The Souls Vocation, Part 3 (4 of 6)

The Souls Vocation · Part 3 (4 of 6)

p. 4361Firſt, I will ſhew and prove that many that live in the boſome of the Church, have not faith.

2Secondly, I will ſhew who they be in particular that have no faith; which things being opened, then I hope every man, but eſpecially ſuch as God ſhall bleſſe this truth unto, ſhall be apprehenſive of their condition, if they will deale plainly with their owne hearts.

p. 437Firſt, let me lay the inditement, and ſhew that many that live in the boſome of the Church want this ſaving faith, Scripture and reaſons are pregnant here: for the firſt, that many, not onelyonly pagans and heathens, but you which live in the boſome of the Church of England, have not faith; as Eſay 53.1. Lord who hath beleeved our report, and to whom is the arme of the Lord revealed? this beleeving ſpoken of, is ſaving faith, and it was ſo hard to be found, that though Eſay were a man of admirable parts, and one that ſpake in a moſt admirable manner, yet faithfull men were ſo few, that hee could ſee none; therefore he goes up and downe, as it were, to inquire for beleevers; is there any one in this family that beleeves? therefore hee ſaith, To whom is the Arme of the Lord revealed? that is, the power of God in the Goſpell, thats the thing you muſt take notice of: you that are wiſe, aske this queſtion, did God ever reveale himſelfe to thee, to pull downe thy proud heart, and the heart of your wife, or your huſband? &c. Chriſt found hard meaſure here, Iohn 1.11. He came to his owne, and his owne received him not; the Jewes were cald his owne people, he did not come to ſtrangers, to pagans, and infidels, but to his owne, upon whom hee had beſtowed many meanes, and whom he had carried upon eagles wings, and to whom he had communicated many rich tokens of his love; yet how did they uſe him? even they received him not, not only ſome few of them did not receive him, but the whole body of the Jewes, the whole nation p. 438and people of the Jewes did not receive him; indeed ſome few did receive him, but the whole maſſe of the Jewes did refuſe him, nay they confeſſe it themſelves, as Iohn 7.48. when the rulers had ſent to take Chriſt, and in ſtead of bringing him, they returne wondring at him, and ſaid, never man ſpake as this man doth, but ſaid they, doe any of the rulers, and of the Scribes, and the Phariſees beleeve in him; it was then the faſhion not to beleeve in Chriſt, it was the common road, and the common caſe; nay the ſinne and curſe that lyes upon the Jewes, proclaimes it at this day, they that were his owne, and are his owne by election, Rom. 11.20. even they have rejected him, the rout, and crowd, and the whole frame of the nation refuſed him, reſerving only ſome few: now did they refuſe Chriſt, and doe you thinke, that wee are privileged from this ſinne? are wee exempted from it? no ſurely, the Jewes for the maine body of them were unbeleevers, and are wee better than they? wee have the ſame corrupt natures, and they had the ſame meanes that wee enjoy; nay of them came the law and the promiſes, and of them Chriſt came, yet they beleeved not in a Chriſt, therefore they are broken off, and ſo are gone from Chriſt, and ſo from eternall life; it is very true, Chriſt hath his time, wherein hee will reveale himſelfe to theſe againe, but as yet they are fallen off from Chriſt, though they had the truth; therefore what may wee thinke of our ſelves, and if any man thinke that we are better than the Jewes, conſider then what the Apoſtle p. 439propheſied of theſe times, 2 Tim. 3.1, 2, 3, 4, 5. verſes, In the laſt dayes ſhall come perilous times, for men ſhall bee lovers of themſelves, covetous, boaſters, &c. diſobedient to parents, unthankefull, unholy, having a ſhew of godlineſſe, but denying the power of it; this is our times right, having toyes, and trifles, and deny the power of godlineſſe, it is made good in our eares, and in our eyes this day; and ſo it was in all the earth, as Luke 8.15. there were foure ſorts of hearers, leaving out the ſtragglers, that would never come to the hearing of the word, for theſe were conſtant hearers, and yet but one ſort good, and yet there were three times ſo many more of all theſe three ſorts, as there were of the good hearers; and therefore there is ſcarce one to ten in that proportion, nay in this laſt age of the world, when men ſhall bee full of the knowledge of God, Ezech. 47.4. and when the waters of the Sanctuary ſhall run from the anckles to the chin, and men ſhall abound in knowledge, and when God ſhall bring home the people of the Jewes and Gentiles both together; yet even then marke what our Saviour ſaith, Luke 18.8. When the Sonne of man commeth, ſhall he finde faith on the earth? ſpeaking of the power of prayer, and the vertue of it, when it comes from faith, hee ſaith, ſhall hee finde faith on the earth? a man would thinke, that that there ſhould have beene many faithfull people, and many praying hearts, but if there had beene any, Chriſt would have found it; but the text ſaith, ſhall Chriſt finde faith on the earth when he comes; ſo Matth. 24.38. as it was p. 440in the dayes of Noah before the floud, men did eat and drinke, marry, and give in marriage, and knew nothing till the floud came, and tooke them all away; ſo ſhall alſo the comming of the Sonne of man be; how? namely thus; this text opens the former, there will be ſuch a common kinde of luke-warmneſſe, and formality amongſt people, that all ſhall have the name of profeſſion, and a ſhew of godlineſſe, and yet all almoſt want the pith and kernell; for as in the dayes of Noah, they would not be perſwaded that the floud would come, though hee preached and gave warning 120. yeares together, they knew nothing, that is, they beleeved nothing; ſo alſo ſhall it bee in the comming of the Sonne of man, they ſhall not beleeve the truth of his comming, nor that which might fit them for his comming; therefore as Ieremie ſaith, chap. 5.1. Run to and fro by the ſtreets of Ieruſalem, and know and inquire in the open places thereof, if there be any that executeth judgement, and ſeeketh the truth; ſo may I ſay, is there any that beleeves? I know God hath his number every where where the Goſpell is, but there are many places where a man ſhall ſcarcely finde any one that hath true and ſaving faith or grace: the reaſons which eſpecially make the caſe cleare, are three, in which it is plaine, that this great worke is hard to bee found, even amongſt thoſe that enjoy the meanes; the firſt reaſon is this:

Reaſon. 1 Firſt, becauſe it is a wonderfull difficult matter to convince a naturall man, and to perſwade him of it, to confeſſe, that hee wants faith, and therefore p. 441he is farre enough from it: this ſinne of unbeleefe is bred, and hath his abode in the bottome of the heart, and doth not ſo much expreſſe it ſelfe in the next worke, but in ſome baſer workes, and yet the root of unbeleefe is hid, the fruit, and leaves, and branches of a tree are ſeene, but the root and ſap of it is hid in the earth; ſo it is here, other corruptions breake forth amaine, as the drunkard ſtaggers in the ſtreets, the angrie man railes and rageth againſt Gods people, and the blaſphemer ecchoes and breaths out his oaths, that a man can ſcarcely have any wholeſome breathing by him; and the covetous man oppreſſeth, and the poore complains of it, theſe are all outſide ſinnes, and becauſe every man can ſee theſe, therefore hee is the more eaſily convinced of theſe, and ſaith, I confeſſe, it is ſo and ſo, but yet no man is without ſinne; &c. but unbeleefe is like a cankar in the heart, it is bred in the bowels, and therefore a man is hardly convinced of it, and hardly made to ſet downe himſelfe this way, and to confeſſe, that he wants faith: and as this ſinne is moſt ſecret, ſo it is a kinde of ſpirituall wickedneſſe, and it hath a kinde of refined villany, and hath ſecret paſſages of its owne, as a man knowes not the way of a ſhip in the ſea, or diſcernes the ſliding of a ſerpent upon a ſtone: ſo alſo there is a kinde of ſpirituall ſliding away from God, and from the promiſe which is not ſeene to others, nay, ſcarcely can it be knowne to a mans ſelfe, all other corruptions are very troubleſome, and diſquiet a man moſt wonderfully, as envie eats out p. 442the heart, and the adulterer burnes and boiles in his luſts, and the covetous man cannot ſleepe, and ſo forth; theſe are boiſterous in a mans ſoule, therefore a man cannot but ſee them plainly, and ſo it carries the heart to outward things; but this unbeleefe ſlides off ſecretly from God, and from the promiſe, and from the truths which are ſpirituall, ſo that a man cannot ſee his ſinne; this is the cauſe of that ſpeech, Iohn 16.9. it is the cauſe why our Saviour Chriſt doth challenge that ſin, where hee ſaith, I will ſend the Comforter to the earth, and when he is come, he ſhall convince the world of ſinne, becauſe they beleeved not on him; a Miniſter may haply convince a man of his drunkenneſſe, and the Magiſtrat may convince him of his ſwearing, but the Lord from heaven, by that almightie power of his, muſt ſet downe the heart, and convince it of this ſinne, or elſe a man cannot ſee that he beleeves not: nay, let a man goe from pole to pole, and aske all the drunkards, and all the vile rakeſhames, and tell them thus, You are a drunkard, a ſwearer, and the like, they ſay, I confeſſe, it is true, it is my infirmitie, and I confeſſe it; but tell them of unbeleefe, and they will not acknowledge that, but this fine ſpun wickedneſſe, and this ſpirituall wickedneſſe of the ſoule, is a meere turning off from God, and ſo from Chriſt, and the truth, and the promiſe, and therefore not eaſily diſcerned.

