Works, Part 4 · Religious instruction · Chapter 35
CHAP. XXXV. Where is taught how we must narrowly watch ouer our heart, and ouer our affections for many causes.
Two heads of many sinnes.THe walking in the waies of our owne hart and of the lust of our eies are the two heads of all wickednes, our inward motions, and our outwardBernard, quid est cortuum, nisi voluntas tua? occasions must both breed in vsus a carefull conscience and warinesse. In the Prouerbes, Prophets, & Apostles we are bidden to restraine our heart and to make a couenant with our eyes and the outward senses.Ni…l itaque punit Deus nisi voluntatem, t…lle ha…c & …nternum non erit. These things are confessed daily, and amended slowly, whereof followeth that transgression of the law and that vniuersall sicknes, that we daily confesse, there is no health in vsus, which all commeth from the waies of our owne hearts. This word walking hath relation vntounto an allegorie. For imagine we hauehave here no naturall citie, Heb. 11. as we hauehave not indeed, our countrie being Paradise, from whichTwo waies. The first way of Gods Commandements. The second, way of our owne hearts. Adam fell by transgression, and we being here as banished, as Augustine calleth vsus, hauehave receiued a new title in Christ, who was content to set ouer his owne right by purchase vntounto vsus. Whereupon it is presupposed, that we hauehave the naturall affection, which eueryevery man hath to his owne countrie, thorough a wildernes, wherein are many waies brought shortly to these two: of the one Dauid speaketh Psal. 119. I will run the way of thy commaundements; and this is the right way, we may well runne in it. The second way is the way of our owne hearts; and this is the euill way, whether it be by the right hand in sinning outwardly and in sight, or in sinning secretly, on the left hand. If we meane to come to Paradise,Three thīgs to be considered concerning our way we must leaue this way and walke the other way, for this will leade vsus to iudgement. Eccle. 11. 9. In this way are three things to be considered, alluding to the peregrination of the Israelites through the wildernes. The first is the little light shining in a darke place,1 which answereth to the word, in steede of which we hauehave a false light, the desire of our owne heart. The second thing is a guide, which is Christ, and the Saints, that are gone2 before vsus, vpō whom we must looke, as the author to the Hebrues willeth vsus; to which answere our false guides, when we say, we will follow the steppes of our forefathers. The thirdHeb. 6. 12. 12. 1. thing is the companie in the way, which are the great store of seducers to lead vsus out of the way, the Diuell chearing them forward. It is a signe therefore, we are in the wrong way,To follow the multitude. if we do nothing, but that we see the greatest part of the world doth. How il soeuer the way be, and wheresoeuer it lieth, eueryevery mans way is right in his owne eyes, Prouerb. 21. and we will defend whatsoeuer we doe. There is a searcher of the heart, who saith, Esay. 55. your Note.waies are not as my waies, and because there be wrong waies. Ierem 18. Let eueryevery man turne To follow our owne lusts.from his owne waies, these euill thoughts, 1. Pet. 2. 11. are said to be the diuels Souldiers, and to warre against the soule: they follow their captaine, and we follow them, and then you may easily know, whither we goe, Ierem. 17. There is a wickednes said to be in the heart of man, and that not easie to be espied, but it is a subtile wickednes, and the subtiltie thereof is vnsearchable. This is eueryevery man before he be regenerate. Isaiah saith, The hart of man to God is, as the clay to the Potter. Indeed saith he, it is clay to God, but waxe to the Diuell,Lutum Deo, sed cera Daemoni. that is to say, it must hauehave much tempering, and great adoe to bring it to God; but in Sathans shoppe, very pliable to any worke he shall put it to. Although we neuer saw any euill example, nor were tempted at all outwardly, yet our owne hearts would teach vsus wickednesse. It is mine owne heart, that is the cause of sinne in me, and it is follie to say, woe to that man, but for him I had neuer fallen thus, and therefore if the issue of mine owne corruption be stayed and stanched in me, it is God that restraineth mine owne heart, or else I should