Exposition Upon 1 Peter, Biblical exegesis · Chapter 1 · Verse 14
Verse 14. As obedient children, not fashioning your selves according to the former lusts in your ignorance.
TO Faith he addeth Repentance and Sanctification, by the one to testifie the other,2 Pet. 1. 5. (as in the second Epistle, he wills them to adde unto their Faith, vertue) as if he should say, You that sometimes were the Children of wrath, and are now by grace made Gods Children, walk obediently as becomes such a mercy.
This Sanctification hath two parts:The two parts of Sanctification. and stands, 1. In renouncing evil, or the lusts, which (before grace) we were wont to be led by. 2. In putting on, and embracing holiness of life, that we may resemble the disposition of our Father who is holy, and looks for holiness in his; yea, holiness in all maner of conversation.
For the order,Obedience and Sanctification follow Faith. first goes Faith, then Obedience and Sanctification; for as the light and Sun-beams comes from the Sun, a river from the Spring head,Simile. fruit from the tree, so doth obedience from Faith: Till a man be pardoned and believe,Heb. 11. 8. he cannot repent nor obey the will of God, no more then a dead stick can bring forth fruit. When by Faith we are ingrafted into Christ, then we receive power, not before; one that hath never been humbled aright for sin, cannot hate and flie from sin as he should: He that seeth not the love of God to him, cannot love God, nor set upon a good life; to deny his lusts, being as dear as his life, and to yield obedience, is irksom to nature: for this cause the Devil is such an enemy to our Faith, and labors to shake it, for then he knows he damps our care of a good life.
1. This condemns Papists,Use 1. that boast of holiness of life, and yet overthrow the foundation of it, (viz.) A true justifying faith: They may stir up good moods, and a blinde devotion, by scaring men with the pains of hell, and telling them of the joys of heaven, but no sound Obedience, godly Life, renouncing Lusts, &c. without the work of Faith, from that will be Obedience, even to suffering.
2. It confutes them that think Repentance is before Faith;Use 2. they are indeed wrought at once, and Repentance sheweth it self first, but in order of nature, Faith is as the root: Many humble souls hold off, and dare not believe, O say they, if I could repent so heartily as I see some, and could serve God as I would, then I could believe.
3. It teacheth men,Use 3. that if ever they will set upon a good life indeed, and in time, they must begin at the right end, and lay a foundation of true justifying faith; for want of this, many deceive themselves that have some purpose to do well, being afflicted, or somewhat stirred at the Word, and fall out of a bad course, to leave this and that evil, or take up good duties; and many that never had experience of the work of Faith, that think they live well, or some that upon some occasion thus promise, You shall never hear me swear more, Ile never play more, Never come in an Alehouse; yet this lasts not, but they fal to their old byase by and by, because they took not the right course: Many also purpose to repent, and do great matters, but this is a greater matter then the world thinks off; a man must first be the childe of God, ere he can obey, and Faith must be wrought first, ere he can come to true repentance; therefore put it not off, its not the work of a day, or sickness the fittest time to be allotted thereto, but constantly to be set upon, till we shall attain thereunto.
As obedient children] Or children of obedience, that is, given to obedience, and studying thereto with all their might of body and soul, as if you could imagine obedience to be a creature, and a mother that had children, resembling her self,Eph 5. 6. so must we be; the contrary hereof is elsewhere expressed,Col. 3. 6. Children of disobedience, that is, given over unto all disobedience, and in other places the like phrases, and to the same purpose are used, see 1 Kings 21. 5. Psal. 50. 18, 19. Mat. 7. 23.
Hereunto the Apostle exhorteth, for that they were called to be children,God calls for obedience. which strongly enforceth this duty of obedience.
