Christian Observations and Resolutions, Observations · Observation 73 – Observation 78
73. Good motions are of God.
WEE are not sufficient of our selues to thinke any good. 2. Cor. 3. 5. As eueryevery good gift, so euer good motion commeth of God.
Heereby wee vnderstand not fleeing motions of his common and t…mporarie giftes, but the constant worke of his indwelling Spirit, who after our sealing by him, abideth in vsus: That sealing is not so much in any motion, as in himselfe, for wee a…e scaled by the Spirit of promise, for the day of Redemption, as the earnest of our Inheritance.
Infused habits of Grace, are his great work & gift, but they wil remaine habits still, or rather decay, and neuer produce actions without his operation. His Spirit is free, and worketh where he listeth, and in them whom hee possesseth, hee worketh not aye to their feeling, but when he will: His working, as his Kingdome come not by obseruation: The waters of Bethesda had their tyme of wholesome troubling, and so the holie Spirit hath his owne dyet of powerfull operation. Occasion may bee offered outwardlie, but the inward power can not stirre it selfe, without his hand, who gaue it.
It is a great blessing to hauehave that vertue and power of infused Grace, and good occasions; and holy necessities in our callings, are great prouocations, but aboue all, the holy Spirite dwelling in the heart, is to bee sought, when hee kythes himselfe, small gifes will vtter themselues excellently according to their Nature: When hee lurketh, great Graces are on a sleepe, they can neither moue themselues, nor the Soule that hath them.
The Soule is the life of the body, and giftes and Graces are the life of the Soule: But the holy Spirit is the life of them all: Both they and wee are dead without him: But in his mightie operation we are quickned, and that to our feeling.
So long as I find God in mine heart, I am sure of a timous and fruitfull stirring vp of his gifts, his owne worke assureth mee of his Presence, and his presence perswadeth mee of his worke: His time I leaue to himselfe, who is as wise to choose the opportunitie, as he is able to work the work: If I grieue not the Spirit of promise, and bee not lacking to his working; I will finde tymous and powerfull operation in my necessitie. EueryEvery life hath its own naturall actions, whereby it is both manifested & discerned, and so hath the life of God, and it is a speciall worke of it to keepe it selfe in vsus, but to bee carelesse of it, is a worke of the flesh, and not of the Spirit.
74. The right use of obseruing of our neighbours infirmities.
OBseruation is a Commentarie of euerie occurrent, but that Commentar is written in the heart of the obseruer: It is wisedome to obserue at all times, but there is no necessitie to vtter all our obseruations to other: There is as great wisedome in some cases to suppresse, as to marke them.
If wee see God offended, wee ought not then to be silent; when wee see him dishonoured, it is our part as louing Children, to pleade zealouslie his cause, and to admonish the offender according to our calling. But if we obserue our self injured by mē, it is better to misken that wrong, and suppresse our owne obseruation.
Hee who trauelleth through a rough Forrest, should not rubbe on euerie thorne, and brier; that will both rent his garments and flesh, and stoppe him in the way: Hee is more wise, who draweth his garments hard to his body, and shifteth the touch of thornes: And (if they fasten on him) softlie freeth himselfe off them.
It is a safe course through this thornie world, to hauehave no medling, but necessar: And then not to prouo…ke mens infirmities: Or if they will rubbe vponupon vsus, wisely to decline or passe them ouer.
Hee who carpeth at eueryevery thing breedeth much needlesse and endlesse labour: But he who passeth by tollerable things without challenge, prouyded great peace to himselfe: Obseruation is the eye that seeth these thornes, Patience and Prudence are the two hands, the one to decline them, the other to loose them, when they fasten in vsus.
This is not a politicke Dissembling, but a Christian disgesting of wrongs: The first is a craftie smoothering of anger, which will arise to reueng at the owne occasion, the second, is a buriall of it, neuer to reviue or bee remembred. The worke of obseruation in it selfe, is a good degree of wisedome, but the right vse of it is greater wisedome. If wee shall euer communicat all our remarkes to men, wee could not hauehave peace in the world, men are not so sanctified, as to suffer themselues to bee challenged of that whereof they are guiltie: Passions in their hearts when they are touched by obseruation, are as Lyons in the denne, and Serpents in their holes. To shew that wee see them, prouocketh a greater irrit…tion. It is better to let a Dogge sleepe, than to waken him: It is sufficient to know hee is a Dogge, and wiselie to decline his barking and byting.
