Practical Discourses Volume 1, Discourse 11
JAMES I. 8.
A double minded Man is unstable in all his Ways.
BY a double-minded Man here we are to understand (as is plain from the Context) an insincere Man, one who pretends to Religion, and hath a good Inclination towards it, but is not arrived to a firm and prevailing Resolution of adhering to it, maugre all Temptations to the contrary; that bears some faint and ineffectual Regard to the Rules of his Duty, and the Dictates of his Conscience, but not such as hath the Superiority over him, and doth command and govern his Life and Conversation; not such as hath that prevailing Influence upon him, as to hinder him from being ordinarily counter-swayed by his Appetites, or Passions, or secular Interests to the Commission of unlawful and irregular Actions. So that the single-minded Man is one who hath no other Mind, no other prevailing Purpose and Resolution, but to adhere to God in the Profession and Practise of true Religion, and upon every Emergency, is ready fix'd to perform what God demands of him by the Voice of Revelation and right Reason; and in a Word, that lives under no other commanding Principle but this, I will always do what God will have me: and so on the contrary, the double-minded Man is one that fluctuates between Two Minds and Wills, a Will for God, and a Will for the World; and is governed sometimes by one, and sometimes by another, but is never true or constant to either. In short, he is one who being yet unsubdued to the commanding Power and Influence of Religion, hath no fix'd no determined Mind or Resolution; but is not only of several Minds upon several Occasions, but also of contrary Minds upon contrary Occasions. For his Heart is so divided between his God and his Interest, his Duty and his Lust, that like a Needle between Two Load-stones he is always wavering too and again, and pointing alternately to both, but is never fix'd to either. And of this Man the Apostle tells us, That he is unstable in all his Ways. Where by Ways according to the Hebrew Phraseology, he means Actions; he is unstable in all his Actions, that is, he always acts with an anxious, doubtful, and misgiving Mind; he knows not where to find himself, nor many times which way to turn himself; he leads a very uncertain, insecure, and unquiet Life, being all along perplexed and intangled in the whole Course of his Actions. The Words thus explained may be resolved into this Proposition;
That whilst Mens Minds are divided between God and their Lusts, and are not intirely subdued to his Will; they must necessarily lead very anxious, insecure, unstable Lives: That till such time as we Act from an intire Submission of our Souls to God, we can never act steadily and securely, but must be always fluctuating in great Anxiety and Uncertainty.
The Wise Man tells us, that, He that walketh uprightly, walketh surely Prov. 10. 9. He goes on in a direct, secure, and even Course of Action, wherein there is no Perplexity, or Intanglement; whereas the Life of a double-minded Hypocrite whose Heart is divided between God and the World, is a perpetual Maze and Labarinth, wherein the farther he goes, the more he is lost and confounded. And this will evidently appear upon the following Considerations.
