your selfe to sleep at night you must as Christ foreshadowed David did have thoughts on â—…d and set him alwayes before 〈…〉 When I awake I am still with 〈…〉 saith David in the night remembred God and his hope 〈…〉 meditation was on Gods word â—…iah in the person of all the â—…hful saith With my soule have â—…sired thee in the night yea with 〈…〉 spirit within me will I seeke â—…e early 〈…〉 In the Instant of awaking let our hart be lift up to God with â— thankfull acknowledgement â—f his mercy to you For it is he â—…at giveth his beloved sleepe â—ho keepeth you both in soule and body while you sleepe Who â—…enueth his mercies every morning for while you sleepe you â—…e as it were out of actuall posâ—â—ssion of your selfe all things â—…se Now it was God that kept â—ou and all that you had restoâ—ing them againe with many â—ew mercies when you wake 2. Arise early in the morning if you be not necessarily hindred following the example of our Savior Christ and of the good housewife in the Proverbs For this ordinarily wil make much for the health of your body and for the thrift both of your temporall and spirituall state for hereby you shall have the day before you and shall gaine the most and the fittest times for exercises of Religion and for the workes of your calling 3. In the time betwixt your awaking and arising if other pertinent profitable thoughts offer not theÌ„selves it will be useful to think upon some of these I must awake from the sleepe of Sinne to Righteousnesse as well as out of bodily sleepe unto labour in my calling The night is far spent the day is at hand I must therefore east off the works of darknesse and put on the armour of light I must walke honestly as in the day I am by the light of grace and kowledge to arise and walke in it 〈…〉 well as by the light of the Sun 〈…〉 walke by it Think also of your waking out of the sleepe of death â—…d out of the graue at the â—…und of the last Trumpet even 〈…〉 your blessed resurrection unto â—…ory at the last day It was one 〈…〉 Davids sweet thoughts speaâ—…ing to God When I awake I â—…ll be satisfied with thy likenesse When you arise and apparell â—our selfe lose not that prime â—ime when your wit is freshest with uncertaine impertiâ—ent boundlesse and fruitlesse â—houghts as it is the fashion of most men and women for to â—oe This is a fit time to thinke upon the cause why you have need of apparell namely the fall and sinne of your first Paâ—ents which from them is derived to you For before their fall their nakednesse was their comelinesse and seeing it they were not ashamed It will likewise be to good purpose to consider what base stuffe thâ— wise providence of God hath appointed to bee the matter oâ— apparell The riâ—ds of plants thâ— skinnes haire or wooll of bruiâ— beasts and the Spittle of thâ— Silkworm very excrements and cast apparell of vnreasonable creatures Which as it doth magnifie the wisdome power and goodnes of God in chusing and turning such meane things to such excellent use so it should humble and keepe downe the pride of man For what man who is in his wits will bee proud of the badge of his shame even of that arparell for which under God he is beholding to very plants and beasts Now also is a good time to cal to mind what rules â—reto be observed that you may apparell your selfe so as becommeth one that professeth godlines namely That your apparell for matter and fashion doc suite with your enerall and speciall calling and â—ith your â—sstate sex and age That your wearing your appaâ—ell be for health honostic and â—comelinesse 3 That you rather goe with 〈…〉 lowest than with the highest of your state and place 4. That the fashion be neither strange immodest singular or â—idiculous 5. That you be not over curions or overlong taking up too much time in putting it on 6 Neither the making nor wearing of your apparell must savour of pride lightnes curiositie lasciâ—iousnesse prodigalitiâ— or base covetousnesse But it must be such as becommeth holinesse wisedome thrift and honesty and such as is well reported of 7 Follow the example of those of your ranke and meanes which are most soâ—er most frugall and most discreet While you apparel your selfe it wil be seasonable and profitable also by this occasion to raise your thoughts and to fixe them upon that your apparell which doth cloath and adorne your inward man which is spirituall and of a divine matter which never is cut of fashion which never weareth out but is alwaies better for the wearing Thinke thus If I goe naked without bodily apparell it will be to the shame of my person and to the hazard of my health and life But how much more will the filthy nakednesse of my soule appeare to the eyes of men of Angels and of God himselfe whose pure eyes cannot abide filthinesse whereby my soule will be exposed to most deadly temptations and my selfe to Gods most severe Iudgements except I have put on and doe keepe on mee the white linnen of Christs Spouse the righteousnesses of the Saints that is Iustification by faith in â—…st and sanctification of every 〈…〉 by the Spirit of Christ â—…nd because every day you â—…be assaulted with the world â—…esh and the devill you shall â—…veli to consider whether you â—…e put on and doe improve 〈…〉 coat of male that complete arâ—… prescribed â—…hen it shall happen that you 〈…〉 use your looking-glasse and â—xperience find that it serveth â—iscover and to direct you â—…w to reforme whatsoever is â—…omely and out of order in â—…r body you may hereby reâ—…mber your selfe of the necessiâ—… and admirable use of the mirâ—…r and glasse of Gods Word and â—…spell of Christ both read and â—…ached for the good of your â—…le For this being understood 〈…〉 beleeved doth not onely â—…w what is amisle in the soule 〈…〉 how it may bee amended 〈…〉 insome measure will enable you to amend for it doth noâ— onely shew you your owne face but the very face and glory 〈…〉 God in Christ â—esus which bâ— reflexe upon you will through the Spirit worke on you a moâ—â— excellent effect than on Mos face in the Mount which yet wâ—… so glorious that the people couâ—… not endure to behold it For 〈…〉 this Gods glory which by faitâ— you behold in the Word yoâ— shall be changed into the same 〈…〉 mage from glory to glory even 〈…〉 by the Spirit of the Lord. Touching these things whicâ— I have prescribed to be though upon when you arise and pâ—… on your apparell in the morning and those other which I shâ—… prescribe when you put off yoâ—… apparel at
way and affoordeth meanes to attain both through the commands and promises thereof in the doctrine of faith and repentance Now therefore bring your self to the Gospell Try your selfe thereby first whether your first faith and repentance were sound then set upon reforming getting pardon of particular and later offences But learne to put a difference betweene the Commandements of the Gospell and of the Law the Law exacteth absolute obedience The gracious Gospell doth through CHRIST accept of the truth of Faith and Repentance so that there be an endevour after their perfection It would be too long to shew you at large the signes of unfained Faith and Repentance I will for the present onely say this Have you been humbled heretofore and through the promises and commandement of the Gospell which biddeth you beleeue have you conceived hope of mercy relying on Christ for it and thereupon have had a â—â—ue change in your whole man so that you make God your utmost end and out of hatred oâ—… and love unto Christ and â—is wayes have had a will in all things to live honestly and to â—…devour in all things to keepe alwayes a good conscience to wards God and man desiring the sincere milke of the Word to grow by it loving the brethren desiring and delighting in communion with them then be you confident that your first faith repentance and new obedience was sound If upon tryall you finde that they were not sound then you must begin now to repent and beleeve it is not yet too late Touching reformation and obtaining of pardon and power of your particular sinnes doe thus Consider the Commandement which biddeth you to repent and amend Consider the Commandements which bid you to come unto Christ when you are weary and beavie laden with your sin beleeving that through him they shall be pardoned and subdued to this end Consider that Christ hath fully satisfied for such and such a sinne yea for all sinne and that you have many promises of grace and forgivenesse yea a promise that God will give you grace to beleeve in him that you may have your sinnes forgiven Consider that there is vertue and power in Christs death and resurrection appliable by faith through his holy Spirit for the mortifying the old man of sinne and quickning the new man in grace as well as merit to take away the guilt and punishment of your sinne Improve this power of Christ in you unto an actuall breaking off your sinnes and living according to the wil of Christ which is done by mortifying the old man of sinne and by strengthning the new and inner man of grace In mortifying your sinne doe thus Take all your sinnes especially your bosome sins those to which the disposition of your nature and condition of your place doth most incline you your strongest and Captaine sinnes and with them the body of corruption in you the originall and mother-sinne smite at them strike at the very roote arraigne them condemne them in your selfe dragge them all to the Crosse of Christ and nayle them thereunto that is by Faith see them all nayled with Christ to the Crosse whereon he was crucified and beleeve that not onelyin respect of their guilt but also of their raigning power they are al crucified with him dead and buried as is signified to you lively in your Baptisme When you see that your old man is crucified with Christ that the body of sinne should be destroyed you will take courage against sinne and will refuse to serve it sith by Christ you are freed from the dominion of it When you thus by faith put on the Lord Iesus Christ you shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh Grieve heartily for your sinnes conceive deadly hatred against them displeasure against your selfe for them These like a corrasiue will eate out the core and heart of sinne Make no provision for the flesh to fulfil the lusts of it but be sober in the use of all earthly things this by little and little will starve sinne Avoid all obiects and occasions of sinne yea abstaine from the appearance of it this wil disarme sinne When you feele any motion unto sinne whether it rose from within or came from without resist it speedily and earnestly by the Sword of the Spirit the Word of God as your Saviour did and as Ioseph did for which cause it must dwell plentifully in you Thus you shall kill sinne That you may strengthen the inner man by the Spirit whereby you may not onely mortifie the deeds of the flesh but bring forth the fruits of the Spirit doe thus First Apply Christ risen from the dead for you particularly beleeving that God by the same power quickneth you and raiseth you together with Christ to walke in newnes of life reckoning your selfe now to be alive unto God being dead unto sinne become the servant of righteousnesse This beleeving in Christ embracing and relying upon the precious promises of the Gospell doth draw downe Christ into your heart and doth more and more incorporate you into him by it he by his Spirit dwelleth in you wherby of his life grace you receive life and grace and so as the Apostle saith are made partaker of the divine nature flying the corruption which is in the world through lust Affect your heart with ioy unspeakeable and with peace in beleeving considering that you are iustified through our Lord Iesus Christ this Ioy of the Lord as a cordiall will exceedingly strengthen grace in the inner man Take heed of quenching or grieving the Spirit but nourish it by the frequent use of holy meditation prayer hearing and reading of the Word receiving the Sacraments by a Christian Communion with such as feare God and by following the motions of the Spirit of God which you shall know to be from it when the thing wherunto it mooveth is both for matter circumstance according to the Scripture the Word of the Spirit This is to be led of the Spirit and this will be to walke in the Spirit and then you shal not fulfil the lusts of the flesh Vpon your fasting day you shal doe well to renew your Covenant with God and in some cases so that it be done advisedly to enter into a particular vow to leave some grosse sinne with the occasions of it and to doe some necessary neglected dutie and to embrace all furtherances thereof This also will much strengthen your resolution against sinne and for holinesse There remaineth yet one principall work wherein a chiefe busines of the day of your fast lyeth for which all formerly spoken to maketh way and by which with the former meanes you may attaine to true reformation of your selfe reconciliation with your
for joy before ever they have made a legge and shewn any signe of thankfulnes you will easily be overtaken in this kinde and neglect God that gave it The furtherances of thankfulnesse are most of them directly contrary to the former hindrances of many take these First Get sound knowledge of God and of his infinite excellencies and absolutenesse every way of his independency on man or any other creature whence it is that he needeth not any thing that man hath or can doe neither can he be beholding to man But know that you stand in need of God and must be beholding to him for al things Know also that whatsoever God doth by whatsoever meanes it be hee doth it from himselfe induced by nothing out of himselfe being free in all that he doth Know likewise that whatsoever was the instrument of your good God was the Author both of the good and of the instrument Next Fill your selfe with a due knowledge of the full worth and excellent use of Gods gifts both common and speciall Wealth honour libertie health life senses limmes wit and reason c. considered in themselves and in their use wil be held to be great benefits but if you coÌ„sider them in their absence when you are sensible of poverty sicknesse and the rest or if you be so blessed that you know not the want of them then if you shall advisedly and humbly looke vpon the poore base imprisoned captives sicke deafe blind dumbe distracted c. Putting your selfe in their case you will â—ay that you are unspeakeably beholding to God for these corporal and temporall blessings But chiefely learne to know aâ—d consider well the worth of spirituall blessings One of them the peace of God passeth all understanding To enjoy the Gospell upon any tearmes to have â—â—â—vation such a salvation offered by Christ to have faith hope love and other the manifold saving graces of the Spirit though but in the least measure in the very first seed of the Spirit though no bigger then a grain of Mustard-seed with never so much outward affliction is of such value and consequent that it is more then eye hath seene eare hath heard or ever entred into the heart of man For besides that the least grace is invaluable in it selfe it doth give proof of better gifts namely that God hath given his Spirit hath given Christ and in him hath given himselfe a propitious and gracious God hath given all things also When you know God aright his gifts aright knowing all things in God and God in all things then you will be full of praises and thankes Secondly Be low and base in your owne eyes Let all things be base in your eyes in comparison of God account them worthlesse and helpelesse things without him Iudge your selfe to be as indeed you are lesse then the least of Gods mercies For what are you of your selfe but a compound of dust and sinne unworthy any good worthy of all misery You stand in need of God â—he not of you It is his mercy that you are not consumed When you can be thus sensible of your owne neede and that helpe can come onely from God and that you are worthy of no good thing then you will be glad and thankefull at heart to God for any thing An humble man will be more thankfull for a peny then a proud man will for a pound Thirdly Call all the forementioned knowledge of God and of his gifts into fresh memory Commune with your soule and cause it to represeÌ„t lively to your thoughts what God is in himselfe what to his Church and to you how precious his thoughts are to you-ward Tell your selfe oft what God hath done and what he will doe for your soule Call to minde with what varietie of good gifts he doth store his Church blesse you you will find that they will passe all account and number When withal you call to minde that God is free in all his gifts to you who are unworthy the least of them If you would cause your selfe to dwell upon these and the like thoughts they would worke in you an holy rapture and admiration out of which you shall with David break out into these or the like prayses Oh Lord our Lord how excellent is thy name in all the earth I thanke thee I praise thee I devote my selfe as my best sacrifice to thee I will blesse thy Name for ever and ever Fourthly Be perswaded of Gods love to you in these good things which he giveth unto you First he loveth you as his creature and if onely in that regard he doth preserve you and doe you good you are bound to thanke him Secondly you cannot know but that he loveth you with a speciall love to Salvation Gods revealed will professeth as much you must not meddle with that which is secret I am sure he maketh proffer of his love and you daily receive tokens of his love both in means of this life and that which is to come Did not he love you when out of his free and everlasting good will towards you He gave his Sonne to die for you that you beleeving in him should not dye but have everlasting life What though yet you be in your sinnes Doth hee not bid you turne and hath hee not said â—hee will love you freely What though you cannot turn to him nor love him as you would yet endevour these in the use of all good meanes to be and doe as God will have you then doubt noâ— but that GOD doth love you and you must wait till you see it in the performance of his gracious promises unto you But if you would consider things aright you may know certainly that the good things you have received of God are bestowed in love to you I will onely aske these Questions Hath Gods mercie made you to bethinke your selfe of your dutie and obedience to God have you had a will to be thankefull upon the thoughts thereof or if you finde a defect and barrennesse herein hath not this unfruitfull and unthankefull receiving of good things from God beene a great burden and griefe of heart to you If yea this is an evident signe that God gave those good things to you in love because this holy and good effect is wrought in you by them Againe Dâ—â— you love God would you love God and his wayes and Ordinances yet more This provetâ— that God loveth you for 〈…〉 man can love God till God have first loved him Likewise doe you love the children of God Theâ— certainly you are Gods childe and are loved of God By these you have proofe of your calling and election how that you are now translated from death to life after which time though God may give you many things in anger as a father giveth correction yet he never giveth any thing