Obedience is that which God still calls for, which he doth again and again require at our hands;Ier. 7. 23. its better then sacrifice, as contrarily,Iam. 1. 22. rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft.1 Sam. 15. 22. The Israelites (doubtless) spake well,Deut. 5. 29. But O that there were such an heart in them (saith God) that they would fear me, and keep my commandments always: Neither hearing the Word,See Isa. 38. 3. nor knowing or speaking of it, pleaseth God, without obeying;Iohn. 14. 15, 21. nothing else can comfort our Souls and Consciences in death; nothing else can approve us to be the servants of the Lord,Mat. 7. 24, 25. or that we love him,Iohn 10. 27. or that we shall continue to the end, His sheep hear his voyce, and follow him.
For the maner of our obedience:
1. We must obey,We must obey in all things. not to halves, or where we lift, but in all things, not as Saul or Herod, Psal. 119. 6.Nadab and Abihu; there were the same persons, incense,Luke 1. 6. censers, altar that should be, onelyonly the fire was not the same, who therefore were punished by fire from heaven.Lev. 10. 2.
2. We must not on the other side run without our errand,Which are commanded. nor do things whereof we have no commandment; this is no obedience, be it never so costly or painful, have it never so goodly a shew: And here falls to the ground all Will-worship of the Papist, to whom it will be said, Who required these things at your hands? as also all good intents without warrant of the actions: How was God displeased with them that offered their sons and daughters to the fire,Ier. 7. 31. having no such commandment from him.
Moreover,Be the commandment never so strange or unpleasing. we must obey the Commandment of the Lord, be it never so strange, harsh, unpleasing, or contrary to Nature, denying our selves contrary to custom, though all the world counsel to the contrary: and that not indenting or covenanting with the Lord beforehand for wages or success; as to say, I would do such a thing, so I thought no hurt would come of it, or that I should thrive in that course, or that I should not meet with trouble: no, we must follow the Lord, as the blinde man follows the staff of his leader, and chooseth not his own way. Thus did Abraham in forsaking his own Countrey at Gods Commandment in his old age; it was his Native Countrey, that wherein he had lived so long, he was to go he knew not whether: He had questionless contrary counsels of his Neighbors, What a mad man are you to remove now, and seek a new dwelling in your old age; you are here known, here are your Kindred, you know the Countrey, and have thriven: Its as if one should remove a tree that hath grown long in place, into another place when its old: Well, for all those he persisted in his obedience to Gods Commandment.
The Jesuits train up their Schollars in strange obedience,The strict obedience of the Iesuits to their Superiors as that they must do whatsoever their Superiors bid them, and that speedily without questioning; as to water a rotten tree, to pour a vessel of good wine into a gutter, to set trees with the roots upward, &c. when his Superior calls him to go in an instant, and not to stay to make up the circle of an O; when he is writing and made the one part of it, he must not stay to make up the other part: They to justifie this, and provoke to obedience, tell a miracle, That one thus called of his Superior, and leaving his O in the midst half made, at his return found it made up a perfect O, and so gilded, that it shined, &c. Such obedience owe we to God, and these rules be very good, so as the Commanders and Commandments were good. We must obey God directly, and never cast about beforehand what shall be the end, we must leave it to him, and to obey him must needs fall out well. Abraham did not amiss, but sped well in obeying God: So Noah and the rest. Abraham never shifted for himself, but twice about his wife, and he was like then to have spoiled himself, if God had not helpt him out of the bryars; So Jonah: Our own Devices never succeed, though never so likely. But we have such reaches beforehand, that mar our obedience: Oh, if I were ruled by the Preacher, I should not thrive by plain dealing, nor wax rich; or if I should leave such a course, or such a course, I should be poor; If I should do thus and thus, I should come to trouble: but let us do our duty, and let the Lord alone for his part to look to us; in obeying him we cannot do amiss. The wicked will leave their sin a little while it may be, through Sickness, or Fear, or Counsel, as the Dog that is beat from the Carrion,Simile. or called away, yet hath a Dogs eye back again after it,Mat. 21. 30. and will be at it again, as soon as one's back is turned; yea, and if haply they give good words, yet will not their doings be answerable.