1. That he acts upon no fixed or certain Principles.
2. That the Way and Course of his Actions is all obscure and intricate.
3. That he is always fain to live in a Disguise, and is therein insecure of Concealment.
4. That he is always at odds with himself, and in perpetual Variance with his own Reason.
5. That he is at a miserable Uncertainty as to the present Events and Issues of his own Actions.
6 That he hath a most dismal Prospect before him of the final Issue, and Event of all.
1. The double-minded Man acts upon no fixed or certain Principles. For the Principles he proceeds upon are such as have no Foundation in the Nature of Things, but, like Castles in the Air, are built upon meer Dreams and Delusions, which whenever his Reason awakes, will sink and disappear. For either he lives upon no Principles at all, but acts like the Beasts that Perish, upon blind Instincts, and the unaccountable Impulses of his brutal Sense; or upon such Principles as these, that there is no such Being in the World as an eternal, and invisible, almighty Power; or that if there be, he lives retired from us, and takes no Notice of what we do; or that if he doth, 'tis as an unconcern'd Spectator to whom it is purely indifferent whether we do Good or Evil; or that if he be at all pleased with our good Deeds, and displeased with our bad, yet it is not to any such Degree, as to intail any future Rewards upon the one, or Punishments on the other; or that if there be any such Rewards and Punishments prepared by him, they are so slight and inconsiderable, that the Loss of the one, and Sufferance of the other, are abundantly compensated by the present Pleasure of a sinful Life; or in fine, that if neither the one nor the other prove true, yet we may securely enjoy these Pleasures while we are able, and by repenting at last when we are old or dying, and are able to enjoy them no longer, may intitle our selves to those Rewards, whatsoever they are, and secure our selves from those Punishments. This is the Cham of Principles, upon which bad Men live and act, if they act upon any at all, and which are all of them grounded upon such doubtful Presumptions, such thin Pretences, and unsatisfactory Reasonings, as no Man in his Wits can ever be throughly secure of. For besides that they contradict the best and wisest Part of the World, the current Sense of humane Nature, and the common Consent of all Mankind, which are such Prejudices against them, as must necessarily render them very doubtful at least; besides all this, I say, they have so strong a Current of Evidence against them, and are over-powered with such a Force of Arguments from all the Quarters of Reason and Religion, and the contrary Principles are so much more agreeable to all the Appearances of Things, to the sacred Oracles, to human Society, and to the very Frame of human Nature; and in a Word, have every way so vast an Over-weight of Reason on their side, that it is impossible for any Man in a cold Mind to be confident that they are true, how much soever it may be his Interest to wish them so. So that whereas the sincere and upright Man living, as he doth, upon well-tried Principles that for their Truth have been always found most agreable to Reason, and for their Usefulness always approved by constant Experience, treads firmly and boldly, being secure of the Ground he goes upon; the double-minded Hypocrite, being all along uncertain of the Grounds of his Action, walks like a benighted Traveller in a dangerous Road, where he is fain to feel out his way, and to tread tenderly, and cautiously, lest his next step should be into a Bogg or a Precipice. And so long as he is insecure of the Principles upon which he acts, he can never be secure that he acts safely. He knows that if the Principles he goes upon prove false, he is undone, and whether they will prove so or no, he is at best uncertain; and so through the whole Course of his Sin and Life, he walks with an anxious and misgiving Mind, and goes trembling on between Hope and Fear to the final Issue and Event, which for all he knows may prove such as will put an end to all his Hopes for ever. For maugre all his Confidence, he cannot be sure but that when he dies, he may find all the Principles he acts on, baffled by a woful Experience; he may then feel that there is a God to whom Vengeance belongs, and an eterternal Life of Rewards and Punishments; and if he should, how will it blank and amaze him, to find himself, instead of being reduced to an insensible Substance, landed on a strange inhospitable Shore, inhabited with ghastly Furies, and miserable Ghosts, and shut up with them by a vast surrounding Gulph in everlasting Horror and Despair: and therefore seeing he can have no Security, but that such may be the fatal Close of his sinful Life, he must, when ever he cooly reflects, be miserably anxious, and uneasie, and expect the mighty Event with Dread, and dire Abodings.
2. The Way and Course of a double-minded Man's Actions is all obscure and intricate. For whereas the Course of an honest, upright Man is for the main of it chalked out to his hands, both by divine Revelation, and the natural and eternal Reasons of Things, and that so plainly, and clearly, that as soon as he opens his Eyes, he may easily discern it without any great Reach of Wit, or Depth of Judgment; the Rule of his Actions being open and direct, without any dark Subtilties, or intricate Windings and Turnings; the false pretending Hypocrite lives in a Maze, wherein having no certain Rule to go by, he is very often at a loss which way to direct himself. For having forsaken the plain Paths which God hath described to him, he is put upon inventing a Way for himself, of studying his own Steps, and groping to his End through a Labyrinth of popular Errors and Mistakes; in which he is oftentimes so lost and bewildered, that he knows neither where he is, nor whither to go next; and sometimes the Way that he takes lies quite cross to his Ends, and sometimes leads him about in such a wide Compass, that by that time he arrives at them, they are not worth his Travel; and even when he thinks himself most in the right, and goes on with the fullest Assurance, Time and Chance many times cast up so many Difficulties and perplexing Intercurrencies in his Way, as do puzzle all his Wit and Contrivance how to break through them. Thus when men leave God's Way which is a plain, a sure, and infallible one, and commit themselves to the Conduct of their own blind Wills and short-sighted Reason; they forsake the Light of the Sun to follow a Night-fire, which instead of conducting them in the plain and direct Way, carries them at random about in the Dark, leads them hither and thither, backwards