A Bright Star which Leadeth Wise Men to our Lord Jesus Christ, Commandment 4 · Part 1
Remember.
IN that God prefixed, in ſpeciall termes as it were of ſet purpoſe to meet with mens forgetfulneſſe, a memorandum heere more then in any other of the commandements, we may hence learne that who euer will faithfully and conſcionablie keepe the ſabboth when it is come, muſt before hand hauehave a ſpecial care & a forecaſt to preuēt thoſe things that may hinder them in the keeping of it. A reaſon of this caueat which God giues, and of the dilligence that wee muſt hauehave in thus remembring and preparing for the ſabboth, may bee drawne from our owne infirmitie, that vnleſſe wee bee very circumſpect, and caſt about with care indeede, wee are readie eaſily to let ſlip ſome buſineſſe, and leaue ſomething vndone which will then diſtract vsus and draw our minds and bodies to, from gods ſeruice, ſome money to pay or to receiue, ſome journey to take, ſome odd thing or other, that beeing forgotten in time, will ruſh in vponupon vsus now, and muſt bee done now, becauſe it was omitted before, and cannot tarry till after; ſith then wee are ſo ſubject to diſtruction, and ſo ſoone to forget things, that if wee had had a care before, might hauehave beene done well without any trouble in the ſabboth, but now through our negligence comes vponupon vsus on that day, this muſt teach vsus to hauehave a heauenly foreſight that wee prouide againſt all ſuch lets, and cut off by our godly care all ſuch incombrances. That pollicie and care which wee ſee in naturall men about the market of their bodies, we muſt learne for this market of our ſoule, they will bee prouiding and thinking before what they muſt buy at the market, and what they muſt carrie to the market, and will not hauehave the things to bee in doing, when they ſhould hauehave them ready to carry with them, but looke that the things they purpoſe to ſell be prepared, that ſo they may not be hindred but be there in good time to make their markets for their beſt aduantage. So if euer we will make good markets for our ſoules, we muſt all the weeke before, be preparing our harts, and ſetting all things ſtraight, that our harts may be burdened with no ſinne nor no worldly care thē, which ſhould carry away the force of our meditations & thoughts from the exerciſes of religion; for they be ſpirituall and we be carnall, and a little thing God knowes, will make a great ſtirre in our fleſhly harts, to draw them from heauenly things, and therfore vnleſſe wee take great heede to examine our harts, and watch ouer our ſelues that we walke purely & holily all the ſixe daies long, and to caſt out and diſcharge all affaires of this life on the one ſide, the ſinne committed on the other ſide, the buſineſſe omitted will hale and pull our thoughts, that no attention can be giuen to matters of religion; no conſtant or ſetled meditation of any heauenly thing can take place; we muſt therefore ſtop out all diſtractions and encombrances, & rayſe vp our harts againſt deadneſſe and dulneſſe, which will make vsus heauie and dull, and ſlow to any good thing, by a wiſe managing and finiſhing our outward affaires, and a godly and religious ordring and preparing our harts, if euer we will comfortably & profitably ſpend the Lords day, in the Lords work. Then againe beſids theſe needleſſe lets, which through our owne weakneſſe we pul vponupon our owne heads, therbe hindrances enough on eueryevery ſide, which doe wee what wee can with all the induſtrie in the world, we ſhall neuer be able wholy to preuent, but they will ſet vponupon vsus. As in what family ſhall one come but he ſhall ſee idleneſſe