3. We must obey without reasoning the case,Without consu1lting with flesh & blood. or consulting with flesh and blood; we must binde Reason hand and foot to follow God (as it were) blindefold, as Abraham in offering Isaac, and Joshua in compassing Jericho, 2 King. 5. 11.and not as Naaman the Syrian: Our Reason proves a very great enemy to obedience.
4. We must obey,Whosoever, or whatsoever be against it. whosoever or whatsoever be against it: If Profits, Pleasure, Farm, Oxen, &c. calls us away, and God invite us, we must follow him, else have we no part in him: If Father, Mother, Friend,See Deu. 13. 6. nay the Wife of our bosom entice us from him, we must not give ear to them; nay, if our right hand, eye, or foot offend us, we must cut them off and obey God. He that hates not father and mother, wife and children, Mat. 5. 29.yea his own life for my names sake (saith our Savior) is not worthy of me; Luke 14. 26.yea, if any should command and threaten us contrary to our obedience unto God,Dan. 3. 17, 18. we must not yield to them, but rather obey God then them.Acts 4. 19.
5. Speedily,Speedily. not hereafter, but to day, while it is called to day, &c. not repent hereafter, when I have taken my pleasure a while longer, hear Sermons when I am thus rich, have Prayer in my Family when such businesses and lets be over; nay, thou mayest be dead, or meet with more ere they be gone.
6. Voluntarily,Voluntarily. not be haled onelyonly by pain and misery, as Pharaoh; God loves a chearful servant.
7. Constantly,Constantly. not for a while, as Joash, but as Caleb and Joshua followed the Lord to the end, yea when most revolted: See the contrary punished in the Prophet that came from Bethel. 1 King. 13. 24.We must not be weary in well doing.Gal. 6. 9.
Reasons hereof may be these:Reasons.
1. Gods Soveraignty over us, we Clay, he our Maker.
2. His Will a rule of Righteousness.
3. His great mercies every way, even to the worst, but to his children wonderful ones.
1. This condemns them that are so far from obeying,Use 1. and that in all things, and after this maner,See Exod. 5. 2. that they will obey in nothing, but as if they were set to cross the Lord,Iob 21. 14, 15. what he forbids, they love, what he enjoyns,Ier. 6. 16. and 44. 16. they cannot away withal: They live like masterless men, as if they ought nothing to any, were beholding to none; What, art thou not a piece of Clay, the Lord thy Maker? even he that threw Angels out of Heaven, Adam out of Paradice, opened the Earth, rained down fire and brimstone on Sodom, &c. If his Soveraignty move thee not, consider, I beseech thee, his Goodness; Who hath nourished thee up? given thee a comely body, a reasonable Soul, and so long kept thee, that thou art not now in Hell? Whats all this for, that thou shouldst flie in his face that gives thee bread? He lets thee hear his Word, calls thee to Repentance, &c. Is it that thou shouldst tread these things under thy feet? Oh, thou art of thy father the Devil, whose works thou dost; and except thou fall down at the Lords footstool,Psal. 50. 22. and humble thy self before him, he will confound thee▪ O consider this, all ye that now forget God.
2. It condemns such also as obey God to halves,Use 2. and in what they list, in the mean time lying still in some beloved lust; So Pharaoh obeyed,Exod. 10. 26. so Herod and Saul: But as Moses would not part with one hoof, so will not God have us cast off any one Commandment; God will have no parting Stakes:1 King. 3. 26. The Devil, like the Harlot, would be contented with the one half, but God, like the true Mother, will have all or none. If God were so revenged of half-obedience under the Law, what then now? This halving is an Argument of no true Faith, for that purifieth the heart;Acts 15. 9. also of no Repentance, for he that repents truly of one sin, repents truly of all: Whosoever therefore thou art that dost thus, thou art in the gall of bitterness, and bond of iniquity, thou art in the state of damnation. If thou livest in the practice and love of one known sin, profitable or pleasing, this one shall be enough to sink thee down to destruction,Simile. as one leak in a Ship may endanger the whole, and one gate in a City open let in the Enemy.
