there be none neere to succour him all his care is to cry out for helpe and though he seeth no man yet he cryeth out O help help for the Lords sake Saul was without sight three daies and no doubt he prayed to God all that while as if he had resolved to give him no rest till he had found mercy this is the nature of true sorrow it ever drives a man to God whereas reprobate sorrow drives a man from God Nay it may be though the heart thinkes it shall never finde mercy yet the Lord carryeth on the soule in an earnest desire and using the meanes and wil not off from God and from his word and sacraments and ordinances Nay though he sometime concludes that he shall never get mercy nor get power against his corruptions and then one saith You had best leave off all Nay saith the soule I cannot be worse then I am if I goe to hell I will goe this way There is a kinde of sorrow in the heart which is heavenly and godly but reprobate sorrow even drives a man from God and maks him say if I am damned I am damned if I be a reprobate I am so O â—hou wretch is this all If a poore creature that is pressed under his burthen cryeth for helpe when almost nature strength doth faile he crieth still for helpe and that is all he can say and so he dyes and this is the last word that he speaks with a soft still voice O help help So it is with the soule of a poore languishing sinner when the heart is burthened with the vilenesse of the nature of sinne and the separation from God by the same he doth not now cry ease and liberty and riches Lord No he cries mercy mercy Lord on this vile heart of mine and give me power against these mighty lusts after many means using when he is going the way of all flesh his last word is mercy Me thinkes I see this poore soule slyding away and saying how many sinnes have I committed Oh mercy mercy Christ. And this is the last word he speaketh and so he dies and no question but mercy shall be given him It is not a Lord have mercy upon me and God forgive me will serve the turne No it is otherwise if ever God set home this worke he will make you restlesse in seeking mercy and nothing shall content you but mercy to pardon your sinnes and grace to subdue them and the soule thinkes if mercy would but shine upon him and if his sinnes were taken away that they might never hinder him in a ChristiaÌ„ course he were a happy man this is the frame of the soule that is truely weary of sinne When the young man came to Christ and played fayre and a farre off and said he could do any thing Well said Christ if thou canst doe any thing then goe and sell all that thou hast and give it to the poore but he went away sorrowfull from Christ saith the text he did not come to Christ sorrowful but weÌ„t away sorrowfull from Christ whereas if he had beene burthened with sinne as sinne he would have come to Christ sorrowfull and say Now I see Lord the world is a heavy burtheÌ„ O Lord help me against it give me mercy to pardon me and grace to remove it But our Sauiour heard no more of the young man and as it is in the text this pricking of heart made the Jewes come to Peter sayingâ— Men and brethren What shall wee doe They did not as a great many say now a dayes if the minister were far enough off from me and I from him I were happy I cannot be quiet for him these are reprobate speeches but the sinner that is truly humbled and burthened with sinne as sinne he comes home and is resolved to wait for mercy till the Lord sheweth mercy to him Carnall sorrow sent Iudas and Achitophel to the gallowes but godly sorrow ever drives a man to God When Ionah was in the Whales belly he said Lord though I cannot come to thy temple I will looke towards it so a sorrowfull soule that is truly burthened with sinne will say though I cannot come to heaven yet I will looke up to heaven and though I never finde mercy yet for mercy will I wait thy mercy onely Lord shall content me The next thing is this we thinke of all things our sinne most pleasant and nothing so grievous as Gods commandements and therefore will these sinnes wherein we have taken so much content will these so wound the soule why should sinne so wound and pierce the soule The reasons are these three The first is this the soule must be pierced with sinne because it is the greatest evill of the soule and therefore if the heart doe but truly apprehend it it cannot but it must be most of all burthened with it If a man beare two weights on his backe that is most grievous which is most heavy if he feele the burthen as the nature of it requires it will most
heart hath formerly received from Gods Spirit For sanctification comes after justification and after the soule hath received faith and grace then the heart hath a new power given unto it whereby it is able to set forth it selfe into any holy action so that in this a man is a free worker whereas sorrow in preparation is a worke wrought on me and I am a patient and doe onely endure it but I have not any spirituall power to doe any thing of my selfe Now mark what I say both these are saving for rows but they differ marvelously many thinketh at every saving work is a sanctifying work w ch is false for every saving worke is not a sanctifiing worke as the Apostle saith Those whom he calleth them he also justifies and whom be justifies he glorifies Glorification implies sanctification here in part and glory for ever hereafter there is a saving worke and calling but yet not sanctifying worke for vocation is when God so farre enlightenâ— the minde as to buckle the heart and to turne it away from corruption to him and then afterwards God brings the heart to be justified and then sanctified they are first called and then justified and then glorified The difference of those 〈…〉 is thus to be conceived in this similiâ—udâ—â— as it is with the wheeles of a clocke thâ—◠〈◊〉 quiâ—e wrong what must a man doe to set this clocke â—ight againe he must 〈◊〉 stoppe it 〈…〉 no longer wrong and then turne it and set the wheeles right now all this while the clocke is a patient and the workâ—man doth all Secondly wherein is thuâ— set right then the work man puts the plunmets and weights on it and now the wheeles can runne of themselves by vertue of that poise and weight they have gotteÌ„ so that these two are plaine different actions Just so it is with the 〈◊〉 of the soule the will and the affections which are as the wheeles of this great and curâ—ous clocke for the soule goes hel-ward and sin-ward and the minde knows nothing and the will and the affections imbrace nothing but hell and sinne now to bring these into any holy order the Lord must stoppe the soule and that is done by the discovery of sinne and by this humiliation of heart when the Lord lets a man see his sinne and saith to him If thou wilt have sinne thou must have hell and all together and then the soule saith if it be so I will meddle no more with sinne the adulterer will be uncleane no more and the drunkard will bee drunke no more Now when the soule is thus turned it looketh heaven-ward and God-ward and is content Christ should rule over it All this while the soule is a meere patient this is a saving worke a worke of Gods Spirit where ever it is soundly wrought and will in the end be faith and grace But now when the soule is seâ— heaven-ward God justifies a poore sinneâ— and pluckes him to himselfe by faith and adopts him to be his child then the Lord gives him of his Spirit and this is as the weight of the soule then by the power of that spirit the soule is able to runne right hath a principle of grace in it and the poise of the spirit of grace which doth possesse the soule makes it able freely to mourne for sinne and to have the heart inlarged in the service of God this is mainely the sanctifying worke Quest. The second question is this whether doth the Lord worke this in all and whether doth he worke it in all alike or no. For I perceive the hearts of many poore Christians are gasping for this the Lord never wrought upon me in this maner and my heart was never thus battered bruised therefore how shall we know whether the Lord doth worke this in all or no and in all alike Answ. For the answere of this question I will handle three things First the worke is the same in all Secondly the maner is different in the most Thirdly many have it in them and yet perceive it not how or when it was wrought First this work of contrition of heart is wrought in every one in this worke of preparation before he is or can be planted into Christ for the truth of this and the substantiall nature of it Scripture is plaine and reason is pregnant Scriptures are many I will only name three as that in Luke our Lord Jesus Christ came to seeke and to save that which was lost We may observe two things first the qualification of that party whom Christ will seeke and save he must be a lost man in his owne apprehension secondly see the certainty of salvation of such a one Christ came for this end he came to seeke up and save that which was lost Now Christ will not misse of his end he came for the lost sheepe then the lost sheepe he will have though the lost sheepe cannot seek nor save theÌ„selves yet Christ will save them Thus you see all men must be thus disposed before they can be saved and if thus fitted and disposed they shall be certainely saved It is not enough for a man to be in a miserable estate and damnable condition but he must also see it and his heart must be truly affected with it and finde and feele the but then of it not so much for the punishment but for the sinne whereby his heart is estranged from God and also God from his soule Now that the sensiblenesse of his lost condition is there spoken of and this man that hath it shall be saved may appeare because the sensiblenesse of a mans condition in regard of the punishment of sinne is such as a man may have and yet never have grace and salvation Cain had the feeling of Gods wrath and felt the punishment of it and so did Iudas also and yet they were never sought up nor saved The second place of Scripture is out of Iohn No man commeth to me except the father draweth him by comming you must conceive beleeving as in that famous place of Iohn He that comes to me shall never hunger and he that believeth in me shall never thirst Now this text implyes two things and they are profesly granted by the intendment of the Apostle for the people murmured why the Pharisies and the great ones beleeved not and followed not Christ to whom Christ answeres Vnlesse my father from heaven draw them they cannot come so that these two things are cleare first a man must be drawne secondly if he be drawne he shal surely come This drawing is thus much when God opens the eye of a man and makes knowne his sinne sets downe the heart in the acknowledgement of sinne so that he feeles the vilenesse and the burthen of it and is content to part with the fame When the Lord shal lay all a mans abominations upon him all his adulteries and all his thefts and
the bottome And let me advise you to this when your soules are wrought upon by any reproofes or admonitions take that truth and labour to maintaine the power of it upon your hearts all the weeke after and let your soules be awed by it Thirdly consider what thy soule findes to be most evill and detestable whether it be poverty or disgrace or losse of liberty and then marke what I say get up thy heart higher in the very apprehension of sinne as it is sinne and let thy soule be more affected with the vilenesse of sin then of any other hardship whatsoever As thus suppose thy heart be vere proud if shame and disgrace befal thee oh how doth this heart shake in the apprehension of it he can live no longer except some honour come Now sinne is worse then shame therefore looke up to heaven say oh my heart did shake with shame but sinne is farre worse for what if the Lord take away my honour that he hath promised to such as feare his name and what if he blot my name out of the booke of life therefore sinne is worst of all this is certaine there is no evill the soule feares or finds but sinne is the cause of it but the separation of the soule from the Lord is the greatest evil and sinne is the cause of it and therefore rest not till thy soule shake in the apprehension of it This is the next way to be above punishment or any thing else Now I come to the fruits of godly sorrow which are from these words They said to Peter the other Apostles Men and brethren what shall wee do In these words there are three things presumed and three things plainly expressed First there are three things presumed they did see themselves in a miserable and damnable condition as if they had said hell is now gaping it is but turning of the ladder and we goe to hell for ever Men and brethren what shall we doe Secondly they themselves were ignorant and could not direct themselves what to doe to come out of this estate and therefore they said Men and brethren advise vs what to doe if there be any help yee know it Yet still there is a secret kinde of hope and the heart suspects that it may and will be otherwise with them they doe not say there is nothing to bee done no they say What shall we doe surely there is some way to finde helpe if wee could tell it Againe there are three things plainly expressed in these words they make an open and plaine confession of their sinnes when they were sicke at the hearâ— they could make open confession and lay the hand upon the sore and say If there be any vile wretches under heaven we are they Secondly a thorough resolution against their sinnes and a hatred of the same as if they had said We are resolved to doe any thing whatsoever it is we care not so we may thwart our sinnes The last thing expressed is a sequestration of the soule from this sinne the soule falles off from them and bids farewell to all cursed courses First I come to the three things presumed and because I shall have occasion afterward to handle the two former Therefore now I come to the last of the three which is this Men and brethren What shall we doe Surely there is some course to bee taken Is there not you that are Gods Prophets tell vs if there be any hope for such poore distressed sinners as we are So the Doctrine is this there is a secret hope of mercy wherewith God supports the hearts of those that are truly broken hearted for their sinnes howsoever these men did see themselves miserable yet they did not throw off all say Men and brethren there is no hope for vs therefore we will heare no more but seeing we must go to hell we wil take our pleasure while we live here in the world while we may and if we must bee damned we will be damned for some thing No these people had some hope that they should finde mercy the Lord bruised the heart but he did not breake it the Lord will not quench the smoking flaxe but kindles it further and the Lord drawes on the worke of the soule and pluckes it to himself and makes it looke vp to him and waite vpon him for helpe and mercy I confesse it is true that sometimes the soule in some desperate fit and in some horrour of heart when temptation growes violent long and the distempers of a mans heart stir exceedingly then a man may seeme to cast of all and resolve with Dauid when he had beene long persued by Saul I shall one day fall by the hand of Saul So the soule sayth God will one day leaue me and I shall perish And as Dauid sayth in another place All men are lyers that is they sayd I shall be King of Israel but they are all deceived They all lyers but it was in his haste in a proud impatient haughty humour of soule This is our nature if God buckle not to our bow and heare us not even when wee will then in a proud humor wee are apt to say oh my sins will never be pardoned and I shall never get ground against my corruptions a man that is in a swoune lies as if he were dead but yet he comes to himselfe againe and lookes up and speakes So how ever the soule in some unruly humor is driven to a swoune and thinkes it impossible to finde mercy or overcome his corruption yet still he recovers againe and the soule that is truly broken for sinne is upheld as Ionas said I am cast out of thy preseÌ„ce I am eveÌ„ sinking yet will I looke towards thy holy temple So howsoever the soule may be over-whelmed in a drunken fit of pride or impatience yet aftes the soule hath prayed it saith I will wait upon God for mercy God deales with poore sinnners in this case as men doe that pound pretious powder as Bezar stone or the like to make some potion withall they will breake it and pound it all to pieces yet they cover it up close and will not loose the least sand of it as they breake it so they keepe it close that none be lost So when God doth purpose to doe good to your soules he will breake you and melt you and then you thinke he hath cast you off in his anger No no he is pounding of you but he will preserve those soules notwithstanding and will not lose such poore sinners whom he purposeth to doe good unto As it is with pocket dyâ—ls a man may shake them this way and that way but they are still northward by vertue of the loadstone so there are many shakings in the soule sometime it feareth God will not be mercifull he sometimes hopes that he will thus it is tossed to and fro but still it is heaven-ward there is a
hope that it may be otherwise For the Lord holds the soule by a secret vertue to himselfe and drawes the heart to seeke for mercy When the Prodigall child was brought to a desperate strait he beganne to consider what he had done whereas before he said shall I ever be a slave in my fathers familie but at last when all was spent what doth he doe he saith It is true I can looke for no help and favour and I cannot tell whether my Father will receive me or no yet my Fathers servants have bread enough and I shall starve for hunger O wretch that I am I have left a kinde fathers house yet come what will I will home to my father and say Father I have sinned Thus the soule thinkes with it selfe Oh the many sweet and gratious cals that I have had how often hath Christ come home to my heart and desired entrance and yet I shut the doore upon him shall I now goe home to the Lord Jâ—sus Christ How justly may he reject me that have rejected him he may damne me and yet he may save me therefore I will wait upon him for mercy thus the soule will not off from God but it hath a secret hope wherewith the Lord keepes the heart to himselfe The first reason is because unlesse the Lord should leave this hope in the heart it would utterly be overthrowne with despaire You that make nothing of your loose thoughts and vaine speeches I tell you if God did set but one sinfull thought upon thy heart thy soule would sinke under it the Lords wrath would drive thee to marvelous desperation were it not that the Lord doth uphold thee with one hand as he beats thee downe with the other I say it were impossible but the soule should despaire as the proverb is But for hope the heart would breake Who can stand under the Almighty hand of God unlesse he doth uphold him God hath broken off the sinner by this sorrow but he will not throw him to hell As the gardiner cuts off a graft to plant it into a new stocke not to burne it So the Lord cuts off a sinner from all abomination but he wil not cast him into hell and the Lord melts the heart of a poore sinner but consumes him not but as the goldsmith melts his gold not to consume it all away but to make it a better vessel So the Lord melts a poore sinner to make him a vessell of glory the Lord will fire those proud hearts of yours and clip off those knotty lusts but if you belong to him he will leave a little remainder of hope that you shall be formed and fashioned not consumed It is the argument of the Lord by the Prophet He will come and dwell with and refresh the broken soule and he will not contend for ever lest the Spirit should faile before him If the Lord should let in but one scattering shot of his vengeance into the heart it were enough to drive the soule to despaire but God will lay no more upon us then will doe good to us Secondly if the Lord did not leave this hope in the heart a mans indeavours in the use of the meanes would be altogether killed if there be no hope of good then there is no care of using the meanes whereby any good may be obtained Good is the loadstone of all our endeavors a man will not labour for nothing therefore despaire killes a mans labours and pluckes up the root of all his indeavours If there be any good present hope makes us labour to encrease it if any good be to come hope labours to attaine it But good there must be So hope provokes the soule to use the meanes and to say I am a damned man but if there be any hope I will pray and heare and fast who knowes but God may shew mercy to my poore soule Now gather up all if without this secret hope the heart would faile and if without it a mans indeavours would be utterly crusht and come to nothing then it is no wonder that the Lord in his infinite mercy and wisedome when he will doe good to the soule leaveth some secret hope of mercy First we may here take notice of the marvelous tenderness and the loving nature of God in dealing with poore sinners that in al his courses of justice remembers some mercy and in all the potion of his wrath still he drops in some cordials of comfort he deales not with us as he might but so as might be most comfortable every way and usefull to worke upon our hearts to draw our soules home unto himself Should the Lord come out against a poore sinner and in his wrath let fly against him his soule would sinke downe under him but blessed be God that he doth not deale with our hearts as we deserve if he were as rigorous against us as we have beene rebellious against him we should sinke in sorrow and fall into despaire never to be recovered any more But as the Lord batters us so he releeves us as we may see in Saul he had gotten letters to Damascus and now he hoped being generall of the field to bind and to imprison all and he would not spare the poore Christians a jot but Christ meets him in the field threw him downe and might have killed him too but the Lord desired rather that he might be humbled then confounded I cannot read that ever he shewed his letters but layed all flat downe before the Lord and so was accepted the Lord shewed him his misery yet he lets him not perish there but gives him a little crevise of comfort When the Lord dealt with the children of Israel he said I will allure her and bring her into the wildernesse and there I will give her the valley of Achor for the doore of hope When Achan was stoned for stealing the wedge of gold the Israelites called it the valley of Achor and so it is called to this day The valley of Achor is the valley of trouble of stoning or consternation so the Lord doth here he draweth the soule into the wildernesse of sorrow for sinne but doth he leave the soule there no there is the doore of hope also and there the soule shall sing as in former times And hereupon the soule saith there is some hope that God will do good unto me for all this there is hope the Lord is melting me to make me a vessel of glory that 's a gloomy night when there is neither moone nor candle to be seen so though the soule be marvelous gloomy and heavy yet there is some crevise of light and consolation let into the heart still chearing and refreshing it the Lord knowes what metall we are made of and remembers that we are but dust therefore he so corrects us that he may leave an inkling of mercy and favour in our hearts O therefore
corrupt matter come out but the coare remaines yet in it still so it is with an impostumed heart when a man is truly pierced with his abominations he is content to lay open the most inward corruptions of all that there may be a perfect killing of all nay it labours to sweepe out the most secret sinnes of all without any ifs or ands and he saith Oh this proud wretched adulâ—erous heart of mine hath bin my bane it wil be my destructioÌ„ for ever if God be not more merciful now the coare and all comes out whereas the hypocrite that feeles only the feare and horror and punishment of sinne executed or threatned he confesseth no more then may procure his case he desires not so much to have his corruptions removed as to be freed from horrour And therefore a hypocrite will scumme over all his confessions his talke will be a hundred miles from his sinnes he never comes to that maine sinne which keepes his heart from God and it is remarkable one man complaines he is troubled with wandring thoughts in hearing the word and his soule is takeÌ„ aside with strange distempers but follow that soule home and you shall commonly finde some base corruptions that take up his heart and another man complaines of his hard heart it stirres not at the word of God and Gods Judgements doe not melt him when yet in the meane time he nourisheth that pride and selfe-uncleannesse that is the cause thereof and there are many besides these as it is with a dogge he doth not gorge up his meat because he loathes it but because his stomacke is troubled with it and therefore when his paine is over he takes it with greedinesse againe so it is with an hypocrite his heart is burthened with extreame sorrow and therefore he throwes out so much as did trouble and gal his conscience and may worke him some ease but afterwards he returnes to it againe and this is the cause why we have so many revolters and backesliders after such open confessions they confesse only to ease themselves of the horror and therefore when the horror is gone they fall to their old sinne againe wheras a sound Christian doth confesse his sinne onely from the loathsomnesse of it Thirdly the soule that is truly broken makes confession with an inward resolution never to meddle with sinne any more yet all this while the soule is full of feare and suspition for feare of falling into those sinnes againe therefore it desires rather to discover it selfe by desires and wishes then any confidence in it selfe and therefore the soule saith O that the Lord would once give me power against these corruptions oh how happy should I be but alas I have no power of my selfe the soule is willing to fling it selfe into the armes of Gods mercy and to commit himselfe wholly to the meanes of grace that God may get himselfe honour by him only he desires him to be good unto him by giving of him power against his corruptions Whereas the hypocrite that is in feare of some judgements and the wrath of God hath seazed upon his soule that he may get ease will promise any thing and be marvelous open and yet confident in himselfe and say if God would give me health and raise me up againe all the world shall see I will be a new man and they shall see how holy and how carefull and how exact I will be yet poore soule when he is out of his trouble he returnes to his vomit is worse then before and so much the worse because he hath made an open confession As it is with a debtor an honest man comes freely doth acknowledge his debâ— and desires the creditor to satisfie himselfe with his body and goods he desires he may be no loser by him hee suspects hee shall not be able to pay him but he hopes so farre as hee is able to give him content but another cunning mate promiseth to pay all if he will give him further day but intends no such matter Just so it is with a soule that is truly broken for sinne he layes himselfe in Gods presence and referres himselfe into Gods hands and saith The truth is Lord I know this proud corrupt heart of mine will not yeeld it wil deceive me I am afraid I shal not be able to walk holily take this heart of mine and doe what thou wilt with it only purge out my sinne and corruption this is the manner of his confession But some man may say Object Is every man bound thus freely and openly to confesse his sinnes I answer The doctrine saith When he is called to it But you will say When is a man bound and called to make confession Answ. For the answer I will shew it in foure conclusions First when the soule haâ—h had a true sight of sinne hath confessed it to the Lord abundantly through Gods mercy hath gotten some assurance of the pardon thereof then he need not looke to men for pardon because the end of confession is accomplished already A man therefore confesseth his sinne that he may finde some help against it not that a Minister can absolve or pardon any as the popish shavelings imagine but that he may have the direction help and prayers of a godly Minister Secondly if wee have wronged any body that wee have conversed withall though God hath pardoned the sinne yet we are to confesse it that we may make peace pray one for another this is the meaning of that place Confesse your sins one to another and pray one for another Thirdly if a man have used all meanes ordinary and extraordinary and hath fasted prayed and sought the Lord for pardon of sin strength against it and yet his conscience remaines troubled and he sinks under the burden of his corruptions in this case a man is called to confesse his sinnes to a faithfull Minister Indeed a man may confesse them to a faithfull Christian but it is Gods ordinance to confesse them to a faithful minister not that a Minister can pardon his sinnes but onely to declare when he is fitted and to apply mercy accordingly It is not a matter of complement but a duty commanded it is in this case with the soule as it is with a mans body he that is able by his owne skil and his kitchin-physick to â—ure himselfe hath no need to seeke to the Physitian but if it be beyond his owne skill and if kitchin-physick will doe no good then he is bound to seeke out to a Physiâ—ian unlesse he will be his owne murderer It is just so with the soule of a man that is sorrowfull for sin when he hath conscionably used all means and yet his closset prayers and his closset fastings will not doe the deed then he is bound to seeke out to a faithfull Minister for he is the physitian that God hath appointed wherby all the sicknesses of the soule
