A Form of Wholesome Words, Title page – To the reader
A FORME Of Wholſome WORDS; OR, AN INTRODUCTION to the Body of Divinity: In three Sermons on 2 TIMOTHY, 1.13.
Preached By JOHN STOUGHTON, Doctor in Divinity, ſometimes Fellow of Immanuel College in Cambridge, late Preacher of Aldermanbury, LONDON.
ROMANS 6.17.
Ye have obeyed from the heart, that form of Doctrine which was delivered to you.
LONDON, Printed by J.R. for J. Bellamy, H. Overton, A. Crook, J. Ro… well, R. Sergeir, I. Crook, D. Frere, and Ralph Smith. 1640.
TO THE RIGHT WORSHIPFUL, Sir RICHARD YOUNG, Knight Barone… the Worſhipfull, Mr. GILBERT HARRISON, Alderman; M•. ROBERT EDWARDS, Deputy of the R… Worſhipfull Company of Merchant Adventurers▪ M•. H…H WINDHAM, M•. EDWARD FOORD, Mr. HUMPHR: BERINOTON; MERCHANTS: And the reſt of the worthy Inhabitants of the Pariſh of Aldermanbury, LONDON: Saving Health, true Riches, and eternall Happinſſe.
Right Worſhipfull, Beloved, and Chriſtian friends▪
AS it was in the building of the Temple, many hands were imployed in the raiſing of that glorious Structure: Solomon did raiſe a tribute of men for the work, and they were all imployed according to their ſeverall abilities; ſome did work in gold, in ſilver, in braſſe, in iron, in purple and blew ſilk; ſome did hew and ſquare, others did bear and carry the ſtones and timber, to the raiſing of that ſacred pile: ſo it is in the Church of God, of which that materiall houſe was a cleer repreſentation; there is no man ſo mean, but may be ſome way uſefull to the houſe of God; thoſe that cannot work in gold, and ſilver, and ſilk, yet may cut and hew; and thoſe that can do neither, yet may carry burthens. This latter is the task that I have undertaken; v…z. To ſerve the Church, in bringing forth this proviſion which is here preſented to you, of another mans coſt indeed, yet not without ſome labour and care of my own, to prepare the table, and ſet things in order before you. I am the rather incouraged in it, becauſe I know that God can as well ſerve himſelf of my labour in this, as of the skill and ability of the learned Author: and if in this I may be a helper of the joy of Gods Church, I have wherein for to rejoyce.
Theſe inſuing Sermons were firſt preached unto you, they were yours in the delivery, and are yours of Right, as conceived and brought forth for you; and I know not how you ſhould loſe your Right in the publiſhing of them, but rather owe Patronage, Apology, Harbour and Recommendations; therefore I have made bold to prefix your Names before them, and ſo to publiſh them for the good of the Church; being well aſſured, that you will not grutch this communication, of your own right and intereſt in them, to others.
For the Author, hee needs not my Candle to light his Sun, nor my Pen to make new impreſsions of honour and love in your hearts, who have ſo fully known his Doctrine, manner of Life, Purpoſe, Faith, Long-ſuffering, Charity, Patience, Humility, &c.
I may ſay of this poſthume Birth, that the Author died, as Rachel, in travell with it; and it may well be called Benjamin, the ſon of his Right hand: whil'ſt he was a carrying of you up into the Mount, to ſhew you the land of Promiſe, God took him, and by Inviſible meſſengers, caried him to the fruition of Eternall Bleſſedneſſe: he is taken out of your ſight, and if you deſire to finde him, you muſt aſpire unto the heavenly Paradiſe, by walking in that tract which he hath in his Doctrine here chalked out unto you; and in thoſe ſteps of his religious and zealous converſation, which he hath walked in before you.
But leſt you ſhould let theſe things ſlip; this booke may be your continuall Remembrancer, in this, hee being dead, yet ſpeaketh. But his labour will be loſt, and my undertaking fruitleſſe, except you be pleaſed to make the practiſe of theſe things your trade, and the meditation of them your Recreation.
Here you may ſee wherein true happineſſe doth conſiſt: the right placing or miſplacing of happineſſe is the Ruder of a mans life, the fountaine of his well or ill doing; according to which, men take their marks, and ſhoot right or wrong, in all the actions of their lives: you will be miſtaken, if you ſeek it in theſe outward things, it is only to be found in God; there is no other independant good, neither is there any other good that can be communicated to all the heirs of Bleſsing, but only God; that which all muſt poſſeſſe, and that together, muſt needs be ſome infinite thing. It will then be worth your while, to call off your affections from the world, and to abate of your eager purſuit after the things of this life: you are not made for Riches, but they are made for you: the Bee will forſake the Flower that yeelds her no Hony; the fruit that the World affords you, is but like that which grows upon the banks of the dead Sea, a fair apple, which under a red ſide, contains nothing but duſt: it will be your wiſdom, not to cumber your ſelves about many things, when one thing is needfull: the ſaying of the Roman Generall to the ſouldier that kept the tents, when he ſhould have bin fighting in the field, Non Amonimium diligentes, will be uſed of God, if when he cals us to ſeek after true Happineſſe, yet vve buſie our ſelves onelyonly about things of an inferiour Alloy; God will not like ſuch buſiebodies: our chiefeſt care and pains ſhould be beſtowed, in the attaining of that which is our chiefeſt Happineſſe; if you be induſtrious in this, your labour will not be in vain: you muſt think of Religion as of trading, which will bring no gain, unleſſe diligently follovved and practiſed: Ariſe therfore, and be doing, and the Lord will be with you.