The particular directions of this point would bee many, but this is the summe of all; to make such vse of obseruation, that GOD bee not dishonoured: Our Neighbour be not offended: Our peace with God, our Neighbour, and our selues bee not broken.
75. Hardnesse of Heart.
DOubtlesse the heart is naturally hard, and accidentallie soft, as yron holden in the fire, is hotte and soft, but out of it turneth cold & hard; whē God warmeth it with a spirituall motion, and sense of his louelove, then it is soft as wax, but atonce it becommeth as a stone: By day euen vnderunder spirituall exercise it stealeth it selfe away from sensiblenesse: And in the night, though wee close our eyes, vnderunder a strong spiritual sense and softnesse, yet in the morning, wee shall finde it hard in our breast: It can bee hardened not by Commission of euill onelyonly, but also by omission of good, and that while wee are labouring to soften it.
Next to the pleasing of God, I neuer found an harder taske than to keepe the heart in tendernesse. There is no pleasure to the softnesse of it, and no griefe to the fel… hardnesse of it, and yet when I grieue for that hardnesse, I shal rejoyce; if it were incurable, it would bee vnfelt. The Conscience of my endeuouring to flie sin, giueth some comfort, & the vnspeakable griefe for the hardnesse of it mitigateth that griefe. An heart fullie deserted of God, and judiciallie hardened, can neither feele that hardnesse, nor grieue for it: If I feare it and feele it, I hauehave it not; griefe for it, is a softning and loosing of hardnesse.
Hee hath neede to dwell in his heart, and in these thoughts continuallie▪ who would keepe his heart in a tendernesse and affectuousnesse to God.
The best way to keepe hardnesse out of our heart, is to intertaine an heauenly heat of Deuotion in it: The Altar of God had alwayes the fire that came downe from heauen. If wee keepe our heart vnderunder the sense of Gods louelove to vsus, and the worke of our louelove to him, that warmnesse shall preserue our heart in that temper, that God at no tyme shall want a sacrifice, nor wee a comfort.
76. Gods worship done as his worship.
MAny exercise themselues in the worke of Gods worshippe, but not as his worship: The Hypocrite doeth it to be seene of men, and to purchase a name of pietie; the Politicke to bee counted a professor, and eschew the suspition of Atheisme: And the Atheist himselfe to feede his curiositie. It is a good worke in it selfe, but to them who doe it with by respects, it is sinne. Their life doe proue how profanelie they act it, they are neuer one whit better, but goe on in their profannesse, they obtaine the end that they intend, and can sute no further: Their ende is not edification in the Grace of God, but other base respects, the desire whereof cerieth them to the worke, and in it they find their satisfaction, further they looke not, and finde not.
The end of Gods worshippe is our union with him, to partake his forgiuing goodnesse, in the pardon of sinne, and his giuing goodnesse in all sauing Grace: The forme of it, is in giuing diuine homage & honour to him: But they minde none of these. If they can purchase the name of zealous professors, suters of Sermons; though indeede they bee but naturallie or ciuillie disposed in all the worke, and seekers of nouelties, they hauehave all their desire.
But to doe the worke of Gods worshippe, as his worship hath vnspeakable profite; wee doe it so, when the louelove of God and his Grace allureth vsus, and the griefe of our miserie forceth vsus to him, when we preasse not to please men, but God, & seeke not any base respect, but his Glorie, & the rest & comfort, of our Soules in Christ: Wee take time, occasion, place, Texts, & all as Gods prouidence doth offer them to vsus, & in all we seeke him, & find him, & rest on him. We may both please men, and our selfe, and deceiue vsus both therein, in such by-respects: Yet God will not bee deceiued, what euer his secrete goodnesse worke in man, yet no spirituall fruite is due to so fleshly a disposition.
77. Gods stamppe in the Soule and Bodie.
GOD hath reserued the immediate search and knowledge of the heart to himselfe: But so as hee hath left some indices for others to obserue it.