hides his sinne take heed that God say not Amen when thou art going the way of all flesh Then thou wilt cry for mercy but then the Lord will say remember that impostumed heart of thine might have been launced and cured but thou wouldest needs keepe thy lusts and corruptions still For the Lord Jesus Christs sake now pitty your selves if you desire your everlasting comfort now take shame to your selves that you may be for ever glorified O now launce those proud rebellious hearts of yours that you may finde some ease teare now in pieces those wretched hearts that the coare being let out the cure may be good sound Secondly this reproves the cunning hypocrit howsoever he is content to be ashamed for his sinne and to shew the foulnesse of it yet it is admirable to consider what sly passages and trickes he will have before he comes to open any thing sometimes he sends for a faithfull minister and it is his entendment to confesse his folly and yet he goes backe againe and confesseth nothing at all but if the Lord follow the close hearted hypocrit and let in some more of his indignation and make his wrath to seaze upon his soule then he sets downe a resolution to confesse all and yet there is such dawbing such secret acknowledgment of sinne it stickes in his teeth something he will say that may be every man can say against him and then he speakes of hardnesse of heart and of wandering thoughts and that which even the best of Gods people are troubled withall but he never comes to those sinfull lusts that lie heavyest upon his soule If a man that is sicke have a foule stomacke but yet is unfit to vomit it may be he casts the uppermost up but the spawne of it remaines so it is with the hypocrite he saith something and now and then a word fals from him he would faine bite it in againe if he could but there is a witnesse within that must not be seene When Rachel had stolne her Father Labans Idolls he followed after Iacob for them and searched among the stuffe but Rachel being something foolishly addicted that way sate still upon them and Laban must not search there So it is with the close hearted hypocrite he is content to confesse that which all the world cryes shame of him for but there is some Idoll lust as secret uncleannes or private theft that he will not confesse Now for the terrour of all such gracelesse persons I desire to discover two things in the point First that this is a marvelous fearfull sinne Secondly it is a dangerous sinne First me thinkes the sinne it selfe is like the sinne of Ananias and Saphyra hee sold all that he had and as the Lord moved him and commanded him he gave way to it that it should be given to the poore But when it was sold he kept backe one part of it and when Peter said Did you sell it for so much Is this all the price Yes saith he Now mark what Peter saith Why hath Satan filled thy heart that thou hast not lyed to man but to God Satan many times steps into the heart but when he is said to fill the heart he shuts out the worke of judgement and reason and the Word and Spirit and all good Resolutions in those particular occasions which concerne a man As if Sathan should say Knowledge shall not direct him the Spirit shall not perswade him the word shall not prevaile with his heart but I will take possession of him in despite of all these this is Sathans filling of the heart Thus it is with the Hypocrite his conscience is awakened and saith Thou must confesse thy sinnes or else thou shalt be damned for them the word commands thee and the Spirit perswades thee to confesse thy sinne and hereupon thou saist This is my condition and there is no ease nor comfort to be had in private means and therefore I must goe to some faithfull Minister and reveale my selfe to him and when thou hast done thou keepest backe halfe from him and thou lyest against Conscience the Word and Spirit and all and when the Minister saith Is this the bottome of thy sinne Diddest thou not commit such and such a sinne Oh! no I was never guilty of any such matter and yet thou lyest Marke what I say this is to have Satan fill thy heart thou givest up thy heart into the possession of the Devill Knowledge directs thee not the Spirit perswades not and the Word prevailes not but the Devill crowds into every corner of thy heart and thou wilt cover thy sins and so perish for them everlastingly But secondly as the sinne is vile and odious so it is as dangerous Hee that hideth his sinnes shall not prosper saith the Wiseman Howsoever thy heart may be still for a while yet thou shalt not prosper in thy Family nor in the Word and Sacraments but all meanes are accursed to thee thou shalt receive no mercy at all hee that confesseth and forsaketh his sinnes shall finde mercy but he that confesseth not his sinnes shall not finde mercy As wee use to have a neast egge to breed upon so it is the Devils cunning to leave a neast egge some bosome lust or other in thy soule and the Devill sits upon this same as upon a neast egge and when the Devill is cast out by a slight overly confession of your sinnes yet there is some secret lust still left in the heart and that will breed a thousand abominations more in you For I beseech you take notice of this the Devill returnes and brings seven Devils more then himselfe and he hatcheth seven times more uncleannesses then there was before therefore as you desire that Satan may not fill your hearts and as you desire to have any meanes blessed to you come off kindly and currantly eyther not confesse at all or else confesse currantly that you may finde mercy in the time of need The second Use is for Instruction to shew us that a broken hearted sinner is easily convicted of his sinnes and willing to under-goe any reproofe hee that will confesse his sinnes freely of himselfe will easily yeeld when hee is called upon to doe it If the word lay any thing to his charge he will not deny it a man need not bring any witnesses against him he will never seeke to cover his sinne but if any occasionall passage of speech come that may discover his sinne he takes it presently and yeelds to it and saith I am the man I confesse this is my sinne and my folly he doth not fence his heart against the truth To whom shall I looke saith God even to a man that hath a contrite heart and trembles at my word this is the root and this is the fruit the heart must be contrite and broken by the hammer of Gods Law before it can shake at the hearing of the word A
broken heart comes not to flout at the minister nay that is a sturdy heart but a broken heart shakes at the word of God if there come a promise a broken heart trembles lest he hath no share in it and if there be any command he trembles lest he should not be able to obey it but if the Lord meet with some maine lust as secret malice against the Saints of God and secret uncleannesse or the like if the Lord give a wipe at these things in the word thē this broken heart hath enough he hath his load and longs to be private he remembers that truth and the wound being fresh bleeds againe and he mournes againe and laies hold on his heart and saith Good Lord I was this malicious wretch I intended this mischiefe to thy Saints and if it had beene in my power I could have sucked their blood I was that uncleane wretch shall all these sinnes be pardoned and shall all these cursed abominations be removed Can these corruptions be subdued Brethren yee cannot be ignorant how a wounded heart is affected with every touch you that have broken hearts you know it I shall not need to tell you Therefore when ever the Lord comes to rake in those filthy and drunken hearts of yours they will shake within you and you will say this is my sinne and these are my abominations whereby God hath beene so much dishonored The third use is for exhortation if you know these things as I am perswaded you doe then be intreated in the name of the Lord Jesus to walke in that way which God hath revealed this is the basenesse of our hearts we are loath to unbuckle our vile and secret distempers they are shamefull themselves and yet we are loath to take shame for them Therefore deale openly freely with your soules confesse your sins freely that God may deale comfortably with you hath the Lord at any time let in this horrour into thy soule and is thy heart now troubled at the word and after all thy teares and paines and meanes using with uprightnesse doe thy corruptions still remaine are they not yet subdued as they might be canst thou not get any assurance of the pardon of them I say then cast away thy shamefull hiding and concealing of sinne and do not say what will the world and ministers say of me away with these shifts God cals thee to confession the Saints have done it and thou must nay thou wilt doe it if ever thy heart be kindly broken as it should be in some measure pleasing unto God and profitable to thy selfe Object But some will say how may we doe it Answ. For answere thereunto I will first give some direction how to doe it Secondly I will give some motives to worke our hearts to the same First be wise in chusing the party to whom you must confesse your sinnes for every wide mouthed vessel is not fit to receive pretious liquor so this confession is not to be opened to every carnall wretch that will blaze it abroad the minister to whom you confesse ought to have these three graces First hee must be a skilfull and able Minister of God one that is trained up and is master of his Art and so experienced that hee may be able in some measure to finde out the nature of the disease Not that any Minister under heaven can be so wife and holy as to give pardon to a poore sinner but onely hee is able ministerially to doe it under God Hee must be able to approve himselfe the Minister of God hee must have the tongue of the learned and be able to breake the heart and prepare the soule for Christ and then to apply the cooling promises of the Gospell to him There are many who in stead of curing of the soule kill it and by popping the Sacrament into a mans mouth thinke to send him to heaven but in conclusion send him to hell Secondly hee must be a mercifull Physitian one that will pitty a poore soule they that have experience of trouble and misery in themselves are most compassionate to others in distresse he that hath beene tossed in the sea will pitty others that have beene in the same danger If these people had gone to the Scribes and Pharisies they had beene well holpen No but they went to Peter and therefore found helpe when Iudas had sinned and betrayed his Master and his soule was full of horrour he went to the Pharisies and confessed his sinnes but what succour found he they answered him what is that to us Hast thou sinned then beare it and looke to it thy selfe so it is with carnall wretches what comfort yeild they to a poore distressed conscience they adde sorrow to sorrow and say it is nothing but melancholy he hath gotten this by hearing some fiery hot minister or by reading too much in some bookes of election and reprobation Lastly he must be a faithfull minister one that will not fit mens humors nor answere the desires of their hearts in speaking what they would have him but his faithfulnesse must appeare in two things First in dealing plainely with every one though a man be his patron or of what place or condition soever he be if he have a proud heart he must labour to humble him And Secondly as he must apply a salve fitting for the sore so he must be faithfull in keeping secret the sinne that is laid open to him that nothing may fly abroad no not after his death except it be in some cases Now what remaines but that you all be moved to take up this duty and provoke your hearts freely to confesse your evill waies to which purpose let me give you three motives First because it is a very honourable thing will exceedingly promote the cause of a Christian you will hardly yeild to this on the sudden a man doth thinke that if the minister knowes his vilenesse he will abhorre him for it But I assure you brethren there is nothing that doth more set forth the honour of a Christian and winne the love of a minister then this Indeed it is a shame to commit sinne but no shame to confesse it upon good grounds Nay when the heart comes kindly off it is admirable to see how a faithfull minister will approve of such persons his love is so great towards them O saith the minister it did me good to heare that man confesse so freely I hope the Lord hath wrought kindly in him certainely now he is in the way to life and happinesse oh how I love him I could even be content to put that man in my bosome Whereas this overly and loose dealing of yours is loathsome to us doe you thinke we perceive it not Yes we may feele it with our fingers and when you are gone I tell you what we thinke surely that man is an hypocrite he hath a hollow heart he is not willing to
take shame to himselfe for his sinne his confession never comes to the bottome Secondly confession is a matter of great safety I take this to be the only cause why many a man goes troubled and gets neither comfort in the pardon of the sinne nor strength against it because he comes not off kindly in this worke of confession When you doe nakedly open your sinnes to a faithfull minister you goe out in battaile against sinne and you have a second in the field to stand by you but especially there is comfort in this particular for the minister will discover the lusts and deceits and corruptions that you could not finde out and he will lay open all those holds of Sathan and that meanes of comfort that you never knew I am able to speake it by experience this hath broke the necke of many a soule even because he would goe out in single combate against Sathan and doe what he could not revealing himselfe to others for help was overthrowne for ever As it is with the impostumed part of a mans body when a man lets out some of the corrupt matter and so skins it never healing it to the bottome at last it cankers inwardly and comes to a gangrene and the part must be cut off or else a man is in danger of his life so when you let out some corruptions by an overly confession but suffer some bosome lust to remaine still as malice or uncleannesse c. Then the soule cankers and Sathan takes possession of it and the soule is carried into fearefull abominations Many have fallen fouly and lived long in their sinnes and all because they would not confesse freely therefore as you desire to finde out the deceitfulnesse of your corruptions confesse them from the bottome of your soules Thirdly this open and free confession may maintaine the secrecy of the soule for the onlâ— way to have a mans sinnes covered is to confesse them that so they may not be brought upon the stage before all the world Object Oh saith one this is contrary to common reason we are affraid to have our sinnes knowne that is our trouble we keepe our sinnes close because we would preserve our honour Answ. I say the only way for secrecie is to reveal our sinnes to some faithfull Minister for if we confesse our sinnes God will cover them if you take shame to your selves God will honour you but if you will not confesse your sinnes God will breake open the doore of your hearts and let in the light of his truth and the convicting power of his Spirit and make it knowen to men and Angels to the shame of your persons for ever If Iudas had taken notice of his sinne and yeilded to Christs accusation and desired some conference with Christ privately and said Good Lord I am that Iudas and that hell-hound that have received mercy from thee in the outward meanes and have been entertayned among thy people yet it is I that have taken the thirtie pence Lord pardon this sinne and never let this iniquity be laid to my charge I doubt not but though Iudas his soule could not be saved because that now wee know Gods decree of him yet God would have saved him from the publike shame that was cast upon him for it but he did not doe so but hidde his malice in his heart and professed great matters of love to Christ and kissed him and thus he thought to cover his sin wisely but what became of that the Lord forced him to come and to indite himselfe in the high priests hall before the temporall and spirituall counsell So you that keepe your sinnes as sugar under your tongues and will be loose and malitious and covetous still well you will have your thirtie pence still and they are layed up safe as Achans wedge of gold was remember this God will one day open the clossets of your hearts and lay you upon your death beds and then haply yee will prove mad and vomit up all were it not better to confesse your sinnes to some faithfull minister now If you will not give the Lord his glory he will distraine for it have it from your heart blood as Iulian the apostata said when the arrow was shot into his heart he plucked it out and cried saying thou Galilean thou hast overcome me the Lord distrained for his glory and had it out of his heart blood Now I come to the second fruit of contrition which is here plainly expressed and it is this A restlesse dislike of themselves and their sinnes as if they had said Men and brethren we care not what we doe against those evils of ours whereby the Lord hath beene so much dishonoured and we indangered command us what you will we must not rest thus so loathsome are our sinnes that we will doe any thing rather then be as we are So from hence the doctrine is this The soule that is truly pierced for sinne is carried against it with a restlesse dislike and distaste of it or thus Sound contrition of heart ever brings a thorow detestation of sinne this they professedly proclaime before the Apostles As if they had said thus much in more words You say we are they that have crucified the Lord of life and we confesse it oh happy had it beene for us if we had never listened to the plots of the Scribes and Pharisies but that which is past cannot be undone or recalled What must now be done if we rest here we perish forever can nothing be done against these our sinnes that have done so much against the Lord Jesus we must loath ourselves and our sinnes and we must get out of this eâ—â—ate or else we are undone for ever Now for the further opening of this point I will discover these three things First I will shew what a distaste and dislike this is Secondly wherein this hatred and dislike of sinne consists Thirdly I will shew the reason why it must be so For the first namely what dislike this is for the clearing of which you must looke backe to that which I spake before of godly sorrow For of the very same stampe and nature is this dislike and hatred of sinne and it is thus much in effect First there is a hatred in preparation and secondly a hatred in â—sanctification both are saving workes but both are not sanctifying workes vocation is a saving worke but not a sanctifying worke they are two distinct workes This hatred in preparation is that which the Lord workes upon the soule and smites upon the soule and thereby puts this kinde of turning into the heart not that the heart hath any powerfull inward principle of grace before for this is the first that the Lord workes so that as before the soule was forced to see sinne and to feel the burthen of it so the heart is now brought to dislike sinne this is a worke wrought upon the soule rather then any
thing done by the soule the Lord is now fitting and preparing the soule for the presence of his blessed Spirit And in this great worke of preparation the Lord workes these three things First he stoppes the soule from going on any longer in sinne Secondly he wearieth the soule with the burthen of sinne Thirdly by hatred the soule is brought to goe away from those carnall lusts and corruptions with a secret dislike of those sinnes which he hath been wearied withall In all these the soule is a patient and undergoes the worke of humbling and breaking rather then it is any way active and operative Thus the heart is turned away from sinne and set against those corruptions which heretofore it was burthened with as it is with wheels of a clocke when the wheeles have runne wrong before a man can set them right againe he must stop it and turne it to its right place and all these are meerly wrought upon the wheele by the hand of the workeman for of it selfe it hath no poise nor weight to runne right but when the clocke-master puts to his plummets then it is able to runne of it selfe though the workemans hand be not there So the will and affections of a man which are the great wheels of this curious clock of the soule these wheels do naturally of thēselves run all hel-ward and sin-ward and devil-ward now before the soule can receive a new principle of grace first the Lord unmaskes a man and makes him come to a stand and makes him see hell gaping for him thus the heart is at a maze Secondly the Lord laies the weight of sinne and corruption upon him and that doth sincke the soule with the horrour and vexation and loathsomnesse of his sinnes Thirdly then the soule is carried away from sinne by hatred and dislike and saith Is this the fruit of sin that delighteth me oh then no more malice no more drunkennesse thus the heart is turned away but after the soule is once brought on to God by faith and goes to God receives the spirit of sanctification of which we shall speake afterwards this is a new principle of life and out of this gratious disposition the soule is now growne to hate sinne freely and to knocke off the fingers from corruptions and beat downe his lusts and to love God freely out of that power of grace which the Lord hath put into the soule Now you must know that all this while I speake of the first worke when the soule is turned by the spirit against his sinne being formerly burthened with the same sinne This doth ever accompany a heart truly broken for sinne There is this difference betweene sorrow and hatred sorrow feeles the burthen but hatred flings it away sorrow loosneth the heart but hatred lets out the corruption sorrow saith doth sinne thus pinch the soule and hatred saith no more sinne then thus the Lord by his Spirit prepares the soule For the proofe of this point see what the Prophet saith You shall consider your waies and your doings that were not good and shall loath your selves A poore Christian would teare his heart in pieces in the apprehension of his owne vilenesse and saith Good Lord shall I ever be plagued and annoyed with this sturdy malitious heart and shal I ever carry this vile heart about me that wil one day carry me to hell if thou be not the more mercifull this makes a man even fall out with himselfe Againe see what the Apostle saith for this thing you have had godly sorrow but what hath it wrought in you doth it worke a holy indignation and revenge against your sinfull courses that when thy soule seeth his filthy abominations rising swelling and bubling within thy heart it takes on exceedingly and wil scarce owne it self but lookes away from sinne and is weary of it selfe in regard of the same Nay if it were possible that thou couldest be content to live without a heart even to forgoe thy selfe that so thou maiest not be troubled with that vile heart of thine and so dishonour God no longer I beseech you observe it when a man is brought thus farre oh he cries to God and saith Lord was there ever any poore sinner thus pestered with a vile heart Oh that this heart should ever be so opposite against the Lord Lord except I had a better heart I would I had none at all thus the heart loathes it selfe and in what measure the soule is carried with a restlesse dislike of sinne as it is sinne in the same degree it is most violent against those sinnes whereby he hath most dishonoured God as you may see in Zacheus his heart did most rise against his master sinne so the Lord having humbled the repentant Church thou shalt defile thy graven Images of silver and the ornaments of thy golden Images thou shalt cast them away as a menstruous cloth and say get you hence They hated all sinne but especially their Idolatrous courses so it will be with the heart that is truly broken he will cast away with hatred all his pleasing and profitable sinnes thus much of the first passage Quest. 2 The second passage is this Wherein doth this true hatred consist that a man may know whether he have sinne or no Answ. Answere this hatred or dislike consists in these foure particulars First if the soule doth truly hate sin then it is very willing to make search for it in every corner of the heart And any sinne that he cannot know himselfe he is willing that any Christian or any friend should make them knowne unto him A King that hates a traitor that would kill him and a man that hates a thiefe that would robbe him they are willing that any man should discover that traitor or thiefe and they will entertaine him kindly and reward him for it When the Ziphites came to Saul and told him where David was mark what he saith Oh blessed be yee of the Lord for you have had compassion upon me Just so it is with a broken bleeding heart that hath an open hatred against his corruptions if any Minister or Christian will make knowne some base lusts that lurke in his soule he will not flye out and say What is that to you Every tub must stand upon his owne bottome and if I sinne I must answer for it Nay hee will blesse the Lord for it and say Blessed be the Lord and blessed be such a Minister blessed be such a neighbour for they have shewed mee my sinne and had compassion upon my soule Secondly as the soule desires to have sinne revealed so it desires to have sinne killed and it makes no matter how it be killed or by whom so it be killed at all Hence it comes to passe that the soule which truly hates sinne is ever seeking to those meanes that are most able to give strength to him and to over come his corruptions and is
well pleased that any minister should meet with the base haunts of his heart and if the word hit wound that master-sinne of his hee is marvelous content therewith hee cares not from whom the help comes The sharpest and keenest reproofes that will shake his very heart and draw blood out of sinne and the most powerfull deliverer of Gods word that divides betweene the marrow and the bones hee likes best Nay though the great Cannons roare and Gods ordinances worke mightily upon his heart so that his corruptions may bee killed and subdued hee blesseth the Lord and saith Blessed be the Lord I have had a good day of it the Lord layed battery against this wretched heart of mine I blesse God for these reproofes and judgements threatned my heart is in some measure broken under them I hope my corruptions have gotten their deaths wound this day Thirdly as hee desires to see sinne killed in himselfe so hee is not able to see sinne in others but so farre as God hath put authority and opportunity into his hands he pursues it with deadly indignation As a man that hates a murderer hee will not onely keepe him from his owne house but hee pursues him even to the place of Justice So the Soule that truly hates sinne will not onely keepe sinne from his owne heart but hee will plucke it from the hearts of others so farre as possibly he may When Haman had a spleene against Mordecai hee was not onely desirous to kill him but hee would kill all the nation of the Iewes this was hatred indeed so it is with a broken heart If a broken hearted father have had a proud heart and hath beene wearyed with it hee labours to kill all the brood of those cursed distempers in his children Lastly hee labours to crosse and undermine all those occasions and meanes that have given any succour to his corruptions of heart the soule hath such a secret grudge against the thriving of sinne that it lothes all occasions that may maintaine his sinne as the drunkard and adulterer hate the place where they went in to commit sinne As in warre haply they cannot take the enemy but they will drive him out of the Country and burne downe all his Forts and fill up all his Trenches that hee may finde no provision so the heart that truly hates sinne and hath beene truly broken for it will hate all occasions and whatsoever may be any meanes to strengthen it Even all these proud and whorish lockes and these Spanish cuts all these wanton and garish attires and light behaviours which were nothing else but the Tent wherein his vaine filthy light heart hath lodged Thus it was with Mary Magdalen the reason why it is so is this because the heart that hath beene broken for sinne and burdened with the evill of it hath now found by wofull experience that sinne is the greatest evill of all others and therefore for the preservation of it selfe it will hate that sinne which separates betweene God and the Soule and with which the safety of the soule cannot stand Every thing in reason desires the safety and preservation of it selfe the soule knowes sinne to be the greatest enemy and therefore it is most invenomed with violence against sinne and â—aith Whence come all these miseries and what is the mint out of which all these plagues and Judgements come Is it not my sinne It is not povertie it is not sicknesse nor disgrace that pincheth mee but my sinne first caused all these It is the poyson of sinne in povertie and the poyson of sinne in shame and the wrath of God in all these by reason of my sinne These evills were not evill to mee but that my sinnes make them so Had I a heart to feare GOD and to love him and depend upon him in poverty God would inrich mee and in shame hee would honour mee and in misery hee would comfort mee It is not povertie nor shame that doth hurt mee but sinne lyes and venomes my soule And therefore the soule now cryes Men and Brethren What shall I doe to bee freed from these corruptions Great are the evills that I have found and marvellous are the plagues that I have felt by reason of my sinnes but farre worse will that portion bee that I shall have in hell in endlesse torments hereafter this will bee the perfection of all misery let it bee any thing rather then this it is better here now to be plagued then everlastingly damned The first Use is a ground of admirable comfort and strong consolation to all such as have found this dislike and hatred of sinne hee may be sure his heart hath beene broken for sinne and so consequently hee shall certainly have Christ and grace I doubt not but every soule is perswaded of this and saith Indeed if I could finde my soule greeving within me for my rebellions and sinnes then I did not doubt it but how shall I know whether my soule hath beene ever as yet truely wounded for sinne as sinne Answ. I answer if thou hast this hatred and thy heart is carried against thy sinnes with an utter indignation against them then certainely thy soule hath been truly broken indeed sometimes a man doth hate his sinnes more then ever he hath been burthened with them but thus it is commonly if thy hatred be good thy sorrow hath been sincere for how can thy heart goe against sinne except thou have found some evill in it and how canst thou be an enemy to corruption except thy heart hath beene wounded with it therefore let me advise all those that desire to have an evideÌ„ce of the worke of grace in their soules to goe in secret and examine their hearts whether they can make hue and cry after their corruptions can you be content that all your sinfull distempers even those that would affect you most should be made knowne either in publique by the ministry of the word or in private by some faithfull Christian and can you be content that he should come home to your hearts and dragge out your corruptions before the world then you have beene wounded for sinne and are enemies against it as David saith Trie me O Lord and examine me and prove my heart and my reines and see if there be any wickednesse in me He deales like a good subject that lockes all the doores and bids the officers search if there be any traitor in his house if any one hide the traitor he is a traitor himselfe in so doing so David as it were sets open the doore of his heart and saith Good Lord if there any wickednesse in me yet not discovered Lord let that word that Spirit and that messenger of thine finde it out reprove me convince me Lord and discover my hypocrisie and pride of heart This is an honest heart certainly Secondly when thou hast found out thy sinne by the help of the minister then