joy and comfort if you would feele for them Amongst many I will reckon these First you may know you have Faith by your feeling and opposing of the contrary if you feele a fight and conflict betweene beleeving and doubting fearâ— and distrust and in that combat you take part with beleeving hope and confidence or at least desire heartily that these should prevaile and are grieved at heart when the other get the better If you feele this doe not say you haue no feeling Doe not say you have no faith This conflict and desire to have faith gaue proofe that the man in the Gospel who came to Christ to cure his child had faith I beleeve Lord saith hee Lord helpe my unbeliefe Doe not say as I have heard many this man could say I beleeve but we cannot say so I tell you if you can heartily say Lord helpe my unbeliefe I am sure any of you may say I beleeve For whence is this feeling of unbeliefe and desire to beleeve but from Faith Secondly You may know you have Faith I speake still to an afflicted soule which dareth not sinne wittingly for that you wil not part with that Faith which you have upon any termes I will aske you that have given hope to others that you doe beleeve that yet doubt you have not truth of faith hope in God only these questions and as your heart can answer them so you may judge Will you part with that faith and hope which you call none for any price Would you change present states with those that presume they have a strong Faith whose consciences do not trouble them but are at quiet though they live in all manner of wickednesse Or at best are meerely civilly honest Nay would you if it were possible forgoe all that faith and hope and other graces of the Spirit which you call none at all and returne to that former state wherein you were in the dayes of your vanity before you did indevor to leave sinne and to will to indevour to settle to Religion in earnest Would you lay any other foundation to build upon then what you have already layd Or is there any person or thing wheron you desire to rest for Salvation and direction besides Christ Iesus If you can answer no but can say with Peter To whom shall wee goe Christ onely hath the words of eternall life you know no other foundation â—o lay then what you have laid and have willed and desired to lay it right you resolve never to pull downe what you have built thogh it be but a little It is your griefe that you build no faster upon it By this answer you may see that your conscience before you are aware doth witnesse for you and will make you confesse that you have some true faith and hope in GOD or at least hope that you have For let men say what they will to the conttary they alwaies thinke they have those things which by no meanes they can be brought to part with Thirdly If you would have feeling and proofe of your faith and Iustification feele for it in the most certaine effect which is the exercise of your Sanctification Doe you feele your selves loaden and burthened with sinne Doe you feele your hearts â—ke with sorrow for sinne And with all do you feele your selves to be altered from what you were Doe you now beare good will to Gods Word and Ordinances And doe you desire the pure word of God that you may grow in grace by it Doe you affect Gods people therefore because you thinke they feare God Is it your desire to approve your selves to God in holy obedience And is it your trouble that you cannot doe it Then certainly you have Faith you have an effectuall Faith For what are all these but the very Pulse breath and motions of faith If you feele grace to be in you it is a better feeling then feeling of comfort for grace in men of understanding is never severed from effectuall Faith but comfort many times is for that may rise from Presumption and false Faith Grace onely from the Spirit and from true Faith SECTION 6. A removall of feares rising from doubting of Sanctification IT is granted by all that if they be truly Sanctified then they know that they have Faith anâ— are iustified But many feare they are not Sanctified and that foâ— these seeming reasons First some feare they are noâ— Sanctified because they doe noâ— remember that ever they fâ—â— those wounds and terrours of conscience which are first wroughâ— in men to make way to Conveâ—sion as it was in them who weâ—â— priâ—â—â— aâ— heart at Peters Seâ—… mon and in S. Paul and the Iaylor Or if they felt aâ—â— terrâ—… they feare they we but certaine flashes and for runners of Hellish â—â—â—ments liâ—â— those of Cain and Iudas As it is in the naturall birth with the mother so it is in the spirituall birth with the childe There is no birth without some travell and paine but not all alike Thus it is in the new birth with all that are come to yeares of discretion Some haue so much griefe feare horror that it is intolerable and leaveth so deepe an impression that it can never be forgotten others have some true sense of griefe and feare but nothing to the former in comparison which may easily be forgotten There are causes why some have or at least feele some more some lesse 1. Some have committed more grosse and more hainous sinnes than other therefore they have more cause and neede to have mâ—re terrour and heart-breaking than others 2. God doth set some apart for greater imployments than others such as will require a man of great trust and experience wherefore GOD to prepare them doth exercise such with greatest tryals for their deepe humiliation and for their more speedy and full reformation that all necessary graces might bee more deeply and more firmely rooted in them 3. Some have beene religiously brought up from their infancie whereby as they were kept from grosse sinnes so their sinnes were subdued by little and little without any sensible impression of horror Grace and comfort being instilled into them almost insensibly 4. Some by naturals constitution and temper of body are more fearefull and more sensible of anguish than others which may cause that although they may bee alike wounded in conscience for sinne yet they may not feele it all alike 5. There may be the like feare and terror wrought in the conscience for sinne in one as well as another yet it may not leave the like lasting sense and impression in the memory of the one which it doth in the other Because God may shew himselfe gracious in discovering a remedy and giving comfort to one sooner than to the other As two men may be in perill of their lives by enemies the one as soone as hee seeth his danger seeth an impregnable
your selves against blasphemous and vile thoughts and temptations In the second place When you are thus armed whensoever these blasphemous and fearefull thoughts rise in you or are cast into you Take heed of two extremities First doe not contemne them so as to set light by them for this giveth strength to sinne and advantage to Satan Secondly Be not discouraged nor yet faint through despaire of being rid of them in due time or of withstanding them in the meane time For then Satan hath his end and his will of you But carry your selves in a middle course Plod not too much on them dispute not too much in your selfe with them presume not of your owne strength but by lifting up of your hearts in prayer call in GOD Sayd to resist and withstand them present some pregnant Scripture to your mind such as is direct against them whereby you may with an holy detestation resist them according to CHRISTS example with It is written Now when you have done all this then if it bee possible thinke on them no more Thirdly Indevour at all times to make Conscience in the whole course of your life of your thoughts even of the least thoughts of euill yea of all thoughts and this will be a good meanes to keepe out all evill thoughts If it cannot prevaile thus farre yet you shall have this benefit by it when your heart can tell you that you would in every thing please God and that you make conscience of lesse sinfull thoughts than those vile ones with which you are troubled then you may be sure that you may be and are Gods children and are sanctified notwithstanding those blasphemous thoughts and Devilish temptations Againe Some doubt they are not sanctified because they have fallen into some of those grosse sinnes yea it may be into worse then those which they committed in their state of unregeneracie I answer such You are in very ill case if you doe not belye your selves and if so you are in ill case because you belye your selves I advise you that have thus sinned in either to repent speedily and to aske forgivenesse God by his Spirit doth as wel cal you to it as he did Israel saying Returne to the Lord thou hast fallen by thine iniquitie take with you words and turne unto the Lord and say unto him take away all our iniquitie and receive us graciously then will God answer I will heale your back-sliding I will love you freely You say that you are backeslidden suppose it were so he saith I will heale your backsliding c. reade Ier. 3. 12. 13. Mic. 7. 18. 19. You must not doubt but that grosse sinnes committed after a man is effectually called are pardonable It is the Devils policie to cast these doubts into your heads wholly to take you up by shutting out all hope of grace and mercie that you might have no thoughts of returning and seeking unto God for mercie But beleeve him not he is a Lyar. For it may befall one that is in state of grace to commit the same grosse sinnes after Conversion which he did before if not greater than the same Did not David by his adultery and murther exceed all the sinnes that ever he committed before his Conversion Did not Salomon worse in his old age then even in his yonger dayes Did Peter commit any sinne before his conversion like that of denying and for swearing his Master Why were the fals of these Worthies written but for examples to us on whom the ends of the earth are come First That every one that standeth should take heede left he fall Secondly That if any be fallen into any sinne by any occasion that he might rise again as they did and that they may not despaire of mercy No man though converted hath any assurance except hee himself be in special sort watch full and except hee have speciall assistance of Gods grace to be preserved from any sinne except that against the holy Ghost But if he be watchful over his waies and doe improove the grace of God in him after Conversion seeking unto God for increase of grace then he as well as the Apostle Paul may be kept from such grosse sinnes as are of the foulest nature otherwise not Indeede they that are borne of God have received the most sweet annointing of the Spirit the seed of grace which ever remaineth in them Whence it is that they sinne otherwise in state of regeneracie then they did in state of unregeneracie in so much that the Scripture of truth notwithstanding the regenerates particular grosse sinnes saith that whosoever is borne of God sinneth not not that they are free from the act and guilt of sinne for in many things wee sinne all saith Saint Iames but because they sinne not with full consent They are not servants to sinne They doe not make a trade of sinne as they did in their unregeneracie Neither doe they sinne the sinne unto death which all unregenerate men may and some do yet for all this it may and oft doth come to passe that partly from Satans malice and power and partly from the remaines of corrupt nature partly from Gods iust iudgements on many because they stood not on their watch or because they were presumptuous of their owne strength or because they were over-censorious and unmercifull to them that had fallen that true converted soules may fall into some particular grosse sinne or sinnes for matter greater then ever before Conversion Others yet complaine and say they feare they have never repented they feele that they cannot repent for they cannot grieve as they ought They can poure out flouds of teares more then enough for crosses but many times they cannot shead one teare for sinne They do nothing as they ought to doe They live in their sinnes still How then can they bee said to have repented and to be sanctified If by doing as you ought you meane perfectly well in every point and circumstance of the Law never any meere man did thus If you could so doe as you ought What need have you of CHRIST to supply your defects and to redeeme you But if by doing as you ought you meane a doing according as God now qualifying the rigour of the Law by the graciousnesse of the Gospell doth require of you and in Christ will accept of you namely to will and endevour in truth to doe the whole will of God then if you will desire and endevour to mourne for sinne to repent and obey as you should you may truly bee said to doe as you ought and as you should And in this case whatsoever is wanting to the perfection of deed Faith in Christ Iesus who kept the lawfully and as he ought for you doth supply the defect thereof For the righteousnesse of the Law is fulfilled in all though not fully by any which walke not after the