runne into all wickednesse, whatsoeuer the gallowes punish. This must bring a man out of louelove with himselfe. By this we see how wicked speeches those be, let him doe what he will, and I will doe what I list, but there is no mention of Gods will. Basill, when he had perswaded himselfe, that if he could be in the wildernesse, he should be happie, and serue God more deuoutly, being out of the companie of men; when he came thither, he said, I hauehave forsaken all things, but I retaine mine olde heart still. If this euill were not, all euill temptations could not preuaile against him. For Adam was not ouertaken with the temptation, vntill he was corrupted in his heart. Therefore it is saide. Ierem. 4. wash thine heart. This filthinesse of the heart was so great, Gen 6. that it was faine to be washed away with that great deluge, and now water will not serue, it must hauehave fire to purge it, Prouerbs. 4. watch and ward ouer thine heart, keepe it with a great many2. Pet. 3. 14. 15. 16. of lockes. Our heart is a wandering thing, it is like the mill, that is euer grinding, still setting vsus a worke with more commaundements, than euer God gaue vsus. If we follow GodsSimile. way, there is some end, but if we follow our owne way there is an endlesse maze Ierem. 4. the heart must be circumcised. It is a little member, it will not serue a kyte for a meale, andNote. yet all the world will not serue it, there is so much superfluous matter in it, it had neede be circumcifed, Cast downe thine heart, saith Esay. It must be plucked downe, and kept in some worke. A good way, the way of the heart is not, but how it lieth, it is to be considered. The first entrance is the thought, either by occasion or by his owne motion. The Scripture deuideth them into two sorts, iniected and ascending, both naught. Iniected beImmissae & ascendentes. those, which the diuell casteth in, as he did into the heart of Iudas: ascending be such, as rise out of the heart, which doe breath out. Of these our Sauiour Christ speaketh to hisTwo kinds of thoughts. Iohn. 13. Disciples, why do thoughts arise in your hearts? The second thing that makes thee walke easie, is when we are well affected to it, and will entertaine it, and stay to talke with it. Then there is a lingring delay to stay in it, and a mans conscience telleth him, it is euil, and he leaueth it, and commeth straight to it againe. Further when a man conceiueth a pleasure in these imaginations, so that the very sent of them delighteth him; for they carrieSimile. the smell of them in themselues; and euen as the rauens will not goe farre from theThe rauens will not goe farre from a dead carcasse. dead carcasse, though a man be with it, they will be sure to be within sent of it. After comes a desire of taking fruit of it, by wishing, I would I might, as also a consent of the will, and that is with God a full action, as Christ saith to Iudas, what thou dost doe quickely when as yet as he did act nothing outwardly. Next followeth the endeuour and deuisingBut delight still to be in the sent of it, euen so doe we with sin. by al meanes possible to bring it to passe, as Iezabel did to bring Naboth to his death: Thē ensueth the act it selfe, that is the sinne of the hands or of the feete, & then perhaps we do it twice & often. Then commeth a benummed conscience, he forgets to be sorrowfull for it, it prickes him not. Lastly followeth, I will stand to it, then men will call light darknesse, and darkenesse light. We may adde boasting in sinne, say what you can, they will not doe6 it, they will doe it to spite you. This is the chaire of the wicked at their iournies ende, and7 because they should not be without a cushion, if you will hauehave any thing else, the next isScala Inferni. damnation. Peter saith, Their damnation is nigh. This is the measure of the age of Sathan; this is the ladder, or these be the steps to hell: yet God doth not marke eueryevery declining of man, but as the Apostle saith he ouerlooketh them, & they are but in the regenerate to humble them, and to make them confesse the grace of God. Touching these thoughts, let these be two rules, what we shame to speake, let vsus be ashamed to thinke, he that seeth our thoughts knoweth what we are. I remember in the new Historie of Scotland, there is mention made of a controuersie betweene Scotland and Ireland, for a