all these rebellions of my heart should be pardoned and all this loosenes and security should be cast behind the backe of the Lord I say it cannot be It is possible onely labour thou that it may be and that thou maiest not be puffed up with presumption consider these three Cautions in thy seeking The first caution is First consider in thy seeking a little mercy will not serve the turne thou that hast been an old weather-beaten sinner and hast wallowed in thy filthinesse when thou goest to God for grace consider it is not a little grace or a small worke that will doe the deed it is not a few spoonfulls or buckets-full that will cleanse a fouleskinne so if thou hast had a filthy prophan heart which hath been a through-fare to all wickednesse and thou hast thus given thy selfe liberty thereunto and hast continued therein there must be a well of mercy to purge such a miserable wretch as thou art When David had committed those two sins of adultery murther had continued in them long he was forced to beg for much mercy and to say purge me wash me cleanse me O Lord these staines are marvelous deepe therefore purge me with hisope nay he had never done with it because his sinnes were more then ordinary So it will cost a great deale of worke before a loose prophane drunkard can be made cleane Secondly thou must expect it with much difficulty and hardnesse in thy selfe thou that hast beene rivetted in thy base luâ—ts and corruptions the Lord will make all cracke before thou shalt finde mercy thou that hast out-braved heaven with thy prophanesse the Lord will make thee a mirrour of humiliation as heretofore thou hast beene a spectacle of filthinesse A man that hath had a bone long out of joynt it is now festred it will make him cry many an oh before it be brought into his right place againe So it is with a man whose heart is full of filthines it will cost him much paines and difficulty and heart-smart before the Lord will bring the soule to a right set againe Manasses humbled himselfe mightily before the Lord because he had bin a mighty proud rebellious man the Lord made his humiliation as miraculous as his sinnes had beene and so David when he had given his sinnes ease in bedding with them the Lord brake all his bones and did awaken him with a witnesse Lastly you must resolve to bestow the utmost of your endeavour to get this mercy at the hands of the Lord It is not a dipping of a foule cloth in water will cleanse it but it must be soaked and rinced in it so you must not thinke to have the foule staines of sinne washed away with a few teares No no you must rub your hearts over over and awake your consciences againe and againe it is not a little examination nor a little sorrow will serve the turne the Lord will pull downe those proud hearts of yours and it may be let you goe a begging for mercy all your dayes and well you may have it at your last gasp when all is done The maine point in hand is this It is for the first part of contrition for the sight of sinne This hearing is not barely the sound of a mans words but the sense and meaning of the words by which the mind is inlightned and he begins seriously to ponder the nature of his sinnes that were so layed open unto him thus hearing they came to be pierced The first doctrine is this There must be a true sight of sinne before the soule can be broken for the text saith They did first heare and then apprehend the evill that was done by them thus they were brought to a saving remorse for their sinnes Ezek 36.31 the text saith Then shall you remeÌ„ber your owne evill waies your doings that were not good and shall loath your selves for your abominations First they shall remeÌ„ber their works and then loath themselves it is the course that Ephraim takes in Ieremiah After that I was instructed I smote upon my thigh and after I was turned I repented I was ashamed and confounded because I did beare the reproach of my youth And it is Gods Course which he takes with his as in Iob. When the Lord had once gotten his people into fetters he shewed them their Wickednesse and makes their eares open to discipline And in another place the Prophet shewed the ground reason why the people repented not they understood not the grouÌ„d and reason of their sinne For no man saith What have I done As a horse rusheth into the battaile and feareth nothing so a wicked man continues in a sinfull course never considering what he hath done the drunkard doth not say How have I abused Gods creatures and the despiser of Gods ordinances doth not say How have I rejected the Lord Jesus Christ And therefore no wonder though he be not affected with that he doth Now for the better clearing of this doctrine I will handle these three things First I will shew what this true sight of sinne is Secondly I will shew the reason why there must be a true sight of sinne before the soule can be broken for it thirdly I will make use of the point First it is not every sight of sinne will serve the turne nor every apprehension of a mans vilenesse but it must have these two properties in it First he must see sinne clearely Secondly convictingly First he that will see sinne clearly must see it truly and fully be able to fadome the compasse of his corruptions and to dive into the depth of the wretchednesse of his vile heart otherwise it will befall a mans sinne as it doth the wound of a mans body when a man lookes into the wound overly and doth not search it to the bottome it begins to fester and rancle and so in the end he is slaine by it so it is with most sinners we carry all away with this We are sinners and such ordinary confessions but we never see the depth of the wound of sinne and so are slaine by our sinnes it is not a generall slight confused sight of sinne that will serve the turne it is not enough to say It is my infirmity and I cannot amend it and we are all sinners and so forth No this is the ground why we mistake our evils and reforme not our waies because we have a slight and an overly sight of sinne a man must prove his wayes as the goldsmith doth his gold in the fire a man must search narrowly and have much light to see what the vilenesse of his owne heart is and to see what his sinnes are that doe procure the wrath of God against him as the prophet David saith I considered my waies and turned my feet into thy testimonies the phrase in the originall is thus much I turned my sinnes upside
downe he looked all over his waies And as Zachary saith When the people shall looke unto him whom they have pierced and consider the nature of their sinnes then shall they mourne Note that this clear sight of sin may appeare in two particulars First a man must see his sinne nakedly in its owne proper colours we must not looke upon sinne through many mediums through profits pleasures and the contentments of this world for so we mistake sinne but the soule of a true Christian that would see sinne clearely he must strip it cleane of all content and quiet that ever the heart hath received from any corruption and the heart must looke upon sinne in the danger of it as the adulterer must not looke upon sinne in regard of the sweetnes of it nor the drūkard upon his sinne in regard of the contentment that comes thereby nor the covetous man in regard of the profit that comes by his sinne you that are such the time will come when you must die and then consider what good these sinfull courses will doe you how will you judge of sinne then when it shall leave a blot upon thy soule and a guilt upon thy conscience what wilt thou then thinke of it we must deale with sinne as with a serpent we must not play with a serpent as children doe because it hath a fine speckled skinne but fly from it because of the sting so must we deale with sinne a prophane gallant will prophane the Sabbaths because otherwise he should be counted a puritane Looke not at the speckled skin of sinne but how thou canst answere for thy sinne before God especially seeing the Lord saith I will not hold that man guiltles that blasphemes my name of what place or condition so ever he be Looke now on the nature of thy sinnes nakedly Secondly we must looke on the nature of sin in the venome of it the deadly hurtfull nature that it hath for plagues and miseries it doth procure to our soules and that you may doe partly if you compare it with other things and partly if you looke at it in regard of your selves First compare sinne with those things that are most fearefull and horrible As suppose any soule here present were to behold the damned in hell and if the Lord should give thee a little peepe hole into hell that thou didst see the horror of those damned soules and thy heart begins to shake in the consideration thereof then propound this to thy owne heart what paines the damned in hel doe indure for sinne and thy heart will shake and quake at it the least sinne that ever thou didst commit though thou makest a light matter of it is a greater evill then the paines of the damned in hell setting aside their sinne all the torments in hell are not so great an evill as the least sinne is men begin to shrink at this loath to go downe to hell and to be in endlesse torments Now I will make it good by three reasons that sinne is a greater evill then those torments and plagues which the damned in hell do indure The first reason is this That which deprives a man of the greatest good must needs be the greatest evill nature saies so much that which deprives a man of all that comfort and happinesse wherein the soule finds most content that must needs be the greatest euill of all but sinne onely deprives a mā of the greatest good for the good of the soule is to have an heart united unto God and to have fellowship with him to have him salvation through him to be one with the Lord this is the chiefest good of the soule All things here below are made for the good of the body and the body is made for the good of the soule and the soule is made for God and these things here below are only so farre good to us as they are meanes to make us enjoy a nearer communion with God and contrarily riches and honours and profits and pleasures are as so many curses to us if by them our hearts be withdrawne from God The reason why God is estranged from us it is not because we are poore or pursued or imprisoned or the like but it is sin that breakes the union betweene God and us as the prophet Esay saith Your sinnes have separated betweene you and your God Now that which separates from God which is the chiefest good it is our sinnes it is not punishment that takes away the mercy of God from us but a proud rebellious heart and the contempt of Gods ordinances Therefore sinne is farre worse then all the plagues that the damned doe or can suffer Secondly because there is nothing so contrary and opposite against the Lord as sinne corruption and this is the reason why God is the inflicter of all the punishments of the damned in hell it is through the Iustice of God that they are damned because God is of such a pure nature that sinne cannot be in him nor practised by him Thirdly because it is sinne that doth procure all plagues and punishments to the damned and therefore being the cause why they suffer it must needs be greater then all punishments for all punishments are made miserable by reason of sin therefore sinne is a greater evill then all the miseries of the damned If a man were in prison and had the peace of a good Conscience his prison would be a pallace unto him and though a man were in shame and disgrace and yet have the favour of God there were no misery in him so it is with sinne if no man suffer but for sinne then sin is a greater evill then all other punishments as being the fountaine from whence they flow Now let us looke upon sinne through these things and when our corrupt heart provokes us and the world allure us the devill tempts us to take any contentment in a sinfull way suppose we saw hell fire burning before us and the pit of hell gaping to swallow us and sinne inticing of us and let us say thus to our soules It is better for a man to be cast into the torments of hell amongst the damned then to be ouercome with any sin and so to rebell against the Lord. Now therefore if those plagues and punishments make the soule shake in the consideration of them Oh then blesse thy selfe so much the more from sinne which is the cause all plagues whatsoever Were a man in hell and wanted his sinnes the Lord would love him in hell and deliver him from all those plagues But if any man were free from all punishments and in honour and wealth if he were a sinfull and wretched creature the Lord would hate him in the height of all his prosperitie and throw him downe to hell for ever Secondly we must see sinne simply as it is in it selfe in regard of the proper worke of it it is nothing else but a
profest opposing of God himselfe a sinfull creature joynes side with the devill and the world and comes in battaile array against the Lord and flies in the face of the God of hosts they are called haters of God Psam 83. That is when they see grace in another man in such a man and in such a woman and hate them for it little doe they thinke that they hate the God of heaven and his holy nature and if it were possible they would have no God in heaven to take notice of their sins call theÌ„ to account for them as the wise man Gamaliel said to the Pharesies and elders refraine your selves from these men and let them alone for if this Counsell or worke be of men it will come to nothing but if it be of God you cannot destroy it lest you be found fighters against God you make nothing of opposing the Gospell and preaching thereof I tell you that there is never a creature that lives in any such sinfull course but he is a fighter against God and he resists the Lord as really as one man doth another And as Stephen saith You stifnecked and uncircumcised in heart you have resisted against the holy Ghost You must not thinke that you resist men onely no poore creatures you resist the Spirit and so aime at the Almighty in opposing of the meanes of grace What a fearefull condition is this I pray you in cold blood consider this and say thus Good Lord What a sinfull wretch am I that a poore damned wretch of the earth should stand in defiaÌ„ce against the God of hosts and that I should submit my selfe to the devill and oppose the Lord of hostes And as you resist the Lord so you doe also passe the sentence of condemnation upon your selves and seale up that doome which one day shall be executed upon the wicked in hell at that great day of accompt that looke what God shall do theÌ„ the same thou dost now by sinning this is the doome or as I may say the necke verse of the wicked and the last blow as now thou doest depart from God by sinning so then thou shalt depart froÌ„ God for ever A wicked man forsakes God and pluckes his heart from under the wisdom of God that should inform him in the way of life and the soule saith God shall not blesse me God shall not be God unto me but I will live as I list and I will run down post hast to hell and when our hearts beginne to rise against God and his ordinances and your soules beginne to goe against the Lord I tell you what I would thinke with my selfe suppose I heard the voice of the Archangell crying Arise yee dead and come to Iudgement and the last trumpet sounding and the Lord Jesus comming in the heavens with his glorious Angells and did see the Goats standing â—â— the left hand and the Saints on the right hand and with that I did heare the terrible sound Depart ye cursed would you be content to heare that sentence passe against your soules Oh what lamentation and woe your poore soules would make in those dayes and therefore consider it well and say that I doe that in sinning which the Lord will doe in the day of Judgement shall I depart from the Lord and withdraw my selfe from mercy and say Christ shall not rule over me and save me shall I doe that against my selfe which the Lord shall doe in that day God forbid There are two things hardly knowne what God is and what our sinnes are or else we hardly apply the knowledge of them to our selves Objects But some will object and say if sinne be so vile in it selfe then why doe not men see it Answ. To this I answer the reason why men see not their sinnes though it be so vile it is mainely upon these two grounds First because we judge not of sinne according to the word and verdict of it but either in regard of the profit that is therein or the pleasure that we expect there from The Usurer lookes on his profit that comes by sinne and the adulterer his pleasure and Iudas saw the money but he did not see the malice of his owne heart nor the want of love to his Master and this made him take up that course which he did but when he threw away his thirtie pence the Lord made him see the vilenesse of his sinne it came cleerly to his sight and therefore he cryed out I have sinned in betraying innocent blood As bribes blind the eyes of the wise and pervert judgment so sin bribes the eyes of the soule and therefore the Tradseman seeth much profit come by cozening false measures and so gives way to himselfe therein but he sees not the sin so the oppressor seeth the morgages pawnes that come in but he cannot see his sin till he be laid on his death bed and then the Lord sheweth him all the wrong that he hath done Secondly another reason why we see not the vilenesse of sinne is because we judge the nature of sinne according to Gods patience towards us as thus a man commits a sin is not plagued for it and therefore he thinkes God will not execute judgements upon him at all all things continue a like saith the wicked man as if he had said you talke of the wrath of God that shall be revealed froÌ„ heaven against all ungodlines where is the promise of his comming doe you not see that such a man is an oppressor a prophane persoÌ„ yet growes rich and thrives in the world and because God spares a wicked man still for the present therefore he thinkes all are but words he shall be free from the punishment to come as the Prophet saith in the name of the Lord These things hast thou done and I kept silence when thou wast upon thy Ale-bench and there thou didst speake against holinesse and purity and because I did beare yet and say nothing therfore thou speakest wickedly that I was even such a one as thy selfe The wicked man takes Gods patience to be a kinde of allowance to him in his sinne as the wise man saith because sentence against an evill worke is not speedily executed therefore the hearts of the sonnes of men are wholy set in them to doe mischiefe as the Prophet saith they call the proud happy ye that worke wickednesse are set to doe evill they that tempt God are delivered As who should say you say that the wrath of God is incensed against swearers and drunkards and the like but we see them prosper and because they doe prosper thus their hearts are set to worke wickednes but howsoever it is true the Lord doth sometime beare with wicked men the longer God staies the greater account they shall make and the heavier judgements they shall receive from God See what Iob saith thou sealest up my transgressions in a bagge and
therefore it is just with God to harden my heart for ever the Lord hath come ofteÌ„ with many loving perswasions to allure me draw me to him If the devill had had the meanes that I have had he would have been moved and more bettered by theÌ„ then I have beene and have done more then I have done I have hated and despised all and to this day I have not beene brought upon my knees shall not Christ rule over me and yet save me No it cannot be except I can bring my necke under the yoke of the Lord Jesus Christ it is not possible I should be â—aved by him I excuse not my selfe Lord nay I confesse I know more then all the men in the world can speake by me and I yeed to all this and more what shall I say I have sinned O thou preserver of men The reason why and how it comes to passe that God deales thus with poore sinners is taken from the office which the Lord hath placed between the heart the man the ground lies thus There are two things in the soule First you conceive and understand a thing Secondly you will and choose it The first is the inlet of the heart so that nothing can affect the heart but so farre as reason conceiveth it and ushers it home to the soule thereupon the heart as the King hath his Councellors which call all matters before them and consult about businesse then they bring them before the King to have a finall sentence from him to know what he will have and what he will not have So the understanding is like the Counsellors and the will is the Queene the understanding saith this or that is good then the will saith let me have it the understanding saith these and these duties are required and the will imbraceth them the understanding conceives what sinne is and the will saith these and these evills have I done and they will cost me my life if I repent not As it was with Iob when his Oxen and Cattell were taken it never troubled him because he never knew it but when he heard of it by the messengers he said Naked came I out of my mothers wombe There must be a messenger before he can be grieved for the evill So it is with the soule of a sinfull creature the Devill hath made a prey and a spoile of him thou camest into the world in Adam wise holy and gratious but he hath made thee unholy and ignorant and thou considerest not this till God by his Ministers opens thy eyes and makes thee see plainely that the Image of sinne and Satan is upon thee and that God is now become thy enemie and that now thou goest on in the way to destruction and art become the heire apparant of hell And when these evill-tydings come to the understanding that leaves them upon the heart and will of a man and so lets it worke effectually upon it as God doth blesse the same as Paul saith I know that through ignorance they did it if they had knowne the Lord of life they would never have crucified him This is the cause why we commit sin because we see it not and therefore we sorrow not for it As it is with some hot Clymates in the world though there be never so much heat in the sun yet if there bee no entrance for the heat into the house it will not scorch nor heat any so the understanding is like the doore or entrance into the house and sin is of a fiery scorching nature if there be no passage and if the minde know not and if the will affect not sin it will never scorch his conscience though a man carry sin enough in his bosome to sinke his soule for ever yet wee suffer it not to worke upon us and wee attend not to it because the brazen wall keepes it off as the proverb is that the eye never sees the heart never rues Because we see not our evills and discern not our sinnes so clearly as we should therefore it is impossible we should be touched for them as we ought to be The first use is for instruction from the former truth delivered we may learne that an ignorant heart is a naughty heart and a miserable wretched heart whether it be out of ignorance that cannot or out of wilfulnesse that men will not apprehend their conditions both are marvelous sinfull and miserable I desire to deale plainly in this point because I know there are many that doe flatter themselves in their conditions and thinke all is well with them I will say nothing of the cause but I appeale to the hearts of all that heare me this day your selves shall be judges in these particulars Imagine you did see a poore sinner come before you and lay open his condition and bewaile it with bitternesse saying that for his owne part he never did find his heart touched for his sinnes nor sorrow for his corruptions did ever enter into his soule but he hath lived senselesse and carelesse for this wounding of spirit he counted it a wonder for this humblenes of heart it was ever a ridle unto him let any one passe sentence upon this man now and tell me seriously what do you thinke of such a person I heare me thinkes every man reason thus and every mans heart shakes at it saith Good Lord what a senselesse poore ignorant creature is this If no humbling for sinne no pardoning for sinne and no share in Christ no salvation What is this a good heart that is not in the way to receive any good If a man be never broken for sinne God will never bind him up and if never humbled and burthened for his sinne God will never ease him of it Therefore woe to that soule that is thus miserable and accursed I beseech you passe this sentence against your selves Oh brethren the hearts of men are past this brokennesse of spirit nay they are enemies to it they never had their judgments cleared and convicted of their sinnes and therefore their hearts were neuer broken and this brokennesse is so farre from their heart as it never came into the head we thinke not of the foule nature of sinne Doest thou thinke this to be a good heart that was never humbled prepared for Christ alas it is so farre from being truly wrought upon that it was never in any way to pertake of mercy from God therefore thy condition is marvellous miserable thy misery is as great as thy sinne if not greater because when a sinfull creature is wounded and gauled for his sinne there is some hope he may be cured and helped but an ignorant soule is not capable of it he is in hell and seeth it not he is under the power of Satan and thinkes himselfe at liberty nay for the present he is uncapable of any good from the meanes appointed to that end It is with an ignorant
soule as it befell the drunkard that was asleepe on the toppe of the mast who feares no harme because he sees it not So it is with a sinfull heart he is resolved to goe on still in his sinne because he seeth not the danger take a man that hath his heart stabbed with a stilletto and the wound is so narrow that it cannot be searched there is no meanes to come to it Just so it is with a blind ignorant heart there is much meanes whereby good might be done to it but an ignorant heart barres all out so that nothing can doe good to the soule All counsels admonitions reproofes cannot prevaile all mercies allure not because they find no sweetnesse in them a Minister is as able to teach the stoole whereon he sits as to doe them good Me thinks it is with a world of men that live in the bosome of the Church as it is with such as have suffered shipwracke they are cast upon the waves and their friends are standing upon the shoare and see them and mourne for them there they see one sinking and another floating upon the waves even labouring for his life and they sigh and mourne but cannot helpe him Just so it is with ignorant people that are swallowed up with the floods of iniquitie here is one man going and there another in the broad way to destruction we pitty them and pray for them that God would open their eyes and give them the sight of their sinnes but alas they are not able to conceive of any thing We cannot come at them thus they sinke in their sinnes Our Saviour looking over Jerusalem said Oh that thou hadst knowne at least in this thy day the things that belong unto thy peace but now they are hidden from thine eyes As if he had said oh now they are sinking they will not be reformed nor reclaimed now they are going the way of all flesh and to hell too the way of peace is hidden from their eyes they refuse the meanes that may doe them good I might here condemne the Papists that say ignorance is the mother of devotion whereas it is the breeder of all wickednesse and the broad way to hell and everlasting destruction The use is this as you desire the comfort of your soules and to be prepared for mercy and to pertake of that rich grace that is in Christ as you desire to have the rich promises of the Gospell put over to you as ever you would have the Lord Jesus Christ a guest to your soules you are to be entreated to give your soules no content til you have your eyes so opeÌ„ed to see your sins that you may be convicted of them Now it may be some will say it is good that you say but what meanes must we use to come to this sight of sinne Answ. I answere to such poore soules give me leave to doe three things First I will shew some meanes how we may come to see sinne convictingly Secondly I will take away all the lets that may hinder a man from it Thirdly I will use some motives to stirre us up to use the meanes and set upon the service though it be somewhat harsh and tedious to our Corruptions The meanes are three First we must goe to God for knowledge the Lord knowes our hearts therefore we must goe to him that he would make us able to know them too the Church of Laodicea thought none like her selfe as it is the fashion of many in this age so to doe and therefore the Lord said thou thoughtst thy selfe rich and full and that thou didst want nothing It is an argument of a proud sinfull heart that he is alwaies wel conceited of himselfe and of his owne wit grace and sufficiency but marke what the Lord saith to this Church I counsell thee to buy of me eye-salve She thought all her compters to be good gold all her appearances to be good Religion but the Lord bids her buy of him eye-salve As if he had said you see not your sinnes and therefore goe to God and beseech him that dwels in endles light to let in some light into your soules When the poore blind man Bartimeus sate begging by the way saying O thou son of David have mercy upon me and pressed earnestly on our Saviour in so much that when his disciples rebuked him he cryed so much the more O thou sonne of David have mercy on me and when Christ said what wouldst thou have me to do for thee he answered Lord that I may receive my sight If he did so earnestly seeke for his bodily eyes much more should we for the eyes of our soules that we may see our sinnes A blind mind brings a wicked heart with it and laies a man open to all sinnes and therefore we ought to be more pinched for the want of this sight Object then of our bodily eyes and if the question be asked what wouldst thou have honour riches or the like Answ. Answere O Lord the sight of my sinnes I know sin is a vile loathsome thing O that I could see sinne convictingly and clearely Secondly labour to acquaint your selves throughly with God and with his law and to see the compasse and breadth of it the words of the commandements are few but there are many sins forbidden in them and many duties required therefore labour to see thy sinnes convicted and thy many duties neglected The Apostle Paul thought himselfe once alive without the Law and who but he in the world he was able to carry all before him he thought his peny good silver but when the Law came saith the text then sinne revived when God had opened my eyes to see my sinne and the corruptions of my heart then I saw my selfe a dead man yet Paul was a Pharisie and brought up at the feet of Gamaliel and one that did keepe the Law of God in a strict maner Whence we learn that a man may be an ignoraÌ„t man be his parts never so great for humane learning and the â—ame Apostle saith I had not knowne lust except the law of God had said thou shalt not lust by which is meant the tenth commandement which forbids the secret distemper of the heart though there is no delight and consent to it who but Paul and yet he knew it not and therefore no wonder though many otherwise well learned are ignorant in Gods Law therefore looke your selves in this glasse of the word all you that say how ever you are not able to talke so freely as others yet you have as good a heart to God as the best I tell you if you could but see the filthinesse of your hearts you would be out of love with your selves for ever An ignorant heart cannot but be a naughty heart Thirdly binde your hearts to the peace and good behaviour and be willingly content to take every truth that is revealed without quarrelling
notorious wretch as a murtherer or an adulterer or a theef or such like then he had cause to feare but God will not bring him to an account for every smal sin That this is the sleight of the soule I will shew you and then shew you how to avoid it It is ordinary with every carnall heart more or lesse to reason as Eliphaz with Iob How doth God know can he judge through the darke thicke cloudes are a covering to him that he seeth not he walketh in the circuits of heaven It is the guise of wicked men to say so Nay it is that which the hearts of Gods people are driven to a stand withall when they consider the passages of wicked men now God seeth them and doth not punish them they say How doth God know and Is there knowledge in the Almighty When the Prophet saw the way of the wicked to prosper their eyes to start out with fatnesse he saith Doth God see this and not punish it as if he had said Did God care for all that is done here below could he brooke such strange oppositions of his word and his gospell and his members I doubt not but that there is many an adulterous heart that thinkes a darke night shall cover all his abominations and the malicious man that contrives evill against Gods children he thinkes that God considers not his course or else that God will not trouble himself to execute Judgement upon him for all his sinnes As the Prophet saith The Lord will not doe Good nor Evill he is marvelous quiet he will not trouble himselfe neither for the good that doth befall nor for the evill that is deserved by us Nay this is the bane of our ministery when people heare of many Judgements denounced against sinne and sinners I tell you what they thinke of all this they thinke they are words of course If the adulterer or drunkard did consider that no such person should inherit the kingdome of heaven durst they goe on surely no. But they thinke they are but the words of some hot spirited minister to awe and scare men and keepe them in compasse and they will not be perswaded but God is more mercifull then so that he should punish for every small sinne they thinke this is more then reasonable Let him make speede saith the wicked that we may see it and let the Counsell of the most High draw nigh that we may know it As if they had said You ministers tell us much of Gods wrath against Ierusalem let us see those enemies and let the word of the Lord come to passe now all these words are but winde c. These are the carnall cavills of gracelesse persons To which I answer It is desperate ignorance and marvelous Atheisme of heart whereby the devill labours to keepe men in sin the Lord knowes thy thoughts long before if thou wouldest hide thy selfe from the Lord in the darke the day and the night are all one with him nay the Lord will search Ierusalem with candles the word in the originall signifies to tracke her Nay he will not leave searching till he finde thee out for the wayes of man are before the Lord and he ponders all his doings and if our hearts condemne us God knoweth all things and is greater then our hearts Doth thy Conscience checke thee for vaine thoughts and cursed devices then God knoweth much more by thee then thou knowest by thy selfe God did see Achan stealing the wedge of Gold and David in his adultery and he seeth all the malice of thy heart against his Saints and all thy uprising of heart against Gods word Nay the Lord seeth all the prankes of the adulterer in the darkest night and God is just to bring all things to judgement and thee also to an accompt for them In vaine it is for wicked men to digge deepe to hide their counsell from the Lord These things hast thou done said God and I kept silence and therefore thoughtest I was altogether such a one as thy selfe but I will reprove thee and set all thy sinnes in order before thee You must not thinke God is so gentle No he will set all your sinnes in order before you if not here for your humiliation yet hereafter for your everlasting confusion the drunkard shall then see all his pot companions and the adulterer his mates and the unjust person all his trickes nay God wil not bate thee one thought of thy heart be where you will God will finde you out with his judgements and say Lo here is thy pride here is thy murther here are all thy abominations this is the wretch that could carry fire in the one hand and water in the other these are thy sinnes and this shall be thy punishment Secondly if God be so mighty say they that he knowes all Object and will call us to an accompt for all then it is but sorrowing so much the more and that we will doe afterwards and this will make all well enough it is but repenting Answ. To this I answer Doe you make a but at it be not deceived God is not nay cannot be mocked and therefore delude not your owne soules every repentance will not serve the turne thou mayest have remorse of heart and repent and cry to God for thy sinnes and this tormenting of thy heart will be but a forerunner of thy everlasting damnation hereafter the Lord may deale with thee as Moses said of the people of Israel You returned and wept before the Lord but he would not hearken to your voice So the time may come that all weeping and wailing will not serve the turne You see Iudas wept and brought backe the thirty pieces of silver he had marvelous horrour of Conscience he tooke shame to himselfe and made restitution and yet a damned creature for ever Thou that thinkest it such an â—asâ—e matter aske thy owne heart this question Canst thou bee content to lay open all thy cursed sinfull courses and all the wrong that thou hast done Consider what a hard matter it is to bring thy heart to it to confesse all thy close adulteries and when thou hast done all this thou mayest be as farre from salvation as Iudas was who went and hanged himselfe therefore it is not every sorrow will serve the turne and bring comfort to thy soule but it must be repentance of the right stampe And againe dost thou thinke thou hast repentance at command this is that which cuts the throat of mens soules and deprives them of all the benefit of the meanes of grace thou art not sure though thou shalt live thou hast power of thy selfe to repent savingly and shall any man be so senselesse as to hang his happinesse on that which cannot help him If thou didst consider thy owne weakenesse thou wouldest not say that repentance is in thine owne power Remember what the Apostle saith Proving if peradventure
