A Treatise of Self-Denial, Treatise · Chapter 34
CHAP. XXXIV. Carnal Liberty to be denied: What.
17. ANother ſelfiſh intereſt to be denied, is Carnal Liberty. A thing that ſelfiſhneſs hath ſtrangely brought of late into ſo much credit, that abundance among us think they are doing ſome ſpecial ſervice to God, their Country, the Church and their own ſouls, when they are but deeply engaged for the Devil, by a ſelf-ſeeking ſpirit, in a Carnal Courſe. For the diſcovery of this dangerous common diſeaſe, I muſt firſt tell you, that there is a threefold Liberty which muſt carefully be differenced. 1. There is an Holy, Bleſſed Liberty which no man muſt deny. 2. There is a wicked Liberty, which no man ſhould deſire. 3. And between theſe two there is a Common, Natural, and Civil Liberty, which is good in its place, as other worldly matters are, but muſt be denied, when it ſtands in competition with higher and better things; and, as all other worldly matters, is Holy when it is Holily eſteemed and uſed; that is, for God; but ſinful when it is ſinfully eſteemed and uſed, and that is for Carnal ſelf.
I. The firſt of theſe is not to be denied, but all other Liberty to be denied for it. This Holy Liberty conſiſteth in theſe following Particulars. 1. To be freed from the Power of ſin, which is the diſability, the deformity, the death of the ſoul. 2. From the Guilt of ſin, and the wrath of God, and the Curſe of the Law. 3. To be reſtored to God by Chriſt, in Union, Reconciliation, and Sanctification; and our enthralled ſpirits ſet free, to know, and love, and ſerve him, and delight in him. Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is Libert y, 2 Cor. 3. 17. God is the ſouls freedom, who is its Lord, and life, and end, and all. 4. To be delivered from Satan as a Deceiver, and enemy, and executioner of the wrath of God. 5. To be freed from that Law or Covenant of Works, which requireth that which to us is become impoſſible. 6. To be freed from the burdenſome task of uſeleſs Ceremonies, impoſed on the Church in the times of infancy and darkneſs. 7. To be freed from the accuſations of a guilty conſcience, & thoſe ſelf-tormentings which in the wicked are the fore-taſtes of hell. 8. To be freed from ſuch temporal judgments here as might hinder our ſalvation, or our ſervice of God. 9. To be free from the condemning ſentence at the laſt day, and the everlaſting Torments which the wicked muſt endure. 10. And to be delivered into the bleſſed ſight of God, and the perfect fruition and pleaſing of him, in Perfect Love, and Joy, and Praiſe, to all eternity. This is the Liberty which you muſt not deny, which I therefore name, that by the way you may ſee, that it is not for nothing that the other ſorts of Liberty are to be denied.
II. The ſecond ſort of Liberty is, that which is wicked & directly evil, which all men ſhould deny: And this is a freedom from Righteouſneſs, as the Apoſtle calls it, Rom. 6. 20. To be free from a voluntary ſubjection to God, and free from his ſevere and holy Laws, and free from the thoughts of holineſs, and of the life to come, and free from thoſe ſighs and groans for ſin, and that godly ſorrow which the ſanctified undergo; and to be free from all thoſe ſpiritual motions and changing works upon their hearts, which the Spirit doth work on all the Saints: to be free from holy ſpeeches, and holy prayer, and other duties, and from that ſtrict and holy manner of living which God commandeth; to be at liberty to ſin againſt God, and to pleaſe the fleſh, and follow their own imaginations and wills, let God ſay what he will to the contrary: to be free to eat and drink what we love and have a mind of, and to be merry, and wanton, and luſtful, and worldly, and take our courſe without being curbed by ſo preciſe a Law, as God hath given us: to be free from an heavenly converſation, and thoſe preparations for death, and that Communion with God which the Saints partake of: This is the wicked Liberty of the world, which the worſt of carnal men deſire: And the next beyond this, is a Liberty to lie in the fire of hell, and a freedom from ſalvation, and from the everlaſting Joy and Praiſes of the Saints. If freedom from Grace and Holineſs deſerve the name of Freedom, then you may next call Damnation a Freedom.