was felt witnesse your owne experience for before the hammer and fire of the Word was applyed to your hearts you had no sense of it and never complained thereof You must not call a heavie heart a hard heart you must not call a heart wherein is a sense of an indisposition to good a hard heart except onely in â—omparison of that softnesse which is in it sometimes and which it shall attaine unto when it shall bee perfectly sanctified in which respect it may bee called hard Whosoever hath his will so wrought upon by the Word that it is bent to obey GODS will if he knew how and if he had power this man whatsoever hardâ—esse hee feeleth his heart is soft not hard The Apostle had a heart held in and clogged with the flesh and the law of his members that it made him to thinke himselfe wretched because hee could not bee fully deliverd from it yet wee know his heart was not an hard heart Amongst those that are sanctified there remaineth more hardnesse in the heart of some than in others and what with the committing of grosse sinnes and a cursorie and slight doing of good duties and through neglect of meanes to soften it the same mens hearts are harder at one time than at another of which they have cause to complaine and for which they have cause to bee humbled and to use all meanes to soften it But it is false and dangerous hence to conclude that such are not in state of grace because of such hardnesse in the heart For as GODS perfectest Children on earth know but in part and beleeve but in part So their hearts are softened but in part SECTION 7. Removall of feares rising from doubts about falling from Grace THere yet remaine many who though they be driven up into so narrow a corner that they cannot reply to the answers given to take away their false feares and doubts but they are inforced to yeeld that they find that they now are or at least have beene in state of grace they now see they have beleeved and have beene and it may bee now are sanctified yet this they feare that they either are already fallen or shall not persevere but shall fall away before they dye Touching falling away from grace first know that of those that give their names to Christ in outward profession there are two sorts The first sort are such who have received onely the common gifts of the Spirit as first illumination of the mind to know the mystery of Salvation by Christ and truâ—y to assent unto it Secondly Together with this knowledge is wrought in them by the same spirit a â—â—â—hter impression upon the affections which the Scripture calleth a taste of the heavenly gift and of the good Word of GOD and of the powers of the world to come By these gifts of the Spirit the souâ—es of these men are raised to an abilitie to doe more than nature and meere education can helpe them unto carrying them further then nature or art can doe by working in them a kinde of spirituall change in their affections and a kinde of reformation of their lives But yet all this while they are not ingrafted into Christ neither are deepely rooted as the Corne in good grouÌ„d nor yet are throughly changed and renewed in the inward man they have at best only a formâ— of godlinesse but have not the power thereof Now these men may and oft doe fall away not onely into some particular grosse sinnes of which they were sometimes after a sort washed but into a course of sinning falling from the very forme of godlinesse and may so utterly loose thoâ—e gifts received that they may turne Papists Anabaptists or may fall into any oâ—her Heresie and in the end become very Apostates yet this is not properly a falling from grace It is onely a falling away from the common graces or gifts of the Sâ—irit and from those graces which they did seeme to have and which the Church out of her charitie did judge them to have but they fall not from true saving grace for they neuer had any For if ever they had beene indeed incorporated into Christ Iesus and had beene sound members of his body and in this sense had ever beene of us as the Apostle Iohn speaketh then they should never have departed from us but should no doubt have continued with us The second sort of such as have given their names to Christ are such as are indued with true iustifying faith and saving knowledge and are renewed in the spirit of their minde whereby through the gracious and powerful working of the sanctifying Spirit the Word maketh a deeper impression upon the will and the affections causing them not onely to taste but which is much more to feed and to drinke deepe of the heavenly gift and of the good word of GOD and of the powers of the world to come so as to digest them unto the very changing and transforming them by the renewing of their mindes and unto the sanctifying of them throughout in their whole man both in spirit soule and bodie so that CHRIST is indeed formed in them and they are become new creatures being made partakers of the divine nature Now concerning these It is not possible that any of them should fall away either wholly or for ever Yet it must bee granted that they may decline and fall backe so farre as to grieve the good spirit of GOD and to offend and provoke God very much against them and to make themselves guiltie of eternall death They may fall so farre as to interrupt the exercise of their faith wound their Conscience and may loose for a time the sense of Gods favour and may cause him like a wise and good father in his iust anger to chide correct threaten them making them beleeve hee will turne them out of doores never to receive them into his heavenly Kingdome untill by renewing their faith and repentance they returne into the right way and doe recover GODS lo-ving countenance towards them againe That you may understand and beleeve this the better consider what grace God giveth unto his elect and how and from what they may fill also you must observe well the difference that is betweene the sinning of the regenerate and unregenerate together with their different condition wherin they stand while they are in their sinnes In the first act of Conversion I speake of men of yeeres and discretion GOD by his Word through his holy Spirit doth infuse an habit of holinesse namely an habit of Faith and all other saving graces this every childe of GOD receiveth when he receiveth that holy annointing of the spirit that which the Scripture calieth the Seede remaining in him Secondly God by his gracious meanes and ordinances of the Gospell doth increase this habit and these graces Now because every man
them runne not long and in time may quite be dryed up But the saving graces of the regenerate receive their light warmth and life from the Sunne of righteousnesse therefore can never be totally or finally Eclipsed And they doe rise from that Well and Spring of living water which cannot be drawn dry orâ—o dammed up or stopt but that it will runne more or lesse unto eternall life As the regenetate man doth not sinne in such sort as the unregenerate with all his heart so neither is hee when he hath sinned in the same state and condition which the unregenerate is in Hee is in the Condition of a Sonne who notwithstanding his failings abideth in the house for ever but not as the other who being no sonne but a servant is for his misdemeanor turned out and abideth not in the house for ever Although the regenerate as well as the unregenerate doe draw upon themselves by their sinnes the simple guilt of eternall death yet this guilt is not accounted neither doth it redound to the person of the truly regenerate as it doth to the other because Christ Iesus hath so satisfied and doth make intercession for his owne that his death is made effectuall for them but not for the other Their Iustification and Adoption by Christ remaine unaltered although many benefits flowing from thence are for a while justly suspended they remaine children still though under their Fathers anger as Absolom remained a sonne uncast off not dis-inherited by David when yet his Father would not let him come into his presence This spirituall Leprosie of sinne into which Gods Children fall may cause them to bee suspended from the use and comfortable possession of the Kingdome of God and from the enjoyment of the privileges thereof untill they bee cleansed of their sinne by renewed faith and repentance Yet as the Leoper in the Law had still right to his house and goods albeit he was shut out of the City for his Leprosie so the truly regenerate never loose their right to the Kingdome of heaven by their sinnes For every true member of Christ is knit unto Christ by such everlasting bonds whether we respect the relative union of Christ with his members by faith to Iustification which after it is once made by the spirit of Adoption admitteth of no breach or alteration by any meanes oâ— whether we respect the reall union of the Spirit whence floweth Sanctification which though it may suffer decay and admitteth of some alteration of degrees being not so strong at one time as at another yet can never quite be broken off as hath beene proved these bands â— say are so strong and lasting that all the powers of sinne Satan and Hell it selfe cannot sever the weakest true member from Christ or from his love oâ— from Gods love towards him in Christ This strength of grace that keepeth men from falling totally or finally from CHRIST doth not depend upon the strength or will of him that standeth but on the Election and determination of him that calleth And whereas it may bee demanded why a man being at his highest degree of holinesse that ever he attained at which time hee had most strength did yet fall backe more than halfe way may not as well or rather fall quite away I answer It is not in respect of the nature of inherent holinesse in him for Adam had holinesse in perfection yet fell quite from it There is nothing in the nature of this grace and holinesse excepting onely in the root whence it springeth but that a man may now also fall wholly from it But it is because grace is now setled in man upon better termes For the little strength we receive in regeneration is in point of perseverance stronger then the great strength which the first Adam received in his Creation Adam was perfectly but changeably holy Gods children inregeneration are made imperfectly but unchangeably holy This stability of grace now consisteth in this for that all that by faith and by the holy Spirit are ingrafted and incorporated into Christ the second Adam have the spring and root of their grace founded in him and not in themselves as the first Adam had They are stablished with their brethren in Christ Wherefore all that are actuall members of CHRIST cannot fal from grace altogether For as Christ dyed to sinne once and being raised from the dead dyeth no more so every true member of Christ having part with him in the first resurrection dye no more but live for ever with Christ For all that are once begotten againe unto a lively faith and hope by the resurrection of Iesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance incorruptible are kept not by their owne power unto Salvation but by the power of God through faith in Christ Iesus Now that a man effectually called can never fall wholly or for ever from state of grace I in few words reason thus If Gods Counsell on which mans Salvation is founded be sure and unchangeable and if his calling be without repentance If Gods love be unchangeable and altereth not but whom God once loveth actually him he loveth to the end If Christs office of Prophet Priest and King in his teaching satisfying and making intercession for and in his governing his people bee after the order of Melchisedecke unchangeable and everlasting he everliving to make intercession for them and if his undertaking in all these respects with his Father not to lose any whom he giveth him cannot be frustrate If the Seale and earnest of the Spirit be a constant Seale which cannot be razed but sealeth all in whom it dwelleth unto the day of Redemption If the Word of truth wherewith the regenerate are begotten be an immortall seed which when once it hath taken a conception and hath taken roote doth live for ever If God be constant and faithfull in his promise and omnipotent in his power to make good this his word and promise saying I will make an everlasting Covenant with them that I will not turne away from my people and children to doe them good but I will put my feare in their hearts that they shall not depart from me Then from all and from each of these propositions I conclude that a man once indeede a member of Christ and indeede in state of grace shall never totally or finally fall away The patrons of the doctrine of falling from grace when they cannot answer the invincible arguments which are brought to prove the certainetie of a mans standing in state of Salvation they make a loud cry in casting in certaine popular obiections such as are very apt to take with simple and unstable people They first come with suppositions and aske this and like questiona If David and Peter had dyed in the act of their grosse sinnes whether should they have beene saved
THE CHRISTIANS DAILY WALKE in holy SECVRITIE and PEACE Being an Answer to these Questions 1. How a man may doe each present dayes work with Christian Chearefulnesse 2. How to beare each present dayes crosse with Christian Patience Containing familiar Directions Shewing 1. How to walke with God in the whole course of a mans life 2. How to be upright in the said walking 3. How to live without taking care or thought any thing 4. How to get and keepe true peace with GOD wherein are manifold helpes to prevent and remove damnable Presumption also to quiet and to ease distressed Consciences First intended for private use now though importunity published for the common good By HENRY SCVDDER Preacher of the Word The fourth Edition corrected and amended by the Author Thine eares shall heare a voyce behind thee saying This is the way walke ye in it Isa 30. 31. LONDON Printed by I. B. for Henry Overton and are to be sold at his Shop at the entring in of Popes-head Alley out of Lumbard-street 1631. The Epistle to the READER THE searching out of Mans true happinesse hath exercised the wits and Pens of many Philosophers and Divines with a different successe 1. Some by a mistake of the end â—ave erred about the meanes All their enterprises have ended in Vaâ—itie and Vexation whilest they have caught at the shadow of fruit 〈…〉 a hedge of thornes and have neglected the trâ—e it selfe whence the â—uit might have bin gathered with â—re certaintie and lesse trouble I maruaile not at Varroes report of 288. severall opinions about this subiect when I consider Mans naturall corruption whose understanding is so darkned that as those Sodomites were weary in seeking the doore of Lâ—ts house so in vaine have the wisest Heathen sought the happinesse which though like blind men they groped after it they could never find And his spirituall appetite and taste is so distempered that hee car iuage of the chiefe good no better then a sick-man can doe of the 〈…〉 meates 2. Others having the eyes oâ— their understanding lightned and their senses exercised to discerne both good and evill have concluded that mans true happiness consists in the soules enioyment 〈…〉 God by an holy conformity and 〈…〉 communion with him For What else is true happinesse then the enioyment of 〈…〉 chiefe good And that God the chiefe good appeares in this that all the properties which raise up goodnesse to the highest top of perfections are in God onely For he is the most pure perfect uniuersall primary unchangeable communicative desirable and delightfull good the efficient patterne and utmost end of all good without whom there is neither naturall morall nor spirituall good in any creature Our conformitie to him the Apostle Peter expresseth when hee saith that the Saints are made partakers of the Divine nature That is they are renewed in the Spirit of their minde and have put on the new man which after God is created â—n righteousnesse and true holinesse So that they have 1. A new 〈…〉 in their understanding faculâ—e that they know God not oneâ— as Creatour but as Redeemer 〈…〉 of the world and whilest they beâ—â—ld as in a mirrour the glory 〈…〉 the Lord with open face they are changed into the same image from glory to glory as by the spirit of the Lord. This knowledge is begun in this life in the knowledge of Faith and shall be perfected in the life to come in the knowledge of sense this is in a glasse that shall be face to face Secondly they have a new life in their will and affections that is they have disposition and inclinations in their hearts sutable and conformable to the directions of the Word This the Apostle Paul intended when he said of the Romans that they had obeyed from the heart the forme of doctrine whereunto they were delivered He saith not which was delivered unto you but whereunto you were delivered that is the Word is as a mould whereinto being cast you are fashioned according to it Hence it is that the Saints are said to be Sealed with the holy Spirit because as the Seale leaves its print upon the Waxe so the Spirit makes holy impressions in the soule this is called the writing of the Law in our hearts in allusion whereunto the Apostle compares the hearts of beleevers to Tables the Ministers to Pennes the Spirit to Inke without which the Penne can write nothing and the affections or Conversation of these beleevers to an Epistle and this is said to be read and understood of all men when they walke as examples of the Rule 2 Cor. 3. 2. 3. Hence it is that godlinesse hath a selfe-sufficiency ioyned with it 1 Tim 6. 6. Because a man is now in Communion with GOD whose face when a man beholds in righteousnesse hee shall be satisfied with his image Ps 17. 15. Hence comes that peace of Conscience joy unspeakeable and glorious and that holy triumph and exultation of Spirit which you may obserue in the Apostle Paul Having briefly shewed what this conformitie and communion with God is I will adde one or two words more to make it manifest that onely those are truely happy which are in this estate I may spare quotations of Writers who concurre in this opinion None of sound iudgement have denyed it the best Schoole-men have determined and concluded it and there is good reason for it For 1. mans utmost end is that it may be perfectly well with him which hee can never attaine unto without communion with God who is the chiefe of Spirits and the best of goods Other things are desired as subordinate to this The body is for the Soule as the matter for its forme or the instrument for its agent Humane wisedome and morall vertues are desired not for themselues but for the fruite that is expected by them as glory pleasure and riches Fame or glory is desired not so much for it selfe as for the opinion of others whence it s called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Wordly and bodily pleasures are excessively desired as drinke in a Feaver or Dropsie better it is to be without the malady then to enioy that remedie Riches are desired not for themselves but for the sustenance of life Life is not so much desired for it selfe as for the enioyment of happinesse which when a man hath sought in the labyrinth of earthly vanities after much vexation and disquietment of spirit hee must conclude that it is onely in that truest and chiefest good which is the fountaine whence true delight first floweth and the obiect wherein at last it resteth Secondly That is mans happinesse in the possession and enioyment whereof his heart resteth best satisfied So farre a man is from true happinesse as hee is from full contentment in that which hee enioyes The Bee would not sit upon so manyflowers if shee could gather