Reaſon. 2 Secondly, as it is hard to ſee the want of this grace of faith, ſo it is marvellous difficult to ſee the uſe, and need, and benefit, and helpe, that will p. 443come from this grace; nay, wee are more ready to bee perſwaded of the need and benefit of any grace naturally, than of this grace of faith; as an ignorant man, and a weake man, when he is asked a queſtion, and a point of diſpute, hee ſaith, Oh that I had learning, and were able to diſpute; the reaſon is, becauſe hee is ſenſible of his want of knowledge in that kinde; and when a poore Chriſtian comes to joyne in prayer, and in conference with others, it may be his abilities are ſmall, and when he heares ſuch a man pray ſo holily, and able to give ſuch wholeſome counſell, hee ſaith, Oh that I had that gift in prayer, and thoſe parts and abilities, what a happy man ſhould I be, he is ſenſible that hee wants the power of prayer, and abilities to conferre, and all this while he ſaith not a word of his unbeleefe, he complains not of that; the reaſon is, becauſe all thoſe abilities that carrie a man to his duty towards men, we are more ſenſible of the want of them, becauſe that our credit and reſpect lies upon them; becauſe a man thinkes, if he want theſe, it is a diſcredit, and hee ſhall want that reſpect that he might have, therefore becauſe theſe carry a man to his duty towards man, and make for our credit, wee are ſenſible of the need and uſe of them: but faith in the next worke of it, is to cloſe with God, and to faſten upon him, and to rely upon the precious promiſes, all theſe are beyond the reach of the world, …nd unbeleefe is the withdrawing of it ſelfe from God and Chriſt; now becauſe unbeleefe doth not ſo much hinder us in our duties towards man, p. 444and becauſe faith, I meane, in the next worke of it, (for faith doth fit us for duties, and the like) but becauſe faith in the next worke of it, doth not ſo much furniſh us with abilities to carry us outwardly towards man, and alſo becauſe unbeleefe hinders us not in the ſame, therefore wee are not ſenſible of the need and uſe of faith, nor of the hurt and the danger of the other.

Reaſon. 3 Thirdly, hence it followes undeniably, that as a poore ſinner is hardly brought to ſee the want of faith, and ſees leſſe need of faith, than of any other grace, becauſe hee hath leſſe need of it outwardly in the next worke of it; therefore a Chriſtian beſtowes leaſt care and time about faith, and hath ſmall and feeble deſires after it, and little care to get it: but it is plainly proved before, that a Chriſtian is hardly convinced, that hee wants faith, and ſeeth leſſe need of faith naturally, than of any other grace, and therefore hee hath leſſe care to get it; for that which a man ſeeth but little need and uſe of, that he hath leaſt care to get; this I deſire to make uſe of, and ſo I deſire my fellow brethren and Miniſters; this is the common courſe of the world, take a ſinner whoſe eyes God hath opened, and revealed his ſinnes and corruptions to him, and let him ſee his wrath from heaven againſt him, and drives a man to a ſtand, ſo that hee ſaith, if this be ſo, then I am a damned man, and ſo he is even ſtaggering; now in this extremitie, marke the behaviour of this poore ſoule, hee will doe any thing but beleeve, and ſeeke for any thing, but for faith; hee will p. 455confeſſe and crie out of his ſinne, and reſolve amendment, and the drunkard loath… his old company, and the adulterer will not goe after his luſts any more, and the covetous m… in the horrour of conſcience, will rid his hands of all his il… gotten goods, and ſend for one man, and call for another, and make reſtitution, and all this while not one word of faith, nor of going our of himſelfe to a Chriſt for merciemercy and ſuccour for him; …ay, thoſe that have beene deſperat perſecutours of God, and of his much and grace, upon their death-beds they will turne to God, and love his people, and now thoſe will pray, which formerly have ſcorned prayer, and they will doe this and that, and yet all this while not one word of this precious faith: the reaſon iſſues from the …wo former things, becauſe they are not convin…ed that they want faith, and doe not ſee the …eed and uſe of faith, and therefore doe not deſire nor looke after it: ſo gather up all, and the ſumme is this, if all men by nature are marvellous …ardly convinced that they want faith, and ſee the …rtle, and if all men beſtow leaſt care how to get his faith, then the caſe is cleare, and it is no mar…ell though the moſt men want faith: now wee have laid the inditement, and it is marvellous …aire, you ſee and you cannot but confeſſe it, for … is againſt reaſon to deny it, as ſome ſtu…dy hy…ocrites doe, that will beleeve nothing, but what …hey liſt and yet they will be beleevers too.

Now let us come to plead the inditment; …ow mee thinkes every mans heart ſhould tremble p. 446within him, and …e thinkes your very countenances doe ſuggeſt what your hearts doe deſire; let every man caſt his head up and downe, and pa…ly wi… himſelfe in this manner, and ſa… Good Lord, is it ſo, that many families in the kingdome are unbeleevers, and many people in the boſome of the Church want faith, then why not my family too? if moſt parents want faith, th… why not my parents too? and if many children want faith, then why not my children too? and if many ſoules want faith, then why not my ſoule too? nay, it is ten to one, that many that heare the word of God this day, and many that live… the boſome of the Church, want faith: mee thinkes I heare ſome ſay, and am not I an unfaithfull man yet, and doe not I, and my wife, and my family want faith yet? Oh that I could know who they are in particular that want faith, th… we might know what to hold our ſelves to no… I will referre them to theſe foure ſorts:

1The firſt is the ignorant perſon.

2The ſecond is the carnall Goſpeller.

3The third is the meere civilized, or the judicio… profeſſour, and a man that hath a great reach for judgement and parts, and haply able to put a Miniſter to a ſet, and yet hath nothing in th… world in him touching the power of faith.

4Fourthly, the counterfeit, that hath made a vi… zard of faith, and hath his alcumie faith; as I tol… you, the Alcumiſts have that skill, to make alc… mie, ſilver, and ſo cunningly, that it will be… touch, but yet it is not true, becauſe it will … p. 447heare the fire and the hammer; ſo there is a great deale of copper faith in England, not that I ſpeake againſt the Doctrine of faith of the Church of England, for we are to bleſſe God, that hath given the King a heart to maintaine it, but I ſpeake of that copper and counterfeit faith, which many have framed to themſelves, which is not good, for if trouble, and dayes of perſecution ſhould come, they would forſake God, and Chriſt, and the Goſpell, and all.

Sort. 1 Now for the ignorant perſon, the ignorant man is an unfaithfull man; I doe not meane a weake and a feeble Chriſtian, and one that hath ſmaller and meaner parts than others have, for we all know but in part, even the beſt of Gods people, and the choiſeſt of Gods Miniſters, they know but in part, but I meane ſuch as are groſly, and careleſly, and wilfully ignorant, as we are peſtered with them, and I doubt not but my fellow-brethren finde much to doe with them in other places, they are content to goe up and downe as the horſe in the mill, and yet know nothing, aske them what is Gods name, and what it is to hallow it, and what is to be underſtood by the comming of Gods kingdome, they know nothing at all, and they are wilfully ignorant, and doe not labour to get knowledge, neither doe they mourne for the want of it, this groſſe ignorance is thus much, they will not ſuffer other men to helpe them, nor they are not able nor willing to helpe themſelves: many come to our Sermons, it is little they underſtand, but it is leſſe they remember: and if a Miniſter p. 458come home to their families, and catec… them, Oh, ſay they, we are paſt children, wee are not ſchoole-boyes ever, you cannot helpe your ſelves nor you will not ſuffer us to helpe you, you are thus ignorant, and this ignorance & faith cannot ſtand together; be not it is that the promiſes of God, and Chriſt, and grace, as theſe ſubſtantiall truths of ſalvation, and the truths of the Goſpell, they are as a ſealed letter to them; take away the name of Chriſt, and the name of ſinne, and the name of faith, and the truths that are under theſe names, and the moſt ignorant creature underſtands them not, it is almoſt impoſſible to thinke that men ſhould be ſo deſperatly ignorant; you that are maſters of families, when you come home, catechize your families, and ſee whether they are thus or no; this may bee where faith is not, yet faith cannot be, where ſaving knowledge is not in ſome meaſure, I meane where the knowledge of ſpirituall truths is not, which may reveale to the ſoule the way of grace, and the meanes how to get it.

I take it, that theſe three things muſt bee… ſome meaſure apprehended of every man that hath any faith:

Firſt, he muſt have a through knowledge of … ſinne, and of the want of faith, and of Chriſt, and all.

Secondly, he muſt have the knowledge of the excellencie and goodneſſe of a Chriſt, which hee wants, and he muſt know the Lord Jeſus Chriſt, and the good things in the Lord Jeſus Chriſt, p. 459which the ſoule now informed of ſinne, and feeling himſelfe loſt, he findes a ſupply there.

Againe, he muſt be thorowly informed in the way, how he may come to Chriſt.