and ſlepineſſe, and fooliſhneſſe manyfold wayes, & who that knowes himſelfe any whit at all, doth not feele that he is readier to follow ill example, & be led by ill company, then to be led by Gods commandement, eſpecially when no poſitiue law will take hold vponupon him, for the breach of Gods commandement. And then we hauehave the diuel as a Lion continually ſeeking to deuoure our ſoules, & to hinder vsus in all things he can from religion, and in the beſt there be ſuch ſtrong luſts, ſuch a louelove of the pleaſure and commoditie of this world, that vnleſſe we be ſtrongly garded and defended, will breake in vponupon our harts, and diſorder the rank of our affections. As come to a profeſſour that is giuen to couetouſneſſe, and ouer to whome the world beares to great an hand, though he hauehave a true hart to God, and ſome ſound graces of the ſpirit of God wrought in him, doe but vp ſome couetous talke that tends toward gaine and filthie lucre, ſee if he will not be quite gone, and forgetting God and the ſabboth, and himſelfe and all, giuegive his hart and tongue and all, to be imployd about worldly things, vnleſſe he mound and fence his hart about diligently with theſe thoughts, what though I doe, hath not god bidden me remember the ſabboth, hath he not ſet a ſpeciall mark vponupon it, that I ſhould in no hand forget, & thus by earneſt ſtriuing, ſhake of theſe vntimely words & thoughts. And then we ſhall hauehave the world be objecting, and putting in it carnall reaſons to make vsus negligent; why, what neede you be ſo ſtrict, this is to much niceneſſe, you are more preciſe then wiſe, and ſuch like; which will certainly carry one away vnleſſe he ſtriue to confirme himſelfe, by thinking on Gods commandement, and ſo ſhut out theſe objections; what, hath not God bid mee remember, and ſhall I ſuffer men to make me forget it? hath not he giuen me two reaſons to keep it, the one ſtronger then the Iewes had, and ſhall I be more negligent in keeping it, then they, which had but one? they had weaker meanes of comfort, the bloud of buls and goates, & the ſprinkling of water, and an earthly tabernacle and high prieſt, and yet they were with reuerence to vſe theſe; and ſhall we, that hauehave more excellent meanes, as Chriſt Ieſus offered vp for a ſacrifice offered vp once for all, and the ſprinkling of his bloud to purifie our ſoules, and the heauenly tabernacle opened for vsus, by him our heauenly high prieſt, and continuall mediator; ſhall we I ſay, that hauehave all theſe meanes, more plaine & excellent then theirs, be negligent to keepe this ſabboth; eſpecially, ſith God hath giuen vsus this as a meanes to draw vsus from earth to heauen, and to make vsus grow in a ſpirituall life. Hauing then all theſe impediments, vnleſſe we doe arme our ſelues in the weeke daye, and ſtrengthen our faith by remembring Gods commandement & reaſons, & by a wiſe cutting of thoſe diſtractions which by diligence may be cut of, we cannot with any comfort or cherefully celebrate a ſabboth vntounto the Lord. Laſtly, if wee reade the ſcriptures of God, and ſee how often God vrgeth this point, & how earneſtly he preſſeth it, this will make vsus labour often, and continually to call to minde that, which he ſo often hath repeated vntounto vsus, becauſe if it were a neceſſarie dutie, God will not ſo many times, in ſo many places require it at our hāds. So that eueryevery one muſt labour by ſearching his conſcience, & watching ouer his ſoule, to rouſe himſelfe from that lumpiſhneſſe and drouſineſſe which is within him; and by prouidence and forecaſt of outward buſineſſe, to put away all outward encombrances and diſtractions.