GODS Image is principally seated in the Soule, yet it is not inclosed there, but the body hath the owne part in it: Election, Iustification, Sanctifiation, pertaineth to both Soule & B…die; though the soule be both more capable & sēsible of them. Gods treasure of Grace in his owne, is so laide vp in the Soule, that it may bee seene in some measure in the body, and that not onelyonly as the Soules Instrument, but as a Companion: That fellowship in partaking Grace with the Soule, doeth more affect the bodie, than a naked Instrument.
The countenance, conuoy of businesse, gesture, and wordes, giuegive some notice how the heart is sette: Though man by Education, Letters, Religion, and Grace, be subject to a change from his naturall disposition, yet there is euer some Characteristicke thing in Nature to bee seene in eueryevery one.
Hypocrisie (the fittest visorne for deceat) cannot hyde that from the discerning eye: As the colour of people testifieth the soyle; their language, the Nation, their accent of speach, their Prouence, as a Galilean from an Iew: So euerie mans Character telleth his disposition; hee must cast off himselfe before hee cast it off: It is the Soules lineaments in the body, words and deeds; if wee find it, wee hauehave found out the predominant, both in its …eate, and chiefe instrument: It is matter for our circumspectnesse to eschew mens euill, and of our hope to look for their good: What either good or euill can bee remarkable in them, is marked by, and tasteth of that stamppe.
It is good, when the naturall Character is stamped with Grace; when God reneweth me to his Image in righteousnesse and holinesse, sure I am, hee will make mee a signet on his arme, and his heart; when hee filleth all the heart with his Grace, his Name will bee written in the forehead, so that they who can, may read, Holinesse to the LORD.
Courtlie attendance giueth men a courtlie countenance: And Sathans slaues by their deuilish consulting with him, drawe on their face, a sterne rasednesse, the horrour of that vncleane Spirit, deformeth his familiars: And shall not the heauenlie familiaritie with God, giuegive an holy impression to his daylie attendants: Familiar conuersing with God, made Moses face to shine.
The Soule is naturallie both affected with, and affecteth the body with the things that it most loueth. And what is more excellent, or giueth stronger impression in it, than God? If wee come seldome to him, we are but lightlie touched of him, but if our Soules by continuall mynding of him, bee sub-acted by these thoughtes, and kned in them, doubtlesse as our Spirit within, so our body without shall giuegive some testimonies of a diuine disposition.
78. Of great naturall Spirits.
I Saw neuer greater folie, than in these named greatest naturall Spirits, odde wits hauehave as odde gaddes, no great ingyne without some mixture of madnes, and their vyce oft-ten doeth equall or rather exceede their vertues: No moderate thing can cōtent them, but al their worke is in excesse, and that in the worst sense; their end in intending, their practise in plotting, and they choose rather to hunt an vncertaine, and imaginate contentment, than to enjoye a certaine and present estate.
I doe not so wonder at their course & folie, in judging it, as at the world, that counteth them great Spirits: Alexanders Courtiers mocked Diogenes, but hee in his Hodged, was a greater Monarch than Alexander: For he commanded Pride, Ambition, and Lust, wherevnto Alexander was a slaue. I will leaue reasoning with those Spirits, till they come home to themselues: They are not brought home usuallie, but by some great calamitie, and many, not till their death.
Moderate Spirits proue best: With little businesse they doe much, and holding themselues within their reach, they come softlie to their just and desired ends: But the other take great libertie ouer their Spirites and States and outreach them both: But Prouidence will not bee commanded of them: It c…osseth their desires, and breaketh their purposes in shiuers.
What euer Spirit wee hauehave in naturall partes, it is good to hauehave it sanctified; our care shall be helped with heauenly prudence, & furthered by Gods prouidence: These shall bring to our hand, more than euer wee could dreame. The supposed base Spirites of this holie temper, doe infinitely exceede these falslie named great Spirits: Their greatnesse is more in the worldes style, than in the thing it selfe, but the event will proue them great in miserie, they are great only in humane things, & in mans account: True greatnes is in true goodnesse: It is a base and bastard greatnesse, that is separate from goodnesse: These two are infinitelie and joyntlie in God, who is both Optimus & Maximus, thee Goodest and Greatest: There is more true greatnesse in the meanest degree of sauing Grace, than in all the humane greatnesse in the world. How euer the world count of their owne greatnesse, and of the basenesse of the godly, yet the Saints are Gods excellent Ones on Earth. Psal. 16. 3.