at any time God would give repentance that they may acknowledge the truth and come to amendment of life out of the snares of the Devill It is onely but peradventure it is a rare worke and few have it Thirdly some will say God may give me repentance Quest. Christ came into the world to save sinners and why may he not save me Answ. I answere is that all is it come to this and who knows but that God may damne thee too if that be all why may you not say more truly what know I but that God may give me up to a hard heart and a blinde minde for ever and I may for ever be cast out of the presence of God is it but It may be all this while And therefore for a full answere consider these two things to shake off this carnal security wherby men resolve to pin their salvation Gods mercy though they purpose to oppose his mercy First know this that there is a time wheÌ„ God will not shew mercy Behold saith God I gave her a time of repentance but she repented not therefore I will cast her upon the bed of sicknes and as our Saviour saith to Ierusalem Oh that thou hadst knowne in this thy day the things belonging to thy peace but now they are hid from thy eyes God had sealed up hâ—s mercy and the day of salvation was past and when the day is over though Noah Daniel and Iob should pray for a people they should save neither sonne nor daughter And if thy father did pray for thee that art a childe if mercy be past the Lord will not spare that man saith the text as if the Lord had said I have abundance of mercy but thou shalt never tast of it nay for ought I know the Lord may set a seale of condemnation upon thee and so give thee over to all evill to all sinne to all curses and blot out thy name from under heaven Are you yet perswaded that this is Gods word if you were but perswaded of the sorrow some have had it would make you looke about you The Wise man saith that wisedome professeth to poure out abundance of mercy saying Oh you simple ones how long will you contemne and despise puritie and holinesse Now marke when a people hath had this mercy and wisedome offered to them and yet they will despise it then shall the cry and call but I will not answere saith God they shal seeke me early but shall not finde me The period of Gods patience is come to an end and there is no expectation of mercy call and call you may but God will not heare you you whose consciences flie in your faces tel you that you have despised mercy you would none of Gods Counsells you hate the knowledge of his wayes Do you think to get it now by crying when the date of mercy is out No no you would have none of Gods mercy before and now he will none of you Doe you think it fit that grace and mercy and the spirit should still stand and waite upon you and strive and alwayes be despised Is it not marvellous just that that word which you have despised should never worke more and that mercy you have refused should never be offered to you any more It is just and you shall finde it so in the end and take heed the termes of mercy be not out Lastly if we cannot avoyde it then we are resolved to beare it as we may if we be damned we shall undergoe it as we are able This is that we poore ministers finde too often by woefull experience that when we have taken away all cavills from wicked men and then if we could weepe over them and mourne for them and beseech them to consider of it aright Marke what they say Good sir spare your paines we are sinners and if we be damned then every tub must stand upon his owne bottom we will beare it as well as we can What is the winde in that doore Is that all you can say O woe to thee that ever thou wert bone O pooâ—e creature if I should cease speaking all of us joyne together in weeping and lamenting thy condition it were the best course It is impossible thou shouldest ever beare Gods wrath with any comfort And let these three considerations be remembred retained which wil make any man come to a stand even the vilest wretches who will blaspheme and sweare and if they be damned they say they have borne something and they will also beare this as well as they can First judge the Lyon by the pawe judge the torments of hell by some little beginnings of it and the dregges of Gods vengeance by some little sipps of it And judge how unable thou art to beare the whole by thy inabilitie to beare a little of it in this life In the terrour of conscience as the Wiseman saith a wounded spirit who can beare When God layes the flashes of hell fire upon thy soule thou canst not indure it what soever a man can inflict upon a poore wretch may be borne but when the Almighty comes in battaile array against a poore soule how can he undergoe it witnesse the Saints that have felt it as also wittnesse the wicked themselves that have had some beginnings of hell in their consciences When the Lord hath let in a little horror of heart into the soule of a poore sinfull creature how is he traÌ„sported with an insupportable burthen When it is day he wisheth it were night and when it is night he wisheth it were day All the friends in the world cannot comfort him nay many have sought to hang themselves to doe any thing rather then to suffer a little vengeance of the Almighty And one man is roaring and yelling as if he were now in hell already and admits of no comfort If the droppes be so heavy what will the whole sea of Gods vengeance be If he cannot beare the one how can he beare the other Secondly consider thine owne strength and compare it with all the strength of the creatures and so if all the creatures be not able to beare the wrath of the Almighty as Iob saith Is my strength the strength of stones or is my flesh as brasse that must beare thy wrath As if he had said It must be a stone or brasse that must beare thy wrath Though thou wert as strong as brasse or stones thou couldst not beare it when the mountaines tremble at the wrath of the Lord shall a poore worme or bubble and a shadow endure it Conceive thus much if all the diseases in the world did sease on one man and if all the torments that all the tyrants in the world could devise were cast upon him and if all the creatures in heaven and earth did conspire the destruction of this man and if all the devils in hell did labour to inflict punishments upon him you
in the originall is Call her into the Court call her by her name and say that shee is not my wife and I am not her husband And the Lord saith by Ezechiel Son of man cause Ierusalem to know her abominations he doth not say cause the country to know her abominations or the country to know the sins of the court but make Jerusalem know her owne abominations The reasons are these First because the word thus applyed hits sooner then otherwise it would A master commands a servant to do such a thing because he names him not one thinkes it is not he and another it is not he only because he is not named So when a minister saith in many things we sinne all he hits no man and so none are affected with it But now particular application brings every mans part and portion and not only sets the dish afore him but cuts him meat and carves for him and we doe in this cause as the nurse doth with the child she not onely sets the meat before it but she minceth it and puts it into the childs mouth the steward doth no◠onely say There is meat enough in the market but he buyes it and brings it home and sees it prepared and gives direction what is for every one The words of a faithfull minister are like arrowes which if they be shot a cocke height they fall down againe and do nothing but when a man levels at a marke then if ever he wil hit it So many ministers can tell a grave faire tale and speake of sinnes in generall and these common reproofes these intimations of sinne are like arrowes shot a cocke height they touch no man but when a minister makes application of sin in particular and saith O all you drunkards and adulterers this is your portion and let this be as venome in your hearts to purge out your lusts When our Saviour Christ lapped up the Pharises all in one speech it is said that they heard the parable and knew that he meant them Overly discourses that they are sinners and great sinners in other countries and you should doe well to looke to your wayes and the like These are like the confused noise that was in the ship when Ionah was asleep in it which never troubled him at last the Master commeth and saith Arise O Sleeper and call upon thy God And as a father observes they came about him and every man had a blow at him and then he did awake So because of generall reproofes of sin termes a farre off men come here and sit and sleepe and are not touched nor troubled at 〈◊〉 But when particular application commeth 〈◊〉 to the heart and a minister saith this is thy drunkennesse and thy adulterie and prophanenesse and this will breake thy necke one day what assurance hast thou got of Gods mercy and what canst thou say for heaven Then men beginne to looke about them There was never any convicting Ministery nor any man that did in plainnes apply the word home but their people would be reformed by it or else their consciences would be troubled and desperately provoked to oppose God and his ordinances that they may be plagued by it The word of God is like a sword the explanation of the text is like the drawing out of this sword and the florishing of it and so long it never hits But when a man strikes a full blow at a man it either woūds or puts him to his fēce so the application of the word is like the striking with the sword it will worke one way or other if a man can fence the blow so it is I confesse it is beyond our power to awaken the heart but ordinarily this way doth good Secondly as the word of God particularly applyed hits soonest so it sinckes deepest the words of the wise are compared to nailes fastened by the masters of assemblies the doctrine delivered is like the nailes pointed but when it is cleare and then particularly applyed it is like the setting on the nailes fast upon the hearts and consciences of men And this I take to be the reason why many that have come many times to oppose the ministers of the Gospell yet God hath broken in upon them and humbled their hearts made them see their miserable condition Gather up all then if a plaine and particular application of the word hits the heart soonest sincks deepest into the heart then it is a speciall meanes to worke a sight of sinne and affect the heart with sorrow for it But the former part is true Therefore the latter cannot be denied The first use is for instruction Here we finde the reason why plaine teaching findes such opposition why it is so cavilled at by all ministers others because thereby the eye of the soule comes to be opened and all a mans abominations are discovered and his conscience is pinched by the same Our Saviour saith He that doth evil hates the light lest his deeds should be reproved as a theefe hates the light and the lantorn-bearer because they shew his villany so they that are guilty of many sinfull courses and base practises hate the minister that brings the word with any power to their soules A malefactor at the Assises can be content to see an hundred men in the towne and is never troubled with them but if he sees one man that comes to give in euidence against him and knowes his practises Oh how his heart riseth with desperate indignation against that man Oh saith he this is he that seekes my life he will make my necke cracke so it is with this soule saving ministery it is that which brings in a bill of inditement against a man Now a man can be content to come and heare though it be never so many sermons but if a minister comes in for a witnes against him and begins to arraigne him and to indite him for his pride and malice and covetousnesse and to convince him of them and to lay him flat before the Lord his conscience Oh then he is not able to beare it What is the reason of this He can heare others quietly and say oh they are sweet men they deale kindly and comfortably Why The masse bites not as the proverbe is such a kind of ministery workes not at all and this is the reason why they are not troubled but goe away so well contented I have sometime admired at this why a company of Gentlemen yeomen and poore women that are scarcely able to know their A. B. C. Yet they have a minister to speake Latine Greeke and Hebrew and to use the Fathers when it is certaine they know nothing at all The reason is because all this stings not they may sit and sleep in their sinnes and go to hell hoodwinckt never awakened and that is the reason they will wellcome such to their houses and say oh he is an excellent man I
they are wise enough to take their meat and to apply the word to themselves Answ. To this I answer three things I confesse it is true the Lord blessed be his name hath made his word more evidently knowne then formerly and yet there is a great deale of knowledge wanting in the most sort of men nay I can speake it by experience that the meaner ordinary sort of people it is incredible and unconceiveable what Ignorance is among them Nay I will be bold to justifie it that he that thinkes himselfe the wisest in understanding if we come home to him by way of examination we shall make it known to him that he knowes little or nothing of which he should and ought to know But Imagine men had the knowledge of the word that is not the maine end of preaching to instruct men but to worke upon their hearts When a man hath taught men what they should doe he is but come to the walls of the Castle the fort is in the heart the greatest worke of the ministery is to pull downe the wills of men that know the truth of God and hold it in unrighteousnesse Nay they that doe know it how dull are they in the performances of these duties God calles for at their hands so that we had not onely need to mince their meat for them but even to put it into their mouthes nay they sleepe with meat in their mouthes I appeale to you that are inlightned in the knowledge of the truth doe you not finde dulnesse of minde and indisposednesse of spirit in the performances of those duties God calls for at your hands It was spoken by a reverend Divine that the freest horse needs sometimes a spur to pricke him forward so I say the best Christian needs a sharpe reproofe to pricke him forward in a Christian course But thirdly if reason cannot prevaile they dash this preaching out of countenance Object and say when men want matter to make up their sermons then they ransacke mens consciences and apply unto them their particular sinnes and so they make up their sermons Answ. To this I answer againe then our Saviour Iesus Christ wanted matter he presseth their faults to the Scribes and Pharises seven times together nay in the sixt of Iohn he presseth on truth nine times his aime and end was namely that he was the bread of life he followeth it and setleth it on them Now in these mens judgements Christ wanted matter he had not wherewith to spend the time therfore he spake to the hearts of men and came home to their Consciences but to say the truth the ground of their cavills that are cast against this kinde of preaching is because this troubles the hearts of those to whom we speake brings vexation to the soules Do we want matter for our preaching no but this I say it is an easie matter for any man to observe truths out of a text to lay forth a point this is an easie thing for any one that hath a judgement inlightned in the Scripture but for a minister of God in the worke of examination to drive the soule of a carnall man to a stand that he cannot escape to make him goe away and hang the wings in so much that the soule shall be humbled or else goe away and snarle at the truth and reproofe delivered Or for a man to uphold a soule in the time of trouble to comfort it and take away all doubts I say this is the hardest matter for a minister to accomplish under the Sunne in the worke of the ministery I speake for these two passages that all the world may know what belongs to the worke of the ministery and also that al the world may know if men take any distaste at this kinde of preaching we care not it is our dutie The third use is for exhortation if this be our duty it ought to stirre up the heart of all the people of God to set an edge on their affections that they should desire this manner of teaching and when God maketh his truth thus knowne to us we should submit to the power thereof You have most need of this and there is most profit in this and therefore your hearts ought to be more inlarged to the coveting and submiting thereto And therefore you that are hearers suffer me to provoke you to it when the time comes that you are to approach to the house of God pray unto the Lord that he would direct you and that the minister may come home to your hearts bring your hearts to the word as the people did their sacrifices in the old law they brought them and laid them on the Altar that the Priest might kill them and divide them So bring your hearts under the power of Jesus Christ that they may be cut and divided that you may be let blood in the right veine that your corruptions may bee subdued that they may have their deaths wound given them take up that resolution of the Prophet David I will heare what the Lord saith to my soule I will not heare what the Levit saith to the Courtier or to the commons but I will see what the Lord saith to me Oh say some the minister speakes home to such a one he touched him to the quicke What is that to thee Will anothers mans salve cure thee therefore labour that the Lord may come home to thy particular that the Lord may salve thee and cut thee and save thee for thy everlasting comfort You are wise for the things of this life you will be content to part with any thing that may procure your comfort if a father were now on his death bed making his will every child would thinke what doth my father give me For if a man be bidden to a Feast he is not content only to have the meate set before him but if the master of the feast will carve for him he will take it kindly Every faithfull minister is the father of the people and they are his children they are the Stewards of the Lords house and give to every one their portion terrour to whom terrour belongs and comfort to whom comfort belongs Therefore when you come into the congregation and see the minister giving and parting to every one his doale reproofe here and instruction there looke up to heaven and labour to get some thing to thy owne particular and say as Esay did in another case something for me Lord something for me instruct me reprove me make knowne my sinnes and discover my abominations when the dainties of salvation are distributing You that are at the lower end of the table thinke with your selves will the dish never come to the lower end Oh that the Lord would now guide the minister to lay his hand on the sore of this cursed infidelitie of minde Oh that the Lord would knocke downe that sinne of mine this day And if thy heart be any whit
those things to his minde the plagues due thereunto so that he cannot escape the dint therof It is the nature of our own hearts that we are loath to read our owne destiny which will be our bane and confusion meditation calls over the thoughts of a man tells him the reasons are good the arguments found the Scripture plaine thy sinnes evident Conscience you know it therefore heart you must doe it saith meditation take heed of drunkennesse saith meditation you heard what the minister said these sinnes are against God and the wrath of God is gone out against you for these sinnes these will be your bane and will bring you to everlasting destruction And when meditation doth thus yawle at the heart the minde still musing and the heart still pondering of sin at last it is weary therefore unburdened therewith the issue of the argumēts is this if meditation brings in sin more powerful more plainely to the soule if it be that which binds and fastneth it and setleth it upon the soule then the point is cleare that serious meditation of sinne is a special meanes to bring a soule to the sight and sorrow for sinne The uses are three the third is the maine we will presse on unto it If it be so that meditation is thus powerfull and profitable both for contrition of the heart and to bring in consolation to the heart then what shall we thinke of those men that are unwilling to practice this dutie nay what shall we thinke of that untowardnesse of heart which is in us against the command of this duty It is a word of reproofe against this practice and it falls marvelous heavy upon us all more or lesse in this kinde for we are marvelous guiltie in this kinde that we are tardy in this duty a man had as good bring a Beare to the stake as a carnall heart to the consideration of his owne wayes much more loath is he to ponder seriously and meditate continually upon his sinnes no men are so farre from musing of their sinnes that they disdaine this practice and scoffe at it what say they if all were of your minde what should become of us shall we alwayes be poring on our corruptions so we may hap to runne mad if we were of your opinion thus we slight and put it off and trample on this duty which is so profitable the poore will not meditate on his sinnes he hath no time the rich they need it not the wicked dare not and so no man will in this case What shall a man set his soule on a continuall racke say they shall a man drive himselfe to a desperate stand and trouble himselfe unprofitably cannot men keepe themselves when they are well this is the course and frame of the world and wee may complaine of this carelesse and heedlesse age as Ieremiah did of his time Ier. 8.6 No man repenteth him of his wickednesse saying What have I done there is no questioning nor searching no musing no man saith What have I done no man saith these are my sinnes these are my wayes no man lookes over his course and conversation he doth not apprehend his sinne and that is the reason we heare of no humbling of no repenting but every man runneth into sinne as the horse rusheth into the battell hence it is that there are so māy uncleane beasts in the Arke In the old Law if there were any beasts that chewed not the cud he was counted uncleane the chewing of the cud is serious meditation of the mercies of God to comfort us and of our sinnes to humble us there are many ungodly persons in the bosome of the Church that muse not of their sinfull wayes the Prophet Ieremiah saith Were they ashamed when they had committed abominatiōs nay they were not at all ashamed neither could they blush he adds a reason in the eleventh verse They could not be ashamed why because they cry peace peace let the minister speake what he can and denounce what judgement he will they promise thēselves peace quietnes they consider not their wayes and therefore their hearts are not distempered therewith nor troubled at the consideration thereof nay there are many that count it an excellencie a cunning skill if they can drive away and shake off the sight of sinne if they can put off the meditation of any thing the word reveales they make it a marvelous excellent piece of skill and what they doe themselves they would have others doe also but they that now will not see nor consider nor meditate of their sinnes the truth is they shall see them as the Lord saith by Esay 26.11 When thy hand is lifted up they will not see but they shall see and be ashamed So I say you that will not see your sins but say What needs all this stirre let the minister say what hee will shall we be mad men to be troubled and shall we be fooles to be disquieted with the consideration of our sinnes well you will not muse upon your sinnes now but the time will come that the Lord will set all your sinnes in order before you and you shall not be able to looke off them And hence it is that when a man hath lived wickedly all his dayes and comes to lye on his death bed then all his sinnes come to his remembrance and then conscience flies in his face and sayes here is a cup for a drunkard and for an adulterer now he seeth nothing but sinne and hell and damnation due to him for his sinne and then he cries out he is damned You might have seene something before then if you had seene them to be humbled for them you should never have seene them to be damned for them If there be but any occasion of basenesse offered to the view of the drunkard which way doth he not use to compasse his carnall delights and shall the drunkard and prophane wretch be so eager in lingering after sinne that he may commit it and be damned for it and shall not a man so labour to see his iniquities that he may be humbled for them before God and receive mercy from God in the pardon of the same Shall the reprobate hale judgements on their soules and bend all their meditations that way and shall not they that desire to see God in glory doe the same The Second use is for instruction from the former doctrine delivered we may collect that loose vaine joviall company is the greatest hindrance to preparatiō for Christ and the greatest obstacle to the worke of grace that can be possible this is not forced but followeth clearly from the former truth in this manner thus I reason That course which takes away the minde from musing and the understanding from meditating on his evill way that course is the greatest hindrance why the heart is not humbled and fitted for the Lord for meditation brings in contrition and that prepares the heart for Christ but
First the ground on which our meditation must be raised Secondly the maner how to follow it home to the heart Thirdly how to put life and power to it that it may prevaile and worke that end in our soules which we would have it First concerning the former we must consider the grounds whereupon meditation must be raised and them I referre to these foure heads First labour to see the mercy goodnesse and patience of God that have beene abused and despised by that unkinde dealing of ours and that marvelous carelesnesse those duties God hath required of us the height of Gods goodnesse to us lays out the height of all our iniquities coÌ„mitted The greater the kindnesse and mercy of God is the greater are our sinnes that esteeme not of this mercy but abuse it and despise it This adds to our rebellions this makes our sinnes out of measure sinfull because God hath beene out of measure mercifull There are many sinnes in one when a man sinneth against many mercies and walkes not worthy of them we may observe that this is the course that God takes to breake the hearts of the Israelites when they had neglected his wayes and broken his commandements what was his message when the Lord humbled the people and brake them kindly The Lord by the Angell thus speakes I made you to goe out of Aegypt and brought you to the land which I sware to your fathers and I said I would never breake my covenant with you and ye shall make no league with the inhabitants of the land But ye have not obeyed my voice why have you done this worke Now the Lord presseth this his kindnesse upon them and labours to melt their hearts in the apprehension of his goodnesse to them and their unthankefulnesse to him in the eight verse the text saith When they heard this the people lift up their voice and wept The consideration of Gods kindnesse to them and their unkindnes to God He did all for them and they did all against him the Lord was gratious to them for their comfort but they did not walke worthy of it Why have you done this saith the Lord Why was my mercy despised Why was my goodnesse slighted Why was my patience and long suffering abused When they heard this they wept in the consideration of their unnaturall dealing Nay this is the thing remarkeable in Moses he stabs the heart and workes effectually upon the Israelites by this meanes Doe you thus requite the Lord O foolish people and unwise Is not he thy father that hath bought thee Hath not he made thee and established thee and will you thus reward the Lord Thus carelesly and thus proud and disobedient Why Remember saith he the dayes of old and then he reckons upon Gods gratious dealing with them I applie this in particular there is never a soule here present there is never a man in the basest estate and lowest condition but hath had experience of Gods goodnesse and mavelous loving kindnesse this way Were you ever in want but God supplied you were you ever in weakenesse but God strengthened you in sicknesse who cured you in misery who succoured you in povertie who relieved you hath not God been a gratious God unto you every poore soule can say never a poore sinner hath had a more gratious God then my soule all my bones can say Lord who is like unto thee this heart hath been heavy and thou hast cheared it this soule hath beene heavy and thou hast relieved it many troubles have befallen me and thou hast given a gratious issue out of them all And shall I thus reward the Lord shall I sin against his goodnesse and this kindnesse Then what shall I say heare O heaven and harken O earth the Oxe knoweth his owner and the Asse his masters crib and Israel knoweth not Gods kindnesse nor acknowledgeth his goodnesse towards them the consideration hereof one would thinke should break the hardest heart under heaven if men be but ingenious men if they have received any great kindnes from a friend they were never in want but he relieved them he tooke theÌ„ into his house and they might freely goe to his purse or any thing he had If a man should deale thus kindly with another and this man should deny him an ordinary favour he will be ashamed to come into his presence he will say his house was mine and his purse was mine and to deale thus unkindly nature would have taught me otherwise what are your hearts to God that hath been gratious to us all he hath created us doth preserve and keepe and afford many blessings unto us he gives us our houses that cover us it is God that affords us all this and shall we sinne against such mercy therefore goe to the beasts of the field and they will tell you and to the birds of the ayre and they will discover unto you Gods mercy goe to your beds and tables who gives these and continues these doth not the Lord yet sinne against this God O foolish people and unwise all love on Gods part and all negligence on ours God exceeds in goodnesse towards us we doe exceed in unkindnesse and unthankfulnes towards him this is the first ground upon which meditation must be raised The second ground secondly if it be so that mercy will not prevaile with you if you have no good nature in you then secondly consider that this is a just God that hath beene provoked by your sinnes if mercy cannot prevaile with you you shall have Iustice enough and that without mercy you must not thinke to slight Gods mercy and carry it away in that fashioÌ„ But God is a just God as he is a gratious God he will be revenged of you If there be any stubborne heart shall say God is mercifull and what then therefore we may live as we list and be as carelesse as we please Take heed that just law that hath been condemned and those righteous statutes that hath beene broken and God hath beene provoked by you will be revenged of you did ever any provoke the Lord and prosper and shall you beginne first thinke you where is Nyâ—rod and Nebuchadnezer and Pharoah and Herod and those proud persons that set their mouths against God and their hearts against heaven they that provoked the Lord what is now become of them they are now in the lowermost pit of hell God sent Pharoah into the red sea and for ought we know his soule may now be roaring in hell this is certaine that whosoever resisteth him shall find him a swift Judge to condemne him The Apostle saith Hebr. 12. and last our God is a consuming fire and in Deut. 22. and 32. If my fire be kindled it shall burne to the bottome of hell That Iustice of God will not be appeased without satisfaction that Justice is wise and connot be deceived that Justice is powrefull and cannot be resisted and not only