All theſe three muſt be, and are learned of every faithfull ſoule that ever did or ever ſhall beleeve; for that which a man ſees not, nor knowes not of, he can never beleeve, and when a man knowes not the excellency and goodneſſe of Chriſt, he will not rely his whole life and ſalvation upon him, ſpecially if he be wiſe and judicious, and fai…h is a judicious grace: They that know thy Name, will truſt in thee, ſaith David; and therefore thoſe that know not Gods Name, cannot truſt in him, and therefore ſee what Chriſt ſaith …o the woman of Samaria, Iohn 4.10. A ſilly woman ſhe was, and therefore ſee what our Saviour ſaith to her; thou poore ſilly creature, that ignorance of thine is the cauſe of thy pride; for hadſt thou knowne the gift of God, and who it is, that ſaith unto thee, give me drinke, thou wouldſt have asked of him, and he would have given thee water of life: had ſhe knowne this, ſhee would have asked it; it is ſuch a knowledge as will bring in faith. You that are ignorant, be humbled for this great ſinne of yours which doth barre out faith: you that know not Chriſt, though you meet him. Looke as it is with men in darkneſſe, Exodus 10.23. When the Lord ſent that plague of darkneſſe upon the land of Egypt, the Egyptians ſaw not one another, neither did any man remove from his place for three dayes, there was no paſſage all that while: ſo it is with an ignorant p. 450man that ſits in Egyptian darkneſſe, hee ſe…s not the way, nor he cannot finde it, nor hee hath no power to goe on in it; he ſits ſtill, and yonder is Chriſt and grace, but he cannot ſtirre one foot, for hee is faſtned to his ſinne, and riveted to his corruptions, by reaſon of his blindneſſe: See what the Apoſtle ſaith, Epheſ. 4.18. They were ignorant of the life of God: from all that goodneſſe and holineſſe that is in God, for that is Gods life, his mercy, goodneſſe, wiſedome, holineſſe, &c. but how came they ſo? through the ignorance that is in them: you that know how ignorant your husbands are at home, and how ignorant your children are, goe home and mourne for your ſelves and them, and ſay, wee are ſtrangers from God; there is a great deale of mercy and grace in Chriſt, but wee are all ſtrangers to it; why? becauſe we are carnally ignorant, wee are a thouſand miles off from him, and wee ſhall never have any part in him, continuing thus: you that are thus, be humbled and aſhamed of it, & give no reſt to your ſoules, before the Lord awaken you, and let you ſee the want of this bleſſed grace, and make you labour to get it: an ignorant heart is a wicked heart, and if you be ignorant, it is certain you have no faith; for except you will deny the Word of God, you cannot but confeſſe it.

Sort. 2 The ſecond ſort to be reproved, are the carnall Goſpellers, which live ſcandalouſly, and live and trade in their wickedneſſe, they come and heare ſometimes, and they thinke that God is much beholden to them for it, one man will ſweare, and p. 451another will be tipſee in a corner, and beare ſome good will to the truth, but fall off groſly; another cheats, and couſens, and keeps falſe balances, and yet profeſſeth the Goſpel, and thinks it a high diſhonour, if hee be not reſpected; now though theſe will come to the meanes of grace, yet if the word of God doe but reveale theſe mens ſinnes, and ſharpen a reproofe againſt them, and come ſomewhat keenly upon their conſcience, they are all up in armes, and make defiance for their ſinnes, and their great Diana of Epheſus is like to fall, and they will rather part with Chriſt, and Goſpell, and all, than with their luſts; theſe men thinke they have merciemercy in a ſtring, and Chriſt at command, and power to beleeve, and you cannot perſwade them that they doe not beleeve: What? a ſwearing faith? and a cheating faith? and a drunken faith? the Lord keepe mee and all Gods people from it: you cannot perſwade them, but that they beleeve in a Saviour, and Chriſt muſt ſave them: this Doctrine will daſh all their vaine hopes, they that beleeve, will ſubmit to the Spirit of grace; they that beleeve, are effectually perſwaded by the Spirit of the Father, in the promiſe, and they are pluckt away from their luſts and corruptions; but theſe take up armes, and are in open defiance for their ſins; they that beleeve are humbled, for faith will not grow, but in a heart that is humbled and contented to part with ſinne, and ſelfe, and all; but theſe keepe both ſinne, and ſelfe, and all: they that have faith, reſt upon the freeneſſe of Gods p. 452grace, and depart from their corruptions, and only cleave unto, and reſt upon Chriſt; but theſe reſt upon their corruptions, and goe from God, and Chriſt, and grace: few of theſe people come into the congregation; but if there be ſuch a fellow here this day, Oh that God would meet with him, and let him ſee that he hath no faith; What, thou faith? faith comes by hearing and not by reſiſting; faith comes by yeelding and ſubmitting to the Spirit in the word, and not by oppoſing it: therefore know, that faith never came in that wretched heart of thine; 1 Iohn 3.6. Whoſoever ſinneth, hath not knowne him, nor ſeene him; and in the 8. verſe, Hee that committeth ſinne, is of the Devill; that is, hee that makes a daily trade of ſinne, and whoſe occupation is nothing elſe but rebellion, he that committeth drunkenneſſe, and adultery, and makes a trade of them, ſhall never ſee God, nay, he is the childe of the Devill; but he that beleeves, is not the childe of the Devill, all the world knowes that; now if thou trade thus in ſinne, thou art the childe of the Devill, and therefore never hadſt faith; and continuing thus, thou ſhalt never have it; Iohn 5.44. How can you beleeve, ſaith our Saviour, which ſeeke honour one of another, and ſeeke not the honour that commeth of God? ſo ſay thou to thy owne ſoule, how can I beleeve, and yet harbour my luſts, and attend to them, and doe not yeeld to the truth of God revealed, and made knowne to mee? mee thinkes theſe owles ſhould not abide the light of the ſunne: brethren, all that we intend towards you; p. 453it is, that you may ſee ſinne, and what merciemercy wee deſire for our owne ſoules, the ſame wee deſire for you; but you muſt ſee your want of faith, before you can know the way to get faith: therefore ſuffer us to trade freely with you.

Oh, get you home and howle you drunkards, and ſwearers, and enemies of God, and of his grace; get you apart as the leper did, and cry, I am uncleane, I am uncleane: Oh that the Lord would worke upon thy conſcience, and make this truth good to thy ſoule this day; get you now into your corners, and there cry and ſay, I have an unbeleeving husband; you wives joyne with your husbands, and cry with your children, and ſay, we are all unbeleevers, and he that beleeveth not, is condemned already. Now if any cavill be caſt in upon thee, and if the devill would make thee preſume, and if ſome carnall friends come to thee, and ſay, if you beleeve the Miniſter, he will make you goe out of your wits, and no man muſt have faith, but they that are of his ſect: therefore ſay, as it is ſpoken of Eſau, Hebr. 12.16. He ſold his birth-right for a few pottage; and ſo Iudas, he ſold Chriſt for thirty peeces of ſilver: ſo when the devill would caſt in ſome temptations, and make you to preſume, reaſon thus with thy owne heart, and ſay, Eſau ſold Chriſt, and Heaven, and Grace, and all for a few pottage, and Iudas was a wretch, and is now in Hell this day, and as his heart was full of covetouſneſſe here, ſo it is full of horrour in hell; but I have ſold Chriſt for a baſe luſt, and for my pride and envy, and abominable p. 454luſts, and drunkenneſſe, which I get nothing by: What, I faith? nay the devils have as much faith as I have. When Pilate ſaid to the Jewes, whether will you that … let looſe to you, Barrabas or Ieſus which is called Chriſt; they ſaid, not Chriſt, but Barrabas: did they beleeve in Chriſt, which would have a wretch and a murtherer before Chriſt? let your conſciences ſpeak… plainly, nay they loathed, and crucified Chriſt, and did not beleeve in him: thou ſaiſt true, thou that doſt refuſe the Lord Chriſt, and chuſeſt thy murther, and pride, and ſpleene, and envy, and all, doſt thou embrace a Chriſt and reſt upon him? the Lord perſwade your hearts, and make you know that you are theſe carnall Goſpellers, and ſuch as have no faith: You that have beene brethren in iniquity, and you that have beene drunke together, and adulterous together, if any of you have hearts to pray, goe and pray together, and if you cannot pray, then cry together, and ſay, wee are theſe carnall Goſpellers, and theſe ignorant perſons that have no faith: If any of you have more gifts than others, goe and pray for poore drunkards, and ſay, Good Lord, we have beene led by our luſts, and have made a trade of ſinne, and to this day we have no faith. Oh goe home, and as you have beene ſinfull together, ſo howle together; who knowes but the Lord may be gracious to you? If the Lord would but give you one dramme of faith, it would ſave you from all that drunkenneſſe and adultery of yours, is it not worthy the having? Oh, ſtirre, ſtirre, for the p. 455Lords ſake; and as you have provoked one another to ſinne and wickedneſſe, ſo now provoke one another to goodneſſe, and goe ſeeke God one for another, and every morning and evening pray for thoſe ſinfull ſoules of yours, that have beene polluted by others, and never reſt till you get this bleſſed grace of faith, that you may bee happy by it for ever.

Sort. 3 The third ſort which we will meddle withall and diſcover that have no part in this ſaving faith, are the meere civilized and ſeemingly judicious profeſſors, ſuch as beare up themſelves marvellous comfortably upon their owne wiſedome and judgement; howſoever theſe have a name, yet it is but a name and no more: and for this man, that we may diſcover him, and that he may know himſelfe, we will doe it in three things:

1Firſt, I will ſhew him in his faſhion.

2Secondly, wherein his falſeneſſe doth appeare, and wherein he falls ſhort.

3Thirdly, wherein hee diſcovers himſelfe to fall ſhort.