and forwards, over Hedges and Ditches, through Breaks and Bogs, till they are lost and maz'd in their own Wandrings. While they walk in God's Way, they have God's Wisdom for their Guide, which cannot mislead them; there they have nothing to do, but to follow the easie Directions of an infallible Mind, to receive his Commands, and to obey them; there they are free from all the Trouble of forming new Resolutions, and inventing new Measures of Action upon new Emergencies; there they see their way plainly described to them, and are resolved once for all to pursue it through all Events, without any further Pause or Deliberation, being fully satisfied in themselves, that it is much safer for them to follow God's Will, which acts from infinite Goodness, by infinite Wisdom, with infinite Power, than to follow their own which they know by woful Experience is so liable to be imposed upon by false Shews and Appearances; and to mistake Poyson for Physick, and Evil for Good. Thus while they are in God's Way, they find all things direct, and plain, and easie to them, but when they divert into their own, there they have nothing to guide them bat a vain foolish Mind that is easily trick'd and imposed upon, and a blind Appetite that is conducted by a roaving Imagination; there they are fain to live by their Wits, upon extemporary Shifts and Evasions, and still to invent new Ways upon new Occasions, and to wander about in a mysterious Labyrinth of little Tricks and Contrivances, which instead of extricating them out of the Difficulties of Life, do commonly but more and more perplex and intangle them. And hence, as the Path of the Iust is in Scripture described to be as the shining Light Prov. 4. 18. to have nothing froward or perverse in them, and to be plain to him that understandeth Prov. 8. 8, 9. and to be an even Place, where none of his Steps shall slide. Psal. 26. 12. compar'd with 37. 31. So on the other side the Paths of the Wicked are said to be dark and crooked, Prov. 2. 13. 15. and to be uneven and slippery Jer. 23. 12. And in such a way as this, how is it possible for a Man to walk firmly and stably?
3. The double-minded Man is always fain to live in a Disguise, and is therein very insecure, of Concealment; and this also renders him unstable in all his ways: Tho' considering what a false and ill-natur'd World we live in, it is many times an honest and necessary Prudence for a Man to reserve his Mind, and not proclaim even his fairest Intentions in every ones Ear with whom he converses. But for a Man to live in a continual Disguise, and always look one Way, and row another, to counterfeit and dissemble, and mask his real Intentions with contrary Appearances, is a very uneasie Way of living; for there is twice the Difficulty in every Thing that he aims and drives at, as there is in an honest and above-board, Procedure. Here honest Ends are pursued by direct Means, without need of any Colour or Artifice; whereas, there commonly more Art is required to justifie the Means, than to manage them; and to dissemble the Ends, than to obtain them, For whilst the Ends a Man proposes be foul and dishonest, he must in his own Defence pretend quite contrary to his own Intentions; and to form and manage his Pretensions so artificially, as to conceal his bad Intentions under them, till they are executed, is commonly the greatest Difficulty in the Execution of them. For tho' Men may be foolish enough, yet they are not good-natur'd enough to be always imposed upon by fair Pretences; their very ill Nature makes them jealous and suspicious, and their Jealousie and Suspicion makes them prying and inquisitive. And what a deal of Art must it require for a Man to conceal himself, and carry on his ill Aims with any plausible Colour, when he hath so may jealous and inquisitive Eyes upon him? And then for a Man to dissemble, is an outrage to himself, 'tis to act against the Grain of his own Nature by making an outward Shew and Appearance of that which he inwardly hates. For while a Man pretends to be that which he is not, he must seem in his Actions to be that which he is most averse to, and all the while he doth so, he thwarts himself, and acts directly contrary to his own Inclinations. If his wicked Aims did not force him to hide himself, while he is making a formal Shew of Mortification, he would much rather be satiating his hungry Lusts; while he is hanging down his Head like a Bul-rush to disguise his Pride and Ambition, he would much rather be strutting, insulting, and domineering; while he is giving his Alms to be seen of Men, he would much rather be grinding and oppressing the Poor; and whilst in order to his devouring Widows houses he is making long Prayers, he would much rather be glutting his Avarice with the Spoil. So that all the while he pretends to be the contrary to what he is, he must practise the contrary to what he is inclined, and while he doth so, he offers a perpetual Force and Violence to himself. Now what an uneasie Way of living must this be, for a Man to be always studying how to conceal himself, and to be forced to live in a Disguise that he hates? and yet this is the Life of the double-minded Man that trains between God and the World. And then that which adds to his Uneasiness is, that after all he can never be secure of his Disguise; he knows that if he should be discovered through it, it would quite spoil his Game, and instead of setting a Gloss upon his foul Intentions, it would only render them more ugly and odious; there being nothing can render Wickedness more ugly than it is, but the Discovery and Appearance of it through the Vail of Sanctity. So that if ever his wicked Intentions should happen to be discovered, they will be sure to fare the worse for their being disguised, and 'tis a Thousand to One, but first or last some Accident or other detects and unmasks them; and then they are for ever baffled and disappointed. So that this double-minded Hypocrite walks like a Malefactor in a Vizard, afraid of every one that looks wishly upon him, jealous of being betray'd even by his own Voice, or Shape, or Deportment, full of anxious Thoughts, lest by some Accident or other his Vizard should drop off and discover him; being conscious to himself, that if ever the Mystery of his Iniquity should be unfolded, and what he hath acted behind the Curtain should be brought to Light, he shall not only lose all the Credit and Advantage of the Part he hath hitherto so artificially acted, but also be hiss'd off the Stage with Scorn and Infamy. And how then is it possible for a Man to walk steadily under such slippery Circumstances, when he dances upon a Rope as it were, where if he trips he falls, and if he falls is ruined.
