A Golden Chain, Chapter 4 – Title page 11
CHAP. IIII. Mans dutie touching conscience.
§1. Mans first dutie to get good conscience.MAns dutie concerning conscience is two-fold. The first is, if he want good conscience aboue all things to labour to obtaine it: for it is not giuen by nature to any man, but comes by grace.
For the obtaining of good conscience, three things must be procured; a preparation to good conscience, the applying of the remedie, the reformation of conscience.
In the preparation, foure things are required. The first is, the knowledge of the law, and the particular commandements thereof, whereby we are taught what is good, what is badde; what may be done, and what may not be done.
The men of our daies, that they may hauehave the right knowledge of the law, must lay aside many erronious and foolish opinions, which they hold flat against the true meaning of the law of God: otherwise they can neuer be able to discerne betweene sinne and no sinne. Their speciall and common opinions are these: I. That they can louelove God with all their hearts, and their neighbours as themselues; that they feare God aboue all, and trust in him alone; and that they euer did so. II. That to rehearse the Lords praier, the beleefe, and ten Commandements, (without vnderstanding of the wordes, and without affection) is the true and whole worship of God. III. That a man may seeke to wizzards and soothsaiers without offence, because God hath prouided a salue for eueryevery sore. IV. That to sweare by good things and in the way of truth, is not a sinne. V. That a man going about his ordinarie affaires at home or abroad on the Sabbath day, may as well serue God as they which heare all in the sermons in the world. VI. That religion and the practise thereof, is nothing but an affected precisenes: that couetousnes the roote of euill, is nothing but worldlines: that pride is nothing but a care of honestie and cleanlines: that single fornication is nothing but the tricke of youth: that swearing and blaspheming argue the couragious minde of a braue gentleman. VII. That a man may doe with his owne what he will, and make as much of it as he can. Hence arise all the frauds and bad practises in trafficke betweene man and man.
The second thing required, is the knowledge of the iudiciall sentence of the law, which resolutely pronounceth that a curse is due to man for eueryevery sinne, Gal. 3.10. Very few are resolued of the truth of this point, and very few doe vnfainedly beleeue it, because mens minds are possessed with a contrarie opinion, that though they sinne against God, yet they shall escape death & damnation. Dauid saith, The wicked man (that is, eueryevery man naturally) blesseth himselfe. Psal. 10.3. and he maketh a league with hell and death, Esa. 28.15. This appeareth also by experience. Let the ministers of the Gospell reprooue sinne, and denounce Gods iudgements against it, according to the …ule of Gods word, yet men will not feare: stones will almost as soone mooue in the walls, and the pillars of our Churches, as the flintie hearts of men. And the reason hereof is, because their mindes are forestalled with this absurd conceit, that they are not in danger of the wrath of God, though they offend. And the opinion of our common people is hereunto answerable, who thinke, that if they hauehave a good meaning, and doe no man hurt, God will hauehave them excused both in this life and in the day of iudgement.
The third, is a iust and serious examination of the conscience by the law, that we may see what is our estáte before God. And this is a dutie vponupon which the Prophets stand very much. Lam. 3.40. Man suffereth for his sinne: let vsus search and trie our hearts, and turne againe to the Lord. Zeph. 2. 1. Fanne your selues, fanne you, O nation, not worthie to be beloued. In making examination, we must specially take notice of that which doth now lie, or may hereafter lie vponupon the conscience. And after due examination hath beene made, a man comes to a knowledge of his sinnes in particular, and of his wretched and miserable estate. When one enters into his house at midnight, he findes or sees nothing out of order: but let him come in the day time when the sunne shineth, and he shall then espie many faults in the house, and the very motes that flie vp and downe: so let a man search his heart in the ignorance and blindnesse of his minde, he will straightway thinke all is well: but let him once begin to search himselfe with the light and lanterne of the law, and he shall finde many foule corners in his heart, and heapes of sinnes in his life.
The fourth, is a sorrow in respect of the punishment of sinne, arising of the three former actions. And though this sorrow be no grace, for it befals as well the wicked as the godly: yet may it be an occasion of grace, because by the apprehension of Gods anger, we come to the apprehensiō of his merciemercy. And it is better that conscience should grieue & wound vsus & do his worst against vsus in this life, while remedie may be had, then after this life, when remedy is past.