3. This rebukes the servants of God that yet walk not in that obedience that were meet,Use 3. but leave undone this and that duty, slighting over others, and letting loose their affections and lusts; O this is not the chearful and constant obedience that we ought to perform in all things. If neither his Authority, nor his outward Benefits will move us, consider we his love towards us in Jesus Christ, that of children of wrath he hath made us his children, that by giving his Son, he hath freed us from Damnation, and means to save us: Oh, the Name of Children calls for much obedience,Gen. 13. 8. as the Name of Brethren should still all Controversie. And this is the Argument which the Apostle here useth to perswade to obedience: Oh, we be Gods Children, Children ought to obey their Parents, there's nothing more uncomely then the contrary, much more we the Father of our Spirits: Christ the natural Son was obedient to the death, How obedient then must we be, being but adopted ones?
Again,What may stir us up unto obedience. That he hath called us to the hope of such an Inheritance, what obedience doth this challenge? For this is the force of the coherence of Verse 13. with those that go before. Wherefore gird up the loyns of your minde, &c. That is, Seeing God hath done such and such things for us, let us trust perfectly on that grace that is brought unto us, and walk obediently: Yea, the more we profit in obedience, the more comfort we may have, that we be the Lords, and have true Faith; the more will our comfort be also in our death: So many of us therefore, as can prove our selves the Lords, do we labor to walk worthy hereof in all due obedience; and for others that know not they are the Lords, let them try it by obedience.
Many Covetous,Use 1. Usurers, Oppressors, Swearers, &c. will say, they believe: no, be tryed by this rule, If your heart stand to obey all Gods commandments, it is so; but while you live in any thing you know is sin, you are voyd of Faith.
Other poor humble Christians that hate sin deadly,Use 2. and unfeignedly desire to please God in all things, yet say, they cannot believe; Why? who hath wrought these things in you? Not flesh and blood, they are the gifts of Gods sanctifying Spirit, therefore they come from Faith; as if we see a Sun-beam, we say, the Sun is risen; if an Apple that is good,Simile. we say, there is a good Tree: Except therefore you will say that men can gather Figs of Thistles, or Grapes of Thorns, you cannot deny but that you have Faith; wheresoever Sanctification is, there Faith went before; O but I finde it but weak, yet as long as it is in truth, with desire of increase, it presupposes Faith: as if we see a Sun-beam, though but dimly, yet we say, the Sun is up, after it will shine out more clearly: So we say, its a good Tree, though the fruit be small at first, so long as it is good.
If any shall say,Obj. I feel in me no such thing now, therefore I have no Faith, what shall become of me?
Was it ever so with thee?Sol. Look to the time past, and thou must not deny the mercy of God shewed thee: Thou canst not deny, but it hath been so, then thou hast had Faith, then hast thou Faith still, though it seem raked up in the ashes:Simile. when thou with the bellows of Prayer and the Word, and God with his Spirit shall blow away these ashes, it will uncover it self, and burn out again.
Not fashioning your selves, Two parts of obedience.&c.] There are two parts of Obedience, or Repentance, a dying unto sin, and a living unto righteousness; a renouncing of lusts,Isa. 1. 16. and imbracing holiness; a ceasing to do evil, and a learning to do well;Rom. 12. 9. an abhorring of that which is evil,Col. 3. 10. and cleaving to that which is good; a putting off of the old man, and putting on of the new; he that hath the one, hath also the other, they are married by the Lord, and none can divorce them: Therefore if any man seem to have the one, and not the other, he hath neither in truth: If therefore any leave evil, and do not good, or if any do some good, and hate not all evil, he is but an hypocrite.
For the order here used,We must forsake evil before we can do good Simile. he sets renouncing of our lusts first, before imbracing of holiness; men put off their old rags, ere they can put on new apparel; purge the stomack of ill humors, ere they take good nourishment; dig up the weeds, ere they sow or set herbs: so in this case.