them The mind happyly hath conceived and fadomed these truths and brought in these occasions and yet for all this the mind stirres not the heart workes not I say therefore when your meditation is thus raised you must have this skill to follow home the blow and make it worke kindly on the heart and that is done by these three things When your meditation is up there is another thing which is the following of it home to the soule and that appeareth in these three particulars The first is this when we have conceived aright of sinne and the nature thereof and the punishment due thereunto then doe not rest in the bare consideratiō of these things but never leave the heart be still musing of these things and bring these blessed truthes home to the soule binde these things on the wil and affections hold them and fasten them there force them upon the soule that the heart may not make an escape take notice of it it is a rule I would have you consider of never leave meditating til you finde your heart so affected with the evill as your mind judgement conceived of the evill before namely let the heart feele that evill it conceived let the soule feel that gall to be in sin which the mind apprehended to be in it you see these sinnes loathsome and abominable make the heart feel them and be affected with them the heart will fly off now therefore it is the cunning of a Christian to lay at the heart and pursue it continually and hold these truthes to the soule and at last it may be under the dint of the blow and the power of God makes the soule feele and finde and be apprehensive of the gall and bitternes and vilenes of the evill as before it conceived it so to be It is not enough for a man to exercise himselfe in the meditatiō of sin but a mā must bring his soule in subjection under the power of that meditation a man must not only chew his meat but he must swallow it also if he meane to have it nourish him meditation is when the heart swalloweth downe these sinnes that is when he labours so to be affected with sinne and the nature of it as it doth require Meditation in this case is like the beleaguring of a Citie when a Citie is wisely strongly beleagured and beset roūd about they doe two things first they batter it from without as much as they can and secondly they cut off all provision and reliefe from comming in and so the city being partly battered from without as much as they can and being hindred from all reliefe comming in in conclusion when they see the enemie is strong and no provision can come to them they are contēt to yeeld the City and render up themselves and if they send a parly to him that doth besiege it and say they are ready to perish why he bids them deliver then and they shall be provided for he bids them yeeld and they shall be succoured and before that day there is no supply shall be brought into the City So it is with meditation and here is the cunning of a Christian. Do as wise Souldiers doe cut off all provision that is by serious meditation bring thy heart to such a loathing of sinne that it may never love it more besiege the heart with daily meditation that so you may cut off any ease and refreshing that the heart may seeme to have in any sinfull course if the soule be looking after any sinne if the soule would goe out a litle to occasions and take delight in his corruptions the drunkard in his company and the wordly man in his wealth then batter that When you are thus affected beleaguer the way that you may finde no comfort no ease and when the soule is looking after occasions and lingering after his abominations then say to your hearts you will have your sins though you have your shame with them you will have your corruptions though you have your confusion with them when the soule would meddle with these let meditation knocke off these If you be still proud and malitious and quarrelling take heed you cannot have these but you must have hell and all you cannot have these but you must have destruction and all the mercy of God will be not abused and the justice of God will not be provoked and God will be revenged of you and at last the heart by this meanes will be troubled Why deliver up your sins then and your soules if your hearts find any sorrow and anguish why then yeeld up your souls unto Christ that you may finde as much comfort in a good way as you have done misery in an evill way Thus by meditation make the heart see those evills nay thus by meditation make thy heart see those evills and the punishment that shall be executed for those evills Secondly when you have made the heart thus affected with sinne then take heed that the heart doth not flie off and shake off the yoke Imagine meditation brings all those sins and miseries and vilenesse all are brought home to the heart and the soule is made sensible by this meanes Hold the heart there then labour to keepe the heart in the same temper that it is brought into by the consideration of sinne for this is our nature when the strooke is troublesome that lieth upon us and the sinnes are hainous that lie upon us and are committed by us these sinnes these sorrowes these judgements when the heart feeles this it is weary and would secretly have the wound healed quickly and the sorrow removed and the trouble calmed Take heede of this and labour to maintaine that heat of heart which you finde in your selves by vertue of meditation this is the pitch of the point as there must bee subjection unto meditation the heart must be so affected with sinne as it conceived it to be so there must be attention that is the soule must hold it selfe to that frame and disposition so wrought as it should be Looke as it is with a Gold smith that melteth the metall that he is to make a vessell of if after the melting thereof there follow a cooling it had beene as good it had never beene melted it is as hard haply harder as unfit haply unfitter then it was before to make vessell of but after he hath melted it he must keep it in that frame till he come to the moulding and fashoning of it So meditation is like fire the heart is like a vessell the heart is made for God and it may be made a vessell of grace here and of glory hereafter Now meditation it is that melts the soule the drosse must be taken away from the soule and sinne must bee loosened from the heart Now meditation doth this it melts the soule and affects the soule with the weight of sinne now when you have your heart in some measure melted keepe it
there doe not let it grow loose againe and carelesse againe for then you had as good never have beene melted And that is the reason why many a poore sinner that hath sometime beene in a good way and the Lord hath come kindly and wrought powerfully on the heart and yet at last it hath grown cold dumpish as hard as ever he was againe and the worke is to beginne againe And take notice of it looke as it is with the cure of the body if a man have an old wound and a deepe one two things are observable it is not enough to launce the wound and draw out the corruptions but it must be tented also for if the wound be deepe it must not be healed presently but it must be kept open with a tent that it may be healed soundly and thoroughly so it is here meditatiō whē it is set on doth launce the soule it launceth the heart of a man and it will goe downe to the bottome of the belly When a man seeth his sinne and weigheth his sinne it will goe downe to the bottom sometime and when your heart is thus affected do not heale it too soone but hold the soule in that blessed frame disposition For as meditatiō doth launce the soule so attention doth tent the soule keepe the soule therfore so troublesome and sorrowfull that so you may be healed soundly thorowly and comfortably I use to finde this by experience a City that is be leaguerd and wonne he that hath won it sets a Garison over it that he may keepe it for ever under So when the soule hath beene wonne by the stroke of meditation affecting the heart with sinne then set a garison over the soule and keepe it in awe set a garison over the Conscience and keepe all downe keepe all under that it may submit it selfe and that kindly under the stroke of the truth for it were a blessed frame if we could alwayes be so in that temper that we are in when we are first humbled for our sinnes The third rule which is marvelous usefull is this when the soule hath beene affected with sinne by meditation and kept to sinne by attention then know how you must stint your soules know therefore that the soule must be so farre kept to the consideration of sinne that it may seeke out for pardon for sinne This is a point of marvelous use and you must give the leave to be inlarged because there are many deceits this way in the spirits of a man for marke it this is the cunning of the Devill if it be possible he will keepe a man that he shall never see muse nor be troubled for sinne and therefore he doth plucke him off and sends him to company on one side and merriment on the other side that by this meanes he may keepe him from serious meditation of the evill But if it be so that God wil make a man meditate of his sinnes and that the heart of a sinner is fully resolved to muse and ponder and consider of his corruptions If he will pore upon his sinnes then he shall see nothing else but sinne and thus the Devill hath hindred many a poore soule from comming unto Christ and frō receiving comfort of him he shall now be alwayes poring upon his corruptions and therefore here lies the skill of a Christian not to neglect meditation and therefore here is the stint of meditation of our sinnes you shall thus discover it So farre see thy sinnes so farre be affected with them so farre hold thy minde to them that they may make thee see an absolute necessity of a Christ and that these sinnes may drive thee to the Lord Iesus Christ for succour here is the maine thing observable and thus farre we may goe and must goe if ever God intend to doe good to our soules and therefore when thou settest thy soule and bestowest thy selfe to muse and meditate upon thy corruptions and lay them to thy heart when thou findest thy soule to bee affected with them and humbled under them labour then to see an absolute necessity of a Lord Iesus Christ and so farre see them that they may drive thee compell thee to seeke unto Christ for mercy and this is all God lookes for all the Lord requires and cares for in this preparation or preparative worke And therefore take notice of it see thy sinnes so farre as they may make thee meerely looke for a Christ and to fall upon the armes of Gods mercy in and through Christ. For it is not sorrow for sinne nor humiliation nor faith it selfe that can justifie us in it selfe but onely these must make way for us to a Christ and through him we must receive comfort for these two be the speciall extreames that the Devill seekes to drive a man into If a man presume of a mans owne sufficiency then he thinkes he is well and he will not goe to Christ because he thinkes he doth not stand in need of Christ and if he despaire of his owne abilitie he will not goe to Christ neither and here is the ground why a sinner despaires it is not by reason of any sinne excepting onely the sinne against the holy Ghost despaire is not grounded there for Cain despaired yet Manasses committed greater sinnes then Cain and despaired not but the soule despaires out of stoutnesse of heart because it hath not sufficiencie in it selfe it will not looke out for helpe and comfort from another presumption saith I have sufficiencie in my selfe and need not goe unto Christ and despaire saith I have not sufficiencie and therefore will not goe to Christ here is the property of despaire to cast away hope when a man hath no hope that God will helpe him now all the while the soule lookes for sufficiencie from Christ there is hope for though our sinnes bee never so hainous that 's nothing all the question is whether we can hope in Christ For if all the sinnes that ever were are or shall be committed ranne into one man as all Rivers runne into one Sea Christ could as easily pardon his sinnes as ever he pardoned the sinnes of any Saints in heaven but here is the ground when we looke into our selves we can see there is no sufficiencie to comfort us and we will not goe to Christ that we may be comforted and so we come to be voide of hope and to despaire a despairing heart is a proud stubborne heart because he cannot have what he would of his owne therefore he will not goe to another to receive it and so sinkes downe in his sinnes And therefore let this be the period and stint of meditation when the soule so farre seeth sinne and the punishment deserved by it that the hart is resolved that none but Christ can take away these sinnes and the punishments due to them and is resolved to seeke to Christ and be beholden to him for all when it is thus with
you then away to the Lord Jesus Christ and let this meditation of a mans corruptions be as a Bridge to carry him to Christ that so he may have salvation which is promised through him and shall be bestowed upon all broken harted sinners and marke what I say that soule that will not seeke out to Christ and will not be beholding to Christ for what he needâ— that soule wants brokennesse of heart What ever he be that will not seeke out to Christ and goe out of himselfe to another wants brokennes and this stubbornnesse of his that he will not goe to Christ ariseth from some of these three grounds First the soule will not goe out it is because the heart thinkes and presumes it hath no neede of Christ and therefore will not goe but we will not medle with that for that is proper to carnall men Secondly if the soule will not seeke out to Christ for helpe and comfort it is because the heart is not content in good earnest to be ruled by Christ that Christ should come and take possession of the soule and doe all therefore if the heart cling to corruption it is content that Christ should ease it but not that Christ should sanctifie it and remove that corruption that hath prevailed over it and therefore when a man is under the sight of sinne he would faine have God shew mercy unto him and yet he will not pray nor read nor use the meanes but dwels upon the meditation of his sinnes and neglects many ordinances of God whereby it may receive comfort this man would have a Christ to quiet him but not to rule him and take possession of him and this is the reason why in these cases the soule is never commonly kindly striken these would faine have quiet and comfort â—â—d yet they will not be driven to holy duties nor be content that Christ should rule in them they are content to commit the sinne but they would have pardon for it The third ground is this and the cunningest of all and that is this provided the soule be content to be ruled by the Lord Jesus and to submit unto him yet here is another deceit of the soule of a poore sinner that would joyne something with Christ for the helping of him in that great worke of salvation and this I take to be the complaint of sinners and sometime broken hearted ones too they dare not goe to expect mercy from the Lord Jesus Why why because they are unworthy so abominable their lives so wretched their courses that they dare not goe to Christ that he may shew mercy to them I reason the point thus is it because of your unworthinesse that you dare not goe to Christ so then if you had worthinesse this would incourage you for to goe Why then you thinke Christ is not able alone to helpe you but you would have your worthinesse helpe Christ to save you and so you would joyne with the Lord Jesus in this great price of Salvation and Redemption If your sinnes were but small and you had some worthinesse that so Christ might doe something and your worthinesse doe something and so you might make up the price betweene you then you could be content to goe to Christ but otherwise you thinke you may not goe to Christ without some worthinesse of your owne Againe why then belike you 〈◊〉 be beholden to Christ for so much mercy and so much grace and so much forgivenesse one of these two must needs be the ground of this complaint either we would have our own worthines joyne something with Christ or else we are so vile that we will not be beholden to Christ for so much mercy but this unworthinesse indeed is nothing else but pride a man will not be beholden to Christ for so much mercy but he will share with Christ in the matter of salvation or else he will not be pertaker of the great worke of redemption Imagine a debtor were in prison and a friend sends to him what ever the debt be if he will but come to him he will pay all the man returnes this answer If he had not such a great debt to pay he would be content to come to him but the truth is the debt is so great that he will not come to him nor trouble him now one of these two must needs follow either he thinkes his friend is not able or willing to pay his debt or else in truth he will not be beholden to him for so much but if the debt were a little one then he would make a shift to pay some and his friend some and so they would make up the debt between them So it is in this case this is that which keeps the heart from laying hold on the promise they thinke they are unworthy to pertake thereof which is nothing but pride of spirit for either they would bring something and share with Christ in the worke of redemption or else they will not be beholden to Christ for so much mercy There is another shift which keepes the heart from going to Christ O faith one I never had my heart so broken affected as such a one hath and therefore they dare not goe to Christ because they have not so much contrition their hearts so much broken as others have therefore they dare not goe Ay but be your soules content to goe to Christ and yeeld to him would you keepe any corruption is there any sinne which you would not have Christ come and remove The soule answereth that they would be content to resigne all to the Lord Jesus Christ but they are not so humbled as others are I say the ground of this complaint is nothing else but selfe-confidence in broken heartednesse for the soule is not content to have so much broken heartednesse as is sufficient to bring a man to Christ but it would have so much as that it might bring a man to Christ to helpe him in the worke of redemption they thinke iâ— is not enough to have the soule so huÌ„bled as to submit to the Lord Jesus Christ but they would have so much as they would joyn with Christ in this great worke which is nothing else but carnall confidence Therefore the conclusion is this So farre see thy sinnes so farre meditate upon thy sinnes and so farre labour to have thy heart affected with thy sinnes and so far attend unto them that three things may follow First that you may see an absolute necessity of Christ and that thou maist use all meanes to seeke unto him and never be quiet whilst thou findest him Nay while thou dost use the meanes but only upon the Lord Jesus pray and rest not in prayer but in a Saviour that is obtained by prayer heare but rest not in hearing but convay to thy selfe what is revealed in hearing receive the Sacraments but rest not in them but therein seeke a Saviour which is there signed this is the very stint
and pitch of meditation thus farre see and affect and drawe your hearts to the consideration of your sinnes that the soule may be forced to goe to Christ and use all meanes to find him pray for a Christ heare for a Christ use all meanes and see a need of a Christ to blesse thee in all thy services and see a need of a Christ to pardon thy sinnes and then you take a right course And thus much for the second passage now we see how to follow meditation home that the soule may be affected therewith and holden thereto Ay but you will say our thoughts are dull and our meditation fraile and our wants heavy and little good we get by this meditation we fall to sinne againe how shall we come to get the life of meditation that it may be to us as it ought to be I answer the meanes to make meditation powerfull are two I confesse after a man hath mused and pondered it is possible that a corrupt heart may recoile and fall backe againe therefore there are two helpes to put more life into meditation First labour to call in the helpe and assistance of conscience that meditation may be more fruitfull and powerfull conscience is a great commander it is Gods vicegerent and chiefe officer and God is the general overseer of all the affaires of the world but conscience hath authority to execute Judgement according to the sentence God hath revealed and hath a greater command with the heart then bare meditation hath understanding and reason are but the underlings of the wil they are but servaÌ„ts subjects to the wil and these only suggest and advise unto the will what is good as a servant may suggest to his master what is good and yet his master may take what he list refuse what he please in this kind But conscience hath a greater command Rom. 2.15 conscience is said to accuse or excuse a man and conscience comes with a law and a command as the Apostle saith 1. Iohn 3.20 If our hearts condemne us conscience makes the heart to yeeld I compâ—â—e it thus look as it is happily with a man that is in debt if a man have a writ out for him he is not troubled greatly with that he will not goe to prison because of that nay though he shew it him yet he will not goe but if he brings the Sergeanâ—â—o arrest him then he must go and and then he must be imprisoned whether he will or noe So it is here meditation brings in the writ and sheweth a man his sinnes layeth open all his duties neglected so many hundred duties omitted so many thousand sinnes committed so many prophanatioÌ„s of Sabbaths so many oathes so many blasphemies but the soule saith What is this to me I have sinned and others have sinned and I shall doe as well as others but conscience is a Sergeant and Sergeants do your office these are your sinnes and as you will answer it at the day of Judgement take heed of those sins upon paine of everlasting ruine When conscience begins thus to arrest a man then the heart comes and gives way to the truth revealed and conscience thus settles it upon the heart The Second meanes whereby meditation may get power upon the soule is this we must cry crave and call for the spirit of humiliation and contrition that God by that blessed spirit of his which in Scripture is called the spirit of bondage would set to his helping hand assist conscience his officer take the matter into his owne hand and because there are many rebellious corruptions that oppose Gods truth we must call to heaven for helpe that God would seise upon the heart and breake it A perverse heart will linde the Judgement and say I will have my sinnes though I be damned for them and when conscience comes and saith I will beare witnes against you for your pride and covetousnesse and prophanesse They resist conscience Looke as it is if a Sergeant arrest a man he may escape his hands or kill the Sergeant but if the Sheriffe or the King himself come take the prisoner in hand then he must goe to prison whether he will or no so it is here though a corrupt heart can stoppe conscience stay conscience yet there is a commanding power of Gods spirit the spirit of humiliation And when God comes from heaven to aide his officer the heart must stoope and be governed Looke as it is with a child that is under government his father perhaps bids the servant correct him now it is admirable to see how the child will taunt with the servant and struggle with him mightily now when the father heareth this he saith Give me the rod and he tells the child you would not be whipped but I will scourge you and he will set it home and plague him so much the more because he resisted the servant So it is here the Lord hath revealed his will and sent his ministers to discover your sins and verrifie your hearts it is strange to see what resistance we finde one scornes to heare and rebells against the minister Well however the voice of the minister or the word cannot make the blow fall heavy enough for the time yet if the Lord take the rod into his owne hand he will make the stoutest stomack stoope and the hardest heart come in when the father takes the rod into his hand and lets in hell fire he will set it home take it off who will or can the Apostle cals it the spirit of bondage and observe the place When the spirit of bondage commeth then commeth feare The spirit of bondage is said to be the spirit of feare as who should say the Lord sheweth a man his bondage by the Almighty power of his Spirit and will make the soule feele it and stoope unto it In Iob the Lord doth shew unto men their workes and then he commands them to returne he openeth their eare to discipline saith the text and commandeth that they returne from iniquity he openeth the eye and maketh a man see his sinnes and then he commands the heart to returne whether it will or no. When the Lord doth shew unto man his sinnes and holds him to his sinnes that he cannot looke off them this is the worke of the spirit of bondage when conscience hath done his duty and yet his mouth is stopped then the Lord himselfe comes and however the word by the mouth of the ministery could not prevaile yet God will set the sun-light of his spirit to your soules and then you shall see your sinnes and stoope under them When a man would cut off the sense of sinne yet where ever he is and what ever he doth the Lord presents his sins to him when he goeth in the way he reades his sinnes in the pathes when he is at meate his sinnes are before him when he goeth to lie downe he goeth to read
and sinne onely imputed made our Saviour to buckle under it Psalme 22. Davids heart was crushed with it Psalm 40. Nay the Apostle saith All the creatures groaned under it the earth groanes under sinners and is willing to vomit them up it is a burden to the Sunne to give light to the adulterer to see his harlot and it is a burden to the ayre to give breathing to a blasphemer that belcheth out his oaths against the God of heaven nay it is that which sinkes the damned into the bottomlesse pit it is such as Iudas had rather hang himselfe then indure the horror of Conscience for it let this therefore dash the foolish conceit of them which thinke there is no pastime but in sinne however men glory in sinne and take delight in sucking the pleasure of sinne yet the end will be bitternesse Their sweet meat will have a sower sauce and those sinnes which are so sweet will eate out all comfort froÌ„ their soules from everlasting to everlasting They were pricked in their hearts So that the maine point which fits our aime is this sound sorrow piercing of the soule of those that are affected with it they were not onely pricked in their eyes to weepe for their sinnes and to say they would doe so no more The adulterer is not only pricked in his eye that he would see his adulterous queane no he goeth further sinketh into the very soule and pierceth through the very heart It is with sorrow that hath any substance in it as it was with the repentance of Ninivie not onely the ordinarie and refuse sort of people forsooke their sinnes but even the King himselfe came from his throne and sat in dust and ashes yea the Nobles other subjects and the very beasts of the field did â—ast So it is comparatively with this sorrow it is not onely for the tongue to talke of sinnes and the eye to weepe for his sinnes but even the Queene of the soule which is the wil it selfe puts on sacke-cloth and the heart and all the affections as so many subjects follow after It breakes out into the eye and the frame of the heart shakes with it and the knees knocke together and the hands grow feeble it is not O Lord be mercifull unto us and so be gone But it must goe to your hearts and you may weepe out your eyes and cry your sins at the market crosse but have you put off the will and affection of sinning as well as the tongue of sinning the nature of this sorrow is marvelous strange consider it David saith Make me to beare of joy and gladnesse that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoyce This sorrow that did seise upon David was not slight but it breakes all the bones which are the maine pillars and props of nature the burthen was so heavie and so great that it made all the burthen that was in him to shake And in another Psalm My moisture is turned into the drought of Summer This sorrow went so deepe into his soule that it did not only take away his outward refreshing but it tooke away all the moist humors the inward juyce the very oyle of life It is admirable which the Prophet Hosea saith Hosea 13.8 I will meet them as a beare bereaved of her whelps and will rend the kall of their hearts You must not thinke to have a whip and away but the Lord will breake the very kall of those proud hearts of yours rather then hee will suffer sinne to dwell in you where his throne should be And hence it is that this sorrow sinke many Did you never see a soule in distresse of Conscience he is all turned to dust and ashes this sorrow goeth to the quicke it is not a little touch and away but it breaketh the heart inwardly For the opening of this point let me discover these particulars First how the Lord workes this sorrow and how it is brought into the soule Secondly I will shew you the behaviour of the soule when it is thus peirced and this will shew the soundnesse Thirdly I will shew some reason why it must be so Fourthly I will answer some questions Fiftly make some uses and therein lay downe some ends how we may helpe forward this worke when it is begunne For the first I know God deales sometimes openly and sometimes more secretly But for the first how this pricking comes into the soule and how the Lord stabbs the soule and makes at a man to thrust him through This discovers it selfe in three particulars First the Lord commonly and usually lets in a kinde of amazement into the mind of a sinner and a kind of gastering As it is with a sudden blow upon the head if it comes with some violence it dazells a man that he knowes not where he is Just so it is generally with the soule the Lord lets in some flashes of his truth and darts in some evidences of his truth into the heart of a man the hammer of Gods Law layeth a sudden blow upon the heart and this discovers the vile nature of sinne as when a drunkard is drunke to day and will be so to morrow and the minister preacheth against that sinne and yet he will be drunke still and the blasphemer saith come le ts sweare the minister out of the pulpit now it may be the Lord lets in some suddaine truth that unmaskes the soule and drives him to sudden amaze that now he sees his corruptions to be otherwise then ever he did commonly he doth not yet see the evill of sinne but he is driven to a stand and a pawse and he doth not know what to say of himselfe nor what to thinke of his sinne there is a kinde of tumult in his thoughts and a confused cumber he knowes not what to make of himselfe and he goeth away in a kind of confused distemper Thus it was with Paul when he was running a long to Damascus and had gotten a lustie Steed to make hast suddenly there did shine a light from heaven and he heard a voice from heaven saying unto him Saul Saul why persecutest thou me He marvelled at the matter and yet he did not know what the matter was and therefore he saith Who art thou Lord What wouldest thou have me doâ— As it was with Saul so it is most commonly with us all it may be a poore man drops into the Church and the Lord lets in a light and the Lord doth compas him about with some threatnings of the Law and shewes him the nature of sinne and the damnation that comes by it and thereupon his thoughts beginne to hurry in one upon another and he retyres home and thinks thus with himselfe surely the preacher spake strange things to day if all be true that he spake then certainly my conditioÌ„ is naught surely there is more in sinne then ever I thought of I did alwaies thinke that such sinnes as were grosse and