1Firſt, he is a man that will deale very honeſtly and fairely betweene man and man; hee is not ſcandalous in his practices, hee is a man of good parts, and deepe underſtanding, and deepe reach, if you will beleeve him, and he exceeds the moſt, nay even the beſt in his private paines; he is very ſtudious and reads much, and can remember well, and can expreſſe himſelfe marvellous well, and ſo will carry all before him; nay this man is ſo lifted p. 456up in his imagination, that hee could almoſt undertake to teach Miniſters how to preach, if any man out of weakneſſe would condeſcend to him: but if you follow him home to his family, there he prayes but once a weeke, and if miſery, and ſorrow, and affliction come, then haply hee can pray twice, unleſſe ſome carnall baſe friend come into his family, which haply would ſcorne him and his profeſſion, then he prayes once, and ſcarcely that, becauſe hee would not offend his friend: and hence it is that poore people make this man an oracle, and this mans words, and judgement, and determinations, they are of great weight: and if a poore ſoule which can dive deeply into his owne heart, comes and queſtions his faith, and to make ſome doubt of his graces, all is in an uproare preſently; what, ſay they, ſuch a man have no faith? the Lord be mercifull to us then: if a man of ſuch judgement and parts hath no faith, then what ſhall become of us? this mans words caſt the ballance any way, and his words are of great weight amongſt the vulgar ſort of people: and hence it is that the poore ignorant creatures beare up themſelves upon this mans judgement, and ſay they, for a man to pray twice a day, it is not required, and it is more than is needfull; and if a man have a minde to ſtay at home, may hee not read the Word in his owne houſe, and get as much good by it, as by going to Church? wiſer than wee thinke ſo; and if it were not ſo, doe you thinke ſuch a man would profeſſe it, a man of parts and good judgement; p. 457and many times Gods owne ſervants, out of the ſight of their owne weakneſſe, and the diſcouragements of their owne heart; and when they ſee themſelves ſo farre outbidden by their parts, then they have ſuch a one in a high account, and preferre him above themſelves by many degrees: now ſee the guiſe of this man; hence it is that this man falls in love with himſelfe, and is lifted up into a fooles paradiſe, and he begins to admire at himſelfe, and for any matter of faith, hee doth not queſtion it, what a man of ſuch wiſedome, and ſuch underſtanding, what not he faith? he makes no queſtion, hee cannot miſſe of faith, and ſo he goes away comfortably and contentedly: thus you ſee the faith of this man.

2Secondly, wee come to view and to ſee where he falls ſhort, now you ſee him: Oh, that the Lord would make him ſee himſelfe, and brethren obſerve thus much; few of theſe men are ever brought home by the powerfull preaching of the Goſpell; and the reaſon is, becauſe their owne wiſedome is beyond the miniſtery of the Word, and they ſay, ſuch a Miniſter is a good Scholer; but had hee that wiſedome, and thoſe parts, and the like: thus they reare up bulwarkes againſt the Word of truth, that it ſinkes not into their hearts; therefore to make this man knowne to himſelfe, obſerve thus much in the generall, the baſeneſſe of this mans faith, (for it is no better, but that he is deluded that he cannot ſee it) it diſcovers it ſelfe thus: it is bred in his bookes, and in his judgement, and goes no further, and it is far p. 458from ſaving faith: therefore that the inditement may lie cleare, and that we may outbid him in his booke learning and all, know thus much, the maine ground of this mans miſtake may be diſcovered thus: there are two things in the nature of faith: Firſt, illumination: Secondly, application, as wee tearme it; illumination not onelyonly is, when a man hath the common rumours, and intimations of the truths of God, in the Goſpell, and knowes the reaſon of the texts, and the meaning of the ſcriptures, this the reprobate may have, and this he hath; but there is alſo an operation of the Spirit upon the affections, and then there comes an application, wherein the ſoule goes out to the promiſe, and takes that for his good, which is thereunto appointed: now obſerve this judicious man, hee hath a generall apprehenſion of the truths of the Goſpell; but as for that ſpeciall working upon the will, and to enter in upon the promiſes of God, and to have the ſap and ſweet of theſe, and to goe out to Chriſt, and to take all from Chriſt, he is a ſtranger to this, and it goes beyond all his booke learning; and hence it is that when the Miniſter comes to handle theſe points, he ſaith the Miniſter was ſomething confuſed to day; and the reaſon why he faith ſo, it is becauſe hee did not underſtand them; theſe men are ignorant in the ſpirituall turnings of the heart, Iohn 3.8, 9. when Chriſt came to teach Nicodemus, he was at a loſſe, and thought that Chriſt ſpoke without booke: therefore Chriſt reads the lecture againe and ſaith, I ſpeake of the ſpirituall worke, p. 459that which is borne of the fleſh is fleſh, and that which is borne of the Spirit is Spirit: Oh, ſaith he, how can theſe things be? he could not gainſay Chriſt, and yet becauſe hee could not underſtand it, therefore hee would not yeeld: ſo it is with this man, it befalls this man as it is with ſome wiſe Lawyer, hee reads over a mans writings and the leaſes, and hee rehearſeth the tenour upon which the lands are holden, and what right the man hath to them, hee layes open all the queſtions of the law, and he reads his name in the will, and yet he never reads his owne name there, nor any right that he hath to them: Juſt ſo it is with this judicious profeſſor, he is able to diſpute of the maine points of the Goſpell, and ſhewes that others have right to them, and he reads the writings, but never comes to partake of them himſelfe; as it was with the wiſe men that came to inquire for Chriſt, Matth. 2.1, 2. verſes, the Scribes and Phariſees could tell you where Chriſt was to bee borne, and bid the wiſe men goe to Bethlem, but they would not goe themſelves: ſo theſe men have wiſedome enough to ſay, here is the way to Heaven; but their owne hearts are not humbled nor framed to walke in that way, and to goe home to Chriſt, nor to receive mercy from him. Know therefore you that are weake, that beleeving carries two things with it in the phraſe of Scripture: Firſt, the aſſent of a mans judgement to the truth, when a man is ſo farre convinced that hee ſits downe, and acknowledgeth that whatſoever the Word hath revealed, his judgement p. 460ſaith it is all true, and yeelds fully with the whole ſtreame of his minde, this is that which the Scripture ſometimes calls beleeving, and it is nothing but the bare aſſent to the truth, ſaying it is ſo.

Secondly, when the will embraceth that good in the promiſe formerly revealed, when the will of a man claimes Gods Statutes, and caſts his heart and hope upon the goodneſſe of the promiſe. Now the judicious profeſſour hath faith in the firſt ſenſe, hee aſſents to all the truths of the Scriptures, and acknowledgeth that they are true; the devills in hell have this faith too, and all that have no more than this faith, ſhall goe to the devill too, as Iames 2.19. in the 14. verſe, the Apoſtle ſaith, if a man ſay hee hath faith, and hath not workes, will that profit him: and in the 19. verſe; thou beleeveſt there is one God, thou doſt well, the devils alſo beleeve and tremble; that is, they aſſent to all the truths of Scripture that God reveals, and this is the beleeving of this great man which wee have diſcovered in his faſhion, when a man can dive deepe into the Scriptures, and underſtand all the texts, and unty every knot, and diſpute all queſtions, and is able to judge of the reaſons of them, is this thy faith? the devill himſelfe will outbid this faith: If cunning, and judgement, and knowledge be thy faith, the devils have this faith, they know the Lord Jeſus Chriſt is the Sonne of the moſt high God, they know that the mercy of the Lord Chriſt is great, and that they ſhall never taſte of it; they know p. 461that the Lord Jeſus ſhall bee the Judge of all the world, and that hee ſhall condemne them, they aſſent to it, and tremble at it. Marke 5.8. when our Saviour came amongſt the devils, they ſaid, We know thee who thou art, even the holy one of God; and Acts 16.17. there was a Devill in a woman, which was a Diviner and a Witch, and ſhe ſaid, Theſe men are the ſervants of the living God, which ſhew unto us the way of ſalvation; it was the Devill in the woman, therefore the Apoſtle bad him goe out of her, becauſe he hindered their worke: I wiſh that the Devils in hell might not riſe up in judgement againſt many of our unbeleevers, which will not yeeld to the truth of God; this is the bottome which beares up that kinde of boldneſſe, which many carnall creatures have upon their death-beds, which never had the power of grace in their ſoules. Come to a carnall man that knowes nothing ſavingly and ſanctifyingly, and he will ſay, I beleeve in the Lord Jeſus Chriſt with all my heart, I have admired at it, and ſought to know the bottome of it, and it is this, they thinke this is beleeving, to acknowledge that Jeſus Chriſt is come into the world, and that they are not infidels, they aſſent unto the truth, and yeeld unto it; in their judgements they thinke this is faith, and that it is ſufficient too: Oh you poore creatures that have your friends, or parents, or husbands, that thus lay hold upon Chriſt, and are perſwaded that this is faith; underſtand what the meaning is, they only aſſent to the truth, but never make application to their owne ſoules. p. 462Whats that to thee that thou knoweſt the way to life and ſalvation, and never walkeſt in it? and whats that to thee, to heare that the Lord Chriſt came to ſave ſinners, and to know that there is merciemercy enough in him, and yet never partake of it?

