The Marrow of the Oracles of God, Chapter 5
CHAP. V.
Intreating of the rules that concerne our carriage towards God, and in particular about the knowledge of God.
HItherto of the generall The diuision of the particular rules.rules: The particular rules that concerne the right ordering of our conuersation, may be cast into three heads, as they direct vsus in our carriage,
1. Towards God.
2. Towards men.
3. Towards our selues.
All the rules that concerne The subdiuision.our duties to God, may bee cast into two heads: For they concerne either the louelove of God, or the seruice of God. This is an exact diuision; for all we owe to God, is fitly comprehēded in these two, LoueLove and Seruice, and the Scripture so diuides in these and the like places, Commandement 2. Deut. 11. 22. & 30. 16. Iosh. 22. 5. Esay. 56. 6.
Now that we may be rightly ordered in respect of our louelove to God, we must cōsider of this louelove either in the foundation of it, or in the exercise of it. The foundation of our louelove to God, is the true knowledge of God, 1. Chron. 28. 9. The rules that con cerne the right knowledge of God, of …. sorts That w…e …ay conceiue …right of Gods nature.So that in the first place we must soundly informe our selues concerning this knowledge of God. Now the rules that concerne the right knowledge of God, concerne either the right conceiuing of his nature, or our acquaintance with God, when we doe aright conceiue of him. That we may conceiue aright of Gods nature:
1. Wee must exclude out of our thoughts all likenesses, so as 1 Wee must cast … all likenessesmen do not thinke of God, representing him by the similitude of any creature: Hee that forbids Images of him in Churches, forbids it also in our heads, Commandement 2. Esay 40. Deut. 4.
2. We must striue to conceiue 6. Wee must conceiue of him according to his prayses.of him according to his praises declared by his workes, or in his Word. This is an excellent and easie way to think of God. Since our hearts cannot conceiue his nature, we should fill them with the impression of his praises, and according to them direct our affection and seruice to him: as I would bring this mind to prayer or any other seruice of God, I cannot make any resemblance of the diuine substance, whom I am about to serue: yet this will I doe, I will remember that hee that I pray vntounto, is most wise, most omn potent, most iust, most gracious, &c. Thus God proclaimes himselfe by his praises, Exo. 34. 6. where God himselfe shews vsus a way how to conceiue of him.3. Wee must beleeue the Trinity of Persons.
3. Thou … silence thy reason, and exalt thy faith in the point of the Trinity, which must be conceiued of necessitie, because all seruice is due to the whole Trinity. Now thou needest not to striue to resemble the Trinity in any likenesse in thy minde, but onelyonly bring faith to beleeue that thy God is three in one.
4. It may yet helpe thy vnderstanding 4. Thou maist conceiue of God in the Humane Nature of Christ.to conceiue, that God is in Christ, and the fulnesse of the Godhead dwels in him bodily: and therefore when thou commest to worship, thou maist set before thy minde the Humane Nature of Christ, adoring the Godhead in him, as conceiuing of God in that humane nature thou thinkest of, Col. 2. 9. Ioh. 17. 3.
5. That this may be the more 5. Thou must resist Atheistical thoughtsclearely and comfortably done, thou must labour by sound aduice and direction, to expell out of thy head those secret and rebellious Atheisticall thoughts, which arise in thee about his nature, Decrees, Attributes, or Workes. Men must take heed of smothering these obiections, but seeke helpe against them in time.
Thus of the knowledge of God, as it concernes the right conceiuing of his Nature.
There is required further such 2. Of acquaintance with Goda knowledge, as brings vsus acquainted with God: we are commanded to acquaint our selues with God, Iob 22. 21, 22.
Now, because it is an exceeding That thou maiest bee aquainted with God.hard way for a mortall man to finde out God, so as to enioy familiaritie with him: therefore I will adde some directions about it: For if thou wouldest acquaint thy selfe with God,
1. Thou must prepare thy 1. Thou must prepare thy heart.heart for this Vision of God, by driuing out filthy and vnholy thoughts and affections: For without holinesse no man can see God. The pure in heart shall see God, Math. 5. 8. Hebr. 12. 14. 1. Chron. 19. 3. God delights to shew himselfe familiarly in a cleane heart.
2. Thou must begge this acquaintance 2 Thou must beg it by prayer.by prayer: if thou seeke it of him earnestly, though God bee in himselfe inuisible to mo…tall eyes, yet he will shew himselfe to the eyes of thy mind; pray for his acquaintance, and he will be acquainted with thee: This is to aske after the Lord, and to seeke God: if we seeke him, hee will be found, Psal. 105. 3, 4. But then we must remember three things.
1. To seeke him with our whole hearts, we must pray with great earnestnes and desire, Psa. 119. 10
2. To seeke him early, and while 2. We must beleeue the Trinitie of Persons.hee may bee found, Hos. 5. 15. Esay 55. 6. God offers acquaintance in his Ordinances, and sometimes comes neere, and knocketh at mens hearts, and workes greater impressions vponupon them, now if thou wouldest call vponupon God heartily, hee would shew thee his presence.
3. To seeke him constantly; we must seeke his face continually: 3.both til we finde it, and after we hauehave had acquaintance with him, it must be continued: wee must not thinke much, if we be put to pray often and long, before wee ataine such an incomparable benefit.
4. Thou must giuegive thy selfe, 4. Thou must giuegive thy selfe to God.soule and body, to God seriously, and from thy heart, deuoting & promising to spend thy dayes in his seruice, and then he will reueale himselfe vntounto thee, Rom 12. 1, 2.
5. Thou must waite vponupon his Ordinances, and watch how the Lord speaks vntounto thee, either by his Word, or by his Spirit: For in them he shewes himselfe to men, and conuerseth with them.
6. It is a great furtherance to our acquaintance with God, to keepe company with his Houshold; for with them he dwels: and by conuersing with them, we may occasionably often see God, 1. Ioh. 4. 6, 7, 8, 12.
Thus of acquaintance with God.
There are other things to bee Other things about our knowledge of God.further noted concerning our knowledge of God, such as these:
That when wee attaine vntounto any acquaintance with God, we must neuer rest, till wee know him to be our God, Col. 2. 2.
That it must be our daily care to increase in the knowledge of God, labouring to plant in our hearts a more large and affectionate contemplation of the glories of Gods Nature and LoueLove.
That aboue all earthly things we should glory in it, if wee attaine some happie admission into Gods presence, and abilitie to conceiue of God, and to bee acquainted with him, Ier. 9. 24.