he saith to himselfe Thou hast sinned and offended a just God and therefore thou must be damned and to hell thou must goe This is the particular seising of the curse upon a sinfull soule for this is the nature of true sorrow if evill be to come we feare it if evill be upon us we grieue and sorrow for it herein is the greatest worke of all the Lord deales diversly as he seeth fit specially these three wayes First if God have a purpose to civilize a man he will lay his sorrow as a fetter upon him he only meanes to civilize him and knocke off his fingers from base courses as wee have knowne some in our daies many desperate persecutors of Gods people God casts his sorrow into their hearts and then they say they will persecute Gods people no more haply they are naught still but God confines them first God only rippes the skinne a little and layeth some small blow upon him but if a man have been rude and a great ryoter the Lord begins to serve a writ upon him and saith Thou art the man to thee be it spoken thy sins are weighed and thou art found too light heaven and salvation is departed from thee thy sorrow is begunne here never to have end hereafter but thou must continue in endlesse torments thou hast continued in sinne and therefore expect the fierce anger of the Lord to be upon thee for ever so that now the soule seeth the flashes of hell and Gods wrath upon the soule and the terrours of hell lay hold upon the heart and he confesseth he is so and he hath done so And therfore he is a poore damned creature and then the soule labours to welter it and it may be his conscience will be deluded by some carnall minister that makes the way broader then it is and bids him goe and drinke and play and worke away his sorrow or else it may be he stops the mouth of conscience with some outward performances it may be his conscience saith Thou hast committed these these sinnes and thou wilt be damned for them And then he entreats conscience to be quiet hold his peace and he will pray in his family and heare sermons and take up some good courses and thus he takes up a quiet civill course and stayeth here a while at last comes to nothing And thus God leaves him in the lurch if he meanes only to civilize him But Secondly if God intends to doe good to a man he will not let him goe thus and fall to a civill course When a man begins to colour over his old sinnes and God hath broken his teeth that he cannot worry as formerly but yet there is no power in him If the Lord love that soule he will much the more clearely reveale his sinnes unto him God will plucke away all his chambering and wantonnesse all his pride and peevishnesse and pull off his vizzard and shew him all his sinnes and pursue him therefore as before God entred the blow so now he followes it home And hence it is that Iob saith The arrowes of the Almighty sticke fast in me and the venome thereof drinkes up my spirits and the terrours of the Almighty encampe themselves against me every way And as David saith Thou keepest my eyes waking and my sinnes are ever before me If God love a sinner and meane to doe good to him he will not let him looke off his sinne the Lord wil ferret him from his denne and from his base courses and practises He will be with you in all your stealing and pilfering and in all your cursed devises if you belong to him he will not give you over And in another place Iob saith How long wilt thou not depart from me nor let me alone till I swallow downe my spittle You had better a great deale now have your hearts humbled and broken and see your sinnes then to see them when there is no remedy And in another place the holy man Iob saith Thou wilt not suffer me to take in my breath but fillest me with bitternesse Your eyes have beholden vanity therefore now you shall see the Lords wrath against you for your sinnes and you have breathed out your venome against the Lord of heaven therefore now he will fill your soules with indignation in so much that he shall breath in his wrath as you have breathed out your oathes against him you have filled the Lords eyes and eares with your abominations and the Lord of heaven shall fill you answerably with his wrath And in another place Iob saith Thou wilt breake a dry leafe tossed too and fro And yet the Lord brake him Now the soule seeth all the evill and the Lord pursueth him and sets conscience aworke to the full Consider that of the Apostle That all those might be damned which beleeved not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousnesse Even all of them What shall no great ones be saved No nor you little ones neither all that lay not hold upon Christ but have pleasure in unrighteousnesse not only great ones and such as are abominably prophane but even all that had pleasure in wickednesse Now conscience saith Doest not thou know that thou art one of them that have had pleasure in unrighteousnesse therefore away thou must goe and thou shalt be damned Now the soule shakes and is driven beyond it selfe and would utterly faint but that the Lord upholds it with one hand as he beates it downe with the other he thinkes that every thing is against him and the fire burnes to consume him and he thinkes the ayre will poyson him conscience flies in his face and he thinkes hell mouth is open to receive him and the wrath of God hangs over his head and if God should take away his life he should tumble head-long downe to hell Now the soule is beyond all shift when it is day he wisheth it were night when it is night he wisheth it were day the wrath of God followeth him wheresoever he goeth and the soule would faine be rid of this but he cannot and yet all the while the soule is not heavy and sorrowfull for sinne he is burdened and could be content to throw away the punishment and horror of sinne but not the sweet of sinne as it is with a child that taâ—es a live coale in his hand thinking to play with it when he feeles fire in it he throws it away he doth not throw it away because it is blacke but because it burnes him So it is here A sinfull wretch will throw away his sinne because of the wrath of God that is due to him for it and the drunkard will be drunke no more but if he might have his queanes and his pots without any punishment or trouble he would have them with all his heart he loves the blacke and sweet of sinne well enough but he loves not the plague of sinne Foolish people saith the
Prophet are plagued for their sinne If thou roarest for disquiet of heart and thy bones are broken it is because of thy sin thy pride and drunkennesse and uncleannesse brought this upon thee If thou wilt be eased of the plague throw away thy corruptions if you would have the effect removed then take away the cause There are two things in sinne which make a man sorrowfull first sinne it selfe that doth defile a man and separate him from God Secondly the punishment of sinne Now the sinner lookes either so far at sinne as it causeth punishment or as it separats from God Haply a sinner will come to this he will be content to carry his heart and that furiously against sinne because it brings Judgements and plagues But thus farre a hypocrite may goe a Judas a Caine a Saul Caine would say his sinnes were greater then could be forgiven because he had killed his brother but he could never see his sinne so vile because it did separate him from God Thus you see how God enters the blow and followeth it home upon the soule but yet for all this God may leave a man as he did Iudas and Saul and there is an end of them Now in the third place if the Lord purpose to doe good to the soule he will not suffer him to be quiet here but he openeth the eye of the soule further and makes him sorrow not because it is a great and shamefull sinne but the Lord saith to the soule even the least sinne makes a separation betweene me and thee and the heart begins to reason thus Lord is this true is this the smart of sinne and is this the vile nature of sinne O Lord how odious are these abominations that cause this evill and though they had not caused this evill yet this is worse then the evill that they make a separation betweene God and my soule Good Lord why was I borne and why came I into this world why did God continue me here and all the meanes of grace for my good and all the comforts of this life wherby my course might be maintained and made lesse tedious what if I did want this horrour of heart and had all the ease in the world and what if I might be free from all misery on earth what were this so long as I had sin in my soule that makes a separation betweene God my soule I was made to be one with God to have cōmunion w th God to obey his cōmandements but I have departed from God by sin departed from his cōmandements A Godlesse and a gracelesse man is a miserable man though he were never plagued at all I was made to honour God and I have done nothing else but dishonour him I was made to subject my selfe to the good will of God but I have withdrawne my selfe from his will and this is my misery and my plague If I had beene in hell and had not had sinne I had beene a happy man and though I had beene in heaven and had had sin I had beene a miserable man because it makes a separation betweene me and my God Nay the sinner still thus pleads with himselfe what is this to me that I am rich and miserable honourable and damned to have quiet and ease here and a benummed conscience and so in the end to be throwne among the devils for dogges meat If I had all the ease wealth honours and friends in the world so long as I have this vile heart I could not be a happy man If you were never pierced for your sinnes your condition is woefull you shall have enough of it one day you that are never troubled for your sinnes but goe on smoothly know this I charge you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ though you had all the ease and pleasures in the world so long as you have these proud sturdy unfaithfull hearts you are as miserable creatures as ever breathed upon the face of the earth Thus the heart complaines as sometimes the lamenting Church did Woe to us that we have sinned not because we have deserved plagues but because we have sinned woe to us for the God of grace is gone from us and the God of mercy is gone from us because we have sinned and the God of blessednesse is gone from us because we haue walked in cursed waies Hold here and then your sorrow goeth right if the soule can say though I have no horrour of heart yet if I have this sinfull heart I am a miserable man Then thy sorrow is right Sometimes God deales thus punctually with a man first he drives it to an amazement Secondly he workes in him marvelous feare of evill that is to come Thirdly he possesseth the soule with the feeling of the evill and so forth as in the former particulars but yet is bound to no time and therfore we must not limit the holy One of Israel it is true the Lord may presse in upon the soule and worke all this on the sudden but yet experience hath proved and reason will confirme it when God workes never so suddēly he affecteth the soule thus whē a poore soule commeth in the congregation he layeth some truth upon him that is new and terrible so that the soule dare not deny it nor yet fully resist it but is in a maze and by and by it may be the Lord opens his eyes and awakens his conscience and makes that more evidēt to the soule and so immediately arrests the soule and then sorrow fals in a maine upon it and the heart thinkes God meant my courses and the minister spake against him and he must go downe to hell suddenly so that sometimes the sinner cries out in the congregation and though he contain himselfe for a time yet he buckles under the burthen all this may be done at one sermon in one doctrine or in one part of an use but usually this is Gods maner of working But now the question in the next place will be this how doth the soule behave it selfe under this sorrow I answer when the soule is sorrowfull for sin as it is sinne and as it is a breach of the Law of God it may appeare by these two particulars First the soule is most of all weary of sin because of the vile nature of it Secondly it is restlesse in importuning the Lord for mercy and pardon for it First the heart is most of all weary of the burthen of sinne as it is sinne and thinkes it the greatest burthen in the world as a man that hath a great burthen on his backe wrincheth this way and that way and if he cannot remove it yet he will ease it so the heart useth all meanes and taketh all courses that if it were possible it may cast off and ease it selfe of the vilenesse of sinne plague of sinne This wearisomnesse of the soule which followeth the weight of sinne makes it self knowne in these three particulars
First his eye is ever upon it his mouth is ever speaking of it and he is alwaies complaining against it and he is readily content to take shame to himselfe for it If a man have a sore place in his body his eye and his finger will ever be upon it so it is with the soule As the people when they apprehended the hideous wrath of God against them they entreated Samuel to pray for them for say they We have added to all our sinnes this specially in asking of us a King As it is with a man that hath the stone in the reines or some stitch in his side or where ever his paine or trouble is there he complaines most and when the PhysitiaÌ„ comes to feele on his body he saith is it here no â—â—ith he is it here and wheÌ„ he commeth to the right place he saith there it is cut there and launce there So it is with a man that is stung with the vile nature of sinne when he comes to complaine of sinne he doth not altogether complaine of his horrour nor of death but he saith O! that chambring and wantonnesse that pride and stubbornnesse and rebellion of heart O! that ryoting and malice against the Saints of God The soule seeth this complaines of it and takes shame to himselfe for it as Paul deales with himselfe which argues a heart truly weary of corruption I was a persecutor and a blasphemer and the like and I was received to mercy he doth not say I was in horrour or in trouble but I was a persecutor he doth not say I was thus and thus plagued but I was an injurious person to Gods Church there he was weary and there he would be eased if it were possible Let all vile wretches tremble at it for God hath enough for all Pharoes and Nymrods Away therefore with all these Lapwing cries and complaints it is the nature of that bird to cry flutter most when she is farthest from her neast because by this meanes she would cozen passengers and have her young ones So it is with an hypocrite he will complaine a great way off of his sinne and have some secret turning It is admirable to see how hard it is for a man to lay open his sinnes before God it is a signe that he is never weary of sinne that he is not willing truly to confesse his sinne when he is lawfully called to it and when he pretends 〈◊〉 it is true sometimes God will accept of a confession made to him in secret if it be in truth but when God will have a man unbowell himselfe and all his abominations and when a man commeth and desires comfort in this kinde then for a man to cover his sinne and to complaine a farre off of some ordinary corruption which every poore child of God is troubled with and that particular lust whereof he is guilty for shame he is not willing to acknowledge this argueth that the heart is naught and never sound this wearisomnesse of sinne I know that the best heart under heaven will have many windings and turnings but the Lord will never leave the heart in this case till he come to deale plainly and say these are my sinnes and this is my uncleannes and this is my secret theft and thus he openeth himselfe at large to that man whom God hath appointed for that end but some are content to confesse and complaine of their sinnes when God hath them upon the racke and Judas did but marke his punishment is the greatest cause of his complaint and hell is his greatest feare he 〈◊〉 weary of sinne because of the plague and punishment due to it but he never regards the vilenesse of sinne in this respect because it makes a separation betweene God and his soule Secondly as the soule complaines of the vile nature of sin and desires to have his face covered with shame for it is so in the second place it will never meddle with nor give way to any thing that is sinfull so farre as it is revealed so to be setting aside sudden passions and violent temptations but when a man is come to himselfe againe his conscience is awakened this is sure the soule will not dare to tamper with any thing that is sinful why becaus it hath bin wearied with the burthen of it before It is the practice of the lamenting Church in Hosea Ashur shall not save us we will not ride on horses neither will we say to the workes of our hands Ye are our Gods for with thee the fatherles finde mercy That is we wil meddle no more with any thing that is sinfull whâ—reby we have dishonoureâ— God heretofore for they had trusted in their horses made Idols and relyed upon them but now they cast them cleane off The reason is because when the soule seeth sin as it is sinne and that it is burthen to the soule and the heart is now weary of it it will lay no more weight upon it because now the heart is weary enough already The blasphemer feares an oath the adulterer shakes to see his quean and he trembles to see the place where his abominations have beene committed and now his heart loathes all these If a man hath beene once at deaths doore by drinking deadly poyson he will never tast of it more Nay he will not endure the sight of that cup he wil rather fare hardly and rather starve then eate and drinke that which shall kill him so saith the soule it is sin that hath made a separation betweene me and my God this pride or this uncleannesse had been the death of me if God had not beene mercifull unto me and therefore I will rather sinke and die then meddle with these sinnes any more And hence it is that if any thing come under the colour of corruption the soule that is truly weary of sinne saith Omitting of this duty is evill and therefore I will not omit it the doing of this action is sinfull and therefore I will not doe it because the sinne is worse then the plague he will take the lesse evill of the two as we use to doe in other matters if a man hate his sinne for the plague then so soone as that is removed he returnes to his sinne againe the blow was but weake This was the fault in Judas his sorrow he did see and confesse his sinnes and bewaile them and did more then many will doe now a daies tooke shame to himselfe buâ— though he confessed and complained of his sinne yet he would rather commit murther upon himselfe then under-goe the horrour of sinne if he had beene weary of sin because of the loathsomenesse of it he would not have layed violent hands upon himselfe These two passages are every where where true saving grace is Now in the third place if God should deprive a sinner of his judgement and horrour of conscience yet if his heart be truely apprehensive
presse the shoulders of him that beares it if the one be thirtie and the other fortie pound weight nature will be most burthened with the greatest weight so there is no evill so properly and directly evill to the soule as the evill of sinne Punishment deprives the soule of ease and quiet but sin depives the soule of God and the maine end for which it was created through which the soule must be happy or for the want of this it must be accursed Now sinne is as it were ten thousand weight when as sorrow and shame and punishment they are but a hundred weight if it were possible for a man to have all the ease and quiet in the world and to be in heaven yet if he had a foule heart and a sinfull soule he were a miserable cursed creature and if it were possible to be in hell free from sinne he were a happy man There is nothing that can do properly good to the soule but God and nothing can properly doe any hurt to the soule but sinne which estrāgeth the heart from God which is the chiefest good If a man had all the pleasures and contents the world could afford nothing wil satisfie the soule but God and if the soule were in horrour and had the presence of God with it it would not but be comforted and quieted therewith it is possible Nay God doth it also he makes the soule of a man feele the burthen of sinne because of the vilenesse of it as well as of the plague and punishment of it When the Lord will fasten a mans sinne to his conscience he is able to force the soule to apprehend the evill of sinne as well as the torment and plague of sinne And the ground is this take the soule as it is polluted with corruption and all abominations sinne is very crosse to the nature of the soule it is a creature and a created thing by God and hath his being from God and the soule as it is a creature was made for God and howsoever the power of sinne prevailed with it and made it fall short of God yet the nature of the soule still considering it as it is a creature it is made for God and desires to have fellowship and union with God therefore marke how I despute If sinne be the worst evill to the soule as crossing the end of it and depriving the soule of his chiefest good then the Lord is able to make the soule see sinne as the greatest evill to the soule But sinne crosseth the end of the creature for the end of the creature is Godward and to have union and fellowship with God Therefore the Lord is able to make the soule see the evill of sinne as well as the evill of punishment Therefore it is no wonder that the heart be most of all pierced with sinne The second reason is because by sound sorrow the soule is truly prepared and fitted for the Lord Jesus Christ and no other way then this namely when the soule sees the burthen of sin as sin For when the soule comes to feele sinne in the proper colours of it and to be affected with the loathsomnesse that is in that sin which hath formerly over-ruled it Now the soule begins to renounce the power of that sinne and to withdraw himselfe from under the dominion of his corruptions so that the union betweene sin and the soule is now broken and roome is prepared way is made for the Lord Jesus to come into the soule when sorrow hath wearied the heart and loosened it from the love of sinne then the heart is fitted for Christ. As it is with a vessell that hath beene for dishonour if a man will turne the nature of it and make it a vessell of honour he must not only beat it a little but he must melt it throughly and then it is fit to be a vessell of honour So the soule of every sinfull man and woman is a vessell of dishonour and sinne hath marvelously polluted them Now if you will have your hearts fitted for Christ you must not only have your hearts warmed a little by humiliation but you must have them melted all to pieces and the heart must be content to part with al abominations whatsoever that so the Lord may take place in it and rule over it even for ever First cast out the strong man and then the Lord Christ wil come in and take possession of the heart sinne and satan are the strong man and the Lord Christ binds this strong man and casts him out when he sheweth the vilenesse of sinne and trieth the heart with the burthen of it and binds the soule to good behaviour that now the heart is readily content that Christ should come and doe all in the soule Many haue gone a great way in the strok of humiliatiō and yet because it neuer went through to the quicke they have gone backe againe and become as vile as ever they were I have knowne men that the Lord hath layed a heavy burthen upon them and awakened their consciences and driven them to a desperate extremity and yet after much anguish and many resolutions and the prizing of Christ as they conceived and after the renouncing of all to take Christ upon his owne termes as they imagined and even these when they have beene eased and refreshed and God hath taken off the trouble they have come to be as crosse to God and all goodnesse and as full of hatred to Gods children as ever and worse too Now why did these fal away Why were they never Justified and Sanctified and why did they never come to beleeve in the Lord Jesus The reason is because their hearts were never pierced for their sinne they were never kindly loosened from it this is the meaning of that place in Ier. Plow up the fallow grounds of your hearts and sow not among thornes it is nothing else but with sound saving sorrow to have the heart pierced with the terrours of the Law seising upon it and the vilenesse of sinne wounding the conscience for it The heart of a man is compared to fallow ground that is unfruitfull you must not sow amongst thornes and thistles first plow it and lay it bare and naked and then cast in your seed If a man plow here a furrow and there a furrow leave here and there a bawke he is never like to have a good croppe there will grow so many thistles and so much grasse that it will choake the seed our hearts are this ground and our corruptions are these thornes and thistles Now if a man be content to finde some sinne hatefull because it is shamefull but will keepe here a lust there a lust he will never make any good husbandry of his heart though a faithfull minister should sow all the grace of the promises in his soule he would never get any good by them but the corruptions that remaine in the heart wil hinder the
now he sees what it is to depart from a blessed and a pure God O then he will be drunke and uncleane and malitious no more because the heart is weary of it and is content to part with it From hence I reason thus true drawing is ever accompanied with true beleeving but this sense of sinne in regard of the punishment of it is not alwaies accompanied with true beleeving but a man must see his sinne further in the vilenes of it and in the abomination of it and then he shall undoubtedly beleeve The streame of the whole Scripture runnes this way as that in Matthew Come to me all yâ—â— that are weary and heavy laden and I will ease you and this is that which Esay saith The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he hath anointed me to preach glad tidings to the meeke he hath sent me to binde up the broken hearted to proclaime liberty to the captives the opening of the prison to them that are bound to proclaime the acceptable day of the Lord and to comfort them that mourne Nay the garment of gladnesse is fitted only for the broken hearted as in the third verse of that chapter To appoint unto them that mourne in Sion to give unto them beauty for ashes and the oyle of joy for mourning and the garment of praise for the spirit of heavinesse Nay the promises of largest extent in Scripture doe either expresly belong unto such as aâ—â— broken in heart or else they doe imply so much that a man must be so before ever God can or will accept of him As in the Revelations Hoe every one that will let him come freely and take of the water of the well of life and live for ever So then some may say Object though a man were not broken hearted yet if he will take this water of life he shall live for ever Answ. Nay but except he be broken hearted and humbled he will never take it as a man must have grace so he must will the water of life now to will the water of life is this to choose grace as the chiefest good and to prize grace more then any thing else in the world and to esteeme the Lord Jesus and his grace truly pretioâ—s A man is said to chuse a woman when he is content to part with all for her and to have her for her grace sake so a man must part with sinne and himselfe and whatsoever is deare to him that he may haue grace now he will not part with sinne unlesse he be weary and burthened with it and therefore this wearying implyes the burthening of the heart with sinne thus much for the proofe of Scripture Now to adde some â—easons that may compell our Judgements to yeeld to this truth and they are taken First from the qualification of mans heart naturally and secondly from what he must be before he can receive Christ. I will discover my thoughts in foure conclusions and thus I reason It is a confest case I conceive that every man by nature doth entertaine sinne as his God and seekes and loves that most of all himselfe and his sinne is his God In this case it is his chiefest good and the heart will not nay it cannot be content to part with it What is the cause that we propound Christ and grace and salvation to a company of poore simple creatures and yet the counsells the promises and commandements of God prevaile not with the heart of them nor awe them but still they will have their sinnes and the offer of Christ and grace lies in the dust the adulterer will have his queans and the drunkard will have his cups they will not suffer the word to plucke away their corruptions but they will have them though they be damned for them what doth this argue but that sinne is their God Nay it is cleare not only in palpable reason but the Scripture is evident this way It is the match Christ offers to the young man if he would sell all and follow him he should have treasure in heaven he was covetous and this was fayre offer for a little trash he should have everlasting life now the text saith he went away sorrowfull he would rather have his covetousnes and his wealth then heaven The second conclusion is this there cannot be two Gods in one heart two Kings in one throne nor two Suns in one firmament you cannot have Christ and yet be an underling to sinne will Christ be a Physitian to heale you that you may have your sinnes still No our Saviour is plaine to the contrary you cannot serve God and Mammon If the adulterer will have his queanes then he must forsake the Lord and if he will not part with his lust nor have his heart circumcised nor broken then he must goe downe whole to hell as the Prophet said Why halt you between two opinions if God be God serve him God will bochiefe in the soule It is not possible to have heaven and hell together it is impossible for a man looke up to heaven steadfastly with both his eyes downe to the earth both at one time Thirdly you must of necessity cast off the yoak of corruption and rebell against that you must have your first god pride and malice and the like to be unthroned before the Lord Christ wil set up his scepter and before he can be welcome to your soules you must have your hearts divorced from your first husbands from sinne and all those abominations which you have loved and hugged as your life if ever you would have Christ make a match with you and take possession of your soules as the Lord saith Thou shalt â—e as a widdow and fit for me and as the originall hath it Thou shalt be separate from all and fit thy selfe for me and then I will marâ—y thee to my selfe in righteousnesse Lastly the soule will not 〈◊〉 with his corruption and lust which are his god unlesse he be wearied with them and finde the gall and bitternesse of their evill nature I say till then it is impossible that ever the soule should be separate from that sinne wherein it hath found such contentment therefore it is of necessity that they be parted but before the soule seeth the venom of sinne it will not part with it and so he cannot come to receive the Lord Jesus Christ and hence it is that the Lord in his infinite wisedome is thus not only willing to doe for a poore sinner but to force him to it for there is such love and liking to sinne that if you pull away the adulterers queanes and the drunkards pots you had as good kill them and they begin to say It was well with the towne before the minister came there the reason is because he would have his sinne Now the Lord is pleased to lay a heavy weight upon the â—oule and to force the burthen