Where therefore there remaineth the love of any lust or sin, there is no true grace in that heart, neither will any grow till that be rooted out, God will not plant any of his grace there, till the Devils planting be pluckt up. Many think they be Christians, and do many things well, though they keep the love of some sin; no, mark, the love of grace and goodness, and the love of any sin, cannot be in one heart, they are so contrary the one to the other; therefore while thou livest in any known sin, and lovest any lust, as sure as God is in heaven thou art an hypocrite, and let me perish if there be one dram of true grace in thee, but thou standest in the state of damnation.
Therefore renounce and bid adieu to thy lusts;Use. and seeing you make a profession, and do many things, will you lose heaven for your lust, for one sin?1 Cor. 9. 24. so run that you may obtain, lose not heaven for a little, make either something or nothing of thy profession, banish from thee all sin, that God may work some true grace in thy heart.
In your ignorance] He fathers their following of lusts on their ignorance;Ignorance is the cause and root of a bad life. and ignorance is the cause and root of a wicked and bad life: For till men know the will of God out of his Word, how can they do it? and what are we prone to by nature, but to all the evil in the world? Therefore the devil labors by all means to hold people in blindness, & of all books, hath most been an enemy to the Bible, and to sincere and diligent reading and preaching the Scriptures, for were those away, he knows all iniquity must needs abound, as there did in Popery, when people were nuzled up in blindeness; O what abundance of sin was committed? but it did not so much appear, because they were in the dark, and the light of Gods word discovers sin, which was then very rare:Simile. As if one come into an house at midnight, he …ees no faults, but when the morning comes, then he sees a number of things out of order; so in this clear light of the Gospel, we see the wickedness that then appeared not in the dark. Whether will not our nature run? and whether may not the devil and world lead one, when he hath no eyes to see whether he goes? The blinde eats many a fly, and a man may lead a blinde man into the deepest pit.Simile. As the Raven first picks out the Lambs eyes, and then kills it at his pleasure, when it cannot see to escape away, so doth the devil by people: Ignorance is often compared to darkness, and they that go in the dark often stumble, fall, and hurt themselves: Sampson when blinde, was led to any thing, as to grinde, to make Sports, &c.
1. This teacheth us to desire that the clear light of the Word may shine more and more brightly into all places of this land,Use 1. for there are many places that have either no preaching, or else very seldom; So as for want of knowledge, people wallow in a number of lusts most fearfully, the Lords day most grievously Profaned, preachers slighted, &c.
2. Every Minister is to endeavor to the utmost of his power,Use 2. to bring their people to the knowledge of their duty, that so they may be either truly converted, or at least hereby restrained.
3. People are to labor for knowledge,Use 3. else they must needs be captives of many lusts: Think not as many do, because ye are poor and not book-learned, therefore you shall be held excused; many think their very ignorance shall be a good plea, because they know nothing, God will hold them excused:Iohn 3. 19. Is light come into the world, and shall mens sin (their ignorance) hold them excused? its otherwise.
4. All parents are to have a special care,Use 4. where and in what Towns and houses they place their children; they must place them where they may learn to know God, to discern between good and evil, and if it prevail not with them by and by, yet there's hope it shall lie as seed in their hearts, that will shoot up in time.
But how can he say,Why being so well instructed in the Law, they are here termed ignorant. In their ignorance, seeing they were well instructed and expert in the Law, having it read among them daily? and had they not good knowledge in the Law, and in the Prophets? True, yet he justly calls them ignorant; 1. Because though they were so cunning in the Law and Prophets, yet they knew not Jesus Christ, the end of the Law, and so the sum of all. 2. Their knowledge was onelyonly in their brain, and not effectual in their hearts to renew and reform them,Rom. 2 17, &c. but they were carried away by their lusts, notwithstanding of their knowledge.
1. Then all the knowledge in the world without the knowledge of Christ Jesus,All knowledge without the knowledge of Christ is nothing. is nothing: If a man could measure the heavens, tell the number of the stars, had skill in all Arts and Sciences whatsoever, yet without the knowledge of Christ it were vanity. Paul knew much being brought up at the feet of Gamaliel, Phil. 3. 8.But he counted all things else loss and dung for the excellent knowledge of Christ Jesus; 1 Cor. 2. 2.He desired to know nothing but Christ Jesus, and him crucified. If a man were the wisest in a County to arbitrate and compound controversies, yet all this were nothing without the knowledge of Christ.