from the marriage-bed and the like Thirdly Abstaine from all worldly labour as upon a Sabbath day for worldly busines the cares thereof doe as well as worldly delights distract the thoughts and hinder humble devotion and a ceasing there-from giveth a full opportunitie to holy imployments the whole day Therfore the Iewes were commanded to sanctifie a fast And that yearely Fast called the day of Atonement was upon perill of their lives to be kept by a forbearance of all manner of worke Now albeit the Ceremonials of that day are abolished in Christ yet forbearing worke as well as meate and drinke being of the substance of a Fast doth remaine to bee observed in all such as may properly be called Religious Fasts Thus much for the outward fast you must be as strict in observing the inward Begin the day with prayer according as I directed you to doe every day but with more than ordinary preparation with fervency and faith praying for Gods special grace to enable you to sanctifie a fast that day according to the Commandement Then apply your selfe to the maine worke of the day which hath these parts 1 unfained Humiliation 2 Reformation together with Reconciliation and 3 earnest Invocation The soule is then humbled the heart rent and truly afflicted when a man is become vile in his owne eyes through conscience of his owne unworthinesse and when his heart is full of compunction and anguish through feare of Gods displeasure with godly sorrow and holy shame in himselfe and anger against himselfe for sinne These affections stirred doe much afflict the heart To attaine this deepe humiliation know that it is to be wrought partly by awakening your Conscience through a sight of the Law and apprehension of Gods just judgements due to you for the breach of it which wil break your heart and partly by the Gospell raising up your heart to an apprehension and admiration of the love of God to you in Christ which will melt your heart and cause you the more kindely to grieve and to loath your selfe for sin and withall to conceive hope of mercy whence wil follow reconciliation reformation and holy calling upon God by prayer To worke this Humiliation there must be First Examination to find out your sinne Secondly a Accusation of your selfe with due aggravation of your sinne Thirdly Iudging and passing sentence against your selfe for sinne Sinne is the transgression of the Law and revealed will of God Wherefore for the better search and finding out of your sinne you must set before youthe glasse of the Law for your Light and Rule And if you have not learned or cannot beare in minde the heads of the manifold duties commanded or vices forbidden then get some Catalogue or Table wherein the same are set downe to your hand which you may reade with pausing and due consideration staying your thoughts most upon those particular sinnes whereof you finde your selfe most guiltie If of those many that are you doe not meete with one more fit for this purpose or which you shall like better then use this Examinatorie Table in manner as Followeth But expect not herein an enumeration of all particular sinnes which is beyond my skill nor yet of all the heads of duties or kindes of sinnes which would require a volumne but of those which are principall and most common yet hereby if your Conscience be awake it will be occasioned to bring to your thoughts those other not mentioned in the Table if you bee thereof guiltie The first Table of the Law concerneth duties of love and pietie to God the performance whereof tendeth immediately to the glory of God and mediately to the salvation and good of man The first Commandement concerneth the setting up of the onely true God to your selfe to bee your God Examining your selfe by this and so in the other Commandements thinke thus with your selfe Doe I know and acknowledge the onely true GOD to be such a one as hee hath revealed himselfe in his Word works namely One onely Infinite Immateriall Immutable Incomprehensible Spirit and Everlasting Lord God having beeing and All-sufficiencie in and from himselfe One who is simply full of all perfections and uncapable of the least defect being Wisedome Goodnesse Omnipotencie Love Truth Mercy Iustice Holinesse and whatsoever is originally and of it selfe Excellent The only Potentate King of Kings Lord of Lords of whom through whom and to whom are all things The Father Sonne and holy Ghost God blessed for ever Amen Doe I Beleeve his Word in all things related commanded promised and threatned therein and that his holy and wise Providence is in all things Have I Him and his Word in continuall remembrance Doe I esteeme and exalt God in my heart above all so that it doth humbly adore him at the very mention and thought of him making my selfe to be nothing in mine owne eyes yea esteeming all creatures to bee nothing in comparison of him Have I given religious worship to him onely Have I beleeved in him and in him onely Have I sworne by him as there hath beene cause and by him alone Have I prayed onely unto him and have I sought to him and to obtaine helpe of him only by such meanes as he hath appointed giving the glory and thanks of my being and well-being and of al other things which are good unto him Is my Conscience so convinced of the truth Authority of God that it holdeth it selfe absolutely bound to obey him in all things that it doth incite to that which is good restrain from that which is evill encourage me in well-doing and check me when I doe ill Is my will resolved upon absolute and unfained obedience to doe whatsoever God commandeth to forbeare whatsoeuer hee forbiddeth to subscribe to whatsoever he doth as well done and have I borne patiently all which either by himselfe or by any of his creatures hee hath inflicted upon me Have mine affections beene so for God that I have loved him with al my heart loving nothing more than him nothing equally to him Doe I hate every thing that is contrary to him Hath my Confidence beene onely in him and my expectation of good from him Have my desires beene to him and for him longing above all things to have communion with him Hath it beene my greatest feare to offend him or to be severed from him Hath it beene my greatest griefe and shame that I have sinned against him Have I reioyced in God as in my chiefe Good Hath mine anger risen against whatsoever I saw crosse to his glory Have I beene zealous for God And have I made him the utmost end of all mine actions Hath my whole outward man as tongue senses and all other active powers of my body been readie to professe the true God and to yeeld obedience to his will Or contrariwise Am I not guilty of denying of God in word in workes or at least in heart
questioning the truth of his being and of his Word denying his Providence Power or some other of his Divine Attributes Have I not been ignorant of God and of his will and erroneous and mis-beleeving if not hereticall in my conceits concerning God the Father Sonne or holy Ghost Have I not beene over-curious in prying into the nature and secret counsels of God beyond the rule of the revealed wil of God Have I not set up false Deities or put my selfe or any other creature in the place of God through pride preferring and resting upon mine owne way and will before Gods or by making my selfe mine utmost end professing God and his Religion onely to serve mine owne ends or by seeking to the creature as to Angell Saint Devill or Witch instead of the Creator Have I not beene forgetfull of God and of his will Is not my Conscience impure blinde deluded or seared and my will perverse obstinate impatient and murmuring against God and ful of dissimulation Have I not set mine affections upon the World rather than upon God loving that which is evill hating that which is good yea God himselfe if not directly yet in his Holines shining in his Ordinances and in his children or as hee is a severe inflicter of punishment Fearing man more than God trusting in the Creature making something besides God my chiefe joy Have I not presumed when I had cause to despaire and despaired after that I had cause to hope Have I not â—empted God many wayes And have I not in the matters of God beene either cold lukewarme or blindely or preposterously zealous Hath there not beene a pronenesse in my whole outward man to rebell against God The second Commandement concerneth all such lawfull worships of God which he onely hath appointed whereby he communicateth himselfe to man and man againe maketh profession of him forbidding under one kinde all such as are not by him ordained Thinke thus Have I worshipped God in spirit and truth in all the kindes and parts of his Worship publike or private ordinary or extraordinary as by hearing reading and meditating of his Word by praying praising and giving thankes to him by a right use of his Sacraments Baptisme and the Lords Supper and by Religious Fasting Religious Feasting and making of vowes according as I have had speciall occasion And have I done what did belong to me for the setting forth and maintaining of Gods true Worship and have I according to my place executed aright or submitted unto the government and discipline of the Church Or besides the omission of the former duties Am I not guilty some way or other of Idoll-worship conceiving of GOD in my mind or representing him to my sense in the likenes of any creture Have I not added to or detracted from any part of Gods Worship Have I not run into the appearances and occasions of Idolatry as by presence at Idoll-service by marriage and needlesse â—amiliarity with Idolatrous persons by reserving undefaced monuments of Idolatry At least is â—ot my heart guilty of not hating but rather lingering after Idolatrous worship Have I not been guilty of superstition or Will-worship c. The third Commandement concerneth the glory of Gods holy Name shining forth in his Titles Attributes Religion Word Ordinances People or any thing that hath in it any print of his holinesse or excellency forbidding the taking of it in vaine and that in all actions religious or common Have I glorified God by answering my holy profession with an holy and unblameable conversation by performing all holy duties with due preparation knowledge and devotion also by thinking and speaking of the Names and holy things of God with holy reverence and in particular by fearing an Oath Or have I not caused the Name Religion and People of God to be ill thought of and dishonoured by my evill course of living or at least by committing some grosse sinâ— Am I not guilty of rash unprepared heedlesse forgetfull and fruitlesse reading hearing receiving the Sacraments or performance of any other the worships of God Have I not thought or spoken blasphemously or contempiuously of God or of any the things of God Have I not used the Name of God needlesly rashly wickedly or falsly in swearing or lightly in my Salutations Admirations or otherwise in my ordinary communication Have I not abused the Name of God his Scriptures his Ordinances and Creatures using them for other purposes then hee alloweth as for sports spels charms or any sorcery luxury or the like Have I not passed by the great workes of Gods power mercy and judgements without due observation and acknowledgement of God therein The fourth Commandement concerneth the ordinary solemne time of the service and worship of God requiring that the seventh day now our Lords day be kept with an holy rest Have I upon the six dayes Remembred the Lords day that I might dispatch all my worldly businesse and prepare my heart that when it came I might keep an holy Sabbath to the Lord according to the Commandement Did I according as my health would permit rise early on that day Have I performed my daily both morning and evening exercises of Religion alone and with my family that day in private Have I caused all under my authority according to my power to rest from all manner of workes and worldly sports also my selfe not onely from the labour of my body but of my mind in all worldly businesse except about the things that concerne common honestie and comelinesse workes of mercy and such workes of necessitie as could not be done before or stay to be done afterwards Have I alwayes prepared my heart before I went into the house and presence of God by meditation of Gods Word and Workes and in particular by examination and reformation of my wayes also by prayer thankesgiving and holy resolution to carry my selfe as in Gods presence and to heare and obey whatsoever I should bee taught out of the Word of God Have I caused my family to goe with me to the Church And did I with them come in due time and being there did stay the whole time of prayer reading and preaching of the Word singing of Psalmes receiving and administring the Sacraments even that of Baptisme when others are Baptised and did attend diligently and joyne with the Minister and the rest of the Congregation in all those holy exercises Did I spend the day after the Morning and Evening Prayers Sermons or Catechisings in meditation and as I had opportunitie in conference and repetition of what I had heard also in visiting the sicke and other workes of mercy and so from the beginning to the end of the day have beene imployed in holy thoughts words and deeds and all this with spirituall delight Or Am I not guiltie of forgetting it before it came and of neglecting and prophaning it when it came as by meere idlenesse or by taking opportunity of leisure from busines of my calling to be
all times as to the Iewes It was also reserved in the Arke with the other ten and is one of the Commandements mentioned in the new Testament as parcell of the Royall Law of which S. Iames saith Whosoever shall offend in one point hee is guiltie of all he meanes the ten Commandements hee understands the fourth Commandement for one else he would not say all Wherefore albeit there are some things that have particular reference to the Iewes in the written Law as the reason taken from bringing them out of the Land of Aegypt which concerneth us onely by Analogie and albeit the circumstance of time in respect of which day of the Seven was alterable but by the Lord of the Sabbath removing it from the seventh of the Creation to the day of Christs Resurrection yet there is not any of those tenne Commandements which is not morall and of morall equitie But some object The observing of the weekly Sabbath was a signe betweene God and the Iewes that they might know that the LORD did sanctifie them therfore was abrogated by Christ with other Ceremonies Answ I â—â—â—gh every Ceremony determinable in Christ was a signe yet every signe was not a ceremony to end at Christs death All signes and types of justification by Christ to come were nailed on the Crosse with him but signes of the worlds preservation also declarative and probative signes and arguments of sanctification together with the type of rest and glorie did not end at Christs death there being as much use of them to us now as was to any other before Obiect They object farther All Sabbath daies are abrogated by expresse termes Col. 2. 16. Answ Hee speaketh there of none but Leviticall Sabbaths for marke it he saith they were shadows of such things to come whereof Christ was the body verse 17. But the weekely Sabbath had no more shadow or reference to Christ than any other of the ten Commandements Obiect They yet object No man must esteeme one day above another for conscience sake Rom. 14. 