4. He is always at odds with himself, and in perpetual Variance with his own Reason. There is a Sense in Mens Souls that doth as naturally distinguish between Good and Evil, as their Tast doth between bitter and sweet, and is equally pleased or offended by them. Whilst therefore this Sense remains alive within us, and in any Degree quick and perceptive, every Touch and Impression of Evil will more or less pain and aggrieve it, and till with the customary Impressions of Evil a Man hath sear'd and stupifi'd his Sense of it, he will never be able to sin in quiet for it, but upon every cold Reflection on his own ill Courses, will feel a sensible Remorse and Compunction. And this is inevitable to the double minded Man, who divides himself between God and his Lusts; for he retains so much of God, as will always keep his Sense of Good and Evil alive, and together with it, he retains so much of his Lusts, as will always disturb and offend it: so that at once he takes effectual Care both to preserve his Sense of Evil quick and vigorous, and to be perpetually vexing it with the painful Impressions of Evil, and so treats himself, as heretofore the Tormentors did the suffering Martyrs, who gave them Cordials to keep them alive, only to enable them to sustain more Torments. If he would wholly abandon God he might thereby extinguish his Sense of Evil, or if he would wholly abandon his Lusts, he might thereby prevent his sensation of Evil; but while he retains both, he retains both Sense for his Torment, and Torment for his Sense, and at once cherishes the Evil that afflicts his Sense, and preserves his Sense alive to endure the Affliction. There are no Two Things in the World can less endure one another in the same Breast than a sensible Conscience and a wicked Will, which like Fire and Water will be continually struggling till either the one is quenched, or the other evaporated. The Will will not let the Conscience be quiet, nor the Conscience the Will; and so those Two Commanding Powers of our Souls will live in perpetual Variance, and admit of no other Intercourse but mutual Violences and Outrages, till either the one is extinguished, or the other subdued. Whilst therefore a Man's Mind is double and divided, his Soul is in a State of War, there being Two irreconcilable Parties perpetually struggling within his Breast; a Law in his Mind fighting against the Law in his Members, his Reason against his Appetite, his Conscience against his Will; so that he can take neither Part without doing Violence to himself. If he sides with his Conscience, he outrages his Will, if he sides with his Will he forces his Conscience; If he take part with his Appetite, he makes War with his Reason; if he complies with his Reason, he bids defiance to his Appetite Thus which way soever he determins himself, he is sure to determine against one Part of himself; and it can never be otherwise till one of these adverse Parts of himself are subdued, and his double Mind is reduced to a single one. When he hath but one Mind, whether it be a good or a bad one, he will be at Peace and Unity with himself; but before he can have one good Mind, he must form a good Resolution, and follow it till he hath intirely subdued his Will and Appetite to his Reason and Conscience, and then the intestine War will conclude in a happy Peace; and so on the contrary, before he can have one bad Mind, he must abandon himself to all Ungodliness and worldly Lusts, and continually drink in Iniquity as the Horse drinks in Water, till he hath intoxicated his Reason with it, and stupified his Conscience; and then the intestine Struggle will conclude in a lethargick Quiet and Insensibility: But to arrive at this, is far more difficult than it is to acquire the former; for while a Man contends with his Reason and Conscience, he contends with his original Nature, and to vanquish that, is far more difficult than to subdue his wicked Will, and inordinate Appetite, which are but his acquired Nature, and consequently doth not so inseparably adhere to him, nor is so inveterate. But till his Conscience and his Reason are intirely vanquished, they will be struggling and contending; and whilst they do so, he will be continually at Odds and Variance with himself. He must act all along with a Selfcondemning Mind, and be content to endure the Reproaches of his Reason, and the Clamours of his Conscience; and while he doth so, he can never act steadily and securely. For whilst his Reason, which is to be his Guide, is dissatisfied with his Way, it is impossible for him to walk on without Dissidence and Anxiety; at every Step he must tread with Distrust, and proceed with a trembling Heart, lest the Ground should sink under him; and while he thus walks with a misgiving Conscience, and an ill-aboding Mind, it is impossible but he must be unstable in all his ways.