3Thirdly, I come to the evidences, which make it cleare to us, that he hath no more than this, and thoſe evidences are two:

1Firſt, you ſhall finde this man paſt feare, and almoſt careleſſe, but he is without doubt of the difficultie, either of getting or maintaining his faith; hee never comes to queſtion whether hee hath faith or no, and he accounts them ſilly Chriſtians, that are ſo daily troubled and diſquieted for their eſtates, whereas he carries the matter very confidently, and ſcarcely lookes after it, but beares it out with marvellous boldneſſe and confidence, which in truth is an undoubted argument, that this man never knew what this faith was, our Saviour ſaith, Strive to enter in at the ſtraight gate, for the gate is narrow that leadeth to life, and few there are that finde it; and ſo the Apoſtle, 2 Pet. 1.5. Give all diligence to make your calling and election ſure; yet this man makes it a matter of nothing; nay, when many ſeeke and labour, and take much paines, and never attaine it, by reaſon of their former ſtrength of it, as Prov. 1.28. They ſhall call upon me, but I will not anſwer; they ſhall ſeeke mee early, but they ſhall not finde mee; yet this man thinks to have it with a wet finger: that faith which is wrought by the Spirit of God in the p. 463ſoule, and is thereby kept, it hath daily oppoſition in the ſoule, ſo that every godly man that hath faith, he muſt fight againſt the Devill, and all enemies and oppoſitions, yet this man never comes to blowes, the Lord Chriſt found it thus by experience, and thus the Apoſtles and the Saints of God found it, yet this man hath found out a ſhorter cut, and an eaſier way to heaven, and he is not aſhamed to confeſſe it, and ſay, If a man were exerciſed in the word, and if men had but his skill, and were but trained up in his ſchoole, it were not ſuch a hard matter to get faith, and ſo it is true, for they may eaſily get that faith which thou haſt.

2Secondly, follow this man home, and cloſe with him in his private chamber and attend upon him in his other occaſions, and there he hath no power of godlineſſe in his life, he hath practice without any pith, and a courſe without any kernell, and hee performes ſuperficiall duties without any ſtrength; all his duties are as dry as a chip, only he carries all out with this, he is wiſe, and learned, and judicious, and this anſwers all; if hee doe omit or neglect duties, and doe them careleſly, this comforts him, that hee is a judicious man: it is certaine this man wants that grace, which he ſeemes to have, hee that hath ſo much faith without wavering, muſt needs have his converſation anſwerable, he that hath ſo much faith in his heart, muſt needs have a gracious and a godly life; if a man have much ſap within, and no ſigne of it without, it is certaine it is no true faith, as it is p. 464with a tree, the tree that hath much ſap in the root, will have much fruit in the branches, and the more ſap it hath, the more fruit it will have: looke as it is with the floud-gates, the wider the ſloud-gate is, the greater is the ſtreame which comes thorow it; ſo were thy faith the faith of Gods elect, then the more faith a man had to lay hold upon the Lord Jeſus Chriſt, the more ſap and grace he would receive from Chriſt, and the greater would be the ſtreame of grace that would run out in all holy obedience, to the Lord Jeſus Chriſt; but when a man brags that he hath much faith within, yet if his converſation be without pith and ſavour, it is nothing but a conceit, and an apprehenſion; as for the power of Chriſt, and the life of Chriſt, this man never knew it, nor never had it.

The fourth and laſt ſort is the counterfeit, that hath a forged kinde of faith, in ſuch a manner, that they will ſometimes bee ready to couzen a holy judicious man, and themſelves too; they exceed all the former, and there is no diſputing of the difference betweene thoſe two that are paſt, and this man that followes; I told you that hee was a Chynicall, and an Alcumie man, and one that hath ſomething to ſay for himſelfe; hee hath the picture of faith drawne marvellous curiouſly, and he hath the appearance of ſome plea for himſelfe, and he hath the reſemblance of this bleſſed worke, and that prettie lively too: of theſe there are three ſorts; one exceeds the other in degrees, and yet all fals ſhort of this bleſſed work of faith:

p. 465Firſt, the temporarie beleever, wee take him as the loweſt forme; a man is called a temporary bleever, that beleeveth for a time, and is hot at firſt hand, and admirable fierce in the purſuit of the truth, for the preſent puſh, but hee ſlides off, and goes away, and you ſhall ſee him no more; now that wee may deale home in the buſineſſe, for hee that will ſearch in a narrow caſe, cannot doe it ſuddenly: therefore ſuffer mee to lay this man open in three particulars: Firſt, we will give him audience, and heare what he can ſay for himſelfe; hee ſhall come as it were into the open court, and plead his owne cauſe. Secondly, I will ſhew where he failes. Thirdly, give you the reaſons why he fals ſhort.

For the firſt, he ſhall diſcover it himſelfe.

And for the ſecond, the word ſhall lay it open.

And for the third, I will ſhew you, how, and what he is.

For the firſt of theſe, let the temporary ſpeake in his owne language, and put his plea in his owne behalfe, and give him but a faire hearing, and you ſhall have thus much of him; hee profeſſeth clearly, that hee hath not onelyonly, as the judicious man had, an apprehenſion of the truth onelyonly, and an aſſent that the Scriptures are cleare and true; but hee ſaith thus much, that his affections are carried on in a kinde of longing after it, and they are taken aſide, and ſtirred by the Word of the Lord, and both his heart and affections have a relliſh of the goodneſſe of Gods word; this is his profeſſion, and he will make it good to you too; p. 464duplicate page p. 465duplicate page p. 466this comes ſomething neere faith, and there is ſome colour for him to plead, that hee hath ſome confidence in God; there are three things in Scripture that he ſaith for himſelfe, as Luke 8.13. the ſtony ground there is the temporarie, and the text ſaith two things of him, That he receives the word with joy, and beleeveth for a time; theſe two things are there averred, and are in the heart of this man; the receiving of the word with joy, is the tickling of the affections, with the apprehenſion of the ſweetneſſe of the truth; and his beleeving, is not onelyonly a bare aſſent to the truth, but a worke of the will in a kinde of hourlineſſe in application; theſe fall ſhort of the ſpirituall worke, namely thus, when the treaſures of wiſdome and holineſſe are laid open before the ſoule of a poore ſinner, and when the unſearchable riches of Gods love in Chriſt are let in, and come home to the heart of a ſtony ground hearer, the will is tickled therewith, and his inward man is ſtirred, and bedewed hourely with the ſweetneſſe thereof, this is the beleeving for a time; Iohn 15.35. our Saviour ſaith, Iohn was a burning and a ſhining light, and you were willing for a ſeaſon to have rejoyced in his light; one man that is at a loſſe, and out of his way, or another that is benummed and ſet with cold, the one ſeeth the fire, and is content to come to it to warme himſelfe, but when it burns him, away goes he; ſo they delighted in the miniſtery of Iohn, and it was pretty good while it was new, but when it begun to ſcorch, then they would heare him no more: thus it p. 467was with thoſe temporaries that flew off from Chriſt, Iohn 6.34. when Chriſt told them, that Moſes gave them not that bread from heaven, but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven, for the true bread is hee which came downe from heaven; and giveth life to the world, and they ſaid, Lord evermore give us this bread; but they that would ever have of this bread, they ſoone after vomitted him up againe, and ſaid, This is an hard ſaying, who can beare it? the ſecond inſtance of Scripture is this, Heb. 6.4, 5. It is impoſſible for thoſe that were once inlightened, and have taſted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the holy Ghoſt, and have taſted of the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, &c. this is ſuch a kinde of taſte, as may be and is in ſuch a man, as ſhall never have ſhare in life and ſalvation; as the Apoſtle afterwards makes it cleare, the heavenly gift is the grace of faith, and the good word of the Lord, is the goodneſſe of the word; I will open my ſelfe thus, obſerve that this taſte cannot be the taſte of the underſtanding properly, for if hee were once inlightened, and hath taſted, ſaith the text, to ſay, inlightened, and inlightened is without ſenſe, and makes a kinde of unreaſonableneſſe in the diſpute of the Apoſtle, and therefore it is ſomething more than the work of judging and aſſenting.

Secondly, it is not the diſgeſting of the heavenly gift, for this man hath onelyonly the taſte of the heavenly gift, now a man may taſte of a precious liquor, and a man may ſip of a cordiall, that hath no power to make perfect uſe of it.