of sinne upon it that whereas before the heart did finde much sweetnesse in these base courses the Lord makes them as bitter as gall or wormewood And then the soule begins to reason thus with it selfe and faith Is it such a thing to be drunke is it murther to envy my brother and can none such enter into the Kingdome of heaven when the soule seeth God taken away heave separated from him he saith Is this the pleasing sin that I have loved and is this the nature of my pride to have God resist me this lies heavy upoÌ„ the heart and at last the soule is resolved to part with his sinne and never to love it more Good Lord do what thou wilt with me only take my soule and save me and take away my lusts and corruptions The heart is content at length that Christ should doe all and now the match is made the sight of sinne from the punishment of it will never separate the soule from sinne nor breake that union that is betweene them Iudas had it in a great measure and God pluckt his sweet morsels from his mouth and made him confesse his sinnes and take shame to himselfe so God doth with many and makes them say I have beene a drunkard and an adulterer and a desperate opposer of God and his ordinances But though Iudas loathed the horrour punishment of sinne yet he had a murtherous disposition still he that had killed Christ went and murthered himselfe too Now from these former conclusions I reason thus If a mans sinnes be his God and if there cannot be two Gods in one heart and if those corruptions of the heart must of necessity be cast out and if the heart will not part with sinne till it be wearied with it and that is done by godly sorroâ—â— then it is a matter of necessity that the heart must be pierced and there must be a separation betweene sinne and the soule before Christ will marry the soule and rule in it or else there shall be two Gods in one heart which cannot be The second thing in this answere is this some may say oh I never found this worke in me Now therefore you must know how ever this worke is wrought in all for the substance of it yet in a different maner in the most For the fashion that God useth in framing the heart is different two men are pricked the one with a pinne the other with a speare two men are cut the one with a pen knife the other with a sword So the Lord deals kindly and gently with one soule roughly with another and handles it marvelous sharply and breakes it all to pieces There is the melting of a thing and the breaking of it with hammers this I say the rather to checke the imagination that harbours in the heart of some men otherwise holy and wise and yet mistaken in this point they thinke the Lord never workes grace but in this extraordinary manner It is true God sometime must use this affrighting of spirit and when proud spirits come to grapple with the Lord he will make their fâ—urdy hearts to buckle And it is true there must be a cleare sight of sinne and the heart must be wearied with the vilenesse of iâ— and be content to part with sinne This is wrought in all but that it must be in all in this extraordinary fearefull maner as it is in some the word saith it is not neither is God bound to any manner there is a difference among persons As for example First if the person be a scandalous liver and an opposer of God and his grace and sets himselfe against the Lord Jesus Christ if he set his mouth against heaven and professe himselfe an enemy to God and to his truth Secondly if a man have harboured a filthy heart and continued long in sinne hath been a close adulterer and continued long in it Thirdly if a man have been confident in a civill course Lastly if God purpose to do some great workes by him In all these foure cases he layes a heavy blow upon the heart commonly the nature of these persons requires it First when any one hath beene an opposer of God and his grace if the Lord should deale gently with him other vile wretches would be ready to say such a man is gone to heaven though he be thus and thus yet the Lord dealt lovingly with him and therefore though I continue in these courses I shall doe well enough Nay delude not thy selfe for the Lord will bruise him and rend the kall of his heart and make him seek to a faithfull minister for direction to a poore Christian for Counsell whom before he despised and the world shall know what it is to oppose God and to persecute his children as he broke Pauls heart and made him say I am he that have persecuted the Saints Commonly the Lord will not shew mercy to such as these are in hugger mugger but wil make the world see their humiliation as they have seen their rebellion and opposition Thus the Lord deales with the secret theefe close adulterer the Lord pluckes away their corruptions makes them vomit up their sweet morsels and then they will say these are my sins and this heart of mine is hardened by the continuance in them And therefore it is that the Lord workes in this manner But if the soule be otherwise trained up among godly parents and live under a soule-saving ministery that saith you cannot goe to heaven by a civill course and you cannot have any dispensation for your prophanation of the Sabbath I say if a man live under such a ministery keepe good company the Lord may reforme this man and cut him off from his corruptions kindly and breake his heart secretly in the apprehension of his sinnes and yet the world never see it In both these we have an example in Lydia and the Iaylor Lydia was a sinfull woman and God opened her eyes and melted her heart kindly brought her to a tast of his goodnesse here and glory hereafter But the Iaylor was an outragious rebellious wretch for when the Apostles were committed to prison he layed them up in stockes and whipped them sore O saies he now I have gotten these precise â—ellowes into my hands I wil have my penny-worths of them Now there was much worke to bring this man home when the Apostles were singing Psalmes there came an earth-quake which made the Prison doores to fly open and the prisoners fetters fall off but yet the Iaylors heart would not shake at last the Lord did shake his heart too and he came trembling and was ready to lay violent hands upon himselfe because he thought the prisoners had beene fled but the Apostles cried to him Doe thy selfe no harme for we are all here with that he fell downe before them and said Men and brethren what shall I doe to be
saved I conclude this naturally all men are locked up under infidelity now the Lord opeÌ„s their hearts severally you know some lockes are new and fresh and therefore an easie key may open them but some lockes are old and rusty and therefore must be broken open by force of hand so it is with some mens hearts howsoever sin prevailes over the hearts of civill men and they are full of pride and the like and yet their hearts are kept cleare froÌ„ rusting by restrayning grace now the Lord will draw that man by the key of his spirit and kindly withdraw him from his sinne But if a man have beene an old rusty drunkard or adulterer no key can open his heart alas it is not a little matter will doe the deed it is not now and then a gratious promise that will breake his heart But the Lord must come downe from heaven and breake open the doore by strong hand by awaking his conscience that all the countrey rings of him You know all mens hearts are compared to stones some stones are soft you may crush them to pieces with your hands and some are flints which must have many blowes before they will breake so it is with the heart while it hath not beene melted and softned by humility the Lord must breake it open by maine force and as it is with a tree some branches are young and smooth without knots and some are old ones and full of knots now if a man come every day and give a little cut at the tender branch at last it will off easily but it is no cutting of an old tree with a pen-knife but a man must take an axe and give many a sore cut that all the people in the towne may heare it All men grow upon the root of sinne which is Adams rebellion some are young and have not growne knotty in a rebellious course every Sabbath day the Lord gives a cut at him by his counsels and by his threatnings and by his promises at last it falls off kindly and they are content to part with their sinnes and to rest upon Christ for mercy Another man is an old sturdy vile wretch an over-growne adulterer and drunkard and his heart is blinded in sinne I tell you if ever the Lord cut off this man from his base course hee must come with a mighty hand and with his book of the Law God is ever laying at his soule blow after blow and so at last hee begins to forsake his wicked courses What saith one is such a man turned hee was as heavy a persecutor as ever the Sunne saw his father was an enemy to all goodnesse and hee was as bad Like father like sonne Hath the Lord brought him home Yes now hee sends to the faithfull Ministers and to Gods people for comfort and direction The third and last part of the answer is this That when God workes gently with Christians they hardly perceive the worke though wise Christians may approve that which is done for this is certaine wheresoever Christ is there preparation was if ever man be saved Christ hath made him see his lost estate Sometime the worke is secret and the soule apprehends it not because it is so and though he doe yet it is an unknowne worke to him hee knowes not what to make of it he can finde in his heart to hate those and those sinfull courses yet he cannot see how this was wrought in him Mans spirit is such that he misjudgeth the worke but give me a Christian that God doth please to worke upon in this extraordinary manner and to breake his heart soundly to throw him downe to some purpose though it cost him deare this man walkes with more eare and conscience and hath more comfort comming to himselfe and gives more glory to God wheras the other doth but little good in his place and hath little comfort comming to him Therefore labour for soundnes in this worke and then for ever sound but if once deluded here then for ever cozened and everlastingly damned The first-Use is for instruction It is so that the soule of a man is thus pierced to the quicke and runne thorow by the wrath of the Almighty Then let this teach the Saints and people of God how to carry themselves towards such as God hath thus dealt withall Are they pierced men Oh pitty them let our soules and the bowells of commiseration and compassion bee let out towards them and let us never cease to doe good to them to the very uttermost of our power and strength And to the performance of this not onely reason perswades us but Religion bindes us and pitty moves us See what the Lord saith by Moses If a man see his neighbours oxe or asse fall into distresse by the way the Lord commanded to ease him and succour him nay to lay all businesse aside and not to hide himselfe from him Thus the Lord commands mercy to the unreasonable creature that is thus wearied with the weight that he carrieth hath the Lord care of oxen As the Apostle saith in another case It is for our sakes that the Lord requires this duty The meaning is this shall not the heart of thy brother be eased that is tired thus with the wrath of the Almighty shall not this poore fainting creature be succoured are you men or are you beasts in this kinde If a hogge be but in distresse it is strange to see how folke come about it are we divels then that we can see poore creatures burthened with the unconceivable wrath of the Lord and not pitty them doe you see these and not mourne and succour and pray to heaven for them See what Iob saith and let him speake in the behalfe of all distressed soules O saith hee that my sorrowes were all weighed they would prove heavier then the sand Marke how he cries for succour oh you my friends have pitty upon me for the hand of God is heavy upon me for the hand of God hath touched me Imagine you saw him sitting upon the dunghill mourning it is not the hand of a man or an enemy but the heavy hand of God and therefore all you my friends that see my anguish and my sorrowes have pitty upon me Those palefaces and blubbered cheekes and feeble hearts and hands of theirs say thus much unto you have you no regard of a man in misery have you no pitty saith the Lamenting Chuâ—ch so doth every grieved humbled soule their sighes and sorrowes in secret say thus much oh all you that walke in the streets have you no remorse of a poore desolate forlorne creature Had I beene only wounded or had my nature growne weake some Physitian might have eased me had I been poore some friends might have enriched me had I beene disgraced the King might have advanced me to honours but was there ever sorrow like to my sorrow of soule It is the God of mercy that shewes
himselfe displeased with me it is the God of all grace and comfort that hath filled my heart with the venom of his wrath if there be any pitty or compassion in you lend helpe and succour such poore distressed soules if a woman be in travell and her strength faileth her oh what bitter cries shee puts forth with that all her neighbours come to helpe her and when they have done all they can they pray to heaven for that they cannot doe themselves And as it is with a man that is swounding away they runne for strong cordiall water and for this man and that friend to succour him and they cry all help help for the Lords sake he is cleane gone this is all well it is a worke of mercy and pitty But men brethren and fathers you know not the heart breaking sorrows that are in the soules of these poore creatures he lies as it were in childbed and is in the very pangs of conversion and his heart is even now at a ha even now to be converted and loosned from sinne and to have Christ brought into his soule O that God would send some amongst you that you might see some experience of it Oh faith the poore soule will these and these sinnes never be pardoned and will this proud heart never be humbled thus the soule â—ighes mournes and saith Lord I see this and feele the burthen of it and yet I have not a heart to be humbled for it nor to be freed from it Oh whence will it once be did you but know this it would make your hearts to bleed to heare him it is not the swounding away of a man in a qualme No No the sword of the Almighty hath pierced through his heart and he is breathing out his sorrow as though he were going downe to hell and he saith if there by any mercy any love any fellowship of the spirit have mercy upon me a poore creature that am under the burthen of the Almighty O pray and pitty these wounds and vexations of spirit which no man finds nor feeles but he that hath been thus wounded It is the signe of a soule wholy denoted to destruction that hath a desperate disdaine against poore wounded creatures O saith one I hope you have hearing enough have you not it may be you will tumble downe into a well or hang your selfe will you not Oh fearefull is it possible there should harbour such a spirit in any man there is not a greater brand of a man denoted to destruction then this I doe not say onely he is starke naught for the present but it is a fearefull brand of a man denoted to eternall destruction if the devill himselfe were upon earth I cannot conceive what he could doe worse When the woman was about to be delivered the Red Dragon was there ready to destroy the child see what the Prophet David saith of such Lord powre out thy wrath upon the heathen that know not thee and the Kingdomes that have not knowne thy name let thy wrathfull displeasure take hold of them that adde iniquity unto iniquity let them not come into thy righteousnesse let them be blotted out of thy booke What 's the reason of this why did David make this imprecation and say Lord seâ— open the gates of hell that thy wrath may fall upon the soules of such as these are the text saith they persecute him whom thou hast smitten the Lord smites a poore sinner and thou art ready to persecute him too the Lord hath wounded him wilt thou stabbe him to the heart Good Lord adde iniquity to iniquity The sin is marvelous and the curse unconceivable When Amaleck met Israel and tooke them at advantage because they were weake and weary Remember saith the text what he did to thee in the way how he feared not God and the Lord saith I remember what Amaleck did to the people of Israel goe therefore and blot out his name from under heaven and kill all both young and old This is a true type of such as are enemies to the poore Saints of God that are thus desolate and wounded in their consciences their being in the wildernes was a type of the Saints conversion and their comming to Canaan was a type of the Saints ariving at the heavenly City Jerusalem Now canst thou jeere at the Saints that are thus wounded and canst thou wound them further and pierce him to the heart and discourage him The Lord will remember thee in the day of thy death and as thou hast shewed no mercy so shalt thou receive no mercy in that day I have knowne many such opposers of God and his Grace that have beene forced to lay violent hands vpon themselves and when the Lord hath gotten some of them upon their sick bed they lye roaring there and the Lord layes his full wrath vpon them If there be any such in this congregation I pray God let them see some sudden veine of his vengeance that if it be possible they may finde and feele the waight of this trouble of conscience that they themselves also may finde mercy from the Lord. The second part of the Vse is this as we must pitty those thus wounded so hereby we see the best way to send help to such as are wounded in their hearts the woâ—nd is in the heart therefore let the salve be applyed to the heart It is in vaine to tell a poore wounded soule of Hawkes or Hounds or the like hee is not wounded in his body but in his heart the physicke must be applyed to the part diseased If the head be sick or sore you must not apply a salve to the arme and if the brest be ill you must not apply a salve to the foot so it is a vaine thing to offer riches or pleasures or profits to a man that is wounded in his conscience for sin the wound is not there if the wound were in disquietnesse then pleasure will cure it if the wound were in poverty then riches would cure him if the wound were in basenes and contempt then honours would cure him No thy heart is wounded and the conscience is terrified in the apprehension of Gods wrath And therefore apply the spiritual Balme of Gilead even the blood of Christ the case is cleare that all the Crosses and Crucifixes and Agnus dei in the world al the popish pardons can doe no good to a wounded Conscience There is never a popish shaveling under heaven can cure a wouÌ„ded soule hee cannot apply that spirituall salve that should comfort him hee may delude him and lead him into the commission of sinne but he cannot minister any true comfort unto him thus they cure a poore Christian by searing of his conscience and make him sinne so much the more and neuer be troubled for sinne as if a man should kill a sicke person and say now he feeles no hurt so it often fals out that a man
feeles no sinne but yet he is not cured because his sinne is not removed and his heart unpacified in the blood of Christ. Secondly is it so that the wound of a sinner is in his heart then we haue here a matter of complaint that we may iustly take up against the secure generation wherein we liue there is but little saving sorrow and therefore but little saving grace if there be no preparation for Christ there can be no true evidence of grace nor of Gods love in Christ if there be no preparation for a building there can be no building set up The Lord be mercifull to a world of men that live in the bosome of the Church if we had a foūtaine of teares with Ieremy to bewaile this age in this respect it were worth the while and if the Lord should send some Ezekiel and say to him goe to such a countrey or such a shire and see if there be any that doe mourne for their sinnes comfort such Alas what would become of a world of persons This is a bill of inditement against three sorts of people it arraignes and condemnes such as never yet shared in this worke of preparation of saving sorrow and therefore were never in Christ these swarme in our streets And first it fals marvelous heavy upō such as take contentment in their base courses those loose Epicures and boone gallants of our time that goe staggering in our streets they are so farre from grieving for their sinnes that it is their greatest vexation that they cannot commit sinne and have elbow roome to sinne freely O what a griefe it is to them to have a minister checke them and that there is a law to punish them for sinne whereas finne should be poyson in their soules to woūd them it becomes as meat to nourish them They sleepe not except they have done mischiefe saith the Wiseman and their sleepe is taken away unlesse they cause some to fall they 〈◊〉 the bread of wickednesse and drinke the Wine of violence So farre it is from being poyson unto them and so far are they from being troubled with sinne that it is their meat and pastime to sinne Just Esau like What did he When he had eate and drunke he rose up to play and this was all he looked after When he had passed away his title to heaven and happinesse and esteemed of Christ and heaven no more then of a messe of pottage he ate and dranke his heart was never touched for what he had done he did not smite upon his thigh as Ephraim did say What have I done Have I sold away my birth-right for nothing You that know the world you know there are many that sit upon the ale-bench and sweare and drinke and raile against Gods servants and are never troubled for it Nay the world is come to this passe that it is their greatest vexation that they are hindered in their sinfull courses It was the guise of the old world Haman went home sicke because he wanted the Cap and knee from Mordecay Amnon was sicke of incest and Ahab was sicke of covetousnesse and Ahitophel was sicke because his counsell was not followed The Lord of heaven knowes the adulterer is sick because he cannot get the heart and company of his queane many a man is sicke of envy it is rottennesse to his bones yea many a man goeth up and downe sicke of it and is not quiet because he cannot vent his rage against a faithfull minister that checkes him You swearers doth not your hearts rise against the King state for making a law against that sinne Doe you not hate the constable and witnesse that come in against you you account these the greatest plague to you in all the world I appeale to the hearts of you all that heare me this day can you say you are troubled for sin and yet grieve because you cannot commit sinne still Woe woe to your soules that thus delight in sinne There are many that despight the spirit of grace and sticke not to say I did sweare such a man out of the house and I did drinke such a man under the table dead Read that place of the Apostle there you shall see your doome and if there be any such in your families or amongst your neighbours throw this in their faces and if they will goe downe to hell let them goe with paine that all they might be damned saith the text which beleeved not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousnesse God is not partiall but saith that all they might be damned it would almost shake a mans heart to thinke of it How many notorious vile wretches may say Good Lord what will become of our families villages we are all opposers of God his grace shall all be damned I dare not say what God will doe to thee the text saith so This me thinks might lie as poyson and rats-bane upon the heart of a sinfull creature the Lord in mercy looke upō you and make sinne as loathsome and bitter unto you as ever it hath beene sweet and pleasant You see how the matter will goe with you you that thus jibe and jeast at the Saints and sport yourselves in sinne the time may come that it will be a dry feast as it was with Dives that was drunke and fared deliciously every day he had a dry feast in hell and could not have a droppe of water to coole his tongue So it will be with you you must either buckle and mourne for sinne or else burne for ever Secondly It condemns such as are in a faire straine such are they that have a slight sense of sinne but it never goes downe to the heart the skinne is ripled a little but the kall of their heart was never broken for their abominations Naaman was to wash seven times in Iordan so this water of godly sorrow is of a healing nature but these men doe not rubbe and reince their soules in it they only dippe their soules in a little sorrow but you must wash it throughly and fully if ever you desire to have the leprosie of sinne purged out Men bathe their sinnes with teares but they doe not drown them they do as parents doe with their children they will correct them a little and presently cocker them againe so the hypocrite useth to trouble his corruptions and complaine of them and vexe them a little with sorrow but in the meane time cocker them and dandle them againe But sinne will not be so killed and the heart will not be so easily broken this kinde of sorrow is too slight and overly As it is with a debter that hath borrowed money he will complaine he had an ill bargaine and desires that either he might have the debt abated or the day put off he puts it off w th meer talking such a generatiō there are of the whining hypocrites that wil outwardly complain of
their corruptions but keepe the corruptions still As Ahab did he hated Micaiah and afterwards he fasted and prayed that he might sinne more freely without suspition So there is many a cursed hypocrite that lives in a faire course and yet will cheat and lie and deale marvelous unjustly and then he will complaine of his sinne and confesse only to bath his sins but drown his sins subdue them he will not and this he doth that he may sinne more freely againe it is but fasting and praying c. O brethren it is a desperate hypocrisie that sorrow which God hath appointed as a meanes to purge out sinne should be a meanes to cover his sinne will a few wambling teares doe the deed and breake the heart is this acceptable sorrow you your selves are ashamed of this work and do you thinke God will accept of it No no it is not the rending of the garments nor the weeping of the eyes that will doe the deed but you must breake your hearts If you only cut off the legs or wings of a fowle it will live for all that so you cut off the armes or hands of sinne but so long as the heart is not wounded and driven to any amazement for sin it will live with you here and in hell too Oh doe not cozen your owne soules it is not the teares of the eye but the blood of the heart that your sinnes must cost and if you come not to this never thinke that your sorrow is good and therefore you that finde your selves guilty lay your hands upon your hearts say Good Lord this is my portion the Lord knowes I have confessed my sinnes and yet have taken liberty to sin but my heart was never burthened with this evill and vilenesse of sinne and therefore to this day I never had this true sorrow There is a third sort of sorrowers which is the worst of all they are such as heretofore have drunke deepe of this sorrow and have beene extraordinarily strucken and yet they are grown so much the more hardened in their sinnes by all these blowes that God hath layed upon them these are in a desperate condition even such as God hath made howle in the congregation yet afterwards fall into the same courses againe and returne to their old byas and now they can out-face God and his ministers and all and thinke it a matter of basenesse to be disquieted in heart as they have beene such novices and children they were once that they could not sleepe nor be quieted but now they care not what all the ministers under heaven say against them nay they can fleare in our faces and be drunke and vile be never troubled for it they have gottē the skill of it This is the most fearfull condition that almost a poore creature can fall into Thou accountest it thy glory and credit that thou canst beare all and art metall of proofe and no bullets can pierce thee thou wast troubled before but now thou hast shaken it off This I say is thy shame will aggravate thy condemnation nay I take it to be one of the forest tokens under heaven of a gracelesse heart If thou hast had thy conscience awakened and hast beene troubled for sin and now dost fly off It is a signe of Gods high displeasure towards thee thou takest the right course as if God had invēted a way to destroy thy soule as you may see in Esay Go thy waies saith the Lord Speake to this people but they shall not heare make the heart of this people fat as though he had said there are a company of people in such a place Goe thy waies to them open their eyes and touch their hearts and awaken their consciences and when thou hast done then let their consciences be feared and fatted and then they will goe the right way to destruction for if they would awaken and sorrow kindly and repent I must needs save them Let these men remember that it is a heavy signe God hath forsaken them me thinkes this should trouble their soules exceedingly force them to cry out I am the man that have my heart fatted and would not be touched and converted Now if all be true that I have said there are but few sorrowers for sinne therefore few saved here we see the ground reason why many fly off from Godlinesse and Christianity This is the cause their soules were only troubled with a little hellish sorrow but their hearts were never kindly grieved for their sinnes If a mans arme be broken and disjoynted a little it may grow together againe But if it be quite broken off it cannot grow together so the terrour of the Law affrighted his conscience and a powerfull minister unjointed his soule and the Judgements of God were rending of him but he was never cut off altogether and therfore he returnes as vile and as base if not worse then before and he growes more firmly to his corruptions It is with a mans conversion as in some mens ditching they doe not pull up all the trees by the roots but plash them so when you come to have your corruptions cut off you plash them and do not wound your hearts kindly and you doe not make your soules feele the burthen of sinne truly this wil make a man grow and flourish still howsoever more cunningly and subtilly This lopping professor growes more subtle in his wickednesse the soule that hath beene terrified for his lusts hee is now growne a plashed adulterer and Alehouse haunter hee will be drunke more cunningly and secretly and so he that hath beene an open opposer of Gods children will now jibe and jeast at them in a corner and when he comes amongst his old companions then hee can vent out all his malice This is the reason why all wicked men that were in some good way of preparation of soule they turne their backs upon Christ even because they were never cut off kindly from their sinnes but only unjointed and that is the reason why they fall to their old corruptions againe This is the maine cause of all the hypocrisie under heaven there was never any soule that made profession and fals againe but the ground of it is here The third use is for exhortation If every sorrow will not doe it and if slight sorrow will not doe it what then remaines to be done then if ever thou wouldest be comforted and receive mercy from the great God labour to take the right way and never be quieted til you do bring your hearts to a right pitch of sorrow let it never be said of as it was of you them in Hosea They have not cried unto me with their hearts whē they how led upon their beds they assembled themselves for corn wine but they rebell against me Thou hast a little slight sorrow but oh labour to have thy heart truly touched that at last it may breake in regard of