5. He is at a miserable Uncertainty as to the present Event and Issue of his Actions. He knows, or at least he shrewdly suspects, that there is a wise and all-seeing, a just and Almighty Providence that over-rules all Causes, and disposes of all Events, and without which there is nothing can succeed how wisely soever it is designed and projected. He knows that in this superintending Power and Providence there is an essential Goodness and rectitude of Nature, which invariably inclines it to love and bless Goodness and Righteousness, and to hate and curse their contraries in whomsoever it finds them; and being thus persuaded he cannot but conclude himself insecure whilst he either aims at unjust Ends, or uses unjust Means to obtain them, both the one and the other being infinitely odious to that overruling Power upon which his Success depends. For he must either imagine that the most probable Way to▪ oblige this Power to succeed him is to brave and hector it into a fawning Complyance with his Wishes, than which there is nothing more absurd and unreasonable; or be at least infinitely jealous and suspitious that the wicked Courses he takes will, instead of obliging it to prosper them, arm its Vengeance against them, and provoke it to determine them in some dire Event. For if God hath the disposal of all Events whether good or evil, it is certainly every whit as reasonable a Project for a Man to drink deadly Poyson to obtain his Health, or to commit high Treason to escape hanging, as to endeavour to obtain any Good, or to escape any Evil by such Courses as God hates and abhors. For if the Way to obtain his Favour is to please him, and the Way to please him is to do what is pleasing to him, as most certainly it is; then it is as evident as any Proposition in the Mathematicks, that he who endeavours by such Courses as he knows are displeasing to him to obtain any Good or avoid any Evil with God's disposal, uses the most contrary Means to effect his Ends, and only spends his Pains to thwart and countermine himself. The double-minded Man therefore being conscious to himself that he hath rendred God his Enemy can never be reasonably secure in his own Mind of obtaining any Good, or escaping any Evil that is in God's disposal. For tho' to serve the wise Ends of his Providence God many times gratifies bad Men, and gives them their own Hearts desire, yet for them to expect any Good at his hands, whilst the whole Course of their Actions is a continued Provocation of him, is the most unreasonable Presumption in the World; 'tis to suppose him not only insensible of Affronts and Injuries, but also fond of them, pleased and delighted with them to that Degree as to own himself obliged to crown and reward them with his Favours; For unless it be this, there is nothing they can fancy in the Nature of God that can incline him to be kind to them. While therefore they are in Pursuit of any Good, or in Flight from any Evil, if any wise Thought arise in their Mind concerning the Event, it must be very anxious and desponding. There is such a Good in my View which I would fain enjoy, and am resolved to use my utmost Endeavour to compass; but alas it is in the Disposal of God who is the Soveraign Arbitrator of my Fate, and unless he will be so kind as to award it to me, my utmost Skill and Conduct in the prosecution of it will prove insignificant; But how can I hope that he will succeed my Design, who hath so many Reasons to be my mortal Enemy; and if he will not, he hath ten Thousand Accidents under his Command by any one of which he can baffle and defeat me; and if he should gratify my Desire, I have no reason to believe that it is out of Kindness; and if it be not, instead of a Blessing it will prove a Curse to me. There is such an Evil hangs over me that I would fain escape, and am resolved to imploy my utmost Care and Industry to prevent it; but when I have done all, it is in the hand of God whose Vengeance I have armed against me by a Thousand Provocations; and if he will bring it upon me (which I have too much cause to fear) he can do it by those very Means whereby I am endeavouring to prevent it. And if he should succeed my Endeavours, I have just Ground to suspect that it will be in Displeasure to me; and then it will prove but the Removal of a less Evil to make way for a greater. Thus if he truly reason with himself concerning the Events of his own Actions, it must create in him infinite Despondence and Anxiety. And whilst a Man thus lives in Fear of the Event it will be impossible for him to act with any Steadiness or security. This therefore is the Case of the double-minded Man, who being conscious to himself that all Events are in God's Disposal, whom he hath so many ways provoked to be his Enemy, must necessarily act with a dubious and trembling Mind, being so uncertain within himself whether that which he is doing will issue in his Benefit or Bane.
