Whether Man Be in the Estate of Damnation or Grace, Treatise 3
Howe a man should applie aright the word of God to his owne soule.
I
EVerie Christian containeth in himselfe two natures, flat contrarie the one to the other, the flesh and the spirite: and that he may become a perfect man in Christ Iesus, his earnest indeuour must bee, to tame, and subdue the flesh, & to strengthen and confirme the spirit.
II
Answerable to these two natures, are the two parts of Gods worde. First, the Lawe, because it is the ministerie of death, it fitlie serueth for the taming and maistering of the rebellious flesh: and the Gospell, containing the bountifull promises of God in Christ, is as oile, to powre into our wounds, and as the water of life, to quench our thirstie soules: & it fitlie serueth for the strengthening of the Spirite.
III
Well then, art thou secure? Art thou prone to euill? Feelest thou that thy rebellious flesh carrieth thee captiue vntounto sinne? Looke nowe onelie vponupon the lawe of God, applie it to thy self, examine thy thoughts, thy words, thy deedes by it: pray vntounto God, that he would giuegive thee the Spirit of feare, that the law maie in some measure hūble & terrifie thee: for (as Salomon saith) blessed isRom. 8. 16. Pro. 28. 14. the man that feareth alwaies, but cursed is he that hardeneth his heart.
IIII
In the Law, these are most effectuall meditations to humble and bridle the flesh, which follow. First, meditate on the greatnes1 of thy sinnes, and of their infinite number: and if it may be, gather them into a Catalogue, set it before thee: and looke vntounto it, that thou think no sinne to be a small sin, no not the bare thoughts and motions of thy heart. Often with diligence consider2 the strange iudgements of God vponupon men, for their sinnes, which thou shalt find, partlie in the Scriptures, partlie by dailie experience. Doubtlesse, thou must thinke, that euerie iudgement of God, is a sermon of repentance. Thinke oft on the fearefull curse3 of the law due vntounto thee, if thou shouldest sin neuer but once in al thy life, and that neuer so litle. Remember, that whensoeuer4 thou committest a sin; God is present, andDan. 7. 1…. Iere. 17. 1. Deut. 32. 31. his holie Angels, & that he is an eie witnes, that he taketh a note of thy sin, & registreth it in a booke. Thinke dailie of thy ende: and5 know that God maie strike thee with sodain death euerie moment: and that, if then thou hauehave not repented before that time, there is no hope of saluation. Thinke on the sodain6 comming of our Sauiour Christ to iudgement, let it moue thee continually to watch and praie. If these will not moue thee, think7 on this, that no creature in heauen or in earth, was able to pacifie the wrath of God for thy sins: but his owne Sonne must come downe from heauen, out of his Fathers bosome, and must beare the curse of the lawe, euen the full wrath of his Father, for thee.
V
When by these meanes thou art feared, and thy minde is disquieted in respect of Gods iudgement for thy sin: hauehave recourse …o the promises of merciemercy contained in the …ld and new Testament. Is thy conscience stung with sin? And doth the law make the… feele it? With all speede runne to the brase… Serpent Christ Iesus, look on him with theIoh. 3. 14. eie of faith, and presently thou shalt be healed of thy sting or wound.