2. All the knowledge of the world,Knowledge without reformation is but ignorance. if it reform not a man, is but ignorance; So much a man knows as he obeys: That is not knowledge that is in the brain, but that which soaketh down into the heart, and transformeth a man into the similitude thereof; so much men know, as they mortifie their lusts: He that lives after his lusts, let him have never such store of knowledge, he knows nothing yet as he ought to know: what if a man know he should not Swear, Lye, commit Adultery, &c. yet doing these is he any whit the better? Is he not rather much worse? Yea, the Devil himself hath more knowledge then any man: The world wonders many times to see men of great knowledge do such and such things: Alas, Knowledge and Conscience are two several things, and often sundred in the subject.
1. Then, let no man boast of his Knowledge: Many love to hear themselves talk, but look what power they have over their lusts, what mastery over their affections.
2. Do not we labor so much for knowledge,Use 2. as for the power of it; Therefore when we have heard a Sermon, let's not content our selves that we can repeat it, have a good memory and utterance, but by our selves pray earnestly, and travel upon our hearts, that it may effectually work in us: A little well learned of an humble Soul, craving to be ruled by it, is better then much that a vain bragger can repeat, that will be ruled in nothing but when he list.
But he would not have them live now they had Knowledge,Such as have attained knowledge, must not live as they did before. as they did in Ignorance, and now God having wrought in them the hope of eternal life, he would have them walk far otherwise then they did ere they had this; being called out of the world, they were not to live after the corrupt maners thereof.Rom. 12. 2. Men and women would be loath to be seen abroad in such attire as they go in on nights;Rom. 13. 11, 12. were it not a gross thing for any to do their work as badly by day light as in the dark night?Eph. 4. 17. & 5. 8.
People therefore that live under the Word,Use. must not do as they did before they heard it: Why may we not do this or that, will some say? we do but as we have done, and as other Towns do? well, is it not enough if upon your true humiliation God pardon the time of your ignorance,Iohn 9. 41. though he now expect obedience? and so must you now obey, else your sin will be great, and ye must be beaten with the more stripes: will God look that your work should be done no better then theirs that have no light,Luke 12. 47, 48 when he allows you candle? our conversation must be such as becometh the Gospel.Phil. 1. 27.
So for Christians that have received assurance of Gods love, and entred covenant with God, they must not yield to their lusts as others, to whom God hath not shewed such mercy, or as themselves did before they knew God in Christ Jesus: they must not be as worldly now as before they knew God to be their Father, and that there was a better inheritance for them; as proud now of apparel, following every fangle, as before they knew the true apparel of Christs righteousness, & to be deckt with grace to be the best attire; as froward as before they had the Spirit to refuse these corruptions; they must not backbite, slander, talk of other mens faults, rejoyce in their infirmities, as they did in the time of their ignorance; they must not talk of worldly matters on the Lords day, as they were wont ere they knew the holiness thereof, and what a strict rest & observation God requireth; nor follow gaming, as before when they knew no better mirth;Gal. 5. 25. nor be so vain in talk, as before they knew it to be a fault, & as carnal persons be: Then what singular thing do we? We must be now as much altered in our behavior, as our case, we hope, is altered from top to toe; as from being heirs of wrath, to be heirs of heaven: Kings sons and daughters must not live as every ordinary base person, nor Gods Chrildren as Worldlings. Let us therefore so many as have given our names to Christ indeed, and know our selves delivered out of this evil world, and are assured that God is our Father, and we his children, walk as it becometh children of such a Father, and such an hope of so glorious an inheritance, not avoiding gross and outward ungodliness onelyonly, but resisting our own lusts; for Christians must make an account they have themselves, their own very hearts to strive against: Our adversary is in our bosom and bowels, no marvel then if our strife be somewhat hard, for our crown after our victory is wonderful great.