6. And lastly, He hath a most dismal Prospect before him of the final Issue and Event of all. Whenever he casts his Eyes beyond this present Scene of Things, wherein his Mind is tossed to and fro in such infinite Uncertainties; there he sees nothing but dismal Horror and Tragedy, nothing but Darkness, Wretchedness and Despair; nothing but Famine to his Appetites, Anguish to his Mind, and Torment to his Conscience; nothing to accompany him but Devils and damned Ghosts, nothing to entertain him but horrible Thoughts and dire Reflections; which woful Prospect; if he hath not out sinned all Sense, must necessarily alarm all his Fears, and strike his very Soul into an Agony. And when a Man thus feels his present State bad, and foresees that the future will be ten Thousand Times worse, he must be a perfect Sot or a miserable Wretch. Whilst he is walking through this short Inclosure of Time here, at every Step he feels himself prick'd and torn by his own Cares, and Fears, and Anxieties, which like Bryars and Thorns grow up round about him; and when he looks over the Pale into the vast Field of Eternity, there he sees nothing but dire and horrid Spectacles, nothing but burning Wrath and Vengeance attending to persecute him to eternal Ages. So that whether he looks backwards or forwards, or but just before him, his Eyes can find nothing but uncomfortable Objects. That which is past is all tastless and insipid; that which is present is mostly nauseous and unpalatable; but that which is to come is all dire and intollerable; and this is the sting of his Misery. Were his past or present Circumstances far worse than they are, they were easy to be born in the Prospect of a more comfortable Futurity; but when this is worse, ten thousand times worse than the worst of what is either past or present, for a Man to pass through all these sad Things together with any Patience or Content requires the Hardiness and Insensibility of a Stone. It is sad enough, God knows, to walk through the Cares, and Fears, and Disquietudes which naturally attend a false and double Mind; but to walk through all these within full view of Hell, and at every Step to perceive ones self approaching nearer and nearer to it; is to pass through a most dismal Expectation to a more dismal Experience, which is doubtless the most woful Condition that humane Life can be exposed to. And yet this is the Condition of the double-minded Man; who acts his Sin with an Expectation of suffering eternally for it, and robs within sight of the Place of Execution. And when with that Persian Judge he is thus condemned to sit out all his Days with the Sword of eternal Vengeance hanging over him by a frail Thread of Life, which is every moment in danger of breaking; how is it possible he should enjoy himself in any tolerable Degree of Peace and Security of Mind. Doubtless if he hath any sense of danger, the Foresight of so great a one as this of being miserable for ever, must necessarily create in him a proportionable Fear and Anxiety, and consequently render him very unstable in all his Ways.
What then remains but that seeing the State of Hypocrites and double-minded Men is so wretched, and miserable, and insecure, we all of us from henceforth resolve, as we tender our own Ease and Quiet, to lay aside all Hypocrisy and Double-dealing, and act through the remaining Part of our Lives with Plainness, Integrity, and Simplicity of Mind. Of which way of living if you would once be persuaded to make a through Experiment, I dare engage you would find it abundantly more secure, and easy, and comfortable than that which you have hitherto pursued. And to convince you of the Truth of this, I will crave leave in a few Words to represent to you the Reverse of the double-minded Man's Life, and to shew you the opposite Advantages of living honestly and uprightly.
1. He who lives uprightly goes upon firm and stanch Principles, such as these, that there is a God that governs the World, that inspects all the Thoughts and Actions of Men, and will reward or punish them with eternal Happiness or Misery; which being founded upon as full Evidence as the Nature of the Thing will bear, and attested by the inmost sense of humane Nature, by the Consent of wise Men of all Ages, Nations, and Religions, and in short by the unanimous Vote of Mankind, are such as will endure the Test of our severest Reason, and give ample Satisfaction of their Truth to the most inquisitive Minds. The upright Man therefore proceeding upon such Principles as these treads upon firm ground, which he is secure will never sink under him, and which is more, if it should will in the End leave him in as good Condition as those who proceed upon the contrary Principles. For whereas if their Principles prove false, their acting upon them will prove their eternal Ruin, if his should prove so, he will live more at Ease for them, more suitably to his Nature, and more satisfied with himself; and when he dies, he will only be left in the same Condition with them, in a State of eternal Sleep and Insensibility. So that if his Principles should prove false, he can never be the worse for acting upon them; but if they should prove true, he will be infinitely the better. And 'tis a vast security to the Mind to proceed upon such Principles as, if they prove false, will leave us safe and at rest, and if they prove true will leave us eternally happy.