5. Answ No such thing can be concluded thence For the Apostle warning both strong and weake Christians not to offend nor bee offended one with another would have each doe as they should be fully perswaded in their owne minde and not judge or despise each other but in what things in every thing no but onely in things in their owne nature indifferent or for the time tolerable be instancing in meaâ—s and dayes But I deny the fourth Commandement ever to have beene of the number of indifferent things If yet they say If the fourth Commandement be moral why doe you not keep the day which the Iewes did I answer Keeping holy a Sabbath or the Sabbath is absolutely morall and the principall intention of the fourth Commandement but the keeping it upon that day which is intimated in the Commandement or the keeping of this day practised now by us became a morall duty that to them this to us because by a Divine positive institution God had appointed that day to bee observed by them and since that he hath appointed this to bee observed by us Now sith that the Lord of the Sabbath hath ordained another day in so doing he hath caused though not an abolishing yet some change of the Law which hath caused the former to cease and bindeth us in conscience to observe this That it was the will of our Lord and Saviour Christ that we should since his Resurrection keepe for our Sabbath that first day of the weeke on which he arose it may easily appeare to any whose judgements are not corrupted with prophanenesse of heart or are not clouded with selfe-conceit and prejudice For in that he arose on that day and appeared divers times on this our Lords day to his Disciples before his Ascension and did on this day being the day of Pentecost fill his Disciples with the gifts of the holy Ghost they being assembled together this giveth a preeminence to this day and a probabilitie to the point The Apostles who followed Christ and delivered nothing but what they received from Christ and whose determinations were infallible did observe this Day as a Sabbath The Apostle Paul staying seven daies at Troas might haue chosen any of the other dayes for the people to assemble to heare the Word and receive the Sacrament but they assembled to receive the Sacrament and to heare the Word upon the first day of the weeke which is our Lords day Moreover the keeping holy of the Lords day hath constantly and universally from the Apostles downeward to vs beene observed amongst Christians in all places and in all ages Now the approved practice of the Apostles and of the Church with them recorded in Scripture carrieth with it the force of a precept and argueth divine institution Moreover the Spirit of GOD honoureth this day with the Title of Lords Day as he doth the Communion with the Title of the Supper of the Lord What doth this argue but as they both have reference to Christ so they are both appointed by Christ The Spirit of Christ knew the minde of Christ who thus named this day Secondly being coÌ„vinced of the holines of this day the better to keepe it holy when it commeth you must on the weeke dayes before the Sabbath or Lords 〈…〉 remember it to the end that none of your worldly businesse be left undone or put off till then especially upon Saturday you must prepare for it Then you must put an end to the workes of your Calling doe whatsoever may be wel done before-hand to prevent bodily labour even in your necessary actions that when the day coÌ„meth you may have lesse occasion of worldly thoughts lesse incumbrance and distractions and may be more free both in body and minde for spirituall exercises Thirdly you your selfe and as much as in you lyeth all under your authority must rest upon this day even in earing time and in haruest the space of the whole day of foure twenty houres from all manner of workes except those which have true reference to the present dayes works of pietie mercy and true â—…ssity not doing your owne waies not â—â—nding your owne pleasures nor speaking your owne words Obiect If you obiect that some understand this place of the day of Atonement and yeerely fast spoken of in the beginning of the Chapter Answ Many Interpreters understaÌ„d it of the weekly Sabbath yet suppose it should be understood of the Sabbath of Atonement I urging it onely to prove the externall rest it serveth for my purpose for these two differed not in their externall rest except that in the day of Atonement they abstained from meat and drinke untill even Vpon all other Gods Sabbaths and holy feasts the children of Israel were forbidden not all worke but onely servile worke But neither on the weekly Sabbath nor on the day of Atonement might any manner
brotherly 1 When you love them out of a pure heart fervently which â—s when you love them because they are brethren partakers of the same Faith and Spirit of Adoption having the same Father and being of the same houshold of faith with you 2 When you love them not onely with a love of humanity as they are men for so you love all men even your enemies nor yet onely with a common love of Christianity wherewith you love all professing true Religion though actually they shew little fruit and power thereof but with a specialty of love for kinde spirituall and for degree more abundant Therefore it is called brotherly kindnesse and a servent love distinct from charitie or a common love 2 Pet. 1. 7. Where this love is it will knit hearts together like â—onathans and Davids making you to be of one heart and soule It will make you enjoy each others societie with spirituall delight It will make you to beare one with another and to beare each others burthens It will make you to communicate in all things communicable with gladnesse and singlenesse of heart as you are able and that by a specialtie beyond that which you shew to them which are not alike excellent Yea it is so entire and so ardent that you will not hold your life to be too deare to lay downe for the common good of the brethren When therefore you meete with those that feare God make improvement of the Communion of Saints not onely by communicating in naturall and temporall good things as you are able and as there is neede but especially in the communion of things spirituall edifying your selves in your most holy faith by holy speech and conference and in due time and place in reading the holy Scriptures good Bookes and by prayer and singing of Psalms together That your singing may please God and edifie your selfe and others observe these Sing as in Gods sight and in matter of prayer praise speake â—o God in singing The matter of your Song must be spiritual either indited by the Spirit or composed of matter agreeing thereunto You must sing with understanding You must sing with judgement being able in private to make choise of Psalmes befitting the present times and occasions And both in private and publike to apply the Psalme sung to your owne particular â—s when how â—o pray and praise in the words of the Psalme taking heede that you do not apply the imprecations made against the enemies of Christ and his Church in generall to your enemies in partilar also know how to confirme your faith and incline your will and affections when you sing the prophesies of Christ promises threats commands mercies judgements c. You must make melody to the Lord in your heart which is done 1 by preparing and setting the heart in tune it must be an honest heart 2 the heart must be lift up 2 the minde intentive 4 the affections fresh and new the heart beleeving and in matter of prayse and thanks joyous Lastly the voyce must be distinct and tuneable Lose not your short and precious time with idle complemeÌ„ts worldly discourses or talke of other mens matters and faults nor yet Athenian-like in a barren and fruitlesse hearing and telling of newes out of affectation of strangenesse and novelty But â—et the matter of your talke be â—ither of God or of his Word and â—ayes wherein you should walk â—r of his works of Creation Preservation Redemption Sanctificaâ—ion and Salvation of his Iudgements which he executeth in the world and of his mercies shewed towards his people or matter of Christian advice either of the things of this life or of that which is to come Impart also each to other the experiments and proofes you have had of Gods grace and power in this your Christian warfare And as there shall be cause Exhort admonish and comfort one another To doe all these well it will require a specialty of godly wisdome humility and love If these three be in you and abound your societie will bee profitable The strong will not despise the weak neither will the weake iudge the strong You will be farre from putting a stumbling-blocke or an occasion to fall in your brothers way but you will follow after the things which make for peace and things wherewith you may edifie one another You will then beare with each others infirmities and not seeke to please your selfe but your neighbour for his good to edification You must first be wise to make choise not onely of such matter of speech as is good and lawfull but such as is fit considering the condition and neede of those before whom you speake In propounding questions you must not onely take heed that they be not vaine â—colish and needlesse such as ingender strife and doe minister and multiply questions rather than godly edifying but you must be carefull that they be apt and pertinent both in respect of the person to whom they are propounded in respect of the person or persons before whom they must bee answered Some men have speciall gifts for one purpose some for another Some for interpreting Scripture some for deciding of controversies some for discovering Satans methods and enterprises some are excellent for comforting and curing afflicted and wounded consciences some are better skilled more exercised in one thing than in another And some also of Gods deare children as they are not able to â—eare all exercises of Religion so neither are they capable of hearing and profiting by all kinde of discourses of Religion If this were wisely observed Christian conâ—rence would bee much more â—uitfull than usually it is Secondly you must be lowlyâ—â—ded and of an humble spirit or presuming above your gifts â—nd calling When you speake â—f the things of God be reveâ—end serious and sober keeping your selfe within your sine both of your calling and the measure of the knowledge and grace which God hath given you speaking positively and confidently only of those things which you clearly understand and whereof you have experience or sure proofe Thinke not your selfe too good to learne of any neither harden your necke against the admonitions and reproofes of any If you have an humble heart you will doe as David did when he was admonished and advised by a woman He saw God in it and blessed him for it he received the good counsell and blessed it he tooke it well at Abigails hands and blessed her Now blessed bee God which hath sent thee to meet me this day saith he and blessed be thy advice and blessed bee thou which hast kept mee this day from comming to shed bloud c. Thirdly there will be need of the exercise of much servent love and charitie even amongst the best For sith that Satan doth
in hatred and in wrath as hee doth to his enemies All things works together for good to them that love God therfore whatsoever he giveth to such is in love Fifthly Preferre the honour and glory of God before and above all things that may be beneficiall to your selfe preferre likewise the kindnesse and love of God in the gift farre above the gift it selfe then you will never bee so taken up with the enjoyment of the gift as to forget to give prayse and thankes to the Giver Sixthly unto the former helps â—dde this take upon you with â—n holy imperiousnesse over your soule charge your selfe to be thankefull and sith you have good reason for it take no nay Say with David Blesse the Lord O my soule and all that is within me blesse his holy Name c. Lastly to all other meanes ioyne earnest prayer to God to give you a thankefull heart It is not all the reasons you can alleage for it nor at the morall perswasions you can propound to your soule can worke it though these bee good meanes yea Gods means if you goe about to worke your heart to it in the power of your owne might all will be in vaine For as you cannot pray but by Gods Spirit so neither can you give thankes but by the Spirit Therefore say as David did Renew O Lord a right spirit in me and open my lippes that my mouth may shew forth thy prayse SECTION 2. Touching proofes of Thanks IT is not enough to professe and utter prayse and thankes to God you must give proofe of it First by devoting and giving your selfe to God to be at the will of him who is your Soveraigne Lord who giveth you all that you have who is alwaies giving unto you and alwaies doing you good Pay your vowes to him that performes his promises to you Let it appeare that you acknowledge him to be such a one as you say in your prayses and that you stand bound and beholding to him indeed as you say in your thankes in that you carrie your selfe in your life towards him as to him who only is Excellent who onely is God who is your God the God of your life and salvation and that in all holy service and in all holy living For Thankes-doing is the proofe and life of Thanks-giving and it is a divine saying The good life of the Thankefull is the life of Thankefulnesse Wherfore every new mercy should quicken your resolution to persevere and increase in well-doing serving God the rather with gladnes of heart because of the abundance of all things Secondly Doe good with those blessings which God giveth you For every good gift is given to a man to profit withall not onely himselfe but every member of that body whereof he is part Whatsoever good gift God hath given you whether corporall or spirituall it must be imployed to Gods glory and to your neighbors good as well as to your owne as God shall minister opportunitie If riches and the same must be understood of health strength wisdome skill c. be given to you you must honour God therewith and as God doth prosper you in any thing you must communicate to them that need as to the poore sicke weake simple and ignorant If God give knowledge faith spirituall wisdome abilitie to pray or any other of his rich graces you must not hoard them up and keep them reserved for your owne private benefit but you must communicate them to others and improve them for the good of others for the procuring their spirituall good and edifying them in faith hope and love By communicating your goods and common gifts of God in this sort you make your selfe friends with them against a day of need and when you honour GOD and doe good with any the talents which GOD putteth into your hand to trade with then you make the best improvemeÌ„t of them Hee who thus maketh God his friend in his prosperitte shall certainely finde him to be his sure friend in adversity in this life and when he shall be put out of his Stewardship at death then he shall be received into the everlasting habitations When the more you prosper the better you desire and endevour to be and to doe more good this is an infallible proofe of true thankfulnes and is an evident signe that you walk with God in prosperity as he would have you Give all diligence therefore to learne this lesson how to be full and how to abound But know it can be learned no where but in Christs Schoole and can never be practised but by Christs strength This is it which the Apostle had learned and said he was able to doe it through Christ that strengthened him It is a most needfull and high point of learning to be instructed and to know every where and in every thing how to be full and to abound of the two it is more rare and more difficult then to know how to bee abased and to suffer want which shall be the subject of the next Chapter CHAP. XI How to walke as in Gods sight under crosses in all adversity SECTION 1. EVery day wil bring forth his evill and crosse whether lighter ordinary or more heavy and rare The first sort riseth partly from the common frailties of the perverse natures of theÌ„ with whom you shall converse and partly from your owne as from tetchinesse and aptnesse to take things in ill part Such are discourtesies from those of whom you looked for kindnesse Imperiousnesse and too much domineering of Superiours sullennesse negligence and disregard from inferiours an awkewardnesse and crossenesse in the persons and things with which you have to deale Touching these the Rule is Lay not these to heart too neare you Make them not greater than they be through your impatiency as many doe who upon every light occasion of dislike cast themselves into such an Hell of vexation and discontent that all the blessings they receive that day are scarce observed or can make their lives comfortable Whereas Wisdome should prevent and Love and Wisedome should cover and passe by most of these seeing as if you saw not or if you will give way to any passion at these let it be with hatred of their and your sin which is the cause of these and all other crosses These should occasion you to pitty and pray for them that give you this offence and for your selfe who many times without cause take offence You may if need require shew your dislike and admonish the offender if so bee you doe it with meekenesse of wisedome but learne hereby to warne your selfe that you give not the like offence But whether your crosses and afflictions be seeming onely and in conceit or indeed whether from God immediately or from man whether light or heavie follow these directions 1. Be not transported with passion and choler