p. 468Againe, thirdly, it is a worke and ſtroke of the will and affections: here you may ſee the carnall hypocrite even almoſt at heaven, and yet he fals ſhort, and when he is in hell, he ſhall ſay, I had thought I was in heaven, and yet becauſe I have no faith, I am now caſt downe to hell; it is thus much, when the Lord lets in a glimpſe of the exelencie of the grace of faith, and the glory of heaven, and the ſweetneſſe of the pardon of all the ſinnes of the faithfull, and the Lord lets in a glimpſe of all theſe, which goes home to the top of the affections, and will that the Lord by a ſpirituall kinde of flaſh, ſuddenly paſſeth by the will, ſo that he leaves ſome kinde of dew, and ſome remembrance of thoſe glorious things, which are thus let in upon the minde of a poore ſinner, inſomuch that his heart is marvellouſly tickled and raviſhed with it: I expreſſe it thus; as it is with the water in a ſtanding poole, and the water that runneth through a pipe; the ſtanding water ſoakes and goes down-ward, and ſettles inwardly in the earth, but the water that paſſeth by ſuddenly, leaves only a little dew behinde it, but ſoakes not at all; ſo it is with this temporary beleever, the ſtreame of the heavenly truths of the Doctrine of Chriſt paſſeth by ſuddenly, as namely, that Jeſus Chriſt came into the world to ſave ſinners, and that Chriſt came to take away the iniquitie of his ſervant, this doth paſſe by ſuddenly, and leaves a little dew behinde it; ſo that he ſaith, Oh this is good, this is ſweet! I may be ſaved too, may I not? Oh I never heard a man ſpeake ſo comfortably: p. 469this word bedewes the heart a little, but it ſoakes not downe, it goes not to the root of the ſoule, & therefore obſerve it: this is a work which the hypocrite may have, only obſerve thus much; he ſips of grace and ſalvation, and makes a meale of his corruptions; but the gracious man onelyonly ſips of his corruptions, and makes a meale of grace, of holines, & mercy in Chriſt, Looke as it is with ſeed that is caſt into the wombe of a woman, the ſeed is enough to beget ſome fruit; but if the wombe be a miſcarrying wombe, it comes to nothing: ſo it is betweene the ſtirring of the Word in the heart of a poore Saint, and in the heart of an Hypocrite; the Spirit of the Lord workes in the heart of a Hypocrite by the Word, and is able to moyſten him; but the heart miſcarries in the worke, and reſiſts, and gainſayes, and never comes to any good, hee never comes to bee a faithfull man rightly proportioned, whereas the ſame Spirit of God, working rightly upon the heart of a beleever, it makes him a very proportionable Chriſtian, the other remaining but a confuſed lumpe. Now ſee what this man may doe when he comes to this, let him bee thus bedewed with this taſte of the excellency of faith, and never have faith ſtrengthned and rooted in him, yet hee will bee very eager in the purſuit of the Word, and marvellous conſtant in attending upon the Word, becauſe it is his delight, and hee will bee marvellous painfull to get the Word; for a man will doe any thing to get his delight, and he may bee angry with ſuch as would hinder him in the p. 470purſuit of the Goſpell, which is his delight; this a man may doe, and yet all come to nothing, and ſo may periſh everlaſtingly; for looke what joy and delight will doe for a puſh, the ſame a carnall temporary may doe. But that this man will doe all this it is plaine; of this kinde was Balaam that wretched man, of whom you may ſee divers paſſages in the 23. 24. chapters of Numbers: hee was a witch, as Divines hold, and hee was going to curſe the people of God; but the Lord ſtopt him, and how did he it? why, he let him ſee the excellency of the condition of the Saints of God, and ſaid, Oh thou wretched man, loe there and behold the happy condition of my people, and ſee all the good that I have given them, and wilt thou curſe thoſe that I love ſo dearly? Now ſee how he was taken up with it; Oh that I might die the death of the righteous! this was a glimpſe of the glory that was let in upon him, to ſtop him and to awe his heart, yet hee returned to his old byas againe: the third Scripture is in Matthew 25.8. I know Interpreters vary in it, but I will be bold to ſuggeſt what I thinke; the five fooliſh virgins ſaid, give us of your oyle, for our lampes are gone out: they had lamps but no oyle, how could they kindle their lamps except they had oyle? they had a little oyle in their lampes, but none in their veſſels; their lampes was their excellent and glorious profeſſion, and the oyle which they had was nothing but the taſte of the heavenly gift, they had ſo much ſtirring of the will and affections as might carry them on to profeſſe the truth, but they had not oyle in their p. 471veſſels which might ſink downe into their hearts, to ſubdue their corruptions, and to quicken up their grace, they had not this power to frame their hearts ſtrongly towards the Lord, and to feed their profeſſion with conſtancy and perſeverance to the end: ſo that you ſee what hee can ſay for himſelfe; and me thinkes he ſpeakes marvellous probably: The Lord bee mercifull to us, if a man goe thus farre, and come to nothing, it is wonderfull, he is farre beyond the judicious profeſſor: Oh, ſaith he, I had a relliſh of the ſweetneſſe of the good Word of God, and a taſte of the heavenly gift, and my heart was raviſhed with the ſight of the glory of it, and I could even have gone to Heaven; now you ſee the beſt of him.

2But now ſecondly, what is the falſeneſſe of this man, and wherein is his failing, and why: where he falls ſhort of faith, and what it is that would make him an honeſt man: Now the ſecond thing is this, that notwithſtanding the ſudden puſh of this man, hee will wither and will turne his backe upon the truth, and commonly he is an enemy to that truth to which his love was carried, and which was his chiefe delight; and this hee doth upon theſe two grounds commonly.

Firſt, when he ſe…th the bitterneſſe, and miſery, and affliction, and vexation that accompanies the Word, hee is weary of the Word rather than he will beare thoſe afflictions that doe accompany the Word; he will follow our Saviour no longer than proſperity follow him: for he will rather p. 472forſake Chriſt, than to forgoe theſe: hee was made a profeſſour all upon a ſudden, and hee receives the Word ſuddenly with joy, when hee heares of the glorious grace and mercy of God, he faith, Oh, that Jeſus Chriſt ſhould come from Heaven to ſave ſinners, and to wait upon poore drunkards, and adulterers, and vilde wretches: Oh ſweet and admirable mercy, ſaith hee, and ſo all upon a ſudden he turnes Chriſtian and Profeſſour; but if afflictions and trouble come for the truth, then hee turnes off all, Chriſt, and truth, and his profeſſion and all: Oh ſaith he, I have heard of much comfort and peace, and that the Lord would be good to his, and would ſave and deliver thoſe that truſt in him: you told me ſo, did you not? Had you told me of ſhame and diſgrace, and miſeries which I now finde, I could have told how to anſwer you, and how to order all my occaſions; when the Sunne riſeth hot upon him, and troubles and afflictions befall him, then hee leaves Chriſt Jeſus and all, rather than hee will part with his comforts and eaſe, and the like: thus it is in Matthew 8.19. A certaine Scribe ſeeing Chriſt like to prove a great man, and thinking to have a good booty out of him, he ſaid, I will follow thee whither ſoever thou goeſt: he thought Chriſt would bee preferred, and if I can but get under his wings, I ſhall be a made man for ever. Take heed what thou doſt, ſaith our Saviour, if thou wilt follow mee, thou muſt take all miſeries that come: I have not a bed for my ſelfe, and therefore if thou want one, thou muſt be content: The p. 473Foxes have holes, and the Fowles of the aire have neſts, but the Sonne of man hath not whereon to lay his head: ſo hee was gone, and wee heare no more of him.

The ſecond ground upon which he commonly departs is this; when the good Word of the Lord comes home cloſe to his heart, and reads the blacke ſide as well as the white ſide; when the Word of God purſues him home to his conſcience, and ſhewes his ſinnes, and diſcovers his baſe practices, and tells him thus; it is true there is mercy and ſalvation enough to be had in Chriſt, but there is none for ſuch as will not part with all for Chriſt, nor for thoſe that will not loſe all to finde and entertaine Chriſt. Now when the Miniſter comes to ſhake this mans hold, and to tell him, you follow after Chriſt for the loaves, your profeſſion is faire, but your heart is naught; there is no ſound worke nor ſaving grace wrought, all that you have done is loſt and come to nothing; then hee is profeſly at daggers drawing with the truth of Chriſt, and ſaith, what is it all come to this? This man doth not preach as hee was wont to doe; what mercy was he wont to diſcover, and what conſolations would hee reveale to all the poore ſervants of God? he preacheth now as if he would vex men, and not comfort them: as Iohn 6.34. The Diſciples were very deſirous to have their meat dreſt for them; and Chriſt ſaith to them, I will doe it for you; the bread of God is he which commeth downe from Heaven, and giveth life unto the world; Oh, ſaid they, Lord evermore p. 474give us of this bread; well, ſaith Chriſt, you ſhall have enough of it, I am that bread of life, hee that commeth to me ſhall never hunger, and he that beleeveth in me, ſhall never thirſt; he that eateth my fleſh ſhall never hunger: the fleſh profiteth nothing the words that I ſpeake, they are Spirit and they are Life; this muſt be done by faith ſpiritually: now marke theſe men in the 60. verſe, they fall to open quarrelling and oppoſing; this is an hard ſaying, who can beare it? as if hee had ſaid, you deſired evermore to have of this bread, but you muſt bee humble and feed upon me by faith, and lay downe all confidence in parts and gifts: Oh, then they loathed this bread, and care not for it, it will not downe; this is bread that no man can digeſt; what, thus holy and thus heavenly minded, to man can endure it: So from that day forward they went away. So Gal. 4.15, 16. the Galathians there did entertaine the Word of the Lord marvellous contentedly, and their hearts were raviſhed therewith, inſomuch that they could have beene even content to pluck out their eyes to doe the Apoſtle good, and yet preſently after, they would have pluckt the ſoule from his body, and all this was becauſe hee would not dally with them, nor nouriſh them in their ſinnes, but ſpoke the truth which would have pluckt away their corruptions from them. When the Prophet came to the widowes houſe, and bade her take meale out of the barrell, and draw oyle out of the cruiſe, all the while that this laſted he was welcome; but when the childe died, ſhe ſaith, Oh, thou man of God, art p. 475thou come to call my ſinnes to remembrance by ſlaying my ſonne? when ſhee conceived that he had ſeene her ſinnes, ſhee falls out with him: ſo it is with this temporary beleever; all the while the meale and the oyle continue, and while a Miniſter will tell them of eaſe, and liberty, and proſperity, and preach ſmooth things, and fawne upon them in their baſe diſtempers, and daube them up, all this while the Miniſters are welcome; but if a man come to ſhake their hypocriſie, and when they begin to ſay, what, a diſſembler and a cheater, and yet a profeſſor; then they ſay, Oh thou man of God, art thou come to ſhake the hold of all the hope we have; wee are not able to endure it: it is knowne by experience that commonly ſuch perſons turne the moſt bitter enemies againſt that truth which formerly they have profeſſed, and ſeemed to love.

3Thirdly, how comes it to paſſe that hee falls ſhort, and what wanted he? you ſee he had ſomething like unto faith; the Saints of God were affected, ſo was he; the Saints of God had ſome taſte of the ſweetneſſe of the Word, ſo had hee; where is the fault then? I anſwer, the failing was in three particulars, and they are very faire and open.