And it is part alſo of this ſinful miſerable Liberty to be free from the Government, and Officers, and good Laws which rule the Church and Commonwealth. And ſuch wretches there are in the world, that ſeriouſly judge it a deſirable Liberty to be free from theſe. They think that their Country is Free, when every man may do what he liſt, and they have no King or other Governors, or none that will look after them, and puniſh their miſcarriages: And they think the Church is free, when they have no Paſtors, or when Paſtors have leaſt power over them, and they may do what they liſt. And indeed if they were rid of Magiſtrates and Miniſters, they were free! As a School is free that hath ſhut out the Maſter, or have rejected him, and teach and rule one another! And as a Ship is free when the Maſter and Pilot are thrown over-board; and as an Army is free when they have caſt off or loſt their commanders: or to ſpeak more fitly, as an Hoſpital is free when they are delivered from their Phyſician; and as the madmen in Bedlam are free when they have killed, or eſcaped from their Keepers. As Infidels keep their Freedom, by refuſing Chriſt in himſelf: ſo carnal Dividers and Hereticks keep their Freedom, by refuſing his Officers, and Chriſt in thoſe Officers: For he that heareth them heareth him; and he that deſpiſeth them, deſpiſeth him; and he that deſpiſeth, deſpiſeth not man but God, Luke 10. 16. 1 Theſ. 4. 8.
And another part of this ungodly Liberty is, to be free from the exerciſe at leaſt of this power of Magiſtrates and Miniſters ſo far as not to be reſtrained from ſin, though they be not free from the ſtate of ſubjects. To ſwear, and be drunk, and live as moſt Ale-ſellers on the damning ſins of others, and make a trade of ſelling men their damnation, and to have no Magiſtrate puniſh them, no Officer trouble them, and no neighbour accuſe them; this is their Liberty. To game, and roar, and revel, and have no body ſay to them, Why do you ſo, is part of their Liberty. To have leave without Reſtraint to make all others as bad as themſelves, and if they are Infidels or Hereticks, to perſwade other men to it: If they hold any opinion againſt the God that made them, againſt Chriſt, againſt the Spirit of God, againſt the Word and Laws of God, againſt his Miniſters, his Church, his Ordinances, againſt any neceſſary point of Faith, or if they have any falſe conceit that leads ſtraight to Hell, that they may have full power, licenſe, and authority, to bring as many as they can to be of the ſame mind, that they may not be unprofitable ſervants to the Devil, nor go to Hell alone, this is a great part of their impious Liberty: And becauſe the name of Conſcience is become honourable, they call this by the name of Liberty of Conſcience: when indeed it is Liberty of Practice that they mean, and not Liberty of Conſcience: For their Conſcience cannot be altered by force, nor touched by the Sword. It's they that deprive men of the Liberty of their Conſciences, whilſt by falſe teaching they put out the eye of conſcience, & enſlave it to ſinful falſe conceits. And Conſcience is ſcience: and Error is not ſcience but ignorance: And therefore as Error is not Conſcience, but the deſtruction of Conſcience; ſo Liberty to error, is no Liberty of Conſcience, but a Liberty to deſtroy Conſcience: Much leſs is it Liberty of Conſcience to ſin againſt God, and draw others from Conſcience into error, and poyſon mens ſouls, and hinder the Goſpel, and promote the work and Kingdom of the Devil.
And many of our miſerable ſottiſh people take it for a part of their deſired Liberty to be free from Miniſters Spiritual Overſight and Government, & not to be Carechiſed or called to an account, or examined about the ſtate of their ſouls, nor queſtioned about their lives, but that they may do what they will, and have Sacraments, and all Ordinances on what terms and in what manner they will, and to have Miniſters bow their Judgments to theirs, and lay their Conſciences at the feet of every carnal ignorant wretch, and be but their ſervants to do what they would have them: this is the Liberty that Satans ſervants do deſire.
And withall, that they may be free from neceſſary payments for the ſafety of the Commonwealth, and from the neceſſary retribution to God, for the Church and poor, yea from giving but the Miniſters their own; all this they take for part of their liberty. But they are all ſuch liberties as Chriſt never purchaſed, and the Goſpel never beſtowed, and never made the Owners happy: It is a liberty to ſtarve their own ſouls, and go quietly to everlaſting torment, and not be moleſted by Preachers and Puritans, but to ſin againſt God, and damn themſelves, and be let alone, and have no body tell them of it, or ask them, Why will you do ſo? In a word, it is that liberty that Chriſt died to ſave his people from, and which the Goſpel would take down, and the ſpirit, miniſtry, and Ordinances would overthrow, and which no wiſe or good man hath reaſon to deſire: & it is that liberty which God will ſave all thoſe from, whom he will ſave from the flames of hell.