Thus much of preparation: now follows the remedie, and the application of it. The remedie is nothing else but the blood or the merits of Christ, who specially in conscience felt the wrath of God, as when he said, My soule is heauie vntounto death: and his agonie was not so much a paine and torment in bodie, as the apprehension of the feare and anger of God in conscience: and when the holy Ghost saith, That he offered vntounto God praiers with strong cries and was heard from feare, he directly notes the distresse and anguish of his most holy conscience for our sinnes. And as the blood of Christ is an all-sufficient remedie, so is it also the alone remedie of all the sores and wounds of conscience. For nothing can stanch or stay the terrrours of conscience, but the blood of the immaculate lambe of God: nothing can satisfie the iudgement of the conscience, much lesse the most seuere iudgement of God, but the onelyonly satisfaction of Christ. In the application of the remedie, two things are required: the Gospell preached, and faith: the Gospell is the hand of God, that offereth grace to vsus: and faith is our hand whereby we receiue it.
That we indeede by faith receiue Christ with all his benefits, we must put in practise two lessons. The first is, vnfainedly to humble our selues before God for all our wants, breaches, and wounds in conscience: which, beeing vntounto vsus a paradise of God, by our default we hauehave made as it were a little hell within vsus. This humiliation is the beginning of all grace and religion: pride and good conscience can neuer goe togither. And such as hauehave knowledge in religion and many other good gifts without humiliation, are but vnbridled, vnmortified, and vnreformed pe…sons. This humiliation containes in it two duties, the first is confession of our sinnes, especially of those that he vponupon our consciences: wherewith must be ioyned the accusing and condemning of our selues: for then we put conscience out of office, and dispatch that labour before our God in this life, which conscience would performe to our eternall damnation after this life. The second dutie is Deprecation, which is a kind of praier made with groanes and desires of heart, in which we intreat for nothing but for pardon of our sinnes, and that for Christs sake, til such time as the conscience be pacified.
To this humiliation standing on these two parts, excellent promises of grace and life euerlasting are made. Prou. 28. 13. He that hideth his sinnes, shall not prosper: but he that confesseth and forsaketh them shall finde merciemercy. 1. Ioh. 1.6. If we acknowledge our sinnes, he is faithfull and iust to forgiue vsus our sinnes, and to clense vsus from all vnrighteousnes. Luk. 1.35. He hath fi…led the hungrie with good things, and sent the rich emptie away. Which are also verified by experience in sundrie examples, …. Sam. 12.13. Dauid said to Nathan, I hauehave sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said to Dauid, The Lord also hath put away thy sinne. 2. Chr. 33.43. When Manasses was in tribulation, he praied to the Lord his God, and hū bled himselfe greatly before the God of his fathers, and praied vntounto him: and God heard his praier. Luk. 23.43. And the thiefe said to Iesus. Lord remember me when thou commest to thy kingdome. Then Iesus said vntounto him, Verely I say vntounto thee, to day shalt thou be with me in Paradise. By these and many other places it appeares, that when a man doth truly humble himselfe before God, he is at that instant reconciled to God, and hath the pardon of his sinnes in heauen: and shall afterward hauehave the assurance thereof in his owne conscience.
The second lesson is, when we are touched in conscience for our sinnes, not to yeeld to naturall doubtings and distrust; but to resist the same, and to indeauour by Gods grace to resolue our selues that the promises of saluation by Christ, belong to vsus particularly: because to doe thus much, is the very commandement of God.
The third thing is, the reformation of conscience;Good conscience a fruit of faith. which is, when it doth cease to accuse and terrifie, and begins to excuse and testifie vntounto vsus by the holy Ghost, that we are the children of God and hauehave the pardon of our sinnes. And this it will doe after that men hauehave seriously humbled themselues, and praied earnestly and constantly with sighes and grones of spirit for reconciliation with God in Christ. For then the Lord will send downe his spirit into the conscience by a sweete and heauenly testimonie to assure vsus that we are at peace with God.