thy many distempers the longer seed time the greater harvest and so howsoever this sorrow is troublesome now it will be very comfortable in the end and though it be tedious to lay all these cursed abominations upon thy heart yet it will not be harsh when the Lord remembers you in his Kingdome it will never repent you that you have had your hearts humbled and broken when the Lord comes to heale you and it will never repent you that you have wept when the Lord comes to wipe away all teares frō your eyes Blessed are they that mourne for they shall be comforted saith our Saviour but Woe to you that are at ease in Sion there is a time of mourning for sinne you cannot have ease and quietnesse alwaies you had better now be wounded then everlastingly tormented And therefore if you desire to see the face of God with comfort and to have Christ speake for you and say come you poore heavy hearted sinners I will ease you if ever you desire this labour to lay load on your hearts with sorrow for your sinnes Oh what comfort shall ◠poore broken heart finde in that day David saith A broken and contrite heart O Lord thou wilt not despise When men goe into a farre countrey for merchandize they will not take rattles and such toies for their money but such commodities as they may get something by so when the Lord comes for broken hearts you must not thinke to put the Lord off with a little painted sorrow No no it is a broken heart that the Lord wil not despise Would you know what kinde of heart the Lord will accept and never cast off It is a broken heart tell your friends and neighbours of it me thinkes you looke as if you would finde acceptance with God and goe to heaven oh then get an humble lowly broken heart the Lord regards not all the rivers of oyle in the world not a hundred thousand fasts but it is a broken heart that God will blesse and glorifie Looke as it is with a womans conception those birthes that are hasty the children are either still borne or the woman most commonly dies so do not thou thinke to fall upon the promise presently Indeed you cannot fall upon it too soone upon good grounds but it is impossible that ever a full soule or a haughty heart should beleeve thou maiest be deceived but thou canst not be ingraftted into Christ therefore when God begins to worke never rest till you come to a full measure of this brokennesse of heart Oh follow the blow and labour to make this worke sound and good unto the bottome and then you shall be sure to receive comfort as the Prophet David saith Our eyes are up unto thee till thou have mercy on us Let your consciences be wounded throughly and kindly resolve not to heare the cursed counsell of carnall friends that say what neede you mourne O poore fooles there is not any even the civillest professor in the Kingdome but if God did discharge his sinnes to his heart as hee could doe it were enough to make him goe howling with sorrow to his grave therefore humble your selves before God and never be at rest till the Lord shew mercy to your soules never unburthen your soules before God ease you and do not breake prison For if you doe God will send after you with a witnesse No no When God hath put thee into prison breake not out til God send to deliver you and then your hearts will be filled with comfort soundly humbled soundly comforted If a man be lost Christ will seek him up and save him Quest. Now it may be some poore soule will say How shall I bring my heart to this sound worke indeed Answ. For answere to this I will shew three meanes whereby the Lord workes this sound conviction First when the Lord begins first to worke upon you and you begin to see your corruptions then possesse your soules with the apprehension of the ticklishnesse of your condition wherein you are this worke is great and marvelous inward and you may be easily deceived and the danger is great if you be deceived it is in this case with the soule as it is with a ship on the sea when the marriners passe by and see the rockes where such and such ships have beene split and the men and all lost they are very wary to steere aright and to direct their compasse aright but neare sands and rockes they will not come So it is with this humbling of the heart many have beene cozened and deceived therein therefore now hold this rule Let that soule whose eyes God hath opened and brought under his blowes let such I say rather feare he is not sound in the worke then feare that he shall not have ease for every man saith I pray you Sir comfort and refresh me and will God never give me comfort Oh now you goe wrong many perish because they goe off from this worke so soone but never did any perish because he received the worke soundly Therefore reason thus with thy owne heart and say Good Lord be merciful to me my condition is very tickle If now I be deceived thē farewell comfort Was not Cain and Iudas vexed and disquieted and yet damned This is a great point of wisedome and sinks many a Christian I know what I say as it is with child bearing a woman when her throwes come often and strong there is some hope of deliverance but when her throwes goe away commonly the child dies and her life too So it is in this great work of contrition which is nothing else but the child-birth of the soule when your throwes goe away take heed that your salvation goes not too once you could say the minister spake home to my heart I remember the time full well Why then what becomes of all your sorrow You can be as carnal as secure as ever it is certaine you are in child-bearing but your throwes have left you and your brokennesse of heart is gone and therefore you are in an ill case surely at some low ebbe of grace Againe if a mans heart be soundly broken though he fal into some sinne he may be recalled but if he have not his heart soundly broken he is undone If the foundation be naught the building must needes fall So it is in this preparation of the soule for Christ if this be naught all comes to naught therefore be so much the more fearefull of your soules because your condition is so much the more tickle in this then in any thing else and rather desire soundnesse then quietnesse Secondly when God stirres doe you stirre your hearts too be you stabbed further make the blow goe deeper therefore wheresoever any truth goeth neere thy heart and awakens thee looke up to heaven and blesse God for it and labour to drive the naile home to the head and make the salve sinke into
let us admire and blesse this good God and not quarrell with his ministers nor providence and say other men have comfort and therefore why am I so troubled and disquieted how now It is endlesse mercy that thou livest therefore downe with thy proud heart and stifle those distempers of Spirit and say The Lord hath broken and wounded me but blessed be his name that I may come to Church and that he hath not dealt with me as I have deserved but in goodnesse and mercy I hope God in his season will doe good to my soule Secondly let us be wise to nourish this same blessed worke in our hearts for ever let us have our hearts more and more strengthened because thereby our hearts will be more more inabled to beare and undergoe any thing if you have but a little glimpse of hope cover it and labour to maintaine it and if ever God let in any glimpse of mercy into your hearts let it not goe out it is ever good to take that way that God takes the Lord sustaines our hearts with hope hope is the sinewes of the soule therefore strengthen it As a marriner that is tost with a tempest in a darke night when he sees no starres he casts anchor and that cheares him this hope is the anchor of the soule whereby it lookes out and expects mercy from God the poore soule seeth no light nor comfort nothing but the wrath of an angry God and he saith God is a just God and a jealous God even that God whose truth I have opposed is displeased with me then the soule is tossed and troubled and runnes upon the rockes of despaire how shall the soule be supported in this condition you will finde this true one day therefore looke to it before you vile drunkards are now sayling in a faire gale of pleasure and carnall delight but when the Lords wrath shall seaze upoÌ„ you wheÌ„ he shal let in the flashes of hel fire then you are tossed sometimes up to heaven now downe to hell therefore cast anchor now and this hope will uphold you for this hope is called the anchor of the soule Thou dost not yet see the Lord refreshing of thee but it may be otherwise The people of NiniviÌ„e said Who knowe's but God may repent this upheld their hearts and made them seeke to the Lord in the use of the meanes and the Lord had mercy on them If you belong unto the Lord he will come against those drunken proud hearts and rebellious hearts of yours and dragge them downe to hell and make them sorrow for their sinnes And remember this against that day Who knowes but the Lord may shew mercy and therefore yet heare and pray and fast and seeke unto him for mercy We fence those parts of our bodies most that are most pretious and the hurt whereof is most dangerous Hope is called the helmes of salvation and the assurance of Gods love is the head of a Christian now take away a Christians head and he is cleane gone the devil ever labours for that and saith You come to heaven prove it Loe you thinke God hath need of drunkards and adulterers in heaven and will God provide a crowne of glory for his professed enemies Hath God made heaven a hog-fâ—ie for such uncleane wretches as you are No no there is no such expectation of mercy this wounds the head of the soule but hope is the helmet that covers the head of a Christian makes him say I confesse I am as bad as any man can say of me heaven is a holy place and and I have no goodnesse at all in me yet there is hope the Lord may breake this proud heart of mine and take away these distempers of Spirit Now by this meanes the head of a Christian is kept sure Quest. But some will say how shall we maintaine this hope in our hearts and by what meanes may we feed this hope Answ. The meanes are especially three First take notice of the Al-sufficiencie of God as he hath revealed himselfe in his word say not as many do I cannot conceive it or I cannot finde it but what doth the word say Is not God able to pardon thy sinnes away then with those I cannot conceive it and the like Is there any thing hard for me saith God Whatsoever thy estate is there is nothing hard to him that hath hardnesse at command when our Saviour said It is as easie for a camell to goe through the eye of a needle as for a rich man to goe into heaven Good Lord said they Who can be saved But Christ said with God all things are possible if you looke unto man how he is glued to the world so that all the ministers under heaven cannot pull him away but still he will lie and cozen Reason and Judgement cannot conceive how this man should be saved but with God all things are possible See what the Apostle saith Abraham above hope beleeved under hope that he should be the Father of many nations this he did because he knew he which had promised was able to performe it and this did feed his hope he did beleeve above hope in regard of the creature under hope in regard of God As if he had said I have a dead body but God is a living God and Sarah hath a barren wombe but God is a fruitfull God It may be thou sayest Object if any exhortatioÌ„ would have wrought upon me then my heart might have beene brought to a better passe but can this stubborne heart of mine be made to yeild And can these strong corruptions of mine be subdued Howsoever thou canst not doe it Answ. yet God can quicken thee and although thou art a damned man yet he is a mercifull God this all-sufficiencie of God is a hooke whereon our soules hang when the Apostles had prayed that the minds of the Ephesians might be opened and that they might be able to know the love of Christ because some one might say how shall we know that which is above knowledge the text saith Now to him that is able to doe abuÌ„dantly above all that we can thinke or aske according to his mighty power that worketh in us to him be glory As though he had said though you cannot thinke or aske as you should yet God is able to doe exceeding abundantly more then we can thinke or aske so then no more but this we are not able of our selves to thinke a good thought yet there is sufficient power in God and though we are dead hearted and damned wretches yet there is sufficient salvation in God Let us hang the handle of hope on this hooke Secondly the freenesse of Gods promise marvelously lifts up the head above water as the beggar saith The doale is free why may not I get it as well as another This sometimes dasheth our hopes when the soule begins to thinke what mercy is offered he saith
Object Oh! many are they that have it could I feare God as I should and seeke for mercy as I ought then there were some hope but I have no heart to endeavour or desire after any mercy and I cannot bring my soule nor submit my will to yeild and therefore shall I ever have any mercy Answ. Why not thou too Doth God sell his mercy No he gives it freely God keepes open house Oh the freenesse of that mercy and goodnesse that is in God! he requires nothing of thee to procure it but he shewes mercy because he will shew mercy thou hast no will but God hath a will and his shewing of mercy depends not on thy wil but upon his owne freewil It is true God will make a man will and break his heart because no man otherwise can be saved but it is as true that Christ will give you brokennesse of heart as well as heaven and salvation I will take away the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh and cause you to walke in my wayes saith the Lord hold this truth in thy soule As there is no worth in the soule that can deserve any thing at Gods hands so there is no sinne the sinne against the holy Ghost only excepted that can hinder the freenes of Gods grace from saving of us if thou belong to him he will hale thee to heaven and pull thee from hell he will make thee lie in the dust and wait for mercy come groveling for his grace and that freely without any thing on thy part Who is a God like to thee saith Micah who pardonest iniquity because mercy doth please thee The Lord sheweth mercy not because thou canst please him but because mercy pleaseth him And in Esay he saith I am he that blotteth out thy offences for my owne names sake But the soule may say Object they were Gods people that did humble themselves and they had hearts to feare him Answ. See that in the twentie fourth verse Thou hast brought me no corne neither hast thou filled me with the fat of thy sacrifice but thou hast wearied me with thy transgressions yet the Lord saith I am he that pardoneth thy sinnes Thou saiest if thou couldest pray and humble thy selfe there were hope of mercy the text doth not say It is a sinner but it is I a God that must doe it this is the freenes of his grace But some may object Object Is it possible that a man should receive any mercy yet be so stubborne and rebellious This makes way for drunkards to live as they list and yet thinke to goe to heaven Answ. I answer It is true the Lord will pardon thē if they belong to him but he will doe it with a witnesse the Lord will dowze that soule of thine in the veine of his vengeance but he will pardon thee too God will pardon thy sinne in Christ but he will make thee feele the bitternesse of sinne Lastly consider the abundance of mercy and goodnesse that is in God whereby he not only strives with us in the midst of all rebellions but he is more mercifull then we are or can be rebellious this helpes the heart of another thing that cuts it For when the soule seeth all his sinnes for number for nature so many and so abominable he saith Object Can mercy be shewed to such a wretch as I am Answ. Yes for as God is al-sufficient and his promise free so he hath plenty of mercy for the worst he exceeds in mercy all the sinnes that can be except that against the holy Ghost and therefore the soule throwes it selfe upon this the Apostle saith Where sinne abounds grace abounds much more lest any man should say Let us sinne that grace may abound the text saith in another place whose damnation is just This knockes off fingers though a sinfull wretch abuse God and Grace yet mercy will overcome the heart in this case but it will cost him deare though thou turnest the grace of God into wantonnesse the Lord will turne that wantonnesse of thine into bitternesse the Lord will sting that heart of thine one day and make thee see whether it be good to forsake mercy when it is offered it will be easier for Sodome then for thee when thou shalt see a company of poore Sodomites frie in hell howsoever God may bring thee to heaven yet he will make thee frie in hell and he will make thee thinke a Sodomite to be in a better condition for the present then thou art Object But some will say God cannot in justice save such a wretch as I am For answer to this see what Saint Iames saith Mercy rejoyceth or triumpheth over Iustice howsoever Iustice saith he must be plagued yet Mercy saith Christ hath made a plentifull satisfaction for him then mercy triumpheth over judgement so then if God be al-sufficient and his promise free and his mercy superabundant then we may be stirred up to hope for mercy from God our hearts may be supported herein for ever Now I come to some other particulars that are plainly exprest in our text First they made a free and open confession of their sinnes they did not stay till the Apostle went to their houses but they went to him and said Men and brethren you have spoken against the sinne of murder and we confesse we are guilty of this sinne they saw their sinnes and confessed them openly before the Apostles The Doctrine which ariseth from hence is this When the heart is truly broken for sinne it will be content to make open free confession thereof when a man is called thereunto or thus sound contrition brings forth bottome confession Men and brethren What shall we doe to be saved as if they had said the truth is we have heard of the feareful condition of such as have killed the Lord Jesus and we confesse whatsoever you have said he was persecuted by us and blasphemed by us we are they that cryed Cucifie him crucifie him we would have eaten his flesh and made dice of his bones we plotted his death and gloried in it these are our sinnes and haply a thousand more that then they revealed and this is remarkable They goe to Peter and the other Apostles they did not goe to the Scribes and Pharisees and that cursed crew Whence observe this by the way when the soule is thus truly broken generally it will never repaire to such as are carnall and wicked men for these people knew that the Scribes and Pharisees had their hands as deeply imbrued in Christs blood as themselves and besides they knew them to be such naughty packes that they would rather incourage them in their sinnes then any way ease them and recover them from the same therefore they went to the Disciples because they were holy and gratious persons and willing to succour them and it is certaine that soule was never truly broken for sinne
that goes for helpe to such as are guilty of the same it is suspitious that these men goe only to stoppe the mouth of conscience but never to have conscience awakened You see our converts here went to the Apostles not to the Scribes and fellow-murtherers but this by the way only I goe on in the former point A broken hearted sinner knowes more by himselfe then any man can doe when a man is pinched with famine or drought he will open his wants fully and freely and so a man that is sicke and hath some heavy disease upon him will tell of more paines and gripings then any Physitian can doe So it is with the soule that is deadly sicke in the â—ight of his sinnes and abominations Quest. But now a question will grow from hence May not a wicked man that never was truly broken-hearted make a large and open confession of his sinnes Answ. I confesse that in the horrour of conscience he may doe it with the dogge returning to his vomit and with the Sow to her wallowing in the mire now the hogge that is kept in a cleane meadow will looke somewhat white but if he comes from thence hâ— will lie downe in the first durty puddle he comes at so there are some sinners that have beene well trained up and live in a good familie they are a little cleansed but when they come to live among wicked coÌ„panions they grow as prophane as the rest and yet all this while they are hogges and will murmur at others that are more holy then themselves Now the dogge is he that hath had his eyes opened and his conscience awakened and some horrour laid upon his soule and this doth make him disgorge himselfe for a while to ease him of his horrour but when that man returnes to his sinnes he will snarle and bite too and fall heavily upon Gods people so much the more because he hath confest his sinnes thus it was with Iudas he swallowed downe his thirtie pence but God made him come and acknowledge his sinne and take shame to himselfe and yet a Judas a devil at this day in hell I tell you this his confession out-bide most people in our generation the fish is conteÌ„t to nibble at the bait and so is taken with the hooke and when it hath the hooke and bait too it would be ridde of both so when horrour of conscience hath fastened upon the soule of a man because of sinne he could be content to vomit his sinne and all up and yet he is a very beast Quest. Againe this question may arise here doth confession argue true contrition Answ. I answere there is a kinde of confession which no man attaines unto but he hath a broken heart Iudas nor no carnall heart under heaven comes to this and you must know there is no word spoken by the one but may be spoken by the other and therefore the difference is not froÌ„ the words but from the inward frame of the heart and for the opening of this truth I will propound and shew these two things First the confession of a poore broken hearted sinner Secondly I will shew you when the Saints of God are called to confesse For the first the difference betweene the true and the false confessioÌ„ is discovered in these three particulars First they differ in the end a broken hearted sinner confesseth his sins that he may take shame to himselfe and glorifie God this is the frame of the soule that truly confesseth his sins he doth it to honour the Gospel which he hath so much dishonoured to discover the vilenesse of his person and of his sinne that he hath so much set up he is willingly content that the glory of it may be Gods and the shame his owne Consider that passage of the good Thiefe upon the Crosse when the reprobate was going to be executed for his sinne he railed upon Christ whence observe this by the way a wicked man will be a wretch though he should goe to hell presently now when he was railing see what the Good thiefe replies Fearest thou not God we have sinned and are justly punished for our sinnes to die and goe to hell too if God be not the more mercifull this man you see was content to fal out with himselfe and his sinnes and to honour the justice and holinesse of God in condemning of him So in Ezekiel the text saith They shall remember their waies that were not good and shall be ashamed that is they shall take shame to themselves they shall not shrinke for the same a gracious heart cannot tell what to doe to make sinne and it selfe base enough before God that his soule and sin may fall out one with another As in the example of Zacheus whereas the confession of a carnall hypocrite comes not so currantly off it sticketh in his teeth he begins to confesse something and then he stands he saith something and cals it backe againe and is loath to take any shame for the evill committed and therefore haply he will come when he is called and goe away and confesse nothing at all Nay if a minister heare any thing of him he will hide it and tell a flat lie rather then take shame to himselfe for it it is true a carnall hypocrite may confesse sometimes to give the minister content as commonly such doe he may confesse to get inward with a man and to get commendations nay he may confesse to sinne more freely without suspition for charitie beleeves this that when a man hath confessed his sinne he will never sinne in that kinde againe nay sometimes he doth it to stop the mouth of conscience and therefore when conscience is full of horror to quiet conscience and to stil the clamor thereof he is content to reveale his sinne that so he may have some secret peace for his sinne thus far they differ in their ends Secondly they differ in their grounds the cause and ground of a broken hearted sinner it is from the loathsomnesse and vilenesse that the heart seeth in sinnâ— and therefore it confesseth to free it selfe from that sin and to let out all those abominations that are so loathsome and tedious to him as the sinner that is truly burthened is to confesse all his sinnes so especially those that are most loathsome and secret even those sins whereby the heart hath bin most estranged from God for as before the soule did confesse sinne freely because he was content to take shame to himself so now he doth it to ridde himselfe of the same Then a man feeles sinne kindly when it goeth to the very inwards of the soule it is in this case with a broken hearted sinner as it is with that part of a mans body that is impostumed or the like wheÌ„ the impostume is ripe if it be lauÌ„ced to the quicke the very coare and all comes out bâ—t if it be pricked with a pinne there may some
here thou must not rest but thou huntest for the blood of thy corruptions and thou canst not be quiet till thou seest the death of them the soule can doe little of it selfe but it would have the Lord doe all for it so though thou have not sanctifying grace hast not power of thy selfe to kill thy corruptions yet thou makest all thy friends thou hast to use all meanes to sinke thy enemies that else would sinke thee As it is amongst men when a man hath found his enemy he followes the law hotly and he will have his life or else it shall cost him a fall he pursues him from one court to another and makes all the friends that he can that he may plague him and if all the law in the land will doe it he will have him hanged this is a right hatred indeed so the soule can doe little of it selfe yet it indeavours and makes a levy of forces and prayers and will not leave sin with life it pursues sin hotly and if all Gods words and all the promises and if the grace of Christ will doe the deed it will not rest til it see the decay of sinne and therfore it will even dragge sinne before the Lords tribunall and there cry for judgement and say Lord kill this proud malitious heart of mine these are thy enemies the enemies of thy grace Lord they sought my blood let me have their blood blood for blood tooth for tooth O let me see their destruction The second use is a word of instruction Is this contrition and doth it bring forth such fruits theÌ„ true brokeÌ„ godly sorrow is rare in the world and there are few that have it even amongst those that thinke themselves some body in the bosome of the Church therefore save me a labour and cast your eyes abroad in the world and enquire in the houses and villages where you dwell and knocke at your neighbours hearts and say is there any broken hearts here it will appeare there are but few broken hearts here to be found amongst the professors of the Gospell and so few shall be saved If this true hatred be a true evidence of broken heartednesse what wil become of a world of prophane persons that are caried on with the pursuit of sin from which they will not be pulcked the drunkard will have his cups and the adulterer his queanes and the chapman his false weights they are so farre from this dislike of sinne that they hate every thing save sinne they hate the godly magistrate that would punish them nay they hate the Lord himselfe and say it was pitty there was such a law made to punish sinne what shall we doe let us doe any thing rather then be hindered in our pleasures what shall we do that we may not be checked and reproved get you downe to hell and there you shall have elbow roome enough there you may be as wicked and as prophane as you will and that will be your portion unlesse the Lord be mercifull unto you Consider what the wise man speaks and doe not thinke a little humbling of your soules before God and a few prayers will serve your turne No no then shall they cry saith the text But I will not answer they shall seeke me earely but shall not finde me because they hated knowledge did not seek the feare of the Lord. Oh how feareful is the doom and how certaine is the desolation of such poore wretches Now the Lord for his mercies sake settle these truthes in every one of your hearts Amen FINIS What contrition is Psal. 74.4 Psal. 38.2 Doctrine Esay 45 23.2â— Rom. 29.30 Esay 7. 18. Reason Psalm 103.3 Vse 2 Kingâ— 2â— Vse 2. 3 Cautions Psal. 51. Doctrine Ezek. 36.31 Ierem. 31 29â— Iob. â—â— Iere◠〈…〉 What the true sight of sin is The property of iâ— Psal. 119.36 opened Zach. 11 10. What a horrible thing sinne is 1. Reason Esay 59. â— Reason 2. Reason 3. Psal. 83.2 Why men see not the vilenes of sinne Psalm 50.2 Eccles. 8.11 Mat. 3.45 Iob. 14.17 How to see our sinnes convictingly Pro. 2.19 Iob 13.27 Esay 17.11 Iob. 7.20 Reason Why God convinceth men of their sinnes Acts. 3.17 Vse 1. Luke 29.42 Vâ—e Questiâ—â— Meanes how to see sinne convictingly Marke 10.15 Meanes Rom. 7. Rom. 7.7 Meane 3. Iob. 40.3 1. Shift How the â—oule labouâ—s to beat backe the power of the word Why men make slight account of sinne Iohn 3.3 Heb. 12.14 Rom. 7. Mat. 12.37 Iud. 15. Psal. 50. Ierem. 4.15 How sinfull thoughts are produced Ier. 4â—â— Deut. 28.28.29 Acts. â— 22 2. Shift How the soule puts by the threatnings of the word Iob. 22 13. Esay 5.19 Zeph. 1.12 Prov. 5.21 1. Iohn 3.20 Psalm â—â— Rom. 2.14 Iude. â—â— Deut. 1.14 Mat. 27.3 2 Tim. 2.25.26 Revel 1.21 22. Luke 29.43 Ezek. 14.14 Prov. 2.38 Iob. 6 1â— Mat. 27.46 Motive 1. Luke 19.10 Lament 3.40 Motive 2. Motiâ—e 3. Vse 2. Cor. 3.2 Mat. 7. 〈◊〉 Why mens hearts are not wrought upon in the ministery Doctrine Luke 3.11.12 1 King â—0 â—1 Mat. 23.13.14 Titus 1.20 Object Hosea 2.2 Ezek. â—6 1 Reason 1. Mat. 21.45 Ionah 1.6 Reason 2. Vse 1. Acts 4.22 Kings 14. Vse 2. 2. Tim. â—â— Titus 13.13 Acts. 8.22 Vse 3. How to profit in hearing the word preached Psalm 58.8 2 Sam. â—4 25 A naughty heart discovered 2. Sam. 18 6. How to know whether wee hate sinne Doctrine Psalm 37. 2. Pet. 2.8 Two things in the word Mat. 14. â—4 Lorâ—enâ— â— 19.20 Question What meditation is Psalm 119.59 Dan. 12.4 2. Tim. 3.14 Iob. 5. last Ground 1. Iames 1 2.3 Ier. 8.12 Vse Iudg. 1.12 Deut. 32.6 Rom. 8.15 Iob. 36. â— 10 Prov. 1.26 Mat. â— 1◠〈…〉 Roâ— 8 1â— Psalm 51. â—8 Psalm 14.20 Rom. â— 1â— 1. Tim â— â—7 Iob. 7.19 Iob. 9.18 1. Sam. 12.19 Hosea 14.3 Acts. 9.17 Mat. 19.22 Ier. 4.3 opened Mat. 13. Psalm 51.17 Psalm 29.5 Psal. 90. Sorrow for sin makes us set a high price upon Christ. Quest. 1. Question 2. Answ. Luke 19.10 Answ. Mal. 3.1.2 Twofold sorrow What preparative sorrow is What sorrow in sanctification is Rom. 8.30 Every saving worke is not a sanctifying Simile Luke 19.10 The qualification of those whom Christ will save Iohn 6.44 Iohn 6.35 Mat. 11.28 Esay 61.12 Revel 22.17 Conclusion 1 Mat. 19.21.22 Conclusion 2 Mat. 6.22 Conclusion 3. Hosea 3.3 opened Conclusion 4. All are not alike wounded for sinne Acts 16. Acts 16.30 Mans heart is like a stone Vse 1. How to carry our selves towards such as are wounded for their sinnes Deut. 22.1.2.3 Iob. 19.21.23 Revel 12.4 Psal. 79.24.25.26 Deut. 25.17 Vse 2. Prov. 4.16.17 Genesis 2â— 2. Thes. 2.13 Luke 16.25 1. Kingâ— 21. Esay 6.7.8.9 Vse 3. Hosea 7.14 Maâ— 5. Amos 6.1 Psal. 5. â—â— Psal. 123.2 Doctrine Psal. 77.6.11 Ionah 2.4 The soule hath many shakings Luke 15.18 Reason 1. Esay 57.16 Reason Vse 1. Acts 9. Hosea â— 15 Ios. 7.24 Psal. 103. Vse 2. Hebr. 6.19 Ionah 3.9 1. Thes. 5.8 Meanes how to maintaine our hope when God seemes to walke contrary to us Mat. 15.24 Rom. 4.18.21 Ephes. 3.19.20 Meanes 2. Ezech. 36.26 Mich. 7.18 Esay 43.24.25 Meane Rom. 4.20 Doctrine Note Difference betwixt true and false confession of sinnes Luke 23.40 Note Ezek. 16.16 Luke 19.28 The hollow hearted confessions of hypocrites When a man is bound to confesse his sinnes Iames 5. 16. Popish confession whaâ— Vse 1. Iob. 10.11.12 Vse 2. Acts 5.3 opened To hide our sins a fearefull sinne Prov. 28.13 Vse 2 Esay 66.2 Vse 3. To whom wee should lay opeÌ„ our sins by confession A skillfull minister A mercifull Physitian Mat. 27.4 A faithfull minister and how knowne Motives to confesse our sins Motive 2. Motive 3. Doctrine Dislike and hatred of sinne what it is How the soule is prepared for Christ. Difference betwixt sorrow for sinne and hatred of sin Ezek. 30.31 Luke 19.8 Esay 30.21.22 Wherein a true dislike of sinne consists He desires to have his sinne discovered 1. Sam. 25.20.21 He labours to have his sinne killed He hates sin in others He hates all occasions and meanes of sinning Luke 7.38 Vse 1. Object How to know that your soules are truly broken for sin Psal. 39.24 opened Vse 2. Prov. 28.29 Prov. 1.28