1Firſt, this was the wound of the temporary in his courſe, he received the Word ſuddenly and with joy, and ſo hee came not to the promiſe aright, but came to juſt nothing: for in Gods ordinary courſe of proceeding this is the courſe, p. 476whereas he did receive the Word ſuddenly with joy, he ſhould have received it leaſurely and with ſorrow, as Ier. 50.4. at that time ſaith, the Lord, The Chilren of Iſrael ſhall come, they and the children of Iudah together, going and weeping ſhall they goe and ſeeke the Lord their God, and they ſhall aske the way to Zion with their faces thitherward: If ever you would ſeeke the Lord, and have your faces towards him, you muſt goe weeping and mourning; and this was the way that God led them, and that wiſely too: as Ier. 31.9. They ſhall come weeping and mourning, and with mercy will I bring them: Againe, I will lead them by the rivers of waters, &c. There are even rivers of ſupplications in their mouthes, they powred out their hearts there, and what came afterwards? their hearts were filled with comfort and conſolation, it is that which you ſhall obſerve; the Lord appoints this, and it is the portion which God the great Houſholder of heaven and earth prepares for his; hee prepares it for them, and therefore all you proud and ſtubborne wretches, and unbroken hearts, meddle not you with comfort: firſt he diſcomforted before ever you can bee comforted; as for this temporary beleever, his eyes were never opened convictingly to ſee his ſinnes, and his heart was never burthened with them, nor looſned from them, that ſo the Lord Chriſt and his comforts might be ſetled upon: therefore in Hoſea 2.14. I will allure her and bring her into the wilderneſſe, and ſpeake friendly to her; and I will give her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for p. 477the doore of hope; firſt in the wilderneſſe, and then in Canaan; firſt in ſorrow, then in comfort; the valley of Achor is the valley of conſternation, and then the doore of hope, this is the way toward Zion, but this temporary hath invented a new way to Zion, he doth as Ruffians doe, they will goe in the …oad way ſo farre as they finde good way, but when they come into bad way, they breake over hedges, and finde a new way, whether lawfull or unlawfull, they care not; ſo doth this man, he takes his comfort as ſoone as ever it comes, hee ſnatches at all the comforts of the Goſpell, and thinks they are all his owne, and all on the ſudden he is a forward profeſſour at three or foure dayes warning, and his heart ſnatcheth at every Sermon of merciemercy, and he is as good a Chriſtian by and by, as many a poore ſoule which hath tugged hard for it many a yeare, but his conſcience was never awakened, he never felt the burthen of his ſinnes, nor the wrath of God againſt him for his ſinnes: this temporary promiſes to himſelfe nothing but eaſe, and peace, and proſperity, therefore when ſorrowes, and troubles, and miſeries come, he goes away with as much ſpeed as he came, like Ionahs gourd, that came up ſuddenly, and withered as ſuddenly: ſo in the beginning of the yeare hee is a hot profeſſour, and before the fall of the leafe he is gone againe; the wound of this man was this, he wanted the worke of the law, not onelyonly that through-worke of the law, which none ſhall have, but ſuch as have faith, but alſo that legall worke of the law, which ſhould p. 478breake and hammer his heart, this is the ſtonie ground-hearer, he wanted depth of earth; what that was, wee ſhall diſpute anon when occaſion ſerves; the meaning is thus much in the generall; the plow which ſhould have given earth and mould enough, it was the ſharp law, which ſhould have torne up his proud ſturdy rebellious heart all in peeces, but this man never had this worke, and therefore his proud heart beat backe the worke of the promiſe, that it never had roome in his heart; comfort and conſolation will never ſticke nor abide upon a proud heart, nor upon a ſtubborne and unbroken heart, which was yet never broken for ſinne; plaiſters may be made, but they ſhall never finde eaſe and comfort by them as they deſire; you may goe away comforted, and ſay, God is mercifull, and Chriſt is gracious, and he came to ſave ſinners; and though our workes will not juſtifie us, yet the Lord Jeſus Chriſt will ſave us; your plaiſter will not ſticke; thus he failes in the entrance to the promiſe.

Secondly, he failes in his application of the promiſe, for the ground upon which he goes, or the cauſe and reaſon which carries him to roame after the promiſe, it is onelyonly the generall notice of merciemercy, and of the ſalvation that God offers, the glimpſe and the ſhine whereof being let in upon the heart, and paſſing by, jogs the ſoule, and ſo the heart ſnatcheth at it, he comes to heare the abundance of merciemercy, and the rich redemption, and plentifull goodneſſe of Chriſt to pardon all ſinnes, (the ſinne againſt the holy Ghoſt onelyonly p. 479excepted) and the freeneſſe of mercy to all ſorts of ſinners, be they never ſo many for number, never ſo vile for nature; yea, he heareth that there is a fountaine ſet open for all to waſh in; when he heares this, hee ſaith, thats well, then I may come to heaven too, and there is ſome hope that I may receive merciemercy, never conſidereth the condicions upon which God promiſeth, and beſtoweth merciemercy, whereas the man that is a true beleever, hath not only a common kinde of apprehenſion of the merciemercy of God in Chriſt; but he hath a particular application of it; I will open it thus, that every man may take ſomething; the temporarie hath a common hear-ſay of merciemercy, and the common hear-ſay of merciemercy in the bare letter of them, as that Jeſus Chriſt came to ſave ſinners, it is in the bruit of it onelyonly, but the humbled ſoule hath it under the hand of the Spirit, and the Spirit ſeales it, and makes it good to him, the promiſe of life ſlides and paſſeth by the temporary beleever, but now the Spirit of God ſettles it, and it takes a deep and a through impreſſion in the heart of a beleever by application, the Spirit of God only, as it were, jogs the heart of a temporarie beleever, but he ſets it on deeply upon the heart that is humbled and fitted for it, as the Angell ſaid unto Gideon, The Lord is with thee, thou valiant man; ſo the Lord faith to every humbled ſoule; not onelyonly that the Lord is gracious and mercifull, for thus he ſaith to the temporarie beleever, but he is gracious and mercifull to thee, and hee will ſpeake peace and comfort to thee, p. 480which haſt ſpoken trouble and terrour to thine owne heart; as in the 1 Cor. 2.12. Wee have not received the Spirit of the world, but the Spirit which is of God, that we might know the things that are given to us of God; God not only gives us good things, but he hath given his Spirit, that we may know, that it is he which hath given us theſe good things.

3Thirdly, and laſtly, this temporary beleever failes and fals ſhott upon this ground alſo; I told you the ſoule is effectually perſwaded to reſt upon the free grace of God, and to fall into the armes of his merciemercy; now the temporary failes alſo in the worke of relying; that which feeds his hope, and ſtayes his heart, is nothing elſe but the taſte and preſent ſweetneſſe which he had in the promiſe; he relyes upon the taſte and ſenſe which hee had by the ſip of the promiſe; and hence it is, that when the taſte is gone, the ſweetneſſe of the preſent puſh is gone, that then there comes trouble and ſorrow more heavie, and more able to vex him, than all the other was to comfort him; then hee begins to repent him of his match, and thinkes that all his profeſſion will not quit coſt; now when that taſte and that comfort which he had, failes him, and ſorrow and afflictions come and overpowers his ſweetneſſe and comfort, then hee fals away: but a man that hath true ſaving faith, reſts himſelfe not upon the taſte and ſenſe of this good, but upon the goodneſſe of God in the promiſe, and upon the all-ſufficiency of God in the promiſe; he ſeeth more good in the promiſe, than in all the contents of p. 481the world, and hee ſeeth more certainty in the good of the promiſe, than in all the good things here below; and therefore he will rather loſe all than the promiſe, and will rather truſt to the goodneſſe of God in the promiſe, than to any thing elſe beſides; though riches bee never ſo great, and honours never ſo glorious, yet the faithfull ſoule knowes that the world promiſeth much, and performes little, and it couſens us; but the Lord is true in all his promiſes, and what he hath promiſed, the ſoule beleeves: therefore ſaith he, though my ſenſe, and taſte, and all faile, and if many ſorrowes and miſeries come, yet I will reſt upon the promiſe; for there is a greater good in the promiſe, than in all the world beſides: to this I may adde the other, which I call the diſcouraged hypocrite, as there are too many of them in theſe dayes, ſuch as heretofore have carried a faire ſayle in the wayes of godlineſſe; but when his honour and credit dies, hee goes away: ſome have died for griefe, they are all to be referred to this ground; ſo long as the winde laſted he ſtayed it out, but now hee is not able to hold up his head, unleſſe he be lifted up by the chinne, and by the comfort of his profeſſion: but he that is a gracious man, though all the frame of Heaven and Earth ſtagger, yet he is ſupported and beares up himſelfe upon the promiſe, if it bee a ſaving worke: I know he may ſtagger, yet hee recovers himſelfe, and at laſt lifts up himſelfe upon the promiſe. A skilfull ſwimmer uſeth his bladders, but yet if they faile, hee recovers himſelfe upon p. 482the ſtreame, and beares up himſelfe upon that: ſo the gracious heart is content to uſe comforts, and contentments, and whatſoever hee hath to beare him up with more eaſe; yet if all theſe bladders breake, and if all friends, and meanes, and honours goe, and if heaven and ea…th meet together, yet hee is able to caſt himſelfe upon the ſtreame of the promiſe, and ſo to goe on cheerily, as Pſalme 73. the Prophet ſaith, I am thus and thus, the bread of affliction is my meat, and teares are my drinke, and I am buffeted every morning; if the wicked rout and revell it, and have more than their hearts can deſire, then have I waſhed mine hands in vaine, it is better for me to be as they are, than to be as I am; he began to ſtaggar, and he was at a ſtand, yet hee ſaith, God is good to Iſrael, though perſecuted and afflicted, yet God is good to Iſrael: nay, in the 26. verſe he ſaith, My heart had failed, but God is the ſtrength of my heart, and my portion for ever; as if hee had ſaid, the heavens and the earth may haply ſhake and ſhrinke, yet ſo long as God is ſtrong, my heart is ſtrong, and ſo long as he remaines, my comfort will continue even for ever: though a man, eſpecially if he be ingenuous, may ſhrinke under diſgrace, yet hee beares up himſelfe upon the promiſe, and though he loſe his life, yet hee ſhall not loſe a Saviour, therefore he ſtayes himſelfe upon him: thus you ſee where this temporary failes, there is no great matter in him, but that it is ſtange to ſee what a man will doe for a puſh; we leave him, and only intreat the Lord to be mercifull to him, and let him ſee himſelfe; if there p. 483be any of this kinde here this day, doe not goe away, and ſay, to heaven I muſt, all on the ſudden, becauſe I have a little taſte of the word: no, no, thats not the way, it will coſt you dearer than ſo, rather goe and ſee thy ſinnes, and breake thy heart for them, and then there may bee comfort and conſolation for thee: God hath the garment of gladneſſe, but you muſt be in heavineſſe firſt; you may goe on as you are, but then you ſhall never come to happineſſe.