Thus we see how good conscience is gotten: and because it is so pretious a iewell, I wish all persons, that as yet neuer laboured to get good conscience, now to begin. Reasons to induce men thereto may be these: I. you seeke daie and night from yere to yere for honours, riches, and pleasures, which ye must leaue behind you: much more therefore ought you to seeke for renewed and reformed consciences, cōsidering that cōscience wil be with you in this life, in death, at the last iudgement, & for euer. II. He that wants a cōscience purged in the blood of Christ, can neuer hauehave any true and lasting comfort in this life. Suppose a man araied in cloath of tishue, set in a chaire of estate, before him a table furnished with all daintie prouision: his seruants, Monarches, and Princes; his riches the chiefest treasures and kingdomes in the worlde: but withall suppose one standing by, with a naked sword to cut his throat, or a wild beast readie euer and anon to pull him in peeces: nowe, what can wee say of this mans estate, but that all his happines is nothing but wo and miserie? And such is the estate of all men that abounding with riches, honours, and pleasures, carrie about them an euill conscience, which is as a sword to slay the soule, or as a rauenous beast readie to sucke the blood of the soule, and to rend it in peeces. III. He which wants good conscience can doe doe nothing but sinne: his very eating and drinking, his sleeping and waking, and all he doth, turnes to sin: the conscience must first be good, before the action can be good; if the roote be corrupt, the fruits are answerable. IV. An euill conscience is the greatest enemie a man can hauehave, because it doeth execute all the parts of iudgement against him. It is the Lords fergeant. God neede not sende out processe by any of his creatures for man: the conscience within man will arest him, and bring him before God. It is the gayler to keep man in prison in bolts and irons, that he may be forth comming at the daie of iudgement. It is the witnesse to accuse him, the iudge to condemne him, the hangman to execute him, and the flashings of the fire of hell to torment him. Againe, it makes a man to be an enemy to God: because it accuseth him to God, and makes him …ie from God, as Adam did when he had sinned. Also he makes a man to be his owne enemie, in that it doth cause to lay violent hands vponupon himselfe, and become his owne hangman, or his own cut-throate. And on the contrarie, a good conscience is a mans best friend: when all men intreat him hardly, it will speake him faire & comfort him: it is a continuall feast, and a paradise vponupon earth. V. The Scripture sheweth that they which neuer seeke good conscience, hauehave terrible ends. For either they die blockes, as Nabal did; or they die desperate, as Caine, Saul, Achitophel, Iudas. VI. We must consider o…ten the terrible day of iudgemēt, in which eueryevery man must receiue according to his doings. And that wee may then be absolued, the best way is to seeke for a good conscience: for if our cō science be euill, and condemne vsus in this life, God will much more condemne vsus. And whereas we must passe through three iudgements; the iudgement of men, the iudgement of our conscience, & the last iudgement of God: we shall neuer be strengthened against them, and cleared in them all; but by the seeking of a good conscience.
After that man hath got good conscience, his second dutie is to keepe it. And as the gouerning the shippe on the sea,§2 Mens second dutie to ke…pe g… …. the pilote holding the helme i… his hand, hath alwaies an …ie to the compasse; so we likewise, in the ordering of our liues and conuersations, must alwaies hauehave a special regard to conscience.
That we may keepe good conscience, we must doe two things; auoide the impediment thereof, and vse conuenient preseruations.
Impediments of good conscience, are either in vsus or forth of vsus. In vsus, our owne sinnes and corruptions. When mens bodies lie dead in the earth, there breede certaine wormes in them, whereby they are consumed. For of the flesh come the wormes which consume the flesh: but vnlesse we take great heede, out of the sinnes and corruptions of our hear…s, there will breede a worme a thousand folde more terrible, euen the worme of conscience that neuer dieth, which will in a lingring manner wast the conscience, the soule, and the whol… man; because he shall be alwaies dying and neuer dead. These sinnes are specially three; Ignorance, vnmortified affections, worldly lusts.