2. The upright Man walks in a plain, easy, and direct Way. Those eternal Tracts of Righteousness and Goodness wherein he walks are so plainly characterized upon his Heart and Conscience by the Finger of God, and described and inculcated in the divine Oracles with so bright a Sun-beam, that if he honestly enquire he cannot miss them, and when he hath found them he cannot easily swerve from them. For whereas Wickedness is a boundless Wilderness whose Paths do all thwart and cross one another, all Vices consisting in Extremes which are direct Contraries, and being either the Defects or Excesses of some Virtue; so that there are not only two Vices to every one Vertue, but both are Extremes running counter to one another: the Paths of Virtue lye straight forward between these vicious Extremes, and like parallel Lines never interfere. So that here a Man may walk on safely without any great Reach of Wit, or laborious Diligence of Enquiry, and needs do no more than follow Solomons Direction; Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eye-lids look straight before thee. Turn not to the right hand, nor to the left. Prov. 4. 24. 27. Here, according to the Prophet, is an high-way, called the way of holiness; the way-faring men, tho' fools, shall not err therein, Isaiah 35. 8. And having so plain and direct a way before him he needs neither tire himself in the search of it, nor rack his Brains with any anxious Deliberations in the Choice of it, nor grate his Mind with Scruples and galling Regrets in the Pursuit of it; but may always find it with Ease, and follow it with Security.
3. The upright Man acts openly and without fear of Discovery; for being conscious to himself both that his Intentions are clear, and his Prosecutions of them fair and honest, he could be well enough content that he had a Window into his Breast that all the world might see through him. He knows that his Thoughts and Actions are such as will endure sounding, and bear sifting to the Bottom; and therefore takes no care to disguise himself in false shews and Appearances. For he who can reflect upon himself with Satisfaction and Complacency may look all the World in the face with Confidence and Assurance; as knowing that the more curiously he is watch'd, and the more exactly he is scanned, the more highly he shall be approved by all that are wise and good. And tho' his Reputation may for a while be clouded by Malice or Mistake, yet he is fully satisfied that one time or other the very Light of Things will scatter these Mists, and clear these Misprisions, and that then he shall shine the brighter for being over-cast. And being thus satisfied he walks openly through the World with a bare Face, and in the sight of the Sun, having no Occasion to Skulk into Coverts and Retirements.
4. The upright Man lives in Peace with himself, and in an amicable Accord with his own Reason and Conscience. For he who follows his Reason, and makes his Conscience his Guide (as every upright Man doth) can neither be reproached by the one, nor condemned by the other; And having to all his Aims and Actions the full Approbation of his Reason and Conscience in reiterated Ecchos resounding after him, he hath always good Weather within and a clear Sky above him, wherein his Mind breaths none … and wholsome Thoughts, and hath a … Confidence, and a chearful Satisfaction in every Thing he doth, as being agreeable to his own Reason, conformable to his Duty, and worthy of himself. And being thus crowned with the Applauses of his own Conscience, he goes on through all the Difficulties of Life with Alacrity and Courage, having nothing from within to countermand or controul him, no Sting of Remorse for what he hath done, nor Check or Strugling against what he is doing; nothing to pull him back from his way, or to cause him to halt in it, or any way to disturb and distract him in his Motion. And when at any time he is balk'd and defeated in any of his honest Designs and Prosecutions, he goes on with an exact Mind under the Disappointment, triumphing in the Integrity of his Heart and the Innocence of his Procedure, having a Paradise within him where he lives at Ease, and enjoys himself in Serenity and Peace; let Things be never so stormy and tempestuous without.
5. The upright Man is secure of the good Issues and Events of his honest Aims and Prosecutions. Not that he is confident that Things shall always succeed according to his present Aims and Desires; but this he is sure of, that they shall always succeed as God would have them, who is wiser than he, and loves him better than he loves himself. He is satisfied with this, that God will never cross him but for very good Reasons; such Reasons, as if he himself did fully comprehend, would make him heartily wish that God in his tender Mercy would cross and disappoint him; and living under this Persuasion, he is secure in his own Mind that he shall either have what he desires, or something better in Exchange. He builds upon this, that if what he is projecting be good for him, it shall certainly succeed according to his Wishes; but that whether it be good for him or no, God knows better than he, and therefore if it doth not succeed, it is well for him that it doth not; because God certainly knew that it was not good for him that it should: And to be disappointed of those Hopes which he fancies are good for him, is a Thousand Times more for his Interest than to be gratified, which God knows will be hurtful to him; because he is certain, both that he may be mistaken, and that God cannot. Wherefore let the worst that can arrive, (or that which through his Blindness and Folly he esteems the worst;) this he depends upon, that matters being rightly stated, he shall in the Issue of Things come off very well, so as to be a Gainer in the foot of the Account; and being thus persuaded, his Mind is not harrased like other Mens, with anxious Thoughts concerning the Event, but let what will happen, he goes on with a calm and satisfied Mind, and embraces his Fortune with Satisfaction and Complacency.