of GOD is twofold or one and the same in different degrees The first is an actuall entring into and mutuall imbracing of Peace betweene GOD and man The second is the Manifestation and Expression of this Peace The first is when God and man are made friends which is when GOD is pacified towards MAN and when man is reconciled unto God so that now God standeth well affected towards man and man hath put off Enmitie against God which mutuall* Attonement and Friendship Christ Iesus the onely Mediator betwixt God and man hath by his satisfaction and intercession wrought for man and by his Spirit applieth unto and worketh in man For untill this Attonement be made and applied God in his just Iudgement and Hatred is an Enemie unto man for sin and man in his evill minde and unjust Hatred is an Enemy unto GOD and unto all goodnesse through sinne This first Peace is Peace of God with man inherent in God working the like disposition of Peace in man towards God and is the fountaine from which the second 〈…〉 The second kinde or rather further degree of Peace of God is the operation and manifestation of the former Peace which is a peace of God in man wrought by the Spirit of God through the apprehension that God is at peace with him This Peace is partly and most sensibly in the Conscience which is called Peace of Conscience and may also be called peace of Iustification according to that Being iustified by faith wee have peace with God c. And it is partly in the whole reasonable man whereby the will and affections of the soule agree within themselves and are subiect to the inlightned minde conspiring all of them against the commonadversary the flesh which yet remaineth in everypart this may be called peace of Sanctification according to that of the Apostle Being made free from sinne and become servants of God you have your fruit in holinesse This is the agreement of all the members to become servants to righteousnesse unto Holinesse Not but there will be warring alwayes in our members but it is not the warring so much of one Member against another as the warring of the Flesh in every member against the Spirit which also warreth against the flesh in every member Which lusting and fighting of flesh against the spirit beginneth in man as soone as the Spirit hath wrought the former peace of Holines in setting each member into dueframe and order Moreover this peace of Sanctification consisteth in this that albeit a Sanctified man must never be nor ever is at peace with sin so that it doth not assault and molest him or that hee should subject himselfe to it or have it absolutely subject to him in this life yet hee hath a peace and quiet after a sort and in comparison from sinne is so much that he is freed from the dominion and power of sinne to hurt him or to reduce him to his former bondage unto sinne Now so farre as a man getteth a conquest over his lusts that they are kept under and forbeare to assault and molest him so farre he may be said to have this peace of Sanctification The Conscience when it is awake and stirring and in the Act of enquirie and of Inditing accusing condemning man for sinne doth withall Pricke Lash Gripe Sting and Wound the heart with unutterable unconceiveable griefes feares and terrours through the apprehension of Gods infinite eternall and iust Wrath for sinne Now when GOD by his Spirit giveth any true hope and assurance unto a man that his lustice is satisfied concerning him through Christ and that now all Enmitie and Wrath is done away on Gods part and that hee loveth him in Christ with a Free Full and Everlasting love hereby he speaketh peace to the Conscience having done away all the guilt of sinne which before molested it through sense of Gods anger and feare of punishment Hence ariseth peace and comfort in the Conscience which therefore is called Peace of Conscience Thus the mind ceaseth to be perplexed and by faith in Christs death through the Spirit becommeth quiet with an Heavenly tranquility resting on the Word of promise and according to the measure of cleare apprehension of Gods love in Christ in the same measure the minde is at sweet agreement within it selfe without feare or trouble and in the same measure hee hath peace of Conscience flowing from the assurance of Iustification As soone also as a man beginneth Actually to be at Peace with God his lusts doe beginne to be at Warre with him rebelling against the law of his minde which yet may by little and little be subdued and conquered though not all lusts at any time nor yet any one fully in this life yet by vertue of the peace now made with God if he wil improve it by seeking helpe of God if withall he take to him the Compleate armour and doe fight manfully under Christs bāner he may so prevaile against them that he shall be assaulted with fewer Temptations from his owne concupiscence than hee was wont in so much that they do not so oft nor so strongly assault him as in former times Now so farre forth as the powers and faculties of man agree in their fight against sinne and doe so subdue it that it doth not assault and molest him hee may be said to have the peace of sanctification The first peace whereby God is pacified and is become propitious and gracious to man is absolutely necessary to the very being of a Christian The second which riseth from the manifestation of this Peace unto a man and the sensible feeling of the operatiō of this Peace in man is not necessary to the being of a Christian at least in a sensible degree of it but to the well-being of a Christian it is necessarie For a man may be in the favour of God and yet be without the sense of this Peace in himselfe Because this peace of Conscience doth not flow necessarily from the being in GODS favour but from knowledge and assurance of being in his favour Now a man in many cases may loose for a time his sense of Gods favor his faith being over-clouded with feares and unbeliefe as it was with David after his adultery with Bathshebath and murther of Vriah who yet was upheld secretly by his right hand as the Prophet was in another case by vertue of that first peace of GOD yet untill GOD did give him the sense and feeling of His loving Countenance hee was without the second Peace the peace of Conscience Yea though God by Nathan in the outward Ministery of his Word had given him assurance of Gods loving kindnesse saying The LORD hath put away thy sinne thou shalt not dye That first peace is absolute and admitteth of no degrees The second which floweth thence both in respect of peace of Conscience and in respect of good
with the Father Iesus Christ the righteous Who by being made a curse for you hath redeemed you from the curse of the whole Law Therfore from the curse due unto you for your greatest sinne Consider this againe can the sinne of a finite creature goe beyond the pardon of an infinite Creator Can a sinne in some sense finite deserve beyond the satisfaction of a price for value every way infinite Howsoever it is impossible for a notorious sinner yea for any sinner by his owne power or worth to enter into the kingdome of Heaven Yet know what is impossible with man is possible with God Is any thing too hard for the Lord Hee can alter and renew you and give you faith and repentance he can make these things possible to you that beleeve yea all things are possible to him that beleeveth I you will say if I did beleeve Why what if yet you doe not beleeve It is not hard with him you comming to his meanes of faith you harkening to the precepts and promises of the Word considering that the God of truth speaketh in them I say it is not hard for him in the use of these meanes to cause you to beleeve Wherefore neither greatnesse of sinne nor multitude of sinnes should because of their greatnes and multitude make you utterly despaire of salvation or feare Damnation When once you can beleeve or but will and desire to obey beleeve the greatest matter of feare is past I know if you never had sinned you would not feare damnation Now to a man whose sinnes are remitted his sinnes though sin dwell in him are as if they were not or never had beene For they are blotted out of Gods remembrance I even I am he saith God that blot out thy transgressions for my names sake and will not remember thy sinnes And who is like thee saith the Prophet that pardoneth iniquitie c. hee will have compassion upon us he will subdue our iniquities and will cast all our sinnes into the bottome of the Sea A debt when it is paid by the Surety putteth the principall out of debt though he payd never a peny of it The holy Ghost speaketh most comfortably saying that God doth finde no sinne in them whose sinnes are pardoned In those dayes and at that time saith the Lord the iniquitie of Israel shall be sought for and there shall be none and the sinnes of Iudah and they shall not be found but how may this be he giveth the reason for I will pardon them whom I reserve If you beleeve that God can pardon any sinne even the least you have like reason to beleeve that God can pardon all yea the greatest for if God can doe any thing he can doe every thing because he is infinite He can as easily say thy sinnes are forgiven thee all thy sinnes are forgiven thee as to say Rise and walke He can as wel save one that hath beene long dead rotten and stinking in his sinne as one newly fallen into sinne For he can as easily say Lazarus come forth as to say Damsell I say to thee Arise Lastly to make an end of removing this fear I ask thee who art troubled with the greatnesse of thy sinnes past and with feare that they can never be pardoned how stand you affected to present sinnes Doe you hate and loath them Doe you use what meanes you can to be rid of them Are you out of love with your selfe and humbled because you have harboured them to GODS dishonour and your owne hurt And doe you resolve to returne from your evill wayes and to enter upon an holy course of life if God shall please to enable you and is it your heartie desire to have this grace to be able And are you afraid and have you now a care lest you fall wittingly into sinne then let Satan and a fearefull heart object what they can you may say though my sinnes have beene great and hainous for which I loath my selfe and am ashamed yet now I see that they were not onely pardonable but are already through the rich mercy of God pardoned For these are signes of a new heart and a new minde Now to whomsoever GOD giveth the least measure of saving grace to them hath he first given pardon of sinne and will yet abundantly pardon For he saith Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts and let him returne to the LORD and he will have mercy upon him and to our God for he will abundantly pardon SECTION 3. Removing the feare that riseth from doubts that God will not pardon THere are others who make no doubt of Gods power they beleeve hee can forgive them but they feare yea peremptorily conclude that hee will not pardon them and that because they be Reprobates as they say for they see no signes of Election but all to the contrary I answer these thus When your Consciences are first wounded with a sense of Gods wrath for sinne it is very like that before you have beleeved and repented you cannot discern any signes of Gods favour but of his wrath for as yet you are not actually in state of grace and in his favour And oft-times after a man doth beleeve though there be alwaies matter enough to give proofe of his Election yet hee cannot alwayes see it If you be in either of these estates conceive the worst yet you have no reason to conclude that you are Reprobates It is true that God before the foundation of the world fully determined with himselfe whom to choose to Salvation by grace to which also hee ordained them and whom to passe by and leave in their sinnes for which he determined in his just wrath to condemne them But who these be is a secret which even in point of Election the Elect theÌ„selves cannot know untill they be effectualâ—y called nay nor being called untill by some experience and proofes of their faith holines they do understand the witnesse of the Spirit which testifieth to their spirits that they are the children of God and doe make their Calling Election which was alwayes sure in God sure to themselves But in point of reprobation namely that God hath passed them by to perish everlastingly in their wickednesse no man living can know it except he know that he hath sinned the sinne against the holy Ghost that unpardonable sinne For God calleth men at all ages and times some in their youth some in their middle age some in their old age yea some have beene called at their last houre Now let it be granted that you cannot by search into your selves finde the signes of effectuall calling which yet may bee in you though your dimme eies cannot perceive them Nay suppose that you are not yet effectually called here is no cause for you utterly to despaire and say you are Reprobates How know you
the brethren when hee breathed out threatning was as he himselfe saith mad against them Was hee at that time a Reprobate Did hee not afterwards being coÌ„verted so love GODS people that he could be content to spend and be spent himselfe for them So many thousands whose consciences for the present may justly condemne them of not loving those that be zealous and indeed Gods children may yet love them hereafter as dearly as their owne soules Some will yet say certainely we are Reprobates For we have according to the command of the Apostle tryed whether we be in the faith or no and whether Christ be in us but we finde neither the Apostle saith we know these to be in us else we are Reprobats 2 Cor. 13. 5. By Reprobate in this place is not meant one that is not elect one whom God in his just judgment past by and ordained unto wrath For none of the Elect can before their conversion know by any search that they are in the faith or that Christ is in them For that cannot bee knowne which yet is not Many are not converted untill they be thirtie fortie or fiftie yeares old Will you say these in their younger yeares were Reprobates You may say they then were in state of condemnation and children of wrath but no Reprobates Besides a man must not bee said not to be in the faith and not to have Christ in him because he doth not know so much For many have faith and are in Christ yet do not alwaies know it The word Reprobate because it is ordinarily understood by our common people for a man ordained to condemnation is too harsh except its true meaning were expressed and the Greeke doth not necessarily inforce it Yet I confesse it is a terme proper enough if it were not in our English almost appropriated to the former sense These words now rendred except ye be Reprobates may as I judge rather be translated thus Except you be unapproved or except you be without proofe namely of your being in the faith and of Christs being in you whereof you outwardly make profession Howsoever it bee translated for in this I submit my selfe to the Church let any that is judicious observe the matter therin handled and the Metaphor taken from Goldsmiths in trying of mettals and they shall finde it must bee understood in tâ—hs sense The Corinthians did question the lawfulnesse of Pauls calling to his Apostleship therefore they require of him to give them a proofe of Christ speaking in him His answer is to this purpose as if he should say I will goe no farther to seeke a signe or proofe of Christ speaking in mee then to your selves Hath not the Word and Gospell of CHRIST beene powerfull by my Ministery to convert you and to beget faith and to forme Christ in you Looke into your selves try if you have not faith and if Christ be not formed in you If you find this I need no other proofe of my calling nor of Gods power and grace blessing me in my calling But if upon tryall you cannot finde that you are in the faith c. you are unapproved Christians Either you have yet onely a meere forme of Christianity and like false coyne or Reprobate silver are but hypocrites and counterfeits or if you be Christians in truth yet you are inexperienced Christians and without proofe of it to your selves But whether you finde that you have faith or no c. I trust and am assured that both I the rest of Christs Ministers with me shall approve our selves to be true and faithfull Ministers of Christ though in the account of the false Apostles and of some of you wee bee as Reprobates or unapproveable that is such as in your opinion cannot give proofe of CHRIST speaking in us Our late excellently learned and reverend Translators ver 7. translated the same word in the affirmative Approved wherefore the privative particle being added the translation may well be unapproved or without proofe or refuse Some may Reply if I find upon tryall that I am a counterfeit and as Reprobate silver may I not then judge my selfe to be a Reprobate No. For first you may erre in judging of your selfe Secondly if you do not erre you can judge only this that yet you are not in state of grace but in the use of the meanes you may be God can as well convertian Hypocrite as a Pagan For though now you be drosse and refuse you may ere long be pure Gold For God in making vessels of honour doth more than all earthly Kings and all their Goldsmiths can doe For they by their prerogative setting their stampe and by their Goldsmiths skill can make currant coyne and rich Vessels if that they have pure mettall to worke upon But they cannot make good mettal of base stuffe or can make gold of brasse But such is the force of Gods Word and Spirit that whereas they finde you base and drossie stuffe they by imprinting the Character and stampe of Gods Image upon your hearts doe metamorphise and transforme you into the same Image from glory to glory even as by the Spirit of the Lord. As soone as you are truly touched and annointed with this Spirit you shall become good Gold and Silver vessels of honour fitted for the LORDS use whereunto you were pre-ordained There are yet others object fearefully saying that they are cast-awayes and that God will not have mercy on them and that because now it is too late they have passed the time and date of their Conversion they therefore will not use or at least have no heart in using GODS meanes to convert them such as prayer reading hearing the Word c. Nor yet willingly will suffer others to pray either with them or for them and all because they think it is now too late and in vaine mistaking this and such other Scriptures Because I have called saith GOD and you have refused they shall call on mee and I will not answer And because they thinke they sinne when they pray and heare the Word and that the more means is used to save them their condemnation shall be the more increased Thus Satan a fearefull heart deludeth many It must be acknowledged that God would have all men walke and worke while they have light because the night will come when no man can worke And whilst it is called to day hee would have every one returne and accept of grace offered and not to harden their hearts against it And our Saviour bewaileth Ierusalem because they did let slip the day of their visitation All which doth shew that God hath his set period of time betweene his first and last offer of grace which being passed hee will offer it no more and that justly because they took not his offer when they might And this time is kept so secret with God