Touching the first, namely ignorance, it is a great and vsuall impediment of good conscience. For when the mind erreth or misconceiueth, it doth mislead the conscience, and deceiue the whole man. The waie to auoid this impediment is, to doe our indeauour that we may daiely increase in the knoweledge of the word of God, that it may dwell in vsus plentifully, to this ende wee must pray with Dauid, that he would open our eies, that we might vnderstād the wonders of his lawe: and withall wee must daily search the Scriptures for vnderstanding as men vse to search the mines of the earth for gold ore, Prou. 2.4. Lastly, wee must labour for spirituall wisdome, that wee might hauehave the right vse of gods word in eueryevery particular action: that being by it directed, we may discerne what we may with good conscience doe or leaue vndone.
The second impediment, is vnstaied and vnmortified affections: which, if they hauehave their swing, as wild horses ouertu…ne the chariot with men and all, so they ouerturne and ouercarrie the iudgement and conscience of man: and therefore when they beare rule, good conscience takes no place. Now to preuent the daunger th… comes hereby, this course must be followed. When we would hauehave a sword or a knife not to hurt our selues or others, we turne the edge of it. And so, that we may preuent our affections from hurting and annoying the conscience, we must turne the course of them, by directing them from our neighbours to our selues and our owne sinnes, or by inclining them to God and Christ. For example: choller and anger directs it selfe vponupon eueryevery occasion against our neighbour, and thereby greatly indamageth the conscience. Now, the course of it is turned, when we begin to be displeased and to be angrie with our selues for our owne sinnes. Our louelove set vponupon the worlde is hurtfull to the conscience, but when we once begin to set our louelove on God in Christ, and to louelove the blood of Christ aboue all the world, then contrariwise it is a furtherance of good conscience.
The third impediment, is worldly lusts, that is, the louelove and exceeding desire of riches, honours, pleasures. EueryEvery man is as Adam, his good conscience is his paradise; the forbidden fruit, is the strong desire of these earthly things; the serpent is the old enemie the deuill: who if he may bee suffered to intangle vsus with the louelove of the world, will straigh… waie put vsus out of our paradise, and barre vsus from al good conscience. The remedie is to learne the lesson of Paul, Phil. 4. 12. which is in eueryevery estate in which God shal place vsus to be content; esteeming euermore the present condition the best for vsus of all. Now that this lesson may be learned, we must further labour to be resolued of Gods special prouidence towards vsus in eueryevery case & condition of life: & when we hauehave so well profited in the schoole of Christ, that we can see and acknowledge Gods prouidence & goodnes, as well in sicknes as in health, in pouertie as in wealth, in hunger as in fulnes, in life as in death, we shall be very well content, whatsoeuer any way befalls vntounto vsus.
The preseruatiues of good conscience are two, the first is to preserue and cherish that sauing faith whereby we are perswaded of our reconciliatiō with God in Christ, for this is the roote of good conscience, as hath beene shewed. Nowe this faith is cherished and confirmed by the daiely exercises of inuocation and repentance; which be, to humble our selues, to bewaile and confesse our sinnes to God, to condemne our selues for them, to pray for pardon and strength against sinne, to praise God and giuegive him thankes for his daily benefits. And by the vn…ained and serious practise of these duties, repentance and faith are daiely renewed and confirmed. The second preseruatiue is the maintaining of the righteousnes of a good conscience: which righteousnesse (as I hauehave said) is nothing els but a constant indeauour and desire to obey the wil of god in all things. That this righteousnes may be kept to the end, we must practise three rules. The first is, that we are to carry in our hearts aConsc. bonae non stat cum proposito peccandi.a purpose neuer to sinne against God in any thing: for where a purpose is of committing any sin wittingly and willingly, there is neither good faith nor good conscience. The second is to walke with God as Enoch did, Gen. 5.24. which is, to order the whole course of our liues as in the presence of God, desiring to approoue all our doings euer vntounto him. Now this perswasion that wheresoeuer we are, we doe stand in the presence of God, is a notable meanes to maintaine sinceritie, Ge. 17.1. I am god al-sufficient, walke before me & be perfect. And the wāt of this is the occasion of many offences: as Abraham said, Because I thought surely the feare of God is not in this place, they will slay me for my wiues sake, Gen. 20. 11. The third rule is, carefully to walk in our particular callings, doing the duties thereof to the glorie of God, to the good of the common wealth, and the edification of the Church; auoiding therein fraud, couetousnesse, and ambition, which cause men oftentimes to set their consciences on the tenters, and make them stretch like cheuerill.