This then ſerues firſt to confute thoſe that make this kinde of objections againſt the ſabboth; Oh we cannot keepe it, we ſhould bee vndone if wee ſhould reſt vponupon the ſabboth day, for theſe loſſes and damages would enſue, theſe hurts would come, ſuch buſineſſes would bee left vndone; but I pray you whence come all theſe loſſes? what is the cauſe of theſe damages? is it not becauſe you forget the verie firſt word of the commandement, Remember the ſabboth day. Then this is no warrant for vsus to breake Gods commandement, becauſe wee had forgot that, which God bids vsus remember: this is euen as if a man ſhould forget his purſe behind him, when hee went to the market, and when hee came to buy things wanting mony of his owne, ſhould goe and cut another bodies purſe, and then if one come and tell him, this is not honeſt dealing, it is plaine theft, and why would you bee ſo bold to cut your neighbours purſe? why alas neighbour, I hope I was in no fault, neceſsitie drew mee to it, for I had left my purſe at home, and I knew not how to doe for mony to buy my things, and to hauehave gone backe againe would hauehave beene to much paines. Why but doth this make it lawfull to cut your neighbours, becauſe you had forgotten your owne, nay who ſhould hauehave remembred it, and not come to make ſuch ſhifts: and euen ſo men deale with God, oh they cannot chuſe but breake the ſabboth, they are driuen to it of force, neceſsitie compels them, and what neceſsitie? why, ſuch things lie to bee done that will bee ſpoiled elſe, why, but why did you forget them before, now ſhal your former forgetfulneſſe bee a warrant for you to ſteale Gods holy time, and abuſe it to vnholy things? Some hath a bonde to pay that will bee forfaited elſe: and why did you not remember before to make your condition with ſuch an exception, vnleſſe it were on the ſabboth, and then to defer it for ſome reaſonable time after, or ſome ſuch like condition? and ſo I hauehave this and this thing that muſt bee done, and why did not you thinke of this before to preuent it, as it is ſure you might, if you did ſerue God in your calling and not couetouſneſſe? ſo others ſay it is ſo tedious and irkſome to ſpend that day holy, that they cannot endure it; and why is it tedious to you? is it not becauſe you prepared not your ſoule to keepe it? you let ſinne keepe dominion in your hart all the weeke, and then it muſt needes bee dull and dead to all goodneſſe on the ſeauenth day, but thoſe that doe labour to walke vprightlie & purely before God ſixe daies, finde ſuch comfort thereby, as no outward pleaſure can bring, nor anie thing in this world but onelyonly the ordinances of God can afford.
Secondly, this teacheth vsus to lay as a dutie eueryevery one vponupon his owne conſcience, to remember this day, & in all our affaires to hauehave this in our minde, that wee entangle not our ſelues by any buſineſſe which might hinder vsus from keeping of it; firſt becauſe wee hauehave ſo direct an item as wee call it, to remember this day; ſecondly, becauſe whereas God contented himſelfe in all the other commandements, to ſet them downe either onelyonly affirmatiuely or onelyonly negatiuelie, hee hath not done ſo in this commandement, but to ſet the deeper impreſsion in our harts hath ſet it downe both affirmatiuelie and negatiuely, keepe it holy ſaith hee, and as though that were not inough, doe no manner of worke in it, and then wheras other of the commandements for the moſt part hauehave no reaſons annexed to them in the decalogue, though in the ſcripture elſe where they hauehave; this and the ſecond commandement hauehave diuers reaſons added vntounto them, that men might hauehave a greater regard vntounto it. Therefore if wee will doe any thing for Gods ſake, then doe this for his ſake: if a friend ſhould come to vsus and ſay, I hauehave ſome ten errands, which I would hauehave you doe for mee, and I will recompence you throughly for your paines, but of all the ten there is one amongſt the reſt, which I would hauehave you eſpeciallie to remember, and of all loues ſee that you forget it not; would not one thinke him verie negligent and vnmindfull of his friend, that would forget this of which he had ſuch a ſpeciall charge, eſpecially if his friend ſhould in moſt of the other giuegive but the bare commandement and thing ſet downe without any more words, but ſhould inſiſt vponupon that, and giuegive him reaſon vponupon reaſon why hee ſhould hauehave a ſpeciall care of it: but ſo God ſaith to vsus, hee giues vsus warning before, ſhewing that wee are ready to forget it, but hee would hauehave vsus ſtriue againſt this forgetfulneſſe, and then becauſe wee ſhould not forget but doe it, hee vrgeth it with many reaſons; now then to forget this is it not a plaine contempt and neglect?
It followes.