VI
When thou doest meditate on the promises of the Gospell: diligentlie conside… these benefites, which thou enioiest by Christ. Through Adam, thou art condemned1 to hell: by Christ, thou art deliuere… from it. Through Adam, thou hast transgre… sed2 the whole law: in Christ thou hast fulfilled it. Through Adam, thou art before Go… 3a vile, & a lothsome sinner, through Chri… thou doest appeare glorious in his eies. B… Adam, euerie litle crosse is the punishmen… 4of thy sin, and a token of Gods wrath: by Christ, the greatest crosses are easie, profitable, and tokens of Gods merciemercy. By Adam 5thou diddest loose all thinges: in Christ a… things are restored to thee again. By Adam 6thou art dead, by Christ, thou art quickne… and made aliue againe. By Adam, thou art7 slaue of the Diuel, and the childe of wrat… but by Christ, thou art the child of God. … 8Adam, thou art worse than a Toade, & mo… detestable before God: but by Christ, tho… art aboue the Angels. For thou art ioined vntounto him, and made bone of his bone, misticallie. Through Adam, sinne and Sathan9 hauehave ruled in thee, and led thee captiue: by Christ, the spirite of God dwelleth in thee plenteouslie, By Adam, came death to thee,10 & it is an entrance to hel: by Christ, though death remain, yet it is onelie a passage vntounto life. Lastlie, in Adam, thou art poore, and11 blinde, and miserable: In Christ, thou art rich and glorious, thou art the King of heauen and earth, fellow heire with him, and shalt as sure be partaker of it, as he is euen now. Adam, when he must needs tast of the fruit, which God had forbiddē him, he hath made vsus all to rue it, euen till this daie: but here thou seest the fruits that grow, not inApoc. …2. 2 the earthlie Paradise, but on the tree of life, which is within the heauenlie Hierusalem. Fear no danger, be bold in Christ to eate of the fruit, as God hath commanded thee: it wil quicken thee, & reuiue thee being dead: thou cāst not do Sathā a worse displeasure, thā to feed on the godly fruit of this tree, & to smell on the sweete leaues, which it beareth cōtinuallie, that giuegive such a refreshing sauour.
VII
Most men now a daies, are secure & cold in the professiō of the Gospel, though they hauehave the plentiful preaching of it. And the reason is, because they feel not in thēselues the vertue and mightie operation of Gods word, to renue them: & they cannot feel it, because they do not applie the word aright vntounto their own soules. Plaisters, except they be applied in order & time, & be laied vponupon the wound, though they be neuer so good, yet they cānot heal: & so it is with the word of God, & the parts of it, which except they be vsed in order & time conuenient, wil not humble and reuiue vsus, as their vertue is.
VIII
The common Christian euerie where is faulty in this thing. Whereas hee loueth himselfe, & wisheth al good that maie be to himselfe, hee doth vsuallie applie vntounto his owne soule the Gospell alone, neuer regarding the law, or searching out his sins by it. Tell him what ye will, his song is this: God is merciful, God is merciful. By this meanes it cōmeth to passe, that he leadeth a secure life, & maketh no conscience of couetousnes, of vsurie, of deceit in his trade, of lying, of swearing, of fornication, wantonnes, int…mperācie in bibbing & quaffing, &c. But he plaieth the vnskilful Chirurgiō, he vseth healing plaisters, before his poisoned and cankred nature hauehave felt the power & paine of a Corasiue. And it will neuer be wel with him, vntill he take a new course.
IX
On the contrarie part, many good Christians leaue to apply the comfort of the gospel to themselues, and onlie hauehave regard to their owne sinnes, and Gods infinite vengeance. And euen when Sathan accuseth them, they will not sticke to giuegive eare to Sathan, and also accuse themselues: and so they are brought into feareful terrors, and often draw neere to desperation.
X
There is a third sort called sectaries, who addict themselues to the opinion of some man. These commonlie neuer applie the law or the Gospell to themselues, but their whole meditation, is chieflie in the opiniōs of him whom they follow. As they that follow Luther, few of them follow his Christiā life, they regard not that: but about consubstantiation and vbiquity, about Images and such like trumperie, they infinitelie trouble themselues, and all Europe too.
And in England there is a scismaticall and vndiscreet companie, that would seeme to crie out for discipline, their whole talke is of it, and yet they neither knowe it, nor will be reformed by it, and yet they are enemies to it: as for the lawe of God, and the promises of the Gospell, they little regarde: they maintaine vile sins in refusing to heare the reading or the preaching of the worde: and this is great contempt of Gods benefites & vnthankefulnesse to him. They are full of pride, thinking themselues to be full, when they are emptie: to hauehave all knowledge, when they are ignorant, and had need to be catechized: the poison of Aspes is vnderunder their lippes; they refuse not to speake euill of the blessed seruants of God. Well, doe they aboue al things seeke the kingdome of God? then let them be sincere seekers of it: which they shall doe, if in seeking Christs kingdome they seek the righteousnes therof: vntounto which they can neuer come but by the applying of the threatninges of the law, and the comforts of the Gospell to their owne consciences. But whereas they seeke the one and not the other, they giuegive all men to vnderstand with what spirit they speake.