Thus we see how good conscience may be preserued. Reasons to induce hereunto are many. I. Gods straight commandement, 1. Tim. 1.19. Keep faith and good conscience. And Prou. 4.23. Keepe thine heart with all diligence. II. The good conscience is the most tender part of the soule, like to the apple of the eie; which beeing pierced by the least pinne that may bee, is not onelyonly blemished, but also looseth his sight. Therefore as God doth to the eie, so must wee deale with the conscience. God giues to the eie certaine lids of flesh, to defend and couer it from outward iniuries: and so must we vse meanes to auoid whatsoeuer may offend or annoy conscience. III Manifolde benefits redounde vntounto vsus by keeping good conscience. First so long as we hauehave care to keepe it, we keepe & inioy all other gifts of Gods spirit. Good conscience & the rest of Gods graces are as a paire of turtle doues, when the one seedes, the other feedeth; when the one likes not, the other likes not; when the one dies, the other dies: so, where good conscience is maintained, there are many other excellent gifts of God Hourishing: and where conscience decaies, they also decaie. Againe, good conscience giues alacritie vntounto vsus, and boldnesse in calling on Gods name. 1. Iohn. 3.21. If our heart condemne vsus not, we hauehave boldnesse towards God. Thirdly it makes vsus patient in affliction, & comforts vsus greatly: & when by reason of the grieuousnesse of our affl…ction, wee are constrained to kneele on both knees and take vp our crosse, regenerate conscience as a sweet companion, or like a good Simon, laies too his shoulder and helpes to beare one end of it. Lastly, when none can comfort vsus, it will be an amiable comforter, & a friend speaking sweetly vntounto vsus, in the very agony and pang of death. IV. Not to preserue the conscience without spot, is the way to desperation. It is the pollicy of the deuil to vse meanes to cast the conscience into the sleep of securitie, that he may the more easily bring mā to his own destruction. For as diseases, if they be long neglected become incurable: so the conscience much and often wounded, admits little or no comfort. Neither will it alwaies boote a man after many yeares to say at the last cast, Lord be mercifull to me, I hauehave sinned. Though some be receiued to merciemercy in the time of death, yet far more perish in desperation, that liue in their sinnes wittingly and willingly against their owne conscience. Pharao, Saul, and Iudas cried all peccaui, I hauehave sinned against god: yet Pharao is hardned more and more and perisheth: Saul goeth on in his sinnes and despaireth: Iudas made away himselfe. And no maruel, for the multitude of sinnes oppresse the conscience, and make the heart to ouerflowe with such a measure of griefe that it can fasten no affiance in the merciemercy of God. Lastly they that shall neglect to keepe good conscience, procure many hurts, and daungers, and iudgements of God to themselues. When a ship is on the sea, if it bee not well gouerned, or if there bee a breach made into it; it drawes water and sinkes: and so both men and wares and all in likelihood are cast away. Nowe wee all are as passengers; the world is an huge sea through which we must passe: our ship is the conscience of eueryevery man, 1. Tim. 1.19. & 3.12. the wares are our religion and saluation & all other gifts of God. Therfore it standes vsus in hand to be alwaies at the helme, and to carrie our ship with as euen a course as possibly we can, to the intended port of happines, which is the saluation of our soules. But if so be it we grow carelesse, and make breaches in the ship of conscience, by suffering it to dash vponupon the rocks of sinne, it is a thousand to one, that we in the end shall cast away our selues and all wee hauehave. And in the mean season, as conscience decaies, so proportionally all graces and goodnesse goes from vsus: Gods commandements begin to be vile vntounto vsus; the knowledge thereof, as also faith, hope, and the inuocation of Gods name, decay. Experience sheweth that men of excellent gifts by vsing badde conscience, loose them all.
Finis.
A Reformed Catholike: OR, A DECLARATION SHEWing how neere we may come to the present Church of Rome in sundrie points of Religion: and wherein we must for euer depart from them: with an Aduertisment to all fauourers of the Romane Religion, shewing how the said religion is against the Catholike principles and groundes of the Catechisme.
PRINTED BY IOHN LEGAT, PRINTER to the Vniuersitie of Cambridge. 1600.