Sort. 2 The ſecond ſort of counterfeits, is the ſturdy hypocrite; let us ſhew you firſt what wee conceive of him, and how we tearme him, I call the former a faint-hearted hypocrite, he muſt have his Aqua vitae, and his cordials of comfort ever with him, and God muſt provide a diſh of comfort for him, or elſe hee ſhall never have his cuſtome: but this is a ſturdy hypocrite, and one that will not out of the pit for a ſmall matter, but he will ſtand his ground, as a man doth in warre, and will undergoe much trouble, and ſtand ſtoutly in the profeſſion of religion, and yet though he be ſomewhat ſtout in his way, yet his heart is naught too; and that you may know him, and that hee may know himſelfe, let us doe three things:

Firſt, let us ſee what he can ſay for himſelfe.

Secondly, wherein his falſeneſſe appeares, and the evidences of it.

Thirdly, the difference betweene him and a beleever indeed.

1Firſt, what this man is, and how farre he goes, I p. 484cannot better plead for him, than he can plead for himſelfe, and what he ſaith, you may beleeve him, he profeſſeth tis true indeed, the temporary did meerly couſen himſelfe, becauſe he was cheared, before he was humbled and abaſed: but for his part he knowes how he came by his faith, it coſt him hot water before he had it, he had his evidence with much labour, and therefore this is his comfort, hee hopes it is good, and of the right kinde, for, ſaith he, the Lord hath opened mine eyes to ſee my ſelfe, and to diſcover my ſinne unto my ſelfe, and made knowne the vileneſſe of my ſinne, and my miſery by reaſon of the ſame, the word of the Lord was as a hammer to this ſtubborne heart of mine, I had almoſt the heart of a Devill, but the Lord met with me, and broke me in ſunder: nay, it was a fire to let in the flames of hell into my conſcience, thus I came by my faith: ſo that ſeeing my ſinne and my vileneſſe, I ſee a need of a Chriſt, and I ſee ſuch a worth in a Chriſt, in ſo much that he hopes and profeſſeth, that all the ſhame and diſgrace that can befall him in a good courſe, ſhall never daunt him from that good way which hee ſees chalked out before him: nay, and that which is the pinch of him, hee hopeth hee ſhall rather dye, than renounce that fruit of the Goſpell which he hath received, and which hath comforted his ſoule: thus now hee hath beene humbled, and hath ſeene a need of Chriſt, and he may dye in the defence of the religion hee profeſſeth, and yet never ſavingly beleeve in the Lord Jeſus Chriſt, nor partake of the p. 485merciemercy and goodneſſe in him: 1 Cor. 13.3. there the Apoſtle ſaith, though I give my body to be burned, and have not love, it profiteth me nothing: it is a rule in Logicke, thoſe disjunct propoſitions both parts whereof are true, the whole muſt needs bee true; if either part be falſe, then the propoſition muſt needs bee falſe; if the poſition bee true, then both parts are true; as in this poſition, I am not a rich man, and yet I am a poore man, both parts are true; ſo it is in this poſition, I may give my body to be burned, and yet I may want love, both parts are true; then it is plaine that a man may dye in the profeſſion of religion, and yet bee damned when he hath done: thus much for the proofe of it by Scripture, the reaſons that doe confirme it beſides many other: the maine argument is this, there are many things in the heart of a wretched man, which will make him die rather than forgoe his profeſſion. A man ſturdily proud may give way to be burnt, and to dye for faction, &c. hee dyes onelyonly to content his owne proud heart, not becauſe God requires it, and that God may be honoured, but only in ſturdineſſe of heart, and becauſe he will dye in that profeſſion wherein he hath beene brought up.

2Secondly, his falſeneſſe doth appeare in this, howſoever afflictions and perſecutions cannot pull him from the truth, yet caſe, and profit, and pleaſure, and luſt will ſuck out the heart; theſe troubled him not, becauſe he had them not; but when he hath had them and felt the ſweetneſſe of them, he is thereby overcome, and ſo forſakes religion p. 486and all: Thus the devill hits him in the right nicke, the devill could not dampe him with troubles and with perſecutions and diſgraces, but the devill provides dainties for him, and there he eats and ſurfets, and kils himſelfe; theſe take off the ſoule from Chriſt, when all the perſecution in the world cannot daunt him. Take a man that is ingenuous and hath a ſtout heart of his owne, haply he is called to battle, and he ſcornes to be outbraved by any man; but when you cannot prevaile this way, yet by fawning and flattering, you ſhall turne him which way you will; the onelyonly way is to flatter him. This is the reaſon why many a man that hath gone farre in the profeſſion of religion, and hath ſtood ſtrongly for it, yet when ſome have come and given him a bait, hee lies downe upon his belly and will doe any thing: as it is in fiſhing, a man doth not catch the fiſh, by beating the water with his rod, but by baiting his hooke; ſo it is with this man, the bait catcheth him, when the hook could not. We have an old parable of a traveller; the winde though it blew and bluſtered, yet it could not pull away his cloake, but hee held it ſo much the faſter; but when the Sun ſhined hot upon him, he threw off his cloake and coat and all: when a man hath no honours, then perſecution makes him hold the cloſer to the truth, but when the fine gleames of honour and profit come, and a man is lifted up into fools paradiſe, he puts off all religion and honeſty: the ſturdy hypocrite may die for the truth, and yet all out of a ſturdy ſpirit, p. 487becauſe he ſcornes to bee ſubject. It is ſaid of the thorny ground, that the thorns did choake it, the Sunne did not parch it, hee could have gone to a priſon, or to a ſtake, but when proſperity, and honour, and pleaſure came, they choake all that hee had, that ſo hee hath not a word to ſay; thus it was with Demas; I doubt not but he had many a ſtorme with Paul, and ſhared with Paul in all his troubles; but when hee had gotten good means, he left Paul; & becauſe he could not attend thoſe, and goe with Paul too, therefore hee left Paul, for he thought with himſelfe that Paul would not let him goe on ſo, and therefore hee leaves him and the Goſpell and all.

Now before I goe any further, give mee leave to anſwer two queſtions.

Queſt. 1 Firſt, why will proſperity take off this man from the profeſſion of the truth, when you told us before that hee would loſe his life in the defence of the truth? if he had died hee had loſt all his pleaſure, and eaſe, and all, why then doth proſperity take of his heare, when trouble and perſecution would not doe it?

Anſ. 1 To this I anſwer, the cauſe why theſe prevailed not before, it was becauſe they were not preſent with him, hee knew not the ſweetneſſe of theſe, and haply he had no hope to attaine them; but now hee injoyes them, and now hee is taken aſide by them; haply his heart was the ſame before, that it is now, but he had not the occaſions that now he hath. Looke as it is with an inferiour p. 488ſubject, haply his heart is not diſquieted for the crowne of the kingdome, for hee hath no hope nor likelihood of it, hee lookes not to attaine it; but now if hee were the heire apparant of the crowne, and had by conſpiracy gotten faire way to the crowne and kingdome, hee would loſe life and all rather than goe without it: and as it is with an adulterous woman, when ſhe comes firſt into the family, ſhee loves her husband and the houſe and all; but when her companions come in and entice her to curſed dalliance, then ſhee leaves the houſe and her husband and all; ſhee was bad before, but ſhe had not the occaſions before: this is the falſeneſſe in this wretch, having no hope to get wealth, he is not troubled with it, and having no hope to get honours, hee is not troubled with it; but though his heart was as bad before, yet the falſeneſſe of it did not ſo diſcover it ſelfe before, becauſe he had not theſe occaſions offered; and this is the reaſon why many a man that hath beene very forward in profeſſion, and hath ſuffered much for the truth, yet one man is pluckt off from the profeſſion of the truth by the world, and hee proves a muck-worme, and the world eats out the power of that grace which he ſeemed to have: And another man is taken by his baſe luſts of adultery, or the like, their hearts were as bad before, but they never had theſe temptations before; and therefore they abide troubles, becauſe theſe temptations came not: and therefore when theſe come, they decline and fall away, and this is the cauſe of the baſe declining p. 489and falling away of all ſuch wretches, which the world is peſtered withall: and you that are Miniſters, and Chriſtians, ſhould doe well to abandon the ſociety of all ſuch as make a profeſſion of the truth, but deny the power of it in their converſations.