Give me leave to tell you, firſt, that God hath done much for you, exalted you to heaven, in regard of the means: It is true, your eyes have ſeen worthy Lights, ſhining in their life and Doctrine, and by death extinguiſhed; and yet your loſſe hath not been more bitterly lamented, than in a good meaſure graciouſly ſupplied; the cauſes of your hope and joy, have been in a good proportion equivalent to your grief and loſſe.
Secondly, GOD looks for much from you; viz. an adorning of the Goſpel, and walking worthy of it, in a holy, fruitfull and obedient converſation: ſuch favours beſtowed, muſt needs raiſe great expectations; and this expectation fruſtrated, doubles the judgment. But I hope better things of you, and ſuch as accompany ſalvation.
You did receive the Author with ſo much love and honour, as that you cannot but countenance this Poſthume Birth, which was firſt conceived, and brought forth for you; & your ſelves being witneſſes, contains no other things, than what you have heard and learnt: and ſo, though others ſhould deny it, yet you muſt give unto it, Harbour and Intertainment. Therfore I have, in the name of the Widow of the Reverend Author, intitled you unto it. If it ſhall be approved uſefull to the Church, fruitfull to you, & beneficial to any, I ſhall rejoyce; my prayers ſhal be for their ſucceſſe, and for your happineſſe.
Yours, in the ſervice of your Faith, A. B
To the Chriſtian Reader.
CHRISTIAN READER,
ACcept, I pray thee, from the hands of one of the meaneſt of the ſons of the Prophets, this inſuing Treatiſe. I know, it might have been tendered unto thee, by the hands of ſome more eminently learned, and better known in the Church, on whoſe judgment thou mighteſt more ſafely have repoſed thy ſelf; yet well knowing the worth of it to be ſuch, as that it will diſcover it ſelf, I rather chooſe to let my meanneſſe appear, than not to perform the debt I owe to the memory of the Reverend Author. I am not ignorant, that this undertaking of mine, together with the Sermons themſelves, will be expoſed to many cenſures; ſome there are, whom no Sermon pleaſeth, longer than it is in hearing, or otherwiſe than it is extant in their own broken notes: but theſe forget, that reſpect ſhould he had unto the publike good; there are many precious labours of godly men, that are not fit to vaniſh into the air, or to be buried in obſcurity. Others take offence at the imperfection of them, becauſe not left written by the Author, but onelyonly taken from his mouth; I confeſſe, if the Author had publiſhed them himſelf, they would have come forth more refined, and better digeſted than now they do; yet the good they may thus do, prevails more for the ſending of them forth, than ſome imperfections (that uſually accompany the taking of other mens Sermons) may do to ſuppreſſe them. If my judgm…nt fail me not, there is ſo much compleatneſſe in them, as that though the Author might have uttered Plura, more in lines; yet be could not have ſaid Plus, more in ſubſtance and effect, to any point that he hath handled. Others will except againſt them, and accuſe them, as Lucilius did the writings of Fabianus Papyrius, becauſe they are ſo plain; to ſuch I ſhall, in the behalf of the Author, borrow that Apologie that Seneca made for him, Mores ego non verba compoſui, & animis praedicavi, non auribus: Epiſt. 100. They are indeed ſo plain, as that the ſimple may underſtand them; and yet not ſo unpoliſhed, as that the friendly, and judiciouſly curious may ſcorn them: what is here preſented to thee, is expreſſed in the Authors own words (without adding to them, or detracting from them) as well as it could be taken from his mouth; it is publiſhed by, and compared with the exacteſt copies that could be gotten. The methodicall Analyſis, prefixed before the Sermons, was left under the Authors own hand, as it is here tendred unto thee: though he did for the moſt part write all in Latine, yet this Analyſis was left in Engliſh, which you have inſerted in the Margent, anſwerable to the ſeverall particulars treated on.
Let not any prejudice foreſtall thee; I ſhall onelyonly ſay unto thee, as Philip to Nathaniel, Come and ſee, reade and conſider, and the Lord give thee underſtanding in all things.
Thine, in the ſervice of the LORD, A. B.