certaine Isle betweene them both. After much adoe they put it to the determinatiō of a wise Frenchman,Simile. whose iudgement was, that they should put a snake in it, and if it liued, the ground shouldA controuersie concerning an Iland between Scotland and Ireland. belong to Scotland. I speake it in this respect, that if these poisoned & venimous thoughts doe liue in our hearts, it is a signe, our heart belongeth to that countrie, which they appertaine to. If they die presently in our hearts, it is well. It behooueth vsus to hauehave a present striuing against them, and if they yet remaine, an indignation, a feare and a crying to God to tell him, that we are troubled with them. Here we must outreach, and vnteach a foolish speech, that is common amongst vsus. Thought is free: No, thy cogitations by iust title be the seruants of the Lord. Bernard saith, Iustly doth he challenge my hart, which gaue his owne heart to be pearced for me. Therefore we must vse them wisely, we must walke no longer after our owne hearts, but we must striue, and that before reason be corrupted, for then it is hard to restraine. There must be a washing of the heart. This is the burthen of the Lord, as the Israelites were wont to say, when they went to Ieremiahs Sermon, this fellow will hauehave our thoughts. Faith must lay violence on reason, for what is faith but a contrarietie to reason?Faith contrarie to reason. and what is hope, but a conararietie to experience? But we must hauehave reason to determine as well as the word. Many will not be Christ his Disciples, because they must follow Christ, they will be maister with him. But Dauid saith, leade me O Lord. Me thinketh, whenHope contrarie to experience. I reade his speech he standeth as if he were blinde, and holdeth out his hand, and cryeth, leade me, Oh Lord.
2 This is the beginning of a conuersion, to forsake our selues to follow the Lord. Paul, Many will say, If I can fetch it within the compasse of my braine, I will beleeue it.when he was vnhorst, said, Lord what shall I doe? The laylor when he was mooued, and sawe the prison dore open, said: what shall I doe? what shall I doe to be saued? The Iewes being pricked in heart at the preaching of Peter, Act. 2. said, Men and brethren what shall we doe? At Iohns baptisme eueryevery one came and asked, What shall we doe? Where we see reason vnderunder faith, and experience vnderunder hope. Many can commend this or that point in a sermon, and say, it was well handled, because it agreeth with their corrupt affection. God must commaund what we will, and then we will obey him. But this is the triall, to obey against ourThis man may cast the Bible in the fire for any profit he reapes by it. owne inclination; else God shall obey vsus, we shall not obey him. Some will set downe their cōclusion, as Benadab, did, 2. King. 20. 18. Ierem. 42. 6. The vile hypocrites said they would doe whatsoeuer God commaunded them, whether it were good or euill: but in the next Chapter, when he had bid them, they say: This neuer came from God. Others there be, which will not take counsell with Micah, but with such as please them. For there be many Preachers which loose and cast downe, as fast as others build: Of whom if a man should aske counsell, whether he should goe to the diuell or no, they would say, Goe and prosper. But these I dare say, are condemned of their owne conscience.
3 There are many circumcised to Princes, not to the Lord: they are the circumcisionOf the circumcision of the heart. of the King and of the Queene: they leaue many grosse sinnes punishable by imprisonment, but for others as great but not penall, they passe ouer. And there be many, who hauing beene sinners, can recount and talke of sinne with a delight, who shewe that their hearts neuer bled for them, and that there is yet a foreskin remaining. There be some also which will come to the Church, and sit before the Preacher, like to the people spoken of in Ezech. who are desirous to know the will of the Lord, and yet if they were examined at the years end, they hauehave profited nothing, here is a foreskin remaining. Last of all, when God maketh men profite, and they grow into some practise of the meanes, and they can talke as godlily, as if they were perfect: and after all this they become secure, their prepuce or foreskin groweth againe, and this is most dangerous.