III. The third ſort of Liberty is that which is in it ſelf Indifferent, or to be reckoned among the common tranſitory benefits of this life, which with Gods bleſſing is a mercy; and well uſed may do good, but otherwiſe is hurtful or little worth. This Liberty is not the Natural Liberty of the will, which in regard of its own elicite Acts is nothing but the power of ſelf-determination; and in regard of internal imperate acts, is nothing but a power or freedom to do what we will. For theſe are ſo our own, if not our ſelves, that no man can take them from us; at leaſt the firſt. Nor is it the Ethical Liberty of the ſoul from ſin by gracious Habits: for this is ever good, as was ſaid before. Nor is it a Political Liberty from thoſe tyrannous Laws or practices of men that would root out the Goſpel and pull down the Kingdom of Chriſt, and ſet up iniquity. This Liberty muſt be deſired, and not denied, even when we ſubmit our ſelves to perſecution: but it is 1. The Civil Liberty of being from under the Government of others, and of having a hand in Government our ſelves. 2. The Liberty of being from under the Government of Strangers, Conquerors, or enemies. 3. The Liberty of chooſing our own Governors, and having them not by other mens election ſet over us. 4. A Liberty from burdenſom payments & taxes which are of no neceſſity to our good. 5. A liberty from arbitrary Government, and from being liable to the meer will and paſſions of men. 6. A protection from the abuſes and injuries of others. 7. And a liberty for o fooliſh conceits that makes impriſonment ſo grievous to the moſt. It is the ſame earth that they tread on, and the ſame air that they breath in as before. The great trouble is that they have not their wills: for when their own wills do as much confine them, it is then no trouble. I can confine my ſelf to one room, to one chair, the far greateſt part of the year for my ſtudies: and why ſhould I not bear as well to be ſo confined by another, if my own will could but comply with it? Never grudge at reſtraint or impriſonment then, but find out ſome imployment in it, whereby you may be ſerviceable to God, or at leaſt ſerve him by your ſufferings, and then rejoyce in it, and bring your minds to your condition, and ſo you may ſet your ſelves at liberty in ſpite of the greateſt Tyrant in the world. Impriſonment is but a penal reſtraint: and if, it be not Involuntary, it's ſcarcely penal: it is therefore in your power whether you will be Priſoners or not, becauſe it is in your power whether it ſhall be involuntary or not. Be but willing of your confinement, and you are at liberty; and though you are not out of the place, you are out of the priſon. The ſame room that is a priſon to the reſt, is none to the keper that guards them, becauſe apprehending it to be for his commodity, he is willing of it, and their priſon is his home. And if you do but apprehend how you are called from temptations, and have an opportunity of honouring God, or at leaſt of being more humbled and mortified, and ſo bring your mind to conſent to your habitation, it's become your home and place of freedom: however he is unworthy of the liberty of the Saints, that cannot deny the liberty of his habitation or bodily abode for the attaining of it.
And for thethings that men make ſuch a ſtir about in the world, under the name of their …il liberties, ſome of them are no liberties, but fancies or miſeries, & the reſt of them are no further to be valued than they are ſubſervient to the Kingdom of Chriſt and the good of ſouls. Conceited people call it their liberty to be governed rather by four hundred than by one, or by Popularity than by other forms of Government, and a great ſtir they make about this, as if their felicity did conſiſt in it: When as the true liberty of a Commonwealth conſiſteth in the fulleſt conformity of their Laws and their execution to the will of God: in being free from all Laws or Paſſions of men that encourage iniquity, and are againſt the Goſpel or the common good, and peace and welfare of the body: In a word, to have Government beſt fitted to the ends of Government, which is ſuch a temporal ſafety and proſperity as moſt conduceth to the ſervice and honour of God: But the ſpecies of Government is none of this liberty in it ſelf conſidered. A people may be at much more liberty under a pious Monarch than an impious or unskilful Democracy. The free choice of the moſt when they are bad (as where is it better?) may enſlave the beſt: and the awe and intereſt of the Rich is commonly ſuch upon the people, that a free choice is ſomewhat ſtrange. And that ſort of Government may be fitteſt for One people, that is unfit for another: And their happineſs lieth not in the ſpecies of Government, let them ſtretch their wits to invent new forms as long as they will; but in the Predominancy of God and his Intereſt in the hearts of the Governors, and in their Laws, their Officers, and Execution. This is it, and nothing but this, in Government, that will give the Commonwealth that deſirable liberty, in which their welfare doth conſiſt.
And therefore thoſe perſons are Enemies to the Liberty of their Country, that under that Name would advance ſuch kind of Popular intereſt as is plainly againſt the intereſt of Chriſt: and muſt have Magiſtrates and Miniſters reſtrained from doing the Work of the Omnipotent Soveraign, the one from puniſhing ſin (if it be againſt the firſt Table, or come but under the name of conſcience) and the other from exerciſing Churchdiſcipline, and all under pretence of the Peoples Liberties. All theſe are carnal Liberties to be Denied.