had faith they should not doubt of their iustification nor of Gods love to them in Christ But many doubt that they have no faith or if they have any it is so little that it cannot be sufficient to carry them through all oppositions to the end unto salvation First if you have any faith though no more then as a graine of Mustard-seed you should not feare your finall estate nor yet doubt of Gods love for it is not the great quantitie and measure of faith that saveth but the excellent property and use of faith if it be true though never so small For a man is not saved by the worth of his faith by which he beleeveth but by the worth of Christ the person on whom hee beleeveth Now the least true faith doth apprehend whole Christ as a little hand may hold a Iewel of infinite worth as well though not so strongly as a bigger The least infant is as truly a man as soone as ever it is endued with a reasonable soule as afterward when it is able to shew forth the operations of it though not so strong a man even so it is in the state of Regeneration Now you should consider that God hath Babes in Christ as well as â—ld men feeble minded as well as strong sicke children as well as whole in his familie And those that have least strength and are weakest of whom the holy Ghost saith they have a little strength in comparison yet they have so much as through God will enable them in the time of greatest trials to keepe Gods Word and that they shall not deny Christs Name Also know God like a tender father doth not cast off such as are little feeble and weake but hath given speciall charge concerning the cherishing supporting and comforting of these rather than others And Christ Iesus hee will blow up and not quench the least sparke of faith This which I have said in commendation of little faith is onely to keepe him that hath no more from despaire Let none herby please or content himselfe with his little faith not striving to grow and be strong in faith If he do it is to be feared that he hath none at all or if he have yet he must know that hee will have much to doe to live when he hath no more than can keepe life and soule together and his life will be very unprofitable and uncomfortable in comparison of him that hath a strong faith But you will say you are 1 so full of feares and doubtings 2 you are so fearefull to dye and to heare of our comming to iudgement and 3 you cannot feele that you have faith you cannot feele joy and comfort in beleeving wherefore you feare you have no faith First if you having so sure a word and promise doe yet doubt and feare so much as you say it is your great sinne and I must blame you now in our Saviours name as he did his Disciples then saying Why are you fearefull why are yee doubtfull O yee of little faith But to your reformation and comfort observe it he doth not argue them to be of no faith but onely of little faith saying O yee of little faith Thus you see that some feares and doubtings doe not argue no faith Secondly Touching feare of death and judgement some feare doth not exclude all faith Many out of their naturall constitution are more fearefull of death than others Yea pure nature will startle and shrink to think of the separation of two so neare and so ancient and such deare friends as the soule and body have been Good men such as David and Hezekiah have shewed their unwillingnesse to die And many upon a mistaking conceiving the pangs and paines of death in the parting of the soule out of the body to be most torterous and unsufferable are afraid to dye Whereas unto many the neerer they are to their end the lesse is their extremitie of paine and very many goe away in a quiet swoone without paine And as for being moved with some feare at the thought of the day of Iudgement who can thinke of that great appearance before so glorious a Maiesty such as Christ shall appeare in to answer for all the things he hath done in his body without trembling The Apostle calleth the thoughts thereof the terror of the Lord. Indeede to bee perplexed with the thoughts of the one or other argueth imperfection of faith and hope but not an utter absence of either You have other and better things to doe in this case than to make such dangerous conclusions viz. that you have no faith c. upon such weake grounds You should rather when you feele this over-fearefulnesse to die and come to Iudgement labour to finde out the ground of your error and study and indevour to reforme it Vnwillingnesse to dye may come from these causes First From too high an estimation and from too great a love to earthly things of some kinde or other which maketh you afraid and too loath to part with them Secondly You may bee unwilling to die because of ignorance of the super abundant and inconceivable excellencies of the happinesse of Saints departed which if you knew you would bee willing Thirdly Feare of death and comming to Iudgement doth for the most part rise from a conscience guilty of the sentence of condemnation being without assurance that when you dye you shall goe to heaven Wherefore if you would be free from troublesome feare of death and Iudgement Learne 1 to thinke meanely and basely of the world in comparison of those better things provided for them that love God and use all things of the world accordingly without setting your heart upon them as if you used them not 2 While you live here on earth take your selves aside oft times in your thoughts and enter into heaven and contemplate deeply the ioyes thereof 3 Give all diligence to make your calling and election and right unto heaven sure unto your selves But let me give you this needfull Item that you be willing and ready to judge it to be sure when it is sure and when you have cause so to judge Let your care bee onely to live well joyning unto faith vertue c. and you cannot but dye well Death at first appearance like a Serpent seemeth terrible but by faith you may see this Serpents sting taken out which when you consider you may for your refreshing receive it into your bosome The sting of death is sinne the strength of sinne is the Law but the Law of the spirit of life in Christ hath freed you from the law of sinne and of death I confesse that when you see this pale horse death approaching it may cause nature to shrinke but when you consider that his errant is to carry you with speede unto your desired home unto a state of glory how can you
is not of it selfe so strong nor so constant nor so infallible as the certainty of Faith and Adherence is For sense and reason since the fall even in the regenerate though they will lay some foundation in the Rules of Faith to proceed by yet erring in or misapplying the rule are weake variable and their conclusions are not so certaine as those of pure Faith Because Faith buildeth onely upon Diuine Testimonie concluding without reasoning or disputing yea many times against reasoning So that notwithstanding the excellent and needfull use of Assurance and certainty of Evidence it is Faith and the certainty of Adherence whereby even in feares and doubts a man cleaveth fast to the promises and is that which we must trust unto and is the Cable wee must hold by lest we make ship wracke of all when wee are assaulted with our greatest temptatioÌ„s for then many times our Assurance leaveth us to the mercy of the winds and Seas as Marriners speake If you have Faith though you have little or no feeling you are yet sure enough of Salvation indeede though not in your owne apprehension When both can be had it is best for then you have most strength and most comfort giving you chearefulnesse in all your troubles but that certainty of Faith and cleaving to the naked word and promise is that to which you must trust See this in the examples of most faithfull men for when they have beene put to it it was this that upheld them and in this was their faith commended Abraham against all present sense and reason even against hope beleeved in hope both in the matter of receiving a sonne and in going about to offer him againe unto God in Sacrifice He denyed sense and reason he considered not the unlikelihoods and seeming impossibilities in the iudgement of reason that ever he should have a seed hee being old and Sarah being old and barren or having a seed that he should be saved by that seed sith hee was to kill him in Sacrifice He onely considered the Almighty power faithfulnesse and soveraigntie of him that had promised he knew it was his dutie to obey and to waite and so let all the businesse thereabout to rest on Gods promise For this his faith is commended and hee is said to be strong in faith Iob and David or Asaph shewed most strength of Faith when they had little or no feeling of Gods favour but the contrary rather Iob had little feeling of Gods favour when for paine of body hee said wherefore doe I take my flesh in my teeth and in anguish of soule he said Wherefore hidest thou thy face and takest me for thine enemie Yet then this certainty of faith which made him cleave unto GOD made him to hold fast and say in the same Chapter Though hee slay mee yet I will trust in him When David said to GOD Why hast thou forgotten mee His Assurance was weake yet even then his Faith discovered it selfe when he saith to his soule Why art thou disquieted within mee Hope in God who is the health of my countenance and my God You see then that the excellencie of Faith lyeth not in your feeling but as the Psalmist speaketh by experience in cleaving close unto the promise and relying on God for it upon his bare word For he saith It is good for mee to draw neere to God I have put my trust in the Lord God this was it which secretly upheld him and kept him in possession when as you may see in that Psalme his Evidences and Assurance was to seek Wherefore Beleeve Gods promises made to you in Christ and â—est on him even when you want â—oy and feeling comfort For â—aving Faith you are sure of heaven though you be not so fully â—ssured of it as you desire It will â—e your greatest commendation when you will be dutifull servants and children at GODS Commandement though you have not present wages when you wil take Gods word for that Those are bad servants and children which cannot go on chearfully in doing their Master or Fathers will except they may receive the promised wages 〈◊〉 least in good part aforehand Oâ— every day or except they may have atleast a good part of the promised inheritance presently and in hand Feeling of comfort is part of a Christians wages and inheritance to be received at the good pleasure of God that freely giveth it rather than a Christian duty To comfort and stay ourselves on God in distresse is a duty but this joyous sense and feeling of Gods favour is a gracious favour of God towards us not a duty of ours toward God It is from too much distrust in God and too much self-respect when wee have no heart to goe about his worke except we be full of feeling of his favour Hee is the best child or servant that will obey out of love duty and conscience and will trust on God and wait on him for his wages and recompence Though want of apprehension of Gods favour and of feeling of comfort may be accounted a great misery yet it is not to be judged a proofe of no grace or of no true Faith Thirdly when you say you cannot feele that you have faith or hope you meane as in deede many good soules doe you cannot finde and perceive that these graces bee in you in truth which if you did you would not doubt of your salvation My answer is If faith and hope be in you then if you would judiciously enquire into your selves and feele for them you may finde and feele them and know that you have them For as certainly as he that seeth bodily may know that he seeth so he that hath the spirituall sight of Faith may know that he hath Faith Wherfore try and feele for your Faith and you shall finde whether it be in you yea or no. For this cause 1 Try whether you ever had the necessary Antecedents and Preparatives which ordinarily make way for the seed of Faith to take deepe root 2 Consider the nature of saving Faith and whether it hath wrought in you accordingly 3 Consider some consequents and certaine effects thereof First hath the Law shut you up in your owne apprehension under the curse so that you have beene afraid of Hell And hath the Spirit also convinced you of sin by the Gospell to the wounding of your conscience and to the working of true humiliation causing the heart to relent and to desire to know how to be saved and if after this you have denied your selfe and received and rested on Christ according to the nature of true Faith as followeth then you have Faith If you doubt you were never sufficiently humbled then reade Chap. 16. Sect. 6. Secondly Consider rightly the nature and proper acts of Faith lest you conceive that to be faith which is not and that to be no faith which is You may know wherein true saving Faith consists by