6. And lastly, He hath a fair and glorious Prospect before him of the Issue and Events of all. The Sense of his own Integrity and Uprightness hath raised him to a glorious Hope, whereon he stands, like Moses on the Top of Pisgah, surveying the heavenly Canaan, whose fruitful Soil abounds with every Good, and flows with everlasting Pleasure: From whence with joyful Eyes he sees the happy Period of his tedious March through this barren Wilderness of Life: He sees the blisful Mansions and Abodes, that the God of Love hath prepared to receive him; he sees them most richly furnished with all the Delights that his vast hungry Desires can crave or swallow to eternal Ages. He sees that there is nothing but a short momentary Death, that like the River Iordan, separates this Wilderness from that heavenly Land, and that as soon as ever he hath past and forded this, his Travel will conclude in endless Rest and Pleasure, in the Accomplishment of all his Hopes, and the full Satisfaction of all his Wishes. With the Prospective of his Faith and Hope he beholds the illustrious Orders of Angels, the glorious Company of Apostles, the goodly Fellowship of Prophets, the noble Army of Martyrs, with Crowns of Glory and Blessedness on their Heads, beckoning to him from the farther Shore, to make haste thither, and come into the joyous Participation of their Society and Happiness. The sight of all which glorious Things, inspires his Heart with such an Addition of new Life and Vigour, as carries him on with Chearfulness and Alacrity through all the weary Stages of his Life; for he who walks with Heaven in his Eye, is a Thousand Times happier in his Expectation, than if he had all the Goods this World affords in his Possession. The upright Man therefore having this blessed Expectation before him, he goes on with a bold and secure Mind, and in his Course is steadfast and immovable, always abounding in the Work of the Lord; for as much as he knows that his Labour shall not be in vain in the Lord. Seeing therefore the vast Advantages Integrity and Uprightness hath of Double-dealing, as we tender our own Ease and Security, let us all study for the Future, to lead the Remainder of our Lives in exact Sincerity, and Simplicity of Heart; which will not only extricate us from the greatest Difficulties and Perplexities of this present Life, but also crown us with immortal Ease and Happiness in the Life to come: Which God of his infinite Mercy grant, to whom be Honour, and Glory, and Praise, from this time forth and for ever.
Amen.
FINIS.
Books Printed for Walt. Kettilby at the Bishop's-head in St. Paul's Church-yard.
DR. Scott's Christian Life; 4 Vol. 8o Mysteries in Religion vindicated, or the Filiation, Deity, and Satisfaction of our Saviour asserted against Socinians and others, with occasional Reflections on several late Pamphlets; by Luke Milburn a Presbyter of the Church of Engl.
Allen's Works; 4 Vol. 8o
Of Trust in God, or a Discourse concerning casting our Care upon God in all our Difficulties; together with an Exhortation to patient suffering for Righteousness; in a Sermon on 1 Pet. 3. 14, 15. by Nath Spinks M. A. a Presbyter of the Church of England.
A Discourse concerning Lent, in Two Parts; the first, an Historical Account of its Observation; the second, an Essay concerning its Original: this subdivided into Two Repartitions; 1 st Preparatory, and shews that most of our Christian Ordinances are derived from the Jews; the 2d conjectures that Lent is of the same Original; by George Hooper D. D. Dean of Canterbury, and Chaplain in Ordinary to His Majesty 8o.
An Essay to revive the antient Charity and Piety; wherein God's Rights in our Estates, and our Obligation to maintain his Service, Religion, and Charity, is demonstrated and defended against the Pretences of Covetousness and Appropriation, in Two Discourses; written to a Person of Honour and Virtue: by George Burghope Rector of Little Gaddesden in the County of Hertford, and Chaplain to the Right Honorable Iohn Earl of Bridgewater. 8.
End of the text · John Scott, Practical Discourses Volume 1 (1697)