4 Moses in Exod. confesseth of himselfe, that hee is a man of vncircumcised lips; so it seemeth there is an vncircumcision of the foreskinne of the lips. And Act. 7. Steuen callethHow we must circumcise the foreskin of our hearts. them men of vncircumcised eares: there is then also an vncircumcision of the eares. Ierem 4 they are commanded to circumcise the foreskin of their hearts: so there is an vncircumcision of the heart. By the foreskinne it is the manner of the Scripture to vnderstand whatsoeuer groweth within vsus, which is an impediment to vsus in doing good. A learned writer saith, there is a foreskinne in our eares, which the diuell shutteth when wee should heare any good thing, and openeth when any euill speech is offered, that we may be corrupted thereby: so in our lips he draweth together the foreskin, when wee should speake any good, and openeth it when we speake any euill. Such a foreskin is there in our hearts, which bee vseth at his owne pleasure. In our confession wee say, that therefore we doe the things we …ought not to doe, and doe not the things we ought to doe, because we follow the deuises and desires of our owne hearts. And there is an vniuersall leprosie, whioh hath so ouer-growne vsus, that there is no one sound part in vsus. It is a hard matter to a worldly, or fleshly minded man to be perswaded of this? for eueryevery man thinketh wel of his own waies, but the Lord ponde…eth the heart, Prou. 14. And Esay saith, chap. 55. Our wayes are not the Lords wayes, and therefore they shall neuer bring vsus to the Lord. And Ierem. 10. the Prophet makes a proclamation on the Lords behalfe, If anie man will be saued, let him leaue his owne wayes, &c. If we will see this more plainely, let vsus see Genes. 6. how the Lord looked on the hart of man, & he saw it was set on euill, and that euen that thought that was farthest off was set on euill, and not onelyonly set on euill, but wholy euill, and euill all the day long, and all the night long too if yee will. Micah. 2. and Ierem. 17. nothing is so euill as theVers. 9. heart: for the heart of man is euill aboue all things. Therefore needfull it is that this foreskinne be taken away: not the heart itselfe as God created it, but the foreskinne of the heart, which is a fruite of the first rebellion. For surely vnlesse this heart be altered, let the word be preached, and say the Preachers what they can, all is in vaine. And assuredly this error is in all heretikes in the world, that they are perswaded of some pure naturalities in them still. And therefore if men will be fruitfull to heare and receiue Gods word, we must labour to circumcise the foreskin of our hearts. Now the first way to take away this foreskinneThoughts not free. is to restraine our thoughts, and not to be deluded with the doting opinion of the world, to thinke that thoughts are free.
5 If the heart be set on a thing, no reason can be made but we hauehave a fetch beyond it, and no perswasion so strong but wee hauehave crinkes to goe beside them. The Lord is well pleased with their intents, which prepare their hearts to seeke him.
6 When the heart is vpright, though there be some fault: yet the Lord respecteth more the faith and vprightnes of the heart to crowne it, than he doth the fault to curse it: as appeareth in Rebecca and Iacob when they stole the blessing, &c.
7 Paul saith of himselfe, that till we knewe the meaning of the last commaundement,The tenth cōmandemēt. Thou shalt not lust he thought well of himselfe: and surely wee shall neuer know the law of God a right, except we know the heart is wholy euill. And we must know withall that the tongue is a world of wickednes. And if the tongue, which is but an instrument of the hart, be a world of wickednes, what is the hart whereof al proceedeth that the tongue speaketh; Albeit there were no diuell in the world to tempt vsus to euill, nor any euill wrought to takeThe spa…ne of finis is in eueryevery man. example by, yet there abideth enough in the heart to corrupt the whole man. For there is no euill in the wickedest man of the world but it is in mee, and would appeare, vnlesse the Lord did suppresse it.
8 He was desirous still to keepe himselfe from deadnes, and tried his heart with thankfulnes, by speaking somewhat (after meate receiued) to the glorie of God, if God gaue any good matter into his minde so to take it, if eueryevery one were silent, then to raise vp some good occasion of speaking by reading, or singing which were so vsed, that when other things came in place to the aforesaid end, they were surceased from, because customable sticking to any thing bringeth lesse reuerence and profit. And among other things he was very glad to speake somewhat to such, whom he thought after, God might make instruments to teach it to others more effectually than he could expresse it, which thing he said we should learne of the Apostle Paul, 2. Tim. 2. 2.