Castle to steppe into or an Army of friends to rescue him this mans feare is quickly over and forgotten The other doth not onely see great danger but is surprized by his enemies is taken and carried captive and is a long time in cruell bondage and feare of his life til at length he is redeemed out of their hand Such a feare as this can never be forgotten You may evidently know whether you had sufficient griefe and feare in your first conversion by these signes Had you ever such and so much griefe for sin that it made you to dislike sinne and to dislike your selfe for it and to bee weary and heavie laden with it so as to make you heartily confesse your sinnes unto GOD and to aske of him mercie and forgivenesse Hath it made you to looke better to your wayes and more carefull to please God Then be sure it was a competent and sufficient griefe because it was a godly sorrow to repentance never to be repented of Againe are you now grieved and troubled when you fall into particular sinnes then you may be certaine that there was a time when you were sufficiently grieved and humbled in your Conversion For this latter griefe is but putting that griefe into further act whereof you received an Habit in your first Conversion If you can for the present find any proofes of Conversion it should not trouble you though you know not when or by whom or how you were converted any more then thus that you know that God hath wrought it by his Word and Spirit When any field bringeth forth a croppe of good corne this proveth that it was sufficiently plowed For GOD doth never sow untill the fallow ground of mens hearts is sufficiently broken up Now as for those of you which remember that you have had terrors of conscience and it may bee ever and anon feele them still who feare that these were not beginnings of Conversion but rather beginnings of Desperation and Hellish torments you should know that there is great difference betweene these and those Those feares and horrours which are onely flashes and beginnings of hellish torment are wrought onely by the Law and spirit of bondage giving not so much as a secret hope of Salvation But those feares which make way unto and which are the beginnings of Conversion are indeed first wrought by the Law also yet not onely for the Gospell hath at last some stroke in them partly to melt the heart broken by the Law partly to support the heart causing it by some little glimpse of light to conceive possibilitie of remedy Compare the terrors of Cain and Iudas with those of the men prickt at Peters Sermon with S. Pauls and the Iaylors and you shall see both this and the following differences 2. The former terrours and troubles are caused either onely for feare of Hell and fierce wrath of God but not for sinne or if at all for sinne it is onely in respect of the punishment These tending to conversion are also caused through feare of Hell but not onely The heart of one thus troubled aketh because of his finne and that not onely because it deserveth hell but because by it he hath offended and dishonoured God 3. Those who are troubled in the first sort do continue head-strong and obstinate retaining their wonted hatred against God and against such as feare GOD as also their love to wickednes onely it may bee they smoother and bite in their ranckor through the spirit of restraint that for the time it doth not appeare But in the other will appeare some alteration towards goodnesse As whatsoever their opinions and speeches were of Gods peoples before now they begin to think better of them of their waies So did they in the Acts before they were prickt at heart they did scoffe at the Apostles and derided Gods gifts in them but afterwards said men and brethren they conceived reverently of them and spake reverently to them See the like in Paul in his readinesse to doe whatsoever Christ should enjoyne him The Iaylour also in this case quickly became well affected to Paul and Silas 4. The former sort when they are troubled with horror of conscience flie from God and seeke no remedie but such as is worldly and carnall as jollitie company-keeping musicke and other earthly delights as in building and in their lands and livings according as their owne corrupt hearts and as carnall men will advise them whereby sometimes they stupifie and deaden the Conscience and lay it asleepe for a time Thus Cain and Saul allaied their distempered spirits And if they have some godly friends which shall bring them to Gods Ministers or doe themselves minister to them the instructions of the Word this is tedious and irkesome to them they cannot rellish these means nor take any satisfaction in theÌ„ But the other are willing to secke to God by seeking to his Ministers to whom God hath given the tongue of the learned to minister a word in season to the soule that is wearie and though they cannot presently receive comfort wil not utterly reject them except in case of Melancholicke distemper which must not bee imputed to them but to their disease And in application of the remedy as there were two parts of the griefe so they must find remedies for both or they cannot be fully satisfied First they were troubled with griefe for feare of Hell for taking away whereof the bloud of Christ is applyed together with Gods promise of forgivenesse to him that beleeveth and a commandement to beleeve all this is applied to take away the guilt and punishment of sinne Secondly they were troubled for sinne whereby they had dishonored and displeased God now unlesse also they feele in some measure the grace of Christs Spirit healing the wound of sinne and subduing the power of it and enabling them at least to will and strive to please God they cannot be satisfied As it was with David though God had said by the Prophet The Lord hath put away thy sinne that is forgiven it yet he had no comfort untill God had created in him a cleane heart and renewed a right spirit within him Whereas if feare of Hell be off it is all that the former sort care for 5. As for the first sort it may be while they were afraid to be damned they had some restraint of sinne and it may be made some proffers tending to reformation but when their terrours are over and forgotten then like the dogge they returne to their vomit and like the sowe that was washed to their wallowing in the mire of their wonted ungodlinesse But as for them whose terrours were preparations to Conversion when they obtaine peace of Conscience they are exceeding thankefull for it and are made by it more feaâ—efull to offend And although they may and oft doe fall into some particular sinne or sinnes for which
things and according to the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh A man must have the heart of the wise before the tongue can be taught to speake wisely Secondly You must resolve before-hand as David did to take heed to your wayes that you sinne not with your tongue And that you will keepe your mouth as with a bridle And before your speech and actions be well advised weigh and ponder in the ballance of discretion all your actions and words before you vent them Thirdly Let no passion of joy griefe feare anger c. get the head and exceed their limits For wise and good men as well as bad when they have beene in any of these passions have spoken unadvisedly with their lips And experience will teach you that your tongue doth never runne before your wit so soone as when you are over-feared over-grieved over-angry or over-ioyed Fourthly You must be much in prayer unto God before you come into company that you may be able to order your conversation aright Let your heart also be lifted up oft to God when your are in company that he would set a watch before your mouth and keepe the doore of your lips and that your heart may not incline to any evill thing to practise wicked workes with men that worke iniquity and that he would open your lippes that your mouth may shew forth his prayse and that you may speake as you ought to speake knowing how to answer every man for the tongue is such an unruly evill that no man onely God can tame and governe it SECTION 2. Of ordering a mans selfe well in ill Company VVHen Company is sinfull and naught if you may choose come not into it at all For keeping evill company wil 1 blemish your Name 2 It wil expose you oft-times to many hazards of your life state And 3 you are alwayes in danger to be corrupted by the contagious infection of it By bad company I doe not onely understand seducers and such as are openly prophane or riotous but also such civill men who yet remaine meere worldlings and all luke-warme professours who are neither hot nor cold For although the sinnes of these latter doe not carrie such a manifest appearance of grosse impietie and dishonestie as doe the sinnes of open Blasphemers Drunkards whore-Masters and the like yet they are not lesse dangerous your hart wil quickly rise against these manifest enormous evils but the other by reason of their unsuspected danger through that tolerable good opinion which in comparison is had of them though in truth they be as dangerous and as hatefull will sooner insnare infect you by an insensible chilling of your spirits by taking off the edge of your zeale which you had to the power of godlinesse And so by little and little draw you to a remissenesse and indifferencie in Religion and to a love of the world If you shall thinke that by keeping evill company you may convert them and draw them to goodnesse be not deceived It is presumption so to think Hath not God expresly forbidden you such company If you be not necessarily called to be in sinfull company you may justly feare that you shall be sooner perverted and made naught by their wickednes than that they should be converted and made good by your holinesse Secondly when by reason of common occasions in respect of the affaires of your calling generall or particular in Church Common-wealth and Familie you cannot shunne ill company Looke 1 that in speciall sort your conversation be honest unblameable harmelesse even with a Dove-like innocency that by your good example they may without the Word be brought to the Word and to a love of the power and sinceritie of that true Religion which you professe Howsoever give no advantage to the adversary to speake evill either of you or of your Religion but by a holy life stop the mouths of ignorant and foolish men or if they will notwithstanding speake against you this your holy life shall shame all that blame your good conversation in Christ Iesus 2 Be wise as serpents Walke warily lest they bring you into trouble and doe harme you but especially lest they infect you with their sinne for a little leaven will quickly sowre the whole lumpe That you may not be infected by that ill company which you cannot avoid use these preservatives 1 Be not high minded but feare lest you doe commit the same or the like sinne for you are of the same nature and are subject to the same and like temptations He that seeth his neighbour slip and fall before him had need to taâ—â— heed lâ—st he himselfe fall 2 Your soule like the riotous soule of Lot must be vixed daily with seeing and hearing their unlawfull deeds 3 Raise your heart to a sensible loathing of their sinne yet have compassion on the sinner and so farre as you have calling admonish him as a brother 4 When you see or heare any wickednes lift up your heart to GOD and before him confesse it and disclaime all liking of it pray unto God to keepe you from it and that he would forgive your companion his sinne and give unto him grace to repent of it Lastly though you may converse with sinnefull companie when your calling is to be with them in a common and â—older kinde of fellowship by a common love whereby you do wish well to all and would doe good to all yet you must not converse with them with such speciall and intimate Christian familiaritie and delight as you doe with the Saints that are excellent Thus doe and the Lord can and will keepe you in the midst of Aegypt and Babel as hee did Ioseph and Daniel if hee call you â—o it Thirdly As soone as possibly you can depart out of their company when you finde not in them the â—…ppes of knowledge or when they â—…ny way declare that they have onely a forme but deny the power of godlinesse From such turne away â—aith the Apostle And so use the preservatives prescribed or any other whereof you have proofe that you depart not more evill or lesse good then when you â—ame together SECTION 3. How a man should carry himselfe towards good company NOw touching good company First highly esteeme of it and much desire it For you should love the brotherhood howsoever the world scoffe at it and forsake not the fellowship or consorting with the godly as the manner of some is But with David as much as may be be a companion with them that feare God Secondly when you are in good company you must expresse all brotherly love improving your time together for your mutuall good chiefly in the increase of each others faith and holinesse provoking one another to love and to good workes Then you love
flesh but after the Spirit And as for weeping at crosses sooner and more than for sinnes this doth not alwaies argue more griefe for one than for the other For weeping is an effect of the body following much the temper thereof also sense apprehendeth a naturall object or matter of bodily griefe in such sort that the body is wrought upon more sensibly then when a spirituall object of griefe is onely apprehended by Faith Wherefore bodily teares flow easily from sense of crosses and more hardly from thoughts of sinne For spirituall obiects doe not ordinarily worke passions in the body so soone or so much as bodily and sensible obiects doe Griefe for a crosse is more outward and passionate thence teares but spirituall griefe is more inward sad and soaking in which cases teares lye so farre off and the organs of teares are so much contracted and shut up that they cannot be fetcht or wrung out but with much labour When you are bidden in Scripture to mourne and weep for your sins nothing else is meant but to grieve much and to grieve heartily as they doe who weepe much at outward calamities Besides it is not unknowne that even in naturall griefe dry griefe is many times greater than that which is moistned and overfloweth with teares And some softer effeminate spirits can weep at any thing when some harder spirits can weepe at nothing As the greatest spiritual ioy is not expressed in laughter so neither is the greatest spirituall griefe expressed in teares God regards the inward sighing of a contrite heart more then the outward teares of the eyes An Hypocriticall Saul being overcome with kindenesse and a false-hearted Ahab being upon the racke of feare may in their quames and passions weepe and externally humble themselves and that in part for sinne when a deare child of God may not be able to command one teare The time when Gods Children have most plentie of teares is when the extremitie and anguish of griefe is well over namely When their hearts beginne to melt through hope of mercy Zach. 12. 10. And as for leaving sinne altogether Who ever did in this life Who ever shall Sith there is no man that liveth and sinneth not But mistake not you may through GODS grace have left sinne when yet sinne hath not left you For whosoever hateth sinne and resolveth against it and in the Law of his minde would not commit it but is drawne to it by Satan and by the law of his members and after it is done doth not allow it but disclaimes it with griefe this man hath left sinne And if this bee your case It may be said of you as the Apostle said of himselfe It is not you that doe evill but it is sinne that dwelleth in you that doth it Many yet complaine They cannot Pray Reade Heare Meditate nor get any good by the best Companies or best conference which they can meete with They are so dull so forgetfull so full of distractions and so unfruitfull when they goe about or have beene about any thing that is good that they feare they have no grace at all in them yea it maketh them sometimes to forbeare these duties and for the most part to goe about them without heart It is not strange that it should be so with you so long as there is a Satan to hinder you and so long as you carry about the old man and body of sinne in you Moreover Doe you not many times goe about these holy duties remissely negligently onely cursorily and customarily without preparation thereunto not looking to your feete and putting off your shooes before you approach unto Gods holy things and holy presence Doe you not many times set upon these holy duties in the power of your owne might and not in the power of Gods might or have you not beene proud or too well conceited of your selves when you have felt that you have performed good duties with some life or are you sure that you should not be spiritually proud if you had your desirein doing al these Further doe you not mis-call things calling that no Prayer no Hearing c. or no fruit because you doe them not so well nor bring forth so much as in your enlarged spiritually covetous desires you long to doe and have If it bee thus with you then first mend all these faults confesse them to GOD and aske mercie Next bee thankefull for your desires to Pray Reade Heare c. And for your longing to doe all these as you should Prosecute these desires but alwayes in the sense of your owne insufficiencies and in the power of Gods might then all the forementioned duties shall bee performed with lesse difficultie and with more fruit and comfort Yet because in all these duties you travell to heaven-ward against the hill and your passage is against Winde and Tyde and with a strong opposition of enemies in the way you must never looke to performe them without sense of much difficulty and little progresse in comparison of what you aime at in your desires It concernes you therefore to plye your Oares and to apply your selves by all meanes to worke out your Salvation with feare and trembling I meane with feare to offend in any the aforementioned duties not in feare that you have no grace because you cannot performe them as well as you should and would For sith that you feele and bewaile your dulnesse deadnesse and unprofitablenesse in holy services it argueth that you have life because no man feeleth corruption and disliketh it by corruption but by grace I am sure that such as have no true grace can and doe daily faile in all these duties but either they find not their failings or if they doe yet they complaine not of them with griefe and dislike If you heartily grieve because you doe no better your desires to doe as you should doe are a true signe of grace in you For that dutie is alwaies well done in Gods account where there is truth of indevour to doe it well and true griefe that it is done no better And whereas you say that by reason of want of spirituall life in holy duties you have beene made to neglect them altogether I pray what have you got thereby but much griefe â—â—d unrest But tell me how is â—â— with you are you pleased with your selfe in your neglect or is it so that you can have no peace in your hearts untill you set your selves diligently to do those duties again as well as you can If so it is a signe that you are not quite destitute of saving grace Others when they have beene at holy exercises and in good company have felt joy and sweet comfort therein but afterward oft-times much dulnesse hath suddenly seazed upon them Which maketh them fear they have not root in themselves and that their joyes and comforts were not sound This dulnesse after fresh-feeling-comforts